I awoke in a cell, with my arms hanging uselessly by my side. I tried to move them, but it felt like they didn’t even exist. They must have disabled all of my implants, which happened to include all of my limbs. Before I could even attempt an escape, however, the door to the cell opened, and in walked a large, mostly cybernetic man, dressed in a suit with a bulky frame hinting at weaponry and armour hidden within. Immediately after him walked a wiry, thin man standing around average height with a pin on his lapel proudly proclaiming that this was an executive of Teltech, one of the largest corporations in the world, with their signature teleportation of non-organics that was developed in 2031, allowing them to become one of the largest companies of 2156.

  It made no sense why someone this important would be tasked with dealing with a mercenary who had assassinated someone, even if, especially if it was someone important. They would have either simply killed me on the spot when I was caught, or maybe just given me to their interrogation units. My mind raced through possibilities, each more outlandish than the last, before the man opened his mouth and began to speak:

  “Arid Rendon, 20 years of age, worked with the Black-eyed mercenaries for three years, and went solo two years ago. No birth record available, although that is not unexpected from gutter trash.” His voice was smooth and even, lacking any distinct emotion, with a slight metallic hint, as though it wasn’t entirely natural.

  I stayed silent, hoping that this wouldn’t turn into an interrogation.

  “Your little assault on my caravan has caused inconvenience to the company and makes me look bad to my superiors.” His voice had started to show a hint of annoyance, as if I were a puddle on the sidewalk that he was forced to slightly lengthen his stride to step over.

  “Luckily for you, we require a mercenary with knowledge of combat, no matter how…lacking. Your stunt has unfortunately cost us one of our possible candidates for portal exploration, and the company has decided you would be rather useful in this regard.” His gaze shifted slightly, as if not fully agreeing with this decision

  “The job is simple. You shall be sent into an experimental portal we have developed, map out the other side, and return with the data. In exchange, we shall forgive all of your crimes against Teltech and possibly offer a more permanent position, depending on your performance.

  I couldn’t believe what I had just heard. A megacorp, offering a full pardon in exchange for mercenary work? This was the thing legendary mercs were offered, when it was more viable to make an offer than risk making an enemy! This sort of deal was unheard of for relatively unknown hires such as myself, who had just started to get important gigs!

  “So… I just have to map out whatever is on the other side of the portal and return?” My voice sounded weak, and I mentally chastised myself for acting so out of place. I just had to make sure I could get out of this alive.

  “Correct. If you survive, we will have a contract made for further employment once you exit the portal.”

  I notice his emphasis on the word “alive”, as though there was a very small chance that I would live. Well, I had a better chance of whatever was on the other side of this portal being friendly than saying no to the offer and leaving in a body bag. It was unlikely they would keep their deal after I left the portal anyway, considering I had never heard of this project, meaning it was rather secretive, and I didn’t have enough firepower on me to fight my way out. My only chance was finding a different way back from whatever far-flung corner of the earth that this portal sent me.

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  It felt like I was signing my soul away as I finally uttered the words that they were waiting for.

  “I accept your offer.”

  The man nodded to his bodyguard, who proceeded to pick me up as though I weighed nothing and slung me over his shoulder, my limbs still not responding to me, forcing me to accept this manhandling.

  I heard the sounds of metal on rubber as we walked through the corridors, my view mostly obscured by the fabric of the security guard’s suit, but I could catch a glimpse of the windowless hallways that seemed identical as we went on.

  Eventually, we stopped, and I heard the sound of what seemed like a large metal door sliding out of the way to allow us entry. I was unceremoniously dropped to the floor before a notification flashed across my optics, informing me that my cyberware was no longer disabled. I had to improve whatever protections were on my cyberware, so this hopefully wouldn’t happen to me again.

  I shakily stood up, casting my gaze across the large room. Several circular devices I assumed were the portals, which were currently idle, with what looked to be at least twenty guards in full assault armour with large, foreboding rifles held at their sides. There appeared to be three other “explorers”, which matched the number of portals that were in this room. I noticed that the executive and bodyguard duo who had brought me here were gone, likely having left immediately.

  I looked at the portal that was in front of me. It was a complicated structure, several struts of plasteel forming a rough circular outline, with cables, lights, and screens dotted across the entire frame.

  I was interrupted from my examination by one of the security guards, whose face and form were impossible to judge from behind the large amount of armour and the full-face helmets. They handed me a Teltech-branded bag.

  “This bag contains your weapons that were seized, along with enough rations to last you around two weeks. They also contain the mapping beacon, several other utilities for survival, and a full repair kit for the beacon, as it was listed in your profile that you have experience with repairs.” His voice sounded completely robotic, making it impossible to tell the identity of the owner. This was getting more and more sketchy.

  “The portal will open in 2 minutes. Remain where you are until then.” He walked away, leaving me holding the bag, which I proceeded to sling over my back and started to prepare for combat.

  I quickly searched through the bag, finding my pistol and two knives that I had on me when I was captured. I quickly put the knives in the sheaths on my thighs and put the pistol in the holster on my hip after inspecting the firing mechanism. It wouldn’t do to have a misfire when I needed it.

  A slight crackle of energy caused me to look at the portal in front of me, the frame starting to spark slightly as a round, light blue circle started to form in the centre. I heard technicians say words that I couldn’t catch the meaning of, something about “anomalous energy” and “multi-dimensional movement.” Suddenly, everything went wrong. The portals started to grow, filling the entire frame almost instantly. Technicians started shouting, alarms started to blare, and the portal continued to grow. Soon, the entire frame had been swallowed up, and the portal showed no sign of stopping. I started to move backwards, before a sharp push from behind propelled me towards the portal.

  The last thing I saw of this world was an eerie blue light, casting everything in a strange, shadowy form that seemed to shift and change every moment.