Josh calmly listened to the old man's recorded voice. It was a bunch of nonsense, but soothing nonsense nonetheless. From time to time, he could hear muffled coughs that he tried hiding. 

With the new recorder, Josh's speed increased a lot. In fact, it returned to being the number one on the floor. Still, it was about 20% slower than the peak speed he had shown in the past. 

This much was to be expected since a recording could only be that close to the original. The next step was to make new allies. Two fodder characters would sometimes show up: the paper monkey and the food monkey. 

As long as he could make the paper guy his ally, he would have a direct way to the Literary Association since his department also handled the mailing for submitting new manuscripts. 

The paper guy had more freedom and free time but was still working like a slave too. This was a point that they had in common. Josh just needed to catch his interest. That is when Josh thought of using his first novel. 

He began narrating the story aloud whenever the paper monkey was around. He kept doing it until his target was extremely invested in the story. Then he stopped and waited for the shy monkey to ask for more. 

That is how they began regular story-telling sessions that eventually led to them becoming friends. The paper monkey would have a twinkle in his eyes as he listened. He would chuckle at times, cry at others and even cheer. 

Honestly, Josh would have wanted to keep telling him stories forever. Seeing his reactions was so enjoyable. But, he knew he had to keep the plan going. Their bond was strong enough for Josh to ask him a favor. 

That is how the paper monkey agreed to send Josh's manuscript directly to the Association. Josh expected him to be hard to convince, but he was enthusiastic instead. But, there were a few issues. 

Whenever a package was sent, it was required for the leader or supervisor to check it. This was because many of the paper monkeys didn't know much about literature. This was to ensure the higher-ups didn't make fools of themselves by sending the wrong version. 

In fact, the one checking it was always the leader as the supervisor was too busy harassing the females, or flirting as he called it. Plus, he really didn't care about it much.

If only Josh could get the supervisor to check it instead! This was probably the first time in his life that he found himself cursing the good work ethic of a superior. 

He now had two things to accomplish. The first was to get the leader out of the way. The second was to trick the supervisor into signing for the package. Oh, and a third for good measure. 

That's when he remembered all that the old man had told him. The leader had a past of drug abuse. How could Josh get drugs? Obviously, the medical department. But, would they gently cooperate? Of course not!

They obviously wouldn't care about any health problem except if it was grave. He could try to break his own arm and ask for medication, but his passive regeneration would render such a thing useless. 

Ah, there was actually something that they cared way more about than health, and that was productivity. But, it would seem suspicious if he made the request directly. That is how he began mumbling to himself once more. 

He acted as if he was trying to enter a weird trance whenever the food guy came to deliver his nutrients paste. At first, the food monkey just thought that he was going crazy, but after a few times, it finally realized that Josh was doing this to write faster. 

He asked a few questions, and the next day leader showed up once more. The food monkey had told him everything in exchange for one dose of banana flavor. "Is it true that you have an idea to increase productivity?" He asked with rapt interest. 

"T-that, maybe. I don't know just yet." Josh replied as awkwardly as possible as if he hadn't expected the question at all. 

"What is it? Just tell me. We want you to be writing as fast as possible." The leader amicably said.

"I think I was writing faster because of how soothing the old man's voice was. The recording helps a ton, but it still isn't the same. I think that I could write even faster if I found a method to help me enter a trance." Josh 'admitted'. 

"That's why you've been trying to meditate?" He asked pensively. 

"Yes, Sir!" Josh answered respectfully. 

"Alright, I'll see what I can do." He left quickly. 

A day later, he brought Josh to the medical ward, where the doctor monkey had him taste a few medicines and pick one that helped him get in the zone. Josh naturally picked the one that seemed the most effective. 

With his new drugs, his efficiency increased by a lot, reaching an all-time high. Josh was happy, the leader was delighted, and the Boss would be pleased too. 

That's when Josh requested another meeting with the Boss. He told the leader that he had an idea to increase productivity by a lot. Very soon, Josh was meeting the big man once again. 

"You said you have a great idea to increase productivity? Go on, speak." The Boss magnanimously allowed him to talk. Of course, if the idea really was good, he would steal it for sure.

"Sir, how about we try having people try to write words instead of just tapping random keys. This way, the chance to obtain a masterpiece would rise incredibly and—"

"SHUT YOUR TRAP! That's why you came in here?! To tell me this bullshit! No fucking way! This is not how we do things. You lowly monkeys are all retarded! Just fucking type and do your job!" 

"B-but, Sir. I'm the one that wrote the Tower Climb novel. Didn't that one work well? I didn't just type randomly to—"

"The audacity! Fucking get out of my sight! So what if you wrote it?! I told you it's all luck!" 

Even as Josh was leaving with his shoulders slumped in disappointment, the Boss kept the insults coming. The Boss then took care of screaming at the leader for a long while. This, in turn, made him shout at Josh too. 

That's how a despairing Josh finally reached his cubicle and erupted in tears. When the leader left cursing, Josh began grinning as he resisted the urge to laugh out loud...

Creator's Thought

The worlds that AT created would always baffle me. This one seemed to be about understanding people's motivations, well monkeys. Their main concern was productivity. As long as I used productivity as a justification, the world was mine!