A/N: And finally, the last part I worked on before I lost motivation. I have a better understanding of how business works now, lol, so future corporate espionage (if I get around to this again) doesn't seem like such a daunting idea to tackle anymore. Anyway, enjoy the real world!
Meanwhile, in the real world…
"What do you mean you're sacking me?!"
Sam Flynn rubbed his eyes in weary irritation at the whining tone in (former CEO of ENCOM) Richard Mackey's voice. He was very quickly beginning to remember why the only time he'd ever invested in the company had been his annual pranks.
Bureaucracy was a pain in the butt.
"Mr. Mackey," Sam said with forced politeness, "My father always said that the system should be free. When he was CEO of this place, he never once charged a cent for the ENCOM OS. I believe that the company's current handling would not meet up to my father's standards. And in the interest of keeping my father's dream alive, I intend to return Alan Bradley to the position of CEO of this company."
"I'm the one who's kept this company alive all these years," Mackey snapped. "Giving away our technology for free isn't good business sense, Mr. Flynn. I'm the reason there still is an ENCOM!"
"And I appreciate your hard work, Mr. Mackey," Sam replied, trying not to smirk at the other man's expression, which was growing close to a pout. "But it is my belief that your…business expertise…can best be used elsewhere." Basically, shut your face, and get the hell out of my office.
It was only yesterday that Sam had returned home from the Grid, with Quorra by his side. Only yesterday that he'd gained and lost his father a second time. In the span of a day, Sam's had been exposed to a whole other world, infinitely beautiful and frighteningly dangerous: a world that existed inside the computer. His nerves were still raw, and dealing with petulant former employees was not his idea of relaxation, though he did have to secretly admit he liked the feeling of power…just a bit.
"Alice?" Sam raised his voice, calling to the aide waiting outside the office's open door.
"Yes, Mr. Flynn?"
"Mr. Mackey and I have concluded our business. Could you please show him out?" Sam requested, fixing Richard with a glare that would've made a program want to derezz himself.
Mackey very wisely took the hint, and left the office with his figurative tail between his legs.
Sam leaned back in the big leather chair, and put his feet up on the nice, mahogany laminate desk. Where was Alan when he needed him? Sam still had no idea how to run a Fortune 500 company, and he'd told Alan last night he'd be Chairman by morning. Sam had thought to see Alan here, but…
"Mr. Flynn?"
Sam raised his head to look at the aide. "Yes, Alice?"
"The board of directors meeting you called for? It's in 15 minutes."
"Oh!" Sam leapt out his chair. "Thanks Alice."
C'mon, Alan, where are you?
Alan Bradley rode the elevator up to the executive floor of Encom tower, his mind entirely occupied with thoughts unrelated to the upcoming director's meeting. He wondered, now that Sam was finally taking responsibility for Encom, how much and how soon he should tell the young man of the entire truth about the company's history. The extraordinary experiments down in the laser lab 29 years ago, the hostile takeover attempt by fCon in 2003. Alan had seen things––experienced things––that few people would believe. He'd witnessed, however briefly, the dangerous world that existed within the computer. His son, Jet, had been thrust into that world, and had come out emotionally scarred. Jet had refused to speak to him in these last seven years.
Alan wasn't sure what had inspired Sam to finally take responsibility of his father's company, but now that he had, Alan was determined to ensure his success. And perhaps, just perhaps, they could finally discover what had happened to Flynn, and whether he was still alive.
These thoughts carried him out of the elevator and into the hallway, but as he approached the board room, Alan turned his mind to the current situation.
The glass doors slid open for him, and Alan saw Sam reclining in the chair at the far end of the table. The other VIP's were sitting forward with their hands folded either in their laps or on the tabletop. The only person to look as relaxed as Sam was young Dillinger Jr. Alan wasn't particularly fond of the kid, and he had an immediate distrust of anyone with the name Dillinger, but Ed had never done anything to make Alan dislike him.
"Alan," Sam said, grinning cheekily. "Now that you're here, let's get this meeting started."
That night, Ed Dillinger Jr. went home to his penthouse apartment, and poured himself a glass of very expensive French wine. He had a lot to think about after the Board of Directors meeting, and getting just a bit drunk was sounding very appealing right now.
Ed remembered very vividly the day, 29 years ago, when his mom told him that Dad wasn't coming home for a while. His five-year-old self hadn't understood why his mom was crying, why daddy couldn't come home, and so had cried also, in confusion and fear.
Mom didn't take him with her to Dad's trial, so all Ed remembered of the many days before sentence was passed, was his mother coming home from the court each day with red-rimmed eyes and more stress lines on her face. When his father was found guilty, and the judge passed sentence, Ed's mother finally took him to see his father in the county jail before he was transferred to the state prison.
"Hey, Eddie," his dad said from across the metal table in the visiting room.
"Dad!" Eddie wanted to run and hug his father, but Mom put a restraining hand on his shoulder. "Are you coming home soon?"
A pained expression crossed Dad's face, before his lips twitched upward in a tiny smile, and he responded gently, "No, buddy. I can't come home for a while."
"Why not?" cried Eddie plaintively.
A glance passed between Mom and Dad. Mom's face was pale and drawn, while Dad's expression was indecipherable.
"It's hard to explain, Eddie," Dad answered slowly. "One day, you'll understand."
"I can understand now," Eddie insisted. "I'm five, Dad. I'm all grown up."
Dad just smiled again. "Yeah. All grown up."
The visiting room door opened and the guard outside said that their time was up.
Dad stood, and that was the first time Eddie saw that his dad was handcuffed. Eddie had seen enough action films to at least understand what that meant, and an intangible fear gripped him. He shrugged mom's hand off his shoulder, raced around the table and threw his arms around his father's waist. "Daddy, don't leave!" he cried, face buried in his father's shirt.
Ed's mother didn't take him to see his father again. Not once.
After that, Ed's comfortable life was uprooted. Since their income was now gone, they had to leave their nice house and move into a low-rent apartment. Mom was gone a lot, since she now had to work two part-time jobs to keep a roof over their heads. Eddie was upset when Mom took him out of the expensive private school that she could no longer afford to send him to, because it meant saying goodbye to his friends.
Mom wouldn't talk about Dad, about what happened, or why Dad was taken to prison. Ed also didn't understand why she didn't want to let him go see Dad. She let him send letters, but that was all. But he was a smart kid, and as the years passed, he eventually figured out a few things. Like the fact that some guy named Kevin Flynn was to blame for his dad going to prison. Eddie had never before known what true hatred was, but he hated Kevin Flynn. He blamed Flynn for taking his father away, for making his family poor, and for his mother's fall into to alcoholism. Ed developed a deep-rooted anger at the injustice of it all, and determined that he would someday get reparations.
His father was released on parole thirteen years after his arrest, in 1994. Against his mother's wishes, sixteen-year-old Ed renewed his relationship with his father, which until then had only been maintained through letters. An older, more bitter Ed Dillinger Sr. had emerged from prison, and father and son both agreed that there was no such thing as letting bygones be bygones. But by then, Kevin Flynn had been missing for five years, so the Dillingers began instead to strategize on how to reclaim Encom.
Dillinger Sr. eventually succeeded at establishing a rival company to Encom, called fCon, and he hired his son as a junior software designer. In 2003, when the attempt at a hostile takeover of Encom failed, and fCon was put under investigation pending an investigation of illegal activities, Dillinger Sr. was forced into hiding. Ed, on the other hand, managed to completely erase any physical or digital evidence that might exist, which could be used to prove his involvement.
Once the investigation was over, and fCon was dissolved, Ed waited another year before applying for a software design job at Encom. He subsequently hired by the newly appointed CEO, Richard Mackey. Ed had felt a certain amount of satisfaction that Bradley had been ousted by the Board of Directors, as it meant all of Kevin Flynn's influence was now removed from the company leadership.
Now, seven years later, a Flynn was once again in control of Encom. Now, when his plans for Encom were finally close to fruition.
Ed sat down in front of a computer that was as old as he was, opened up the messaging program via command line, and sent a video file of Sam Flynn's press conference in front of the Encom building.
EDJ_0431 Dad, did you see this?
MCTRL_751 Yes. Will this be a problem?
EDJ_0431 No. Minor bump in the road. Nothing I can't handle.
MCTRL_751 He may not be his father but he's still a Flynn. Don't underestimate him.
MCTRL_751 END OF LINE.