Third-person pov:
Back to Balair and Dustin working out in the gym.
"Wow!" Balair exclaimed as he left the locker room. His eyes widened in amazement as he looked around ecstatically at the sight before him. Leaving Dustin confused.
"What has you so… Happy?" Dustin paused a bit, looking for words to describe his friend's state as he walked out of the small gallery leading to the main workout area.
"Look around you, dude!" Barlair replied as he ran out of the gallery, sliding his way in front of Dustin in a quick, fluid motion, punching the air in celebration of something unknown to Dustin.
"You know that I'm not a mind reader, right?" Dustin asked, exhaustion washing over his face as he looked around. All he could see was a normal gym plain, though the smell of the place was a bit rosy, not like a place that saw a lot of use. Apart from that, he didn't see anything that would pique Balair's interests like this.
Might he have forgotten I did not follow him to the gym last night? Dustin asked himself as he shook his head and just moved towards the treadmills, which were stationed in a corner of the gym, in an attempt to see if ignoring Balair would trigger him to spill the beans already than continuing to keep him in the dark.
"I have looked around and cannot tell what you want from me," he said, trying to sell his act better. He raised his hands slightly to shoulder level, a feigned 'oh well' attitude in his posture.
"Ugh, you're no fun," Balair groaned, his shoulders slumping as he unenthusiastically walked away from the doorway and towards the racks of plates, ready to begin his routine.
"I mean, you gave me nothing to work with, just telling me to look around doesn't help if that's your idea of a hint." Dustin's words, elegant as ever, flowed out beautifully. On further inspection, Dustin had found something weird. The rosy scent he got when he first entered the gym was strong, as if it had just recently been applied to the gym. he looked up at the temperature regulator vent, which was placed at a corner of the gym, his eyes meeting the container of a hastily placed air freshener placed just on the ridges of the temperature regulator the seal seemed to have just been undone and like it was placed just recently.
As he finally reached a treadmill and got on, he noticed it had the gloss of something recently cleaned. He then looked at the cement finish flooring of the gym, observing the same glossy consistency as if it had just been mopped. He still couldn't conclude whether this was what Balair had been asking him about. Gyms were usually cleaned regularly; perhaps this was simply one of the cleaning days? Deciding to ask before starting his routine, he paused.
"Is it because of how clean the place is? I seriously cannot think of anything else." Dustin admitted, his tone suggesting he had given up on guessing. Balair, who had been moving plates, suddenly froze. His formerly slumped shoulders slowly began to rise as he carefully dropped the two hundred and fifty kilogram plate he had been taking off the weight rack.
"Yes! Yes! That's exactly it! I always believed in your smarts to figure it out!" Balair exclaimed, his chest out and arms akimbo, his head held up with a smirk on his face, as if proud of himself for Dustin's intelligence.
Dustin just stood there, dumbfounded. Just how dirty was this place for Balair to react like this? What exactly had he seen the day before? These questions ran through Dustin's mind, compelling him to vocalise his concern to Balair.
"Just how bad was it last night?" Dustin asked, resting his body weight on the treadmill's handlebars for better balance. His face, usually calm, now showed a hint of seriousness.
"Enough to make me pant badly. I could barely catch my breath in that dusty hell scape," Balair replied, scratching the back of his head. His eyes narrowed as he tried to recall memories of the gym from yesterday.
"Oh yeah, and I met a strange man here last night. He said he was Jim, the gym janitor. I went through some weird, concerning things with him yesterday, almost fainted, but I caught his fall, so I guess all went well," he added, still running his hands through his hair.
"Wait? What went well there? So the janitor who was employed to regularly maintain the gym let the gym deteriorate to that level? And he fainted!?" Dustin asked, his face contorted in mocking confusion, his eyes furrowing as he stared at Balair, demanding an answer.
"I didn't say he fainted, though I only said he almost…" Balair paused, retracing his words. His eyes widened as realisation dawned. "Wait, he was the janitor…" he mused, then paused again, looking at Dustin. Dustin nodded affirmatively, confirming the implied question.
"Where did you find him?" Dustin asked, stepping down from the treadmill and moving towards Balair, his face suddenly turning serious.
"Oh, he just popped up—no idea where he came from. Why'd you ask?" Balair questioned, a hint of curiosity in his tone, his eyes tilting upwards as if they were asking.
"I just ran a spiritual scan of the gym and found a very faint spiritual energy coming from a room in the gallery we just came out of. That person seems to be in danger. We need to get there quickly!" Dustin said, quickening his pace and taking longer strides. Balair followed right behind, both of them instantly shedding their teasing expressions for looks of genuine concern and purpose.
Soon, they were in the gallery. Dustin was leading the way to the room where he had gotten the low spiritual energy reading.
They gave the grey painted door a firm knock, only to be ignored by whoever was inside the room. Balair began to remember what had happened in the gym the previous night. Was it Jim in the room? Was what he said about being fine the previous night a lie?
"Hello? Are you okay in there?" Dustin called out as he continued to knock, only to get no response from the person inside the room. He knew the protocol about not opening doors you didn't have authorisation for, even during emergencies. That's why he hadn't tried opening the door yet. He knew the punishment for a door of this importance wasn't as much, but he would rather his report card be clean than have it spoiled just like that, so he continued knocking on the door.
Balair paced around, worried, his worry and frustration only deepening as he thought back to the previous night. He'd done his research after Jim suddenly collapsed. Was it a heart attack? A stroke? Balair wasn't even expecting him to show up for work, considering what he went through, so who was behind that door? He couldn't just stand aside anymore; he had to do something. Without much thought, in a smooth motion, he raised his right hand in a fist, ready to punch his way through the obstacle before him. He was only stopped by a hand to the chest pushing him back—it was Dustin.
"You fool! We haven't even tried to see if the door's open as is, don't do irrational things that could put you in trouble on base," Dustin cautioned grabbing the knob as he dropped his former reasoning all together considering it was better to first try to open the door before his muscle brained friend put them into even more trouble by breaking down the door.
The knob clicked, and the door swung forcefully inward, revealing something heavily disturbing, something that sent shivers down their spines. Fear immediately stripped Dustin's normally calm face. Balair's face, however, pulsed with rage as he glared at the sight before them, his gritting teeth emphasising the fury in him, his eyes glaring at it.