The horror wearing the flesh of a man smiled wider at me... unnaturally wide. My body could not stop shivering in his presence but I didn't look away from him. Something inside told me that if i faltered here I would lose out on a singularly unique opportunity so I steeled myself and kept eye contact for what seemed like an eternity but was just a mere moment. Suddenly he burst into laughter. Terrifying, guttural laughter that would be impossible to produce from a normal human body. The too wide smile split as his head was thrown back in jubilation and madness, a tongue more akin to a tentacle could be seen inside the mouth as the horror laughed before finally being concealed within as he regained his composure. The tentacle tongue now looked like a normal one and the mouth decrease back to a normal size as he started to speak.
"You, kid, are a treat. Not many can stare into the eyes of madness and come out unscathed. In fact, most would have scattered their own existence the moment they saw my form exit the rift. I am truly intrigued. So, why might you have called upon me? You already have a patron, this is quiet a curious situation." He looked between me and the goddess waiting patiently for us to recover from his entrance and presence, apparently used to the effects he had upon lesser beings. I was trying furiously to bring my mind back into some semblance of order so that I could formulate a response but it was proving incredibly difficult as it spun from the reality of the situation. He had said I came out unscathed but it felt like anything but, as if a stiff breeze could blow me away into dust, i guess we had different understandings of the word unscathed. Thankfully the goddess recovered and provided me with just the stuff I needed to snap things back into place. A nice big dose of fury. I had been disappointed in my goddess before but the next words out of her mouth changed the disappointment into rising rage.
"You are not needed here Old One." She had a tone of respect but was inflating herself with a somewhat pompous air. Like a spoiled child trying to show off in front of their parent. "This child here was just overwhelmed by the situation he was in and called for you in jest. I am sorry to inconvenience you. He has been a devout follower of mine for his entire life and we were just about to send him into another life to have a new start, everything is good here. Now come here child, your piety is appreciated, I look forward to more in the future but I do advise against any further foolish outbursts and wish you the best of luck in your new life." She beckoned imperiously and I felt a pressure on my mind, attempting to push me towards her while keeping my silence, to accept her hand and new life she wanted me to take. I had been following her speech and it helped sort my fragmented mind as rage began to grow inside giving me something to latch onto and restructure. Overwhelmed by the situation? Not even close. Definitely overwhelmed by Cthulhu but that was entirely unrelated. A devout follower? Yes. My whole life, from beginning to end, and it got me nothing but more despair. And what is this bullshit about just about to start a new life? I agreed to nothing, why the hell would I want to live another life like the one I just left? You are putting words into my mouth that have no business there. You want more of my devotion, more piety? I'd rather not. Foolish outburst? FOOLISH OUTBURST? I asked valid questions and you gave me useless drivel. And now. NOW, YOU TRY TO FORCE MY OBEDIENCE AND SILENCE?!?!?! The rage finally reached a breaking point as I was forced to take a step towards her. Then I burst.
"FUCK YOU AND DAMN YOU TO THE ABYSS!!!" My body started to pumping with rage and gaze of near hatred leveled at her causing her to recoil and her arm to drop. She flushed in embarrassment and anger made it's way onto her face. The pressure upon me that had been forcing me to move and remain silent doubled on my but rolled of easily as the rage built again. Just as I was about to curse at her again a cough resonated through the void around us. I was shaken and turned towards Cthulhu who had made the sound but thankfully while looking at him caused my emotions to fray a little I was able to maintain most of my clarity this time. He looked as if he had reached the end of his patience and even had a slight tinge of anger upon his face, thankfully it was not directed at me but at the goddess across from me. The goddess upon seeing anger on his face nearly crumbled to the ground. Angering an Old God was to be avoided at all costs, in most cases it was more preferable to end your own existence than to suffer their wrath. Their might knew no bounds and their vengeance spanned all eternity, the only saving grace provided to the younger gods was the strict rules that bound their elders.
"You think me a fool Persithi? That I cannot distinguish between the braying of an idiot and the true call of one seeking me? You even try to force your devoted into accepting you right before me? To break the rules in front of an Old God, the High Priest no less. You are truly daring." His voice started gently and fit his form as a man but gradually began reverberated and grate as it resumed the abyssal and guttural tone from when he first arrived. Only this time anger was evident within and it shook the very fabric of reality around them. His form remained as a man but spectral tentacles just barely noticeable at the edge of sight twitched in irritation. "I gave you a chance to explain and you threw it away so now I shall discover it myself." Two tentacles broke out of the edges of sight, coming into focus and gaining a slight hue of physicality. Cthulhu turned to me as one of the tentacles started to encroach.
"I apologize for this youngling, you shall feel great discomfort for a moment." The tentacle made contact with my forehead and a splitting pain shot through me as my life from birth to death and the short time afterwards flashed by. A massive amount of discomfort dazed me for a moment and then cleared up as the tentacle parted from me, as if it had pulled away the disorientation with it. I looked over to see a much different scene happening to the goddess. Rather than discomfort it would be more appropriate to describe the look on her face as extreme agony. Apparently he had been incredibly gentle with me or was being intentionally rough with her, a feeling told me that it was both. Note to self, angering an Old God is not recommended. After several moments of what must have been unfathomable pain the other tentacle pulled away from the foolish goddess and she collapsed to the ground, quivering and retching before standing unsteadily, eyes going in and out of focus.
Cthulhu turned to me, completely ignoring the staggering goddess. "So you resent the life you lived. Everything you worked so hard for turned to ash or worse it stabbed you when it was done with you. Through everything you remained devoted to your goddess and even in death you were let down. Unsatisfactory answers covering laziness and worse, disdain for lower lifeforms. She presented you with an almost identical life to the one you just went through and expected you to leap at the chance, conveniently glossing over the promises made by her church in her name. Promises she should be bound to keep especially to one so pious. Then when you called her on it, and called to me, she had the audacity to try and force you to accept what is little more than another life of servitude to her right before me. Hmph, they are becoming lax in their dealings and it may be time to remind them of the rules." He pondered for a moment and took a glance at the unstable goddess before looking back to me "I will give you a couple of options to proceed and the choice will be yours. Choose wisely for you will not get a second chance from me after this. First option, you accept your goddess' plan for you. Serve her and hope that she will take better care of you in the future. Second option, much like the first, you will be reborn in another world. Beholden to no god and free to forge your own path, no interference from gods unless you seek them out and start to worship one on your own. Third and final option, you accept an Eldritch Heritage." The goddess gasped and fell again as he said this, earning her another glare from the Old One that cowed her back into silence.
"This last one is special. You defied a goddess. One you had devoted a lifetime to even. It takes a certain fortitude of soul for a mortal to do such a thing. On top of that you looked into my eyes and continue to do so without fraying into nothingness. This has evoked my curiosity and I'm sure the intrigue of several of my relatives. So I give you the chance of a remaking. I will take your soul and shred it, then infuse it with an Eldritch Heritage, before reforging you into a completely new being. You will never be human again, though you will have a very similar form. You will never bow to the will of a god again lest you wish it. You will live your life or lives along your own unique path to realizing your Eldritch Aspects. You may even be able to reach godhood should you strive hard enough. But I will warn you just this once. This final choice is a deadly one. The process is one of pain beyond measure and not to be taken lightly. If you are not strong enough to survive the process you will dissipate into nothingness, and it will take eons to fully dissipate, there is no saving you once you fail. Now choose youngling and do not regret."
I looked towards the stunned goddess on the ground. Serving her for nothing... Not ever again. Wandering alone and as Cthulhu hinted eventually having to bow to another god lest I halt in my journey. Also not the life I wish to live. I looked back into the eyes of madness. The last option, while not being directly bound to the Old Gods, I assume they would have some sort of influence on me. But he did not try to hide it, openly stating his and others curiosity. He also did not hide the changes or risks involved. I could tell that he wanted me to chose the final option and he didnt try to conceal his desire. A smile appeared on my face as I made quiet the easy decision. Staring straight into his eyes I let the madness seep into me, I had a feeling I would need a bit to survive what was to come.
"I chose the Eldritch Heritage." As soon as the words left my mouth the now familiar chuckle echoed around the void and the smile widened into its grin that was too big for his face. Then I was shattered into countless pieces, unaware of my surroundings until the next time I would wake.....or never.