A Task Given (Solus)

You open your eyes to find yourself in a small, but cosy room, lit only by a brick fireplace to one side. In the center of the room were two large leather chairs, like one might find in a gentleman’s sitting room and a rug between them. The chair farthest from you was occupied.

“Solus Augustus” The man says, taking a puff from the cigar he was holding, blowing the smoke out to the side before turning his attention back to you. He reminded you of the Illusive Man from Mass Effect in many ways, including a glass of what looked like whiskey, or something similar sitting on a table next to him. “Do sit down” the man told you, indicating the chair in front of him. Despite his polite tone, you could tell that it wasn’t a request, or an offer, but an order.

“Who are you?” you ask, your eyes narrowing as you reach for your sword. Only to find it not there.

“The one with all the power here” the man told you cryptically, a smirk adorning his lips for a moment as he watched your attempt to conjure a weapon. “Now sit down” he ordered, and this time he wasn’t so polite.

With no recourse other than to do as he wished, you take the seat in front of the strange man. The fact that he was dressed in a modern gentleman’s suit rang alarm bells in of its own right.

“Where to begin?” The man mused sighing as he studied something on the wall behind you. He took a puff of his cigar and tapped the ashes into a tray behind his whiskey. “Let’s start with your stolen powers” The man says and you frown.

“I haven’t stolen anything” You say, wondering what this man is much less who.

“No no, I’m aware of that” The man told you, a smirk flashing across his lips “But that doesn’t make them any less stolen” he said and now your frown is one of confusion.

“But God Almighty gave me his powers personally” you say, the fact that you sounded like a petulant child making you cringe the moment the words left your mouth.

“Did he now?” The man asked rhetorically. “I suppose you just ‘knew’ he was God hmm?” he asked, this time he gave you a look as if demanding an explanation.

“He . . . said . . . god dammit!” you exclaim as the man’s words hammer home.

“Yes quite” The man said, looking away again. “I’ve already taken care of that issue so not to worry” The man told you as he watched the crackling fire for a moment.

“What do you mean by ‘taken care of’?” you ask.

“Don’t be daft boy, I got rid of the thief, deleted him, removed from existence . . . just like I will you” The man said, the last part of the statement turning sinister as his eyes locked with yours. Suddenly the room began darkening as you felt your very existence being erased. But just as quickly as it began, so too did it end and the room returned to normal, if not slightly brighter than before. “Or not” The man added, a smirk once again flashing across his lips.

“What do you want from me?” you ask angry with the fact that this thing was playing with you.

“Doesn’t feel good when a superior being plays with you like a toy, does it?” the man asked and you frowned in confusion. “Of course you have no idea what I’m talking about” the man sighed. “Look, boy, I’m going to make this simple, I’m giving you a chance to redeem yourself” he told you.

“Redeem myself from what?” You ask and the man sighed in exasperation.

“Truly the idiocy . . .” he muttered. “What gives you the right to play god!?” The man demanded, the fire roaring in response to his anger.

You clench your jaw as you mull that thought over. In the end, nothing did. Sure ‘god’ gave you his power ,but did that give you the right to play god?

“So the rules are simple, I want you to continue on your . . . self imposed crusade and remove Christ” The man told you. “Why?” he asked in your stead “Because of the two of you, you have yet to show an interest in exiting your reality and attempting to conquer the multiverse” The man told you. “I’m not going to explain, not to you” he told you before you could even think to question him. “But that is my task for you,” he told you.

“And what happens if I fail . . . or refuse?” you ask and the man gave you a sinister smile.

“I think you have just become intimately familiar with what will happen” the man replied as he sat back, crossing his legs and reaching for his whisky.

“And if I succeed?” you ask.

“I will strip you down to the level of a pagan god, watch you for a while to make damn sure you don’t try anything, and then leave you to your own devices. It is, after all, not your fault you got caught up in all of this” The man explained, taking a sip of his drink.

“But you are perfectly okay with deleting me if I were to fail in my task of destroying Christ” you say.

“Precisely” the man agreed

“Was it you then, that stopped me from getting rid of the Naga?” you ask.

“Indeed it was,” The man replied “In fact, if you’d tried to use your powers on anyone else like that, I’d have stopped you then too” he told you. “It was your reality bending session that drew my attention, if you are wondering” he added.

“Reality bending?” You ask with a frown.

“Yes, that little session where you decided to create a branching timeline where Christ captured you? That one . . . it created a brand new reality and thus drew my attention” The man told you.

“I see” You say, steepling your hands. “Do I have a choice?” you ask, this time the man chuckled.

“Feeling like committing suicide eh?” the man asked and you cringed. There was really only one choice.

“It’s not like I was attached to these god powers anyway” You mutter, staring up at the ceiling. “If you wanted me to do this, you could have been nicer about it” you say, bringing your attention back down to the man.

“I could have, but you turned into a genocidal maniac” The man told you and you cringed again. If he hadn’t stopped you, you would have exterminated an entire race, an innocent one at that.

“I only have one thing to ask” You say softly, the man raised an eyebrow as if admiring your audacity. “My sister” you say and the man chuckled again.’

“That was me” he said and you blinked in surprise, he gave you a grin. “I’m not evil, even if morality is a point of view” he told you “I don’t play god, I’m the one they call when they need to remove gods” he told you “Doesn’t leave much room for compassion or empathy” he added before finishing his drink. “You know your task, we will not speak again” he told you and just like that, you woke up back in your military camp, Sera in your arms snoozing happily. You closed your eyes and enjoyed the girl’s calming warmth.