Magical Girl City: Empire of Ice

I listened to the waves crash on the shore. The smell of the sea filled my unit. Waking up to a literal ocean outside my window, when it hadn’t existed just the night before… frankly, it was absurd.

A lot of thoughts ran through my mind. Anxiety about what that meant, how it could influence the future. Even now, a part of me was slowly accepting, on some level, that the sea had always existed. It terrified me and yet…

The only thought that took precedence over it all, was…

“Ocean front property…” I muttered. “I bought this at a steal…” I continued. “Just… just how much more valuable is this property now!?” I exclaimed. Mentally, I ran through the numbers. Bringing forth my own knowledge. If I were to resell my property now, I could easily make a profit. Twice as much, no, it could even work up to nearly ten times with the boardwalk being so close.

This was prime real estate.

Should… should I sell?

The thought persisted until my phone rang. Alerting me that I had to get moving and move I did. With a little more energy, completely refreshed, as if the rising sun had been a sign. A sign of my own rising fortunes, of a bright future. Of a new dawn.

A quick session inside the Condo’s dedicated workout space, followed by a cold shower, and a hearty meal to start my day. With this as my start, I went to work with a bit of pep in my step. A small smile tugging at my lips.

At least, until I entered work…

I parked my car in the small underground lot, but when I went up to the second division’s floor, my workplace, I was confronted by a sign. Unfamiliar faces milled past me. Smiles on their faces, they chattered on cheerfully. As if they weren’t going to work.

Then there were their eyes, glancing at me with triumph and derision.

We had been officially demoted. The second division and all the employees within were now officially the third division. Not just on paper, but now in reality. I avoided their eyes filled with mirth and joy at our division’s failure, ignored the chatter, the congratulatory tones laced with venom.

I swallowed the indignation. The fire burning inside my core. With a couple of breaths, I held my head high and left, taking the stairs down a flight. To our new workplace.

At some point, our workstations had been emptied and moved. Without prior consent as well. Boxes were stacked on one side of our new area. Already, Terada was working with the other members to search through the boxes and empty them.

Workstations had been set out, a box with my name scrawled on it with a marker was the only indication of where I was supposed to be. Nobody said anything. Heads were low. As were our spirits.

The new space was… definitely a downgrade. The office spaces were hardly even spaces now. More like lines of computers with minimal privacy. The computers were of a lesser quality, as were the peripherals. There was a faint smell in the air as well.

It smelled like an old car air freshener. Like pine, but… like it had sat in the sun for too long and permeated everything in a chemical odor. The carpet was older as well, the usual office colors were worn and frayed. In some places, it was clear the padding underneath had worn away.

Even the ceiling tiles were aged. A few were yellowed, some looked slightly worse for wear. Nothing like the previous office space’s pristine ceiling. As for the lights, they hummed like a swarm of mosquitoes and cast the room in a yellowed dye.

Nobody spoke. Nobody complained as we settled in. Spending the first hours of the day just settling in. The keys of my keyboard felt gummed up. Every few taps lacked that satisfying click or clack I was accustomed too. Occasionally, they wouldn’t register, or they would stick. The mouse was much the same, the mousepad was worn as well.

I had barely started work before I felt my sanity threatening to shatter like a reinforced window. Like it would shatter into a million pieces at the slightest bit more pressure.

“How are you settling in?” Terada came in, likely to check in on me.

“Horribly.” I stated, not even bothered with maintaining decorum. “The keys keep jamming up, the mouse doesn’t like to work, and I swear the clicker’s about to give out. The computer whines and the fans knock around inside. Worse, it runs a few seconds slow. Takes forever to boot, and every time I open a program there is a few second delay.”

I ranted, though, he said nothing. Just looked at me. I took a moment to breathe, flex my fingers.

“All to say, we might have a problem on our hands.” I took the moment to pause my work and look up at the man. My chair, an obvious downgrade and already, just a few hours in, I felt my backside aching.

“I’m aware.” Terada said, slightly taking the winds out of my sail.

“I’m sure you are.” I said, without a single ounce of sarcasm. I didn’t doubt for a moment that what he said was true.

“As it is, with the enforced curfew, we’ll struggle to make deadlines on our current projects. Let alone on normal work.”

He nods along. “That is true. Normally, even if there was a city-wide curfew it was more of a suggestion, not a law. Only by abusing that have we kept up, despite how few of us there are. But that isn’t the real issue.”

“It isn’t?” I ask.

“No, the real issue is… have you seen the last quarter’s reports?”

“Leo showed them to me, why?”

“Then you noticed that the fourth division has been performing unusually well, yes?”

“The bull pen?” I say. “I did, but is that an issue? I mean, we may be doing worse, but I don’t think we’re doing so badly that they can catch up to us. Especially not with the new work.”

At least, not yet, not that I was going to voice that.

“Well, remember when we brought them on to help us?”

“I do, and I also remember they did surprisingly well.”

“They did and I did some research during the last week.”

“You did?” I voice my shock. Then, I blink and take a second look at the man. Since he had been chewed out, Terada had been lost. Even with the new work, he’d plugged on, but I could tell he wasn’t entirely engaged with the project. Even with an engaged junior hovering around him, soaking up all of his teachings… That junior being the original artist. She’d been visiting almost constantly, watching how we worked and storyboarding with us.

No, perhaps it did have an effect on the man?

“I did…” He trails off. “I realized that you were right to say what you did. I just… didn’t want to confront it. Seeing you and now that boy…” he shakes his head. “No, it’s clear that Leo is quickly growing into a man. Seeing that he’s taken charge and even found us a way out, when all I’ve been doing these years was to sit back and let the ship sink… In this last week, I have come to realize that I can’t just keep sitting back.”

“You heard then?”

“Leo told me about your hail mary.”

“And?” I ask, seeking some advice.

“I believe if it’s you, you can make it work.” He said with a confidence and conviction I did not have.

I pursed my lips, but didn’t retort. He says that, but… he still has those eyes of a man seeking an end. There was a bit of light, but it wasn’t one looking forward. No, it was more akin to someone seeing the final light before death.

“Fine then.” I say, not wanting to confront the issue. “What then, is the issue?”

“The fourth division, as I’ve already said, I did some research. I even took the fourth division leader out for a drink over the holiday.”

“Did you now?” I say, surprised at how forward he was.

“I used to be rather proactive at building relationships, and even now, with me being blacklisted there are some people willing to talk with me.” He said with a note of pride in his voice.

Oh… I never thought he’d outright admit that, but that wasn’t the topic for today. “And?” I press.

“Well, do you know how the fourth division operates?”

“Is this relevant?”

“It is.”

“Then no.”

“The fourth division, or the bull pen as some call it.” He gives me a look. “Is a lot less united than the other divisions are. Individual merit within the division matters most. With higher performing employees being able to get better benefits including pay. Those at the top are typically fast tracked into other divisions for work.”

I nod along. “And I imagine something has disrupted that environment?”

“Yes… Back when you first offered to cooperate with the fourth division, do you remember who your liaison was?”

“Liaison? You mean the person I was coordinating with? Wasn’t it the head of the fourth division?”

“No, from what I’ve heard the fourth division head pawned the job off to a new hire. You’d been working with a newbie.”

“A newbie? That’s preposterous. You’re telling me, that a new hire rallied the other employees and worked on our project?”

Terada nods. “I am. And from what I hear, since then, his influence has grown since then. Word is, he might even be promoted to division head at the end of the month.”

“That…” I trail off and slowly connect the dots. “Are you saying, that the fourth division has a chance of outdoing us?”

“Yes, and if that happens, the division will be dissolved. That man will be promoted up, and we’ll be folded into the new division that forms. At least, those deemed valuable to him. Assuming that happens.”

And he gave me another look.

“I guess my work history doesn’t look that good.” I answer, knowing why he was giving me that look.

“You attempted a coup, that resulted in our division losing standing. I’ve also heard that your actions also had a direct impact on the company’s reputation. If this division dissolves, you will lose your job. And this isn’t just a guess on my part; you will be fired.”

I wanted to swear, among many other things. “So, what? Did you have a plan?”

“Not as of yet, but… if Leo can convince the executive that your plan has merit, he may extend a lifeline to you and our division.”

“I don’t believe that you don’t have a plan, Mr. Terada.”

He avoids my gaze.

I sigh. “Well, whatever, not like I plan for this division to go under. Even if Leo fails, I’m sure we’ll think of something.” I continue, with far more confidence than I felt.

Truth be told, if I was heading towards a dead end, I’d have to go scorched earth. If I made a big enough stink, perhaps I could lock my position… It would prevent me from being fired, but it would also prevent me from being promoted. Well, through the ordinary track.

I could probably move my way up through more, clandestine methods. Originally, that was what I planned if Leo had turned me down, but I ended up threatening the man, and well, that didn’t end so well…

It seemed like it was turning around, but it was entirely possible he was just waiting to thrust a knife into my back at a prime moment.

Terada gave me a subtle nod. Accepting what I said with a surprising amount of faith and went back to work.

The pace was slow. Little got done with the downgraded equipment. At least with it going slower, it forced me to better pace myself. Though, that meant I couldn’t pause for breaks as much. Especially since every second counted. I ate my lunch at the computer, working as I ate a sandwich that had been ordered.

It was only then that I noticed the obvious signs of someone doing the same as me. The desk had small stains here and there. Some areas were slightly sticky, or had clearly been cleaned fairly often. Either from spills or crumbs.

I couldn’t imagine the sheer willpower that the third division must have had, how many sleepless nights they had to go through in order to surpass us…

Any bad feelings I had for them were worn away as I worked. Even if we balanced our work schedule better, even with our division being severely understaffed, even then, I couldn’t help but admit that the third division deserved the promotion.

The people here, could barely be called human. They were monsters, capable of accomplishing work at a blistering pace only seen by true veterans. Though, before coming here I had never worked in this exact line of work. I knew without a doubt, that everyone here was worth far more than what the company was paying them.

Each one of them could easily lead a division. Each one of them deserved the chance to spread their wings. To truly branch out and flex their skills…

It was a shame that they were stuck here, on a dying ship, with a captain dead set on going down with said ship…

More hours passed. It was getting close to the time to clock out when Leo arrived. He was all smiles. Something everyone noticed. He came right over to me, placed down a stack of documents. One glance at the title was all I needed to know what it was.

“He accepted then?”

“He did. Not only that, but he’s given us an extension. Our pay and benefits will go back to what it was, and not just that.” He took a breath and tried to regulate his ever-growing volume. To no avail. “He also said, that if you can produce a satisfactory proposal, that he would provide us with a substantial amount of cash to get us off the ground. Not to mention, that if the project proves successful, that not only would he consider my suggestion for you to replace me, but he might even expedite it.”

“That is… very generous. I imagine there are conditions?”

“Yes, there are. You need to provide the project details by the end of the quarter, and the project must be completed by summer’s end.”

“Summer?” If there was a growing sense of hope in the division that single condition immediately killed it in the crib. “He can’t be serious.” I say, not quite believing what he said was true.

“He was. Exceedingly. He told me, that if you couldn’t do that much, why would he promote you.” Leo said with a shrug, not at all realizing how absurd of a request that was.

“And you just accepted?”

“Why wouldn’t I? We figured we had until the end of the quarter to make plans, but we never planned on the additional budget and even the pay raise. It seemed stupid not to take the offer.”

“Stupid? Leo, that… that offer is stupid!” I couldn’t help but shout. “How can you expect anyone to make something worthwhile in three months!? Even assuming I find a project today, and we start working on it now, it could take up to a year!”

I could feel everyone in the division nodding along and agreeing with me.

“But we’re looking through the dropped projects, aren’t we? Wouldn’t that shave time off?”

“If we get lucky. I was hoping to find something workable, that we could work on and get out by the end of the year, remember?”

He nods.

“Even if I found a good enough project to pick up, it would take countless hours to go over the scrips, change up or alter the scenes as needed. Even doing the planning for the entire project can be a time-consuming task. I haven’t been here long and I’m already aware of that! Leo, what the hell!?”

“So, are you telling me you can’t do it then?” He said, the little shit even had the audacity to look down his nose at me. “I thought you had ambition. That you’d do anything to climb to the top. Or was that just talk?”

This… this guy!

“I negotiated a great deal for you, and I did all that because I thought you could handle this.” His tone, infuriating as it was, never once rose in volume. It was perfectly measured, almost as if he was talking down at me, no, he literally was!

“So, what? Is this a little difficult for you? Don’t think you can do this? If so, say so now, and I’ll reject the offer.” He said, and I knew immediately, he wasn’t lying.

I felt a flood of emotions. Only the crackle of ice kept me chilled. I tried everything I could to breathe. It felt like trying to draw in breath through a stirring straw. Eventually though, I felt those emotions ebb away. The tension in my shoulders loosened with an exhale of frost.

“Leo, office, now.” I say, punctuating each word. Not even glancing back, I move to his new office and plop down on his chair, a chair that he likely had moved on his own time. The moment I did, I heard him come in. Any attitude he had was gone, but…

He still had that look about him. Like he was mocking me.

“What is this?” I asked right out of the door. “What was that?” I follow up with. Still trying to understand what was going on. “Why, just why?” I follow up with.

“Do you really not understand?” He had the gall to look at me like I was the idiot. “Do you even know what I risked getting this deal and you call me an idiot? I know I might not be as talented as you are at this…” He waves his arms around, “Thing, but I thought you could deal with this. Was I wrong?”

“As for what else this is, this is a golden opportunity for you and me both.” He continued.

His words were the final piece of the puzzle.

“He offered you something.”

“He did. He said that if you succeeded, that he would support me in any future projects.”

“Did he now? And what of your father?”

“What about him?”

“I’m sure he was involved in this too.”

“He was. The old bastard really put his all into this. I just had to dangle the offer and he went all in. Funny how he thinks more of you then his own son.” He said that, but he didn’t look like it bothered him too much.

“You don’t seem bothered by that.” I point out.

“Why would I? Your better at this than I am, is it wrong to admit that?”

I had to take a moment to respond. “No… It isn’t…” I trail off… “Fine. What happens if we fail to provide an idea by the end of the three months? And worse, what if we don’t provide a product by summer?”

“You get fired.”

I nod. I expected as much.

“Also, I’ll get fired as well.”

Again, not exactly surprising.

“My father will lose his shares in the company. Likely lose everything he owns as well when he files for bankruptcy.”

That…

“The third division will be dissolved, Terada will be folded into the first division and the others will be dispersed throughout the company.”

“Not just within our set of divisions?”

“No, they will likely be put into other parts of the company.”

Right, Taurus was an entertainment company. Animations weren’t their only product…

“Honestly… that doesn’t sound so bad…”

“Oh… and, if you fail, you’ll be blacklisted.”

Well… dammit.