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FOREST
Iwas in my office when the missing drone returned to me looking like it had been in a war.
I’d been taking a break from focused work to check my emails and hydrate. Around me, my office was lit up with computer monitors of varying sizes. An array of lights blinked on and off on the walls, ceilings, floor. Some I’d forgotten the purpose of.
Most CEO’s offices were not like this, I gathered. I’d seen the comparatively stylish offices of my brothers. But this suited me well. The only downside of the room’s intensive setup was that it was easy to forget to drink water, eat, even breathe, when I became too focused. And these days I was more focused than ever.
I put my water bottle down, pushed up my glasses, deactivated the drone, and caught it out of the air to examine it.
A message was tied to it, as if to a carrier pigeon. It read: “You’re next. Apollo :)”
Shit. I’d been found out.
Drones weren’t exactly subtle spies, but I thought I’d managed to programme them to stay entirely out of sight based on Apollo’s specific mannerisms, body language, speech patterns. Every piece of information I had on my half-brother I’d poured into the software so that it could learn and adapt, so that the drone would know when to hide and when it could peek out and gather intel for me. For example, when he was sleeping.
Now, I might sound like a maniac based on what you’ve just read. Bear with me while I fill you in on exactly who Apollo is.
Apollo and I, we’re technically brothers – biologically half-brothers, in fact – but I’d never claim him as family. We’ve never been on friendly terms due to his megalomaniacal streak. And then, last year he declared war on my brother Jude. In the process Apollo almost destroyed Jude’s public reputation, his relationship, and the reputation of a worthwhile charity.
Mess with me, and I might let it slide. But mess with my brothers and you deserve what’s coming for you. Apollo had basically declared all-out war on all four of us.
‘War’ in this case being the kind of war that billionaires could fight secretly, as opposed to more traditional warfare. The drones were strictly espionage, not weapons. For now, anyway.
I took a deep breath and a quick photo of the note, then sent the image into the group chat with my brothers Jude, Sylvester and Winston. They were supportive and I loved them dearly, even if they were major dickheads sometimes. Replies came in quickly, as they always did for any updates on Apollo’s activities.
Sylvester:@Forest... what did you do?
Forest:Not much
Sylvester:@Forest...
Forest:A bit of espionage
Winston:He must have been in one of his more irritable moods
Winston:Reckon the smiley face means he’s joking?
Sylvester:Oh, sweet Winston. I love your entirely undeserved optimism
Winston:I just want a quiet life
Jude:First I’m hearing of it @Winston
Jude:@Forest, are you safe?
Forest:Yeah, he attached it to one of my drones. No biggie
Sylvester:I swear to god you’re a menace with those drones
Forest:You never wanted to be a hundred places at once?
Winston:Shut up everyone, I’m trying to concentrate. Save it for later
Sylvester:Mute your notifications then you technophobe
Winston:And have 9999+ unread emails like you?
Sylvester:You wish you were that popular
