Inside 863

Chapter 1 | 12/1/2020

I approached the entrance to Blue Base. Soon, I would be interviewed by Matthias himself. I had watched enough of his videos to know what was going on at Hi5 recently. The whole Key Saga thing. It was a bit spooky to know I might be working there amidst the chaos of that whole thing. That would be one thing that would scare me about actually getting the job.

I opened the door to Blue Base and saw the familiar front desk, hall, staircase, waiting area, and the window to Megadesk. No one seemed to know I was here. Of course, I was ten minutes early, so they shouldn't have expected me to be here. I decided to sit down in this giant cushioned chair. It had the Overkill logo on the side, and I liked that. The chair was a mega chair. I sat down on it and felt something hard. I pulled it out from under me. This was no ordinary mega chair. It was a mega massage chair. And I had just turned it on. I tried to turn off the chair, but I wasn't sure which button turned it off. I tried pressing different ones, but none of them turned the chair off. I tried to get out of the chair, but it had somehow locked my legs in. This was a disaster. What if Matt walked in? I must've pressed the button to make the massage strong, because it hurt. I had to escape somehow before someone saw me. I tried pressing more buttons, but it only increased my pain. Then, someone walked around the corner. Just my luck, I thought as I recognized the man with a receding hairline and a nice beard. He saw me struggling to get out of the chair and laughed. I was overly embarrassed. I mean, maybe it was a good thing I made my employer laugh. Maybe it would help my chances of getting a job here.

"Are you Payten Holloway?" he asked.

"That's my name," I said, grimacing.

"Are you ready for the interview?" he asked, a hint of laughter in his tone. He obviously thought it was hilarious he trapped his applicant in a full-body massage chair.

"Uh," I said. I could feel my face growing redder than it already was. "I'm a little stuck, sir."

"It's the first button on the top left," he said. I pressed the button, and the chair turned off, releasing my legs.

"Thanks," I said sheepishly.

"Don't worry," he said, seemingly reading my mind. "I won't hold it against you." I heard footsteps coming from the staircase, so I glanced up to see who it was. The man wore a suit and tie, and was carrying a briefcase. He was smirking smugly, and even though I had never met him, I already didn't like him. I didn't recognize him as anyone from Hi5, but who else could he be? Possibly someone else who had an interview today?

Matt nodded to the man, then led me upstairs. I looked for the splashes and scratches on the wall from when Sam dropped the safe. Sure enough, they were there. Suddenly, I felt chills run up my spine. My mind flashed back to watching the video of Matt review the security cameras near Sam's office. Watching the Stalker, who I assume is Syphus, inject himself with an unidentified substance. That scream, that horrible, bloodcurdling scream, gave me shivers like no other. I can't even imagine what it was like for Matt the first time he saw the footage. What is it like for Matt, even now?

We entered the conference room. Matt motioned for me to sit at one end of the table, while he sat at the other. There were six others in the room. I recognized each one of them.

"Welcome to the Council," said Matthias. His voice grew suddenly deeper, as he put on his Overkill hat and sunglasses. "Let me introduce you to them." He tapped Tanner on the head with his Overkill cane. "This is Underkill, also known as Tanner." Tanner wore his signature Underkill glasses.

"Sup," said Underkill lightly.

"This is Buzzkill, also known as Pat," Overkill continued. Pat smiled and said hello. Overkill continued going down the line of people sitting at the conference room table. He introduced Hoverkill (Woods), Overhype (Sam), and Overchill (CJ).

"So, you watch my videos?" Overkill asked.

"Yes," I said. Knowing that all my favorite Hi5 celebrities were just sitting there staring at me was a little nerve racking.

"And you know that even though we try our hardest to keep our employees safe, there is always the risk of fans coming to the studio?" Before I could reply, Underkill added, "Or stalkers." I tried to not think about Syphus coming to the studio. It gave me a weird, sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"Yes, I am aware of those risks," I told the Council.

"We've all read your resume," Overkill said. "Now, fill out this form-" he slid a piece of paper across the table to me, "and then you'll be good to go. Let us know if you have any questions." I picked up the pen in front of me and started to read it. It seemed to be some sort of quiz. One of the questions read, "What would you do if you found out Pat actually stole the GoPros? A) Tell Kevin to fire Pat immediately, B) Don't tell anyone about your discovery, C) Share the truth with all your coworkers so they can laugh with you, D) Only tell your boss, or E) Don't tell anyone, but encourage Pat to speak up about his wrongdoing." I chose "D" for that one. After I had finished filling out the form, I passed it back to Overkill.

"Good. Very good," he said in his deep voice, after he scanned the paper. "We will email you tonight to tell you if you got the job or not. You are free to leave."

"Thank you," I said, standing up awkwardly. I could feel the eyes of the Council on me as I left the conference room. Hoping the interview went well, I escorted myself outside.

---

I was sitting at my desk, (which was a very normie desk because I didn't have enough money to make it mega), editing a gaming video, when I got a notification on my phone. It was an email from Hi5. "You got the job!" it read.

"Yes!" I cried triumphantly. I was bubbling with joy. I quickly read the rest of the email. I was supposed to show up to Blue Base the next day at 8:00 A.M. I was to meet Matthias in Megadesk and he would give me further instruction from there.

I went to bed that night so full of excitement I wasn't sure if I would be able to fall asleep. Tomorrow will be my first day of fulfilling my dream, I thought happily as I dozed off into a good night of sleep.