#solo plot

It was another restless night of tossing and turning and trying to clear his head. Nights like these frustrated Marcus, as he had always been so peaceful and calm in his old life. But he wouldn’t have to suffer for much longer. Marcus had finally figured out what had happened to his pelt. For anyone to find any value in it beyond just selling it on the black market, they would have to be another selkie. And since the trail ran cold here in Wicked’s Rest, that meant that the culprit was likely hiding out somewhere here in town. Since they were a fellow selkie, they would likely have to transform every few nights or so to keep from feeling the sting of withdrawal symptoms. When they did, Marcus would be ready. 

Marcus had devised a plan to catch his thief in the act. A series of cameras set up along the shoreline, pretty much anywhere he could find to set one up inconspicuously. If this person came too close to shore, Marcus would have it on camera. Granted, they would be in seal form, so it wasn’t like Marcus could ID the person through sight alone. However, his plan was not to figure it out just by looking at the cameras. 

After setting up his surveillance system, Marcus returned home to have what would probably be the most restful night of sleep he had had in a very long time. For the past couple of months he had been tortured with insomnia, exhaustion, fatigue, decreasing strength, irritability, and an inability to focus. Suffice to say, he hadn’t been himself for a while, and he was desperate to become who he once was yet again. Of course, he couldn’t completely reclaim his old life. As far as the U.S Military was concerned, he was still MIA presumed dead. They wouldn’t exactly be thrilled to hear he had been living a quiet light keeping life in a small coastal town not too far from his supposed disappearance. He didn’t figure they would accept the “I’m a magical creature who needs a magic seal skin to stay alive” defense.

Still, Marcus couldn’t help but miss his old life. He was very well respected and decorated, working his way up the chain of command to an officer’s position. Had he not abandoned ship, he was on his way to promotions that would see him set for life. He also missed his parents dearly. He knew that they knew he hadn’t actually drowned and was okay, but not being able to speak with them for fear of the military tracking him down broke him a little bit more with each passing day. He had always been close with his parents and used to talk to them daily. 

Then there was the love of his life. William. They had met each other on the ship he was stationed at and had been carrying on a relationship in secret for the past 6 months. At first, it was all about sex, just as most relationships on board were. But over time, it had blossomed into something much more. He had hoped that they would be able to start a quiet life together once William’s tour was up and they were no longer serving on the same ship. While the military had gotten better and more tolerant over time, it was still very dangerous to be completely out on board the ship. Some of those men would absolutely still kill a fellow soldier just for being gay. 

A few days went by without a trace, and Marcus was beginning to lose hope. Maybe the thief had run away to a different town with his pelt after all. Maybe he had been wasting precious time in this town when for all he knew his pelt could be all the way up in Nova Scotia or even Greenland by now. The insomnia returned, the irritability, fear, and hopelessness came soon after. Marcus didn’t want to die. Even more so, he didn’t want to lose himself before dying. 

At last the dawn broke after another restless night, and Marcus groggily got up to check his cameras, as was his ritual for the past week or so. There had to be something, they had to have slipped up some time. Marcus saw the usual marine life splashing along happily in the early morning sun. How he wished he could be as carefree as they were again. He had his own memories of doing just as they were doing right now, without a concern of danger or death plaguing his mind. 

Suddenly, something caught his eye. Something fast, and something big. Not a whale, or even a shark for that matter. Something human shaped, but more rounded and without definitive legs. Holy shit, he couldn’t help but think to himself. This was exactly what he was waiting for. He made note of where this person was at, and where they were last seen on the camera. He made a beeline for that exact spot in the water, summoning as much strength as he could just to run and dive into the water. 

He couldn’t believe it. The scent was still there. The pelt. His pelt. It was faint, but still left him with a very clear path. Oddly enough, it didn’t lead anywhere in town. Well, he thought to himself, that would explain why I hadn’t caught the scent before. Instead, the scent went even further into the ocean. Whoever had his pelt, they made it a point to stay relatively off the grid. A smart move, all things considered. 

His legs were beginning to feel heavy and he once again cursed his misfortune. In his prime he would be cutting through these waters with no difficulty at all. Now, however, each stroke and kick was a fight for his life. But still, he pressed on. His military training gave him the endurance and discipline to persevere even when all of his limbs felt as if they were on fire and ready to fall off of his body. This was about survival. Finally, he made landfall at a small island and pitifully crawled his way onto the shoreline. He was exhausted, panting for air, and felt as if every bone in his body was made of lead. 

He attempted to stand but collapsed back down, laying on his back and looking up at the morning sun. The sky above him began to spin and his vision began to go white before he heard a familiar voice. “Really now, Marcus, I’m disappointed. It took you this long and you couldn’t even give me a call or text in that time?”

ㅤ  The scene before him didn’t look like the corridor he had walked through earlier. All his eyes could see now were wooden floors, walls, and furniture in earthy colour dominating the place. Like he just stepped into someone’s house. A small, warm and cosy room. A cabin? He looked around, trying to make sure that he wasn’t losing his sanity.

ㅤ  Yet, everything seemed real.

ㅤ  This must be a glitch, he was certain. A severe one.

ㅤ  He glanced at his wristwatch once again. And to his surprise, the date showed something odd: 2030. His eyes widened in an instant. “뭐야!”

ㅤ  Without any more thoughts, he turned around and reached for the handle of the door where he came out⸻or in?⸻earlier.

ㅤ  If this place was a glitch, the restroom would still be the same, no? Or... Would it change into the 2030 version as well?

ㅤ  There was only one way to find out, and he didn’t have any intention to waste anymore time.

ㅤ  As he turned the door handle and opened it, however, a landscape of dense forest shattered his hope into pieces. Green and shady, but the man wasn’t ready.

ㅤ  His jaw dropped, both in disappointment and awe. One side, he was dejected that the restroom vanished, which likely prevented him from fixing the glitch. And also confirmed the fact that he was lost in time and space. But on the other side, the greenish land seemed like something that could soothe his mind after dealing with codes for God knows how long.

ㅤ  He slipped a hand into the pocket of his coal-coloured cargo pants, reaching for his phone to, at least, fix the glitch through it. But, damn! It was nowhere to be found. He checked the other pockets, still nothing.

ㅤ  “Oi, Taehyung!” He heard a deep voice of a female calling out his name.

ㅤ  He looked up at the source and found a familiar face walking towards him. A bright smile rose upon the Korean man’s face. As if he was beyond glad to see the person. “Ah! Jiwoo ya!”

ㅤ  “What are you still doing here? It’s time to go!” The female looked at him from head toe, giving a slight gaze of⸻what was that? A judgement? over his appearance. “Where’s your sword?”

ㅤ  He raised a brow, returning the gaze she was giving him once he realised that she didn’t look the way she usually does as well.

ㅤ  “What sword? Why are you in this...?” He tried to touch the steel plates on her shoulder⸻which could also be seen on her knees, elbows and chest; like a complete suit of an early European mediaeval knight’s armour⸻but she dodged and took out a sword at him, instead.

ㅤ  “Whoa, whoa, whoa, chill!” He raised both hands without moving anything else even for an inch. Having a shining eye of a blade facing his chin was definitely something he didn’t love having.

ㅤ  “Tsk, why are you so scared? Did you hit your head or something?” She pulled her sword back into its scabbard and he blew out a relieved sigh.

ㅤ  “No? Why, why? Am I not allowed to be scared? Is that a toy? Go, where? Are we going to a Comic Con?” He questioned.

ㅤ  “Aish.. Too many questions. Hurry!! We don’t want anyone else to get the prize—our prize.” Her hiss and irritated tone was not something different, afterall. But what’s with the costume? She pushed him into the cabin until he got back inside.

ㅤ  “What prize?” He asked whilst looking around. Unconsciously, his feet brought him to the wooden cupboard at the corner of the room. He opened it and found a similar armoured costume and a chest stood next to it. This must be it, he thought and took them.

ㅤ  “Did you really hit your head?” The friend called Jiwoo waited outside the cabin, leaning her back on the wooden wall near the door. “Don’t tell me you forgot that we have a competition to win today? Million grands and we can stop sniffing around to blackmail those corrupt asses.”

ㅤ  Whilst he put on the armour and felt cool in it, her words somehow pulled him back to reality. A reality where a glitch was currently occurring.

ㅤ  Is this glitch foreseeing the future? Is he becoming a criminal in 2030? Again? After Coda saved him? Or…

ㅤ  “Like a vigilante?” He tilted his head, opening the chest that consisted of a longsword in a beautifully carved scabbard.

ㅤ  Like a love at a first sight, he instantly fell for the aesthetic-looking weapon. Carefully taking it, he held the handle that fits right in his grip as if it was perfectly made for him. He then pulled the grip, revealing the shimmering eyes of the double-edged weapon. And it was enough to prove that the weapon was real.

ㅤ  “Whatever you call it. Come on, let’s go now!” The female straightened her stance and peeked into the cabin meanwhile Taehyung saved the sword and connected the scabbard to the leather belt.

ㅤ  Like a mediaeval knight, he looked ready to fight. A big grin bloomed upon his countenance, washing away the previously awful face he stared at in the mirror. And he did feel cool in it. Too cool that he forgot he has no skill in swordsmanship.

ㅤ  The two began to walk away from the cabin, Taehyung letting Jiwoo lead the way because simply, he had no idea where they were going.

ㅤ  However, something else bothered his mind. Something about the glitch that seemed odd. Odder than usual, somehow. For the first time.

ㅤ  Was this really just a glitch? Why did it affect the environment? Would 2030 really look like this? Why did it look nothing like the future? Wasn't the future supposed to be more... futuristic? How was he supposed to fix the glitch without his phone? Or his weapon⸻the keyboard?

ㅤ  The train of questions kept extending until one realisation of possibilities hit his head.

ㅤ  What if... This wasn’t a mere glitch but a merging? Doesn’t that mean…

ㅤ  “Welcome back to the playground!” Cheered Jiwoo once they stopped in front of an amphitheatre.

ㅤ  Taehyung was speechless. Either from amazement of the big, ancient-looking area before him, or the thought that this could be a parallel world where... an actual living ‘him’ also existed. Which was also an indication that..

ㅤ  “Come on, we’re late already!” Jiwoo walked ahead, into the place where people could be seen sitting and cheering around the open-arena. And in the middle, he could see four people standing with their swords, facing against each other.

ㅤ  “Wait,” He tried to process the exploding realisations and theories inside his mind before running after his friend. “Wait, Jiwoo ya! Hold up!”

ㅤ  “Are we going to fight?” He spilled the tea once he caught up to her. Walking through the audiences, she took an empty seat at the front.

ㅤ  Jiwoo looked at him, confused. “Are you okay? You really did hit your head, didn’t you? Why are you so... Scared?”

ㅤ  “I... N-no? I mean—” The man couldn’t help but stutter. A tiny part of his pride didn’t want to be titled scaredy cat. And somehow, his tongue just tangled, feeling like he couldn’t explain anything to her.

ㅤ  “We’ll win, don’t worry! You’re the one who taught me everything.”

ㅤ  “I did?” He tilted his head in question, but the corner of his lips curved into a proud smirk. How could he not? Thinking that this world’s Kim Taehyung is such a cool guy, did boost his confidence. To the point he proudly thought every Kim Taehyung in every universe must be a cool guy. But this wasn’t the case. Not for now. “I mean, of course I did. But what if I’m not me? I mean, you know, I think I need some practice. Why don’t you remind me by showing me how I taught you?”

ㅤ  As mad as it sounded, he felt like having a crisis of identity. A part of him knew fully well that he has no actual experience on holding a sword properly. Let alone, fight. But at the same time, he could feel strong adrenaline in his veins, one that called for adventure. As if the crowd lifted his spirit. Something a homebody like him could barely feel. It almost felt like his feelings weren't his own. Was he connected to his counterpart?

ㅤ  “Tsk, stop your nonsense! It’s just nervousness talking.” She said at the same time the current fight found its winner. “Our turn!”

ㅤ  And the next moment, Taehyung and Jiwoo stood in the centre of the amphitheatre, facing another pair of mixed-gender fighters, who looked pretty fierce and feisty. Sharp gazes exchanged, as if they were all ready to kill or be killed. Except Taehyung, of course.

ㅤ  His sweaty palm gripped his sword handle pretty tightly, Adam’s apple moved slowly as he nervously swallowed his own saliva. The man in front of him was surely bigger than him. Almost as muscular as the big men from Coda who ran after him and recruited him, if you remember. Except for the height, his opponent was rather shorter than him. But, wouldn’t that be an advantage for that guy? He thought. But who knows? He never went into an actual fight⸺an actual mediaeval combat like this, except for video games. Should he play like in the games? Yet games are easier. This… this felt like he was going to jump into a plain suicide.

ㅤ  The referee raised a flag and shouted, “Start!” before throwing the flag.

ㅤ  Loud clang quickly exploded as Jiwoo’s sword hit the other’s weapon, startling Taehyung for a second as he glanced at her. But from the tail of his eye, he caught the other guy coming closer from the front, which caused Taehyung to turn his head and step aside to avoid the sharp point of the weapon.

ㅤ  “Phew~” He heaved a sigh of relief at his swift action. But that didn’t stop there.

ㅤ  The male opponent swung his sword at Taehyung and his hand reflexively moved his long sword to block the attack. One clang, two clangs. The sound of steel edges hitting against each other collided with the boisterous cheers from the audience. And as if he could feel the rhythm, Taehyung danced along like a pro. Doing attack and defence now and then. Either it was his actual self or not, he had no idea. At least, he could avoid getting killed.

ㅤ  Until a sharp eye of the blade sped off from the right, leaving a light cut on his outer palm of his right hand and causing him to lose balance on his grip. His sword fell on the sandy ground, and he felt a kick on the back of his knee, which caused him to follow his sword. He dropped down on his knees and a sharp-edged weapon suddenly appeared before him, pointing to his chin for the second time today.

ㅤ  “Taehyung!” Jiwoo shouted once realising her partner’s situation.

ㅤ  Truth be told, she was so close to finishing her rival as the other female was lying on the ground, holding her bleeding left arm. Yet, she stopped when seeing her fussy partner in crime was down.

ㅤ  “Any last word?” Asked the bulky man with a smirk.

ㅤ  Panting Taehyung could only hold his breath, trying to keep the gap between the blade and his skin. The loud cheers toned down as if anticipating the final moment before exploding into joyful cheers. He closed his eyes, slightly surrendering and hoping that the other wouldn’t kill him once and for all.

ㅤ  Just as blackness wrapped his sight, flashes of memories popped up in his mind. Memories he didn’t remember having. A scene where he pointed a sword at Jiwoo, just like his current situation, and demonstrated a move or two to counter the situation. He opened his eyes.

ㅤ  As if his dark orbs were having a silent conversation with Jiwoo, who was standing far to the left, he gulped and said. “Sorry.”

ㅤ  His opponent chuckled, “Sorry?”

ㅤ  “Yes. Sorry for this!” He pushed his upper body backward to avoid the sharp sword and moved to the left, while he kicked the other man’s hand to drop his weapon. And on the other hand, Jiwoo threw her sword to him and he caught it like a ninja. He then stepped forward, grip tight on the handle while pushing his contender with his other arm to the point he fell onto the ground. He restrained the bulky man from moving by pressing his arm on him with all his might. He could just stab the other on the heart, but he held back. Instead, he pierced the sharp sword on the sandy ground.

ㅤ  And on the other side, Jiwoo simply finished her job by kicking off her rival’s weapon.

ㅤ  “Five… Four… Three… Two…” The referee once again raised his flag before waving it high in the air. “One. ”

ㅤ  The cheers exploded once again. While Taehyung stayed still, catching a breath, the referee took Jiwoo’s hand by the wrist and then his, before lifting both hands high as an indication of their winner. The crowd suddenly came to the centre, as if trying to celebrate together with the new winners. They swarmed them with cheers and splashes of alcohol.

ㅤ  However, in the midst of joy and pride of his action, Taehyung heard something strange out of the blue. A familiar voice that sounded too real to his ears. It called out Jiwoo’s name a couple times. And by that he jolted in realisation that the voice sounded like him, which means... Oh, sheesh! He cursed, registering the fact that his counterpart might be around. And hell, he didn’t want to bump into him and make things worse. He still needed to fix this glitch… merging… or whatever it was, didn’t he?

ㅤ  Slipping through the crowd while removing his armours, he ran away from the scene as quietly and fast as he could. Leaving the one-time wonderful experience behind.

ㅤ  In his small, locked room, he moved as swiftly as he could. Grabbing his smartphone, charger, a black-coloured hard drive along with its tangled cable and a wallet from the bedside, he put them into his dull backpack. Whilst he heard his male flatmate trying to question the sudden visit, he glanced at his notebook screen. Almost. He hissed silently. A sight of a navy-coloured cap on the bed urged his impulse to take it and wear it amidst his impatient waiting. And as soon as the system reached the finish line, he snatched the plugged USB stick and closed his device before throwing them into his bag as well.

ㅤ  While there was a one-way conversation outside his room, it sounded like his chatty friend couldn’t stop the visitors from coming to his room as he heard firm footsteps were getting closer and closer, revving up his nervous system. Fight or flight, they say. And he chose to flee, for sure.

ㅤ  With a backpack zipped and clung onto his back, he opened the not-so-high window, which he thought was also big enough for his body. A dark view of the late evening greeted the millennial guy. He could feel the breeze saying hello to his bare skin. Inhaling the fresh air, hoping that it could calm him even for a second. It did, somehow. But the brusque turns of his room’s door handle spurred his racing adrenaline once again. He reflexively climbed onto the windowsill, took one last glance at his room where he spent most of his time every other day. Eagle eyes scanning the surroundings, in case he left any crucial evidence behind.

ㅤ  However, before he could catch anything, his door was smashed open. Revealing two big men in black suits. And by big, he meant tall and muscular, a Dwayne Johnson-type of build. And he couldn’t help but swallow his own saliva at the view. Even though his throat still felt dry.

ㅤ  “Mr. Kim⸺”

ㅤ  Before one of those guys could finish his sentence, the young man jumped out of the window.

ㅤ  A powerful thud became his instant regret as he roughly landed on his right side. A grimace rose up from his face as a tingling sensation crawled upon him. Lucky enough, he only lived in a low-rise building, and his room was only on the second floor. Couldn’t imagine if he lived in a high-rise building, he might just end up dead right away. Shoving off his scary thoughts, he glanced back at his way out, catching one of the big men sticking his head out the window and shouting, “Mr. Kim, stop!”

ㅤ  That only prompted the guy called ‘Mr. Kim’ to curse under his breath and in no time, he stood up and began to run away from the scene. While on the other hand, the big men were sure not done with him. One of them tried to follow his jumping-out-of-the-window act, while the other rushed to get out of the building through the proper way.

ㅤ  Wide stride and flash pace, he ran through small alleys, trying to avoid those big fellows. Better yet, to lose them, whom he believed to be officers. He didn’t want to get caught. Moreover, getting handcuffed and being put behind bars sounded like a nightmare to him. He definitely didn’t want that.

ㅤ  And if you wonder why those guys were after him, let’s track back to a few hours earlier!

ㅤ  It was a quiet Sunday evening when he decided to hack into the database of an official institution⸺police department, to be precise⸺for his own little game and gain. Call him a criminal, but he needed some money for a living. And the self-taught programmer managed to get a little trick to download some classified data for… whatever shady business he’d do. But one push of a button and a tiny mistake made his breach to the system detectable. From there he knew, the officials would find him sooner or later. He just didn’t expect it would be this soon, within an hour.

ㅤ  As he ran out of breath and his feet started to give up, someone jumped on him from the left side, causing him to drop down on the cold ground. Also adding subtle scratches on his right arm for the second time.

ㅤ  “죄송합니다! I’m sorry! I didn’t do anything bad. It was a mistake. I didn’t mean to do it, really.” He shut his eyes, palms covering his head to protect his precious head from getting beaten or worse. And like a rapper spitting out rhymes, he blurted out any excuses and reasons why they shouldn’t catch him and throw him into prison.

ㅤ  However, there wasn’t any reaction from his opponents. No words, no kicks. As if the icy wind had frozen the big fellows. Yet, he was certain that they were still standing beside him. Is he dead? Is it hallucination? Does he get sucked into hell for his sins already? Why doesn’t he feel anything? Those thoughts floated in his head until he heard a low-sounding cough.

ㅤ  He raised an eyebrow, slowly opening one of his eyes to check the actual situation. And to his surprise, one of the big men extended his arm to help him up. Both of his eyes immediately wide open, staring at the hand before him for a moment, then at the stranger. He blinked his eyes a couple times, unable to believe what he was seeing. Didn’t he push the officers’ buttons? Why was he trying to help him? Was it a trap? There was a slight hesitation, but not as much as his bewilderment.

ㅤ  “Mr. Kim, we have something to discuss.” The man spoke in a professional manner.

ㅤ  Gathering his sense⸺also forgetting how hilariously silly he might have seemed⸺and clearing his dry throat, he decided to take the hand and stood up. With a bunch of questions popping out in his mind, he then cast a puzzled look at each one of the two.

ㅤ  “You…” He dragged his tone, trying to reassure himself that they were not there to harm him. “...are not going to catch me? Imprison me for…” He barely wanted to continue his sentence, and he assumed that they knew what he was implying. “Aren’t you the police?”

ㅤ  A chuckle became the vague answer to his question. It pulled another string of confusion as he couldn’t grasp on what the heck was actually going on. But the other big man, who had been quiet with a pair of sharp eyes, took out a small piece of paper and handed him to the less muscular man.

ㅤ  He took the paper and looked at it. A familiar symbol caught his attention while the big man who helped him up began to explain why they came after him.

ㅤ  

ㅤ  

ㅤ  A few months later…

ㅤ  The young man named Taehyung Kim had his gaze focused at, yet another, chain of letters on one big screen⸺bigger than his old notebook, this time. Nimble fingers danced on the keyboard, inserting a sequence of codes for a recent project.

ㅤ  A porcelain mug of brewed beverage seemed to accompany the busy man. Sitting on a different table, next to his working one. A customised smaller table he arranged to avoid accidents and make his life better, he said. Even though the dark-coloured drink had gone cold with few sips left, it faithfully stayed by his side.

ㅤ  One excessive tap on the ‘enter’ button caused a loud clacking sound in his lonely office room. An indication of the end of his long sitting hours. A deep exhalation followed before he stretched out his arms, releasing any tension he neglected to feel for the past hours.

ㅤ  Who would have thought that the self-taught, amateur and sometimes crime-doer hacker could actually work as a professional programmer at the famous company? A gamer who loves to play and dreams of making his own game could fall into a place where fellow programmers and genius scientists work in harmony, discovering things he could only see in movies. If it wasn’t the slip of his hand, an unintentional push of a button, he wouldn’t have been recruited to work in such a fancy place, having a better life and income. And he wouldn’t have realised how big this universe is. He couldn’t be more thankful.