Stamp.

Stamp.

The same noise, repeated over and over, repetition providing the only sound.

Stamp.

On most days, other stamps would repeat the noise, creating a symphony of tedium.

However.

Today, there was only one worker on that floor of the work building.

Stamp.

The Elsen put the form on a nice organized pile to his right. He turned his head toward the left and took a deep breath; there were large stacks of "in" forms, waiting for his approval.

He took the next form, held it in shaky hands while reading it over, then he put it down and

Stamp.

The other Elsens complained. They all complained about being stressed and they stayed home that day.

They're likely to get fired.

However, this Elsen did not want to get fired, like the rest of them likely would. Despite the stress engulfing him, there was much work to be done, and he believed that his commitment would buy him a promotion to Alma. "Y...yes, Alma will be nice..." he said to assure himself.

Stamp.

The stampings went on for awhile, "out" forms being lost in the unknown amounts of minutes passed.

A puff of smoke left the Elsen's mouth as he sweated profusely.

"I... I can afford a break..."

Stamp.

He put one last form on the pile before getting out of his seat. His footsteps echoed in the blue hallways as he went over to a water jug, with tiny cups; "the office will be saving a lot of credits on cups on this floor," he thought.

He took his time, sipping the cup of water. He felt at ease, draining the refreshing liquid. With no one else in the office, he let himself take a second cup, then a third.

Anything to keep himself from going back to work.

"I-I'll go back to work soon..." he said openly, but his mind didn't want to work any longer. As much as he needed to work, he couldn't take much more of the stress. He heard stories about overworked and stressed employees turning into specters - the stories could be rumors, but the Elsen believed in them. He did not want to be stressed. He did not want to be a specter.

That would be unbearable.

No.

Life is unbearable.

Every day he had to deal with this tedious work. It was necessary, to get paid credits and advance the progress of the world, but.

Stamp.

That thought was interrupted. For a second, he thought that he heard somebody else.

"No. Can't be... just a delusion caused by stress..." the Elsen said to himself.

He downed another cup of water - he did not know many he drank - before glancing toward his desk.

"I... I need to work..."

He forced his legs to move forward.

Stamp.

The heavy thud that normally carried with his footsteps became the noise.

Stamp.

The obnoxious noise.

Stamp.

That horrible, stress-inducing noise.

Stamp.

The sounds of stamping. Always around, always haunting him.

Stamp.

Then, he finally found himself saying what his brain kept wanting him to say. "I... I do not... want to work anymore..."

Stamp.

Despite what he said, he needed to work, he needed to, he needed to, he needed to...

Stamp.

"S-Somebody needs to come and... help me..."

Stamp.

"Please, let t-there be someone who c-can... hhh... t-take over..."

Stamp.

Whirrrrrr...

The Elsen stopped. The stamping stopped.

The whirring continued.

He turned.

Right behind him was a boy, heading toward him on golden skates.

Whirrrrrr...

A boy drenched in shadow, wearing a sweatshirt and a cap. His teeth flashed a wicked smile as he got closer.

Stamp.

The Elsen stepped back in fear.

Then, the boy raised his weapon. The weapon flashed its mesmerizing glint at him.

A bent, golden baseball bat.

The bat rose.

The Elsen could only open his mouth as the golden tool was brought down onto his head.

Stamp.

The elevator doors opened.

A man in a baseball tunic and black cap, the Batter, walked in. The floating ring behind him, the Add-On Alpha, looked a bit peeved. "Tsk. Wrong floor again."

The Batter nodded, but he noticed that something was a bit off about the floor - he didn't hear anyone working. "I'll just look around for a bit."

He walked around the lonely office floor. Most of the desks were cleared out, with only one desk receiving the burdens of the others, overflowing with forms, some stamped, some not.

Then, the Batter found him.

The Elsen laid on the floor like a doll, with a large, noticeable head wound. The Batter recognized the bruisings, being an expert at dealing them himself - the Elsen was bludgeoned.

However, despite the beating, there was an almost serene smile on the victim's face.

The Batter was curious about this crime - the specters don't bludgeon people. His eyes looked around for any sort of evidence.

He found a chest.

The man walked over to it cautiously before opening it.

Inside the chest was a golden metal bat, somehow bent.

The Batter picked it up and gave it a test swing, a golden glow accompanying the swing. "Hm. Odd, but a good weapon." He gave it a quick examination.

Etched into the metal were two words, a title.

Lil' Slugger

There didn't seem to be any blood on the bat, nor were there any signs of it being used. He wasn't even sure if "Lil' Slugger" was the name of the bat or its previous owner. Regardless of whether it was used to murder an Elsen or if it was owned, though, a weapon was a weapon. The Batter walked back to the elevator where his fuming Add-On waited. He clicked the button to go back to the ground floor, holding his new weapon.

Whirrrrrr...

The elevator doors shut.

Author's Note: Recently, I've watched an anime called Paranoia Agent - it was cited as one of Mortis Ghost's inspirations for OFF, and I could definitely see why. I'm not quite sure how to explain the show myself, so, why don't you go watch it instead? Some saint uploaded all of the dubbed episodes on YouTube, so go check it out!