Jack Of Arts

(cont'd)

"So… that's how it is…" Tayaw utters to himself as he returns to the real world.

He had just absorbed everything he bought from Kim.

"The game engine is already expensive but it didn't give me actual knowledge. Just the code to copy down." Tayaw chuckles mirthlessly.

"What a waste. I should have just f.u.c.kin studied. With my enhanced brain, in no time, I could have made my own engine. Linear Algebra isn't that hard math wise and I have some of the geometry knowledge required for it. ... " Tayaw starts day dreaming, confident in his abilities.

"I'm pretty sure I can learn a programming language easily. I'm confident in my physics too… It won't take me a lot of time to develop a math and physics engine…. Oh… wait." Tayaw's confidence disappears the next moment however as he realizes something.

"I'm clueless with algorithms and artificial intelligence… Okay. I was wrong. 40 million points is worth it. It's easier than learning shit from scratch." Tayaw's mood rises once again before quickly falling back down.

"F*ck. Typing millions of lines of codes is gonna be a pain in the a.s.s. Especially if I don't understand what I'm typing." Tayaw sighs.

"But hey. I get to pass time easily with this…" Tayaw shrugs.

"But… I don't want to pass a lot of time either…" Tayaw's shoulders stiffen. 

"Instead… Why not get one of the staff to drive this van for extra pay… while I sit my a.s.s and type?" Tayaw is satisfied by his brilliant idea. 

~

A few hours later.

*tatatatatatatatatataptaptap*

*tatatatatatatap-ta-tap-tap*

Tayaw has been typing code for a few hours now and is interrupted by a ray of sunlight hitting a window of his van.

"Damn… How long was I typing? UHHHHH..." Tayaw stretches his body as he checks the time.

"Shit… 8AM… Well let's see… seven hours… and I've only typed out around 200,000 lines … so not even 1%. Damn." Tayaw sighs.

"Whatever. I'll finish eventually. But for now, Payew must be waiting for me." Tayaw immediately closes his laptop and starts stripping off his clothes to take a shower.

*ring**ring* Right after he removes his u.n.d.e.r.w.e.a.r, his phone rings.

"Come on…" Tayaw is dumbfounded at the timing.

"Hello Cody. What's up? I know you can call me anytime between 8am and 8pm, but come on man, it's Saturday." Tayaw says.

/Oh… Sorry. But, your type treats the weekends as their work days./ Cody says.

"True. So, what's up? You must have been waiting for the clock to strike 8 before calling, right?" Tayaw asks.

/Wrong it's 7 here… Anways. I've received a few calls for private gigs./ Cody says.

"Private gigs? What does those have to do with you?" Tayaw asks.

/Nothing. But, come on. At least pay me for the trouble of receiving these calls. You know, I can't refuse too or I might offend some people./ Cody says.

"…" Tayaw is feeling guilty.

'Come to think of it. Chala too would complain from reading the e-mails if he's not earning millions from my books.' Tayaw realizes. 

"Okay. I'll go buy a phone right now. I'll send you the number later, then you give them the number. I'll deal with them." Tayaw says.

/*Sigh*/ Cody is audibly disappointed. Tayaw chuckles at the reaction.

"Hey. Bart and Angela are starting to gain fans outside Nashville and it's not even 50 days in the tour. By the time we're done, they'll be receiving private gigs themselves. Then you earn from that." Tayaw says.

/Hey. I didn't say anything. Besides, Strawberry Front's private gigs have been keeping us afloat./ Cody becomes defensive.

"Whatever man. I've got somewhere to go. Bye~!" 

~

1PM - Washington Square Park

"Alright. It was nice seeing you again." Tayaw says.

"Yeah. It's hard to make friends with people here. Thank you for hanging out with me even though your busy." Payew says.

The two spent the entire morning having breakfast, having a walk around Washington Square Park chatting about various things, and having lunch at a fancy restaurant.

"How about other Teungebian students?" Tayaw asks.

"Nah. The entitled f.u.c.ks. They're sons of rich families from home. Did you know that one of them is the son of Lokning Artras?" Payew says.

"That billionaire from Kangpan?" Tayaw is surprised.

"Yeah. Guy's son is an arrogant asshole. I don't like him. He even gave another student a car just to become his friend." Payew says.

"Well? Why don't you give someone a car too? Make some friends? I've got enough money." Tayaw jokes.

"heh… f*ck that." Payew catches on immediately.

"Instead. Why not give me that vintage car you used last time? It's probably rotting in your Jericho mansion anyway. Why not let me use it?" Payew says.

"Okay.  Get a license first. Then I lend it to you. But if that gets even one scratch, I'm whoopin your a.s.s." Tayaw says. This gets Payew excited.

"My Jeep still looks good as new when I left it at home. I'm good at taking care of cars." Payew says.

"Good." 

~

5PM – Cognito Technologies Headquarters, Queens New York

"Mr. Dagem. Welcome."

"Mr. Dagem. It's been a long long while. You should have given us a heads up."

Gabriel Schulz and Fred Keaton, respectively, greet Tayaw by the entrance of the house.

"Hello! How have you two been?" Tayaw greets the two top personnel of Cognito.

Gabriel Schulz, being the CEO that Tayaw hired, and Fred Keaton, the owner of the remaining 49% of the company.

"So… what happened since the last time?" Tayaw asks.

"Good news, generally… Let's talk while as we walk…" Gabriel leads the way.

Cognito has finally released their artificial intelligence and software programs to smartphone and camera manufacturers. Their accurate face detection and scenery detection especially impressed the people in Samsung. Cognito's photography software made Samsung's latest cameras in their smart phones better than the cameras of iPhones, in some aspects.

"They dared to BUY our software for themselves even." Fred says.

"So what happened?" Tayaw asks. 

Cognito pulled out from negotiation with Samsung and expressed their intentions of going to Apple. The Samsung people, not wanting iPhone to get ahead even further, decided instead to offer Cognito an exclusive contract and royalties per phone that uses the software.

"So, from then on, we managed to earn $30 million dollars." Gabriel reports.

"Nice…" Tayaw is impressed.

"Yeah. Also, we started a partnership with GoPro and Sony. Our AI is probably one of the best if not THE best motion detect software out there. We've also earned some big bucks from the exclusive licensing." Fred reports.

"So that's why you haven't approached me for further funding." Tayaw says.

"Yeah… oh. Fred. How about that thing you just started working on since the start of the year?" Gabriel avoids talking about money, for Tayaw's sake.

"Oh.. that! Yeah! We're well on our way on making the AI for facial recognition." Fred reports.

"Let me guess. For security purposes? You use the front camera of the phone to unlock it." Tayaw says.

"…" Gabriel is stunned at Tayaw's correct guess, but Fred is not.

"You're right." Fred smiles proudly.

"You guys are ahead, huh. People are only starting to figure it out, and here you guys are, already working the software." Tayaw says.

"We are. Once a phone comes out with a good camera that can handle the software, we're the first to offer the feature." Fred nods. 

"…" Tayaw is now feeling proud and weird, witnessing the beginning of one of the leading high-tech companies in his previous life.

"Okay. Where's Steven, by the way?" Tayaw asks, finally getting to his business.

"In his cubicle, bored out of his mind despite doing what is required of him. He was rather bummed when your personal project was done." Fred chuckles.

"Yeah? Haha." Tayaw can only chuckle.

After all, since the filming for Gold, Blood, and The Deer concluded six months ago, the domes are sitting in the warehouses collecting dust. The contract of Steven and the game developers he hired to design the backdrop of the film also ended long ago after they finished their jobs. 

"Well. I'll have to borrow him again." Tayaw says.

"Yeah? … Well, he's probably better off working on games instead of software…" Fred says.

"?" Tayaw is stunned at this. "Then why are you keeping him?" Tayaw asks.

"Hmm. He's doing mindless grunt work; basic ones, as it's all he knows, but he great at it and rarely makes mistakes. Saves us money." Fred clarifies.

"Okay. Well it's good that I have a need for him again." Tayaw says.

"Alright. I'll call him for you." Fred says. 

~

"Hey Steve. How's it goin?" Tayaw greets Steven outside the house.

"Good…" Steven is stunned seeing an unexpected face.

"Let's take a walk. It looks like your legs need more blood circulation." Tayaw says before leading the way.

Steven can only follow along.

"So… Are you and the folks who worked our virtual sets still in contact?" Tayaw asks.

"Not really. But I still have their contact information." Steven says.

"Good. I have another project." Tayaw says.

"Another movie?" Steven asks, excited.

"Nah. A game." Tayaw reveals.

"A game?..." Steven contrary to Tayaw's expectations, is not looking that happy.

"It won't be like your game Quad Blocks, right?" Steven asks.

"What's wrong with Quad Blocks?" Tayaw asks.

"Did you make the game yourself? Or bought it?" Steven asks.

"I made it." Tayaw says.

"Hah. So you can make games too.. anyways. I could have made that game myself in a day or two if I had your idea. So, if you want me to make a game like that, that's only a couple of days of work. I'd rather stay in the office." Steven says.

"Psh. I already made games more complicated than that. I just haven't released them. This is a bigger project. It's closer to what you did for me last year." Tayaw says, exciting Steven. 

"What do you want me to do? Do I lead the team again?" Steven asks.

"Nah. I lead this time. Or maybe I hire a real development leader." Tayaw says, to Steven's disappointment.

"Anyways. Contact more game devs and you're all going to start graphics library for me." Tayaw says.

"Okay. Do the graphics need to be as realistic as the ones in your film?" Steven asks.

"Nah. But quantity is needed this time. I can't do them by myself." Tayaw says.

"Alright. This needs a lot of work then." Steven nods.

"Anyways. It's only a heads up. Once I'm done with my tour, I'll come see you again this December. I hope at least 20 people are working by then." Tayaw says.

"Okay. Leave it up to me. But… can I start making graphics now?" Steven asks wanting to drop his boring work immediately.

"Sure… I'll send you sketches of the things I need." Tayaw says.

"Cool… Cool." Steven is happy to leave the office again.