Caster continued creeping toward the skeleton man in mid-distance. Though it was facing his direction, the thing kept its head down.

Did it see me already? Is this place its trap? Caster wondered. I don’t think falling here was an accident. I bet that ‘water’ was a portal or something. It kind of looked like the ones he made before when I was talking to the Agency.

Caster continued his path. He stood straight up but stepped carefully. Anything could happen.

“Take your time, little legs,” the skeleton spoke.

Caster froze in place for a second. He hadn’t expected the creature to speak to him so plainly. It didn’t even look up from its papers.

“Is that a short joke?” Caster asked as he kept walking.

"Sure, why not.”

“Well, it didn’t tickle my funny bone.” As the words left Caster’s mouth he dropped through the floor and landed on a wooden chair on the outside of the skeleton’s desk.

He had fallen through a portal only to be plopped down less than a pace away from a grim reaper.

In one fluid motion, it closed its book and swiveled in place so that it now faced him head-on.

“Careful, creature. I am not your friend,” its voice deepened.

“And I’m not yours,” Caster didn’t even flinch.

“Naïve child.”

“What can I say? I was born yesterday,” Caster shrugged.

The skeleton narrowed its clay-like eye sockets, giving his octagon-shaped purple gemstone eyes a squinting appearance.

“You do realize I could use a portal to cut you in half right now, right?”

“Yes. But if you wanted to kill me, you already would have. You want me alive,” Caster folded his arms, calling the skeleton’s bluff.

“No. Your current being-aliveness is not because I want you alive, but because you may be of some use to me, and killing you now would be a minor inconvenience.”

“So, I’m too important for you to kill me. Got it. Why?”

“Does he not remember? Or are they not the same?” The skeleton mumbled to himself as his eyes wandered elsewhere in the massive void.

Clever - Knowledge is Power, Activated! +1 Arcane!

Caster glanced in the direction the skeleton was looking in, but there was nothing there but more bookcases. When his eyes glanced back, the skeleton was staring right at him.

“I’m Spooky. This is my Abyss. I come here every once in a while to gather my thoughts. You know, a little respite from all this nonsense the Agency likes to put me through.” Spooky’s voice lost its serious undertone and became almost casual.

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“I’m… Caster.” Caster eyed Spooky, his head slightly tilting in confusion.

“So I’m told. Well, Caster, I’m sure you’re confused out of your noggin but rest assured, I have answers to all your questions.”

“Why am I here?” Caster immediately asked.

“Let's… make a deal.” Spooky touched all five of his fingertips together as a salesman would. “The Agency wants you to become human again so you’ll regain your memories, yes? That way, they’ll know how you ‘got in’ their silly little simulation, and what secrets that precious grimoire of mine holds.”

Caster slowly nodded. “Grimoire?”

“The text that you stole-or rather, failed to return. It’s a long story, one you cannot afford from me until I get my grimoire back. Simply put, the offer is this: my grimoire for your memories.”

“My memories? Won’t I get them back once I become human?”

“Ha! No,” Spooky scoffed. “They’re all locked inside that tome that is currently in the Agency’s hands. Becoming human will only make you a couple of feet taller and give your fingers instead of mittens. An upgrade yes, but not what you seek.”

“You’re lying.”

“No. I may be an unreliable narrator, but I will never once lie. It’s just not in my nature if you will. But I’m sure you’ll find that out for yourself once you reach the next Archmage and turn into your scruffy-haired old self.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“I told you, this is the deal. The Agency can cry all they want about me, but you should know my beef is against them, not you. You’re a courier caught in the crossfire, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to shoot you twice in the head and leave you in a Goodsprings grave. If I were you, I wouldn’t trust them just as much as you don’t trust me. You have no idea what their true motives are.”

Clever - Knowledge is Power, Activated! +1 Arcane!

Caster was silent as he gathered his thoughts.

“So, you want me to get the book back from the Agency and bring it to you, then you’ll tell me my past?”

“Yes, exactly. Those fools cannot read the runes or decipher the powers inside it anyway, and if they tell you otherwise, they are lying. Only I can retrieve what’s locked inside it.”

“Then that means you’re the one that put my memories in there in the first place.”

“Yes.”

They stared at each other, and neither flinched.

“Why don’t you just go get it yourself?”

“Again, another long story you cannot afford at the moment. My powers, much like the Elder Gods, are highly limited outside of the depths of the Leng Plateau. It would be much easier for you to be a double agent, so to speak. That way you can simply bring my property back to me and I will return to you everything you have lost.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Normally I would praise such wisdom, but it is doubtful that got you into this situation in the first place,” Spooky chuckled.

Caster sat back in his chair for a moment.

Why does it feel like I lose no matter what I do? There’s no winning move. If I say no, this thing might kill me right here and now. But if I say yes, what would stop him from killing me later? But what if he’s telling the truth? Hell, he’s probably told me ten times as much as those Agency obelisks did. If I just play along, for now, I can at least live a little longer to find out what’s going on here. I can always cancel this deal later.

“Okay. After I become human, I’ll ask the Agency for the grimoire. Then I’ll bring it to wherever that place you said was,” said Caster.

“Leng Plateau. Far north. I’ll give you the details another time.”

“And if I do bring it to you, you will give me back my memories and not kill me.”

“Caster, if and when you do bring me back my tome, I will be so overjoyed I might just kiss you on your little impish forehead,” Spooky said with a monotone voice. “Besides, you are not and will never be a threat to me. I’m not Yellow King, I don’t just kill off assets and henchmen. I’m a professional with standards.”

Although his very presence was the definition of eerie, somehow Caster knew that Spooky was telling the truth.

“Is there an exit door around here or…” Caster looked around.

“Your friends will pull your body out of the water any second now. Oh, by the way, the next closest Archmage is in Boyerton-”

A hand-dug into Caster’s shoulder and everything went black.

Clever - Knowledge is Power, Activated! +1 Arcane!