Giving face (2)

The constriction which kept the 2 Moirai in place, had left them with no other choice but to oblige and start a conversation. Though this had turned both of them to be disgruntled and nobody of them was showing much enthusiasm.

It was to their dismay, that this detail was of no concern to the who had trapped them in their place. Said person, looked at the struggle in their eyes with much delight and a mischievous smile had formed itself on the face of the Moirai.

" You never change do you?" these words were directed at the 2 Moirai in front of him. The tone in his voice seemed to instruct and teach but the expression in his face said otherwise.

" After such a long time, one should have basic manners and honourable code of conduct. Though I find myself unable to see those traits in either of you. I do find that the lack thereof has become even more apparent with the passage of time."

A loud snickering could be heard coming from the Moirai who had been tasked with guiding the players before.

" Up until this point in time, I have respected our agreement. I have taught and guided them as I was told. I have taken good care of the human. But please do not think, I could be stopped by that little authority of yours:" The magic in the surroundings began to visibly twist around his body as he freed himself with utter ease.

This result did not appear to catch anyone involved in this matter by surprise as everyone still acted nonchalantly about it as if nothing had ever happened. None of them even gave off a little reaction. Even the other Moirai had regained his mobility by other means.

" Are you certain she should bear witness to our discussion?" A finger pointed at Laura who had stood silently at sidelines trying to comprehend what was taking place right in front of her.

" I do not think, that she does have the necessary qualifications to listen in on this kind of discussion. At least not at this point in time."

" I have deemed these 2 players worthy enough to listen to our discussion. They would get to know about us sooner or later either way. As for the rest, I have taken care of them."

The 2 players who were allowed to listen to the discussion, were Laura and Samantha although both of them could not even remotely understand the sheer magnitude of what was going to be discussed right in front of their eyes.

Neither the implications nor its content would become clear until their limited world view had been broadened numerous times. This fate was only meant for a select few but for those who have been selected by a God, it could be considered to be normal.

Far from normal was the fact, that a human was going to be the main focus. The extent of the situation and the consequences that this human would bring with him could never be fathomed. Only the host of the original Moirai had collected enough information about the human to even begin to understand him. Though he was not too keen on sharing this information.

After deciding to keep his mouth shut about this matter, he decided to start the discussion.

" This human is certainly an existence which I can not fully understand, even after spending so much time with it. After accessing its memories, I neither could deduce its origin nor the explanation for the strange state of the body."

The explanation was unhurried and spoken loud and clearly. Unlike his previous bearing, he had taken up a much more formal approach. While his counterpart seemed very interesting in the subject human, the original Moirai just nodded without paying too much attention to everything which was being said.

The problem, which the human posed, would disappear from his world with the other 2 catastrophes currently in front of him. He was all too aware, that the insect would not get any new knowledge out of that human. When he himself could not fathom the strange existence, then it would not stand a chance.

As intriguing the human might be, his priorities lied entirely elsewhere. The quota assigned to him had to be fulfilled, finding out about the human was only secondary. Especially after he had received such a good offer from his colleague. Letting go of the human was easily decided.

He had done his fair share, after speaking out several warnings, what followed was out of his responsibility. And what those 2 would do together, did not matter, as long as they did not follow through with it on his space.

After being in this position for such a long time, the decisionmaking process was not swayed by emotions anymore. He took pride in following the rules laid out to him by his superiors. Yet his treatment was similar to the one his colleague received, who was the exact opposite of his.

He did not follow the rules, nor did he show any respect or humility. He just did what he pleased. How he still had managed to keep his task, was inexplicable to Observer. If he were to speculate, he would say, that the quality of his seeds had sunken even further leaving him with so much freedom.

The only logical consequence would have to be that he has simply being given upon. He did not know much about the territory under the supervision of his colleague, but he was certain that its prospects were less than stellar. What he was trying to achieve by bringing the human and the insect back with him was not something he could imagine.

Their combination was too unpredictable and could not solve the lack of talent, which must have plagued his colleague. But it was not his job to take care of the other seeds, he was already preoccupied with taking care of his own seeds.

As for the discussion itself he had planned on letting it develop and would only intervene if these 2 would forget their manners once more. Though the first warning has sufficed to deter these 2 from quarrelling.

" Despite not being able to determine the origin of the human, I made some valuable discoveries. For instance, the visage I am about to show you will depict the average human." The ugly face of Moirai turned into a face made out of jade, which would make millions of girls jealous. It turned from the epitome of ugliness to a face full of beauty. He had become the model, the original Moirai had seen in his head.

This supermodel celebrated his unofficial debut in this foreign world under rather dubious circumstances. Especially since he now had been dubbed the average human being. The 2 players present looked at their "ancestor" with great interest.

Although they could barely follow the previous discussion, they easily managed to understand, that they were to witness the appearance of a human. They told themselves, that it must have been related to a rare event taking place in the simulated world. Otherwise, all of this would not make any sense to them. Something they clearly needed after their world view had started to crumble over and over again.

That is why they tried their best to be attentive and to take in as much as they could. Because all of this had to be related to a quest and they were not foolish enough to miss out on any detail. Such a misinterpretation was the result which was born due to the strange events which always took place once Moirai had been involved.

Moirai had always been surrounded by the unordinary and seeing something normal around him would be a much more peculiar sight. Looking at the average human appearance was by no means something, which could not happen when Moirai was involved.

The distinct look of the new Moirai gave off a weird vibe. They knew all too well what this Moirai had been capable of but his current physical state appeared to be less than threatening. Gone were the brutal aura and the ugly countenance and in its place was the image of a beautiful man.

A clash like this was highly confusing to those who had become accustomed to the vastly different previous look. It certainly did not help them that the Moirai had decided to switch once again. This time he had taken the form of a beautiful girl with shoulder-long black hair. Her gaze seemed noble and aloof.

Equipped with lofty ambition her eyes were only directed at the sky not looking at anything beneath it. They were looking at the female human but could not meet her sight. With a smile on her face, she looked at everyone but her eyes did not give off any warmth.

Yet once again the visage changed and it became an old man who stared sternly at them. The aura of aloofness changed into one of experience and wisdom. The skin from spotless to wrinkly, the hair fo a short greyed out hair.

This old man did not appear frail despite the visible traces time had left on his face. Unlike his age, the feeling he is given off were far from sickly and weak. A strong vigour and self-confidence formed the man, which had appeared right in front of their eyes.

This situation did only last for an instant before the face changed another time. Face after face appeared depicting all kinds of different humans, from young to old from healthy to sick, from men to women. No face repeated itself as everyone saw the different portrays of humans in all stages of life.

" This creature, known as a human hides behind many different faces but at its core, they all share the same fate. None of them has any redeeming qualities. Their behaviour and manners can not be considered more than lacklustre judging our worlds customs. The state of their culture is archaic and barbaric in comparison to ours. With no magic, such a lack of development is only logical."

With his everchanging face, he looked into the surroundings to witness the reactions to his words. Witnessing the stoic expressions on the 2 other Moirais, he continued his speech with an assured smile.

" A human is a powerless being. Even the weakest magician would be able to best a human effortlessly. The same applies to those who you refer to as monsters. It would be hard to find something a human could win against on their own. This is not a place for weak humans."

" Whatever benefit a human might have, can not outweigh their innate uselessness. While this particular human certainly is interesting, I do doubt, that such an existence would pose any danger whatsoever." He concluded his analysis with the same smile he had worn during his monologue as he returned to his first handsome appearance.

" My, my, you do seem very doubtful Mr Observer. I am certain that I did not speak any falsehoods. Those would be of no use against you either way."

The Observer only shook his head after hearing the teasing voice of the troublemaker. The label of "interesting human" was concerning enough in its own right. This was not due to the subject it had been addressed with, but rather from the one who had given this evaluation. He pondered what qualifications this human might have to deserve that level of attention.

It was hard to fathom, what else this human might offer to someone who had lived for countless years by now. Although it would not be under his supervision, he could not help but feel a headache coming up from the trouble that started to brew right in front of him. Why did it always end the same once that insect became involved?

" Just be mindful not to treat the path, that let you be trapped in this place. Whatever aspirations you might have, be aware, that they will not turn a blind eye to your actions. Remember this is not your freedom."

Heartfelt laughter could be heard coming from the other Moirai, who had not spoken outside of the previous quarrel.

" What a shameful display in front of our dear guests. There is no need to make this matter so ambiguous. It is rather simple. I will grant him the freedom he seeks and this grumpy fellow will bear no repercussions. Every other detail is unnecessary. As for me, I just want to ask you, my beautiful children chosen by the Gods, would you mind following him?"

" Know your Place." Although these words were spoken in a calm manner a formless pressure started to surround everything. It was the first time the 2 players came into contact with something like this.

" I would advise from testing my patience again, especially if you are still within my domain. It would be in your best interest not to test me in that regard. Otherwise, excuse me for being rude. "

" That depends, do you have the ability to do so? if you want me to do something, make me."

The tension in the air was palpable, as a conflict seemed inevitable. Yet, the handsome model looked at them with an annoyed expression for the very first time.

" Have you forgotten? You are not my captors only my "Guardians" and as such, you should act. DO NOT forget where your priorities lie. Else, it will be the least of your worries, who is the stronger between the two of you. Because you two should be aware of how truly scary it can become, once they become involved."

Both of the other Moirais turned around and gave more than a stern gaze directed at the one who had clearly talked down to them.

" You decided to become one with that lowly human. Your judgement is irrelevant. As for you, who thinks too highly of himself, are you certain that you have the strength to back up that claim of yours? I will gladly teach you about our disparity."

Admits the provocations a female voice resounded and began to draw all of the attention to the speaker. who dared to utter words in their presence.

" I do not think, that an argument is helpful for anyone. I do suggest, that we should focus on the main discussion in order to avoid a confrontation without any purpose " This proclamation came from Laura, who held her head up high. She had come to the conclusion, that she had to intervene.

Given her role as a player, she thought that those NPCs would value her wise words and see the error in their ways. All of this would result in them respecting her even more for her wise insight, leading to the next stage of the quest with her in an important role.

Though this misconception has led to her raising her voice to beings that are not used to such treatment. Baffled by the gall of the player they found themselves unable to find a suitable reply to those words.

Though Laura falsely interpreted this silence as an acknowledgement of her points. She continued to speak self-assured as it would not take much more to convince the NPCs who had stopped arguing after hearing her words.

" Such arguments are childish and unbecoming of people like you. I implore you to act in a manner befitting of your status."

Another brief period of silence ensured after these words had left her mouth but this time around genuine laughter escaped from the lips of the handsome version of Moirai.

" This becomes truly more and more interesting. It is the first time for me to be given the label of a child, the same certainly can be said about these 2. I am unsure whether I would label those words of you brave or foolish."

"But I have taken a liking to these kinds of fools. Best be aware though, that this is not leniency, this is rather my personal goodwill. Others might not react all too well and the consequences would be rather dire."

Laura seemed perplexed by such a reaction as she stood there contemplating how to react. Samantha did not fare any better as her mind had begun to spun ages ago, as she could not find any logical explanation to everything.

The original Moirai seemed unperturbed as he turned to the Moirai who was destined to become his next supervisor " Shall we?". The question was answered with a short nod as both of them turned around and started to leave the scene. With a snap of his fingers, space began to twist and a portal appeared right close to them.

" As for you two, who have been garnered a Gods attention on them, I have to thank you for providing me and the human with a good experience in our little battle. To return the favour, I will give you some advice you should cherish."

Both of them began to focus on the figure, whose back was directed at them.

" in the near future, you will see things you never deemed possible. In this vast world, it is your duty to forge your own destiny. You will encounter many great dangers and meet many new faces. But never forget about the danger that ignorance poses."

Saying these words he walked into the portal leaving behind one happy Moirai and 2 confused onlookers, who did not truly understand the last piece of advice given to them.

The original Moirai had involuntarily changed after coming into contact with the human. Otherwise, a being of his calibre would never have given others advice. He would rather have done something to accelerate their misfortune and rejoiced about this fact.

But as it turned out, this change cannot necessarily be regarded as positive, since the origin of this change is not exactly a model of morality.