James stepped out of his car, he was flustered and tired. His boss, one of the board of directors at Heaven's Gate ask him to attend a university's Undergraduate Career Fair.
Thanks to the spy his boss planted in Dr. McElvaney's office, he learned about his desire to hire Henry Thompson, a graduating senior. His boss went so far as you drug Dr. McElvaney's employee who was supposed to attend the Career Fair.
That's why he was tired, he took the red eye from California to Charlottesville. And Charlottesville had the smallest airport he's seen. When he got to his hotel, all the Heaven's Gate free swag, posters, banners, and tablecloths were already in his room.
He was flustered because he had to lug all those materials to the student center, set the table, and bribed the president, of business and computer science colleges just to hire one person Dr. McElaveny was interested in. And if he failed, well failure wasn't an option. His boss got want he wanted, and if he didn't deliver, he'd be fired and blackballed from all the Tech and Fortune 500 companies. Failure was tantamount to suicide.
And hiring the student was only step one of his boss' plan. His boss wanted to coerce the student into spying and reporting on what Dr. McElvaney wanted him to do.
By all accounts, his student didn't stand out. He wasn't a notorious secret hacker, nor was he wasn't exceptionally smart. He was an orphan whose parents died in a car crash. He was moderately wealthy but didn't touch that money.
In-game his character Thaddeus was the first to build a settlement and make it into a village. He ranked 98 in the Beast Wave rankings and third in the settlement ranking, impressive because he wasn't in a guild.
But none of his achievements made it obvious why Dr. McElvaney was interested in him, which worried the board. The board did not want Dr. McElvaney to have a step up on them. That was why James was sent and he had one job to do.
When the Career Fair started, he put on a fake face and greeted the student as they ran over to him. He gladly accepted resumes. He checked each name before filing them in the waste baskets below. Each student left him with a smile, swag, and a prayer that they be offered a job at Heaven's Gates
***
Henry hung up the call. It was the computer science professor who called. He reminded Henry to not miss the Career Fair and hurry over as soon as possible. Both his business and computer science professors called him. He thought it was nice his professors were calling their students and encouraging them to attend the Career Fair.
Thaddeus left his apartment and walked over to meet Dustin.
"Did you hear the news!" Dustin cried out excitedly.
"No, what?" Henry asked curiously,
"Heaven's Gate is recruiting on campus. Get your resume and get down here! There's a line just to drop off your resume. I have already been waiting 45 minutes. Plus, the table has free HG gear and shirts!" Dustin yelled
"All right, I'll print out my resumes and get down there. Heather and I are going to walk over there together," Henry explained
"I'm glad you're happy, but no cutesy stuff in front of me, okay sweetie," Dustin laughed.
"I'm hanging up now," Thaddeus said.
Henry sat down at the computer and typed up his resume. There wasn't much to include. It's times like these that he wished his parents were alive to help him.
He listed his name and contact information at the top, then his majors and his 3.6 GPA. Not the best but a respectable, nonetheless. He listed his work experience on and off campus. During the summer he worked on Best Buy's Geek squad and build gaming computers for people on the side.
When he finished, he printed out 20 resumes and got ready to go. In the shower, Henry wondered what his NPCs were doing. With him gone, would they stop working? Or would they rebel? Would the workers finish the barn?
But one thought troubled him, what if his new mine was invaded by more monsters? He decided not to worry about stuff today, what happened would happen, and deal with it in-game.
We quickly got and got dressed. He wore a white button-down with khakis and a blue tie that matched his dress coat. He quickly put on his black 'church' shoes and jumped on his bike.
When he got to the student center, he saw Dustin and Heather were already outside waiting on him.
"It's about time," Dustin joked.
"You look professional," Heather complimented.
"Okay let's head in," Thaddeus said
"Well, I'm leaving, and if I get a call from Heaven Gates, I promise not to forget you, little people," he laughed walking away and waving goodbye.
When Henry and Heather walked, they saw thousands of well-dressed students walking and running from booth to booth. The booths ran along the walls which created a pathway.
"Do you have a list?" Heather asked anxiously.
"A list of what?" Henry asked.
"A list of businesses you want to drop off your resume? They published the business and boot locations online last week. I made my list last night," she explained.
Henry pulled up the list of booths. There were about 50 that caught his eye and he immediately regretted not bringing more than 20 copies. But at the same, it helped him narrow down the top 20 places he wanted to work.
Not including Buena Vista, he wanted to drop his resume off at Google, Apple, Dell, IBM, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, Cisco, Salesforce, Oracle, Intel, HubSpot, Nvidia, Splunk, JP Morgan and Chase, Bank of America, or Morgan Stanley. That left him with two resumes to give to a company that appealed to him here.
"Got your list? I'm the first choice is Dow Chemical, who's yours?" Heather asked.
"I don't have one, I'll be happy with you ever wants me," Henry said.
"Well, we're should we start first?" Heather said excitedly.
"Let's just explore, when we reach companies on our lists we'll stop. Let's save Heaven's Gate for last," Henry said.
***
James had been standing for two hours without any sign of the target yet. Instead, he wasted his time greeting these worthless students. But as the face of the companies, he had to put on his best happy act. He greeted the students and gladly accepted their resumes, only to file them in the trash bag below the booth.
'These stupid students probably think I think I'll read their resumes or hand them to Buena Vista's Human Resources to sort. How would they feel, if they learned the truth? All of these will be shredded a few hours later,' he chuckled.
He thought about sending a threatening message to the president. If the university wanted his boss' sizable check, they had better see their commitment through to the end. They were responsible for getting the student to come to the Career Fair.
"Jimmy the mark just walked in with his girlfriend," Salander said into his Bose wireless earbuds.
Salander was a hacker worked with in the past. She was an off-the-books hire his boss contracted on several jobs. He didn't know where she was, or what she looked like, but he knew her skills were top-notch.
Unknown to him, Salander sat outside in a nondescript white van. She had hacked into the university's surveillance system and illegally use facial recognition software to identify to track the target.
"Fuck, about time! And for the last time call me James," James whispered, turning his head so the students couldn't hear him.
"Wait—Maykr just walked in…he's following the mark," she warned him.
'Maykr is here!' James said repeating warily internally.
Maykr was the boss' enforcer. He was a dishonorably dismissed Army Ranger after serving time in prison for killing Afghani civilians. He was a cruel mercenary with no remorse. He had no conscience. Only money motivated him and no matter what he always saw a job done until the end.
If his boss sent Maykr this meant it was a high-value target. And if he didn't do a good job, he feared the consequences for the target and himself.
***
Henry and Heather walked around for an hour and a half speaking to different business representatives. Each representative gave a similar pitch, that they offered competitive pay, full medical benefits, starting sick pay, vacation time, and a pay evaluation every year. Except for Heaven's Gate, most booths only had one to five students speaking to the representative.
Representatives in suits tried to sell their company and students dressed casually tried to sell themselves. And Henry watched in amusement. Henry wasn't that passionate about where he worked, he just needed a job. Heather on the hand, was very enthusiastic.
Henry listened as Heather asked questions he never thought to. She asked companies about their turnover and attrition rates, the amount of overtime expected for new hires, and career growth. Unlike him, she had prepared in advance and was serious about finding a job.
"That's the last one on my list. Did we visit all yours?" she smiled and asked sincerely. Henry could tell that she had his best interest at heart. She truly cared about him.
"All that's left is Heaven's Gate," Henry said pointing to the line that wrapped around the Student Center.
***
"He's in line, but the line is too long. But he looks hesitant to stay in such a long line. You need to do something to shorten the line. Heads up, Maykr is walking towards you," Salander informed James.
A 6-foot, 5-inch bodybuilder-looking man wearing a black suit, tie, and black sunglasses walked up to James and whispered in the same ear as his earbud, "speed it up," Maykr advised.
'Eh,' James thought. He felt shivers run down his leg, and he almost wet himself. Nervously he shouted to the students, "Let's speed up the line, we don't want the students in the back to wait too long and we're blocking other booths!"
"Nice excuse," Salander praised
Instead of talking to each student, James excepted the resumes and Maykr helped usher the students quickly passed the booth until it was Henry and Heather's term.
"Showtime!" Salander said.
"Welcome to the Heaven's Gate booth, do either of you play?" James asked, sounding as interested as he could be.
"Yes, I'm an apprentice alchemist," Heather said excitedly handing in her resume.
"I'm a Journeyman Artisan," Henry said handing his resume over as well.
"Well, I hope both of you are enjoying yourselves—are either one of you playing with the new settlement expansion pack?" he asked tacking curiously.
Maykr eyed him, signaling him to speed it up.
"I don't but he does, he ranked third in settlement rank during the beast wave," Heather bragged.
"Oh, is that true?" James confirmed.
"Yeah, I got lucky," Henry said humbly.
"You know since the expansion was released; we started a hiring campaign. It's one of the reasons I'm here. Let me give your resume a second glance. Oh, you're a double major, business and computer science, good grades too. Yes, I think you have what we're looking for, would you be interested to work for us?" James asked somewhat interested.
Everyone listening in on the conversation gasped. It was like Henry just got offered a golden ticket to Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory. People even started live-streaming.
Heather looked at Henry in surprise and admiration. Henry was stunned. He was just offered a job at Heaven's Gate after a three-minute conversation, was he's a novel's protagonist. The events seemed too unreal.
"Say yes!" Heather said shaking Henry out of his stupor.
"I have some questions about compensation and benefits?" he said.
"Good you have some questions. How about I take you out and we discuss this over a meal? Young lady, is it okay if I borrow this young man?" James asked politely.
"Yes," Heather said with mixed emotions. She secretly wanted to come along too.
"What do you say—Henry?" James said making a point to look at the resume and read his name. He didn't want his target to know he's studied a packet with all his information on the airplane.
"Sir, I've pulled your car around," Maykr said taking out the car keys.
"Whoa!" the crowd gasped again. The live streams at this point had hundreds of observers.
"Okay," Henry said following the chauffeur out the door.
"All right his booth is closed. Leave your resume on the table and I'll have an associate gather your resumes this evening," James said as he followed Henry to the Mercedes AMG G 63.
Behind James came to rest of the students in the Career Fair. Students took pictures, or recorded video, secretly wishing the roles were reversed and they were the ones being escorted into the SUV.
Maykr held the door open for Henry and James, they got in the front seat. Neither Henry nor James knew where they were going. But James knew he still had a job to do.
"So, Henry, tell me a little about yourself?" James asked as a conversation starter.
Henry told James about himself, all information he already knew from his file. They two engaged in small talk until they arrived at Farmington Country Club.
"We've arrived!" Maykr said getting out of the car.
James was secretly happy, he didn't take them to a slaughterhouse or a small cabin in the woods.
"I checked, there was a reservation made by a mysterious new member a day ago for a private meeting suite in the dining room," Salander described.
When they arrived, an usher was already for them, he led them to a luxurious suite with old French furniture and an expensive-looking chandelier. There was a long cherry wood table and upholstered and tapestried chairs with deep button tufted and nail head trim accents. Henry marveled at the craftsmanship; he wondered if he could build something as beautiful in-game.
"How do you take your steak, sir?" the waiter asked sounding like Alfred.
"Medium?" Henry said, unsure if the interview had or had not started.
"For you sir," the waiter asked James.
"Medium rare please and bring us out a bottle of red wine that pairs well with the course," James instructed.
"And for you," the waiter asked Maykr.
"Rare," the man scolded
Henry wondered why the chauffeur was eating with them…unless he doubled as James' bodyguard. He wondered just how powerful James was at Heaven's Gate.
"Now let me tell you about the job. I want to hire you as a junior or entry-level computer systems analyst, you'll work on a team dedicated to settlement building. Your team will be responsible to help Heaven's Gate operate more efficiently.
You'll team will fall under Dr. McElvaney's leadership. He'll indirectly supervise your team and assign any number of duties. You may be asked to consult with managers of other teams or the board of directors, analyze cost and benefits, test systems to make sure they're operational, or write instruction manuals. Honestly, I don't know what he'll ask, because this is a new team.
Do you know how to use Jira, Agile, Waterfall, and Microsoft Suite? Honestly, it doesn't matter. We'll train you if you don't know. It just so happens, I brought a laptop and you can apply online and HR will hire you today. What do you say?" James said excitedly.
"I say this sounds too unreal. A job on the settlement team, this seems too good to be true. What's the catch?" Henry
"The catch?" James repeated dumbfounded. This boy did not know how to accept a gift served on a silver platter.
"There is no catch, I'm offering you a once-in-a-lifetime job. I saw your resume, and I was impressed by your conversation, and you have the qualifications to join this team. It seemed like fate, so I offered you the position. If you don't want it, I'll wait for HR to fill it," James bluffed.
"What's the pay and benefits?" Henry asked satisfied with James' answer.
"I'll offer you a competitive entry-level salary of $87,000, plus full medical benefits, paid sick leave, 22 vacation days a year, holiday pay, tuition assistance, a matching 401(k) retirement package, and relocation assistance," James announced, hopeful to close the deal.
"Where would I need to relocate," Henry asked uncertainly. He lived most of his life in Virginia, and his parents were buried here.
"Austin, Texas. Our headquarters is in Buena Vista California, but Heaven's Gate is located in Austin," James explained.
"I'm not sure I'm ready to move. Can I get a day to think about it?" Henry said honestly.
"Sorry, I leave tonight. And when I leave so does this deal. You surprised me, most people are chopping at the bit to work with Dr. McElvaney. Does working with the 'Genius of our Generation,' not trill you?" James asked surprised.
"No, it does. I'm not—"
The waiter returned with the food and interrupted Henry. Three large steaks seared to perfection, with a baked potato and broccoli arrived on expensive-looking plates.
"Let's change course, what's the hold-up? Your parents or girlfriend?" James asked cutting into the dry-aged steak.
"How did you know about my parents?" Henry asked cautiously.
"I had someone look you up and run a background check on you, on the way over. I'm offering you a job at the hottest company on the market. If I don't do my due diligence, then I'm not doing my job right. Am I?" James asked looking at Henry quizzically.
"I suppose not?" Henry said eating his steak.
"Do you plan on getting your Master's in the future? UT Austin has a great McCombs School of Business, where you can get your Master's in Business Analytics, and then you're all set to be a Team Lead or higher. At this point, you'll hurt my feelings if you say no," James said tightening the noose around Henry.
'Come on you bastard, just accept it already!' James thought.
"Can I negotiate," Henry asked feeling like a noob? But he remembered his father always said to negotiate in your best interests.
'Really, I'm offering you a golden ticket and you want to negotiate. I wish I had such audacity when I was his age. If he only knew who my boss is, he'd accept at once,' James thought.
"Of course, but first you need to sign a non-disclosure agreement," James said pulling out a document that looked like a book. "Initial by the blue tabs, sign by the yellow ones. Technically, I should've had you do this in the car ride over, but I didn't want to interrupt our conversation," James said slyly.
"I think I should get an attorney to read this?" Henry sighed.
"Why? Do you get an attorney whenever your phone, app, or internet site asks you to accept the boilerplate disclaimer? I promise you nothing nefarious is in here. The summary is at the back. It just stipulates you cannot share any company secrets and there's a non-compete clause for five years," James explained.
"Wait, if I leave the company, I can't work anywhere else for five years?" Henry asked surprised.
"You can't work at another entertainment company for five years. It's all very standard. Do you think the company is going to let you work at a competitor with knowledge about our code or business model? James scoffed.
Henry signed and initialed the non-disclosure agreement and said, "I want $95,000 and the newest gaming pod."
"Done, now apply here. You only need to fill out the first page and press submit. When you've finished, HR will call you to confirm. They'll also email you a welcome packet. The company will hire movers and purchase your plane ticket. Your hire date is July 1st. I suggest you move to your new apartment by June 15th. Austin's small so it's easy to get acquainted," James said handing him a laptop.
True to his word, Henry got a phone call as soon as he hit submit. The call didn't last but a minute and he had his first real career.
"I'll have Maykr send you back," James said standing up to shake Henry's hand. "I'm located in California, so we won't see each other much. Next time I'm in Austin maybe we can grab lunch. Who knows you may even meet my boss?" James said walking out the door first.
Maykr smiled when James slyly mentioned Henry would meet their boss. With the mission accomplished, he drove Henry back to his apartment.
Across the street, at Boar Head Resort, James' nerves finally settled down. He quickly grabbed a small bottle of jack from the minibar in his room. He drank in one swallow and grabbed a second from the small refrigerator.
In his pants pocket, he felt his phone vibrate. He took a quick look and small it was from his boss. The message read [Good Job]. That was it, and that was enough.
"You still there?" Salander said.
"Yeah, just relaxing, why?" James asked dropping his good guy stick.
"I couldn't tell you, but the boss listened to your dinner conversation. He nodded happily at your oration. He especially like the end where you mentioned him meeting Henry for lunch. All right I'm out of here, I'll talk to you on the next job," Salander said disconnecting the call.
Sweat started to pool on his forehead. His boss listened in, no wonder Maykr was here. If he failed, Maykr was prepared to step in with a few offers. This job was just too dicey. He was glad he was leaving Charlottesville. He quickly packed up and got the first plane out of there.