S.P.E.C.T.O.R – [A Sci-fi space adventure with fantasy elements]

“WHAT IN SOLAR’S NAME IS THIS?” Malgath asked in shock as he heard the Liluth’s statement on USNN, while sitting on his sofa at home with his wife.

“Elder sister?” Ulesse said with a shocked expression.

“Did you know about this?” Malgath asked as he turned to his wife.

“Of course not, do you really think I would keep something like this from you?” Ulesse replied in a hurt tone.

“No, of course not, I’m sorry, dear. I was just so shocked.”

“You’re not the only one. I wonder why my sister decided to suddenly do this.”

“You really have no idea what she’s thinking? You two have always been close after all.”

“We don’t talk nearly as much as we used to now that she’s on that space station. Still, this means she will be coming back to the capital in the near future. I need to make sure that she frees up plenty of time to spend with me,” Ulesse said with an excited look.

“She will probably be busy negotiating with that Terran Princess,” Malgath said with a scowl.

“If my sister can let go of what happened to ‘her’ in the past, so can you and everyone else,” Ulesse said as she shot her husband a look before adding, “I expect you to be on your best behaviour when we meet Princess Terrana.”

“Yes, dear.”

💫💫💫

“You plan to leave the running of a major entertainment company to a ship’s AI?” Tessa asked in shock as the other women showed similar reactions.

“Is there a problem with that?” Adam asked.

“Yeah, babe, there kinda is,” Stacey said before continuing, “companies are generally run by people, not AI’s. The most the AI does is monitor things and provide information when asked. They don’t run the day-to-day operations.”

“Stacey is right, you make it sound like the ship’s AI will have the ability to hire and fire employees,” Lorelie added.

“That’s because it will,” Adam replied before explaining, “Along with monitoring everything to do with Royal Entertainment in real time, thereby detecting any wrongdoings within the company or even spies embedded in the company for industrial espionage. 

Spector will be able to hire and fire without bias or prejudice, which, to be honest, most companies have in droves. Just look at Drotas Entertainment, which tried to kill Lorelie, Dynamic Entertainment, which Rowena is a part of, and which is going through an internal power struggle and destroying the company from the inside.

With Spector being completely neutral to all employees and celebrities signed with the company, it will, in fact, probably make it the safest entertainment company for people to work for and celebrities to sign with, as no one will be taken advantage of.”

The room fell into silence as the women all considered Adam’s words for a few minutes before Aphrodite said with a wink, “There will be at least three divas signed with the company you will be biased towards.”

“Three?” Stacey asked curiously.

“Oh, I plan to sign with Adam’s company along with Rowena and Lorelie,” Aphrodite said happily.

“Really? But I thought divas and celebrities in your line didn’t get signed to companies?” Stacey replied.

“We don’t, until now. But Adam says he doesn’t have a problem with signing us, so Royal Entertainment or whatever he decides to call it is about to have a large influx of celebrities.”

“You plan to change the name?” Tessa asked and then, as if realising something, nodded in agreement before adding, “That’s a wise idea. Even if Princess Liluth Solar has made that announcement, it will take time for the other races to get over the animosity they have towards us Terrans.” 

“What name did you have in mind?” Stacey asked with interest.

“Spector Entertainment,” Adam replied.

[[Naturally]]

{...}

“I’m assuming you’re not trying to hide the fact that you, your stream and Royal Entertainment or soon to be Spector Entertainment, are connected, then?” Lorelie asked with a smile.

“Well, you and Rowena keep telling me that I need to get my name out there more,” Adam replied with a shrug before adding, “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to start doing it big time. I’m used to being in the background after all, and need to get used to being the centre of attention.”

“Maybe you should work on becoming a diva, that way you’re bound to become the centre of attention,” Aphrodite said with a smirk.

“He just said he wants to take it slow,” Stacey replied with a sigh.

“I know, but you can’t become a diva overnight; it took each of us several years to manage it,” Aphrodite replied before adding, “I’m just saying that it’s something he could work towards.” 

“She has a point,” Rowena said in agreement before explaining, “There are countless people who become celebrities thinking they can be ‘the next big diva’. Most of them, however, amount to nothing, and very few reach the top and claim the title of diva. Just look at Kasumi.”

“Kasumi? The Kitsune that was on The MMM Show before?” Adam asked with interest, which none of the women missed.

“She’s not a Kitsune, she’s a Nogitsune,” Lorelie replied before asking suspiciously, What is a Kitsune anyway, and why do you seem so interested?”

“I think most men would be interested if a Kitsune… sorry, Nogitsune appeared in front of them. Didn’t you see the reaction in my chat from the viewers from Earth?

Kitsune are a magical creature from folklore that possesses supernatural abilities, most notably shape-shifting. They are especially known for having multiple tails, with nine-tailed Kitsune being the most powerful and revered.” 

“I see,” Lorelie said in understanding before saying, “While Nogitsune are not magical and possess no supernatural abilities that I’m aware of. They do have multiple tails, and the number of tails they have determines their age. They start with one and grow a new one every ten years.

Kasumi has nine tails, meaning that she is in her nineties.”

“Ninty?” Adam asked in surprise before adding, “She looks great for her age. Are Nogitsune one of the long-lived races?” 

“They are,” Rowena replied before getting back on topic by saying with a smirk, “Kasumi, who I am sure will be happy to know has a fan in Diva Lorelie’s boyfriend, is a celebrity who should already be a diva, but unfortunately isn’t one as she has never been able to make that last push.”

“Why not?” Adam asked.

“Because she is being dragged down by her fellow actors and actresses,” Aphrodite explained with an annoyed look. “Kasumi is regarded by many as the greatest actress in the modern age, and she should have become a diva many years ago.

Unfortunately, all the Holomovies and Holoshow’s she has performed within in recent years have flopped because of bad acting, mainly on the part of her co-stars. Rumours have started circulating that Kasumi is actually starting to find it hard to get roles since directors, producers and those paying for the production all believe she is being targeted to prevent her from becoming a diva.”

“Who would want to stop her becoming a diva and why?” Becky asked.

“One of the current divas for Holomovies or Holoshow’s, one of their fans, one of her rivals, one of her rivals’ entertainment companies, her own entertainment company, who knows, the list is endless,” Aphrodite replied.

“Why would her own entertainment company want to prevent her from becoming a diva?” Stacey asked.

“Credits,” Lorelie replied simply before continuing, “Even though the title of diva is not officially recognised, entertainment companies will give divas better singing deals and pay compared to non-divas. It could be that the entertainment company she is currently signed with can’t afford to pay her more should she become a diva, or that they’re worried she will jump ship to a rival company.”

“Who is she currently signed with?” Adam asked.

“Dynamic Entertainment, the same as me,” Rowena replied in an angry tone.

“Grandmother?” Stacey asked with concern as she heard the angry tone.

“Sorry, Stacey, I’m fine. I’m just angry because I was the one who suggested that she sign with Dynamic Entertainment in the past,” Rowena explained.

“So why don’t we have her become part of Adam’s new company like you and Lorelie?” Stacey asked.

“Cough, cough,” Aphrodite coughed pointedly.

“And the pink-haired intruder,” Stacey added.

“Intruder?” Tessa asked curiously.

“Don’t worry about it,” Rowena replied with a sigh before replying to Stacey, “it’s not so simple. I can easily leave Dynamic Entertainment because of a clause in my contract that I had put in using my status as a diva. Unfortunately, Kasumi doesn’t have that same clause, so she or Adam’s new company would have to pay an exorbitant early termination fee.” 

“Plus, it wouldn’t be a good look for a new entertainment company owner like Adam to start stealing signed celebrities as soon as he takes over Royal Entertainment. Lorelie and I are fine because we are free agents. While Rowena has her exit clause and can claim she wanted to follow Lorelie.”