Magical Girl City: Empire of Ice

It was now the morning of the next day, Friday, and we were all gathered in the lobby. Final checks were made, luggage was looked over, all in preparation for the coming trip. It was a lot of work coordinating everything, but luckily, I had Liche and Joan assisting me, along with Terada. As for Leo, well, he had no interest in going with us on our trip. Rather, he wanted to stay as far away from the project as possible.

He said it was to keep from stealing my spotlight, in reality, I could tell he didn’t want to waste his weekend working. That he’d much rather go bar crawling over the weekend. Still, actual reasoning aside, it was a nice gesture. Which is why I didn’t make a fuss.

Before long, a system was in place, with both Joan and Liche directly assisting me and with Terada acting as the head for everyone else. When the bus arrived, Liche and Joan helped make sure all the documents we would need were loaded up, while Terada acted as the group leader, making sure everyone got onboard.

The bus itself wasn’t anything overly fancy. That we could even afford this trip was only because of just how small our division was. A fully staffed division was well beyond what our budget could handle, and even understaffed as we are, it was a massive hit to our budget. Which made this whole trip a gamble.

After all, I was quite literally trading money for time. All in the hopes that it would make a difference.

We left, without much issue. No drama to speak of. Everyone kept things mostly professional, and if an issue did prop up, Terada had it handled within moments. The drive itself took a lot less time than I thought it would, and the ride itself was blessedly, again, without any issue or serious drama.

When we arrived, it was like we’d arrived in a whole new world. Much like whenever we left for an event, or something similar. Truthfully, the place where the resort was located was contained realm, which was similar to previous events.

The difference was, the realm itself wasn’t caused by a natural occurrence, or rather, by the death or destruction of a world or universe, or whatever the hell it was they were called.

Instead, the realm itself was something created using gold coins. After all, a gold coin could do many things, even create a small realm, only, the realm itself was laughably small at first. Making a realm of a decent size cost an absurd number of gold coins. A realm such as this?

At a glance, there was the mountain in the distance. The surroundings were filled with bamboo. Our bus stopped outside the resort itself which was rather sizeable, near what looked like an intake office. We disembarked and made our way inside, where maps of the entire area were laid out, almost like we were at an amusement park.

From the size alone, the realm was likely the size of a city block, give or take. To get even close to this size would require… hundreds of gold coins, no doubt. Perhaps even a platinum based on my limited understanding.

However, it wasn’t like this realm was financed by a single magical girl. Rather, it was made by a collective of them. Much like a timeshare, or something similar. Magical girls would invest gold coins into the realm and receive a share of the profits.

How I knew this? They had a damn brochure near the check-in area for magic users and magical girls. There was even a special kiosk for possible investors to get information.

The check-in was thankfully painless. Our reservation was immediately found, and we were quickly shuffled off towards the resort proper. With our luggage left behind for staff to take as we were settled in. The hotel we were staying at was also at the center of the resort. It was a bit of a walk, but we weren’t walking, instead transportation was provided. While we drove through the main street, we were also given a brief tour of what we could expect, and the services contained within the realm.

The realm itself was fashioned after a more traditional Japanese town, with modern conveniences. A few of my co-workers looked around, clearly interested, yet, that interest was dampened by the realization that they didn’t have the money to splurge on such items.

The hotel itself was again, fashioned after traditional Japanese aesthetics, with, once again, a modern touch. We were led to our rooms, each with futons and tatami mat floors. I didn’t splurge on the bigger, single rooms. Each of us were forced to share a room with a colleague. I was with Samantha, Liche and Joan were together, and others were paired according to Terada’s instructions.

Once our rooms were assigned, we met back up for dinner inside the conference room we’d be using through the weekend, well, the week.

And as we waited for the food to arrive, I began the process of debriefing everyone.

Whiteboards were brought in; boxes of papers were set about. The staff at the resort were surprisingly helpful, helping me set the room up while we waited for our food. A few people in our group cast wary gazes at the boxes and the boards as we set up, none of them spoke out or questioned what it was they were doing. Rather, they simply resigned themselves for what was to come.

We ate dinner in relative silence, with a few clipped conversations occurring here and there. The mood, wasn’t great.

Once the last plate was finished and carried away, with a clap of my hands, I got their attention. Wary eyes looked at me as I started.

“Now, before we begin, I’d like to thank you all for coming to this work weekend.” I say, a few clapped, but only out of politeness, not actual sincerity.

“I’m sure you all had other plans for this weekend, and I would like to say again, that I am grateful that you are here.” Again, a few polite claps, and maybe a few sour looks.

“Which is why, I’d like to start this debrief by showing my gratitude.”

With a motion of my hand, Liche and Joan opened one of the boxes and divvied up their contents and passed it around. The contents? Plastic cards. More specifically, preloaded bank cards. Once everyone had a card, I continued.

“As part of my gratitude, and also, as a start to our weekend, each of you has been given a preloaded bank card. On each card, is exactly Five-thousand dollars.” The moment they heard the amount, a few people reacted, with one person even spitting out some water they were in the middle of drinking.

“You can consider that a bonus, and as a convenience fee for the upcoming work.” I say, pressing on. Immediately, the mood changed. Which wasn’t very surprising. After all, money was king. If before they were hesitant, even somewhat resistant to their new work, now? Now they were eager and bright-eyed.

“Spend it or don’t, it’s not my business, but there are ATM’s throughout the resort and you’re free to spend it as you please. Otherwise, our meals are covered under our reservation. There is also a running tab for drinks, with each of you having a daily allowance of up to two-hundred dollars for alcohol, please drink responsibly.”

If before they were looking forward to our weekend, well now, with drinks on the menu? They better be ready to go all out. But, I wasn’t quite done.

“On top of that, if you end up not using your tab, or you have any leftover, you can cash it out at the end of our trip as an additional bonus.”

At this, there were a few cheers. Some chattering, visible excitement. Clearly, this was a big deal. I mean, this is the least they could do. I was literally paying for these bonuses out of pocket. Assuming the project goes well, I might be able to get reimbursed after the fact, but this was a huge gamble. If this project failed, all this money would have gone straight down the drain, but in for a penny, in for a pound and all that.

If I was going to be putting a limb out for this trip, I might as well go all out.

At least the trip itself was covered by the company, which is what made this even possible. After all, my savings were their profit. I lost little by spending what I already planned to spend. At least, this bonus wasn’t nearly as expensive as the trip itself. So, everyone wins.

I briefly went over the itinerary; we’d meet and eat breakfast together before splitting. Only to meet for dinner and begin working in earnest to hash out the project. And we’d end the day with a visit to the hot spring, with bathing attire being provided by the resort itself, among other things, there wasn’t a lot to think about.

Day activities were up to each individual, with the conference room being available at all times for anyone to contribute to the project.

Now, as to why I wasn’t just sequestering them inside the conference room?

To keep productivity up, obviously. We weren’t just doing rote work, no, we were theory crafting and building a narrative. We needed ideas, and if that meant I had to grease the wheels with alcohol to get the machine going, and maybe a few massages or whatever else sprinkled in, that was just the cost of doing business.

And with each additional benefit laid out, it was clear, my idea was working. Or at the very least, it had everyone invested in the project. As the debriefing wound down, I had Liche and Joan pass out the project information. Each person got their own folder, filled to the brim with information, including the additions that woman had made, and some of my own added on.

“Now that I’ve laid that all out, the project details are laid out before you, feel free to give it a look over, you’ll have all night, so I encourage you all to give it a thorough read over the night.”

At my words, they cracked open the folders and began to look it over. Immediately, it was clear they noticed what this was. Rather, just seeing the title brought a round of silence, and uneasy glances in Terada’s direction. I didn’t blame them, he was, after all, the center of the show.

It was his story, and sure, I had not asked for permission to make it, but I didn’t think he would complain about being given a second chance. He did appear to be shellshocked on seeing the title, and only after a long, uneasy pause did he tear through the document, eyes going line by line.

Nobody moved, just waited, watched as Terada worked through the papers. It didn’t take him long to blitz through the material. His eyes were distant, unfocused. He worked his jaw, and it took some time before he recollected himself, and when he did, his gaze was solely on me.

“This is… mine.” He said, after several false starts, his jaw moving, his throat quivering as he constantly swallowed. His eyes reddened.

“Indeed, it is, and I expect you to finish it.” I said back.

Again, he tried to say something, only, he couldn’t seem to find the words. I could see the myriad of emotions on his face warring with each other. Only showing what must have been a fraction of the inner turmoil he was feeling in that moment.

“And it was approved?” He asked, finally, his voice rough, raw.

“Why else would we be here?” I said calmly, waving my hand as if it wasn’t a big deal. Though, it was anything but a big deal, and if the executive’s warning was to be taken seriously, this might turn out to be rather problematic down the road, but for now? Right now, the goal was to put this project on the right track.

Another long pause, only to be broken when, of all things, Terada bolted up in his seat, nearly knocking over the small table everyone was seated at. He stood, ramrod straight, and immediately bowed.

“I WILL GIVE IT MY ALL!” He belted out, his body shaking. Even with his head bowed, I could almost see the trickle of tears falling to the ground.

“I hoped you would, now, your dismissed feel free to do as you please. Starting tomorrow, we begin.”

Yet, despite my words, not a soul left. Nearly everyone here had been with Terada since the beginning, they all knew what this meant, and at this moment, they were all inspired, not just by their leader, but by the purpose behind their task.

They all began to read the information I had provided them. Each in their own way. When they all finished, they began to form up, whispering, talking, going over each line and page. Old memories were being resurfaced and before my own eyes, it almost seemed like each of them were growing more youthful, as decades left their bodies.

Part of me itched to get involved, but I knew better. Despite my time with them, I knew it was better to simply sit back and let them work. I hadn’t been with them long, neither had Joan or Liche. Without a word, we retired.

“Will they be fine” Liche asked, and Joan was the one to respond.

“Yes.” She said with certainty. “They will be.” Her eyes glowing, and even as we left the conference room, she kept glancing back.

That night, I retired early. Exhausted by the travel, the procedures I had to go through to finalize everything. The moment I settled into my futon, I was out in an instant.

With a groan, a stretch, I woke up to an otherwise empty room. My roommate, Samantha’s futon untouched. A little concerned, I dressed in the clothing provided by the resort and made my way to the conference room.

I wasn’t sure what to expect, but… well, this wasn’t quite on my bingo card. The conference room smelled. It appeared that nobody had gotten any sleep. It also appeared like they’d already started drinking as glasses dotted the conference room.

There was also food, from orders people had made. Messy plates were piled up, still covered in crumbs or bits of sauce. Everyone was still animated, eyes red, almost bloodshot as they spoke, voices hoarse, croaking even as they spoke in a fevered pitch. Documents were everywhere, with some soiled, others scribbled over with incomprehensible gibberish. It was madness.

It was… beyond my expectations. I wasn’t sure what to say. But I knew what I had to do. My entry hadn’t disturbed them, neither had they noticed me as they continued. Even a clap of my hands didn’t get their attention, so I had to raise my voice.

“Attention!” I yelled, and once more clapped my hands with enough force to leave my hands stinging. The entire room finally went silent. All eyes were on me.

“Put your work down. Eat breakfast and head to bed. Its morning already.” I commanded. Everyone blinked and for what must have been the first time, actually took in their surroundings. Some seemed ready to contest me, to argue back, but when they tried to stand up, only to stumble did they rethink that course of action.

There was an awkward pause, as these older men and women looked at each other, with some sniffing at their bodies. Only then did they realize how bad this looked. Some blushed, others looked ashamed, but even then, they tried to retain some level of decorum after having been called out. Breakfast was eaten, with coffee denied to them before they broke off and retired to their rooms. Leaving just me, Liche and Joan to our devices…

Not exactly to plan, but…

“What do you say we do some sightseeing?” I asked the duo. After exchanging a glance, they agreed.

We ended up leaving the hotel to take in the surrounding areas. The streets weren’t too busy, with a number of shops catering to different tastes scattered about. Really, we were just sightseeing. We ended up stopping at a place for lunch and taking in the sights.

At Joan’s insistence, we went ahead and bought a cheap camera and took photos together. Visiting shops and even temples that were scattered about the place. It was actually strangely fun. Even spending some money on souvenirs, or clothing as we went about.

We arrived back at the hotel in time for dinner. Which was about when everyone started to wake up. Each of them nursed a killer hangover. Dinner was oddly subdued, and I could tell everyone was raring to go, but I had to hold them back. Instead, we spent the time after dinner putting together a basic plan of what needed to be done. All the while, I kept my eyes on the clock and ended the meeting when it came time for us to use the hot spring.

There were some complaints, but after saying I wouldn’t shut down any discussions while we were in the bath, well, they pretty much hoofed it over.

Since we were reserved as a group, we were able to get a timeslot for the hot spring, the hot spring itself was a mixed bath. Which wasn’t much of an issue since we had towels, and bathing suits. There were smaller hot springs for men and women, but they were smaller and nowhere near each other. Which would have made coordination on the project difficult.

For a few minutes, even with the absurd energy each and every person had on getting in, or with how adamant they were with continuing their conversations, the moment they hit the water, all conversation died. For a few minutes, everyone, including myself, melted, letting ourselves soak in the warm waters.

And after a few blessed moments, conversation resumed…

With a tired smile, I couldn’t help but admit, maybe I went a little too far with motivating these old timers.