Chapter 74

Chapter 76: "The Crown and the Fire"

FaceWorld HQ – Jake's Private Office

Two Days After Returning from South Korea

Jake sat alone in his glass-walled office, barefoot, legs pulled up in his desk chair. A FacePad hovered on a magnetic arm in front of him, spinning slowly as data streamed across the screen—metrics, contracts, build projections.

He hadn't slept much since the Samsung trip. The FaceTV dongle was flying off shelves, SoundStack's soft launch was gaining momentum, and early signs pointed to another breakout product.

But what pulled most of his attention today was a digital document labeled:

> CONFIDENTIAL – HBO Licensing Agreement – A Song of Ice and Fire

A knock came at the door.

Callum stepped in, tablet in hand. "It's done," he said with a grin. "They caved."

Jake turned slowly. "Terms?"

Callum handed him the summary:

$30 million paid directly to HBO

George R. R. Martin remains as executive producer and narrative consultant

Streaming rights and global distribution go exclusively to Netflix (FaceWorld Media Division)

HBO receives a minor backend revenue share for prestige branding

Creative control resides with Jake's newly formed studio wing: FaceWorld Originals

Jake nodded slowly.

"Prep a press release. And notify Netflix. We're making the announcement next week—our way."

FaceWorld Internal Memo (Leaked to Tech Media Later That Night):

> "Game of Thrones Acquired by FaceWorld Inc.

Adaptation of George R. R. Martin's fantasy series moves to streaming-first development under FaceWorld Originals. Production begins later this year. Streaming exclusively on Netflix."

The internet exploded.

Fans, critics, TV insiders—nobody knew what to make of it. HBO had given up Game of Thrones? To a 14-year-old?

But the timing couldn't have been better.

The FaceTV dongle had just shipped 1.6 million units in its first week.

Now it had a flagship.

Netflix Studios – Culver City, California

A Week Later

The studio lights felt different this time.

Jake wasn't just visiting. He was commanding.

Inside a mid-sized soundstage converted for development meetings, Jake sat at the head of a long table—surrounded by senior producers, Netflix executives, and Pearson Hardman's entertainment legal team.

On a screen behind him was a simple black title card with gold lettering:

> "Game of Thrones"

A FaceWorld Original

He tapped the table with a capped pen.

"We start pre-production immediately. No time for debates."

An executive producer raised a hand. "We've never launched a project this size from scratch. Not with a thirteen-year-old at the helm—"

Jake's eyes didn't flinch. "Then keep up. Or step out."

The room went silent.

"We're adapting the first book faithfully. No compression. No shortcuts. High fantasy, prestige cinematography. Think Lord of the Rings, but sharper, darker, serialized."

Someone muttered, "That's going to be expensive."

Jake smiled. "Good. It'll look cheap if it isn't."

Netflix Internal Memo (Classified)

Initial Budget: $100M for Season One

Target Release: Late 2008

Writers Room: To be led by new hires, Martin retained for worldbuilding and lore oversight

Series Bible: Delivered by Q4 2007

Later That Day – FaceWorld HQ, Malibu Branch

Jake returned to his temporary command center—his Malibu beach house setup was more advanced than most Hollywood studios. He dropped his bag, stretched, and flopped down on the couch.

The FacePhone buzzed in his hand. A message from Jessica Pearson:

New Opportunity – Request for Meeting: Ari Gold, Talent Agency CEO

Subject: Studio Partnership Proposal

Location: Beverly Hills – Confidential

Jake blinked at the name.

Ari Gold? Like from the show?

He smirked, flipped the phone screen-down, and stared at the ceiling.

There wasn't a single area of entertainment he hadn't touched now.

TV. Film. Music. Devices. Distribution.

And yet… there was still more.

SoundStack HQ – Los Angeles (Meanwhile)

Across town, his newest platform was beginning to move.

With licensing locked, SoundStack was onboarding major labels and uploading thousands of tracks daily. Jake's engineers had integrated one-tap syncing between FacePhone, FacePad, and FaceTV.

A dashboard displayed user retention after just 48 hours.

> SoundStack Daily Active Users (DAU): 2.8 Million

Projected by Month-End: 14–16 Million

And it hadn't even launched globally yet.

Nightfall – Back at the Beach House

Jake stood outside on the deck, FacePad in hand, watching waves roll in.

He checked the production calendar, flipped through studio memos, then paused at a notification he hadn't opened.

Text from Haley:

> "Saw the Thrones news. Pretty wild. You're really building all this, huh?"

Jake read it but didn't reply.

Not yet.

fast

His world was shifting .

He'd earned a kingdom—and now, he had to rule it.