Brian let out a low whistle as the large mirrored door to the Numbani headquarters for the Viskar corporation closed behind him. The ground floor lobby was smooth white marble, polished to a high shine, with thin, delicate swirls of black and pink running through it, making intricate designs. In fact, the ebbs and flows of the color moved seamlessly across the floors, walls and ceilings, giving no hint at seams, as if the slabs were single giant pieces.
Before Brian was a low, wide desk of some sort of dark, warm wood, topped with another section of marble, this time black, with subtle golden flecks throughout. And standing behind the desk was a small man wearing a dark blue presed suit. His hair was deep black, yet thinning on top. The slight comb over gave testament to the small battle with time that the man seemed to be waging. A polite smile creased his deep brown face, dark eyes taking in Brian, and his small group.
"Yes?" The man, 'Adi', from his name tag, asked with a slight inclination of his head. "How may I be of assistance?"
Behind Adi, stood two banks of chrome elevators, each flanked by large men in dark suits. They stood stiffly as they eyed Brian. Well….they probably eyed the cybernetic ninja that stood silently behind him. And Efi. And Timmy.
"I have an appointment," Efi walked straight to the desk and looked up, her hands on her waist. Her grin widened as Adi gave a slightly strained smile.
"Yes, I am sure," Adi cleared his throat. "I am afraid I do not have time to play with children. If you don't mind moving along?"
Brian blinked for a moment before giving his head a small shake. He wasn't used to people not recognizing Efi. Seeing as posters and banners that bore her face seemed to be all over the city, even a year after her grant from the government.
"Huh…" Efi seemed almost as startled as Brian, her smile wilting slightly.
"This is Efi Oladele," Brian cut in, bringing the man's irritated look to himself. With a mental shrug, Brian then gestured to his brother. "And this is Tim. They have an appointment to speak to Satya Vaswani."
Dropping Efi's name seemed to do the trick. Adi's expression broke into a slightly worried one as he cleared his throat. Quickly, he began typing into a small computer before blanching slightly. "Yes...I see now, I do hope you can forgive my-" A small phone on the desk beeped quietly, interrupting the man who now paled a bit. Slowly, he reached out a hand to the phone. It beeped again, seeming to snap the man out of whatever daze he had gone into as he snatched it up, pressing it to his ear. "Y-yes?"
Brian didn't think the man could grow paler than he already had, but somehow, he managed it as a small bead of sweat ran down the side of his forehead. "But...I….yes….yes….No!" Adi gasped now, thick tongued. "Please! I didn't-"
This time Adi was interrupted by a thick hand dropping heavily onto his shoulder as one of the guards that had been bracing the elevators stepped behind him. If Brian hadn't encountered Reinhardt, he would have thought this man to be ridiculously huge. Instead he was simple moderately large.
"Please excuse our former employee," the man's deep voice rumbled, surprisingly gentle for his size. "If you would, elevator two is open to take you directly to Miss Vaswani's office."
"Uh…" Brian blinked and shared a confused look, first with Efi, then with Genji. "The guy was just a bit of a jerk. There really isn't a need to fire him, is there?"
The large man smiled gently. "You are most kind," he bowed his head slightly before his expression went icy. "I am afraid this is not Mister Adi's first breach of etiquette, which is something Miss Vaswani takes very seriously."
"Maybe we should just more on, Brian," Efi cleared her throat as she absently gripped Timmy's hand. The gesture seemed natural and unplanned. The kind of thing one did when startled, unnoticed by the participants.
Miss Vaswani, in as few words as possible was...Beautiful, graceful, elegant, and arrogant. Her office was immaculate. Scarily so. Pictures of people from her homeland, dancing, or general life, hung at precise intervals along the wall. They were all the exact same size, top to bottom, left to right. The thick carpet bore an intricate weave that struck Brian as some sort of geometric pattern. At least that was what it gave off.
The room itself was a cube, the far wall being actually a bay window that looked out over the city of Numbani. It was actually a stunning view, even from the back of the room, by the elevator. In front of that view was a white metal sided desk with a heavy dark brown wooden top. Four chairs were placed in a semicircle around the front of the desk itself. In front of the woman who now stood to greet them with a polite, small smile.
"Thank you for coming," Satya inclined her head in a slight bow. "I also apologize for the rudeness at my door." Her bow deepened.
"Ah! No! It's fine! Really!" Efi waved her arms in front of herself, in a mild panic. "You don't have to worry about it!"
"You are very gracious," Satya smiled as she stood and gestured to the set of chairs. "If you wouldn't mind having a seat? I am aware of Miss Oladele, as well as Timmy, with his guardian, Brian. I am, however, unfamiliar with your companion."
Brian couldn't help but notice the slight crinkle of Satya's brow as she looked at the cyber-ninja. In fact, it kinda gave him a bit of a perverse pleasure.
"Oh, this is Shimada Genji," Efi shifted to indicate the man. "We have had some...incidents, and your people specifically requested that I leave Orisa. However, I didn't feel it prudent that I be unprotected."
"I see," Satya's frown disappeared and was replaced by a tiny, victorious smirk. She was polite, however, and waited for the group to settle themselves before sitting, herself. Well...except for Genji. He stood a bit apart from the group, leaning on a wall with his arms crossed, his head angled down with his eyes closed.
"You are probably wondering why I asked you here," Satya began. Her hands came together as she made a few fluid gestures before drawing them apart. Seemingly attached to her fingers, a vid screen opened. The image was one they recognized from the local news. It was from a drone that had circled Efi's shop just after the attack. "In part, I wish for your assistance in helping the Vishkar Corporation gain some, if not all, of the rebuilding contracts for the damage dealt to the city by Talon's terrorist activities."
"My help?" Efi tilted her head with a look of surprise.
"Yes, you are quite respected in this city," Satya smiled a little more. "Your voice would carry a lot of weight."
"Orisa stood up to the Talon agents effectively," Brian added. "Combined with the grants and how you have been helping the people, they would snap onto just about anything you suggested."
Efi's mouth took the 'Oh' shape as she nodded, digesting the information.
"I'm going out on a limb here and guess you are also hoping to hire Efi and Timmy," Brian continued, his arms crossing over his chest. He kept his face as neutral as he could, even as the subtle flashes of irritation came across Satya's.
"Yes,..." Satya admitted after a moment. "That was also part of my hope. The talent you both have is considerable. As is the funding that Ishkar is willing to put into projects of significance."
Brian's arms crossed over his chest as he met her gaze dead on. "Your company doesn't exactly have the greatest reputation, Miss Vaswani."
Satya's eyes remained locked on Brian's in a seeming battle of wills. One that neither side was willing to back down from. Until there was movement on Satya's desk.
"Boy!" she snapped at Timmy, her face twisting in anger as she looked down at him. "What are you doing?!"
Timmy froze, in his hands was a small stack of papers. He held them up as he had just been tapping them into an even stack. Then Brian noticed the rest of Satya's desk. Pens sat aligned by color, size and type. The pen cup sat in such a way that it was even with the desk phone, stapler and a small holo of an older couple, her parents, Brian assumed.
"Um…" Timmy swallowed as she slowly finished straightening out the papers and setting them down. "You were talking a bunch about stuff I don't really get. And I noticed how organized you are." He gestured around the office. "And I noticed some of your desk was a bit off. It was kinda bothering me, so I needed to fix it. I'm sorry."
Looking at his shoes, Timmy hunched down, letting his hair fall over his face. He had messed up, and he knew it. He was so stupid sometimes…
"No," a gentle voice spoke. "Thank you."
Timmy blinked and looked up through watery eyes. Satya had come around the desk and squatted down in front of him. Her pretty face dipped low to catch his eyes as she smiled. For the first time, the smile seemed genuine.
"I am not the...kindest, person," Satya gave a self deprecating look. "In fact, I have a hard time understanding people. But the thing I despise, is chaos. I make things neat. Orderly. And I do it too much. I understand your need, and I thank you for your help."
"Sure," timmy smiled hesitantly and glanced back to Efi. Her slight frown and burning eyes frightened him some.
"I think I would like to amend my offer," Satya nodded as she stood and half sat on the edge of her desk.
"Oh?" Brian raised an eyebrow. His arms were still crossed, though. That meant he was serious.
"I would still appreciate your voice in our contracts with the city," Satya said. "However, I do not think working with Vishkar directly would be the best fit for either of the children."
"Alright…" Brian's eye narrowed now.
"I propose that we give Efi and Tim a grant," Satya looked thoughtfully at the children. "We will make specific requests in their respective fields, but they will have the option to pass on contracts they find objectionable."
"I think I need to look at the contract and talk to my family," Efi looked thoughtful as he hand rubbed absently at her chin.
"Of course," Satya smirked. "I have to run my proposal through legal and have the paperwork written up. I will contact you when it is ready for you to look over. We can make adjustments that would satisfy both sides, I am sure."
Sliding off her chair, Efi held out a hand with a grin. "I am looking forward to conversations in the future."
Satya hesitated only for a split second before taking the hand with a small smile of her own. "I look forward to a good relationship as well."