Contract

"Come, friend. We have much to discuss."

Corydon's body distorted, warping like a corrupted video, reality stuttering around him.

A blink, and he was gone - only to reappear upon one of the massive chairs, its frame twisting unnaturally, stretching to accommodate his towering form.

The shadow on the wall remained unmoving. Cypher did not.

His skin paled, flesh bleaching into the ice cold perfection of the statues he had made of some of his victims.

Then, piece by piece, he crumbled - his form unraveling into a fine mist that drifted with quiet purpose, weaving through the room before pooling at the foot of the free chair. It reassembled without hesitation, and within moments, Cypher sat on the chair unchanged, as if he had never moved at all.

Tap… tap… tap…

Corydon's spindly fingers moved in a slow, rhythmic pattern, tapping against the chair's armrest. The sound was deliberate, measured—pulling the silence taut like a wire ready to snap. He studied the boy before him, sharp eyes brimming with intrigue, his thoughts curling inward like a predator circling prey.

Then, the tapping stopped.

He leaned in, elongated limbs creaking as he folded over himself, his spine cracking in protest.

"Would you be interested in a deal?" His voice slithered through the space between them, low and serpentine. "I believe we both stand to benefit."

No pleasantries. No wasted words.

Cypher's lips curled into a paper-thin smile that hung on his face with an air of snake like cunning. It was the kind of expression meant for paintings, too perfect to belong to a living thing.

The shadow on the wall stirred ,it's beak tilting up and watching everything from behind a veil.

Prideful. Controlling. Whatever lurked beyond that abyssal wall moved Cypher's body with the precision of a sculptor perfecting his art. The boy crossed one leg over the other, resting his chin against his palm in a manner befitting royalty. Despite his youthful form, there was no mistaking the presence of a king.

"Why would I make a deal with you?"

It wasn't an insult, but the amusement beneath the words was unmistakable. However, it was not without reason, as The Man In The Wall was waiting for Corydon to play his own cards.

"You've realized it, haven't you?" Cypher tilted his head slightly, his gaze pressing into Corydon like a challenge challenge. "I can leave this wretched dimension whenever I wish."

A pause. His smile sharpened.

"Tell me… can you do the same?"

He snickered. In a conversation such as this, all that mattered was leverage, and absolutely nothing else.

The Man in the Wall had sifted through Cypher's memories, unearthing what the boy had only just begun to grasp. And like a dart hitting its mark, the truth had revealed itself.

Corydon. The others lurking within this Well. They were trapped.

Not because they lacked power—no, they were godly in their own right. But fate had played its cruel tricks, trading chains for chains just as easily as it had gifted them dominion over other things. The world was built on balance, after all. Strength was never without weakness.

But Corydon was not without his own cards to play.

"Tsk. Tsk. Tsk."

He tapped a long nail against the glowing green ring fitted neatly around his hand.

"Perhaps you're right…" His voice was almost playful. "But how long will this vessel survive under your influence?"

There was a brief pause in the conversation.

The thing in the wall knew it.

The boy had escaped his initial fate, yes - but at what cost? The Man in the Wall had saved him, true, but the damage had already been done.

"You're dyyyying," Corydon hummed, dragging out the word with something bordering on joy.

It was true. Had it been so simple to stand against the pinnacle of power, the Man in the Wall would have already made his move. But power always came with a price.

Cypher wielded something vast in its potential. But such freedom came at a cost if used without the necessary conditions being met.

Too immense was the power surging within him. A walking paradox like this would eventually be rejected by the universe one way or another.

His body would not withstand it for long. Slowly, inevitably, his flesh would calcify, turning to stone. Even if the Man in the Wall relinquished control back to Cypher, the clock had already started ticking on his life.

Fortunately, there was always a way.

And the method of salvation was resting upon Corydon's finger.

"I see." Cypher's smile did not falter for even a moment. "You want me to free you from this place. Maybe it's possible, but I simply cannot achieve this with the current restraints."

Corydon's grin widened, his porcelain mask glinting beneath the dim light.

"Make the sacrifice."

"You know that's not up to me."

With a sigh -deep and regretful - Corydon leaned back. A parchment scroll materialized in his hands, the air around it warping as if rejecting its presence. The ink had not yet touched the page, yet something had already begun to write.

Curving, twisting letters bloomed across the smooth surface.

Corydon watched with idle amusement as the script unfurled, elegant and deliberate.

"It's been a long time since I've written in Elvish," he mused.

The words continued to spill forth. A contract soon wrote itself under the will of Corydons mind.

The writing stopped.

The scroll floated into Cypher's waiting hand. Though written in a language unfamiliar to him, its meaning somehow rang clear.

---

Tether contract ~

Through a binding will, the contract nigh. No soul shall refuse, or hell shall arrive. Once this path is taken, no one will lie, or under the authority of existence, the liar must die.

Will of Participant: Corydon Le'fay

Condition One – Cypher will open a gateway to his own world, which may or may not result in dimensional collapse.

Condition Two – No harm shall come to Corydon's interests for the duration of the contract and beyond.

Condition Three – Any knowledge learned about the ~`BETRAYER'~ must not be withheld upon future encounters.

Condition Four – Cypher must not make any contract with entity 'Hastur Mutabilis Caligo' for the duration of the agreement.

---

"Aren't I fair?" Corydon watched Cypher read, his empty eyes never leaving him. "These terms are quite generous, given your current state."

"The condition of my vessel does not concern you, demon. Without me, you will never escape."

The snake-like slits darted over each line carefully before fresh words carved themselves into the parchment - this time in Latin.

---

Will of Participant: Cypher Ren

Condition One – Corydon must hand over the alchemical artifact of entity 'Elie Trent' upon opening dimensional gateway

Condition Two – No harm must be intentionally inflicted upon Cypher or his interests for the duration of the contract.

Condition Three – Upon initiation of the contract, Corydon must immediately return the Dragon Core to Cypher.

---

"Interesting." Corydon's irritation was visible, his fingers tightening around the scroll threatening to tear through it completely. He would have preferred the Dragon Core cast into the abyss, destroyed forever. Unfortunately, not all things went as planned.

Despite his reluctance, he nodded. "Very well, Cypher Ren. Let's finish the signing in Dreamspeak."

"Dreamspeak?" The Man in the Wall asked through Cypher's lips.

"It's the language I used to break little Elie's chains. Quite interesting I must say, in that it is concept made manifest through words."

Corydon hesitated for a moment, deliberating something before speaking again ,"I suggest your vessel grows in power before speaking such a language, or else it might just rip it's Mortal form apart."

The man in the wall waved a the boys hand dismissively, "I understand, he will be fine so long as I'm in control. Continue."