In the heart of a bustling city, a mysterious red door suddenly appeared, floating above the river.

Oddly enough, no one seemed to notice the door. Couples continued strolling merrily along the river bank, holding hands and chuckling as they went. Kids ran about, shouting loudly as if they were fighting an epic battle. Dragon flies darted through the blooming bushes, firing tiny tongues of flame and adding an extra touch of life to the colourful spring atmosphere.

Faceless sat still on a bench by the river. While people still took care to step around him, no one seemed to really acknowledge his presence. His very stillness seemed to make him part of the scenic afternoon backdrop, detached from the rest of humanity.

The blazing afternoon sun soon eased into a warm evening's glow. Except for the occasional dab with his handkerchief, Faceless didn't really do much, nor did anyone approach him.

Before long, the warm hues of the evening glow gave way to an enveloping pitch darkness. No one else was left in the park except for Faceless and a drunk straggler.

Faceless took out an ornate golden pocket watch. It's not like he was unaware of the time; rather, he enjoyed the satisfying clasp it produced whenever he closed the cover.

Faceless stood up and walked towards the riverbank. As if on cue, the red door gently glided towards him, before flinging open by itself.

He paused slightly at the swirling, dark fog within the doorframe. Before stepping into the portal, he tipped his hat towards the wide-eye drunkard and stepped in. The door shut itself with a resounding thud, followed by the distinct sound of a lock clicking into place. The entire structure soon sank silently into the river, leaving no signs of its presence.

The drunkard rubbed his eyes. However, his sense of astonishment was quickly replaced by the need to puke, whatever he saw now barely an afterthought.

* * *

There was nothing around Faceless except for black, wispy tendrils of fog. He soon heard the brisk, heavy steps of someone walking towards him.

"Sire," Faceless quickly bowed.

"Faceless," a portly yet affable man greeted him cheerily. "It's been a while. How's business?"

"I apologise Boss," the Faceless replied, "but I was unable to retrieve the phoorumph."

"Tsk tsk tsk, what happened?" Despite Boss' cheery tone, Faceless felt chills ran down his spine.

"I faced... significant resistance," Faceless sighed. "The new guardian of the phoorumph is much more powerful than we thought."

"Hmm.... it seems like we need to discuss this in detail," the Boss rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Let's talk this over a ride, shall we?"

"That is... unnecessary," Faceless replied nervously. "I am fine discussing it out there."

"Tut tut, you need to learn how to be more approachable, young man," the Boss tutted. "Not every boss takes time out to individually socialise with their employees."

The man waved his hands in the fog. Moments later, a gleaming black taxi appeared. The passenger doors creakily opened by themselves.

Despite his reluctance, Faceless knew an order when he received one. As he stepped into the taxi, he was greeted by the sound of distorted, scratchy music punctuated by intermittent static gaps from the radio.

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The Boss stepped in from the driver's side, his weight rocking the car a little. "Carl's please," he said.

There was no one in the driver seat except for a blob of inky mess. The car drove ahead into the black fog.

"So, what happened," asked the Boss.

As Faceless recounted his previous excursion, he couldn't help but hear the occasional tap from outside the window. Distracted, he turned around in annoyance. However, Boss quickly snapped his fingers and shook his head.

"Best not to look," Boss said with a slight smile. "Curiosity kills the cat."

Faceless nodded. He instinctively knew that whatever outside was definitely not benign, however he couldn't help but feel like some force was compelling him to glance out of the window.

"I should arrange for you to visit this place more often. It's a good place for mental training," Boss said as he took out a cigarette and lighter. Unfortunately, the lighter's flame was constantly snuffed out.

"Damn these indoor 'no-smoking' rules," Boss muttered as he put them back in his pockets. "It's not like a little bit of smoke matters, given the amount of fog outside."

Despite the driver being just an inky blob, Faceless got the distinct feeling that the blob rolled its non-existent eyes at Boss' snarky comments.

"Anyway, that is quite the individual you met," Boss remarked. "Did you said he wielded a flaming trident?"

Faceless nodded. "Yes, I believe he called it the Flaming Trident of Eternal Magma."

Boss stared blankly at Faceless before bursting out in laughter. Faceless tilted his head in confusion.

"Did I say something wrong?" Faceless asked.

"No, hahahahahaha, that was well played, hehe," Boss wiped the tears from his eyes.

"What do you mean?" Faceless asked in confusion.

"The 'Flaming Trident of Eternal Magma' can only create one small lava fountain at its peak," Boss said after calming down. "It's basically just a glorified metal prong."

Huh?! "With all due respect Boss, what I saw was not just one small lava fountain. It was much more powerful and dangerous," Faceless insisted. "He even used it to undo the Lady's magic." Faceless shuddered at the recollection.

"You should be grateful that all he did was throw you out of his house," Boss remarked. "Not everyone survives after coming face-to-face with the Immortal, after all."

"That.. he.. he was THE IMMORTAL?" Faceless exclaimed.

"You really need to do your homework next time," Boss glanced sideways at Faceless. "Thankfully you are wise enough to not threaten him after being beaten up. Our last run-in with him nearly wiped out the Organisation and literally created a new lake in the countryside."

Faceless' face paled. He was not sure whether he was more frustrated for being tricked by a gimmicky trident, or grateful for being spared by a walking catastrophe.

"Should we... continue pursuing the phoorumph?" Faceless asked after several moments of silence.

"This is a difficult conundrum indeed," Boss sighed and laid back in his seat. "On one hand, we have been paid very handsomely by our client. While I am certainly planning to dupe and stab his fat back, it is still too early for us to do so."

"On the other hand," Boss put his fingertips together, "we are dealing with one of the most powerful beings in the world who single-handedly forced world peace on everyone just by being alive."

Faceless remained silent as Boss continued thinking.

"Well, what do you think?" Boss raised his eyebrow and looked at Faceless.

"I think we should consider dropping it," Faceless replied a moment's of hesitation. "Or perhaps send someone who is strong enough to negotiate with him?"

"The thing is, I'm not sure exactly who to send. I definitely can't go as he explicitly promised to vaporised me if I so much as come within his eyesight." Boss remarked ruefully. "We can try sending someone strong enough to at least survive a few of his punches, but I guarantee those proud idiots will come back in an urn, if we are lucky."

"However, you're in a unique position to do something about this." Boss grinned at Faceless. "You're witty enough to come back alive relatively intact, all you need is some power-ups and we're good."

Faceless stared at Boss. "I don't think that is a good idea."

"Oh ye of little faith, just think of this as a huge project for an upcoming career promotion." Boss patted Faceless' shoulder. "What's the worst that could happen? Death?"

"...Yes?"

Boss chuckled. Before he could reply to Faceless, their driver hoarsely interjected.

"We're here."

Faceless looked out. All he could see in the fog was some distant blinking neon lights.

"Thank you," Boss said. "I don't suppose you could drop us out front, can you?"

He chuckled when he did not receive any reply. Tossing a glowing silver coin to the driver, he opened the door and stepped outside, gesturing Faceless to do the same. The taxi immediately drove off and vanished into the fog.

"Perfect timing," Boss said as he stretched his back. "Let's see if the Lady is kind enough to offer us some whiskey."

Faceless sighed. While he was enthusiastic about leaving the taxi, he was not sure if having a drink in this dimension is a good idea.