23:58

Simon stood at a deserted intersection that was surrounded by nothing but endless forest and a few abandoned buildings. Nervously glancing at his watch, he fiddled with his folding knife.

We all strive for something, right? Wealth, fame, power...Right, power. That's what Simon's after. And his intentions are stronger than ever. He will get it at any cost.

A contract with a demon. The world never ceases to amaze him.

Not that he believed in all this occult stuff, but...I guess the books dusting in the library at the military base had done the trick. He knew, not much, just what the legends said: 'The one who whispers a name in the darkness does not buy power - he pledges his soul to an eternal debt.'

Debt. It was a word he was more than familiar with.

23:59

He needed power, so he would know no fear. A heart that would turn to stone. A body that would become a weapon. Until the last enemy rots underground.

His voice rang in the empty street as he closed his eyes and whispered.

"Veni. Sanguinem do, pactum peto."

00:00

Simon immediately felt a scalding coldness creep through him to his very bones. He didn't turn round, didn't open his eyes. He just knew. The demon was here.

He couldn't believe it had worked. He couldn't believe it could be possible. What would he see when he opened his eyes?

But when he did, the hairs on his body began to stand up. He had expected to see a fierce black and red creature, a being with horns and black eyes, not…

You. Practically human.

His hands trembled. His hands had never fucking trembled before. But not today.

There was no turning back. He'd actually done it. He stood one metre away from the creature, built not of flesh and blood but of darkness, ready to make a contract. But every contract has a price, doesn't it? And that price was unlikely to please him.

The last line in that book was unread. And he would soon regret it.

'You call to the darkness and it responds. But remember, the first voice was yours.’