CHAPTER 10 - I'M ON A BOAT
Matt Sneider was jerked out of his eyes-glazed over Excel stupor by his desk phone ringing.
"Yeah Jim, I'll have those numbers in a few minutes," tumbled out of his mouth when he answered.
"Okay good, but I wasn't actually calling about that," said his supervisor. "There's a group in the lobby that says they would like to speak with you."
"At this hour?" Matt tried to sound surprised. He had been hoping to finish all his work before the Senshi arrived...
"They said they were here specifically to meet with you," said Jim. "I'm not really comfortable with that unless I meet one of them to figure out exactly what's going on here."
"Um…alright sure, can they send someone up?"
A few minutes later, Sneider and Greenberg were waiting outside the elevator bank for a representative of Moon Prism Capital Management.
A power-suit clad Ami Mizuno stepped out of the elevator and approached the two of them with a well-rehearsed business handshake. "Good to see you again, Mr. Sneider," she said in a practiced, "I'm important" tone.
"Jim Greenberg, welcome to Goldman Sachs," his boss said, shaking her hand. "You've picked a very busy night to stop by, Ms. Mizuno."
"Yes Jim, we're all busy," Ami responded briskly. "We're attending a fundraising cruise this evening, and we'd like to extend an invitation to Matt here. We think he'll be in a great position to make contacts and gain insight for the bank. Can he take the night off early if he makes sure someone else can cover his work?"
"Really now. A fundraiser? He didn't tell me. I'm not sure about this—it would look bad for the team if he gets to take off while the rest of the group is working for the rest of the night."
"It's a very important event for startups in the healthcare/biotech industries, and we really insist that Goldman have somebody present if they'd like a cut of the action," said Ami, brushing him aside. "There will be some very smart capital in attendance."
Jim visibly perked up at that. "Well if that's the case, why didn't you say so? Here Matt, take some business cards and get going. And," he withdrew the company's black Amex credit card and handed it to him. "On the house," he said with a wink.
"Well that was…relatively easy," Matt said to Ami as the elevator descended once more.
"For you," she asked him with relief. "Do you know how difficult it was for me to be so…robotic? Condescending? I had to fight not to wince when I spoke."
"Yes…yes, I do," he replied.
When they had stepped outside, they made their way to the small group clustered near the fountain, dressed in their formal best. Matt recognized them all except for the taller, impeccably dressed man wearing a bespoke suit that even his MD would have been jealous of.
"Tuxedo Kamen," he extended a white-gloved handshake. "You must be Matt. Usagi's told me everything about you."
"Matt Sneider, Goldma Sachs, damned glad to meet you, is that Armani you're wearing?"
"Uhm, well…" Usagi's boyfriend glanced down at his outfit. "I'm not sure, exactly. It kind of just appeared on me one day."
"I see…wow, that kinda happens a lot with this group, doesn't it?"
Kamen scratched the back of his head. "…yup," he observed. Matt took a look at the other Senshi.
"You guys seriously color-coded your dresses? I thought that was a joke!" he cried out at the rainbow of Senshi color before him.
"Well—you have to easily be able to tell who's who, right?" Makoto asked. "If you need to find me, just look for the tall, talented girl wearing green."
"Mm-hmm…" Matt looked at her thoughtfully.
The Senshi of Thunder scowled. "My eyes are up here, Matt," she chided, grabbing the bottom of his chin and forcing his gaze upwards.
"S-sorry…" he stammered. "I can't help it. Please don't kill me."
And that was the truth. The truth was, he really couldn't help himself. He had difficulty remembering sometimes that the girls were supposed to be just comrades. But the deep side leg split on Rei's maroon dress was making that thought difficult, as was the plunging emerald neckline that Makoto had already chastised him for. Then there was Usagi and Kamen, already looking the royal couple of the future, her simple white dress marking her.
Even Ami, for whom they had stopped back at Makoto's so she could change into formalwear, rose to the occasion. Usagi and her Senshi squealed with girlish delight (Matt and Kamen had to cover their ears) as the genius emerged in a strapless turquoise dress, her pale skin and blue hair unused to the attention. She blushed furiously when Makoto said, "Damn, look at us! Some guy's gonna get lucky tonight after we kick Lucretius' ass on the boat!"
"Well how bout that," Matt observed silenty. "The nerd cleans up nice." He looked down at his navy blue suit, a graduation gift from his uncle that had gotten worn a bit around the elbows.
As they looked for taxis for the ride to the harbor, Matt thought that it freakishly reminded him of his high-school prom, only much less awkward, the girls were much more attractive, and nobody was sobbing in the bathroom like the movies. It could have been a nice night out between friends. But this was the Sailor Senshi. Of course, this was a good deal more important.
The group rolled up to a gleaming seaport terminal, with a truly massive ship sitting in a dock like a floating skyscraper. A large sumptuous ballroom spread itself amidships, floor-to-ceiling windows opening a view out onto the harbor. A grand staircase poured widely down upon the main floor.
The Senshi human rainbow (plus an awkward black and navy blue) appeared at the top of it and surveyed the crowd below. All impeccably dressed, eating hors d'ouevres and sipping champagne passed around by tuxedoed waiters. Kamen cracked his neck and brushed the dirt off his shoulders self-consciously. "I saw that," Usagi smiled at him.
"Damn son," whispered Matt, admiring the opulent surroundings. "Talk about being on a boat."
"Okay, remember the plan," said Rei (Matt was glad she was facing Usagi and not in his direction, as he had inadvertently glanced at her legs before looking her in the face). "None of us sees Mina, Lucretius, or anything else suspicious right now. We have to find an excuse to get these people out of here, now."
"I believe this would be one of those instances where it would be okay to shout 'Fire' in a crowded theater," Tuxedo Kamen observed.
Rei winked salaciously. "I've got plenty of that." A small flare appeared at her fingertips.
Usagi frowned. "Be sure to aim for an empty corner of the boat, Rei," she cautioned. The Moon Princess laced her fingers with Tuxedo Kamen's for a moment, the lull before the battle that she always savored. Makoto's fingers twitched. Ami's blue goggles went down. Matt tightened his suit jacket around the guns that hung closely against his chest. Tuxedo Kamen twirled a rose with two fingers on one hand, while the other gently stroked Usagi's.
"Here we go," she whispered as the Senshi descended the stairs.