Finney Vol. 1 - Immutable Journey - Flipbook - Page 32
As Finney entered the vast office, he
noticed the overhead lights grow brighter
and saw a large wall of display panels
hidden by a sliding wall. “Take a seat,
lad,” said Mr Shift from behind a desk.
“Make yourself at home. We have much
to discuss.”
lobby. Maybe I’ll invest in Shift Connect.”
Absently buttoning his shirt all the way
up against the office’s chilly atmosphere,
Finney sat down in front of the desk. “I’m
Finney,” he said. “Nice to meet you,
Mr Shift! What can you tell me about
crypto?”
“You could do that?” asked Finney,
suddenly noticing a strange feature of
the office. “Is that? Why is there a naked
hairy person living in a glass room here?”
“Right to business, then?” asked Mr Shift.
“Why not slow down. Have a drink.
Maybe a snack. What do you say?”
“I came a very long way to learn about
crypto,” said Finney. “All the way from
another planet.”
Mr Shift’s assistant entered then, handing
Finney a cold glass bottle. “One mineral
water,” she said. “Get you anything
else?”
“That’ll be all,” said Mr Shift dismissively.
“I followed the signs that said you trade
crypto for gold,” said Finney as Elaine
left. “Can we do that?”
“All in due time,” said Mr Shift. “Tell me.
Is all of you made of gold or is it just your
fingers?”
“Most things on my home planet are
made of gold,” said Finney, feeling
suddenly nervous.
“Interesting,” said Mr Shift. “And what
do you plan to do with the crypto you
purchase with your gold?”
“Learn about it,” said Finney. “I was
shown an investment opportunity in your
32
“Brilliant plan,” said Mr Shift, who knew
this investment opportunity to be a ponzi
scheme. “I may even be able to point you
in the direction of even more promising
investments than that.”
Mr Shift chuckled darkly. “Not a person.
Rolo, the gorilla. His species is nearly
extinct in the wild.”
Finney decided to save his questions
about the gorilla for another time. “You
seem very smart,” he said, returning his
attention to Mr Shift. “What can you tell
me about blockchain governance?”
Mr Shift’s amicable expression soured
for an instant. “Sometimes minnows think
they should be given a say in the business
of whales,” he replied, quickly regaining
his composure. “Troublemakers are
always going on about democracy and
fairness and all that nonsense. Since you
asked, I’ll tell you now that blockchain
governance is a waste of time. Nothing
to it.”
“But I thought it was important,” said
Finney, confused. “All I really know is
that stakeholders in blockchains can
sometimes influence the systems they’re
participating in. Is that wrong?”
“Not wrong,” said Mr Shift, his gaze
wandering to a framed photo on his desk.
“Just naive and somewhat misguided.”
“Who is that?” asked Finney, looking at
the photo that had captured Mr Shift’s
attention.
FINNEY VOLUME ONE - IMMUTABLE JOURNEY