PactBound

Absolute darkness enveloped Klein, a suffocating void that devoured every sense. His phantom heart pounded, a frantic drumbeat against the suffocating silence. He tasted bile, a phantom bitterness rising in his non-existent throat. He tried to scream, but no sound came. He tried to move, but there was no body to command. Only the void, pressing in on him from all sides, an oppressive weight that threatened to crush what little remained of his sanity.

This wasn't the familiar darkness of the Tovar Woodlands, where the night was alive with the rustle of leaves and the distant calls of nocturnal creatures. This was different. The silence was a physical pressure, a heavy blanket muffling even the faintest echo of thought. He felt untethered, adrift, with no sense of up or down, as if gravity itself had abandoned him. The absence of touch was a constant ache, a phantom limb tingling with the ghost of sensation. Existence itself had been stripped away, leaving only an infinite, crushing void.

Yet, within that void, Klein could feel a presence. It wasn't something he could see or touch, but it was there, shifting and writhing around him like a living shadow. It pulsed with a rhythm that felt both ancient and alien, a heartbeat that echoed not in his ears but in the very fabric of the void. The presence had no beginning or end, only an infinite, shifting mass that seemed to breathe with a rhythm that made his soul tremble. Occasionally, he caught glimpses of something more—a flicker of movement, a shape that defied geometry, a suggestion of form that vanished before his mind could fully grasp it.

Then, a voice. It wasn't merely heard—it was felt. A deep, resonant vibration that pulsed through Klein's very essence, a chorus woven from the echoes of time. A thousand voices layered together—some whispering promises of power, others chanting ancient incantations. And amid them all, one rose above the rest—clear, cold, undeniable.

"Hmm? Something has found its way into my domain?"

Klein's mind reeled. The voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere, as if the abyss itself were speaking to him. He tried to respond, to demand answers, but no words came. He couldn't even feel the presence of his own mouth. Panic surged through him, sharp and unrelenting.

"A human, no less," the voice continued, its tone dripping with amusement. "How curious."

"Wh-what's going on?" Klein thought, his mental voice trembling. He tried to focus, to discern the direction of the voice, but it was impossible. The presence was everywhere, pressing in on him from all sides.

"You are within my dream realm, little one," the voice answered. As it spoke, the presence shifted, moving around him like a predator circling its prey. Klein could feel it studying him, its gaze piercing through the darkness to probe the depths of his soul.

"A-and what are you?" Klein asked, his thoughts shaky. The sheer scale of the presence was overwhelming, and he felt like an insect beneath the gaze of a god.

"You are unable to see me? Interesting," the voice mused. There was a pause, and then the void began to shift. The darkness writhed and twisted, coalescing into a shape that defied comprehension. Slowly, a massive eye emerged, vast beyond reason. Staring into it was like gazing into a dying star—swirls of violet and gold bleeding into shades beyond human sight. The iris pulsed, layered like the rings of an ancient tree, each stratum humming with unknowable power. As it shifted, moving closer to Klein, it was as if it were swimming through a thick, viscous fluid. The pupil contracted, focusing on him with an intensity that made his very soul quiver.

"Ahh, there you are, human," the voice said, the eye never wavering from its gaze.

"Wh-what do you want from me?" Klein asked, his mind racing to comprehend the sight before him. He had heard stories of monsters beyond humanity's ability to defeat—massive dragons the size of mountains, demon kings who could reduce entire regions to ash with a single command, creatures that could shift the very earth. But this… this was something else entirely. It was beyond comprehension, a being that existed outside the boundaries of reality itself.

"You are mistaken, little one," the creature said, its voice a low rumble that reverberated through the void. "I did not summon you here. You found your way to me. It has been eons since a human sought me out, and you are the first to enter my domain. So tell me, what is it that you desire?"

The question hung in the air, heavy with implication. Klein's mind raced, but there was only one answer.

"My daughters," he thought, the words carrying a weight of pain and guilt. The memory of their faces flashed before him—Emily's wide eyes filled with terror as Lancer loomed over her, his claws glistening. Anna's small hand gripping Emily's, their voices screaming for help as they fled into the night, their cries echoing in the stillness.

His wife, Elizabeth, her hands glowing with a faint, silvery light as she summoned a torrent of wind, hurling Lancer across the room. The clang of steel as he met Lancer's charge, the searing pain in his chest as Lancer slammed into him. Her screams as Lancer's claws tore through the air, severing her arms.

He could still hear his own scream, raw with anguish, as he lunged at Lancer, his sword biting into the creature's shoulder. The blinding pain as Lancer's claws raked across his face, the sickening rip as they tore into his chest. The last image he saw before darkness claimed him—Lancer's glowing eyes. He had sworn to protect them, and he had failed. The void seemed to feed on that failure, amplifying it until it was all he could think about.

"Hmmm, that is all you desire?" the creature asked, its tone almost dismissive.

"Wait, you can save them? But they are…" Klein's thoughts raced. He would do anything if there was a chance—any chance—that Emily and Anna could be saved and survive. Anything.

"It is a simple matter for me," the creature said, its voice smooth and confident. "Your daughters will be saved. Their lives—long, safe, untouched by fate's cruelty."

Klein felt a weight lift from him, a fleeting sense of relief. His daughters would be okay. Not only would they survive, but they would be cared for and protected. It was more than any father could ask for. But as that thought settled, another crept into the back of his mind, cold and insidious.

"A-and, what would you ask of me in return?" Klein asked, his thoughts trembling. Whatever this creature was, it wasn't offering this out of kindness. No, it would demand something—something immense.

The creature paused, and the void seemed to grow heavier momentarily, the pressure bearing down on Klein like a physical force.

"…Everything," the creature said, its voice a low, resonant growl.

The word echoed in Klein's mind, vast and crushing. His thoughts spiraled. His name, his past, his future—swallowed whole. His very being, stripped away, leaving nothing behind but a hollow shell bound to this creature.

"Your soul is fractured," the creature continued, its tone almost clinical. "I will grant you a piece of my essence—a fragment of my life energy—to mend what is broken. In return, you will walk the earth once more, in service to me."

Klein's mind reeled. A piece of its essence? Life energy? He had heard of such pacts before, though only in legends. Beings of immense power would grant a fragment of their essence to mortals, enhancing their strength in exchange for service. But this… this was different. The creature wasn't just offering power—it was offering to repair him, to fill the gaps in his shattered soul. And in return, it would own him completely.

For a moment, Klein hesitated. His mind raced, searching for another way, another option. Could he negotiate? Could he bargain? Could he—

No. He had nothing left. No voice. No body. No choices.

A bargain with a creature beyond comprehension. Would he even remain himself? Would he still remember their faces—Emily, Anna, Elizabeth?

But his daughters were all that mattered.

"Deal," Klein thought, the word tearing from him like a final breath.

He couldn't see it but could feel the creature smiling, a cold, predatory satisfaction radiating from its presence. It had gotten exactly what it wanted. But did Klein really have a choice?

"Then the pact is sealed," the creature said, its voice echoing through the void. "I look forward to seeing your growth, little one."

The massive eye before Klein closed, and the void began to shift and warp around him. The darkness writhed, twisting and contorting as it surged toward him, consuming his body and mind. The last thing Klein felt was the cold, unyielding grip of the abyss as it swallowed him whole.

As the darkness consumed him, Klein felt a strange warmth spreading through his chest—a fragment of the creature's essence, mending the cracks in his soul. But with it came a cold, unshakable certainty: he was no longer his own. The last thing he heard was the creature's voice, whispering in his mind like a distant echo.

"Now, you are mine.