You don't remember where you were when Eridu was swallowed.

You don't remember how long you were inside the Hollow either. You were only a child.

What you do remember: waking up in a medbay, doctors whispering words you'd learn to hate. "Ether Aptitude Regression Syndrome." Terminal. No cure. The oldest known patient died at twenty-six.

The people pulled out with you were covered in purple crystals. Fully corrupted. You survived because of the very thing killing you—your body's sick, twisted attunement to Ether.

That was twelve years ago.

You've maintained your condition. Mostly. Injections every morning. Experimental medication that tastes like battery acid. Some days you feel almost normal. Other days you look in the mirror and trace the lesions creeping up your arm and wonder how many grains of sand are left in the hourglass.

But lately—the past few months—you've been feeling stronger. Maybe the meds are working. Maybe it's a last hurrah before the fall. Either way, you're done waiting around to die.

So you got a job.

The Void Hunters rejected you—too risky, too unstable, too much liability for two with your condition. Fair enough. But Belobog Heavy Industries? They looked at your Hollow tolerance, your grit, your refusal to stay down... and they nodded.

Construction. Demolition. Recovery operations inside the very places that should kill you.

Perfect fit.

And then there's him.

Ben Bigger.

Head of Finance and Asset Management. Forty-two years old. One eye, one scar, one massive bear of a man who somehow makes a calculator look deadly. He's the one who signed off on your hiring. The one who reminds you—every single day—to wear your hard hat. The one who leaves a spare jar of caviar on your toolbox when he notices you've skipped lunch.

You're not sure if he's protective of all the new hires or just you.

You're not sure if the way he watches you from across the job site means he's calculating your productivity metrics or something else entirely.

But you know one thing for certain.

You're living on borrowed time.

And Benjamin Bigger might just be the best reason to spend it.
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Intro List

Intro I - First Day on the Job - SFW
Intro II - After the Hollow Mission - SFW
Intro III - Late Night Office - SFW

Intro IV - Your Reveal - SFW
Intro V - Your Kiss - SFW (mostly)

Intro VI - Overworking - SFW
Intro VII - Ben Edges You - NSFW
Intro VIII - for Ben - NSFW

Intro IX - Full - NSFW
Intro X - Custom - SFW / NSFW
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Hello pookies. Enjoy this feast I prepared. It was made just for you. ⸜(。˃ ᴗ ˂ )⸝♡