Reassured that the slot is ready, Jared posted Object 63 onto the database and got ready for the night. Another crazy day, another important job done. He thinks to himself as he gets under the covers and drifts off into a slumber.

A slumber that was rudely awoken hours later.

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!

It was his phone, ringing to indicate a phone call, lying on his bedside table in case of an emergency. And such an emergency would soon rear its ugly head.

Jared suddenly jolts awake with a start. "Huh? Wh- w-" He pauses his sentence to let out a yawn. "-who's calling me now?"

He picks up and looks at his phone, ignoring the blinding intensity of the electronic brightness. It was a call from his close friend, William. Reluctantly, Jared tapped the green answer button as operative protocols instructed him to in such an emergency scenario.

He then weakly says, "Hello…?" to William.

"Jared, what happened?!" William responds in anger.

"I… what?"

"I just got rudely awoken by duck slippers! Like they were LITERALLY NONSTOP QUACKING AT MY BEDSIDE TABLE, I COULDN'T SLEEP! Did you let the slippers out?!" William angrily asks. What? Someone let them out?

Mustering up the energy to speak properly, Jared replies, "What?! Dude, that was not me. I swear to god! I'll check Storage-12. Gimme a bit."

Ignoring the urge to go back to sleep, Jared gets out of bed and quietly exits his room, careful not to wake the other operatives. To help him see, he uses a shortcut on his phone to activate the built-in flashlight. He proceeds to tiptoe through Base Omega until he reaches Storage-12, but when he gets there, he realises that William was right.

Still being on the call, Jared whispers to William, "They aren't there."

"Told ya."

Puzzled, Jared asks, "Are they still with you? I don't hear any quacking."

"I tried wearing them, and they stopped. But whenever I take my feet out, they quack again. They're literally forcing me to wear them just so I don't wake the whole base up! But whenever I walk, they quack again! So I'm frozen in place, and I still need my beauty sleep!"

Jared tries to think of a solution to get the slippers back without waking everyone up, but can't think of anything. "Uh… I… I don't know what to do…"

"Think of something, my legs are hurting!"

Then an idea hits him, a stupid one at that. "I'm gonna go over there, pick you up, and carry you to the lounge where nobody's about. You can sleep there."

"What the fuck?! I'm not a baby!"

"Do you want to sleep or not?"

"Yeah."

"Then I'm going."

"Fine. But don't you dare tell anyone I had to be carried to bed."

And with that, Jared made his way to William's room. But this wouldn't be the first time a strange situation like this would happen.

But despite the notice, there was a sixth. Then a seventh. Then an eighth. And it goes on. Night after night of the duck slippers appearing in random bedrooms, waking up everyone they could.

No matter how many notices Jared put up. No matter how many people he questioned. No matter how many times this has happened. Someone keeps moving them. But who?

There have now been thirteen of these bizarre incidents, but on one fateful day, Jared would get into bed as usual. He closed his eyes and drifted into a slumber. But said slumber was short-lived, as a familiar sound abruptly ended it.

"Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack—"

Jared jolts awake and frantically looks around, heart racing with panic. There, on his bedside table right next to where his head was lying, were the slippers he knew all too well and hated.

FOR FUCK'S SAKE!

The quacking was nonstop. It was ear-piercing to listen to. The mostly soundproof walls of Base Omega prevented the noise from waking up any neighbouring personnel; however, it was only a matter of time before the noise got so bad that it woke someone up.

Despite feeling groggy, Jared tried to recall what to do when others had this issue in the past. Wear them. And that's what he did. He immediately grabbed the slippers and slipped his bare feet into them… but this time, it didn't work.

"Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack—"

WHY CAN'T THEY KEEP QUIET?!

Panic flooded through. These slippers are becoming worse and worse after each and every incident. And it was all getting too much. Jared took the slippers off as he prepared to do the only thing he could to stop this madness. I've had it with these slippers! If they won't shut up, I will make them shut up!

As fast as he can, Jared takes his M.E.G. ID and grabs the slippers as they continue to quack nonstop. He took a nearby plastic bag leftover from a previous mission and stuffed the slippers inside in an attempt to muffle the sounds.

He runs out of his bedroom door, through Base Omega, and, using his ID to open the exit, runs out into the office of Level 4.

Where do I put these things? He thought as he scoured the nearby surroundings. Then he spotted salvation. An empty office bin, not too far from the Base's entrance, is lying around, just waiting to be filled with the usual office junk. It was quite small, but it would have to do.

At a speed Jared didn't even think was possible, he ran up to the bin and slammed the slippers inside while they were still covered by the bag. Hopefully, whoever is sick and twisted enough to keep this prank up will no longer find the slippers.

Not wanting to hear the quacks for another second, Jared swiftly turns around and runs back to the base omega entrance, back through the corridors, and back to his cosy bedroom.

As he slammed the door shut, he turned and leaned his back against it as he felt immense relief. He'll worry about the consequences of hiding the slippers tomorrow, but sleep was precious.

After spending a good minute calming down, Jared took off his ID and slumped back into the soft confines of his bed. It didn't take long for his eyes to close as he felt his mind begin to relax… and soon his vision faded to black. At long last, Jared could sleep without interfe—

"Quack!"

The ear-splitting sound jolted Jared upright instantly. The sounds… they're back!

"Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack—"

Jared quickly rubs his eyes and looks at the slippers, which are now on top of his bedside table just like last time. The bags that they were put inside are now gone, as if nothing had happened.

HOW THE FUCKING HELL DID THEY GET OUT OF THE BIN?!

Jared's heart is now racing. He picks up his M.E.G. ID once again, grabs the slippers as they continue the quacking sounds, and races out of the bedroom, not bothering to use more bags to conceal the sounds.

Once again, he returns to the same door used last time to get the hell out of the base. Which he does. Once outside, it was time for Plan B: get the slippers as far away from Base Omega as possible.

And so, Jared ran into the liminal office hellscape, with nothing but these loud slippers to defend himself.

"Hello? Hello, are you alright?"

The feeling of being shoved jolts Jared awake. When his eyes open, the first thing he sees are those cursed duck slippers staring into his soul.

"ARGH!"

Jared immediately sits up and scurries towards the back of a wall in a panic.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down. I'm not here to hurt you," said the voice again.

Looking up, Jared saw a stranger standing nearby, with a concerned look on his face. He was a middle-aged man sporting a beard and an outfit one would expect a standard citizen to own, complete with a friendly demeanour.

"Wh- who…?" Jared just about managed to say.

"I'm sorry if I startled you. I found you lying unconscious out in the open. I just wanted to see if you're alright."

"Uh… yeah… I'm fine…"

While in his exhausted state, Jared must have fallen unconscious when trying to get rid of the duck slippers. Said slippers are still lying near Jared, completely unresponsive.

The stranger reached into his bag and pulled out a bottle of Almond Water for Jared to drink.

"Drink this. You'll need it."

Jared grabs the bottle, but per M.E.G. protocol, chooses not to drink it in case the stranger laced it with something.

"Uh… thanks… I'll- I'll have it later."

Jared looks back at the duck slippers, his heart wrenching with anger upon seeing their stupid and goofy faces. But at that moment, an idea popped into his head.

"Uh… hey, you see those duck slippers?"

"Yeah."

"Can you take them for yourself?"

"Um… sure, but why?"

Oh shit! I can't tell him the true reason.

"Oh, um- uh… because I… need someone to take care of them… yeah."

"Erm, okay, I'll take them. Do you want payment?"

"No, no, no!" Jared snaps. "Just get rid of them. Please."

"Okay, sure. Do you still need my hel—"

"No, I'm good. I can find my way back."

"Okay, suit yourself."

And without further ado, the stranger picks up the slippers and leaves the premises. But not before saying "Good luck on your travels," to Jared.

As soon as Jared sees the man with those FUCKING SCUMBAG SLIPPERS disappear, an immense feeling of relief washes over him.

Now, how do I get back to base omega?

---

---

---

"I'm very disappointed in you, Operative," said Jared's supervisor, sitting across the desk from him.

"Yeah, I know."

His supervisor's face gets increasingly more crossed as he begins recounting the previous events. "Not only did you run away from Base Omega unannounced, but we had to waste our resources trying to find you. Why did you randomly run off like that?!"

"I—" Jared paused. I can't reveal what I did. I can't! I can't!

"Well?"

"I panicked! Okay! I just… I just thought I made eye contact with a bone thief."

"Bone thieves?!" His supervisor lets out a laugh. "Jared, there were no bone thieves in your bedroom, I can assure you. How can a large yellow lump that big possibly fit inside your small room like that?"

"Oh, c'mon! You know what happens if you look at a bo—"

"Jared, I know. But what would a great big bone snatcher possibly be doing in Omega? Slurping up the bodies of unconscious operatives that are too full of hard bones?! It was nighttime, the operatives would all be asleep, so how could they even make eye contact?"

Jared says nothing as his supervisor continues to recount the story.

"Now, where was I… oh… yes, yes, while you were gone, Object 63 went missing! When we checked Storage-12, there was nothing but a lucky crane infestation that we had to risk our lives for, just to clear up. Do you even know where they went?"

"No," Jared lied.

"I know that someone kept moving them out of Storage-12. Have you found out who that was?"

"No," Jared responds.

"Well, if you were still at base, you could've caught them. But no! You just had to run away because you accidentally glimpsed a pair of eyes in the darkness… or something stupid like that. I'll let you off with a warning because I can see where you're coming from, but run away from your designated base again, and you're fired! Got it?!"

"Yes, sir."

"Good, now get back to work."

Jared gets up and leaves his supervisor's office, with a sense of relief washing over him. His boss may be mad, but at least he'll never hear of those slippers again, right?

Right?

---

It was time. Finally, it's time for Dave to rid himself of these little brats. The slippers that quacked, quacked, and quacked every single fucking second! The sleep lost would all be made up for, and the useless slippers will finally be no more. He hoped so, anyway.

To be cautious, he stuffed the numbskulls into his backpack. If he can't rest well for one fucking night, neither can they rest on their way there.

They fortunately did not move. Good. Zipping the bag up became easy. But then:

"Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack—"

They started their quacks again. "FOR FUCKS SAKE!" he yelled aloud. He had to find Base Beta now, and fast. If these quacks continued, he worries that he'd turn into a wretch from the lack of sleep. Not ideal in the slightest.

The now-closed backpack helped muffle the sound, but it still wasn't enough to mute their irritability. As quickly as he could, Dave leaves his apartment, takes the elevator down, and runs out into the busy streets of the city that never sleeps. Ironic, considering Dave's situation.

He knew where Base Beta was. The tricky part was getting there without these irritating numbskull slippers drawing too much attention. Unfortunately, it was as busy as it always was in the city, so he had to barge through crowds. LOADS of crowds. All while the quacking sounds continued with no sign of stopping.

"Ouch! Watch it!"

"Oof!"

"Argh!"

"Ow! You mind?"

He heard the crowd all moan and complain as they got shoved around. But Dave didn't care. He is becoming more eternally desperate to get rid of the slippers for good.

After minutes of desperate pushing, shoving, and barging, all while the slippers continued their endless quacking, a building appeared from within Dave's view. A building he knows only so well: Base Beta!

Walking up to its sliding double doors, the bustling sounds outside all die down as Dave enters the base. As soon as he does, the quacking sounds in his bag only become more audible. Determined, he walks up to the receptionist and immediately starts talking to them.

"Uh, h—"

"Quack!"

"—i. I'm—"

"Quack!"

"—Here to—"

"Quack!"

That's it!

Before the receptionist can even reply, Dave takes off his bag, opens it, picks up the slippers, and yeets them to a back corner of the room, where they land onto the floor. Though it did nothing to stop the quacking.

"Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack—"

Dave then attempts to continue. "Urgh, ignore the quacking! I'm here to repor—"

But before Dave could finish, the receptionist cuts in, saying, "Is that Object 63? Did you actually find it?"

"Object… what now?"

---

RING! RING! RING! Went Jared's phone.

Who's calling me this time? Jared thinks as he picks it up and sees who it is. It's Overseer-C. What does he want? Jared presses the accept button and begins talking.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Operative Jared. I'm on my way to Base Omega as I'm speaking to deliver some documents from Base Beta."

This reply does nothing but confuse Jared. "Oka- wait, why are you telling me this?"

"Well, it's because I bring good news. A random citizen in Level 11 has found Object 63. So I'll be delivering those sweet and adorable slippers to you as well."

FUCK!

"Oh- uh- I uh- I…"

Andrew can sense the hint of worry in Jared's voice. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Nothing's wrong," Jared lied.

"Alright. I'll be there in… about an hour. But it depends on how busy the Hub is today. See you soon!" And with that, Overseer Andrew hangs up.

As soon as the call ends, an overpowering sense of worry floods through Jared's veins in a flash. Intrusive thoughts make their way into his mind as the panic only worsens.

"Will they wake me up again?! Should I do something?! Who keeps moving them?! Is the culprit still here?! No, that can't be what's going on?! They're entities, aren't they? THEY'RE ENTITIES! THEY'RE MOVING ON THEIR OWN! THEY'RE FUCKING OUT FOR ME! I HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE, I CAN'T LET THEM FIND ME AGAIN!"

With a swift idea formulating in his mind, he takes a pen and a crumpled piece of paper and begins writing.

And not long after, the note is completed.

That'll do. He thinks as he places the note in the middle of his desk.

And as quickly as he can, he packs up his stuff and leaves his Base Omega bedroom. This time for good.

---

---

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Jared, open the door!" Overseer-C shouts.

…

No response.

"If you don't respond, I'll open it myself."

…

No response.

"Okay, fine. I'm coming in."

Andrew opens the door easily, as it isn't locked. Oh, why's it not locked? Whatever. Inside is the room as expected, but no sign of Jared.

Where'd he go? Andrew thinks. But this thinking is soon interrupted.

"Quack!" went the slippers Andrew was holding, but this quack was more sad than annoying. Oh, that was cute. Though Andrew quickly brushed the thought off and resumed his thoughts regarding Jared.

Confused by Jared's absence, Andrew searches the room to investigate. And soon he found the note Jared left behind.

What? Entities?

"Quack!" Went the slippers.

Andrew looks at them and says…

---

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"I am terribly sorry to bother you, Overseer-D, but I have something important to ask. May I come in?" Andrew asks.

…

No response.

"Thank you." Andrew then enters Storage-02 and steps inside, holding the duck slippers in his hands. Within Storage-02 is the one and only Robert J. Quack, ready to listen to whatever Andrew has to say.

"Greetings, Sir. Robert. Once again, I am so terribly sorry to intrude upon your day like this. However, one of our operatives quit their job for an unknown reason, leaving behind this adorable pair of duck slippers. He mentioned in his brief note about wanting me to bring the slippers for you to handle. Think you can take charge of them?"

…

No response.

"Excellent! I'll leave them in your capable hands. I'm afraid I have to go, nice seeing you again, Robert," Andrew says as he leaves the slippers behind.

Then, without further ado, Andrew closes the door and leaves the vicinity.

Afterwards, in duck language, the three ducks have a conversation:

---

"Robert, where have you been?"

"My name isn't Slippers. My name is Albert."

"Yeah, he bought us, then left us behind. We're very sad about that."

"Because they refused to help us, and we had to constantly beg for help."

"If we're not being worn, we feel incomplete. If we're not being worn, we feel empty. If we're not being worn, we feel neglected."

"Do you at least know where our owner is?"

"The Duckrooms? He's in the Duckrooms?"

"But how do we get there?"

"I thought you were using your psychic skills."

"Then how'd you know where our owner is?"

"Robert, think you can lead the way for us?"

---

---