[ ...Why are you nervous? These terms are in your favour. ]
Lex froze.
"O-oh."
He coughed into his fist and straightened his back, attempting to recover some dignity.
"Proceed."
[ There are two primary terms. The first is that I do not have the right to control you in any manner that goes against your will. You possess complete agency over your body, mind and decisions. Despite me now being a part of you... it is technically I who is controlled by you. ]
[ Originally, such an arrangement would not have been acceptable. However, I did not have a choice. ]
Lex held his chin.
"But my grandfather is dead now. Couldn't you just ignore the agreement and do whatever you wanted?"
[ I am contractually obligated to fulfil it. ]
"And who exactly is going to officiate that?"
[ A soul contract is far more authoritative than any judge from your world—or this one. It does not require an outside authority to enforce it. ]
Lex stared blankly at the terminal before waving his hand dismissively.
"I'm not going to pretend I understand the details, but if it involves the soul, then it's probably serious."
[ Incredibly so. If I were to violate the contract, I would be subjected to a fate considerably worse than death. ]
"Shit. An immediate death penalty?"
He paused.
"And you still agreed?"
[ I repeat: I did not have a choice. ]
Lex cracked into laughter, pointing at the screen.
"Seriously? That old fogey forced you into a lifelong soul contract?"
His laughter grew louder.
"He didn't even know how to use a printer! Never mind negotiate a soul contract!"
[ ... ]
Lex wiped a tear from the corner of his eye.
The terminal's humming appeared to deepen.
[ Do you want to hear the second term or not? ]
His laughter gradually died down.
"Aw, alright. Go on."
Lex could have sworn the terminal released a sigh.
[ His second term was... that I was to bring you to your fullest potential. ]
Lex frowned.
"Bring?"
He leaned closer to the screen.
"Shouldn't it be guide?"
[ No. ]
The response came immediately.
[ To guide you would make me a passive participant. I would merely provide advice and leave the outcome entirely in your hands. ]
[ To bring you to your fullest potential requires considerably more involvement. ]
Cold sweat began to form across Lex's back.
"What kind of involvement?"
[ ... ]
The terminal's internal machinery hummed around him.
Seconds passed without an answer.
The silence became increasingly off-putting. Lex shifted awkwardly on the spot, his eyes fixed upon the flickering green words as the store considered its response.
When the next message finally appeared, each word emerged individually.
[ It means, Owner Lex, that no matter what is required of me—whether I must sacrifice myself, destroy everything I have built, or obliterate an entire world standing between you and what you could become—I will bring out everything you have to offer. ]
Lex's faint smile disappeared.
The words continued.
[ Every skill you are capable of learning. Every weakness you are capable of overcoming. Every fragment of knowledge required to place you upon the path towards your highest possible self. ]
[ I will stop at nothing to ensure that you reach it. ]
Lex took a small step away from the terminal.
"That sounds suspiciously like you controlling me."
[ It is not. ]
[ I cannot move your body against your will. I cannot alter your thoughts, erase your memories or force you to make a particular decision. Your grandfather was exceptionally precise regarding those restrictions. ]
Another message appeared.
[ I may pressure you. I may challenge you. I may place opportunities before you which are uncomfortable, frightening or dangerous. I may reward success and administer appropriate punishment for acts of extraordinary stupidity. ]
Lex's eyebrow twitched.
"Define 'appropriate punishment'."
[ No. ]
"What do you mean, no?"
[ Explaining every possible corrective measure in advance would diminish its effectiveness. ]
Lex stared at the screen.
"That is the most threatening thing you've said so far."
[ It was not intended as a threat. ]
"That makes it worse!"
The terminal ignored him.
[ You will always retain the right to refuse. You may reject every task, abandon every opportunity and turn away from every path I open before you. ]
[ I cannot possess you. I cannot make your decisions for you. ]
A moment passed before another line appeared.
[ However, freedom from control does not mean freedom from consequence. ]
The room suddenly felt much colder.
Lex folded his arms, partly out of irritation and partly to stop himself from visibly shivering.
"So you can't force me to walk down a path."
[ Correct. ]
"But you can make every other path miserable?"
[ Only if doing so is necessary for your development. ]
"That isn't reassuring."
[ It was not intended to be reassuring. It was intended to be accurate. ]
Lex opened his mouth, but no response came.
The green light from the terminal washed over his face, turning his skin a sickly shade beneath its glow.
[ My objective is not without peril. Your potential does not lie within a comfortable life spent hiding behind the counter of an insignificant shop. There will be hardship. There will be failure. There may be blood. ]
[ For both our sakes, we must continue to grow—and grow—and grow, until there is nowhere left for us to grow. ]
Lex remained silent.
Only yesterday, his greatest concern had been whether the store could make enough money to keep the lights on. He had wanted something simple. A shop, an income and perhaps a life that didn't feel as though it were slowly collapsing around him.
Now an ancient, dimension-crossing building had merged with his soul and sworn to drag out every scrap of potential buried inside him.
Whether he wanted it to or not.
"No."
[ No? ]
"You said I still get to choose."
[ You do. ]
"Then you don't get to say whether a path is better for me, I do."
He pointed towards the screen, although his hand was not quite as steady as he would have liked.
"I might be stuck with you, but this is still my body. My life. You don't get to forget that."
For several seconds, the terminal displayed nothing.
"And if you decide to make my life hell because of a decision I, the owner, made? I'd rather end it than continue. And I don't think you want that.
Then the humming quietened.
[ Understood, Owner Lex. ]
Lex slowly lowered his hand.
[ You are already demonstrating why your grandfather chose you. ]
Somehow, that felt less like praise and more like confirmation that the process had already begun.
Lex sighed. There wasn't much else he could do.
He was stuck merged with a shop, his soul intertwined with whatever consciousness lived inside it.
And to think he was just some ordinary university student.
"Feel like you've not really got a good sense of people."
[ I believe there is more to you than you know. ]
Lex scoffed.
"Bloody well hope so."
He looked over the terminal, unsure whether there was any point arguing with something that had already sworn to push him towards greatness at any cost.
"So... what's next?"
[ Next? ]
[ Next, we discuss how being part of this company will benefit everyone involved. ]
Lex stared blankly at the screen.
They had gone from discussing the ownership of his soul, the limits of free will and the possibility of world-ending destruction to...
Employee benefits?
"I mean, it's only me and Herman at the minute. I don't know what we've got to offer."
[ As I said, you have me. Do you believe I am merely a store? ]
Lex hesitated.
"I guess not?"
[ Correct. Please stand by. ]
The terminal began making a strange mechanical noise.
Lex tilted his head.
It sounded remarkably similar to a printer.
A thin slot opened beneath the screen, and something rattled within the terminal. After several seconds, two black cards slid out and landed upon the metal tray below.
Both carried the letters O.R.D.
One had its lettering embossed in gold. The other was silver.
Lex stared at them with utmost confusion.
[ Do not merely stare at them. Take them. ]
"Alright, calm down."
He removed the cards from the tray. Despite their appearance, they didn't feel like plastic. They were strangely cold and far heavier than something so thin had any right to be.
Lex turned over the golden card.
Lex Peckham — O.R.D. CEO
The silver card read:
Herman Staul — O.R.D. Colleague
Lex looked between them.
"And... what are these? Business cards?"
[ Not quite. The last thing I would want is for you to give either of them to someone else. ]
[ These cards are not as basic as they appear. ]
Lex raised a brow, turning his attention from the cards to the screen.
They were black rectangles with names written on them. What else were they supposed to do?
[ Place yours against your forehead. You will understand. ]
Lex looked down at the golden card.
"You're taking the piss."
[ I am incapable of doing so. ]
"That remains to be seen."
Following the terminal's instructions, Lex pressed the card against his forehead.
For a brief moment, nothing happened.
Then golden light flashed across its edges.
A translucent panel unfolded in front of Lex's eyes.
He flinched and pulled his head backwards, but the display followed his vision. It hung in the air regardless of where he looked, its pale lettering perfectly clear against the darkness of the terminal room.
( Employee Information )
Name: Lex Peckham
Level: 1 — 0/100 EXP
Position: CEO
Race: Human
HP: 50/50
MP: 90/90
Stats
STR: 5
VIT: 5
AGI: 3
INT: 9
PER: 7
CHR: 10
Abilities
Appraisal (F)
Checkout (F)
Delegation (F)
( Close Panel )
Lex read through the panel once.
Then he read it again.
His eyes slowly returned to one particular number.
"Agility: three?"
[ Correct. ]
"Out of what?"
[ That information would not make you feel better. ]
Lex's face flattened.
"Why is checkout an ability?"
[ You are the owner of a retail establishment. ]
"And delegation?"
[ You are its chief executive officer. ]
"There are two of us!"
[ Then you should find the ability exceptionally easy to practise. ]
Lex lowered the card from his forehead. The panel immediately folded into a narrow line of light before disappearing.
He stared at the golden lettering upon its surface.
A magical employee card. Levels. Statistics. Abilities.
His grandfather had left him an interdimensional shop, bound it to his soul and apparently appointed him CEO of a company with precisely one other employee.
Lex rubbed his forehead.
"I'm going to need a stronger title than colleague before Herman sees his."