Watching From The Distance

      There have been many successes and failures in my life, but there's never been a larger failure than this one.  Watching my own business building crumble in freefall from my home in the distance was nothing that I or anyone would have ever expected to happen in their lifetime. But there's no denying the fact that what I've done is deserving.  The business I served under and played a role in was not only deserving but in need of this travesty, as heavy hearted as I acknowledge it.  My company that I had built from the ground up has been devastated by an attack that has destroyed our company headquarters building and was done as a warning to those who I had used and abused.

      My company was one of the largest in its business sector, focusing on making the fastest processors on the planet and selling them like hotcakes.  But the materials for each chip don't come cheap, as absurdly as some people may claim the chips to be.  No, the components for each chip need to be mined out of areas rich in gold, tungsten, and copper, all places where mining needed to be large scale and relatively cheap.  I was the industry executive who pushed harder than anyone to try and purchase minerals from the cheapest locations possible for my computer chips, even if it meant the cost of lives in the process.

     There were a few mining companies in Africa who mined out precious minerals and sold them fairly cheaply.  At the time, the business venture was honest and worked out perfectly for my company.  The mining companies received enough money to sustain the local economy there, and I had proper materials to build high-tech computer chips out of.  Business was booming for my company, and company contracts to make computer chips for all kinds of companies caused our profit margin to skyrocket.  But there came a problem when my original business partners were replaced by warlords who had taken control of the mines for profit.

       I didn't want to deal business with them, but I relied too much on the mines for reliable materials.  So I continued to pay the warlords at the same rate I had been paying before.  They took the money, and I took the minerals without questioning their practice or methods.  But recently, things began to change drastically.  Thousands of people in the mines began to lose their lives from mines collapsing in or from the warlords murdering the workers over a slightly smaller profit haul.  I found this practice to be appalling, especially after being sent photos of the mutilated bodies, having been slashed and beaten before executed by firing squad.  The images were truly horrifying, and the abuse was abysmal beyond even the more measured opinions of sadists.  This cruelty was terrible, but my company board members told me to continue business with them.

        Any requests to withdraw from trade agreements were brought down by the head of the board, president Ivan Kramblin.  His demands to remain a cheap method of obtaining raw materials stood above all other alternatives in his eyes.  He didn't care for the safety or lives of the miners in Africa.  What mattered to him above all else was extra money for him to take from his investments when his cut of the profits came in.  Any requests to look into new business partners were denied.  Ivan wanted nothing other than cheap resources, and he didn't care how many people died for him to get them.

       As a result, this practice continued on for many years up to my present day, but the warlords in charge of the mines began to demand more money.  The thirst for cash grew, and with the slow increase in money we began to supply to the warlords, the more and more they pressured the workers working under them to work harder.  Many photos were sent to me of the vicious and often deadly progress that many workers under their care experienced.  There seemed no hope for these workers, that was, until I spoke with a man who helped me to change everything.

       I knew there would be no way to simply convince Ivan that working with a partner who could supply us with conflict-free materials, partly because Ivan secretly craved the horrific torture and violence the workers endured.  So I and my new business partner hatched a plan to undercut Ivan.  We began to slowly smear his reputation amongst the board executives and members of the company.  He was shown to be a horrific and cruel man who gained pleasure from watching others suffer and gaining a higher profit margin from forcing others to undergo said pain.  Shortly after doing this, Ivan made a move to have me fired and removed from the company.  He no longer wanted me serving as company CEO and wanted me replaced.  He was power hungry, and the only way to stop him from harming other people more would be to undercut him.

      I spoke privately with the warlords that we received materials from.  We weren't the only company who sought out cheap materials, so cutting ties with them would be fairly simple, but I wasn't quite done with their services just yet.  I paid one of the warlords a million dollars from my own funds and sent an attack helicopter for his men to use.  The plan was simple, undercut Ivan when he least expected it.  But something stuck in my mind, and it was something Ivan told me before I was officially fired from the company, "I run this business.  I'm the dictator and the only way you'll succeed past me is if you cut me down."

      With my company's reputation tainted by Ivan's actions which became more and more prevalent in news circles, I needed to get rid of Ivan and fast.  So I scheduled the time of the attack to be a Friday evening, this evening, and sent the soldiers to attack the building I once owned and loved.  Ivan was always busy working late at the main board office, always looking to make more company bucks, so dispatching of him was simple.  The soldiers flew in without warning and sent a flurry of missiles careening into the building's side and base.  After shooting the missiles, they launched large machine guns into action and completely decimated Ivan's office, leaving the room a bloody mess that would be irreparable and impossible to identify.

      Ivan was out of the picture, and my once company building began its slow descent in freefall towards the ground.  My old company may be in shambles from my previous mistakes, but I promise to build an even brighter future.  With my riches, investments, and a new conflict-free business partner, the future of my newly rebranded company looks much brighter than when it was first started all those years ago.  I may have come a long way, but I needed to eliminate Ivan from the picture if I was ever to reach my full potential.  But this only makes sense, as he was there with since the very beginning.  So with a heavy heart for my past company, and a heavy drink in hand, I bid my past company and Ivan farewell.  Ivan was a powerful role model, but one I surpassed with ease.  After all, I to search for power, but under better means.  I suppose the saying is true after all Ivan, like father, like son.