John rubs the back of his head as he walks through the compound. Clementine was kind enough to have given him the location of Casper’s room which was on the other side of the building, though luckily he didn’t have to go nearly that far, as he spots the man himself halfway to the room.

  Card in hand, Casper rolls it around in his fingers on one of the outside balconies. John tries to head out there himself, but getting through the double glass doors also required the key card.

  Casper knows John is just outside, but the bastard is going to make him knock it seems. Swallowing his pride, John raps his knuckles against the glass, and watches as Casper turns around to face him with a look of faux surprise.

  “Open the door Cas.” John lets his shoulder and head fall against the glass. He barely has the strength to stand, let alone deal with a stranger's shit, but he is the new one here, and it wont do him any good to be hostile—not right away at least.

  Casper nods and lets his cigarette hang in his lips as he opens the door and flashes John the card.

  John tries to grab at it, but he is still drunk and misses entirely as Casper pulls it away, sending John stumbling forward.

  Grumbling, John runs his hands through his hair and takes in a deep breath, willing the effects of the alcohol to leave his body. It doesn’t work, but he hopes it makes him look a little more serious.

  “Casper, I know I’m new around here but I would really appreciate it if we didn’t get off on the wrong foot.”

  “You’re cocky, a drunk, and a liability.” Casper tucks the card into his back pocket and lets his elbows rest against the balcony railing behind him, facing John.

  “Off to a bad start it is.” John cracks his neck and takes a lumbering step forward. “Give me the fucking key card.”

  “You think you can come in here, pass all the tests and then throw your weight around like you’re somebody? No... no you can’t.” Casper doesn’t budge as John nearly presses all the way into him.

  “I won’t ask nicely again Casper. I really would prefer we keep this professional...”

  “Professional, right.” Cas blows the smoke out from the side of his mouth, his eyes never leaving John. “Professional, like sticking your key card in an orange and leaving it out in the hallway?”

  John tries to headbutt the man, but he only meets open air as Casper shifts to the left and brings his foot up to kick John away, sending him stumbling backwards into the glass doors, bouncing him off of them with a heavy thud.

  “You’re arrogant, and too used to being the biggest badass on the block, am I right? Well this isn’t your home town John, this is a fucking combat zone. Take a punch or a kick all you want but some fuckin’ twelve year old will still take your head off with an AK if you don’t remember where the hell you are.”

  Casper takes another drag from his cigarette and watches as John staggers to his feet, eyes narrowing to violent slits as he works his fingers into a fist.

  “I know where I am, trust me.” John shakes himself out and brings himself closer to Casper again, this time making sure to stay out of kicking range.

  “Hmmm.” Casper takes another pull on his cigarette and ashes it over the edge, sticks it back in his mouth, and then punches John.

  John knew it was coming, but even sober it would have been impossible to defend against the overwhelming speed and power of that strike. It catches John hard in the stomach, nearly taking him off of his feet.

  John gasps, spit and vomit flying from his mouth as he tries to tuck in to recover, but Casper’s leg is already up and kicking the forearm that protects his head.

  Growling through the pain, John grabs onto Casper’s leg before he can recover and drives the man into the ground, cracking his back against the railing before they both smack into the stone floor of the balcony.

  Casper kicks John in the chest again, sending him backwards. John tries to hold on, tries to keep the smaller man on the ground but he just can’t manage to keep a hold. One, two, three more kicks and John is forced to guard against the blows as he starts to see stars.

  John watches as Casper moves under him, the man taking his legs and bringing him to the ground with a heavy thud. The back of John's head nearly bounces off the pavement, but he stops himself just short, only to take a punch clean to the jaw, rocking him sideways.

  Another punch makes his nose pop and sputter out blood in violent gouts. John catches the third just in time, pulling the arm down and bringing his own forehead up to smash into Casper's nose.

  Despite looking like a skull, the man bleeds all the same as his nose pops as well, sending a fountain of blood down into John's face and hair as Casper reels backwards.

  John presses, his own fists coming in hard to crunch into Casper’s sides in a one two combo that finishes at his jaw.

  Casper staggers, and John loads up the finishing blow. The adrenaline rush forces the buzz from his mind, long enough to put every ounce of strength he has behind the strike.

  CRACK

  His fists connects with the perfect spot on Casper’s face, blood and half a tooth flying from his lips, as he holds his ground and fucking eats it without so much as a wince.

  John sits there utterly dumbfounded. His fist still sitting in Casper's jaw as he stands there half bent over, but by damnit he was still fucking standing.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  Casper’s eyes flick to meet Johns, and a smile creeps onto his lips.

  “Oh shit.” John pulls to guard but once again he is just too slow. Casper spins on his backfoot, sending the heel of his other, down on John's face.

  The force gives him whiplash as his neck twists, followed by the rest of his body as it is sent flying through the air and into the glass doors, shattering it entirely as he sprawls out onto the floor in the hall beyond.

  His vision goes totally white, his skull rattles, his ears ring, but Casper doesn’t let off of him. The man only rolls up his sleeves, and flicks his cigarette from his mouth, off the balcony as he walks inside.

  John doesn’t know what to do... he had never hit a man with all of his strength and had to continue the fight. He doesn’t know if he can possibly hit Casper any harder. What the fuck did he get himself into?

  He doesn’t have time to think about that as Casper brings his leg up in an axe-kick that John rolls out of the way off just in time, and launches himself to his feet to deliver two punches to Casper's ribs again. The first one hits, the second one is caught but John kicks Casper away, breaking his grip.

  All he can do is back away and try to defend as Casper sends a straight right. John dodges, but finds himself taking Casper's underhand left before he can manage to catch the overhand right, pulling him in and kneeing Casper's stomach.

  Casper buckles, but uses the movement to nearly tear John's head off.

  John's back smacks into the elevator, the button press making a ding sound.

  Another right hook comes for him and John goes low, taking the arm and shoving Casper into the elevator but Casper tangles his leg around Johns, tripping him and sending him to the ground.

  His body hits the floor with a nasty thud that shakes the entire elevator violently.

  “Fuck fuck fuck” John tries to spin around to kick at Casper as the man pulls him into the elevator.

  Ding

  “Gahh!”

  The doors close and crash into John's ribs before rebounding off of them.

  Casper pulls John the rest of the way into the elevator just as the door closes, and tries to stomp on his chest, but John catches it and locks Casper’s ankle in his arm.

  Cranking down on the man's ankle, he half collapses on top of him but John willingly gives Casper his back, letting him latch on before slamming all of his weight backwards, sending Casper into the wall, pressing all of the buttons in the process.

  John throws an elbow, it connects and sends more blood spewing over his shoulder. He tries another but Casper catches it, and pushes it back towards John, making him punch himself in the mouth.

  John spins, and takes a knee to the kidneys, which nearly buckles him over. John twists, folding with the blow and then comes back with an uppercut that makes a sickening clack as Casper’s lower teeth smack into the top ones.

  Casper staggers, and spits the blood into John’s eyes, following the play up with two more punches. One to the abs sends him backwards, and the other fist keeps him there.

  John braces for a third but it never comes, instead Casper jumps off the back wall and knees John in the head just as the door opens to the next floor.

  John's head snaps backwards, finding open air as he is ejected from the elevator to slide against the ground and into two other mercs who slowly back up as John rolls away from a follow up hit. He pushes off the ground, pins Casper to the floor, and punches the man in the back of the head, sending his skull bouncing off the ground.

  John gasps for breath, staggering up, one arm holding his stomach, the other wiping blood from his face. He watches in utter horror as Casper shakes his head, and stands, spitting more blood into the ground.

  “That all you got?” Casper grins, and spits a tooth.

  “Yea... actually... that’s all I got...” John sucks down air, his legs giving out, bringing him to a knee. John sends his arms up to defend against Casper's most likely follow up, a kick to the head, but it never comes.

  John must have closed his eyes, because when he opens them, he sees Casper's hand extended outward.

  John lets his head sink, and takes the hand, allowing himself to be helped up and over to the atrium space along the east wall.

  Casper sets John down on a chair, the not so friendly ghost pulling another one up next to him.

  “You smoke?” Casper asks, panting a little, though not nearly as out of breath as John is.

  “Yea...”

  “Here.” Casper nudges John, fresh cigarette in hand.

  “Thanks.” John takes it, and lets Casper light his own before lighting the one he has.

  John pulls in the nicotine, and lets the smoke float from his mouth and up into the air.

  “You are one tough son of a bitch.” John says through quickly swelling lips.

  “I have to admit, I’m impressed.” Casper nods, though it’s clear he is just being polite. Whoever Casper is, he’s a hell of a lot better than John. He knows that now.

  “You’re full of shit.” John chuckles, though doing so hurts more than he is willing to admit.

  “Only half,” Casper admits with a shrug, taking a long drag with one hand, his other fumbling around his back pocket for the key card.

  The two don’t need any more words, as John takes the key card, though Casper doesn’t let go for a second as John tries to pull it.

  He rolls his eyes, and Casper smiles, letting it go.

  The point is adequately made, nothing more needs saying on the matter, though Casper does ask a question that throws John off for a second.

  “Why are you here, John?”

  The question stings in a way he doesn’t expect, probably because he doesn’t actually know.

  “No idea...” He admits honestly.

  Casper nods. “Just going where the wind takes you? Letting the waves carry your corpse across the ocean.” he gestures out with one hand to mimic the flow of the sea.

  “You always wax poetic like a fuckin’ sailor? It screams navy you know...” John waves his hand around.

  “Only when the moment calls for it.” Casper sends a stream of smoke up into the air. “What killed you?”

  John pauses for a second, letting the next pull burn his lungs just a little longer than normal, before letting it out with a long, dramatic sigh.

  “A woman.”

  “Hmm.. always a woman with people like you. How bad did she get you?”

  “Terminally. Stage four.”

  Casper nods his head solemnly, watching as the sun continues to rise over the desert in front of them.

  “Dead men are dangerous John. A bit of friendly advice, find something to live for... because if you don’t, it’s only a matter of time before your corpse is ravaged by the sharks in the water. Trust me, there are plenty of them too. Dangerous waters, these.” He mimes a shark fin at the top of his head.

  Casper finishes his cigarette and crosses his leg up onto his knee, sinking into the chair with a heavy sigh.

  “Hmm...” John takes a final pull, and ashes his cigarette as well, his eyes settling on the gold rays as they bathe Blackwood's compound in shimmering light.