Chapter 97: An Impossible Task.

Blacklisted… That meant getting work in any of the other companies would be impossible. I could probably get work as a convenience store employee, or something, but… It would effectively cut off my current path.

Worse still, Leo had the audacity to look at me like a puppy looking for a reward. As if what he had just done was worthy of praise. I couldn’t even blame him for it…

Was this what they called, suffering in success? Not that I succeeded much, but it was clear he held me in high regard. Another saying fits perfectly here as well, ‘with friends like these, who needs enemies?’

Sure, the deal Leo managed to eke out was incredible. But it had the same energy as a man playing a game of chicken by driving off a cliff. Only, with the sole intention of putting a brick on the gas pedal and never stopping.

Even if I do succeed, it puts me in an awkward spot, though… It wasn’t like I was in a good spot as it was. In a perfect world, I’d simply sit back, let the controversy and rumors fade from recent memory before making a second play at the proverbial throne. Only, this time, with a lot more at my back.

With the funds I would receive from the patrols, and from entering the depths every so often, I could start building my own portfolio. Buy out some businesses, bribe or threaten others, so when I next take charge, I could just steamroll them all.

As it was, I was damned if I do, or damned if I don’t.

If I were to succeed, it would make it harder to get higher. There would be a large target painted on my back. I would have preferred if Leo hadn’t gone all in like he had. Like a child playing cards for their first time and thinking going all in was cool on the very first turn, all without even looking at their cards…

It was laughable and yet… it was utterly terrifying. What were the odds that the child had good cards? Bad cards? It was impossible to tell. Worse, there were only two choices here… Fold or go all in as well. Our chips were equal, I couldn’t raise, I couldn’t simply call and settle. No, it really was all or nothing.

In this case, Leo was the child. And I had to choose? Would I fold? I’d probably lose my job if I did. Leo would be fine, but… Yeah, that wouldn’t work. At best I could get Leo to renegotiate the terms, but that would be career suicide.

Which meant, I only had one choice.

“I understand. You worked hard, didn’t you?” Say, my tone easing. The chill receding as well.

He perked at those words. Just like a dog. I sighed and worked my way out of my seat and approached. He shuffled nervously. His eyes focused on me as I approached. I considered how I should go about this. How I could possibly navigate this situation.

I did what came naturally.

I reached for his tie and grasped it in my hand. Almost like a leash. A slight tug had him lower his head slightly, so that he was looking directly into my eyes. His eyes flicked from here to there. As if unsure of where to look, or how to react. His body tensed in confusion. Warring between fight or flight, only to be stalled by the last time I had done this.

The first time, I had hurt him this way. Second time, I remember vividly, despite being somewhat drunk having done this and giving him praise. This time…

I lean in close to his ear, pressing him further towards me. “You should start thinking about what you want.” I say, dragging out my words. In an almost breathy tone. “For when we succeed.”

“What… I want?” He asks, dazed. He barely moves when I let go of his tie and walk around him, right out of his office. The door shuts behind me and near every eye in the division is on me.

I give them a searching look. Samantha, Ken, Tom, Terada… Even Liche and Joan were looking at me. Each of them had different faces. Different thoughts.

Samantha was worried. Ken, looked lost, his gaze wandered between me, the office, and Terada. As if trying to discern something. Tom, furiously avoided my gaze the moment I looked towards him. Literally lowering his head, burying it in work. Terada, looked at me like a general seeking orders.

As for Liche and Joan, Liche looked as if what she had heard and seen was to be expected. Joan, simply watched me. A frown on her face.

Looking over them all, I spoke.

“I’m sure you all heard him. He wasn’t exactly quiet.” I get nods, a few voiced affirmatives. “As of today, I’ll be looking into the archives. With your permission of course, Mr. Terada.”

“And you’ll have it. Do what you can and take the time you need for our next project.” To his words, some of the older folks nodded along.

“I’ll do just that…” I again looked over everyone, I could tell they wanted to me to say more. So, I did.

“We have six, maybe seven months.” I say. “That is, assuming I find something in the archives today, which is unlikely. Even then, we still have work today. With our new equipment… I don’t think it’s possible for us to finish early. Not at the pace we are going at. And no, this isn’t an admonishment, that is simply fact.”

I let those words carry. Those who know, know. And everyone here was enough of a veteran to know. To know that I was absolutely correct.

“The deadline for the proposal is until the end of this quarter. That means it is entirely possible that we will only have three months to finish a large-scale project. A project that would normally take a year or more to complete, even with the best people in the business. Luckily, everyone here isn’t just the best in the industry. In some ways, I’d argue you made the industry.”

Nods follow.

“Which is why I believed in my original estimate. Originally, I planned for us to plan out a project and finish it by years end. Easing my promotion to division head, though, at this point, I don’t think any of you would complain?”

Nobody did, though, there were a few interesting looks. A few more glanced at Terada and nodded when they saw he didn’t object. Showcasing their loyalty to the man.

“As for three months? Even if I found something amazing, such a time frame is… Absolutely insane. I won’t deny that.”

More nods. Agreements.

“However… If anyone can do it, I believe this division has a chance and the only way this will work, is if I have your complete and utter faith.”

Silence followed.

“In the same way, I ask. Can I put my faith into you?” I look each person in the eye. Even Tom doesn’t avoid my gaze this time.

“You can.” The first to speak, wasn’t Terada. No, it was surprisingly Liche. All eyes landed on her, and she clicked her tongue and stood, Joan stood as well announcing her agreement, albeit silently.

Liche spoke when all eyes landed on her. “She’s not the type to just lie down and die. She’ll go down kicking and screaming. She’s a lot of things, but… She ain’t a quitter. Right?” She gives me a look, a challenge.

“I am not.” I respond to the challenge with my own.

Samantha stood up next. Tom. Ken. Each person followed until finally, Terada himself spoke up.

“Everyone here believes in you, and so will I.” His answer sealed the deal. I nod.

“And I won’t let you down. Starting tomorrow, I’ll be leaving early to inspect the archives. Any objections?”

Nobody voices an objection.

“Until then, I will do my best as always to do my share of work.” And with that, I went back to my workstation. Eyes followed me until I sat down, and when that happened, the silent space was filled with the sounds of everyone furiously working away.

“Hell of a speech!” Liche said, in a not quite a whisper. “Should I expect you to run for president sometime in the future?”

That actually made me chuckle.

“To much work. Political positions aren’t all their cracked up to be.” I answer back. “Though, you’re rather relaxed considering recent events.” I say, needling her.

She winces. “About that, I…”

I don’t let her finish. “I’m aware. If you keep following me, you won’t ever achieve anything for yourself.”

She rears back as if I had slapped her.

“Which is why, you have until the event to get stronger. When the event happens, I hope to see a new you, Liche. Can you do that?”

When she didn’t respond, I continued.

“I have faith in you Liche, what I said that night, it wasn’t meant to be demeaning. You’ve consistently proven yourself capable since we’ve teamed up. Even separated, surely, you’d have enough chutzpah left to do something on your own?”

“You really should be a politician. Just need some horns and a forked tongue, you’d fit right in.” She said with a little laugh. “Fine. I’ll do it. The coming event, I’ll prove myself. Though, I’ll expect a reward.”

Her eyes twinkled.

“You heard then?” I asked.

“Yeah, a few people were a bit too… nosy. Not to mention the walls of that office appear to be thinner.”

“I’ll have to keep that in mind, and don’t worry. It’s not just Leo that will get rewarded if this all goes well.”

“I’m sure you will, though, I’m surprised you’re not more embarrassed.”

“Embarrassed of what?” I give her a side glance. “You think I’d just give him a pat on the shoulder and tell him good work, or rather, good boy?”

“I could imagine it easily enough.”

“I’m sure you could…” I sigh. “But, no, doing that would just be patronizing. If I want Leo in my corner, it’s better to offer something. Whether or not I’ll agree is a whole other matter.”

She actually laughed. “Just tell me when you run for office.” She follows up with and gets back to work. Thus ending our conversation.

Truth be told, I’ve had time to think about what I have to do and how I have to do it. It wasn’t something I wanted to dwell on or rather focus on too much. Sure, I could learn how to live as a woman, and how to improve my quality of life. That was just natural, like settling into a new job.

A proverbial job I had never intended to keep. Only, the nature of the job has changed. No longer was it a temporary situation, but permanent one. At least, for the foreseeable future. I didn’t see me using a gold coin to change my body back to what it was. Not anytime soon.

Which meant, it was time to properly change tact. A man can command authority. It was easy to get other men to fall in line. Usually by simply being better than them. All the while, I’d have to keep an eye out for knives or those seeking to usurp my position. That was just life.

As a woman… It was clear that I’d have significant trouble getting anyone to fall in line. Even Leo, as hooked as he was, like a fish on the line, was a clear and present danger. It wasn’t hard to see that he was sizing me up. That he was now challenging me, pushing me. The very moment I fall behind, is the moment he overtakes me, pulls me into the water, line and all.

This little show of his was a perfect example. I couldn’t lead him around with the stick. I couldn’t beat him into submission. The more I do that, the more he’ll curl up, and the more his animosity for me will grow.

I couldn’t use hard power, instead, it came down to soft tactics. It was better to lure him in with honey. Lead him by the nose, make my priorities his priorities. Like a donkey being led by a carrot on a stick. Dangling before his nose.

I’d just have to balance give and take… And make sure he doesn’t end up eating me in the process…

I blink. My ears warm and I shake my head.

Not exactly a great analogy… I realize with a grimace.

Regardless, I my plan wasn’t exactly new. Women had controlled men since the beginning of time in some form or another. They always manage to find some way to exert influence. The worst that could happen is that I get burned, but luckily, I have a heart of ice and under that…

Under that heart of ice was an endless black abyss. An abyss that carried within it, something far darker…

The real issue was, whether or not it worked. Honestly, it wasn’t even my own method, but His method. I was always the rock, the hammer, the anvil. He, was a lot more capable of schmoozing and talking to people. Not that it helped in the day-to-day business…

Shaking my head, I went right back to it.

Work… Work came to an end rather abruptly. I could tell that everyone wanted to keep working away, inspired as they were, but curfew demanded we clock out. So, we clocked out. We logged out of our stations, cleaned and prepped as much as we could for the next day before filing out.

I was among the last to finish and as I went to the elevator, the moment the door opened, Samantha bustled on over. The two of us entered and the two of us remained silent throughout most of the ride…

“So, Prima, what would you say to possibly doing something together after work sometime?” Samantha asked.

“After work?” I echoed back.

It was an odd offer. Samantha was easily decades older than me. In some way, she could pass for my mother… Well, to outside eyes. In my eyes, she looked nothing like that woman.

“Yeah, I was thinking we could go shopping or something? The curfew complicates it, but surely, we could meet on a day off, and do something?” She asked.

I didn’t need to think that hard. “That should be fine, probably not this week though, or the next. Perhaps we could try something on the third weekend?”

“That sounds do-able. I’ll have to check my calendar and get back to you.”

“We can also reconfirm the week of, just to be sure.”

“Good idea, I’ll try to keep that weekend free then.”

“I’ll do the same.” I replied, just as the elevator came to a stop.

The elevator doors opened and we both went our separate ways, with a final promise to give it a go. It didn’t take long to arrive back at my unit. By the time I arrived, the sun had already begun to set. I cooked, ate and drank a can of beer while staring out at the sea. Part of me missed watching the sunset, but… the ocean view was still nice. Though, I should probably buy chairs for the balcony.

A quick call to Talia confirmed that she was doing fine, and that she thought she could create about a doll a day, which was a good pace. Then, I finished the day with a nice hot bath in my new bathtub, and finally, slept in my futon.

Everything seemed to be going well enough.

The next day, work was about the same. An hour or two before it was time to clock in, I left. Terada had passed me the key and a special lanyard that essentially said I could be in the archives.

The archives themselves were, located in a weird spot. The company itself had multiple sets of divisions for different projects. Divisions related to music, or filming for live action movies or dramas had office spaces inside the Taurus building, but most of their work was done outside the building. In much the same way, or division despite working in-house, contracted out to other companies for some services. There was some overlap, with multiple companies being under the corporate umbrella, but not all of them.

It was cheaper to outsource at least in the short run. Especially when it comes to hiring professionals, training them, and providing the equipment and space for them to work.

In essence, the building was separated into different sets divisions according to the work they did. Many of them weren’t nearly as populated as our division was, either because they worked off-site predominantly, or through sub-companies under the corporate umbrella.

As for the archives, the archives for our specific set of divisions, they were located just a floor above where the first division worked. On exiting the elevator, I was greeted by a door. A single door with a placard that simply said, Archives. Nothing else. No further delineation. Just, Archives.

Luckily the key worked, but… The moment I entered, I couldn’t help but groan. Very little was packed with care. If anything, it looked like people just dropped off cancelled projects and let them be. The floor was covered in proposals and shelves were stacked high with folders and envelopes.

To make this so much more frustrating, there wasn’t even an archivist. Though, there appeared to be a single clear path that led to a desk in the back. On the desk were a set of proposals that actually looked cared for. In fact, looking around, it became clear that the further back I went, the more put together the papers were.

Just the initial inspection cut a lot of time out of the day. Doing the bare minimum to clean up and gather the loose sheets and set them aside for later took far too long. Even as I worked, a plan of action was taking form in my brain. A very unpleasant one.

I couldn’t just randomly dig through bins and boxes for what I needed. Without a lead, the best I could do was begin the long arduous job of compiling all the different proposals, properly categorizing and putting them away…

That… that would take some time…

Three months didn’t seem like nearly enough time, even if I spent a few hours each day getting to work.

Before it came time to clock out, I took stock of what I would need to properly make all of this work…

Luckily, the room had plenty of bins and boxes set aside for me to use… I’d just need to buy some labels and lots of staples. Perhaps there was an office I could commandeer some from…

With more work ahead, I headed back home. My dreams were filled with towering mountains of paper that shifted and churned like the rolling waves on the open sea. The waters were calm, but… I could sense a storm on the horizon.