Reborn in 1994: Internet Empire

27 Finally Starting Up

The five members of the XeMillion and Co. Tech Company gathered in the old art room to discuss their plans moving forward when it came to their company. Max was the founder and main owner, would now have to look at his friends as colleagues and fellow co-founders. At this point in time, it was time that they looked at their work here as real work, and no longer separate ventures. In the meantime, Max gathered his company and had them set up shop in the old art room. 

“Hello everyone!” Max greeted his fellow companions. 

“The f**k is the formal tone for?” Trae interrupted.

Everyone laughed at the remark, as Max blushed a little bit. 

“Well we are a company now, you’d think we should be a little more professional… right?” Max said.

“Yeah, there's no need for that,” Charlie chimed in. “Regardless I think we are going to understand you. Besides, you know damn well that everyone here is going to take this seriously, right?”

Max looked at all of his members, with which he has grown throughout the process of gathering them, as well as working with them. He knew these people very well and knew that they would never dream of having something they worked hard for crumble before their eyes. They wanted this to work as much as Max did. He smiled, assured that he was surrounded by people who would help him get this company into the stratosphere. With a sigh, he continued his speech. 

“Alright, you guys. No formal tone,” he said, as he cleared his throat. “So Charlie won and got Madam President Emilia to invest in our tech. And Mr. Carlisle will follow suit. So that’s a win for us!”

The group clapped with glee, directed both at Charlie and Jules, who were the ones responsible for these investments. 

“With the help of Lina, we were able to complete not only pretty up the POS software interface, but make the usability a lot more user friendly! Not only that, but she also gave it a name. From now on we will refer to our POS system as Lightning Point of Sale Interface, a.k.a, Lightning POS, version 1.1. Has a nice ring to it doesn’t it?” Max said as he looked right at Lina as he gave her an approving look. 

She blushed as the room clapped for her as well. In a moment of happiness, Jules glomped onto Lina and gave her a big hug.

“You did great Lina!” Jules said as she clamped onto Lina tightly. 

“Y-yes! Thank you, Jules,” Lina replied, embarrassed at the situation she was in, but returning the hug nonetheless. 

Max gave a light smile and proceeded with his speech. 

“As for me and Trae, we got all the licensing we need. It’s official… we are a real company now, and are listed as a legitimate body by the state of New York!”

The group cheered loudly, gathered some attention from the students who walked outside. They couldn’t care less though, because, at this point, everything they had worked for was finally coming to fruition. 

“Alright. Now I gotta get to the boring stuff but please pay attention alright? So as for the legal structure of our business, we are a general partnership. As I made you all aware prior to this, we five are partners in this company and are all bound equally to any kind of legal implications we may run into. This is clear, right?”

The group nodded silently. 

“Good. Next, I will discuss what kind of company we will be running. This is just so we are on the 

same page when it comes to progressing from here on. We’re clear on the fact that we are a tech company. What kind of tech? We will focus on tech security. We will be developing computer programs dedicated to keeping hackers out. Our POS system, although it is technically safe enough, is an exception as we needed it for the capital. For our new projects moving forward, we will be focusing more on software and will not really be working with anything involving hardware. That way we will not need to shed any kind of expenses for plastics or metals. Not to mention the actual building process is also expensive. That being said, we will focus mostly on anti-virus as well. Are we still on the same page?” Max asked as he eyed the rest of the members of XMC tech. 

The rest of the members nodded their heads again. So far Max hasn’t gone off into a ramble, which was a good thing considering he was the leader. He shook off his unnecessary thoughts and continued. 

“Now we will discuss who is doing what. I think this is probably the most exciting bit of this briefing. Firstly, we need to establish our brain, for where the ideas for new products will come from. This will be none other than Charlie Landers,” he said as he focused and spoke directly to Charlie. “From here on out, you will be the one developing new ideas in terms of creating new software as well as determining what kinds of devices these will be going in. Computers. POS. Banking systems. Whatever. You are our guy.”

He then turned to Trae, who at this point was completely engrossed in the briefing. 

“Trae, you will be working with Charlie at this point. What he needs to be researched will be passed on to you. You’ve proven to all of us that your research skills are unparalleled. So in this respect, you will be working side by side with Charlie. Together, you both will form our Research and Development. Good luck to you both.”

The two of them dapped it up, both showing their excitement and determination. At this point, it was clear that these two would have a lot of time to get to know each other better. 

“Lina, obviously, you will be our creative. Every software pitch will be delivered from R and D to you. You will be in charge of making our designs look sleek, beautiful, and sellable. On top of that, you will be responsible for making sure that the designs of the systems that we develop, should they be interactable in any way with the user, will be user friendly and foolproof. Information Design essentially. So, that being said, you are now the head of our Creative Team. Although… it’s only you so far at the moment.”

She shook her head and met Max’s eyes. 

“I couldn’t be more excited, Max!” she replied. 

He smiled at the fact that his team was so cooperative, and at that moment felt lucky that he had met these people. 

“Jules, you will be handling our interactions with clients, potential investors, as well as keeping tabs on the people that we would want on our side. You will also be handling interactions with any connections that we currently have. You will also be handling any kind of manpower that we need to hire, as well as if we need new permanent hires. For now, though, we will be focusing on expanding our connections and making sure that we are known among top companies. Jules, you are now the head of our Human Resources.”

“Ooh, that sounds so fancy doesn’t it?” she said, laughing along with the members of XMC tech. “I won’t let you down, Max,” she said, as she gave him a sly wink. 

Max grinned as he had now established a work set up that at the very least could be sustainable for the time that they haven’t hired anyone else. 

“And as for myself, I will be handling finances. I will be determining where our money goes, as well as making sure you guys get paid on time. I will also be working with all of your respective departments, so please don’t hesitate to call me if you need help. I’ll be going with Jules to meetings with whomever. I will help verify any kind of research that Trae has for me. I will help Charlie in development, as I have a vast knowledge of security type systems. And I will help Lina… as much as I can,” he said, choking in the last part of his sentence. 

Lina let out a soft giggle, as he said it. Finally, Max was at the end of his briefing, and everyone was completely updated with the flow of how things would work at XMC tech. He left his team with one last bit before he would release them from the day so that they could celebrate their success.

“Alright, here is the last bit before we party. As everyone knows, we can’t just start without having a particular goal in mind. So as a final instruction to really get us going, I will establish our goal as a company right now.”

He picked up a marker and wrote in really big letters their first goal, not only as friends but as a company. On the board, in bright red, the word “MILLION” showed itself for every one of the members to see. 

“Our first task… is to hit a million in company net worth.”

The group looked on in awe at the height of the goal that they had set for themselves. However, Max had all of the confidence that their members could reach this goal and then some. And as he looked on at his teammates, he knew that they knew it too. Each one of them looked at the board as if they were saying “this is the thing that we are gunning for.” They didn’t have to say anything. They already knew it. With no sign of hesitation from them and no sign of hesitation from Max, finally, the XeMillion and Co. Tech group was finally ready to start up. 

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Jasper Locke strolled through the halls of the school with his guest ID around his neck. He looked around at the school, hoping to run into signs that would lead him to the Thompsons’ only heiress. It was then that he ran into a group of unruly students who looked like they were ready to go out on a night of drinking. It was then that his eyes caught the vibrant red hair of the girl whom the Wolfpack had failed to capture. He looked on at the group as they passed him by without a hint of suspicion. Five, he counted in his head. He recognized the two boys, Trae Owens and Maximilian Burner. But the other two, he had no idea. Under his breath, he spoke to another party, who was listening via a hidden microphone attached to his collar. 

“I see the girl, and she is with friends,” he said into the mic.

“Do they look close?” Emily Banner replied from a hidden location in New York.

“Yes. They look like they spend a lot of time together, judging from the closeness.”

Suddenly, Trae Owens yells out loudly, causing a scene with the other students. 

“Let’s get it XMC Tech! Woooooo!”

“XMC Tech?” Jasper mumbled to himself. 

“What was that?” Emily asked, not able to catch his words through the mic.

“Nothing…I’ll keep an eye on ‘em. I’ll update you when I have more news.”

“Remember we gotta make sure we have their schedule down pat before we attempt to kidnap her again.”

“I got it. I’m disconnecting now. I gotta focus.”

“Hey wait that wasn’t the plan-”

Jasper cut her off and began walking in the direction of where the students were going. Inside, he was just hoping that he didn’t have to enter some loud, noisy, bar.