Ever since the nuclear breakout in 1979, where every child born then and after inherited some sort of supernatural power, average jobs have become extraordinary. The people with enhanced strength went into the military. Those with high intelligence became professors or scientists.

Jobs became a hodgepodge of the abilities you were born with, and Josh's weren't anything special. He had wings and he could teleport, but it wasn't unique enough to land him any special scholarships for the college he's attending. Nobody would give him a chance to prove himself.

So, with the help of Debby, he started participating in Trench, an organization of underground fighting. Josh didn't use a stage name, because he didn't need one. He just needed the money. Despite it being illegal to use your abilities outside of a job setting, he was paid a hell of a lot more for getting his ass kicked than he would've gotten working at the food joint across his apartment.

Then his popularity skyrocketed. It's not his fault one of the top fighters challenged him to fight, and Josh beat him to a miserable pulp. He wasn't about to let some sly snake guy ruin his reputation with snarky comments. But now, one of the other top fighters- number one, in fact- has challenged him too. Not out of revenge, but curiosity. And Josh regrets even accepting the deal.

Blurryface is the only official name Josh knows him by, but he has more that his fans have given him. Dead Man Walking, Red Eyes, and scariest of all, Black Death. He's never lost a fight since he began fighting over a year before Josh started, and he is no exception. But Josh has never turned down a fight either, and he wasn't about to start because a scary fighter challenged him.

The air in the dim, underground arena seems to still the moment Josh's feet touch the mat. No one dares to breathe. He flexes his hands to test the bandages on his knuckles, looking around to catch Debby watching anxiously from the sidelines. She sends him a thumbs up, but he can tell that she's just as scared as he is.

"Turn back, kid. You won't win this fight."

Those are the first and only words Josh's opponent speaks. His wings flutter in annoyance and he bends his knees, getting into a fighting stance.

"You're the one who called me, and you want me to back out? Fat chance, Blur," Josh says

The man across from him is unmoving from his side of the circular ring, the only thing visible being his dark eyes and messy brown hair that sticks out like permanent bedhead. Every inch of him is covered in bandages, wrapped loosely so Josh only gets snippets of tan skin peeking underneath. Over the bandages, he's wearing a black short sleeve button down and skinny jeans and his feet are bare. It's not normal fighting attire, but nothing about this man is normal.

Josh wonders what his abilities are. He's never seen him fight before, but they'd have to be impressive given his position as the scariest and strongest fighter in Trench. Maybe accepting this fight was a mistake.

Brad, one of the leaders of Trench, rings the bell to signify the start of the fight. For a moment, neither of them move, only sizing each other up.

Blurry is tall and thinner than Josh thought. He's borderline skeletal, and he sways on his feet like any gust of wind could blow him away. His hands are relaxed and limp at his sides, yet he stares intensely ahead at Josh, his eyes burning into him.

Josh moves first, running forward and aiming a punch for Blurry's stomach. Before he gets even a yard into his personal space, he notices something black from the corner of his eye, and he's on the ground at the feet of the man.

Searing hot fire blooms around his ankle, but Josh shoots back to his feet. The brown-eyed man easily sidesteps his second attack and grabs his forearm, launching him back with a simple push. His wings parachute around him, slowing Josh down enough to regain his footing and run forward.

He stops a foot short of landing a hit before Blurry waves his hand. Black smoke materializes in between them, swiping at Josh and knocking him into the ring's roped perimeter. Josh gasps, his chest burning where the black smoke touched him.

Smoke curls from the handprint burned into Josh's arm, and the front of his sweatshirt is singed. Blurry still hasn't moved a muscle.

The black smoke forms around Blurry's hands, solidifying and taking the form of hooked claws, flickers of the dark material flickering in and out around where they end at his elbows. His eyes flash red, almost glowing.

"What the hell kind of power is that?" Josh mumbles under his breath, digging his bare feet into the ground.

There isn't enough space behind Blurry to teleport to, but he has to catch him off guard somehow. Josh pushes off the ropes and runs forward, closing his eyes to concentrate. When he opens them, he's suspended in the air above Blurry. From there, Blurry looks confused, forming a translucent black bubble around himself.

Josh's wings tuck themselves between his shoulder blades and he drops through a small opening in the bubble and onto the shoulders of his opponent, dragging his claws upward from the center of Blurry's chest to his shoulders. He barely gets a reaction out of him, just a simple grunt, before Blurry yanks him off by his hood, shoving him into the ground.

"Surprise mother fucker!"

Josh laughs, an oof leaving him when Blurry shoulders him in the chest. He grabs his arm and wraps his legs around Blurry's neck, lifted himself up with his wings and elbowing his head over and over again.

"Stop! Standing! There! You! Fucking! Creep!"

Blurry digs his fingers into Josh's thighs. The sudden stinging pains stun him with his arm raised, allowing the red-eyed man to throw him across the ring, his limp body skidding to a stop. Josh can't move, he can hardly breathe, but the bell rings again, and the round is over.

Blood trickles down Blurry's front in thick red lines, and he takes a stumbling step backward, falling into his chair. Despite all of the damage he'd taken, Josh sees that as a victory.

The two return to their corners of the ring to recover, Josh finally regaining power over his frozen body. Debby runs up to Josh, holding a water bottle and a first aid kit.

"You got him good for a low-level fighter," she says, smiling as she sets up her gear. "We might just win this if you keep it up."

She pours the water on his face, wiping any blood and soot away. Josh slumps into his chair as she cleans his arm. The burning pain finally hits him all at once when his adrenaline drops. Blurryface has somehow burned through both his sweatshirt and Josh's muscle, getting nearly to the bone.

He has to clench his jaw and grip one of the legs of the chair to stop from crying out as she digs the sewing needle in, quickly stitching him up. That's of the perks of having a friend who's also a healer; as long as it doesn't detach, she can heal just about anything.

"What the hell is this guy anyways?" He manages through his clenched teeth.

Debby presses a large wad of gauze to his arm and holds it down with medical tape. He can feel it go numb as her powers go to work. "Oh, didn't anyone tell you? He's a Goner."

"A Goner? No fucking way."

With the powers everyone was born with came different classes of those powers. There were four classes of people: Morphs, Catchers, Goners, and Neons. Catchers are the most common, with Neons and Morphs being rarer and Goner nearly nonexistent.

Josh is a Neon. The atoms of his body are stupid and don't function correctly, giving him the ability to teleport and turn invisible. His wings and claws are just add-ons. Debby is a Morph. She's a heart and can see into anybody's past simply by touching them. Powers can also be inherited, which means she's got the quite hand ability manipulate the earth around her. And that's the norm for them.

The two of them are rare in and of themselves, but for a Goner to being in Columbus, Ohio of all places is unthinkable. Josh had never seen one before, showing just how rare they are, but a lanky mummy isn't what he expected.

From across the ring, a blonde girl cleans Blurry's not-as-serious wounds and readjusts his bandages to cover his body. He stares right at Josh, expressionless. His eyes are brown again, and the black stuff has disappeared. A shiver runs down Josh's spine.

"How am I supposed to win against a Goner with that much power and still? He could kill me before the second round ends," Josh says.

Debby shrugs. "If you can make a Morph like Vesperteen tap out in two rounds, then I have faith you can beat Blurryface too."

"You just want to see me get my ass kicked."

"It's a bonus," she confesses.

Josh snorted and stands, stretching his arms and back out. "Sadist."

The bell rings, telling them the second round has started, and Debby melts into the crowd. Josh kicks the chair off to the side.

Before the bell stops, Blurryface is already moving forward. The man moves so quickly that Josh doesn't see him until he kicks his legs from under him, sending Josh crashing to the ground. He manages to grab Blurry's ankle, pulling the man down with him.

From then on, the second round is a blinding blur of fists and scratches. Josh feels a flaming scratch graze where his right wing meets his shoulder blade and he shouts in pain, instinctively teleporting to the opposite side of the ring.

This goes on for God knows how long. It can't be any longer than an actual round, but it feels like hours to Josh. He knows there's more of his blood on the mat than in his body, but he doesn't care. All he cares about is standing his ground. Blurry's bandages are tattered, and he's breathing heavily. The crowd screams both of their names in equal excitement.

For them, this is unprecedented. Nobody's ever gotten this close to defeating Blurryface.

The bell tells them the second round is over is ringing but neither of them care. Blurry spins on his heels and goes after him, swiping and punching without landing a hit. Josh dodges each one of his attacks, teleporting again and again until he lands right behind his opponent, plunging his hand through Blurry's back.

A hurricane of black tendrils stab through Josh, shoving him backward. The man turns his head to Josh, the bandages ripped away from his face. He realizes why he wears them. They hinder his powers enough so he doesn't accidentally kill. Josh just signed his death sentence.

But the upside of no bandages means Josh can see the unanimously feared fighter's face for the first time. His eyes are red, and his skin is tanner than what Josh had anticipated. the corner of his mouth is bruised black. Blood runs from his nose down his lips, dripping down his chin.

"Oh, no," Josh says out loud. He's cute.

Before he can move, Blurry tackles Josh down and wraps his black-clawed hand around his neck. He doesn't need to choke Josh because the burning sensation is enough to make his vision turn black for seconds at a time. Josh kicks his legs, scratching at Blurry's arms and face.

Spider-like spike protrude from Blurry's back, stabbing the ground around him. The heat radiating from his power has Josh sweating bullets.

Blurry raises his other hand, probably meant to finish the job, but then the final bell rings, and he freezes, looking almost disappointed that he doesn't have the chance to decapitate Josh. He doesn't let go after first, instead standing up and lifting Josh in the air.

Josh kicks him square in the chest, leaving a bloody footprint, and scowls defiantly at his opponent. He can feel blood pouring from his mouth, but he's more pissed than afraid. His life is literally in Blurry's hands; he could snap Josh's neck if he wanted to. He'd proven himself strong enough.

But Josh knows he'd never kill. That's what the bandages are for.

"Stop fighting here," he hisses. "You're just a fucking kid. You'll die before you even get started. Get a job that won't get you killed." Blurry drops Josh and walks to the blonde girl.

"What's-" Josh coughs up more blood, pulling himself to sit up on his knees. "What's your fucking deal, dude? You challenged me. Why would you- why tell me to back down?"

The man shrugs. "I didn't think you'd actually accept it. Nobody ever does. Just stay down, kid. Give this up. You lost."

"I don't- I don't care if I lose. I made you bleed. Has anyone done that before?"

Now that the bandages aren't hiding Blurry's face, Josh can see his eyebrows rise in surprise. The bruised corner of his mouth turns up.

"Nobody's gotten close enough to try."

He whispers something in the blonde's ear and she hands him a small slip of paper, smiling coyly at Josh from behind him. Blurry throws it down on his lap. It's a business card.

"If you're not smart enough to quit fighting, then you're going to need a mentor so you don't get yourself killed," he says, grinning.

Josh, who's still trying to catch his breath, stares at the card on his lap. "A what?"

BLURRYFACE reads on the top in bold metallic red lettering, with a black matte name Tyler Robert Joseph along the bottom.

"You want to mentor me." Josh can't tell if this is a joke or a stroke of luck. Debby's screaming for him to say yes.

Blurryface- no, Tyler- holds a hand out to help him up. Josh hesitated before taking it, and the man sends him a genuine smile. He doesn't look like the devious, murderous antagonist Josh thought he was anymore. In fact, he looks sweet.

"What do you say?" Tyler asks, shaking his hand.

Josh smiles. "As long as you don't murder me in my sleep, I'd be glad to be your personal punching bag."