Introduction to Corporate America

There it was, standing tall against the skyline. The Space Needle was piercing the night sky of Seattle. And there staring at it from the best view in town was Slarsydia Sewid. A name given to him by his parents, yet a name he didn't use. A name he wanted to forget. Instead, he asked friends and colleagues to address him as Drew. It was just easier that way.

It's not that his parents had done anything wrong. He loved his parents and they loved him. Still...his only memories of them now were tainted with blood. And though technically it wasn't him, it was still his hands that took their lives. So instead of dwelling on the sins of his past, he chose to forget altogether. It was just easier that way.

The monster that had come out of him that day seemed like a distant dream as he grew older. Though he couldn't escape the all to real feeling of the nightmare he lived. It wasn't until Oklahoma that the nightmare became reality. By this time his company, Aerotech, had already reached a substantial amount of success. He was away on business in Oklahoma, walking back to his hotel after a late night meeting, when he was pulled into the alley by a man with a gun. It was only when the fear and anger filled his mind that he realized it was no longer his mind that was full. He became a passenger to his own life as he watched a man who called himself Syd beat the man to death. After Oklahoma, he knew there was only one option. He had to find a way to control the monster. To suppress it. It was just easier that way.

Days..weeks..months..years went by, but finally he learned how to control Syd. He swore that Oklahoma would be the last time. With his problem now under control, he began to adjust back to a normal life. His business continued to grow, and he even found a girl. Her name was Annabelle. She was his life. Nothing could separate them. He promised her the world and he was prepared to deliver. He took her on a vacation to Paris. He figured she would be safe in the hotel room while he took care of some business. He had a meeting with some potential clients. As it turned out the potential clients were instead criminals. Con men to be exact. They lured him in with the promise of a deal, and when he arrived they held him at gunpoint and demanded money from him. All he could think about was Annabelle. She would be waking up soon. She would notice he was gone. She would worry. And for all he knows, these men may have seen the hotel room he left earlier. He knew he had to make it back. To protect her. He had one option. He didn't like it. But he had to do it. It was just easier that way.

With the men disposed of, he tried to take control back. Syd wouldn't allow it. Not knowing what Syd would do, he tried to make the switch to an exhausting effort. He eventually blacked out completely. When he woke, he was back in the hotel room in Paris. Annabelle was not. He never saw her again. He never knew what happened that night. He knew what was to blame, but he did not want to think of what actions had possibly taken place. He looked to his right, and there on the dresser was one of the con men's guns. It made sense. He'd stop the monster. He'd be the hero. He'd save the day. He picked up the gun, and he slowly pressed it to his head. He told himself the lie he had always told himself before. It was just easier that way.

But wait! Why should he have to be the hero? Nobody ever saved him. Heroes don't exist. If heroes existed, then his parents should still be alive. If heroes existed, he shouldn't of had to save himself from the mugging in Oklahoma or the trap in Paris. If heroes existed, Annabelle would still be with him. But they did exist! He had heard all about them on the news. So the question is, why didn't the heroes ever save him? Maybe it isn't him or Syd that is the problem. Maybe it's the heroes not doing their jobs. The thought sat in his brain for weeks, until he finally came to his conclusion. Syd is not the one who needs to be vanquished. The heroes are the ones who need to be taken out, once and for all. He made it his mission. Kill all heroes. It was just easier that way.

"Mr. Slade, Robert Huffins has arrived." his secretary said from the intercom, breaking his zoned out state of mind. He had thought too deep into his past and lost sight of the present temporarily, but now he had to get straight back to business.

"Ok, Ava. Send him in." he responded. Moments later, a short stocky fellow wobbled in through the door. It may have been casual Friday, but Robert Huffins was dressed to impress. As he approached Drew, he straightened his tie and shook his boss's hand with a big smile across his face.

"Hello, Mr. Slade." Robert politely greeted him with. "I was told you wanted to see me?"

Drew quickly surveyed the man before addressing him, "Yes. Please, Mr. Huffins, have a seat." As Robert took his seat, Drew also took his. Drew shuffled through a few papers he had sitting on his desk before finding the ones he was looking for. "First of all, I'd like to commend you. The work that you've done this week has been outstanding. The holiday season can be a treacherous one, and although I know you'd have liked to have been with your family, I'm so glad you decided to spend it with Aerotech." He smiled and received a smile in return as well. You could tell that Robert was proud of his work, and that just hearing the compliments from his boss was making his day.

"In addition to that, I must say that when we offered as much overtime as we did this week I wasn't sure a lot of people would be interested. But your dedication has shown through when you not only accepted the overtime, but you ended up accepting 50 hours of it. That puts you at 90 hours of work this week." Robert was still smiling at this point, though you could clearly see the exhaustion that the work week had taken on him. "So, Robert Huffins, I am honored to present you with the Employee of the Month award."

Drew handed him one of the papers he had found earlier. It was a certificate for Employee of the Month and even had Robert's name printed on it. Robert didn't have much going for him. His parents had died at an early age, he was never able to find a girl to settle down with, and his limited talents didn't really open any doors hobby-wise for him. All he had was his career. So, this moment right here was the proudest moment of his life, and Drew could tell it by the look on Robert's face. Robert's eyes even began to fill with tears of joy.

"Yes. Congratulations, Robert. You earned it." Drew said, "Now, one more thing before you leave. I know you worked a lot of shifts this week so it was probably confusing at times. Your third shift was at 2, you arrived at 2:03. On your sixth shift, you took an extra 4 minutes for your lunch. And on your final shift, you clocked out 2 minutes early. Now, unfortunately, we have a three strike rule here at Aerotech. So, Robert, we're going to have to let you go."

Robert's face flushed. The smile slowly faded. The tears of joy quickly became tears of sadness. "I-I-I...I don't understand, Mr. Slade. I worked really hard this week. I gave up my holiday. I slept on the couch in the break room for six nights. How can this be?"

"Rules are rules, Robert. There is nothing I can do about it. And speaking of sleeping on the couch, the company did deduct a 'rent' fee from your next and final paycheck." Drew said, coldly. Robert, who was still in shock, rose up from his chair and turned towards the door. He slowly began walking towards it hoping to be stopped. And he was, as Drew spoke out to him "Robert!"

Robert turned around slowly to face his boss. "Yes, sir?"

"You don't want to forget this." Drew said as he held up the certificate that Robert had left on the desk. Robert grabbed it from him and then left the office. Drew then hit his intercom button, "Ava, please have Mr. Huffins escorted from the building by security."

"Welcome to Aerotech Test Chamber C. A representative will be with you shortly to explain in further detail the study you will be participating in today. Thank you for your patience."

Test Chamber C was filled with 30 people of different shapes and sizes. Each one had been handpicked so that the test group would be completely diverse. It was very important that they were. This was a very important project, and no mistakes could be made. It was so important that every choice thus far had been made personally by the CEO, Drew Slade.

Slade entered the room, greeting the guests with a warm smile. "Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I know that these group studies aren't the most fascinating things, but I think that you're going to enjoy this one. And because I that everyone's time is precious, including yours, this presentation will be very short." The group seemed pleased by the news they had heard so far. "So, here is the gist of it. I'm about to hand each of you a card. A credit card, to be precise." The group collectively moaned at this news.

"It's not just any credit card though. It's a credit card attached to a prepaid account that has no extra fees for anything. The money on the card is the amount you get to spend. And the amount on each of these cards is approximately $5,000." The room grew silent as the test group seemed to be in shock, and were waiting for some sort of surprise twist. Something that would snatch them from this dream. But there was nothing. "All we ask is that you don't spend in all in one place, and you don't withdraw any of the money off the card. You must use the card to make all purchases. And that is all you need to know. Have fun shopping." The group excitedly left the chamber and proceeded to exit the building. "Who knew that giving back could feel so good?" Drew said as he left the room.

Drew walked down the hallway and stepped into the elevator. Once inside, he pressed the button for the 16th floor, followed by the 19th, followed by the 22nd, and then he held the button for the basement until it turned red. The doors closed and the elevator began its descent. He kept lowering for quite a while until it finally reached the floor Slade was looking for. The doors opened and revealed a large room with metallic walls, that was filled with various weapons and vehicles. Men wearing all black suits were walking every which way as if in a normal office environment. Drew stepped out of the elevator and approached one of the suits that was near him.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Slade." the man said as he stood tall in front of Drew.

"Good afternoon, Russell. Please inform all team members that Test Chamber C has been unleashed."