10 A contract with god

"Hehee~ That was fun! We should do that again!" The wind archon Venti spoke while chugging down a bottle of ale. For a second, I was drawn in by her….by his flushed cheeks.

…For a second.

"I'd rather not. You archons are overpowered."

"Now~now~, I wouldn't say that. You should be grateful that I saved your butt!"

"Gee thank you for doing something I do not recall at all."

"Hmm….you didn't notice? I saved your from being detected by your previous aggressor."

"The archon of cubes…?"

"Ehehe..that's a new one. I like your humor traveler!" The green hat threatened to come off as she….he leaned against the rocks.

"Well Morax did most of the work, but I was the first to find you so the credit goes to me!"

'All that preparation, and I still couldn't achieve the stealth I wished for…'

[Sir, I observed some tests through F20. It seems I am able to detect vision when it is in a rest phase, the properties however, remain unknown to me.]

'So the cube archon is probably always using something purer than vision'

[That is my hypothesis]

'Should I go for human trials.'

"Don't do it." The once drunk god got up while looking at me with eyes colder than ice. His drunk state nowhere in sight. As if it was ruse to let me get my guard down.

"I allowed you into this world hoping that things would change, but I won't allow you to bring any harm to the people."

"What things?"

"That is for you to find out." He leaned down to my face before poking my chest with his index finger.

"I've lived for longer than you can imagine. I know when a person is about to commit evil. I don't really care what you do as long as it does not hinder our goals."

"You won't let me get stronger nor will you help me get information…tell me one good reason why I shouldn't just abandon this project."

"…Why do you wish for strength?"

"For safety. My world has dangerous people. Corruption runs deep and wars are waged for benefits. I've already seen it all blow up in flames once. I do not want that to repeat again. Sacrificing a few for that goal is not an issue."

"That it correct, but why do you wish to only save humans. Do you not care for other species?"

The drone camera tilted a little in an animated manner to display the confusion I had.

"I do not follow. That has nothing to do with what I just said. Still…I'll answer it just for the sake of it. It's because I'm human."

"So don't lose your humanity for the sake of achieving your goal."

"…. Right. You mentioned the god of contracts. Let's make a deal. I won't do anything inhumane without your approval, I'll help you out as long as our actions or goals do not conflict with each other. In return teach me everything."

His eyebrows rose up upon hearing my offer. "You have to be more specific if you want to make a deal with me."

"Teach me how to control wind like you do." The silence lingered for a while before he closed his eyes and signed.

"Alright." A golden spark rose around us in a spiral as soon as he spoke. On one side of the helix, I could see my name and his. The other side stating our offers, unwounded before binding to our hands.

"The contract is complete. I will teach you once you decide to show yourself."

"I can come right now."

"No. I have other matters to deal with. It seems she is awake now."

"Who?"

"You'll meet her soon."

[Sir]

'Yeah, I saw it.'

"See you then." Saying farewell, I turned on the engines and headed towards Mondstadt.

"Barbatos the 8th spirit named among the list of 72 demons in The Lesser Key of Solomon."

[I suppose it would be foolish to accept myths as mere 'myths' now that magic is brought in our reality.]

"Yea. I don't know what his aim his, but a demon's actions usually bring destruction. However…"

[He wanted to protect the people]

"So either those people aren't people, or he needs them."

[He wanted you to refrain from doing experiments. So the former is more likely to be the case.]

"Or maybe we're reading from the wrong script."

[That is highly unlikely, sir]

"Veritas, do not rely solely on logic. The world runs on it, but only because it is a tool which helps us guide the emotions. Emotions give meaning to desire, and desire is achieved through reason."

[…]

"What happened to subject #1?"

[She is now injecting herself, her addiction has reached a new level. It is estimated that any further coercion will cause her lethal damage.]

"Such as?"

[Organ failure and Schizophrenia]

"Great! Let's meet her then."

[Exiting in 3…2…1]

The world turned dark once again and the feeling of my nervous system regaining its functions brought a weird feeling in me. It felt like I was stuffed in jelly whole, and just now managed to escape.

I put on my clothes after a bath to make myself presentable and made my way through the chamber on the 2nd floor. The green coat draping over the carpets made me feel like some story villain, which was a little embarrassing but I didn't show it.

Passing through the medical equipments and animal carcasses, I approached a room and opened the door.

There at the center lied a woman with disheveled hair. Her once bright eyes now lacked even the faintest of glow. A tube connected to a computer was coming out of her spine. The readings were steady until she heard my steps.