Not far from where one man had drawn his last breath, another walked casually toward the sa end.
He moved at an easy pace, slightly ahead of the android assigned to him, his head down and eyes drifting lazily over the trail. Every few steps, he sighed. Every few more, he yawned.
The forest stretched around him in long silence.
"Man," he muttered, spotting the tunnel hole just ahead in the moonlight. "Mr. Barclay's gigs are getting a little serious…"
He scratched at his neck, blinking sleep from his eyes.
"…and longer hours too."
The hole in the distance yawned wide like the throat of so beast, but he barely looked at it. Just let out another sigh and mumbled, "Whatever. More money for ."
Then a buzz—bzzzzt—in his coat pocket.
He reached in and pulled out a smaller, more personal phone. Not the company issue one with the maps. This one had stickers on the case and a faint chip in the corner. The screen flashed with a new ssage.
"Isabella ❤️: hey papi, how long till you clock out, I miss you"
A grin cracked across his face.
"Heh. Looks like I'm gonna have a fun night."
He typed back quickly with one hand. "soon baby, soon, the boss just gave us one more thing to do"
The reply ca back instantly.
"ok baby, but where are you? you won't be drinking with your friends after right? you already saw them last month, baby"
He rolled his eyes and exhaled through his nose. "You know I can't reveal my location, Bella…"
His thumbs moved to respond.
"just know I'm not far okay? I'll be ho in less than an h—"
**CLNK—THUNK**
A sharp tal sound ca from behind him.
He snapped his head back, startled.
The android was on the ground.
Then, almost chanically, it stood again—movents jerky but functional.
He frowned.
"Damn thing is tripping over itself…" he muttered, irritation bleeding into his voice. "Must've yanked out too much junk to fit whatever crap the boss loaded it with."
He saw nothing odd.
He missed the faint tendrils of pink smoke curling near its legs.
He ignored the faint scent of sothing sweet and floral drifting past his nose.
He lifted the phone to finish his ssage.
Then the android spoke.
"Please avoid pushing or shoving ," it said in a dull, chanical tone. "I am currently in caution mode and may pose a danger to you."
Its voice was flat. Emotionless. Not like the advanced units.
He clicked his tongue.
"Shut up, you hunk of tal. You tripped on your own."
He tapped send and shoved the phone into his pocket, grumbling, "I just had to get stuck with the malfunctioning one…"
The android followed.
"Checking system integrity," it stated. "Integrity checked. No errors detected."
"Yeah, whatever," he muttered, walking ahead again. "Just keep following and try not to f—"
**THUD**
The android dropped again.
"Please avoid pushing or shoving …"
He clenched his jaw. "Fucking hell. Why ?"
He turned fully this ti, frustration boiling, but stopped mid-step.
Now that moonlight had shifted slightly, it revealed sothing odd.
A faint wisp of pink smoke hovered near the android's fallen fra—barely visible. Almost like perfu caught in a breeze.
Then a voice.
Playful. Sultry. Close.
"Heeeyyy big boy… why so upset?"
The voice didn't co from the path. It ca from above.
His heart stopped.
He froze.
Then turned fast, drawing his weapon and aiming it at the trees above.
"Who said that?! Co out or I'll shoot you!"
He scanned the darkness above the treeline. Nothing. Just shifting branches and stars behind leaves.
His gun hand trembled slightly. The sidearm was heavier than it looked—military issue, with an upgraded suppressor and special bullets that could take out even certain superhumans. Not ant for warning shots.
He thought fast. 'Shit. I can't see up there. And the day I don't equip a fucking torch on my—.'
**THUD**
The android fell again behind him.
He jumped and spun, weapon aid.
More smoke.
Still that faint scent. Sweet. Like crushed flowers under heat.
His mouth went dry.
Then—**POOF**
A burst of pink in the corner of his eye.
He turned.
**BAM**
Sothing hard and tallic slamd into the side of his head.
A second later, heat. Blistering, direct heat. His face lit up in pain—searing along his cheek and temple. He scread, stumbling, dropping his gun and using his hands to claw at the wound.
The sll of burning flesh filled the air. Then—
**CLACK**
A familiar sound.
His own gun. Being readied.
The pain dulled instantly—replaced by an emptiness in his gut.
Then ca the only sound he'd register again:
**TFFT**
One silenced shot.
He dropped.
The android was still trying to stand. Still repeating its ssage.
And in the air nearby, the pink smoke lingered.
His scream had echoed through the trees like a dying animal.
But elsewhere, the stern man didn't flinch when he heard it.
Not right away.
He stopped walking—one boot planting silently into the dirt—and let the sound trail off into nothing.
The forest around him seed to exhale. Leaves rustled faintly. The android behind him stood still, waiting like an obedient corpse.
Then he moved.
One hand on his holster, the other pressing to the comm piece in his ear.
"What's the status over there?" he asked flatly.
Only one voice responded. Nervous. Shaken.
"I just heard Freddy screaming," the man said, breath catching halfway. "What's going on? Is it the green thor—"
The words weren't finished.
**GRKHH—SHRRKT—SPLTCH**
A wet crunch followed. Sothing tore. A sharp intake of breath choked mid-way. Then silence.
The stern man's eyes narrowed.
He stepped back slowly and put his back to a nearby tree, the bark scraping lightly against his coat. A half-second of false security. Pointless, but instinct won over logic.
"Hello?" he said. "Hello, does anyone copy?"
Nothing.
Just wind.
He raised his map device, thumb swiping quickly to a communications tab—trying to access another channel, maybe the extraction line, maybe even Barclay's backup—
Then it ca.
The voice.
Smooth. Sultry. Too playful for the situation.
"Why do you all look so worried?" it asked, drifting in from ahead, light as a tease. "Isn't this fun?"
His jaw clenched.
He didn't reply.
His gun was halfway raised before he even thought to fire. His posture stiffened, knees bending slightly, eyes locked on the shadows in front of him.
That's when the actual attack ca.
Pew.
One sound. No drama.
Just a soft click of death.
The man's head snapped forward an inch, then stopped.
His body went still.
Then slumped.
His gun fell from his hand without ceremony—thmp—and his body followed, crumpling at the base of the tree like soone had flipped a switch.
Between his eyebrows: a small black hole, ringed by a faint red scorch, still glowing slightly at the edges. The shot had cooked the flesh as it pierced it. No blood spilled. It had cauterized on entry.
His eyes stayed open.
Widened.
As if still trying to understand.
His final emotion—etched into them permanently—wasn't fear.
It was surprise.
Behind the tree, nestled in the shadow, the gun that fired the shot lay abandoned in the brush. Its barrel still smoked. A lazy trail of vapor curled from its surface, wrapping into the air along with a light pink one that lingered.
The android, as if oblivious, remained standing.
Waiting.
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