Upperclass and Underworld

Ashley Stirling sits in her apartment, surrounded by several newspapers and her laptop precariously balanced on one knee. It's the middle of a Friday workday, and they've still not done their personal quota for job contacts this week. Everything out on the market is so complete ass nowadays, truly. No one pays sufficiently, everyone has terrible conditions, and Ash has some standards despite being on a thinner and thinner budget every week. They throw a newspaper away, and it lands as an undignified pile of sheets. Some of these jobs read like one is meant to sell their soul for a pittance.

Sigh. She sips from a by now only mildly toasty hot chocolate. It's still more than good enough to them—she's used to making do with leftovers and such. And then, when Ash is about to give up and go have a displeased lunch feeling bad about the insufficient efforts, something comes up on her laptop scrolling down a list of adverts, that catches their eye.

The listing has a gold frame, several positive reviews from those who took up the offer prior, and offers a bit of a different approach than the employer and the soon-to-be-employee on these sites. Rather, the employer is offering to—instead of hiring the employee under the stipulations of the rigid corporate entity, demanding their overtime, and providing potentially unpleasant working conditions—serve more as a loan and mentor.

The process would apparently work something like this: First, the interested party and this woman Maria would have a phone call to answer any questions, and then they would schedule an interview if the opportunity was desired. Then, the "expert mentorship" by Maria would come first, after the contract is signed. And once that was done, and the interested party was ready to take on the career world with their own startup "with the very same knowledge that brought to fame some of the corporate elite," a loan and other assistance would be distributed. Then all it would be is Maria occasionally checking in to make sure the company is stable or even growing, her new savvy business associate piloting the company. Of course, Ash would also have to pay back the loan and hand over 20% income of the entity to one of Maria's accounts.

It was curious, and much more exciting than office work under someone, to start a company, and Ash could use the support network to get to where they want to be. But they would have to call Maria to really evaluate the supposed generous tycoon for themselves.

Ash skims through the listing. Then again, thoroughly. Then reads it a third time. It's... Definitely unlike anything she'd seen before, but, to hell with it. It wouldn't hurt to at least inform herself. A solid phone call to end the day would surely leave Ashley more satisfied with the week's efforts, and who knows? Maybe this was the way out of her stale and seemingly dead end almost-poverty life. Even if unsuccessful, the proposed mentoring could be a huge boon for later opportunities. And... They roll their eyes at their own thought, but. If this is some kind of weird front for what ends up being some kind of sexual work, whatever. Maybe that's their line out. Ashley's just a little bit proud of her body.

They reach over and pull their phone from the table beside them. Half past one, it should be a good time to call, they note as they type in the numbers one by one. There's a completely coincidental 666 in the middle of the phone number, and Ash can't help but be amused by that.

An imp picks up the ring from the desk and flies over to the nearby Mania, a rather potent demoness or "demon goddess" as it had a nicer buzz. She swipes the phone and waves the imp away after the imp had already started to drift back. She places her language and dialect into, after brief consideration for the client, English, New Yorker. "Hello, this is Maria speaking. Who am I speaking with?" The phone cord dangles above her head, from her perspective; Mania resides in an inverted skyscraper, and her office chair had been bolted to the gray carpeted floor.

Ah, the one and only lady Maria herself - Ash is relieved that it wasn't some front desk worker she'd have to hash out any details with. "Yes, hello, my name is Ashley Stirling and I came across a rather intriguing listing with your name and number on it online. I would like to present my sincere interest for this and am quite curious to find out more, if possible." Ugh. Her application script is so second nature by this point, it's even instinctive to use it in a phone call. Hopefully it didn't sound too tinned.

Mania smiles, and her tail wraps around to her stomach. There's an opportunity here, and not a wrong number. "I'm pleased you called, then. I was the one who put out that ad and you're among the first to call. I'd be happy to answer questions for you, Miss Stirling, as I also understand this opportunity is as unique as they come." She turns on her monitor and launches a pdf viewer, examining the textboxes in her favorite document.

Something about the voice is quite captivating to Ash, but that's just something that comes with, or is required for being a high class businesswoman. Ashley leans back into their chair. "What sort of requirements does this position have? I didn't see much details on that in the listing, but I assume that means you have faith in the mentoring you have on offer? How long of a process is said mentoring, and would I need to cover for myself in that timeframe? I should be able to, but it's good to ask." She feels... Oddly excited, all of a sudden. Maybe just this is much more of an intriguing position than Ash has been offered lately. Much of the details seem so appealing, and this Maria seems quite charming and elegant.

She says, "The requirements for this position are that you are over 18 years of age, that you can operate motor vehicles and work everyday computer tasks such as email, Office, and browser, and that you have a great ambition to achieve bigger and greater operations than you ever have before, and greater wealth thereof. If you can't dream big, we will waste both of our time, Miss Sterling." And although she has much more time than Ashley, her seconds mattered more. "The mentoring is the best you can receive. I am so confident in my mentorship that, in the event you choose to leave the mentorship halfway through, you will experience no fee or judgment. The loan is only once the business is established as well. Please don't leave the mentorship later than halfway, however. That will be penalized." Mania adjusts some of the text boxes to include these details, for instance this fee that only exists in writing. After all, the loan, business, and training are all a little more instant than estimated, because that's all she has patience for. "The mentorship can be as long as 4 months. You do not need to cover for yourself, no. I have confidence I can inspire the leader in you, especially if our interview together goes well. I am available from 5AM to 11PM Eastern Time seven days a week and can make appointments outside that as well if absolutely necessary."

Ashley is silent for a minute, pondering all these details. License, check. Generic computer smarts, check. Ambition? Well. She wants out of this hole and if she ends up captivated, surely that's something that can be dug up from the depths of her deflated self. Until then, a feigned attitude goes a long way. The details all seem very beneficial, getting some temporary compensation and either being mentored well or being able to dip early? A godsend, really. "I am greatly intrigued, Miss..." Oh dear. The last name wasn't actually listed anywhere, but that hadn't actually occurred to them until a second too late. "...ehm, Maria. Let me check my schedule." An artistic pause of a handful of seconds, they already know it's completely void for the time being." I could do it as soon as tomorrow if that's feasible to you? I have an opening after 1pm, but could move some stuff around." She just doesn't want to wake up early, unless she has to. It doesn't quite click with Ashley that Maria offered an 18-hour availability, but it feels off ever so briefly. They shrug it off.

Mania faces away from her keyboard to write down in a parchment planner in pen the 1PM scheduled appointment. It'd give her a few hours before she had to reap the debt from the Korean tycoon who almost didn't pay off his brokers in time. And unlike the stock to the brokers, he would definitely have his soul on him, as withered as it probably was. A withered and hateful soul is, to a soul, a lot like a withered pepper is to a pepper, on that tangent. It's smaller, yes, but more spicy and flavorful.

"Tomorrow at 1PM works for me... I scheduled us for then. Simply email your address to maria_flecheloo@aol.com. If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask, or you can get back to me at this number. I suggest to have your résumé ready. And I'll maybe even bring wine." She faces her computer and licks her fingernails.

Oh god. A home visit? Maybe Ash should have scheduled not so soon, but now she's set a deadline on herself and backing out of the time now seems like a bad idea. "Oh, no, this all sounds... Good to me." They're already tapping away at their laptop with the other hand. "I'll send you the details asap, hold onnnnn... Okay, there we go. Did you get that? As for further questions, if anything comes to my mind we can take that up tomorrow." Ashley is nervous, all of a sudden. Is she really ready for all this? Probably not, but she's been ready to change her life somehow for too long and this is an opportunity unlike anything else.

So Ash was computer literate. She'd regret that. Her bloated email client dings. "Grand. I did receive your email, thank you. And, of course, I will have much to ask about tomorrow. Okay, sleep easy tonight, Miss Stirling. I must go now—" She hangs up with a button on the phone and drops the phone, which hangs past her brilliant white hair for an imp, a new one, to collect and return to its dock. She publishes the pdf and sets it to print in a different floor, a few copies to be safe. She could wait until thirty minutes prior to the meeting, or maybe she could watch a new international box office film in the meantime with warm champagne. She didn't sleep.

Ash waits for the call to end. Double checks twice that Maria is no longer on the line. They put their phone away, and...

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa,,,"

Okay. Good. That had to get out.

Sleeping easy seemed like a very tall order, but they had to do their best to be awake and presentable tomorrow. And apparently that includes the house too. Oh well, seems like rewatching the fifth harry potter movie this evening had to be cancelled for tonight. She piles away her newspapers, taking care to include the one tossed aside earlier, and breathes deeply a few times before setting to work. It's 2am by the time Ashley is halfway satisfied and they slump to bed, sleeping instantly.

There was a lot of overcast in the morning, so much so that it resembled the crack of dawn. But, by noon, the sky cleared to a blue—a blue, of course, despite the polluting city below. Minutes before one o'clock, the elevator in Ashley Stirling's apartment building chimes at her floor. And, as the elevator doors part, Mania dressed in a bold red close-fitting dress with a cleavage window—redecorated in pale skin and dark hair—drops from the dull and red-tinted ceiling onto the ground and then walks forward into the hallway. The elevator closes behind her in an unnatural, short time frame, aware of her absence, and plummets back to where it came from. She clamps a bottle of champagne in her right hand, resting the surface along her whole twisted right arm and resting the bottom against her shoulder. And, in her left hand, she holds a two dollar folder. She knocks on Ashley's door with this hand.

Not the brightest and most awake but rested enough to be presentable, Ashley perches up on their toes to take a peek through the peekhole in her front door. To at least have a moment of mental preparation of what's waiting on the other side—Woah. This was not your everyday lady, certainly. The door slowly opens, and Ashley can't resist a slow up and down scan of their visitor. "Maria, I presume? You're very precisely on time. Please, come in. Apologies if this is all a bit... Modest for your tastes." Ashley indicates a place to leave shoes, and then leads the way back to her unusually tidy living room. There's a tea kettle and two cups prepared on either side of the table and a few papers in a neat little pile next to the cup that Ashley chooses as their own.

Mania smiles with a plastic glimmer. "Of course. And, yes, it's very modest. That's why I'm here to change your life, Ms. Stirling. Remember, we dream big." She places the champagne bottle on the table with the tea kettle and cups, and she sits with her heels clicked together. Her eyes match up to Ashley's with an alien ferocity. "I mentioned I might bring wine. Although I almost did, I changed my mind and brought champagne instead. It tends to symbolize the start of something new... To start with, I'd love a look over your paper resume. And then I'll ask you questions that every interviewee has to answer as well. Feel free to ask questions of your own about this position."

Ashley pulls one of the papers out of the pile, places it down and spins it on the tabletop with her fingers before sliding it over to Maria's side. It's a mighty modest résumé, but there's two charity projects, a strongly passable education and a few snippets of work in there. Some IT certifications too, and as mentioned a general class license. "I do have many questions, you've been as mysterious as you've been intriguing with your offer. But you seem a very competent woman so I do have faith." Also, they're just desperate. "This mentoring, I realize I didn't ask, will it be local or digital? Either works fine."

Mania reads the resume only a touch more patient than the typical employer, more scanning than anything. "Your charity work is noble, if quaint. I delight in seeing your ability to contribute rise once we get you sitting pretty in a business. Your charity work could be massive... But I read that you did not manage to stay in the office position much longer than a few months. I'll mentor you well; in any case, it's just something to keep in mind for us both. It'll be a combination of local and digital mentoring. Now..." She stretches out her arms, admiring her own dark fingernails. "Describe to me a time you acted on your own accord when you needed to most."

"The office position was a very unfortunate story. I assure you I did my best, but management was... highly defiant about changing their horridly unoptimized systems and practices. As you said, we need to dream big, and apparently dreaming of an actually functional registry system was seen as causing difficulties when clearly the changes I was proposing and offering were vast improvements." They drum their fingers slightly. "I wouldn't tell these details to any old office manager, of course, but you seem a woman who appreciates forward thinking and innovation."

Being asked vague and complicated interview questions was always a hassle, but she knows to try her best. They pinch the bridge of their nose briefly, in thought, then note. "Well, there's the case of when, during the later charity work, some details felt off and I chose to pursue them. Long story short, someone had been diverting a fraction of the charity funds for their own pleasure and by pushing the right questions I managed to get someone higher up to look into it and notice the offset without putting my name in the mix." Something about this answer felt overly... Honest, but it's the first thing that came to mind.

The woman of hell gazes at Ms. Stirling's hazel eyes at the compliment, and she puts her hands and pretty nails overtop the unemployed person's own, halting their drumming. "Thank you, Ms. Stirling. I do. It's part of my, and soon to be also yours, brand." Mania lifts her hand and smiles again. "These are both great answers, even the story about the management being unwilling to accept optimization of your own suggestion. You've knocked out my second question before I even presented it, then, and so I'd like to ask you my third and final interview question." She collects the folder onto the table, over Ashley's resume, and leans over it until she's remarkably inches from her face. "Describe someone or some group you know you're better than and why. Someone outside of your resume."

Ashley's gaze has wandered over to their own hand, where Maria's fingers had been resting. When she's suddenly faced with a fairly uncomfortable closeness, she gasps and leans back a bit, but doesn't object. She's too preoccupied on the presented question to start pondering Maria's motives and growing peculiar manners. Her mind is distracted all of a sudden, leaning away from the formal and well thought out responses she would usually manage.

"My parents. Maybe a generic and obvious answer for many people, but. They got me in this position to begin with. They only wished to support a very narrow line of progression for me so when I started to seek my own goals they fell off very quick. I had faith in them keeping me up for longer when I broke off from the trail I was lead onto and they let me fall. I'll prove them wrong some day and when they plead forgiveness I won't listen. I will have made it without them." There's a growing, spiteful tone to all of this and once she's done, once she realizes, she becomes quite flustered. "That... That was very out of line, apologies..."

Mania has a way with prying sin away from the deep recesses of the subconscious. She leans back from Ashley and winks, and she shoves the folder and resume below over to her side of the table, facing Ashley. She says, with ginger, "No need for apologies. I've already decided that you're hired. Training with you will be excellent and straight-forward. All your answers will remain confidential, I assure you, as a side note. However, there's one last step, Ms. Stirling, to finally make it in the world to your full potential, to prove everyone wrong about you." Her breath seems to have a bit of... heat? "..A contract you must sign on the line in the folder." The folder has a red pen and at least four pages of contract to perhaps read, front-to-back, with the signature line on the first page.

It's hard to tell if Maria is acting odd or of Ashley's just too caught up by the complicated situation to read the signs properly. They dismiss it, and browse the contract swiftly. It feels like... Looking at the papers, it feels more like information appears in her brain rather than she's actually focused on and reading the words. Ash doesn't dwell on this weird sensation though, the parts that have been skimmed seem... In order? She thinks. Nothing odd here, certainly.

She takes the pen, carefully doodling a spiral on one of her own papers to make sure it writes to their liking. The signature is a bit scratchy, but it's barely legible as "ASterling". The pen drops to the table, in a decisive gesture. And... Hm. She's not sure how to feel. Not sure what they are feeling.

Mania sweeps back the signed paper and folder from Ms. Stirling, and she then places them both on her seat directly under her dress. In the meantime, she also pops open the champagne bottle and pours to the top of the smaller tea cups, each and both. Mania drinks down one cup very quickly, almost as if it was water, and then says, "You won't regret this. You will prefer what I've done for you. And finally you will be able to seek your career aspirations to an end. You will be richer, more powerful, better. All without anyone's help but mine and yours." Mania, from hair to dress to skin, glows with a soft, red luminescence. She stands from her seat and walks up to a wall, putting her hand on it. The edges of Ashley's vision accumulate darkness.

Ashley takes the cup, slightly amused by the odd combination of vessel and contents. She won't complain though- At least not at that. What's more worrisome is Maria's sudden radiance, the slowly swimming vision. The first instinct is the drink being poisoned, but. It was so incredibly fast acting in that case, and Maria had shared it too. Other explanations fade in, her eyes falling to the contract on the seat. They don't understand, but they can just vaguely whisper out a few words.

"What did you do...?"

Ash feels ready to slump over and pass out. Either by whatever is affecting her, or from pure anxiety in the moment.

Mania pushes off the wall and flips one-hundred and eighty degrees, landing on the ceiling. Mania's figure is engulfed in a new splotch of darkness in Ashley's vision briefly before the darkness vanishes just as it came, leaving only the darkness that still encroaches from the edges of her vision. She's no longer wearing a red dress, but a red skimpy bra and gold panty. Her skin looks as if her previous skin was entirely burnt by the sun—red, with amazing complexion. And her hair goes from black to a pure white. Her eyes reveal themselves to be orange as well. And her tail forms again and swishes behind her. Mania, the CEO of Hell, walks up to Ashley and puts her middle and index fingers across her lips. Ashley's vision is narrowed to just the demoness.

"Hired you."

Even if Mania is all that Ashley can see, their eyes fail to focus properly. There's so much to take in, and the brain refuses to acknowledge the truth that is appearing. And yet, she chuckles. "I've always joked about not wanting to sell my soul to my jobs. I guess a deal with a demon isn't that far off..." Ashley's voice trails off, and they fall over onto the coffee table. Unconscious or just entirely mentally resigned, it's hard to tell.