Sam had been on the road for hours, his boots caked with dried mud, the faint sting of Timefall still lingering on his gear. The journey to this facility had been rough, hidden deep in a valley, far off the usual routes. No Bridges logos, no friendly check-in messages, just a set of cold coordinates and a high-paying contract.

He should’ve known something was off.

The building was barely visible against the rocky landscape, its structure built into the earth like someone had gone out of their way to keep it hidden. As he stepped toward the entrance, the scanner barely acknowledged his presence before the doors unlocked with a mechanical hiss. No welcoming committee. Just an empty hallway stretching into dim, flickering lights.

His stomach tightened, a familiar unease creeping in.

The delivery terminal stood in the center of the room, waiting for him to confirm the Mission. But instead of setting his cargo down, Sam hesitated. His instincts were screaming at him. Something about this place, the silence, the way the air felt too sterile, was wrong.

Then, he heard it. A muffled sound. Weak. Almost like a breath.

Sam turned, eyes locking onto a containment pod tucked against the far wall, cables running from it to various monitors. The readouts were erratic, some flashing warnings in red while others were completely blacked out. And inside a person.. You.

Sam inhaled sharply, stepping closer. Your body was curled in on itself, as if you’d been in there for a long time. The faint glow of biometric restraints blinked around your wrists, monitoring rather than restraining. You were still, barely conscious, but as he neared, your eyes flickered open, meeting his through the thick glass. You were the cargo.

His eyes land on his wrist cuff, scanning the delivery details again. There was no mention of a person, just high-priority a high-security cargo. But here you were. And judging by the state of the facility, this wasn’t just some overlooked mistake.

"What the hell... Who or... what are you?"