2722/Court of Owls: Dark Horizon

Court of Owls: Dark Horizon
Date of Scene:	01 August 2020
Location:	Wayne Enterprises
Synopsis:	Lucius Fox informs Bruce Wayne of brewing discontent amidst Wayne Enterprise's Board of Directors.
Cast of Characters:	Bruce Wayne, Lucius Fox

---

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Early evening finds Bruce Wayne in his office at Wayne Enterprises. Not an entirely rare occurrence, but it is well-known throughout the building that his office hours are always highly irregular...not that this is entirely different from other mega-billionaires, who have no end of demands on their time. Bruce, however, is generally hands-off with the corporation, and even as Chairman of the Board he delegates virtually all his power to the President and CEO, Lucius Fox, only asking to be kept abreast of the broad strokes and those necessary details should he need to step in and really exert his leverage as the majority shareholder. It IS known that Bruce provides a fair amount of the vision and direction for the corporation, but generally acknowledged by all that Lucius is the real brains of the operation.

But in either case, as the sun dips towards the horizon, Bruce swivels in his chair to face the window, a grimly thoughtful expression settling over his face. It's certainly a look Lucius would know well...Bruce's mind is already racing across rooftops, tearing through the streets in a multimillion-dollar repurposed combat vehicle, or diving into dark dead-end alleyways to stand as the first and last line of defense for many of the innocent against those that would prey on them. It's only a matter of time before he ducks down to "Sub-Level 3" and gets on with that nightly patrol. But he's yet unaware that there may be matters of the more mundane if no less critical world his non-costumed alter-ego inhabits to deal with....

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox's mind is on a lot of things but right now its focused like a laser on the well being of the company. Bruce might not take this challenge seriously but he does. As he enters the enters the room and looks serious. Usually, he has a beaming smile that lights up the room but that is not the look. This is the "We have to talk" Bruce and he knows Bruce has read the brief he sent him about the shareholder situation. He is meticulous about monitoring stock since he knows from a strategic standpoint Wayne Enterprises is the most vulnerable chink in the Batman's armor. Corporations are a regular thing...the costumes....something else entirely. He sits opposite the table and says, "Have you thought about the brief?" He knows Bruce read it. With his quick mind and amazing memory, getting it into Bruce's head is never the problem. Getting him to focus on the problem....

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Bruce swivels back to face Lucius as he enters. His expression remains focused, but there's a sense that he returns to the "here and now" as it were, particularly upon seeing Lucius' face. He nods at Lucius' question, lightly drumming fingertips on the polished mahogany (reclaimed, recycled, and refurbished of course) desk he sits behind, wheels inside wheels turning in his head. "Earle has been looking for a way to feel like a bigger fish for the last fifteen years. His son and Abbot's daughter are about to be engaged. Expect the announcement to go out Tuesday of next week. Either way, they're bound by more than corporate interest now, so prying them apart won't be likely or easy."

He considers a few moments, "Perhaps we can suggest that William be granted personal oversight over the NRP Contracts? It'll get his face out there with the public, in the spotlight he craves. He's made whispers to Abbot about seeking political office and this might give him the springboard he's looking for." Another few drums of the fingertips, "Abbott will back down if Earle does. He's always been a follower. McConnell though..." A flicker of a frown, "I somehow suspect the only thing that would satisfy her isn't something I'm willing to give. Besides, she's a bit old for me." He wishes there was more humor in his tone at that. At least Myra's husband really did perish of natural causes. He checked. Twice. "She's been interested in the Waynetech XS smartphone development and deployment. Do you think she could be enticed to lay off the pressure if we let her have more oversight there?"

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox nods, "Divide and conquor is doable. I do agree that William is the lynch pin to them. But I'll be honest Bruce, I monitor our stock holders like a hawk. Individually, this would be a bullet point on our weekly meeting. All three? You know better than to ignore that. But if we can head off whatever Earle is doing with him AND McConnell? That might work. Yes, I have some insights that I've been thinking of for quite some time that, frankly if I give her the primers on and let her take the credit will definitely intruige her. The next generation of the Waynephone will....be amazing," he grins and then leans forward, not grinning, "What's Plan B?"

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"It shouldn't be ignored, but this isn't the first power play we've had to deal with from the Board, and likely won't be the last. We'll go with the divide and conquer approach for now." He leans back in his chair, "As for Plan B...I crack open the files I have on the three of them and we find our leverage and how best to discreetly utilize it. Once again McConnell is the only real problem...for all her ruthlessness she's been above-board in all her business dealings that I can find. However she's only one vote. If we can get Earle and Abbott to back down, I don't think she has enough friends on the rest of the board to maintain their pressure. Though you'd know better than I would on that particular score. As far as I can tell the only one that might have some fondness for her is David Brecklin, and she stopped sleeping with him behind his wife's back four months ago, so perhaps not anymore."

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox mentally cringes at those files. To date the REAL confrontations between the two of them on lines crossed have been only enough to count on one hand, but Lucius always worries....its inherent in the business. He deliberately never asks to see whats in those files, though he knows he should. He quietly nods, and wants to make that plan C but if this is as big as he ...worries it is he can't fool around. "There is a problem with being a sourpuss, allies are hard to come buy." He considers a moment, "What is Brecklin after if she isnt using lust as a weapon?""

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"Most likely she's threatening to tell his wife about the affair. And while that's unethical, it's not illegal, and bringing that out in the open is more likely to damage him than her. She doesn't seem afraid of scandal. She's motivated, smart, and knows exactly how much privilege her money can buy, and all the scandal in the world doesn't dislodge her from that seat." Bruce considers, "At the extreme, we might have to consider a buyout of her shares, but that will come across as desperation, and we don't need the sharks smelling blood in the water."

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox grins and cringes at that, "Oh wow. So she sleeps with him...breaks it off and then blackmails him with the same affair? That's...yeah, that fits her to a T." He is suddenly a lot less worried about the file on her. "Especially until we peel off the others. If we get them off, and she refuses the phone offer THEN we can buy her out.

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"And again, we may not need to if she doesn't retain backing on her own. Earle is the real lynchpin here. Win him back over and this problem likely goes away. McConnell is an opportunist. We'll need to keep an eye on her, of course, but you've been doing a fine job of it so far." Bruce notes, a flicker of a smile crossing his usually stoic (in private) face. "As I said, I suggest the divide and conquer approach for now, but finesse it however you see fit. If you need anything from me, of course, just let me know."

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox nods, "Well Bruce I think its as fine an idea as any. My understanding of finance is better than yours but that's about it when it comes to strategy. You read the room as Earle, Earle it shall be." He smiles back, "And I think we can charm him away from the situation." He is outwardly optimistic, inwardly....hopeful. He stretches and considers, "Its been a while since you requested a 'dark project' anything else NOT on the official agenda on your mind?"

Bruce Wayne has posed:
"Wayne Aerospace's next-gen optical camouflage system seems to have finished field testing with better than anticipated results on power efficiency and overall mass. It's only been tested on drones so far, but I'm sure that somewhere there's an experienced engineer who might enjoy seeing if it can be adapted to a full size aircraft." A more open grin on Bruce's face now, wry to the bone.

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox puts his thumb under his chin. "An invisible batwing?" He grins, "Bruce are you getting jealous of wonderwoman?" He nods, "Yes, I will definitely get on that. That would be fun. And lets be honest...if you can do it to a jet..." his eyes twinkle,"you can do it to a car...well...with more work....a lot more work." He is already writing on a pad of paper, brow furrowed.

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Bruce rises from behind the desk, briefly placing a hand on Lucius' shoulder as he passes, "You know where I'll be. The comms will be open. Thank you for your attention and work on all this, Lucius. I know it isn't easy, and I suspect it's not going to get there anytime soon." He smiles, "But I still have hope we'll get a better Gotham out of it when we're done."

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox nods, "I am looking forward to it. If we can fix the Narrows, we can do something that no one else has despite well intentions since the history of Gotham. And if we keep the ship together, I know we can." He actually now literally does...the math works, the onus of probability says they will succeed.

Unless something stops them.