Nathan was floating in the void, listening to various distant sounds that disturbed his rest. His mind was foggy, and his body felt numb.
Surrounded by darkness, all he could see was his own body, as if it was unaffected by the surrounding darkness. His right forearm was gone but the other wounds on his body had healed.
Time passed, but without having an exact reference, Nathan felt the seconds as hours and the hours as seconds. Suddenly, several vivid moments began to flood his mind.
Vcansire was attacking him, but Nathan could move much faster than he had ever moved before. His own eyes could not even register such speed. All memories were soundless, but slowly he began to hear the conversation his own body was having with Vcansire.
'Orion... Demon?' Nathan repeated the most important things he had heard, then as he looked back at the complete darkness, but now instead of the void there was a large screen showing what his eyes were seeing, only Nathan was seeing it as if it wasn't him that was in his body.
Nathan saw the calamity he had seen in the dining room of the castle months ago appear, but he did not feel any particular emotion. He did not feel fear, nor did he feel the urge to flee, what he felt was pure indifference.
He felt his own body strange, powerful. But at the same time he knew that this was not normal, that something else had taken over his body, and it was all because of that mask.
Nathan realized that the being controlling his body was about to leave, then his gaze was fixed on Vcansire, more specifically on the silver bracelet on her wrist, almost hidden by the golden armor she was now wearing.
'Amelia...' His thoughts were faint, but then the being controlling his body stopped momentarily and Nathan felt as if it was communicating with him.
'Take it' were the only words Nathan could say to Orion before his mind clouded over again. To which the demon reacted and snatched the bracelet from Vcansire.
Nathan almost closed his eyes when he saw how the bracelet was once again in his possession, then a pair of arms embraced him from behind. He felt an unfamiliar but pleasant warmth.
'...Thank you.'
Nathan heard Amelia's faint whisper behind him. He always heard her in his mind, but this time he could feel her voice as real and direct as never before.
As much as he wanted to turn around and look directly at her, his body no longer responded, so he could only stare at the large screen reflecting what Orion saw through his eyes.
Orion stopped on top of the castle and looked at the whale, then he lost interest in it and began to fly towards the city.
Nathan had never flown before... like any normal person, so seeing the city from above was incredible, if not for all the destruction, streets full of blood and death.
Orion flew through the streets for a while, then Nathan saw a large mammoth-like calamity in the distance, but beyond that, he saw Faye, facing hundreds of calamities together with several government agents.
Nathan noticed that his sister was in a very precarious state, and that when the calamity struck, she would probably be unable to cope with it.
Suddenly, his own voice echoed in the void. "Hey kid, let's make a deal"
Nathan felt his mind clear slightly at the voice, then he asked. "Who are you?"
Orion was silent for a couple of seconds. "I save that woman over there and you do me a favor, how about it, do we make a deal?" he said ignoring Nathan's earlier question.
Nathan watched Faye finish off the calamity with a tense expression. "What favor?"
Orion smiled behind the mask. "Nothing difficult, I just want you to collect three masks like this one"
"Don't accept Nathan!" Amelia shouted as she continued to hug him.
Orion's smile disappeared. "I'm not talking to you, so keep quiet"
Nathan heard Amelia behind him growl something, but the words didn't come out of her mouth, still, he couldn't turn to look at her. He didn't like what Orion did to Amelia at all, so he hesitated to accept his proposal, besides he didn't know what kind of consequences there would be if he accepted.
"Three more masks? Are they yours?" asked Nathan, then he shook his head. "No, that's not important, what if I refuse?"
Orion was silent and looked at Faye, who was looking more and more tired. "I'm trying to make a good deal, you know. But I can also just force you"
Orion stretched out his one arm and opened his hand wide, where a black energy began to gather. Nathan couldn't feel anything since he wasn't in control of his body right now, but he could understand perfectly what Orion meant.
"You can stop, I get your point" Nathan muttered with some annoyance.
Orion smiled and lowered his arm, making the dark energy disappear. "That's the way I like it"
Nathan sighed and let his head rest on Amelia's body, who had stopped growling but was still alert.
"How could I find three masks I don't even know what they look like? It's a big world, it could take me a lifetime to accomplish"
"Don't worry about that, you'll find them naturally someday if you accept my proposal. That's not what you have to worry about" Orion explained, leaving Nathan with more questions than before. "So, do you accept?"
Nathan contemplated Orion's proposal for a while. Amelia had told him not to accept, so surely she knew something of the being that possessed him, but he knew that if he didn't accept Orion's proposal, then Faye might die.
'Why do I care about my own family' Nathan thought he had left his worries behind, but seeing his sister near death, he couldn't help but deny that he still held some concern for them.
"Ah, fuck" Nathan clicked his tongue. "Fine, I accept"
Orion grinned broadly. "All right, it's a deal!"
Suddenly Nathan felt a slight hot sensation inside his being, sensation which began to increase until he felt his heart begin to burn. He groaned in discomfort without actually feeling pain. But the sensation lasted for a couple of seconds at most before fading away.
"The soul pact is done, now I'll keep my part" Orion muttered before turning his attention to the mammoth that was beginning to move.