The room they were in was mostly dark, meant to protect each others identities until everyone decided they wanted to stay in. They would never see their host, but I wanted to see them. It was important to know each person individually or else none of this would work.

I watched each of my ten guests look around at each other, their eyes unsure. They couldn't see each other, but I could see each of them clearly. I had heightened senses, and plied them to my trade well.

Five girls and five guys peered around at their shady companions, trying to discover some kind of detail or something they could use to their advantage. The girl with the black eyes was the only one who seemed to focus on the window that I was standing behind. I decided I liked her. She was not one to be fooled and she would do well in this field.

Two others caught my eye. One, a young man in his early twenties, seemed able to hone in on all the girls, trying to discover if they were pretty or not. I smiled at that. The other, another gentleman, almost thirty, knew better than to try and peer into the gloom. I could tell that he was listening instead.

I watched them for only a little while longer before pressing a small button near my head and opening up the intercom so I could speak to them.

"Welcome, allies," I said, chuckling as most started at the sound of my voice. "I trust you are all comfortable? Good. Then I shall begin by introducing myself. I am Madame CEO. This is all you will ever know me as. For my protection, of course. You will never see me in person, so don't ask. If you ever have questions for me, you can either reach me through this intercom system or through my valets. Each of you will be offered the services of one of my valets so please look to them for help first. They know what they are doing.

"For the duration of your training, you will be housed in the rooms in this facility. Each room has been designed with you in mind so you will not find them lacking. If there is something missing that you need, feel free to let your attending valet know and they will see to it.

"As you will all be around each other quite often for the sessions, I ask that you keep any hostilities to yourself. Blood will be returned with blood, so if you kill one of your allies, expect the same."

I paused for a moment to let them take it all in. I could see some of them already had questions, but I wanted to finish my speech.

"Now on to the real task: why you are here.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Out there is a world full of 'good guys'. They appear around every corner, hidden in the dark corners of the human mind, waiting for someone like you to be released. MAke no mistake. Every time a villain arises to conquer humanity, a hero always appears. My job is to prepare you for that so you will not make the same classic mistakes that every villain in history has made. In this world of heroes, all you have to rely on is yourself.

"I am going to turn on the lights now, and you will see the faces of those whom you will be training with for the next six months. Mark those faces well. Though you will eventually compete for the top spot of Overlord, these people around you are your allies now. Do not trust any of them, but understand that they can help you if you help them. When you come face to face with your arch enemy, as you inevitably will, the knowledge of personal gain will help you best your foe."

With that, I pressed another small button and the lights went on in the room. Now they could all see each other clearly and already I could see looks of distrust flashing around. I smiled. Nobody moved in the room; everyone was too busy trying to see who would be most likely to stab them in the back.

At least they weren't trying anything yet.

I spoke again. "Get up now. Introduce yourselves. When you are finished, your valets will escort you to your rooms. Your luggage has already been delivered to them. Training starts tomorrow. Save your questions until then."

I flipped the intercom off and returned to my desk, which sat further back from the one-way window. Sitting down, I leaned back and watched the trainees warily introduce themselves. I leaned forward for a moment to type something onto the keyboard sitting in front of me. Speakers came up out of the floor and turned on, so now I could hear what was being said in the other room.

It was technology like this that made me seem omnipresent.

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