Corporate Reminds you that Hell is a promotional position

Kahara

This is where I will be keeping the story I’ve been planning out with Theria Inc. Enjoy and read to your heart’s content. Feedback would be nice.

Kahara

Corporate reminds you, that Hell is a promotional position.
Theria Inc
Main port

It had been rough ever since Baeiira had arrived in the city, well, life hadn’t been to easy back home but in this corporate hell she felt like she was going to die. It had been her dream to see the other world people only discussed as paradise.

Her parents had said that it was a fools errand and that it would be best to stay at home, but that hadn’t stopped her. She had taken a ship to the nearby country of Theria when she had ran into a problem.
It had been around 12:33 when the ship docked in the ports near the main headquarters, she had gotten off with her luggage and looked for a place to buy lunch before she left for Tooele or Japuile. When she went into the maze of grey concrete and shop fronts she was stunned at the price of everything… Things which would’ve cost a fortune to buy like sugar and chocolate were surprisingly cheap, everything else was at an insane markup. Defeated by her limited budget and a lack of knowledge for the local language, she had turned back to the harbour and been devastated when she got back to the departing station.

Ticket Seller: can I help you miss

Baeriira: yes, I was wondering if I could use the ticket I purchased heading for Tooele?

A sort of expression entered his face, he looked as if he was? Sad, she didn’t know… humans were really weird to read.

Ticket Seller: ah and where did you buy this ticket?

Baeriira: um, the site 645 travel agency.

Ticket Seller: well… you… can’t really use those… you know…

He seemed to be uncomfortable as he looked at the screen behind her. It took her a moment to turn around and realise what he meant. The screen was showing a Leviathan News Broadcast, it was a video captured by satellites of a small northern peninsula. The video showed a series of flashes as the small lines of grey indicating cities flickered out until the screen looked like an empty white canvas.

Baeriira: Oh…

Ticket seller: sorry mam I’m going to have to ask you to move along.

Baeriira had walked around stunned and crying until she had reached another travelling agency. She had been laughed out and directed to read the sign on the door “for employees and shareholders ONLY”. She began to cry again and sat near one of the weird lampposts in the drab street.

As part of a semi nocturnal species, the light was refreshing after staying up so late. Under the intense and sometimes sporadic glow, she soon fell asleep, it would be her first rough night of many.

OOC
Again, it’s been really fun developing the lore, backstory and day to day lives of my nation. I can’t thank Theria Inc enough for working with me and it has been a blast so far : )

Kahara

Part 2: Job centre.

It had been a waking nightmare, periodically the feeling of being shook awake would be accompanied by the strange noise of human speech. Just as day broke and her body began to grow accustomed to its sleep, the lamp turned off and abruptly turned the night back into day for her. Baeriira mumbled under her breath and began to get up, her arms felt bruised and she could feel a shard of glass dig into her back when she leaned against the lamppost.

She staggered towards the harbour again, when she saw a person wearing an official looking uniform. They were idly whistling whilst walking down the street, occasionally their gaze was fixed on a person on the side of the road; a device on their arm would flash and then show a green light. Baeriira approached the Corporate official, her back was hurting like hell and she could barely move.

Corporate Official: oh… what the hell? what the f&£# are you? Wait are you one of those northerners…?

Baeriira felt unsteady, the glass shard’s pain again shot through her back and the stress, malnutrition and pain all resulted in her body shutting down. The corporate official would approach the casualty and take out his arm device. Every few seconds he would mumble something then change colours on his device.

Corporate Official: So… let’s see what we got here; nearly 2 days of malnutrition, 27 cuts alongside 2 nasty wounds. Female, probably around 26… body temperature is around 37C and stable and the outside temperature around this thing is… Wow 46C. Well let’s get you to hospital and see what I can do for you.

Baeriira could faintly hear the sound of an alarm and feel herself be lifted into a vehicle. A doctor looking person momentarily loomed over her and then jabbed her with a needle. Her weekend was going ‘great’…

Kahara

Part 3: A deal with the ~~Corporate Official~~ Devil

The room was painted in a cheap beige colour, the reek of plaster and new wood bathed the area in a sense that much of the apartment had been replaced from its previous state. Baeriira was sitting in a chair in-front of a wooden desk; opposite her, the Official sat. He was wearing what seemed to be the attire he always possessed about him, namely his suit, tie and strange arm device that resembled a mixture between an ankle monitor and a medical device. As she came to, Baeriira could hear the Official pull his chair forward and speak.

Corporate official: well I would say some greetings would be in order, my name is Tobias and I take it you aren’t from around here?

Baeriira paused before she answered, this Corporate guy seemed to have an air of danger around him. She doubted it would be wise not to answer.

Corporate official: your medical checks indicate you are from Kahara, well I guess all of your people are but that’s besides the point, Who are you?

Baeriira: my name is Baeriira, and I think there has been a mistake, I need to get to Tooele. I have my ticket here if you want.

Corporate official: I’m sorry, but the harbour security notified me of the… situation going on in your home country and it has been deemed that it would be dangerous to send you outside of our borders currently.

Baeriira: but… I have no Therian money, I can’t stay here.

Corporate official: Well, Baeriira, i have negotiated with the company that owns this building a contract that would allow you to stay as long as you pay rent for staying here.

Baeriira paused, this sounded awfully like a trap, but he did have a pretty good offer in comparison to the street. Still money would be an issue.

Corporate official: As the job agent for this apartment block I have picked out a company that would be willing to hire you, it’s a small restaurant, about 10 minutes away from here.
Baeriira: And if I refuse?

Corporate official: Indentured servitude instead of employment.

Baeriira looked into the eyes of this strange yet imposing man and responded almost immediately, if not a little dejectedly.

Baeriira: I will take your offer then, when is my first day?

Corporate official: it’ll be tomorrow when the work week starts up again, I’m sure you can arrange work hours with your employer. Anyway… this ‘renovated’ apartment will be your living space. The flat rate is 300 E tokens per month, you’ll need 3600 for this year.

Baeriira: and that is… how much?

Corporate official: well I’d say the year is equivalent to $18000 in leviathan dollars.

Kahara

Part 4: Inspectors expect obedience

That evening after Baeriira had gone down to the Job centre, she had returned to the apartment and began to open what seemed like a welcoming gift. It was a cheap cardboard box with the Apartment logo, when she opened it, the form of several letters and a crumpled up plastic sheet poked out like a jack-in-the-box.

The letters contained the basics of her new life, the 100 square foot apartment that was divided up into 3 cramped floors and a small storage space underneath a small hatch. One of the letters read:

_“Greetings Customer and welcome to our luxury building.
All you need is provided by our amazing building and staff, inspectors and employees are here to provide a stable environment for yourself. Thus in respect, we hope you can keep to our basic rules.”

"The split payment of rent for this unit is due in exactly six days from now. Failure to pay the rent on or before six days from now will result in a termination of the contract and a nonpayment fee of eT 5000 indebted to your account.“_

The next page ranged from “pets when found will be euthanised or sold to recuperate any damages to our property” all the way to “inspectors will arrive every month when the rent is due, they will expect to see everything clean and all of your bills aligned in a stack in front of your door” Baeriira decided she would read the rest later and moved on to the most important thing in the box: the bed.

The inflatable mattress was slightly more complicated than it needed to be, but after setting it up and placing it in one of the sections on the top floor Baeriira couldn’t be happier. It certainly wasn’t paradise but hopefully this new and very alien country can’t be that bad compared to where she came from.

A few hours later

The sound of an alarm shook the room as the bleeping ceiling device ‘helpfully’ decided it was time for its owner to meet their employer. Baeriira got out of bed and manoeuvred down the ladder until she reached the pile of clothes she had put down on the floor. Her one thought was “this job is likely gonna suck…” she didn’t want to tempt Kele though so she quickly got out the door and moved toward her workplace.

Kahara

Part 5: Bang

The shops and malls of Theria seem similar and different to the pictures and descriptions of other countries. Baeriira thought the whole architectural stile looked too uniform and bland, well except for the copious amounts of expert and colourful graffiti that adorned all of the buildings in a wealth of foreign writing and strange images.

She passed quickly through one of the stores to grab a snack; she settled on a chocolate bar. Baeriira still was amazed that chocolate and sugar were both legal and cheap in comparison to her northern homeland. She then remembered promptly why sugar was banned by the 456 government as she could feel an extreme sugar rush take affect. ‘I’ll just walk it off’ Baeriira thought.

On the way to the Business listed on the contract sheet, Baeriira realised she probably should have purchased better clothes than the parka and shirt she had brought with her from Kahara. The buildings around her seemed to be melded into one as the cold misty day settled upon the city, yet even with the temperature reaching 10C in the tropical region; the October day felt surprisingly mild.

Baeriira tapped on the side entrance, the door slammed opened and a short human wearing a tank top tried to shove past her. A stunned seconds later, the owner came running to the door to scream at the Robber, Baeriira simply put her foot out and watched the fireworks.

The human’s right foot is caught and he stumbles backwards, he turns around, the image that greets him is a Kaharan alongside a very peeved Restaurant owner. The owner looked at the man and asked “how much is in that bag of yours pal.”. The man stands silent, his hands resting in his pockets. The owner goes in to grab the bag back from the human and the Robber pulls his hand out of his pocket. Bang…

Kahara

Part 6: Working hours in seconds

The gunshot rang through the street, the bullet passed through the air and clipped through the ear of the restaurant owner. The metal tore through the eardrum and lodged itself near to the left part of his cranium. As the Man fell to the ground from shock, Baeriira tried to tackle the robber. She was successful in nocking him over, but the gun remained firmly in his hand. The robber scrambled to his feet and aimed right between Baeriira’s eyes. A gunshot rang out again…

The robber keeled over dead, behind him was a passing drone that had spotted him. With a calculated indifference it flagged the unconscious owner with a medical signal and picked up the bag. The machine turned to look back at Baeriira, after a few seconds it gave the bag to her and spoke in a prerecorded voice. Baeriira was completely silent as the doctors arrived and start loading the unconscious casualty onto their ambulance. She was left stunned, holding this bag which upon inspection only had a few stolen goods… “all this over some damned pastries”. Baeriira went into the restaurant, explained what had happened and returned home after receiving a uniform and instructions from the overseer.

“Since your people are nocturnal, I guess we could use that to our advantage and open for a few more hours. You’ll be running a night shift, come in 8 o’clock sharp, hit the Green button that opens the door and sit behind the till. If someone orders something, give it to them. If someone robs the place, hit the red button under the cash register.”

Baeriira checked her expenses when she got home, currently she needed to make 300 E tokens in 6 days and with her wages plus limited tips she would be short by around 125… Baeriira again looked at the bag and resigned herself to eating junk food today. If nothing else went wrong, hopefully she would make the deadline.

Kahara

OOC
(This isn’t part of the story but I just have to say how much of a warm welcome this project has gotten and how much fun I’ve had with making it and learning about the Lore of this detailed world. I will definitely be continuing the series. Thank you for your support)

Kahara

Part 7: Night shift

Baeriira entered into the dark abandoned restaurant, she saw the green button next to the employee entrance and hit it. The lights went on and the countertop opened up on her side. After fiddling around with the light settings, the room felt quite relaxing. Baeriira got to work.

Her job had changed slightly when her contact had been negotiated with the Restaurant. The owner had thought it was a brilliant idea to run a night shift and so gave the Overseer the right to do so. Now she would begin re-heating the food prepared that day and keep servicing the people who would come in. The customers themselves were usually other people who worked on night shifts, it was a strange feeling finally being able to sleep without turning all the lights on to simulate the day; It certainly was improving her mental health.

When at around 22:10, she got her first customer. It was a person she recognised. He got out a chair at one of the tables and gingerly skimmed through a menu. After a few minutes, Baeriira came over and took his order… while she was walking over, she finally recognised who it was. Tobias, the Job centre official.

Tobias: Hello, could I please have a lemon tea and a Danish pastry.

Baeriira: Okay sir, anything else?

Tobias: yes, I just wanted to say I hope you and your Boss are okay.

Baeriira was surprised the man who practically kidnapped her was actually empathetic. Especially toward her boss who could sometimes be a bit unreasonable to talk to. Her illusion of compassion was soon broken.

Tobias: After all, I wouldn’t want to get a bad report for losing your company money in hiring a dud employee.

Baeriira nodded and turned back to go to the counter, the drink was simple… the danish wasn’t. The restaurant had purchased one of the new ‘Smart.Co’ drinks machines that only needed to be refilled of ingredients and then told what to make. If only they had purchased one for the food.

While the drink machine was making the Lemon tea, Baeriira went to the storage area and riffled through the boxes of baked goods until she found the “Human Pastries” Box which contained neat row after neat row of sugary foods. After finding the desired item, she put in into a microwave and waited a minute until it was warm. Baeriira returned to the drinks machine and grabbed a tray. She loaded Tobias’s order and walked over to his table.

He thanked her and began eating, she returned back behind the counter to restock the Drinks machine and clean the equipment she had used before then using the bathroom. When she returned, the Inspector was gone and had left an empty plate alongside a check that read.

“I’m likely going to get this money back tomorrow so consider this a gift for the rent you ever graciously pay me and the company… it’s not like you could have afforded it anyway.”

He was partly right. The money she had saved from her job over the past 4 days wasn’t enough to pay rent. However, the cargo bag she had sold had just about covered the 125 E tokens. Baeriira pocketed the check and went back to work.

Kahara

Part 8: Investigator’s Inspection

After the Night shift, Baeriira had gone home and eaten her dinner. Eventually around 6:05 she stacks her completely bills and began cleaning through her room. Eventually, she was sound asleep when Tobias and a cleaner who was absolutely DONE with his job opened the door to the bottom floor and saw the ‘neat pile’ of bills in front of the door, alongside the cleaned away boxes of noodles and takeaway hiding in the garbage deposal system.

The cleaner had checked everywhere before ordering his cleaning drone to tidy away the dust and fingerprints that hung over the lower floor. He then loaded the garbage disposal with a fresh bag and walked off with the inspector in toe. “Bl00dy moths…” the cleaner would mumble as he shut the door.

When they moved on, Baeriira knew she didn’t need to pay that 5000 Token eviction price and was finally able to spend the 125 ish E tokens she had remaining from Toby’s check. Since they hadn’t left any complaints, she guessed that she could afford to live a little better this weekend. For now she went back to bed as the sun came up.

9 hours later…

Baeriira had gotten out of bed after a long day in, it was around 2 in the afternoon and she had decided that staying indoors or going on a walk wasn’t the best way to spend her weekend. She climbed down the set of ladders connecting the second floor of the tiny apartment to the one bellow it, Baeriira decided she probably needed to go through with the “Buy better clothing” idea and walked through the apartment door.

She passed through a street that was selling a beds and quickly entered to place an order, She waited a bit then payed for a company drone to fit it. Numbers were exchanged and now Baeriira sat with 40 E tokens in her tab. She quickly hurried off to the next thing on her list, Clothes. After picking out a grey T-shirt,some jeans and a hoodie she further left the store to deal with the second most important thing on her list; Nachos.

Kahara

Part 9: Human Buildings are weird

Baeriira went home to change into her new clothes and look at the new bed she had purchased. As she did she realised that spending what was the equivalent of $460 while she was in her situation wasn’t the best idea for a new sleeping arrangement, at least it felt like the amount of money it costed. The walk down to the more human dominated quarter of the city was quite pleasant in the tropical October breeze, it certainly helped that she had ditched the parka for now until the winter truly arrived.

Baeriira arrived at a small decorative and colourful building that had a big sign that said something in a human dialect she wasn’t quite accustomed to. Inside of the restaurant, the tables were wooded and had the effect of seeming far more expensive than the plastic looking tables where she worked. The walls were painted in a shade of red that was similar to a reddish-brown, the floor was tiled in a mixture of wooden planks and marble that certainly were pretty to look at. Baeriira ordered a table and sat in one of the corner seats, it was nice to be the customer for a change instead of the waitress.

When the menu came she decided she wasn’t going to try the many fizzy (and likely intoxicating) sugar drinks but rather settled on a smoothie which contained more fruits than she knew existed. The mains had been easy, mainly because Baeriira’s mission was to try some nachos but she never imagined how many ways humans make their strange foods. She picked out one of the dishes and waited for a meal she was probably going to regret.

Kahara

Part 10: Hot and cold

As a happy looking waiter arrived carrying the food, Baeriira noticed a man walk into building. He wore a purple suit with a black tie and white shirt topping it off was a black boater hat. His face was hidden behind a mask that resembled the old Kaharan god of thieves. He strolled at a leisurely pace towards her, she could sense the presence of a far more adept magic user.

The man pulled a seat at the table and looked toward her, Baeriira watched as the waiter nodded to the new arrival and put the food down. The gentleman simply took off the mask and took one of the nachos on the plate.

Mysterious man: hello fine lady how are you this time of year?

Baeriira was stunned by this sarcastic joke of a man. She turned to face him as he continued on

Mysterious man: I have something you might want… if your willing to work for me temporarily.

Baeriira: who even are you?

Mysterious man: my name is for my own keeping yet it is yours if you may ask…

Baeriira was mildly intrigued and annoyed now, the man took another nacho and lifted his mask slightly.

Baeriira: what is your name?

Mysterious man: my name is Utta, and I have a deal that I think you can’t resist… your freedom.

Kahara

Part 11: Utta’s Gambit

Utta: so, for the past few years I’ve been looking into my Godmother’s legacy regarding an old Artefact that was sold off to a foreign company. I spent 5 months here, looking into where it ended up and… I think I’ve finally located it, and it’s twin.

Baeriira: right and you need me, why?

Utta: because I need a double to act and you would fulfil the role perfectly.

Utta: this relic and it’s companion piece are held by a client who was going to be holding a wedding ball… but sadly ran into a little trouble and is now ‘staying’ with me for the foreseeable future. I need you to act as the bride for me and to appear to get cold feet. You would take the 2 items originally intended to be a dowry and run to a prearranged car, While inside you would change back into your own clothes and then get the items to a border crossing point.

Baeriira wasn’t too confident that Utta was telling all of the truth, yet his offer was a good one in comparison to a possible eternity in this corporate hell.

Baeriira: Right… I accept. When do we begin with this plan of yours

Utta: why… around 2 pm tomorrow I do believe. It was hard finding a fellow Kaharan to fulfil the part.