Plutocracy

(For reasons and purposes of this origin, all Japanese has been rendered English) (This is purely Historical Fiction)

Shi was trying to remove Moto from dancing on top of the folding table while Naka was balancing the legs, hoping to keep him afloat as he flamboyantly flourished his hair to make a speech. Shi rolled her eyes as Moto drunkenly slurs to a fake audience behind the anxious Naka, still balancing the table with a concentration that seemed more focused than when he was mining bitcoin. He didn't flinch when the bottle in Moto's hands spilled droplets of Sake over his shoulders and hair.

Moto wipes his hair from his face. The strands, tangled in his teeth as he talks to the ghosts of their empty studio apartment. Shi sat on the couch across from the folding table to see the drunken fool talk of riches. "We are now the Kings!", Moto declares this with a bottle to the air and glances at Shi before continuing, "...and queens," Shi chuckles, "of an innate power of the internet," Kana looks up, inspiration in his eyes, "that no one else would guess is possible." Shi stares at the two coder drunks who obviously think they are gods and smiles. As dumb as it was, it was true.

After months of programming and mining, Bitcoin was finally made. The Genesis Block was mined and now, the market was open. Shi's bank account was reaching cents before it happened. Now it's in the billions. Moto's too. Naka's too. And Sato's too-

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK frantically raps against the mahogany door of their stuffy studio apartment. The space was stuffed; makeshift bed mattresses, a chaotic clutter of computers and software, the most comfortable couch Shi has ever sat on, dozens of empty Saki bottles, snack bags, microwavable meals, and wires and cords to trip on when using the bathroom in the middle of the night. A mess that was worth it.

Shi balances herself across the room, much better than Moto who immediately jumped to the sounds 0f the door and collapsed on top of Naka. Shi's laughing quickly fades when she opens the door. Sato was back, standing at the open doorway with their Takeout to celebrate for the night, and a group of suits towering behind him. Hands on his shoulders, they walk him in, pushing past Shi.

Moto quickly jumps up to the commotion, dragging Naka up with him so he stands behind him. Sato stays quiet the entire time, food in hand as silence fills the apartment. "Who are you peopl-" Shi is dragged as she speaks, exclaiming against the force as she stands next to Moto and Naka. The suits barge the folding table out the way to fill the apartment with more of them, pushing Sato to join his friends on one side of the apartment. Five men in black and white across from them. Naka whispers into the back of Sato's head as he turns towards the suits, "Sato, who are these prick-." Sato doesn't stop staring at the suits when he speaks loud enough so they heard him, "They put a gun to my armpit after I bought dinner and made me come back, I don't know who these assholes ar-"

Enter [REMOVED]. [REMOVED] was beautiful and frightening. She wore an all white slim suit with a black belt, tie, and shoes. Her eyes focal on the group of people before her. The suits avoid her path as if she was the opposite of gravity.

Shi was the first to break the silence, "You're [REMOVED]." Naka jumps at this realization, "No way!" [REMOVED] loosens her tie and smiles malevolently at them. "Not here, I'm not." Moto, still drunk, slurs, "Who's [REMOVED]?" Shi whispers to him, "The richest person on Earth."

"Who's time WAS more valuable than yours," [REMOVED] walks around the apartment, eyeing the network of those who stand before her. "This is impressive, and you four did this all yourself?" Silence. "Just you four friends..." Her eyes wander as she speaks.

Sato was the first to break the pandering, "What do you want?" The smile on [REMOVED] face was gone. "I hate people when they're not polite," she mumbles as she continues exploring the apartment. Shi was also impatient, and asks again, with fervor, "What do you want?" The suits eyed her with caution as [REMOVED] slowly panned to her.

"Do you know what you four have created?" Sato looks at the others who give him the same confusion. "Power." [REMOVED] sits on the couch and toys with her nails, polished white, as she speaks. "You have created a power and currency that can be globally used-" "That's all currency," Moto slurs and interrupts. SNAP goes [REMOVED] fingers at his voice, "Don't. Interrupt. Me." Silence again, and she toys with her nails. Her eyes focal on the glistening polish as she speaks.

"Not just globally used, but can replace as a whole for currency. This creates problems...and amazing solutions. If the global currency can be translated into one, that gives whoever the owner and founder of that currency a real crown on their head. A crown that very few people already possess. Banks, Government officials, oligarchs, Corporatists, and plutocrats." The smile grows on her face as she speaks. "A lot of people enjoy the power they have now because of the benefits it brings to them. Think of what would happen if this currency grew to it's full potential, lots of unnecessary conflict...so why did you make it?"

"So people like us could finally benefit like people like you," Shi declares with the support of Kana, Moto, and Sato resonating with her. [REMOVED] laughs, "That won't last long for this, lemme tell ya that-" "And let me tell you something," Shi steps forward in front of Sato and the others, stirring the suits to move, but, like dogs, stop with the sleight of hand of [REMOVED].

"I know about you. You say people within Banks and Government and whatever are gonna fight this, but you think you're slick," [REMOVED] stands from the couch and approaches as she continues, "You think a media campaign can hide you?" [REMOVED] tightens her tie, "You think people can't figure out that you bought out most of the hedge funds, and the banks?" [REMOVED] stands in front of Shi's face as she relentlessly continues, "You think people can't figure out that you're the Plutocrat fueling the lobbyists and the oligarchs and corporatists to control the worlds economies?" [REMOVED] stares at her, almost disappointed. As Shi looks in [REMOVED] eyes, she couldn't help but recognize at how they dilated to the sound of her accusations being listed to her. After a brief pause, [REMOVED] says, "You indulge too much in conspiracy theories."

Kana, shielding himself behind Sato, jumps in the conversation, "The court records prove it, plus there's an ongoing investigation into your connections of the lobbyists within the UN," [REMOVED] eyes Kana as his voice whimpers to a whisper,"...and why is the richest woman in the world interested in Bitcoin?" [REMOVED] eyes back at Shi when she answers, "Because I'm not the only one interested." "Then you, and anyone else can invest, if interested," Shi nods towards the stacks of computers, "Currency is live, why even bother when it can't be yours?" [REMOVED] stares a little longer, "To see what I could benefit." "Well we offer you nothing...you really think we would believe in you?" [REMOVED] scans the group of friends.

"People would believe in anything." [REMOVED] swiftly turns around, splits the black sea of suits and exits the apartment. Shi, Naka, Sato, and Moto watch with cryptic curiosity, and eye the suits who remain. The sound of her footsteps echoes fade towards the exit. Moto, Sake still in hand, sits on the floor and looks up at the suits past the legs of Shi and Sato. "Can you guys leave or wha-" there was no sound. Not even a blip, just the sound of Moto's voice trailing off as a hole the size of a grape goes through his head. The bullet came from the pocket of one of the suits. Naka jumps from watching Moto's lifeless body fall flat, along with Shi and Sato who drops the takeout he bought for celebration. The suit slowly slipped the gun from his pocket and emptied it into the rest of the friends.

The morning after, the bodies of Sato, Shi, Naka, and Moto will be found in a ditch, with their deaths being resolved as a simple robbery gone wrong. Their history, forcefully erased; No one will know who they are.