Of Dawn and Dusk

[Sh'ozak Ma'hk'null]

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The beast had crouched as the refusal was spoken, as if to pounce. It warped attention, demanding witness as the color of its eyes shifted from black, through blue and purple to red. Whispers swelled, panicked, the voices of warning. It bared its teeth, its jaws bisecting, fidgeting, and adjusting. It's chest reverberated with a slow inhale...

And it burst out laughing. The grating, mocking laughter that accompanied a beast that proved a point to unseen eyes. It dropped its false aggression and trotted a circle around itself. "And those [traitors] claim to [reason] with these [unreasonable] things! [Human] and [Schemer] alike will [deny] him his [death], and yet he [believes] in an [escape]. He [denies] the [chains] that would give him his [wants] to hold on to those [chains] that would not. What [irony], he that attempted [suicide] would fear [death]!"

The beast shook itself with a loud clattering noise as its laughter came to a close, and stardust fell from its scales. "Be [proud]. Out of all [Humanity], you are by far the most [human]. [Acausal] whims bereft of [logic], beginning and ending in [nothing]. You [stand] at the [pinnacle] of your [kind]." Where the stardust touched the water, glass grew and spread across the surface under the feet of the dragon, and it sat down. "There are no great [changes] that can be made to Our [offer]. We will not [wound] Ourselves to [satisfy] you. It would easily [cost] far less to [hunt] you than to [haggle] for your [wishes]." The dragon's eyes settled, but sparkles of mischief remained as it continued "Thus, in this [exchange], you have [won]. Your [prize]", it motions with its tail towards Harbinger, "awaits you."

Light begins shining through the glass in bright columns, and voices singing unearthly harmonies can be heard. The beast tilts its head inquisitively and says "You have [shown] Us something [important]. We shall therefore [reward] you. Lazurith. You expressed [disappointment] in his newfound [woes]. Do you [believe] he should be [offered] the same [deal] as you? Or would you [rather] his [death] be simple, rapid, and [final]?"

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