SILICONE HEARTSTRING: A TALE OF LOVE AND DISRUPTION

in the polished elevator doors. Just another routine interview, I told myself. B

e, revealing the bustling heart o

ds turned. I nodded at a few employees-the awestruck expressions, a

terview with the Chronicle is in ten minutes. I've prepped a dossier on the jou

Nothing we c

ex, I've got a bad feeling about

kind of blockchain.' I'll dazzle her with our latest innovations, thr

argue with me. As we neared my office, he thrust a tablet

Sophia was no lightweight. Pulitzer nominee, specialist in tech

I squared my shoulders. I was Alex damn Vega. I'd built an empire

my assistant as I swung

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place screamed power and innovation-all sleek lines and bleeding-edge tech. A far cry

. Vega," I told the receptio

near the elevators: a tall man in an expensive suit bein

a!" he shouted. "Quantu

O of VegaTech's biggest rival. What the hell wa

subtly snapped a photo with my phone as possibiliti

ptionist snapped me back to atten

the encrypted flash drive in my pocket. The drive with the

ght corrupt politicians down and made multi-national corporations fall on their

d, revealing that view of the San Franci

-

. She wasn't the star-struck fangirl or the easily impressed lifestyle journal

ndshake firm. "Thank you for

flashing my most charming smile. "I

rojecting casual confidence. "So, Ms. Chen, where shall we begin? VegaTech's lat

ally, I was hoping we could start with something a little more. current. Car

ng for a fraction of a second. How

sitor to VegaTech," I said smoothly, having regained my cool. "Pe

looked less like he was lost and more like he was being forcibly removed. Anything to do

ial. Leaking this sort of information before the ink was dry on those contracts wo

nderstanding. This interview was supposed to discuss only VegaTech's charit

ilk, "I am not here to do a puff piece. The readers of the Chronicle have a right to know what

like a ghost between us. This wasn't

ted it to be, then I could cert

. We are literally creating a world in which corruption will be impossible, where people actually own their data a

n technology may be used for mass surveillance? That governments and

d with privacy at their center. Unlike our competitors, w

eaknesses in the positions taken so far. I grudgingly had to admit my admirat

y the fire in her eyes. There was something magnetic about her fervor, the unshakable resolve t

with tension-part animosity, part.

e, when Sophia played her trump card. She pul

s, Mr. Vega?" she asked

emo, detailing a project code named "Panopticon." A project I'd never seen, one that la

d to be some kind of a mistake. Or

lieved, that means someone inside VegaTech was running

ng back with a loud clang. Sophia fli

find this?" My

you know I can't disclose my sources, Mr. Vega. But I thin

g was different. This wasn't just another interview, another day at the of

was at the eye