"Ha! So here's the deal," the voice echoed, oozing with sinister charm. "I can give you a second chance, a do-over for something—anything—in return."
"Out with it," I snapped, my patience waning as a growl crept into my tone. "What do you want from me?"
"I need a favor," the voice replied, a chilling undertone lacing its words. "But that's for later."
"What is the favor—" I began, but my sentence was cut off.
"That's not for your knowing, Alex. You just have to be ready," the voice interjected, a smirk palpable in its tone.
"O-Okay," I stammered, trying to hold onto whatever little composure I had left.
With a malevolent glee, the unknown figure continued, "It's a deal!" The words dripped with darkness, the laughter that followed low and evil, wrapped in layers of mystery.
"What shall I call you?" I questioned, trying to assert some control in this unsettling exchange.
"You can call me Aldric Nightshade," the voice announced proudly, the name echoing in my mind like a haunting melody. "Now off you go!"
With that, he erupted into laughter—a sound so sinister that it sent shivers down my spine. Flames burst forth around me, the heat overwhelming as if the very air was igniting.
Pain seized my body as the flames licked at my skin, and I felt my blood beginning to boil. My heart raced, adrenaline surging mixed with terror. My eyes felt like they were melting from their sockets, the acrid smell of burnt hair filling the air as I screamed, a wretched sound that echoed into the abyss.
Agony consumed me as I writhed in the inferno, surrounded by a fiery torment that threatened to engulf my very soul. In that moment, I realized the weight of the bargain I had struck—power came at an unimaginable price, and I had no idea what was waiting for me on the other side of this hell.
But in that blur of pain and chaos, I held on to one thought: I would not go down without a fight. I would survive this, whatever it took. I had made my choice, and now, I would face the consequences—my fate intertwined with the dark whims of Aldric Nightshade.