December 21.
The best way to spend Christmas is in a place where you know peace will find you—maybe on a beach somewhere in the Caribbean, in a forgotten European mansion, a fully paid five-star hotel, or at home having dinner with the whole family, whether one is fortunate or unfortunate, depending on the person.
The food, a good wine, and that kind of comfort that is simply unique—and ironically so for anyone who thinks about it. Billy was anything but someone who waited for cinematic moments; he had a wonderful obsession in which his only real need was to keep working on his comic. He wanted to bring EyeShield 21 to its first 100 chapters for a major programming block the following year, which would feature two new series alongside Naruto and Death Note—three shows slated for next year, while also reviving Samurai X.
-You don't have to stay in the office all day; some people have already asked for their vacation early. - Billy remarked. More than half the staff were already on leave, and only a few teams remained, doing their part.
—I like watching you work. —Monica replied.
Stretching her arms theatrically.
-This is where all those wonderful series come from—so many that I'm afraid you could call yourself the archivist of worlds. She teased, leaning back into the expensive Venetian velvet chair she had brought solely for napping while Billy finished his tasks.
-I booked the restaurant near the hotel. The new chef who took over the terrace earned his second Michelin star, and it was almost impossible to get a reservation. But I said the one and only Billy Carson would be coming, and they gave us a lovely table overlooking the bay. —Monica said. A good meal was what anyone would want after a long day of work. She savored the thought carefully, almost sincerely, nothing surprising—her chin slightly raised as she drew in a deep breath, as if tasting the food already, thousands of flavors. Her specialty, collected from all over the world, dishes with influences from many places, but with a strong English touch, thanks to her signature dish, fish and chips—a new take on street food.
-I see. I think we've become famous for roaming all over San José and San Francisco looking for the best food—be it Hilton hotels, corner joints, or my restaurants. It seems you always want a new flavor on your tongue. If this were a story, you'd surely be the gluttonous one. - Billy said, drawing a long stroke of his sketch: the face of a player grabbing the ball. EyeShield 21 was the best sports book he could have chosen—a great work that required enormous effort, but one he made with so much love that everything he drew felt ideal.
—Mmmmm, those stories will be good. —Monica asked, half-asleep on the sofa. Their reservation at nine still gave them four hours to relax; nothing else mattered.
Billy scanned her posture—her black hair revealing the beauty of certain curves that shifted as she moved, falling to her hips. Black hair, usually insignificant, suddenly seemed to set a different tone altogether. A warm welcome of feminine allure; every trace of her being inspired a man to please her—her smile, when it shed its playful edge and returned to her charming self, carried an unspoken response to his stories in which everything was vital. Every feature mattered—majestic in life: social life, fears, flaws, virtues, actions, and the consequences of those actions that framed people in probable ideas.
—I'm afraid it's a little scary. —Billy whispered, understanding how difficult love is in any society. From certain angles… from the vantage of wealth, it seems utterly impossible, filled with an unwitting hatred called the end.
Monica now slept softly, her sighs drifting out. She looked completely different, curled into herself. Sena, the main character, was undertaking one of the most hellish tasks in the world—doing as many things as humanly possible, each shaped by the dream that seemed unreachable. Sena was learning one of the hardest skills in his career: zig-zagging without losing speed, guided by a dance instructor who taught people to move from every angle while being tackled from different sides.
Billy pushed every neuron to bring it all to life. Meanwhile, the other team executed a technical advance that only the best money in the world could buy. They had the data, the replicas of every movement of the Red Bats, Sena's team. They underwent their own intensive training using traditional, conventional methods—full of grit, pride, and overexertion.
All of it without letting the plot grow repetitive—cutting through training habits to introduce characters, life stories, and comedy, at least in simple strokes.
***
Ambition grows from many angles; all of them are—and to a lesser extent—a struggle to claim first place, at least to the aptitude of someone who rises by doing things their own way.
-We've got it, it's true. - Michael Eisner said, knowing how heated things get when people call themselves plagiarists from angular perspectives—each of those perspectives. Through a point-to-point alliance between different companies, they began remodeling software to match Billy Carson; they had to do more with less.
-We can't rush it. - Joe Roth replied, one of the many new employees working for the new Disney, which, even though it produced only one film per year, already intended to release two or three, optimizing every process and replacing the old with the new. It was a decision that caused hesitation among everyone involved in Disney's history, but Michael Eisner could afford to lose money hiring new animators and forming his own teams.
-Pixar was a great option. - Roy Disney, the new director of Disney 3D, is applying a policy of multiple companies with different storytelling processes.
-He's always for everyone. - Michael Eisner replied. He had reverse-engineered Autodesk's protocols and created a less portable model rendered through CAPS, in his hands, to improve the studio's output from one to three productions.
-Let the real competition begin. - Ray Watson said, coming from the unproductive corner of life.
-The waste of these years was a clear disadvantage. - Michael Eisner added, having invested nearly two billion in activating the plan—a war against Lux Animation. When the news or bad ratings speak, and only one person remains standing, then nothing is more accurate than making a multibillion-dollar purchase and shaking hands with the rival to lift any fight into the hands of the people.
...