Chapter 2: Bargaining for a pact.
_Chapter 2_
My breath hitched, burying into the depths of my throat. The voice had come right outside from where I was, it sounded like a man....his voice deep, rough and strong, his presence alone was overwhelming, talkless of how tenacious his voice sounded in my ears. After everything that had occured up until this point, I chose to ignore said voice and keep hiding under the bed till it went away, but of course...It didn't.
"Don't make me get you from under there," He paused to make some sort of low grunting sound, out of annoyance, then later scuffing out, "Humans are so troublesome.." The strange male voiced with a huff, sounding irritated and exhausted, already showing signs of being fed up with me. But to me, I've never met this person, nor could I wrap my head around why he is in my room presently, but I was seriously considering calling for help, or the police.
However, there was also another thing that was also bothering me, the constant usage of the word, "Human" as a way to refer to me. Is he trying to be respectful and not assume my gender right off the bat? I don't know, and frankly, I don't care, I want him out of here and out of my house!
Innocently thinking I could stay there just a tiny bit longer and overlook the person in my room, I felt something lace around my ankle, tug on me lightly, and then before I knew it, yank me completely from underneath the safety of my bed. Naturally, I screamed in fright as I was so disrespectfully pulled out forcefully from under the bed, being held upside down to the assailant. My vision was hazy due to the brightness in the room, it was dark under the bed, plus I had my eyes closed, so it's to be expected. It seems the lights had came back on at some point, but I hadn't taken note up until now. A lot of blood was rushing to my head, so it made thinking difficult, "P-Please...drop me…?" I pleaded politely, trying to take a glance up and meet eyes with the exceptionally tall figure, but it was too blurry for me to see, not to add that the reflection of light was causing some kind of glare, which in general was blinding. My eyes later left his face, ultimately giving up on trying to piece together the strange man's facial features, my vision still adjusting to the blinding light. Instead, I focused it on whatever that was holding me up, to find a sleek, black, scaly tail wrapped around my ankles… So, that's what grabbed me.
However, while I was still configuring, I was suddenly dropped, as I formally requested, catching a glimpse of his tail whipping in the air before wagging, slowly, but elegantly behind him. It was trance inducing.
I landed head first onto the floor with a loud thud shortly after release. It took me a while to recover from such a fall, the person who had dropped me clearly had no disregard for my well being, for he didn't bother to ask if I was okay or not, only standing some inches away from me in silence. I glanced at his feet then quietly clicked my tongue out of resentment towards him, before gradually traveling my vision to the opposite side of my room, away from him so I could throw all sorts of profanities his way under my breath as I got to my feet. After being able to get to my feet, and feel the immense pain and soreness that came with it, I groaned and glanced back at him, then upward. Because of his height, I had no choice, and once I had done so, I staggered backward and fell on my ass, becoming rock stiff and turning pale by the minute, my eyes widening in fear of what it had just laid it's sights on, as my mouth hanged open in disbelief...Could it be? Did I really summon this creature?...
I tried to form words, but they just wouldn't come out of my mouth, instead I sounded like this,
"I-i-...You...I..Worked?..Who..? Is you- Hold on.."
I quickly covered my mouth to stop the embarrassing train wreck of me trying to form a sentence, and just stared at him, befuddled and terrified. He was...A Demon! Most likely 6 feet tall, or maybe even more, dark skinned, horns, shimmering golden, tattoo-like lines, one in the middle, starting from the middle of his lip down to his groin, and other two started from each side of his jawline, from underneath, and lead down the side of each neck, tracing down his muscular, defined shoulders to his arm and so forth, stopping at the back of his hands, while as in the middle of his chest, I saw a golden fan like tattoo crest, as well as his face had some golden tattoos as well, like a face plate…? Mostly on the left side of it, as if it were a thick layer, while the other side was clear, no tattoos whatsoever. In the middle of his head, right between his potroding, golden layered horns, lay some sort of Runic symbol, finally to some it all up, he glared at me with those beautiful, deep seethed pools of golden orbs…. Accompanied with that mean mug of his, staring me down from above with so much disgust that couldn't be fashioned into words, his teeth gritted, forming a slight scowl.
We both stared at each other, but more of me trying to comprehend his existence as he had no choice but to, since perhaps...I was the one who brought him here? As I said earlier, he didn't look too pleased to have me in his line of vision. If anything, his facial features were as grim as the dark night outside my house, his lips pursed into a tight grimace as his eyes scanned my shaking, pitiful, underwhelmed, body. "You degenerate of a Human..." He hissed, with that amazingly powerful voice that caught and forced me to pay attention to him right away. He folded his legs, criss-cross, as he somehow began to float in the air, his hands crossed over his huge, bulging, broad chest, "...How dare you, summon me." His tone, blunt and unforgiving, but powerful and demanding. It was clear that he didn't like me already, and was dreading making any sort of arrangement with me. His demeanor as a whole was full of confidence, absolute dominance, sophistication and above all, arrogance. The large demon scrutinized me, as if I were some sort of foreign object, before scuffing and turning his attention the other way, gazing outside my window.
It left me bemused with bafflement at his obnoxious, degrading behavior towards me. I reasoned out that, if I was the one who brought him here, I might as well get acquainted with him.
"I-i can't believe it actually worked."
I mumbled quietly to myself, dusting myself off as I got back to my feet, again. I did my best to hide my excitement, but I couldn't help but break into a teasing grin. Could you blame me?! I had just successfully summoned a demon, I didn't even know that's what I was doing! Haha!
I was pretty proud of myself, staring at him for just a moment till our eyes met, causing me to look away out of embarrassment, his gaze was much too...Daunting. I couldn't properly meet him in the eyes. Fumbling over my words, I started, "Looks like it worked!...Ahahaha.." I would chuckled nervously, trailing off and occasionally glancing his way to read his expression. He was not amused. But, to be fair, I wasn't thinking it would actually work, hell I wasn't even sure what I was doing half way through it...Likewise, I was fairly amused to see that it did.
After a brief moment of awkward silence, for me at least, I managed to work up the courage to lock eyes with him, to realize that he had been sternly staring at me this whole time, "My apologies…" I muttered sincerely, shuddering at his piercing glare, "I.. Wanted to form a contract, at least that's what I think I have to do since I've gone out of my way to summon you here.." I explained, more or less confident in my words, my nervousness oozing off me. I was stumped, lost and groggy. Exactly what else was I supposed to say in this type of situation? He is a fucking "Demon", he shows no attributes of friendliness, his aura is as cold as the north pole, his glare like piercing daggers to the skin, as his voice booms with tremendous attitude. Not to mention, he has made no effort to hide his dislike towards me, and I'm still trying to figure out what I've done to offend him! Could it be...Likely due to the fact that I summoned him in the first place?...I can't really be sure, maybe he was in the middle of something and I interrupted him...I wonder if I can still get my money back…
Lost in my thoughts, I was brought out of my daze upon hearing a chuckle, a very dark and mysterious one. Turning to gaze upon the demon, we locked eyes with each other, and I noticed he was busy arching an eyebrow at me, as if mocking me and judging the things I had said, "Oh?" He hummed out in an amused manner, "And what exactly makes you think that a mere human like yourself can form a contract with a demon like me?" His voice dripped with sarcasm and arrogance, as he stared down at me with a menacing aura behind his bleak expression. However, out of nowhere, his lips curled in a slight smirk, possibly piqued by audacity. He really was just oozing with arrogance, this fellow. He then continued after a short pause, "If anything," leaning forward in curiosity now, "I'm more curious as to know how 𝘆𝗼𝘂 managed to summon 𝙄, the Great Runē, Destroyer of Worlds, Conquer of many lands and realms, Overseer and All knowing." As he spoke of himself in all forms of praises and such, his face lit up a bit, a small teasing smile playing on his lips, while as he gestured with his hands, glancing away from me for a moment to look elsewhere as he did. Then, he returned to me shortly, shooting me a deadpanned glare as he spoke in a displeased tone, his smirk seeming more like a sneer, He said in a dark manner, "Just, how did a simpleminded human like yourself managed to conquer such a feat?" He asked with a certain Interest, his eyes narrowing as his tone was filled with curiosity, but incredibly degrading towards myself. I on the other hand silently listened carefully to the demon, placing a hand on my hip, slowly becoming bemused by his arrogance and sarcastic comments directed at me. I ended up letting out a small chuckle at his words, mumbling to myself, "He's so full of himself" under my breath, and shaking my head at him. I found this demon named, "Runē", to be pretty intriguing, but also quite disrespectful, then again, This person was not a human and was a demon, for sure, and most likely a powerful one as he proclaims, so, I decided on the safest option, and that's was... to humor Runē a bit.
Slowly shaking my head at him, again, I replied calmly "It was easy," I said at first, before replying with equal sarcasm to my tone just like Runē had with me before, "I just.. went to a store that sold all those magical things, read a book that was handed to me...And you know, the internet has everything, after then, I drew this here summoning circle with some chalk, cut myself with that jagged knife, turned off all the lights in my room to create some ambiance. And bam! Here you are." I narrated as I pointed out to all the things I had done while gesturing at the same time. Some of those things weren't necessarily true, but he didn't have to know….
After I was done explaining, I folded my arms over my chest and swayed my hip to the right, exhibiting my own attitude of confidence to show that I wasn't rattled by him anymore.. at least above the surface anyway, he on the other hand made a bemused expression for a short period, before returning to his usual expression, the corner of his lip twitching, as if he were about to comment, but chose not to. "Now, about that contract…" I would inquire with a slight wince of the eye, the corner of my lip curving into a little grin. The towering demon stared me dead in the eye for a moment, his eyes narrowing slightly as he took in the sarcasm I had laid down in retaliation. He could see that this mortal, I, had some wits that he couldn't help but acknowledge. Although I had hoped to gain his favor, I quickly came to an understanding that it would be far from easy to gain this person's favor, his eyes were telling me that he still couldn't believe I was able to summon him, ridiculing silently with his demoting gaze.
"You truly are an interesting specimen," He murmured softly, shaking his head slowly, as if disagreeing with me, "Do you really think I would enter into such a contract with a mere mortal? Even if I were to find your feeble attempt at summoning me amusing."
With that said, Runē slowly lowered himself to the ground, since he was floating midair with his legs crossed, his feet nearly touching the floor, before floating gracefully down towards myself until we stood face-to-face. His golden gaze never left mine; it was hard and unyielding. Almost as though daring me to try anything funny, standing his ground fiercely. "Well, I thought demons are supposed to, regardless of what the summoner is. Am I correct? After all, the price is my soul, right?" I responded sharply, giving a reasonable and thoughtful answer. I watched him carefully, my eyelids lowering as I gazed up to meet eyes with Runē, Having the large man tower over me like this was slightly intimidating, I have to admit, likewise, it made feel a bit inferior, but I brushed It off and stared right back at him with a calm expression. In response to me, Runē scoffed, his huge body shaking with laughter. It was almost as though he found my words amusing, which I'm positive he did, and his words only made it all the more true, "You humans are all the same," He muttered under his breath before speaking again, this time addressing my question directly, "A demon does not need a summoner to consume their soul. We do it ourselves when we deem someone worthy or if they simply annoy us." He huffed, clicking his tongue at me, a small rumbling groan escaping the depths of his throat as he flashed a bit of those sharp fangs of his, unconsciously, seemingly considering my proposal, "However," He added after pausing for dramatic effect, "I find you... Interesting. And perhaps I could use someone like yourself in my employ." His eyes glinted with an unmistakable desire as he took another step closer towards my being, which caused me to take a slight step back, his body now almost completely blocking out any light that might filter through the window behind him. "Oh? Then I guess you'll make the pact with me after all and form that contract, Eh? Since you've taken an interest in me." I said with a small smirk, tilting my head to the side, I tried not to falter in my breathing as Runē was only mere inches away, the man was so big, and not to mention that he was a literal demon!...it was very unsettling for my poor heart, but I still didn't show my fear. All the while Runē's eyes glinted with amusement as he watched me smirk, but his expression remained mostly neutral. "Oh? And just what gives you the impression that I would enter into a contract with a human such as yourself, despite what I've just told you? You humans are so foolishly naive, those reasons aren't nearly enough to convince me." he proclaimed calmly, tilting his head slightly to the side, one of his eyebrows arched in question at me, his eyes staring me down quizzically. He stayed that way as I tried to come up with a better reason, till a cold breeze from outside came in and ruffled through Runē's dark hair, causing it to move ever so slightly, his features slowly scrunched up a bit, as if struggling to come to some sort of compromise with himself, but then shook his head instead, his tongue clicking and making a, "Tsk'' sound, sounding fairly pissed off by the idea, at least from my point of view. He then sighed deeply, "You humans are all alike," He muttered under his breath before speaking again, "Always thinking yourselves better than others." Then to my amazement, a small smirk tugged at one corner of his lips, at first I didn't get him right away, it was like he knew full well how much truth there was in those words when it came to mortals like myself, and I as a human will never be able to hold a candle to those notions, nor will I be able to change his perspective. I realize that now. But, I won't allow it to stop me. All my life, I've felt alone. No matter how many people get introduced into my life, it always remains bleak, lonely and depressing, no one stays long enough for me to cherish them, and I don't stay long enough to be cherished.. It might be selfish, but...But!...I want this demon, despite his arrogance, narcissism and self righteousness, despite his bad attitude and his somewhat apathy towards me, I still want this demon to make a contract with me, and so therefore!..."I, Yuki Obi, will make a contract with you, Runē, The great and powerful, overseer, all knowing and destroyer of worlds. I beg you, humor this worthless soul and make a pact with him, in exchange, he will do your will to the end of time, I won't go back on my words or run away!...So...Please.." I begged, my voice trembling under the weight of my emotions, I lowered my gaze a bit, attempting to hide myself and not show him my crying face, gradually, tears would from little beads, before rolling down my cheek. Sheepishly, I whipped it off, then glanced up at him with a serious look. He only would stare at me with a deadpan look, showing no signs of being moved by my display of emotions, I then clasped my hands together and pleaded with the demon once more, showcasing my sincerity and honesty, "Please.." Runē raised an eyebrow, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips as he listened to me, at first keeping mute before sighing and nodding his head, "You're a troublesome human. A different breed." He remarked with a belittling tone, but I could see that I had definitely sparked an interest within him. After a long period of silence, he nodded once again,
"Very well then," He replied coolly, crossing his arms over his chest and gazing up at the roof, and becoming lost in thought. A moment passed before Rune let out a soft sigh, his gaze shifting from the roof to the window behind him, gazing out into the beautiful, dark night.
"Alright. You intrigue me..." His voice trailed off into silence for several long moments while Runē contemplated whether or not it would be worth forming such a contract with someone like me. "But I must warn you now; I will not tolerate any disrespect or attempts at manipulation." He warned me sternly, immediately turning around to give me a stern glare, putting all the more emphasis in his words. He looked and sounded very serious, clearly he has probably been disrespected a couple of times over by humans. I'd like to find out more, but for now I think agreeing with him would do us both some good.
So, with a huge smile, I nodded happily and said with glee, "Yes sir, I could never. I come from a culture that would deal with me greatly if I disrespect those who are higher and older than me, so I wouldn't do such a thing! As for manipulation, I'm not that type of person. Promise." I chuckled right after, but he only stared at me strangely with a raised eyebrow, later rolling his eyes and saying, "A simple, "I understand" would suffice. You talk too much."
Soon after he said that, I bursted into a rambunctious laugh. I was happy, so happy. Why? I don't understand it myself, but I was glad that he accepted me…
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone