The Deal of the Century - 1

Temple of the Forgotten, Lanzsig. 4 months after Guildfall.

As Miko reaches for the gold coin sitting on the desk in front of her, something rumbles. Someone is watching. Feeling her desperation, a moment of opportunity arises. Somewhere, the lips of a devil curl up into a cruel smile. A voice cuts through the air, clear and smooth.

"Welcome, child. Please, take a seat. I believe we have matters to discuss."

Miko Tanner sat in a gaudy office, with cheap plywood desks, excessively bright lighting from some source in the roof she couldn't identify, and slick tall chairs with wheels on their feet made of some dark substance, oily yet solid. The floor is made of something resembling a huge rug, but with no sense of warmth. Outside, Mylmar and her companions wait for her, after Mylmar had...

He had awakened The Sleeping King. Or disturbed his rest, at least. The calamity that event promised was beyond comprehension. It was becoming increasingly clear to her, from her education from her uncle, that this was a shrine to the Dark Pantheon. A shrine to sin itself.

Her feet dangle above the floor. The odd chair-on-wheels is much too high for her, and she's a bit frightened at the idea of it rolling away, but somehow it doesn't. The back of the chair towers above her twin pink top-knots, and it seems she's perched precariously on the front edge of the seat. But her face is stone still in a way Breac would be proud of. "I understand you're honest enough, when you offer information as a gift. Perhaps we could start there. The Sleeping King has been disturbed. Can you show me...the damage? How many people are going to die because...because I couldn't..." Her face breaks for a brief moment before she settles herself. "No. They're going to die because of what Mylmar did. But also because I wouldn't kill my friend to stop him. I favored my friend over the people of Elanora."

Stepping out of the corner of the room is a direct mirror of Miko, identical in every single aspect bar the golden mask worn over his face. He sits down in chair opposite her and leans forward across the desk. "If you know enough to understand my honesty, you would also know that I do nothing for free. You are here to make a deal I assume? It is within my powers to contain this, fear not. You can save them through your decisions. You have a great opportunity to do good here. I hope you know what I am offering. Be a hero. You can save hundreds of thousands. Cities will still stand thanks to you." Though you can't see beneath the mask, you can feel the pleasure he is deriving from this conversation.

"A deal is on the table. I want to understand the specific terms. How many will die if I don't go through with this?"

"More than the number who will survive. Though...you humans tend to only care for life you can see. How to place this in a scale you will understand? Everyone you do know or could ever know would fall." The masked figure sits back and opens his palms, as if to invite a response.

The halfling gulps. That bad, huh? "Then let's define what happens if we deal. Just how far can you go? Can you stop...all of it?"

He brings his hands together in front of his face. And nods slowly to himself in consideration. "Not...all. But enough. The scale is too wide. This is your deal. What is your priority? Number of lives?"

"That's a good place to start. I'm not going to second guess myself here, and say children first or something. But I expect the same from you. No saving a million grandpas and leaving the world childless. Let's go by region. When you say the scale is too wide...you're referring to the veil thinning across the entire world, aren't you? So. Major cities. The Guild Hall, Eal, Pizol, Starport, Tanquary, Jence, Tokmor, Sulan, Tempus Fugit, Stoneshaft Hold, Na'Faish. Their surroundings. And then enough rural centers to give those on the frontier places to run to. Lanzsig, Tommington, Bonfeure, Faelor, Dorn, Maius, Exidios, Fargothia...you tell me, I don't know how far you can go!" Miko's voice is becoming...frantic. "As many as you can."

The figure looks Miko up and down, judging her worth. "Do you have enough to offer for all of that? It would be quite difficult. Let's cut to the chase. Your soul and eternal servitude. For that the major cities you listed can be saved. For that to extend further...well. I will require more. And that doesn't even begin to consider things beyond this continent. But even then...one life for that many. A very noble sacrifice. I can hold the invasion back a few days. Give you time to warn people and evacuate. But for that I will require an additional favour."

"I...I don't have more to offer. I'm not going to give anything that isn't mine to bargain with." That stone-hard determination is fading fast. Did she understand everything at play here? Was she just making the same mistake Mylmar had made? The same mistake...Whisper had made? That had led to Guildfall...and the death of her father. "What favour? You'd already have my eternal servitude, so...what would you make me do?"

"Thats for me to decide when the moment arises. I will give you two contracts. You can take both, one or neither. The first. I will ensure the major cities of Eal, Pizol, Starport, Jence, Tokmor, Sulan, Tempus Fugit, Na'Faish and Tanquary are unharmed, alongside the guild hall. In return I ask for your soul and servitude upon death. The second. I will hold back the incursion for the remainder of the week. Give you time to send warning to those outside the cities to brace themselves or evacuate. And in return I ask for a single favour, of my choosing when I see fit, while you still walk on Elanora."

She breathes deeply. Absentmindedly summons a psi dagger and flicks it between her fingers. Then meets Auxum's gaze with her own. Her stony facade is gone, she's visibly trembling. But in her eyes is something harder. "I didn't bring a pen."

The figure opens a drawer in the desk and pulls out two pieces of parchment. Holding their hand aloft, an elegant gold quill materialises in his palm and he quickly scribes out both contracts. His penmanship is meticulous, a work of art. He leaves two lines down the bottom of each page, signing one on each and then turning them to Miko, holding the quill out for her to take. "Please, borrow mine. I insist."

She takes the pen, and peers over both contracts. The possibilities of the favour run through her head - but there's nothing here stopping her from warning Breac and Wintergreen. If Auxum asks her to betray the guild, they would stop her. She takes a good, long moment to read through each of them, ensuring everything is as agreed. She wonders for a moment if she can convince Auxum to throw in a minor town like Sungwood... This was awful! She was thinking of trading lives here like she was at the adventurers equipment shop in Galleytown! Damn you, Mylmar, for making me do this...

She signs, both contracts. Before her pen leaves the paper, a voice cracks in her head. WAIT!!! She freezes. She's had nightmares about that voice for years. Ever since her father died.

Don't forget to dot the i on your name on the first contract.

She yelps. She had indeed forgotten that dot. She quickly corrects it, looks back carefully over her signatures, and drops the pen.

"Is everything ok? It's a little too late to go back now. Do not worry. My part will be done. What a brave little adventurer you are." Auxum stands and picks up both pieces of parchment. He folds them in thirds and places his thumb at the seam, a gold seal with a cartoonish devils face appearing to bind the contracts. "You best be running back to the guild, hero. Time is ticking. I greatly look forward to our next meeting."

Miko drops off her chair and scampers out of the room. She feels like she's just soiled herself.