It was almost time for my shift to end, but I was also barely hanging on to the contents of my bladder by now. I quickly rose from my seat without arousing any suspicion, since spending time away from the desk was less than accepted by the higher-ups.
After squeezing my way through the endless rows of cubicles, I finally made it to the bathroom corridor. The small window letting the dim light from the evening sun outside shine through presented me with an absurd scene unfolding before my eyes.
There was a man standing in the alley below, dressed in a suit. He drew a sword from his back, slowly approaching a female figure clad in white silk floating above the ground directly in front of him, like something out of a horror movie. Her jet-black hair reached almost to the floor.
A swift and precise cut immediately had the woman's head tumble to the floor, the rest of her body slowly vanishing into thin air. It sounded like a pair of scissors cutting through silk, dampened by the window. Not even a scream.
What's happening? Is this murder? Should I be seeing this? I've barely slept the last few weeks, that must be it. I'm fine. This isn't even real.
Just as I left for the bathroom, the man stared through the window, directly into my eyes.
No. I'm screwed. Did this actually just happen? Will he kill me? No way. I'll just continue as if nothing happened. Did he see my face?
I hurried into the bathroom stall and locked the door behind me. Twice, for reassurance. Would he kill me? He had a sword, so that wouldn't be entirely off the table. I quickly finished and hurried back to my desk. Even if he had seen me, there's no way he could find me in the ocean of faceless husks just like me tied to the endless cubicles placed throughout the entire building.
The next hour before shift-end, I glanced over at the elevator every ten to twenty seconds, twitching at every single noise coming remotely from the direction of the doors. I brushed off every attempt at communication from my coworkers to fully focus on what would happen next. But nothing happened. Nobody came through, not even another employee.
Every click of my mouse and tap on my keyboard, I briefly interrupted to scan my surroundings. I really did imagine what just transpired down there, otherwise someone would have probably already taken me in for questioning.
Suddenly, the elevator doors opened, and someone stepped out. A man wearing sunglasses indoors, wearing a suit exited from inside.
This is it; my life is over. And there's still so much I want to do.
He inched closer and closer towards my cubicle. Barely two meters were between me and him, as he continued walking without the intention to stop. He passed my cubicle, just confused by the amount of sweat rolling down my face, and my terrified expression. Then he disappeared into a room nearby. It wasn't him, after all.
The last few minutes of my shift went by without any interruption. But who was that man, and why did he stare at me so intently? It had been more than an hour, and I still couldn't get it out of my head, even if it just was my mind playing tricks on me like at home. This wasn't even the first time something like this happened.
Back in the village, my parents would constantly call me crazy whenever I brought up some weird thing passing by, no matter how scared I was from seeing it. My imagination was always quite elaborate, I suppose.
My shift had finally ended, and I hastily entered the elevator to leave without any overtime for once, with a weekend all for myself.
Maybe I'll even call home. No, they'd just nag me for info about my imaginary boyfriend of three years they have never seen before. Asking for us to visit back home for once, when he's not busy overseas. I doubt they even still believe it.
The doors closed slowly, with barely anyone else leaving on time, like usual on a Friday.
After an agonizing ride in possibly the slowest elevator in history, my worries about that man were all but forgotten. I turned the corner toward the exit and said goodbye to the receptionist, fulfilling my daily routine. As I opened the door and tried to leave for the subway, however, I was dragged to the side.
"Hey, you. You saw it, didn't you? You know what I'm talking about, right?" He stared directly into my eyes, his right hand clenched around the hilt on his back.
"What? Let me go! I'll scream otherwise." I retorted.
"Fine. But don't even think about walking away, lady. Tell me, did you see it, or not? I know you saw me, but did you see her?"
What am I supposed to do? Is this a test of sorts? A prank? He can't be serious, right? Nobody ever is when they ask about that stuff. Best to feign ignorance
"What are you talking about? Who even are you, anyway? I didn't see anything back there, except for you."
"Oh yeah, then why are you shivering right now? Scared? If you couldn't see it, there'd be no reason to be. So, why are you lying? Got something to hide, little lady?"
"And what if I saw something? Would that be bad? Why do you want to know? I really need to get home, my boyfriend's waiting for me, I'm supposed to be cooking today."
"Your boyfriend, huh? Sure, if that's what you call it. But don't you prefer not disappointing your parents? How about it? Would you like an actually good job? One your parents aren't ashamed to talk about to you? You look like you need it. At least you already have the lying part down, so you're pretty much a perfect fit."
How does he? They didn't even say that to me, so how would he know they're disappointed? Has this man been spying on me or something? Who is he?
"One last time, sir. Who are you?"
"I'll tell you, if that makes you consider my offer. I'm Special Agent Xu Guoquiang, of the People's Spiritual Liberation Army. I'm sure that doesn't clear up any confusion, does it?" He pulled out a badge I couldn't recognize, with a dragon emerging from within the Tiananmen in its center, swallowing the five golden stars above.
People's Spiritual Liberation Army? Am I being enlisted or something? What is that?
"That… Doesn't help me at all. What is that job, anyway? And how do you just… know?"
"Knowing is my job, sweetie. Just like offering this one to you. And a few other things, but those aren't important. I requested a full briefing about you when I first glanced at your terrified eyes back there. Every single call you ever made, even most of your search history. I know it all."
Is he actually threatening me now?
My shoulders tensed up slightly, ready to throw anything I could against him to run away.
"I also know where you live, of course," he just left that statement hanging in the air for a moment.
"Are you threatening me now?"
Maybe this is my last chance to get away.
"No, of course not. I just wanted to let you know that running would be futile. To spare you the effort. And I didn't mean that in a predatory way, anyway. I know what you don't want your parents to know, and I'm not interested in the first place."
"What? I'm not going with you, if that's where you're trying to go with this."
"You kind of have to, though. I'm also on the clock, you know? And my "boyfriend" isn't waiting for me to cook dinner, rather it's my supervisor needing an urgent report on potential new-hires, and he's not nice to deal with. So please just comply? I really don't see any need to apply unnecessary force to this already tense situation."
I slowly turned away, only to be stopped by the sound of him drawing his blade and pointing it at me.
"Listen, you really have to follow me. You don't get a say in this right now, at least not until you're properly evaluated. Then, you can just leave if you want to. So, don't make this any harder than it already is, alright? I'm just doing my job. If you would please follow me to the car now, I'd be more than grateful to help you."
Reluctantly, and coerced by the sharpness of his sword, I followed him to the car, and got into the passenger's seat.
He slammed his door shut, immediately pressing on the gas pedal before I even managed to reach for my seat belt.
"So, any questions? You did see her, right?" he immediately continued the conversation, paying no attention to the blaring sirens behind him, even accelerating further.
So what I saw was actually real? He's not lying or anything? Then why is he engaging in a police chase? Isn't he also law enforcement adjacent then?
"Why aren't you stopping? And who was that woman you killed?"
"We're obviously in a hurry, so a bit of speeding is more than necessary. They should calm down any moment, when the order gets in." Just as he finished his sentence, the sirens actually subsided.
"See? I'm kind of important, which they should have realized by checking the plate number. Now, about that woman you saw me "kill", it's not what it looked like, really."
He clasped his hands tighter around the steering wheel, almost as if he was actively participating in a competitive race, while still pushing the pedal to the floor. I was pressed against the seat, as the force quickly set in. The entire lane ahead had been miraculously cleared.
"Actually, what you saw was a spiritual entity of a low threat-level, something you'd know as a ghost. A Nu Gui, to be more specific, but that's irrelevant to what happened."
A what? So ghosts actually exist? He can't be serious. And why can't he at least slow down a bit?
I grabbed onto the handle above the window tightly, more terrified by his driving than the revelation of ghosts existing.
"When I was little, I saw a lot of weird things that could have come straight out of fairytales and folklore. Some even talked to me, but nobody in the village believed me. And they're actually real, not a figment of my imagination?"
"Yes, they are. They come from the spirit realm, which is an entirely different can of worms to get into, so just hold on to that thought for now. You'll understand soon enough."
My mind began racing. All this time, those creatures passing through the village were actually real. Some actually held conversation with me, and didn't seem too harmful. Sure, my parents called me insane whenever I mentioned them, and the local priest questioned me intensely every time I mentioned seeing them, but they never explicitly said they were real.
How, even? This is just pure insanity. All of those things, they were actually real? The only thing that kept me sane was the thought that they weren't. I touched some of them. Most looked incredibly terrifying, too. Sure, they never did me any harm, but looking back, I really should have been more scared. Their visages are still burnt into my eyes even now.
"We're almost there, so hold on tight now," Agent Xu yelled, barely sounding over the growling motor, as he reached for the handbrake.
I thought he's a government agent, not a racer? A drift, really? I'm not prepared for this. I'm gonna barf. Oh no, please just no.
Before I could object, however, he already pulled it. I was pressed against the door, while he smiled at me with pure joy. I must have looked miserable, since he turned away immediately after, focusing on driving again.
My dinner almost came spilling out of my mouth as he made the turn, but I managed to keep it in, even if just barely. He actually enjoyed it a bit too much to excuse him for not knowing about my car-sickness. He probably knew, just like he knew about that.
The car came to an immediate stop while I was still recollecting myself from his drifting, and he told me to get out. We stopped on the parking lot of a generic office building, the logo he showed me firmly attached above the entrance, glistening in the last rays of the setting evening sun.
"Here we are. At local HQ. Please follow me, and you'll be processed shortly."
As soon as he opened the door, I couldn't hold it in any longer. I threw up, almost hitting his perfectly polished black boots.
He burst out in laughter, as he began pulling me out of the car, planting my arm over his shoulder for support.
"You're an interesting one. This'll be fun, for me."