A few hours later..
The sun was now in the center of the sky, the smell of burnt wires still lingered in the office, a not-so-gentle reminder of the catastrophe. The office was unusually quiet when the two new interns, Fellen and Tirbs, sat awkwardly in the chairs across from my desk. Moxxie adjusted his glasses, flipping through their resumes while I rested my feet on the desk, balancing a knife between my fingers. They looked tense, like they were waiting for me to throw something at them.
I decided to ease the tension. "Alright, fellas, first things first—welcome to I.M.P. I know things can get a little... chaotic around here, but I hope you two can help make this place better," I shot them both a grin, setting the knife down. "So let's talk about where you'll fit in. Mox, take it away."
Moxxie hesitated for a brief moment, scanning over Fellen's resume. "Fellen, you have a background in finance? That's… surprising." He looked up at the bespectacled intern, who pushed his glasses up his nose nervously and nodded.
"Y-Yeah. I did a couple of internships back in college, and I have experience in accounting and budgeting."
"That's exactly what we need," I said, nodding. "Our finances are, a bit 'adventurous.', but nothing you can't handle. You'll be in charge of keeping us from going broke. Think you can handle that?"
Fellen gulped but gave a determined nod. "I'll do my best, sir."
"Good attitude, I like that." I turned to Tirbs. "And you? Says here you have some background in IT?" I mentioned in a approving tone.
Tirbs nodded, glancing at Loona, who was leaning back in her chair, scrolling through her phone. "I guess I could handle tech support."
"Great! You'll be Loona's assistant!" I said, turning toward the open door revealing the office where Loona was lazily leaning back in her chair, .
Loona ear twitched in our direction briefly and she groaned giving me a "Seriously?" look.
"Yup, it's a match made in heaven." I said aloud. "she'll be teaching you how to handle the emails, fix the computers, and everything else you might do up there."
I hopped up from my seat, stretching my arms before turning toward the combat bot still sitting in the middle of the office. "Gotta haul this pile of junk into storage, Take care of them for me Moxxie."
As I pushed the dented robot toward the entrance storage closet, my mind churned through possibilities. I'd done some research on my phone and according to schematics, and reviews every single combat model had the same issues, overheating, misfiring, jamming, delays and even spontaneous explosions. That wasn't a defect. That was just standard in Hell. The only robotic constructs that actually functioned well were ones designed for leisure—Fizzarolli, for example, had top-tier mobility and decent close combat capability, but tended to glitch even when it was new, the only perfectly functioning combat based robotics here was attachments like the real fizzarolli had.
No one in Hell seemed to have figured out how to make a reliable combat AI. Which only meant…
I needed someone from the human world to fix it.
It was an obvious solution. Drop the robot into the hands of some independent coders or a research team, let them absorb the code and mechanisms of the robot. and have them improve it. With any luck, they'd be dumb enough not to involve the government. Simple.
All I needed now was someone to monitor the whole thing. Lucky for me the interns had perfect timing. My eyes flicked back toward the group talking to the interns was now Moxxie and Millie.
Securing our robot into the closet I headed toward them, I should tell them my idea, but If I want Moxxie to agree especially after spending so much on the robot I needed a, more convincing hand. As I drew closer their conversation began to shift as I overheard Millie and Moxxie talking while setting up some paperwork for the two demons waiting diligently.
I walked into the room interjecting myself into the scene as everyone turned their heads in my direction. I spoke loudly, "Anyways, everyone I say we all hit up a bar Friday, to celebrate our new workforce. Drinks are on me!"
Moxxie immediately shook his head. "Thanks, but we already have plans."
"What couples stuff could be more fun than getting drunk with your friends?" I raised my brow teasingly, though I already knew I wasn't going to drink.
Millie beamed, grabbing Moxxie's arm. "It ain't just any couple stuff, sir! Moxxie got us a reservation at Ozzie's for our anniversary!"
I blinked. "You managed to get a reservation?" I said absentmindedly to the pair but in my head internally contemplating on what to do.
Moxxie nodded, looking smug. "I pulled a few strings."
Millie let out a happy squeal, squeezing Moxxie's arm. "I can't believe we're actually gonna get to eat there!"
I, of course, was less enthused. I knew what happened to couples at Ozzie's especially these two. They'd get laughed off stage before having a chance to enjoy their night together. The place catered to sinful debauchery, not genuine romance. If Millie and Moxxie went there expecting a sweet, romantic evening, they'd be at the very least humiliated.
I scratched my chin, deep in thought. The simplest solution was obvious: make sure they didn't get mocked in front of everyone. But how? I couldn't step in without embarrassing myself, and I sure as hell wasn't about to let them ruin their anniversary.
I needed a plan. I hadn't talked to stolas for a while, maybe, no I have to drag her here even to get in. This is gonna get complicated.
Verosika, Asmodeus and Fizzarolli where all variables I had to account for. "I'm gonna have to get real creative with this one." I muttered,
For now, though, I had a robot to fix and interns to keep in check. Big changes were coming and I needed to be prepared.