"You desire more, don't you? What if I told you I could give you power beyond your wildest dreams?"
Stan ignored the voice resonating in his head as he walked to work. this had become a regular occurrence. but Stan knew the protocol, accepting a deal from any sort of monster would get him fired and he did not want to risk his life as a Special Enhanced. but this monster was persistent. it had been bothering him for months now. and was seemingly undeterred by Stan's lack of acknowledgment.
When would the Enhanced Humans Association kill this thing? it's not like Stan lived out in the middle of nowhere. far from it. he lived and worked in Toronto. a city that has produced almost a dozen S-Ranked Enhanced. Stan had even reported this soliciting to the police. so it's not like no one knows there is a monster close enough and strong enough to offer humans power.
Stan pondered the possibility of accepting this thing's offer. it would be faster than waiting for it to get killed. and hell, if it's lasting this long in a city maybe he could make A-rank and just breeze through the low-level threats. Stan banished the thought. he had seen the safety videos and read about the incidents. accepting a deal from an unknown entity always ended in either the person going insane and having to be hunted down by the Enhanced or being brainwashed by the entity. on rare occasions, a deal can result in the person becoming a powerful enhanced with a unique power. but that's less than 1%.
Stan finally arrived at his accounting firm. the voice was being especially annoying today. never shutting up about power or desire up until Stan arrived at work. the monster never seemed to talk to Stan when he was at work. which would make it a great respite if it wasn't for his boss. "your late Stan! get to work!"
Stan's boss commands. Stan had a pile of paperwork at his desk. and sure enough. he was 5 minutes early like always. Stan had no idea what his boss hated about him. he had been a model employee for years. every day he would do mountains of paperwork. only for twice the amount to be waiting for him the next day. Stan had to be doing 3 times the work of any other employee and his boss had decided to pull his overtime privileges for 'being late'. if there was any other choice for Stan he would take it. but this was the only job he was qualified for that paid enough for him to stay afloat.
Stan worked the day away. hours fly by. it is nearing midnight as Stan has finally reduced his mountain into a simple pile of only 20 sheets. only Stan and his boss remained in the office. just as Stan was beginning to feel hope in finishing his work before today became tomorrow his boss dumps another pile of paperwork on Stan's desk. a tower that had to have over 400 sheets. Stan looked to his boss. panic in his eyes. all his boss did was chuckle as he went to leave. "Good luck Stan, I want that all on my desk by tomorrow. so you better hurry."
Stan seethed with rage. his boss was going to kill him with all this work. Stan was on the verge of assaulting his tormenter when for the first time. the voice spoke to him at work. "Wouldn't you love to put him in his rightful place? I know you've been considering it. just say the word. I'll flip the switch and all your dreams will come true."
a white screen appears in front of Stan's face. Displaying a message with the choices of Yes and No at the bottom.
Stan was clouded with hatred. he didn't care what became of him. he'd rather work for some monster offering him power than this self-important asshole that was intent on tormenting him. he let out a long sigh, whispering "Yes"
Stan's boss turned to look back at Stan as he heard him whispering. hoping to scold Stan for speaking back to him. but as his turn ended he was staring at himself. same clothes. same face. in the exact spot he was moments ago. "Wha- What?". he rubbed his eyes in disbelief. how was he staring right at himself. he looked down at himself. he was at Stan's desk. he jumped as he heard his own voice berating him. "Jesus Stan! stop looking around like an idiot and get back to work! don't think you can slack off because I'm leaving. I want those papers on my desk TO, MOR, ROW."
he scrambled. confused about the situation. but his mind was fuzzy. he felt exhausted and incapable of any semblance of rational thought. he watched himself leave while writing nonsense on the sheet in front of him.
Stan took a deep breath of fresh air. his boss was a smoker so his lungs were far from perfect. but this breath felt like the first breath of air you take after being drowned. the relief washed over him as he gazed at the night sky. another white screen appeared in front of him. congratulating him.
[Stats]
[Race: Human]
[Job: Accounting Firm Manager]
[Level: 0]
[HP 3/10]
[Strength: 5]
[Agility: 2]
[Stamina: 3]
[Status Effects: Lung Cancer]
[Skills: Berate, No-Empathy]