Quoted By:
<span class="mu-i">…This has to be one of the strangest dreams you’ve had since you first started working in the cognitive world.
Rather than being somewhere like you’re used to, you’ve found yourself sitting on a pew in a gloomy church, rubbing at your eyes after a swarm of black butterflies engulfed you. You’re even in your normal, everyday cloths, the tan jacket covering your suit, gloves still on as you take in the surroundings.
Where the podium would sit, instead rests a grey stone gargoyle, blank eyed and unmoving. On the altar, a rotary telephone that appears made of bones themselves. A truly macabre sight, but not an unwelcome one, given your hidden job as an enforcer.</span>
“Excellent. I was finally able to pull you away while that <span class="mu-i">damnable thing </span> was preoccupied.” <span class="mu-i">A deep voice rings through the room, and when you locate the source, it’s… Not as expected.
A black haired man, dressed entirely in black, has somehow</span> appeared <span class="mu-i">behind the altar, smiling uncomfortably widely at you. Pants, jacket, turtleneck, even glasses all the same, sinister tone.</span>
“<span class="mu-r">Who</span> I appear to be is not important.” <span class="mu-i">His smile grows wider, and he beckons you over. A red flame burns on the surface, like something is materializing…
…Your own body betrays you, and you feel yourself standing up and walking up to inspect what’s appeared. A glance shows a… Contract.</span>
“Before our time is cut short, boy, be aware that the fetters of your sire are not the only ones on your soul. My… Rival and I have had a long running game, and <span class="mu-i">that interloper</span> has meddled.” <span class="mu-i"> The man removes his glasses, revealing bright, almost shining, yellow eyes that pierce right through you. The strange smile turns to a grimace, and he waves to the altar.</span> “Much as I hate to admit it, my powers have waned over the years, and I am being <span class="mu-i">forced</span> to use my rival’s system of empowering my champion of destruction to end this farce of a round. And a farce it is, since neither you nor my rival’s choice will be able to actually <span class="mu-i">enact</span> either of our victory conditions as it stands.
“What you do once I’ve freed you is, ultimately, your choice. If you wish to spread misery and madness like you have been doing as your sire’s crony, of course, I would be <span class="mu-i">appreciative</span>, but the consequences of your actions are yours to live with.” <span class="mu-i">He continues, gesturing to the paper between you. A pen appears in another burst of red flames, and he offers it to you.</span> “All I <span class="mu-i">request</span> is that you prioritize ending the interloper’s attempts at depriving humanity the opportunity to destroy itself. Nothing more, nothing less. Agree, and your yoke will be broken, and you can run loose as you so wish to be.”
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