1 – Preparing for the Night
Heath stood in front of his mirror, breathing in deep, willing his nerves to settle.
Tonight was the night.
Bear Bash.
Atlas had been gone for a month, but something in Heath’s gut told him tonight was different.
Tonight, Atlas might return.
And if he did—
Heath would be ready.
His hands trembled as he smoothed his shirt over his chest. The fabric felt wrong somehow, like it barely clung to his skin. Or maybe it was just his nerves.
He’d spent weeks preparing for this. Weeks delving into darker rites, offering prayers, discarding his old self.
If kneeling before Atlas was what it took to gain power, then Heath would do it without hesitation.
He traced the sigil of Asmodeus on his chest, freshly inked that morning with a blade and ink mixed with his own blood.
He needed Atlas to see it.
To see him.
To know he was worthy.
But before he could leave, a voice slithered into his mind.
"Why are you waiting for him?"
Heath’s breath caught.
Daniel.
"You think he’s going to just walk into that bar, point at you, and hand you everything?"
Heath swallowed.
"He chose Tank, remember?" Daniel’s voice was smooth, sharp, pressing against the edges of Heath’s thoughts. "He’s already made his pick."
“No,” Heath muttered, shaking his head. “He just—he doesn’t know I’m ready.”
Daniel chuckled darkly. "Then make him see."
Heath clenched his fists. “That’s what I’m doing.”
"No," Daniel corrected. "You’re hoping. You’re waiting."
Heath turned to the mirror.
Daniel was there, standing behind him.
Faint, but watching.
"Let me in," Daniel whispered. "Together, we can be stronger than him. We can make Atlas see us."
Heath’s stomach clenched. “I—”
"You’re already his. His servant. His follower." Daniel’s voice was silk and steel, wrapping around Heath’s thoughts, tightening. "But if you let me in… we won’t have to beg."
Heath’s breath came shaky.
His pulse pounded.
This was it.
The moment he’d been teetering on the edge of for weeks.
He looked at his reflection—at Daniel’s reflection beside him—and the answer finally came.
“Yes.”
---
2 – Blackout
The second the word left his lips, something cracked open inside him.
A rush of cold air slammed into him.
His vision blurred.
His body felt like it was splitting apart and melting back together all at once.
Daniel's voice wasn't just a whisper anymore.
It was inside him, filling every corner of his skull.
"Good boy."
And then—
Blackness.
An endless, suffocating void.
Heath felt himself falling, felt the world spinning and folding around him.
But there was no ground.
No end.
No air.
Just Daniel.
Just his laughter, his presence, his will crushing Heath’s mind like a vice.
For a moment—just a brief moment—Heath felt a flicker of panic.
A whisper of oh god, what have I done?
And then—
Nothing.
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