[ti]private[/ti]remains of an age

It’s not the sort of place where most people would expect to see Martín Marzán, founder and CEO of AMZN. Far from it. Yet, here he is, standing by the entrance of a pub. His clothes are casual and he at least wears sunglasses, because being recognized when tending to private matters is annoying no matter where he is, yet despite what many would assume the tech mogul thinks of his surroundings, it’s with a smile that he greets Cillian when seeing him.

”Cil. It’s been ages.”

It really has. Since university.

Yet, they had spent quite a lot of time together as of late, hadn’t they? Not in person, but that’s exactly why Mars had decided to stop by when a business trip had resulted in him having to travel to Ireland.

There are no hugs, no pats on the back, but the smile remains, and he does gladly follow along into the apartment.

”Nice place.” He’s not oblivious to his surroundings, and if only so faintly, the smile shifts into a smirk. ”I’m good. Flight was as you’d expect… You’d think private jets have a better movie selection than commercial, but they really don’t.”

”Man, I envy that. I wish I could sleep on planes. I end up working during most of the longer flights.” Some take a whole day of his time, after all.

As they talk, Cillian’s cats make their presence known, and a slight smile illuminates the businessman’s expression when seeing them all. There’s a few he recognizes from their video calls, but mostly, he’s reminded of the pair of golden felines that wait for him back in California. It’s almost funny how much he can miss them when he travels.

He takes a second to crouch down and offer the blind cat a hand to sniff so it won't be as unsure of his scent, at the same time, he calmly pets another.

”Aw, are you gonna cook for me? How romantic.” He teases, just as he would have when they were much younger. Some things never change. He stands then ”A drink sounds great, though.”

This is exactly why Mars had made time in his schedule to come visit Cil. These days, most people in his life see him as Martín Marzán, Chairman and CEO of AMZN. There’s a certain distance in that; be it one created by their respect for his position or by his own distrust in their intentions. True friends are few, even when he may claim to have countless of them. Cil is someone who he knows will always treat him almost in the same way he did in college.

It’s incredibly refreshing.

”Ah, heartbreaking.” He jokes when Cil mentions being paid for cooking, dramatic as ever. Of course, there’s a laugh a moment later as Mars follows his friend down the stairs to the almost empty pub.

At least Mars highly doubts anyone will recognize him here, infamous as he may be.

”Can’t miss out on the scotch while I’m here, right? Pour me some too.” At that, he smirks. ”How have things been?”

”Ha. I think my Guiness days are behind me.”

Mars can’t remember the last time he drank beer at all; it honestly may have been back in college. Little does he know that soon enough he’ll be drinking questionable virtual ale from a mysterious keg found by a bunch of himbos in one of UNOVR’s forests.

A simple nod comes as thanks for the offered glass, taking a calm sip of scotch while listening to Cil talk about his life. Mars knows this is not the answer most people would get. They’re similar in that way: always hiding their problems.

”Yeah, sounds like a difficult situation. Sorry to hear about that… Family’s as much of a pain as usual, huh?” That’s also something in which they were once similar, but things are different these days for Mars. There’s a reason why he moved to a different continent. ”Work’s been crazy. Working on some new investments, have had to do a bunch of interviews, and all of that… Great stuff, but I’m left with pretty much no free time at all.”

It’s not the answer most people would get. Martín Marzán is always doing great, for his life is what most can only fantasise about. But, of course those people never fantasise about all the problems, all the hard work, and all the stress.

So, of course, it’s raising his glass that he then adds:

”But yeah, at least UNOVR’s fuckin’ great.” He grins, laughing lightly. "Almost wish I had more time to play."

The tension does not go unmissed, and Mars knows where it’s likely coming from. He’s been there, after all: Hell, even now, far from Spain as he often is, his ties to the Marzán family and their actions aren’t completely broken. It’s just that he now has control over them, even if from the distant shadows.

”Ha. Uni was your own fault, though. You were such a cute little nerd.” He teases to lighten the mood, giving Cillian an ever so radiant grin. It’s not like Mars has much room to talk: he may not have double majored, but he did majoring in business and economics with an absolutely nerdy as hell minor in Classical Studies. An athletic frat boy who loved epic poetry.

When the question on investments comes, it’s heavily that he sighs.

”Honestly? I’d love to but I’m still not sure… There’s a lot of weird stuff going on in UNOVR. I dig it as a player, but not so much from an investor standpoint.”

Risky. Mars is not one to gamble.

”Hmm… The things I could say if I had just a couple more drinks in me.” Mars teases, flashing a mischievous smirk before turning his attention back to the amber liquid in his glass. A younger Mars wouldn’t have passed up on the chance to nonchalantly comment on just how ’not little’ Cillian must be, but maybe the Spaniard is more merciful these days.

He’s not. Not really. His humour has just somewhat evolved with the years.

”Loads of people back Nintendo, yeah, but not Hydance.” He clarifies then, looking at Cil and shrugging. ”It’s like… reception has mostly been positive, yeah? But the game is also so different from a mainline pokémon game that you can always get those assholes saying they’re ruining the franchise or whatever. Is UNOVR guaranteed to make more and more money overtime? It all depends on if they can keep their player base happy and interested while also attracting new players. It’s an ever-changing market, but they benefit in that not a lot of games can offer a similar experience at the moment.”

This is why he prefers investing in blue chip companies.

Still, admittedly, the game has really won him over.

”The weird stuff is the stuff we don’t know about the game.”

As a player, those mysteries appeal to him to no end.

The mention of getting him drunk gets a laugh out of Mars, for while he may go to parties often and even throw them, his days of drinking to that degree have long since been left behind. It’s different when being here with Cil, though. Cillian Quinn knows that side of him, unlike most people, and despite how long it’s been since the the last time they saw each other in person, Mars trusts him when it comes to that.

”Ah, fuck it. You’re right. Let’s drink, then.”

His smile is bright – perfect and radiant. Just like that, he downs most of the scotch in his glass, leaving only a small amount behind. The glass is set down on the bar.

”Nah, see… Investing in Nintendo and investing in Hydance is not the same. The Pokémon franchise will probably always stay strong, but Hydance is a much smaller company. UNOVR could either make them rise to huge new heights or completely ruin them.” Such is the way with these things. ”I think it’ll be the former, though. So I guess I should invest before others do.”

Get in on it early.

Still, the risk doesn’t appeal to Mars at all.

”Oh. Actually… I never asked you, did I? What do you like the most about the game?”

He had been asking a few people that question in game, mostly for the sake of understanding the player base. After all, Mars has always believed in knowing as much as possible about any potential investments.