Team Kill Bill stood in front of the 4th floor training room waiting for their turn. The shades were drawn on the windows, so they couldn’t see what was happening inside the room. As they waited, they discussed their approach to today’s session.

“So quick recap, to make sure I have it,” Jill said. “Phase 1: defense. We group together, overlapping wards. My job is to configure the mana feeds and give you guys info on the monster’s aura alignment.”

“That’s right,” Kaden said. “Keep going.”

“Phase 2: offense. Kaden will go on the attack, drawing the monsters into a position for optimal mana collection. Bill will focus on wards to deflect or defend attacks. My job will be to start collecting mana and optimize the configuration.”

“And don’t forget to give us feedback,” Bill added. “If you need something from me or Kaden, just let us know.”

Jill nodded and continued. “Phase 3: collection. You guys run interference, making sure I stay protected and able to finish the job.”

“What happens if me or Bill starts to get overwhelmed?”

“You’ll call out a switch, and we’ll go into 100% defense mode. I’ll pause what I’m doing and load up the best wards I have,” Jill answered.

Kaden nodded. “Also if one of us feels like an all-out offense approach is needed to ensure our safety, any one of us can make that call.”

Andy Smith, Associate and intern trainer, walked out of the conference room, shaking his head.

“So, look here,” he said in a full Southern drawl, “I’m going to have to apologize on two fronts. One, I might have implied in the past that y’all were the worst team. But I’m going to have to take that back. Those idiots in there – “ Andy jerked his thumb over his shoulder – “they are the worst. By far.

“Which brings me to my second apology. I’ll need y’all to chill for about ten minutes or so while I escort these bozos from the building.”

Andy turned on his heel and marched back into the conference. Not long after, three figures stumbled out the door, pushed by Andy towards the exit.

Kaden recognized two of the three interns on this team – Iqbal and Roger – and they did not look happy. Roger had a bloody nose, and Iqbal was cradling his arm.

“Get on outta here,” Andy yelled, pushing them along. “You’re done. And don’t come back.”

“You’ll hear about this from my father!” Iqbal screeched.

“Oh yeah?” Andy said, eyes cold and frosty. “You tell him he can have your mom back too, because I’m done with her as well. Move!”

Kaden caught Jill with a small smile on her face.

“Happy to see those two go?” he asked.

“Huh? Oh, yeah I guess so,” she said, trying to hide her obvious satisfaction.

Andy returned shortly, looking a lot more relaxed as he swaggered out of the elevator in his black and white tracksuit.

“Alrighty then,” he said, motioning for the team to follow. “Let’s get this started. Y’all are doing the first advanced training, right?”

“That’s right,” Kaden said.

“Can’t say I ain’t looking forward to this,” Andy said and smiled.

For the first session of advanced training, a single, oversized monster appeared in front of the group. The goal was the same as before – collect as much of the monster’s mana as possible. Without getting killed, of course.

As mana coalesced into the form of the creature, Kaden took a quick look at the notification that popped into his peripheral vision:

* Horse-headed Hydra-3

* Level 5

* Attacks: Physical (trampling, kicks, bites) and poison (bites)

* Aural affinity: Multiple

This creature was huge, easily twice as tall as Kaden and over thirty feet long. As its black form materialized fully, Kaden could see it was mostly horse, but had three heads and chitinous armor protecting its main body. Red hooves and a glowing orange tail made the creature’s appearance quite menacing.

Following the plan, the team had defensive wards up and in place as soon as the monster materialized. When it charged, the compressed air shields deflected it to the side. One of Kaden’s wards took the brunt of the force, rapidly draining most of its power.

“OK – it’s an even mix of three different auras,” Jill called out. “Configuring mana collectors now.”

Kaden glanced at Bill who nodded and moved in line between the monster and Jill.

Kaden leaped forward, activating the anti-gravity ward. Huge strides ate away the distance between him and the three-headed horse.

Raising his gunsword, Kaden fired off two low-powered shots. They ricocheted harmlessly off the armor, but it did get the monster’s attention. Refocusing on Kaden with three loud brays of rage, the horse monster wheeled around and charged.

Before he could be trampled, Kaden activated the blade on his gunsword and dove to the side at the last moment, swinging the blade in a slashing arc at the right foreleg. A satisfying spray of ichor colored the gray floor.

Enraged, the huge beast turned and reared up on its hind legs, preparing to charge again. Kaden did not wait for it. Instead, he sprinted forward in long loping arcs.

As the horse’s crimson hooves hit the ground, Kaden struck with a sideways slash, severing the left leg at the knee. Unbalanced, the creature flopped to the ground, rolling and kicking as it struggled to right itself. Two of the horse heads neighed in terror and pain, and one of them tried to bite Kaden, but he was already retreating and too far away.

Kaden and Bill took up defensive positions while Jill drew closer and siphoned up the remainder of the mana. A tipping point was reached and the creature slowly began to dissolve into light crystals of amber, purple, and green. Within seconds, it was gone.

“Why did it have to be a horse,” Jill sighed. Bill just looked at her, remembering the first battle with the chickenators.

“Not bad, not bad,” Andy sniffed, rising from his chair. “I was hoping you might cut off one of the heads to see what happened… but oh well. Y’all just might make it here. Pull yourself up by your bootstraps and make something of yourselves.”

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

“Thanks, Andy!” Bill said, reaching out for a fist bump. Andy sighed, but obliged.

Kaden checked the time. It was still relatively early; if they went to the basement now, they could push through and possibly finish the assignment tonight.

Both Bill and Jill agreed it was worth it to move ahead on Carol’s task, so they headed out right away.

“So Bill – did you happen to find out where all the monsters come from?” Kaden asked as they waited for the elevator. He was hoping to corroborate what he learned from Peter and Julia.

“Yeah, so I made some discreet inquiries with my R&D buds,” Bill replied. “Apparently, the monsters we’re fighting come from a natural source. They aren’t manufactured or anything. The monsters come out of ‘dungeons.’ The Company gathers them and stores them in magical stasis for when they’re needed for training or other purposes.”

“Where are these dungeons? Who collects them?”

Bill shook his head. “I don’t know, dude. Emmett and George clammed up when I started asking more questions. So clearly a Company secret. Maybe we’ll find out later in the internship.”

“I heard there was a dungeon inside the Tower,” Kaden offered. “Somewhere below the Basement level.”

Bill looked surprised. “Really? Huh. Kinda makes sense, but also seems dangerous.”

Jill looked worried. “Isn’t that where we’re going now?”

Kaden smiled. “I think it’s supposed to be a lot deeper. We’re in the medical space anyway, right? Lots of Company employees are between us and the dungeon, so I don’t think we have much to worry about.”

When they arrived at the storage closet, the team set to work quietly and efficiently. The team made good progress through the boxes, but Kaden found himself wishing they went a little slower. Even though it was increasingly unlikely Kaden would find anything of value, he still kept up hope of finding something. He scanned the contents of each of his boxes carefully, looking for anything that might be a clue.

And with only a shelf of boxes left to go, he finally found what he was looking for.

“David Olson,” he breathed, holding up a record.

The record was over ten years old. It looked like a payment record of a visit to this hospital. There were not too many details, but that didn’t matter. The record had a name and a photo that Kaden recognized.

Looking around to make sure no one was watching, he folded the papers and put them inside the pocket of his jacket. Checking the time, he decided his next move. If he hurried, he could make the express bus back across the Hudson and be home in time for dinner.

“Hey guys,” he called out to Bill and Jill. “I’m going to head home for a bit and grab some dinner. I’ll be back in a bit.”

Taking his leave of the others and walking quickly, he made his way out of the basement and through the Tower lobby, into the thick and humid summer night air.

A tepid breeze washed over his head and shoulders as he hurried toward the bus stop. The neon glow of the Company logo cast the courtyard in an orangish-reddish glow, deepening the shadows. A familiar homeless man with a begging cup walked by, but Kaden ignored him, his face troubled and his mind trapped in thought.

The whole trip home went by in a blur, as he struggled to remember everything he knew about this man.

David Olson had been a partner at his father’s firm over ten years ago. There had been some sort of falling out between the two. Olson had left. Kaden vaguely remembered seeing him at his family home for dinner on some occasions. But other than that, he didn’t remember anything. Just a name, a face, and a vague recollection of someone who liked to laugh.

As he opened the door to the apartment he shared with his mom and sister, he heard voices coming from the kitchen.

“I’m home!” he called out.

“Kaden!” his sister called, rushing around the corner to give him a hug. “You know you live here, right? Not at the office?”

He managed a weak chuckle. “Haha, yeah, I know. Trust me, I’d rather be here than at work.”

“Come sit and have some supper,” he heard his mother call.

Kaden sighed and made his way into the small dining room / kitchen area. The three-bedroom apartment was not very large, and the appearance was dated. To an outsider, it would have seemed well worn and homey, but also clean and well maintained. It was the only place Kaden had ever lived.

“Have a seat, Miranda. Let your brother eat,” their mother chided.

“How was your day?” Miranda asked. “Did you do anything interesting today?”

“Well… I worked on destroying a bunch of old documents,” he said.

Miranda wrinkled her nose. “Boring,” she decreed.

“Yeah! No kidding,” he said, then turned to his mom.

“You know Mom, a name came up at work today. David Olson. Did you know he worked at the Company?”

His mother paused ladling rice into a bowl for Kaden and looked him in the eye.

“David Olson.”

“Yeah that’s right.”

She handed Kaden his bowl and leaned back in her chair.

“Haven’t heard that name in a while,” she said.

“He was one of Dad’s early partners, right?”

“Yes, until the Company poached him. It caused us quite a setback. It took years for your father’s company to recover.”

“Why? What happened?” he said in between bites, shoveling stir fry into his mouth.

She sighed and got up to walk into the kitchen. “From what I remember, your father was relying on David’s connections to scale the business. Plus capital from David that never materialized. Basically, after he left, your father had to pull himself and his company up by its bootstraps. He made it, but it took a lot longer.”

“Was this when Dad opened the factory in the Hudson River FEZ?”

“Yep,” she sighed, sitting back down. “Didn’t see much of your father during those years. He did it all himself, building a world-class contract manufacturer in the federal Free Enterprise Zone.”

She smiled wanly. “David did show up at your father’s funeral. But he didn’t stick around. Left without saying anything.”

Kaden nodded as finished his bowl of rice. He thought he had the basic picture of what had happened. He also had the beginnings of an idea of how to approach the man. It was slim, but he thought he had a little bit of leverage. Applied in the right way …

“Hello? Earth to Kaden?” Miranda called out.

He shook his head and looked up. “Sorry, what did you say?”

“Where did you go?” Miranda harrumphed. “Anyway, I was asking if you would be at my dance recital this weekend?”

He had forgotten about it, but didn’t see any reason why he wouldn’t be able to make it.

“Sure! I think so. Work is a little hectic, but I should be able to make it.”

“Great!” she said, looking pleased.

“I better go,” Kaden said, pushing his chair back. “Gotta put in a few more hours tonight.”

“What?!?” Miranda said.

His mother looked worried. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, it’s just pretty crazy right now.”

“It doesn’t seem right they’re working you so hard. You’re just an intern.”

“Haha, yeah, just an intern. Doesn’t feel like it,” he said as pushed his chair back in. “Thanks for dinner. It was good to see you guys.”

Miranda got up to give him another hug. “Say hi to Sandy for me,” she said.

Kaden laughed. He had told Miranda about the Corgi the other day. Not anything about his smuggling activities or predilection for saucy vocabulary, of course, but his sister was completely enamored with the idea of a dog at work.

“Alright, I will,” he said.