[Inside the Thermal Bunker Bubble - Under 50 Feet of Snow]
"Seven minutes of oxygen remaining," Luna reported calmly. She was checking her knife, ready to dig.
Alex wasn't digging. He was on his satellite phone.
"Yes," Alex said into the phone. "I don't care about the stock price. Buy 51% of Alpine Energy. Now."
"But Sir," the broker on the other end stammered. "That will cost $400 Million! It's a public utility company!"
"Do it," Alex ordered. "And once the transaction clears, patch me through to the Main Control Room."
Two minutes later.
"Mr. Alex?" A nervous engineer spoke. "We... we just received the order. You are the new majority shareholder. How can we help you?"
"I have a task for you," Alex said, looking at the wall of snow pressing against the force field. "Sector 4, Coordinates 48.2 by 11.3. There is a private chalet there."
"Yes, sir. That is the 'Golden Lodge'. It draws a lot of power."
"Cut it," Alex said.
"Sir?"
"Cut the power," Alex's voice was ice cold. "Turn off the heating. Turn off the lights. And disable the remote restart for the backup generators."
"But sir... it's a blizzard out there! It's minus twenty degrees! Without heating, the pipes will burst and... well, people could freeze."
"I know," Alex smiled. "Do it."
[The Golden Circle Headquarters]
Count Vargo raised his wine glass. "To the late Mr. Alex. May he rest in... ice."
The Baron laughed nervously. "A fitting end."
ZZZT.
Suddenly, the crystal chandelier flickered and died. The roaring electric fireplace cut out. The hum of the central heating system stopped.
The room plunged into darkness and silence.
"What is this?" Vargo demanded. "Baron, check the breakers!"
"It... it seems to be a total blackout, Grand Elder!"
The temperature in the room began to drop immediately. The wind howled outside, rattling the windows.
"Call the power company!" Vargo screamed, wrapping his fur coat tighter around himself. "Tell them who I am! Get the power back on!"
The Baron dialed the emergency line for Alpine Energy. He put it on speaker.
Ring... Ring...
"Thank you for calling Alpine Energy," a calm, familiar voice answered. "This is the Chairman speaking."
Vargo froze. He knew that voice.
"You..." Vargo whispered. "You are alive?"
"I'm very comfortable," Alex said from inside his warm bubble. "But I hear you're having some heating issues. That's too bad."
"You did this!" Vargo shrieked. "Turn it back on! Do you know who we are?!"
"I know," Alex replied. "You are the Golden Circle. And right now, you are the Frozen Circle."
"We will kill you!"
"You already tried," Alex laughed. "Now, I'm going to give you a choice. You have 30 minutes before hypothermia sets in."
"What do you want?!"
"Leave," Alex ordered. "Pack your bags. Get out of the Alps. If I see any of you in my mountain range by tomorrow morning... I'll buy the water company next and freeze your pipes."
Click.
The line went dead.
Vargo stared at the phone. He could see his breath in the air. The cold was already biting his fingers.
"Grand Elder..." The Baron's teeth chattered. "What do we do?"
Vargo looked around the dark, freezing castle. He had lived here for fifty years. But he knew he had lost. Money was the ultimate superpower, and Alex had more of it.
"Evacuate," Vargo whispered, defeated. "Get the cars. We are leaving."
[10 Minutes Later]
The bubble dissolved.
"Master," Luna pointed up. "Rescue team inbound."
A massive excavation drill broke through the snow. It wasn't the police. It was a private rescue team Alex had hired via the System.
As Alex climbed out of the snow hole, he looked across the valley.
The Golden Lodge was dark. A line of cars was fleeing down the mountain road.
[DING!]
[Mission Complete: The Coldest Revenge.] [Enemy: The Golden Circle (Retreated).] [Expenditure: $400,000,000 (Alpine Energy shares).] [Reward: +4,000 Tycoon Points. +1 Public Utility Company.]
Alex dusted the snow off his shoulder.
"Luna," Alex said. "Call the power company back. Turn the lights on at my castle. I want a hot bath."