Gideon Brangwen stood alone in the eerie clearing, his senses overwhelmed by the surreal surroundings. The silver moon cast an ethereal glow upon the forest, its light reflected in the countless stars that adorned the night sky. Tall trees loomed around him, their branches swaying gently in the wind, creating an eerie symphony of rustling leaves. Distant sounds filled the air – the haunting howls of wolves, the deep roars of bears, and other unidentifiable noises that sent shivers down his spine. The short grass beneath his feet seemed oddly out of place in this foreboding setting.
Gideon himself was an enigmatic figure. With jet-black eyes and hair that appeared to absorb the moonlight, he exuded an aura of mystery. He wore a pristine blue suit, though it should have been marred by a bullet hole in the chest and splattered with blood. The outfit was completed with black shoes and perfectly pressed blue slacks. Despite growing up in abject poverty, at the age of 23, he possessed striking features.
As Gideon took in his surroundings, a soft, melodious voice sliced through the night, breaking the eerie silence. "Welcome to the Forest of Unending Night, Gideon Brangwen."
His eyes snapped towards the source of the voice, and he saw nothing at first but a dense, pitch-black smoke that shrouded the clearing. It seemed to writhe and twist, as if it had a life of its own. Gradually, the smoke dissipated, revealing a breathtakingly beautiful woman before him. She was draped in a long, flowing black gown that seemed to meld seamlessly with the night. Her hair was as dark as the night itself, cascading down her back like a waterfall of shadows. Her eyes, like twin pools of ink, held an enigmatic allure, and her lips seemed eternally curved in a sly, secret smile. Her skin was a pale, almost ethereal white, which contrasted starkly with the darkness that surrounded her. Her very presence radiated an aura that was both malevolent and majestic.
Gideon's eyes darted over the woman's form, his initial shock giving way to a growing sense of unease. He couldn't help but wonder if this was some elaborate trick or hallucination. "Who are you?" he demanded, his voice trembling slightly as he continued to scan his surroundings for any sign of deception.
The woman simply smiled, a smile that seemed somehow familiar to Gideon, though he couldn't quite place it. "I am Mirina, the goddess of darkness," she replied with an air of regal confidence. "And I am the one who summoned you here."
Gideon's brows furrowed as he took a cautious step back, his hand instinctively reaching for his chest where the gunshot wound should have been. To his bewilderment, there was no longer any trace of the injury. His fingers grazed over smooth, unblemished skin, and a realization dawned upon him. "You just killed me!" he exclaimed, his voice laced with irritation. It was a strange sensation, to feel irritation more than fear, but perhaps it was his years of deceit and cunning that had numbed him to more conventional emotions.
Mirina's smile only deepened, and there was a chilling edge to it now, a hint of something sinister that sent a shiver down Gideon's spine. "Yes, I did," she confirmed, her voice as soft and melodic as ever. "But it was not a death in the conventional sense. You have been brought here for a purpose, Gideon Brangwen, a purpose that I believe you are uniquely suited for."
Gideon's mind raced as he tried to make sense of the situation. He had been living a life of deceit and manipulation, scamming unsuspecting victims out of their hard-earned money. It was a dangerous game, and he had always known that it would catch up with him eventually. But he had never imagined that his end would come at the hands of a mysterious goddess in a forest of perpetual darkness.
Mirina's gaze remained fixed on Gideon, her eyes locked onto his form, seemingly relishing the myriad of emotions that flickered across his face. Her lips curled into a sly smile, revealing a hint of amusement as she spoke with a voice that dripped with an air of superiority. "I orchestrated this for a far nobler purpose. I required your assistance, and I couldn't afford to wait for the sands of time to claim you naturally. Furthermore, your existence in that realm was far from remarkable anyway; it scarcely even met the standards of mediocrity."
Gideon's brows knit together in a vexed expression, his temper flaring. "Has anyone ever had the audacity to inform you that, despite your enchanting beauty, you are an insufferable woman of the highest degree?"
Mirina merely emitted a soft, melodic chuckle in response, treating Gideon's words as mere entertainment. "You possess a truly captivating disposition," she remarked. "Not even the revelation of a goddess before you stirs surprise. Most intriguing indeed." She advanced a single step closer to Gideon. "However, let us be candid, shall we? You feel nothing about your untimely demise, do you? No anger, no sorrow... simply nothing."
A momentary silence hung in the air as Gideon pondered. "You're right," he eventually conceded, realization dawning. "What have you done?"
Mirina dismissed his inquiry with a graceful wave of her hand. "I've done nothing, my dear Gideon. It's intrinsic to your being. Your apathy is so profound that you shed all attachment to your former life the moment you departed from it," she explained, her gaze penetrating, her smile carrying hidden depths. It was as though she had known Gideon intimately for all his years, understanding him better than he did himself. "A vessel with a soul but devoid of the very emotions that define a true human being: fear, sentiment, love, empathy, and compassion... You lack them all."
Gideon stared at Mirina, his confusion etched across his features. She pressed on. "You are a machine clothed in flesh and soul."
Clearing his throat, Gideon muttered, "Is it just me, or are you subtly suggesting I'm a psychopath?"
Mirina countered, "Am I?" She paused, allowing her long, obsidian hair to sway gracefully in the gentle night breeze, enhancing her ethereal allure. Even Gideon, for a fleeting moment, found himself captivated by her otherworldly beauty. "Let me elucidate why I've summoned you here, my enigmatic avatar."
Gideon shifted uncomfortably, unable to deny the intrigue that had seized him. "Go on."