When the last breath of life escapes to nothing, drops death. The End.

She had confronted that devoiding hand, yet here she is, existing still, within this void. An infinite void beyond perception. She never thought of existence like this, nor had she thought to be immersed in the feeling itself.

She had never felt so insubstantial. Here, she is both blind and senseless. Pathetic. She extended her consciousness, searching for the impetus, the object that was both sustaining and locking her soul to this space.

She felt an eye approach. It was the constant of being under watch that allowed her to spot her observer. The more the distance shrank between her and the observer, the more obvious the change in the air became. Her vision slowly returned and whatever object was tethering her, encasing her, was also loosening. She was coming back to herself.

The observer, too, seems to be going through a transformation. Even the surroundings. Shadows gave way to the flickering spring dance of sparks, lighting up a humanoid outline; It brought to mind the legendary rebirth of the bird torched in flames.

"Mer of Wysteria End. Styl 917156 of Quantum. As per the contract, I am your partner and guide."

"Partner?" Mer tested her voice. No abnormality. "Is that necessary?"

Instead of answering, the abnormality turned his attention to their blank surroundings. 917156 muttered something indecipherable to Mer's ears and tall walls sprouted out from nowhere. They covered up the wide expanse of the unknown space. Soon, Mer and 917156 stood in a large chamber room. It was the perfect place to hold a discussion.

917156 gestured to the table, his pale hands designating her to sit. Mer took her seat at the head of the table, ignoring the scent of a storm happening outside. Sitting adjacent to her, 917156 threw a wary glance at the satin-covered wall. He could also tell that the area outside was beyond his control. So both of them decidedly chose to disregard it.

Mer briefly admired the intricate and classical interior of the chamber as she shifted her gaze to the piece out of place. 917156 was the palest person that she had ever come across as if both his skin and hair had been bleached of color. She was sure that no blood ran through his lifeless pallor, yet there was no doubt of his being in his animated state of being. His appearance and voice were both androgynous. Estimated to be around 144cm. His face is uncannily proportionate; the most divergent feature being his eyes with their golden pupils, the only hint of color on the otherwise blank canvas.

"As I've already stated," 917156 said, "we are partners by contract. Still, regulations require your signature to stand as official. This envelope should provide you with an explanation."

Mer received the purple envelope from 917156's hand. The sealed letter and 917156's indifferent expression reinforced the fact that he didn't see her as a threat. She smiled to herself and, without reading the letter, she extended her free hand.

917156 gazed at Mer's outstretched hand and the still-sealed envelope in her other hand with the same indifferent stupor from before. He made no inclination of moving in response.

"In the customs of my homeland," she recited, "a deal is verbalized with a handshake."

"Really?!" 917156 shoots up. "Ahem, I meant…"

He tried to look calm while hurriedly clasping onto Mer's hand. When they shook hands, a window popped up in front of Mer. 917156 waited excitedly at the side, with a sea of patience, for Mer to finish reviewing the contract. As hours passed, Mer finally reached the end of the contract.

The whole contract was conveniently translated into her vernacular language, more precisely she was able to understand the new foreign language as if it was her mother tongue. Undoubtedly, with more inexplicable things than acquiring a new language, Mer chose to prepare an open mind for her future outlook.

The final page had already been marked with two signatures, leaving one blank slot:

[917156] [Thel] [___]

Her fingers softly traced through the lines of the second signature, going down until she reached the space consolidated for her.

'Names have power. They are our identity.'

Her name was the first hint.

[Mer]