Alex was dreading his quarterly performance review. He knew his recent work was lackluster at best, but he hated the idea of having to explain himself or justify his ideas to Miss Planner. She'd been hiding in her office for the last three months like a snake in a hole, never showing herself, and making him feel stupid whenever he talked to her on the phone. For the most part, she didn't say very much, which made him nervous. Every day, he felt like she was watching him from the shadows, studying his every move. The truth was that Alex was working harder than he ever had before, but his hard work didn't seem to be paying off.

Tracy told everyone she got chewed out. Her sloppy work and unprofessional behavior were causing real problems for the whole division, and she was put on probation for the next ninety days. And yet, she didn't seem ashamed of herself at all. In fact, Tracy seemed convinced that she'd come up with a brilliant new idea in no time and get back in Miss Planner's good books. The sick part was that she was probably right.

Gordon refused to talk about his review, but Alex suspected he got a big raise or something. He had a smug grin on his face, like someone who'd won the lottery. He was always Miss Planner's favorite. The rough-and-tumble man was a high-school dropout, but he still managed to come up with better ideas than all of the other analysts combined. Alex didn't know how he did it. It was almost as if the guy could see the future or something.

Poor Erica was terrified of her impending meeting with Miss Planner. The squirrelly girl avoided eye contact and kept to herself, nervously chewing her fingernails raw. She broke down at lunch and started crying hysterically on Alex's shoulder. They ended up spending the entire break period comforting each other in a corner of the cafeteria, sobbing and bawling their eyes out.

"Sniff... I'm so scared, Alex... she's going to make me cry again..."
"She can't really be mad at me... can she? I mean, what have I done wrong? I'm just doing the best I can here..."
"We should quit... if we both quit at the same time, they'll see this job is too hard... sniff..."

Alex wiped away Erica's tears and gave her a hug. They sat together for a moment, hunched over in misery. Then, Alex caught a glimpse of a short woman with blonde hair out of the corner of his eye. He shivered. She really was watching him. An uncomfortable lump formed in his throat as he looked straight at her. Miss Planner's eyes narrowed. Her lips curled into a smile.

Miss Planner was always staring at Alex like that. It made him feel like a mouse being watched by a cat. He turned away and gripped Erica for dear life. She squeezed back.

CLACK. CLACK. CLACK.

Alex heard the sharp sound of loafers tapping against the lunchroom floor. It was... getting further away. Miss Planner was gone. The young analyst let out an involuntary sigh of relief. He breathed in deeply and focused his thoughts. He had a college degree and was three years older than her, at the bare minimum. He knew he was at least a foot taller than her, too. Why was he so terrified? She was a human being like everybody else, right?

The question nagged at Alex's mind for the rest of the day. He knew the truth, of course. Miss Planner wasn't lurking in the dark like some kind of evil spirit. Yes, she was just a normal person... a strong and determined person who was responsible for directing the flow of Grandebelle's drug trade and managing hundreds of Chosen Ones just like him. It was only natural that she had the power to intimidate and influence people. The fear he felt when facing Miss Planner was rooted in the fact that she controlled his fate. Everything could be taken from him at any time if the whim took her fancy.

Alex was struck by a sudden revelation. He could just quit and join the Cut Throats. Planning assassinations and gathering intelligence sounded a million times easier than continuing to work for that blonde witch. He'd be making less money, but at least he'd feel useful for something again.

He struggled to remember why he got involved with this shady organization in the first place. Shouldn't he be working as an investment banker or something? Did he really want to spend the rest of his life coming up with new ways to deal drugs and fight Controllers? The thought was revolting. Maybe he should just beg one of the Sages to give him a quick death instead.

"No, no..." Alex muttered as he tried to think about anything other than committing suicide or quitting his job. "I'm not going to do it. The Chosen Ones are going to conquer the world, with or without me. I have a future here. I just have to figure out what to tell Miss Planner tomorrow. Oh, man. It's my last chance, isn't it?"