The balcony above the lounge is cordoned off by a thin security line and a flickering warning beacon.
Broken glass crunches underfoot as the storm outside flashes across the city skyline.
A voice log auto-plays from the desk terminal beside an overturned chair.
[ARCHIVED AUDIO LOG — EXECUTIVE OFFICE 31A]
Date: December 24, 20XX — 22:41 hours
Speaker: GORDON VALE
“Tonight’s the demonstration. The board wants miracles, and I intend to give them one.
People remember the man who delivers results, not the names on the payroll he cuts to get there.”
Sound of liquid pouring. A laugh follows.
“They call me ruthless. Maybe they’re right.
But this tower stands because I made the hard calls when everyone else blinked.”
He pauses — glass clinking against metal.
“Holly will handle the HR fallout; she always does.
Frost thinks the adapter’s unstable — he’s brilliant, but paranoid.
And Rick…” (chuckle) “Rick’s been predicting the end since the foundation was poured.”
“Let them worry.
After tonight, there won’t be a company that can touch Nakatomi.”
Static overtakes the recording. The file ends mid-sentence.
[SYSTEM RECORD NOTE]
Recovered from encrypted folder: ‘SmartServe Launch_Personal.’
File automatically copied to internal investigation drive.
Return to Floor 30 — Lounge & PR Event Space