"Hey Michael, are there any new missions? I've been stuck in here for ages." He asked the greasy ginger-haired man. The older male turned to look at him, revealing a burn scar along one side of his face reaching up to his deep blue eyes. "Go ask your own leader. I don't need my team's men dying of bullet wounds." He growled, and Josh narrowed his eyes at the accusation. "I didn't fucking kill Conrad. I'm still working here, ain't I? They would've fired me. It wasn't my gun." He snapped back, stepping forward, causing Michael to stand closer to him. "Bullshit. They've only kept you around because of your strength. We all know something is going on with you, freak. For one, I can't wait to be the one to put a bullet in between your eyes just like you did with Conrad, bastard." Michael spat as his shove sent Josh reeling backward, the force of the impact ratcheting up the tension coursing through their veins. Gritting his teeth, Josh's anger flared and flickered, a volatile emotion that fueled his instinct to leave the confrontation behind.
Michael's intent was unmistakable, desperate to bridge the chasm between them. His that blurred the lines between words and action.
A kick, fast and precise, landed squarely against Michael's head, stopping his fist and sending him to the ground.
Another assailant lunged, their fingers ensnaring Josh's hair in a desperate grip. A grunt escaped Josh as he fought to retain his equilibrium, his instincts firing with precision. Like a dancer in a chaotic ballet, he met the assailant's attack with a ferocity mirrored their own.
A headbutt echoed like a crack of thunder, the force of the impact reverberating through both Josh's skull and his opponent's. The moment of disorientation was brief, and with a fluid twist, Josh seized the upper hand, their head now a makeshift handle.
A dodge, an elbow strike, a whirlwind of motion defied words' confines. In a whirl of violence, the assailant fell before the combined force of Josh's determination and skill. The skirmish was a tempestuous dance, a flurry of motion that seemed to bend time and space to its will.
Then, a momentary lull—a glance downward, a heartbeat's pause. The glint of a critical card caught Josh's eye. Grinning, he seized the opportunity, his fingers wrapping around the card with a triumphant fervor. An unexpected kick to his leg, however, sent him falling.
Josh suddenly saw himself falling much higher and threw a wooden floor, crashing into it and slamming into the ground, hearing a woman scream in panic and watching insulation float down around him as he sat up and looked around, confused. He noticed a woman with short chestnut hair and a male with a blue beard and medium-length hair holding a drone remote. He blinked, grunting softly, stumbling, and grabbed onto a couch, trying to steady himself. "What the fuck... where am I?" He asked, looking at the two with his confused expression matching theirs. The male first broke the silence, clearing his throat after a while. "Um... my name is Timur, and this is my wife, Kristīne. This is our home, and you've fallen through our roof." As his eyes traveled down to Josh's badge, he said, "You're a Foundation member, right? My sister Aysha used to work there, and my parents before they died." Josh slowly stood up, stumbling, and brushed off his camo pants, wrinkling his nose at the stains on his white tank top before hearing the name "Aysha? Wait, I've seen her before." He said, bringing out the badge he got from Aysha. "She stopped me from killing a werewolf she was with and told me to search for my own stuff. Then, these golden scars started appearing on my body, and I appeared in your living room." He sighed, frowning, "I'm honestly not sure where I am. What state am I in?" He asked, looking back at him. "You in Texas. Got any broken bones? I'm unsure about the golden scars, but I can ask Aysha. I've been piloting her drones to watch over her, and we've been calling each other." "Shit... I was just in my Location in god fucking Oregon... Where is the nearest Foundation from here?" He asked, looking up at Timur stepping away from the rubble. "Well, one was here in Texas, but they closed it down. The closest would be site 88 in Alabama." Josh listened to Timur before grumbling, nodding softly. "Alright. Thank you, do you mind if I stay here for the night? I can clean this shit all up." "Sure, go ahead. I don't mind. I could get someone to clean it up for you if you want to instead look at some of Aysha's books she has." Josh hesitated, looking down at them before nodding and looking back at Timur. "Alright. I know the Foundation pays a lot but have them charge me, alright? I don't really need the money." He said before following Timur to his office.
Stepping inside, his eyes widened at the relatively clean and normal-looking office beside the monitors lining the walls with various drone views and a pile of journals to the side of the control panels, having extensions on the desk to hold more drone remotes and the middle of the table had an open more significant book that looked to be worked on. "Yeah, Aysha wanted me to start compiling her notes to be more concise, so when I can't find anything good, I work on that stuff." He said before gesturing to the other side of the office with piles of more notebooks, "Aysha spent a lot of research... I haven't found any research on creatures with golden scars, but you can look through and see if you can find anything." He told him, and Josh nodded softly, wincing, and rubbed his side. "The fuck is this still hurting?" He muttered, lifting his tank before blinking at the white sigil on his hip. Timur noticed and shifted himself to look at it better and blinked. "Oh shit! This looks like Aysha's birthmark." He said, frowning.
"She found out it meant protection but couldn't find out why it was there." He said calmly, inspecting it, and took out his phone. "Mind if I take a picture?" He asked, looking up at Josh, who nodded, frowning, and held his shirt up to let Timur take a picture. "Can you take a picture of one of the scars too? Maybe she's finding out something about it." He said, a bit disapproving at being documented like an animal but showed Timur one of his scars and let him take a picture. "Thanks, sorry, I know it makes people uncomfortable; I was Aysha's little brother, after all." He chuckled before sighing and putting away his phone. "Well, at least I have company here." He chuckled softly, and Josh nodded, sitting on the floor and grabbing one of the notebooks to start looking through it.
In the realm betwixt slumber and awareness, a vision of urgency and desperation coalesced – a woman, her countenance etched with worry, her form aglow with an ethereal light. Her presence resonated with a speed that transcended the boundaries of dreams, a harbinger of imminent peril.
Hovering above the tranquil figure of Josh, she emanated an aura of urgency, her fingers trembling as they reached out toward him. Her voice, a symphony of urgency and fear, pierced through the veils of sleep like a clarion call.
"Josh!" Her voice quivered, carrying the weight of impending danger. "ភ្ញាក់ឡើង! អ្នកស្ថិតក្នុងគ្រោះថ្នាក់ធ្ងន់ធ្ងរ!"
Within the tapestry of dreams, Josh stirred, roused by the woman's desperate plea. His slumbering mind shifted from the depths of dreams to the cusp of consciousness, his eyelids fluttering as his senses navigated the boundaries between worlds.
The woman's luminous form remained, her eyes wide with concern, her very essence a manifestation of distress. With frantic gestures, she extended her trembling hand, fingers aglow with a frenzied light, a lifeline bridging the gap between their realms.
"សូម," she implored, her voice trembling like a leaf in the wind. "អ្នកត្រូវតែភ្ញាក់ឡើង។ ជីវិតរបស់អ្នកស្ថិតក្នុងគ្រោះថ្នាក់។"
As the tendrils of sleep relinquished their grip, Josh's gaze met hers, his vision blurred by the intersection of dreams and reality. The woman's appearance was not merely a specter of imagination; it was a testament to the gravity of her message.
"ខ្ញុំជាសំឡេងចេញពីគែមនៃស្មារតី," Her urgency a reflection of the imminent threat. "ខ្ញុំមកដាស់តឿនអ្នករាល់គ្នា ដើម្បីឲ្យអ្នករួចពីកណ្ដាប់ដៃនៃគ្រោះថ្នាក់។"
With a sense of urgency, the woman descended, her form alighting beside Josh with an almost palpable urgency. Her presence bore a weight of speed that mirrored her words; her eyes fixated on Josh as though his life depended on his response.
"គ្រោះថ្នាក់ជិតមកដល់ហើយ Josh," she pleaded her touch a shiver that raced up his spine. "អ្នកត្រូវតែធ្វើតាមពាក្យរបស់ខ្ញុំ ហើយត្រៀមខ្លួន។."
As the world around them seemed to waver, the boundaries of reality and dreams blurred. An aura of tension crackled in the air as if the very fabric of existence trembled in anticipation.
"ស្តាប់ខ្ញុំ," she urged her voice a tremor of desperation. "អ្នកកំពុងត្រូវបានដេញតាមដោយកម្លាំងហួសពីការយល់ដឹងរបស់អ្នក ហើយពួកគេនឹងឈប់គ្មានអ្វីដើម្បីទៅដល់អ្នក។."
Her words sank deep into Josh's consciousness, his pulse quickening. The landscape around them transformed, revealing glimpses of shadowy figures and echoing footsteps in the dark.
"អ្នកមានអំណាចដើម្បីគេចពីគ្រោះថ្នាក់នេះ," she asserted her presence a lifeline amidst the encroaching darkness. "Trust your instincts and embrace your strength."
With an imploring touch, she pressed her hand to his heart, and Josh felt a jolt of urgency, a pulse that matched the racing rhythm of his heartbeat.
"ព្រលឹមបានបក់ឡើង, Josh," she murmured, her form beginning to waver like a flickering flame. "ភ្ញាក់ឡើងចំពោះការពិត ប៉ុន្តែចងចាំការព្រមានដែលបន្លឺឡើងក្នុងព្រលឹងអ្នក។."
As her form dissolved into the shadows, Josh was left with a sense of unease, his mind grappling with the mingling of dreams and reality. The boundaries blurred as he slowly opened his eyes, greeted by the muted light of pre-dawn. Though her image had faded, her urgency lingered like an indelible mark, urging him to confront the impending danger and fortify himself against the looming threat as he awoke.
Josh decided to stay up afterwards, struggling to sleep, before hearing a window creak. He frowned, got up, and approached the sound before a figure slammed into him, knocking him to the ground. Josh grunted, wrestling with the figure before kicking them in the chest and throwing them off of him. Scrambling up, he put his fists up as the figure in jeans and a football jersey, and a discolored white mask grabbed their bat and lunged at him; swinging at his head Josh dodged before punching the figure in the chest, receiving a knee in the gut as a response. Josh stumbled back, coughing out and gritting his teeth before hearing the crack of the bat hitting the side of his head, and they crumbled to the ground. He hissed in pain as the figure brought out a knife; sitting on top of him, Josh grabbed his wrists, fighting with them for a bit; feeling his grip slip, he put his arm up before selling out in pain as the knife stabbed into his arm. He gasped out, swearing, hearing footsteps upstairs of Timur and his wife waking up, which made the masked figure pause and look up. Josh took the opportunity to knee the figure in the crotch before slamming his head into theirs and shoving them off.
Stumbling back, Josh grabbed the knife and gritted his teeth before slowly pulling it out of his arm and facing the figure with the knife. "Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were giving this to me." He snapped at the male, glaring them down before flipping it into a better position and lunged at the figure "Josh! Dodge!" He heard Timur yell and quickly rolled away from the proxy as a gunshot went off. There was the thud of the proxy's body hitting the floor. Josh looked at the body panting before looking up at Timur holding a shotgun before grinning and laughing, "Well, now I really know I'm in Texas!"