"Huff! Huff!"
Grant panted as he woke up in a upright sitting position with his head bowed down and chest heavily moving up and down. He greedily sucked the air around him before sighing with tiredness "I am finally free from that Black Maze, that freak surely hate me or else why would he send me to that maze...Damn.*Inhale* Woah!! This is...just Heavenly. I can't be in a Top Seven Star Hospital, can't I?...Such clear air is not available in Neon City at all."
"*Inhale*..Huff that was refreshing. Now let's go to main point, just where the heck am I."
Poor Grant did spoke his thoughts loud enough to spread it across the hemisphere but sadly no one was present in this basement or this whole room was sound proof. Whichever it was, it was a state of panic for Grant Walker.
He was in a sitting position on a magnificently carved bed. It was a bed made for atleast a Loyalty if not a King. Magical Dark Wood was carved into a artifact with coiling dragons on the four legs pf bed. Mysterious blue lightings could be seen in the eyes of these dragons, giving a illusion of a real savage dragon. Lying in a silky cream coloured bedsheet with his all white shining clothes he was giving a image of a rich silk-pant who just have had his fill of fun. Groaning and huffing as soon as he awoke.
Well he could have been also considered a Immortal, alas his scrawny average face and body ruined this atmosphere.
He collected his thoughts pretty quickly this time, in less than 5 seconds. And who wouldn't, if one have experienced Kidnapping with supernatural VFX like him, even a Einstein had to give up on rationality and accept his or her fate.
And the cause for him disregarding his rationality is simply what he saw infront of him. A huge container, filled with opaque gray liquid, with towering height of over 10 foot, just a few inches below the ceiling. Mot only that whole cylinder was covered with futuristic equipment, a monitor without any bezel, two dark red and blue colored syringes along with other empty ones. It was a picture taken or most probably plagiarized from a super Hi-fi SciFi movie and at the moment a big lizard will pounce out from the gloomy cylinder surrounded by tons of electronic wires and a big red warning screen on its left.
Grant took a deep breath and cursed the one who only used dim lights in the whole room. He stood up and miraculously didn't found any mishap with his body. He not only felt sluggish after moment of so much gap but he never felt so good in his life.
He checked his intact head. Verified the presence and control over all his limbs. Stretched his back to ensure that there is no injury there. He was jubilant with the initial reaction of his body. Only to find a...creepy anomaly.
When he rotated his neck there was no sound of joints. When he stretched his arms and rotated his shoulders, once again no crack sound came. And finally, when he bent he found a disturbing fact that he felt flexible. Too Flexible for Comfort!
He knew that there are no freaking bones inside him!
He clutched his hands into fist and as he loosened up his hands he once again convinced himself about his hypothesis. There was no reaction on his palm. Even his knuckles seemed illusionary. When he touched them he can swear that they are normal but deep down he know it is not a real sensation.
As he was finishing checking over his body he rushed forward, his pinky toe slammed into the legs of the bed. He shrieked and cursed but soon he reverted to his frustrated look as he didn't feel any pain. It was just a unconscious response which was engraved into him. He looked deeply towards his own toes and strangely felt that his skin tone is also different. It was much paler than before. He believe that if he place himself in a dark corridor he can work as a good replacement for that old LED Bulb, his whole body was radiating light.
Moreover it was not creepy like ghosts neither holy like gods, but it was a unique brilliance.
And as if fate also wanted to get him know this fact he walked towards the gray liquid filled cylinder. Not to bash a Alien Mugger but to look at his own shiny reflection.
In a dim light he stood infront of dark mirror and looked or to say more properly gawked at his appearance.
He screamed in his mind.
'This is not part of the Script!'
He was indeed scrawny and doomed to be unworthy mate for a female partner on Earth. Which even led him to self repulsion and eventually he gave up on worldly affairs of man and woman, claiming to be a Saint who wants to help mother nature by not burdening with a additional burden. But now he was literally shining! Air gently revolved around him, creating a mirage of flickering lights around him. He was anything but not attractive!
His dark black hair lightened up the contrast with his other wise shining body. Rubbing his chin with fascination he said "I can pass on as a Angel or Messiah with this much special effects. Meh, I bet even a pig can be treated as a God if such halo is bestowed upon him. But this is against my morals, I am one of Low Key Army's Esteemed General this much attention is not good for sophisticated people like us. Tch, I have to solve it as soon as possible. It will create falls image on others."
"Don't worry Mr. Whatever Shameless General, it will not be take much time for your body to get fixed up. Actually it was already ready but you kept on sleeping like a Snorlax, which even tempted me to throw you out in wilderness and bless you for your future. But if I did that not only that girl will rip my head off that sly man will also create creepy accidents around me. Sigh, really...no superior treat their junior with respect and humility nowadays. Now, if I don't learn from them I will be hated as inconsiderate one, so my adorable 'junior', what do you feel when your senior gives you the work the moment you pack up for the day."
Grant was surprised at the source of the voice. His surprise was not due to the psychopathic words but it was placed onto the man's smile. He smiled like a kind uncle who just happens to encounter a young Lolita with a candy in his hand while going towards same direction with him just happening to bring a rope and knife at the back of his car. It was smile of a predator who knew that poor lamb can't escape from the fateful bloody jaw.
But who was Grant Walker. He is a man who not only survived a being in Vegetative State for a year but also faced a Super Powerful Stalker who even knew about his deepest secrets down to his vault of heaven...Ahem laptop. After meeting his own subconsciousness or whatever it actually was his mind has now accepted that nothing will go as per his own script. Atleast until he knows what is the real crux behind all these and change his plans accordingly.
Grant was really amused as of now. He smiled and said "If you ask me if you are sucked off like this by your Seniors then either they hate you or you are just incompetent to complete your work. Whether it is your lack of motivation or skill what is have to do with me. I don't even know you and you start pressuring me. I can only pray for your colleagues and friends for dealing with such a retard."
The man in question retracted his smile and replaced with a frown. He was pissed or atleast seemed pissed.
"Hmm. It seems that someone is not aware of his own lowly status. And more importantly it is also quite evident that morals and respect are now a alien terms for the Earthlings of now. I can already foresee their fall with such mindset of young people."
"That is not true, on Earth our elder taught us to give respect to those who deserve it, irrespective of their age, class, or sex. So if you want someone to respect you honestly, I recommend you to do acts accordingly."
As Grant said his counter in a calm tone. The man loosened his stiff expression before chuckling a bit. He ignored the strange look of eyes of his conversation partner as he walked towards the giant bed. With a snap of his fingers the bed transformed into a luxurious sofa. He sat on it and sunk into it. He hummed a little while adjusting his sitting position like a cat. Then he settled his crossed legs on a table which was transparent and appeared out of blue. It was as if the wind itself formed a table infront of him for his convenience.
Grant also witnessed this grandiose display of the strange man. The man beckoned him with his hand and once again snapped his fingers. A gust of wind formed a transparent chair infront of him.
With no choice Grant sat on it grudgingly. He believed that it would be uncomfortable to sit on the mass of air but his worries were blown into smithereens as it was as comfortable as a mother's embrace. It was warm and comfy enough to make him think of taking a nap. Alas, he was in a state of chaos to act upon these desire.
The man nodded and smiled sincerely for the first time. This time Grant could scrutinize him more clearly. The man was obviously in mid 30s but his temperament changed into a old wise man as soon as he chuckled. He was giving the vibes of a nice neighbor instead of a psychopath who feed on the insecurities of others.
But this was not the end of his character description, most weird fact that his left eye was covered with a silver eye-patch. His chin was pointy and sharp. The face was covered with all possible distinguished features of a handsome man. A well proportionate body, taller than Grant himself by a few inches. A lean figure which even while sitting on a sofa like a lazy cat was radiating a aura of Scholar, here being the case of a Lazy Scholar. He was wearing orange floral tshirts which were once trademark of a Earth's Island Country, sadly it was converted into a wasteland during the Holy War. With green army striped long shorts and loose sandals he was like a man coming from a hot beach. His handsome broad head was adorned by Platinum Blonde Hair and whole body was covered with a slightly tanned skin.
Grant was once again baffled by this change. But even then he kept on dreaming his return to his Man Cave where he was able to live as he liked. Actually, Grant consider himself as someone who was once on the path of successful Riajuu, who not only had a sexy girlfriend but also earned heaps of moolah from investing and his own private business, but as fate decreed, his health deteriorated and left only a empty vestige of his past brilliance. He lost his friends and even his family treated him as a outcast. Being a scion of wealthy Bayer Family and Powerful Walker Family of Citadel he could have been a young Billionaire.
His experience was not in vain. He got true epiphany of truth. At end of life the one most can depend on is one himself. He now considered himself as a Neo Otaku, he earn a handsome amount of money in form of dividends and splurge on his hobbies, most of which limited only to his closed room. But like all Introverts he hate when someone disturb him from his utopia.
With a renewed vigor to return back to his Holy Heaven. He contemplated all the possible routes and even if present is bleak and his future shrouded by clouds of obscurity he was filled with hope. Reason was the power of the man infront of him!
Even still, he don't want to lick his ass as his family, though disregarded him as a waste even after being self sufficient, taught him to keep his pride of a living being. Not arrogance but pride of what he is. So he waited for other party to speak first while trying his best to maintain his poker face.
Soon his payer was answered as the man spoke.
He smiled with honestly, like a true salesman or a more correctly like a devil.
"Mr. Grant Walker please pardon my rudeness. I let myself become a fool infront of him. But what could I have done about it. Our company has a policy to check the mental attitude of any prospective employee. And it has to scheduled impromptu after the interview. We would have staged a terrorist attack or even a kidnapping if we had enough time with us. But frankly you are someone who have a back pass. Not only we let you skip all formalities but even saved you from the clutches of death while offending a lot of powerful persons, both internally and externally.
And since, I hope that you understand this, every thing revolve around gains and be benefits we are not fool enough to poach a below average mortal as our new Combat Executive. There are lot of things revolving around you which you were not aware off but now I am giving you a opportunity to know them, and maybe, a chance to change them as per your will.
*Cough*
My name is Alex Morse, a Senior Executive at United Mercenary Corporation. We are one of the biggest corporation which deal with services of arms, logistics, and other consultations to our clients across the Omniverse. Our agents have glorious records of more than 100,000 successful request covering more than a Thousand Universes in existence. Even the place where we are speaking is not the Earth or even your home Universe. We are currently at the Level 3 Basement of Head Office of UMC, situated at the center of Star Light Metropolis in Undead Realm, which lies outside the periphery of any Universe; in Void.
And in capacity of UMC, I want to propose a Employment Contract which could be considered as a...proposal which is suited for both our parties."
The final sentence nailed Grant down to reality. His eyes not only regained clarity but also gained a spark of interest. He said while maintaining his poker face.
"Mr. Alex you have gotten all of my attention. I would also like a equal partnership but your side has not been credible as of late so I would like to first ascertain your eagerness. I could be considered as a shameless person but I am ignorant one here. So please appease me with the information which is most relevant for me.
I would like to know all of the possible information I could have before I reach any decision."
With underlying understanding between both party, both flashed a fake smile, eager to find who will obtain most of the benefits. Subconsciously sizing up each other as equal not as Master and Servant.