"Nyarlathotep . . . the crawling chaos . . . I am the last . . . I will tell the audient void. . . ." – H. P. Lovecraft

"When I was driving once\I saw this painted on a bridge\'I don't want the world, I just want your half'" – John Linnel

Viren growled to himself in the lonely dark as he looked upon the stone floor of the prison. In what little light he had, all he could see were the lines marking the ending of where each stone connected. Each were strategically cemented together in such a way that would hold it sturdy until one of his spells could possibly burst it into a million pieces if only he had the spell components for it...or his precious staff. The smell of mold, mildew, and ammonia permeated the air and forced its way into his nostrils whether he liked it or not.

He would shake the foundation of their empire if he could, but now, he was helpless in the chains his treachery had forged to the wall behind him.

"Ugh, a fine mess this has become," Viren grunted, "You say you have not betrayed me, and yet I find myself helpless in this murky dungeon. Where is the promise of power you offered earlier? If only I had destroyed that mirror and not heeded your blithering nonsense..."

"Patience, my human comrade!" the earwig worm barked in his ear, projecting the voice of Aaravos, "I have done nothing to betray you. You need only to step back and look at the bigger picture. Your shadow agents are now patrolling the world at large, generating terror among the five kingdoms. Our influence is still prevalent, and you need not despair in them seeing your vengeance for having not conformed to your wishes."

"It's hard to see anything from these old stone walls," Viren growled, "Why then should I believe you even remotely have my ambition in mind?"

"I believe you and I have much of the same goal," the earwig said, "We both desire power in some form or another. A world divided among humans and elves makes sense, don't you agree?"

"I...suppose," Viren muttered, "If I'm being honest, I could care less about the race relations between men and elves. I merely desired to climb the reigns of power. After all, I've brought new innovations to magic, offering it to the human world. I have given the power fantastic to the mundane. Why should it not be mine?"

"Why not, indeed?" the earwig gave a laugh, "And thus you desire the throne of Katolis...for being a man so wise in the ways of science and magic."

"I've offered men the powers that are so commonplace in Xadia," Viren continued, "Powers that aid them in their daily routines ranging on to building their empires. Why must the human realms be so limited to backbreaking labor and toil? We must use this primal power and sacrifice what is necessary for innovation and progress of our species and our society. And why should I not be recognized for this? It's not only Katolis that should bow before me, but all the human realms."

"I must admit," he could feel the earwig twitch a bit, and there was almost a sense that behind the magic, Aaravos must have been smiling with amusement, "when you simply explain them, your ambitions are smaller than I might have expected." This caused Viren to wonder what was so small about his ambitions, but the voice from the earwig continued. "Nonetheless, your actions and goals still align with my own. But you must be patient, still. I know you are a tactician by nature, so this must come second nature to you. After all, you can see and manipulate what you like for your endgame. Trust me...we will see this through to the end."

"You talk of trust," Viren followed, "Trust is something to be earned, and thus far, it has only lead me to this cell where I now feel powerless. I know your name for certain, but I know nothing of your past or your ultimate goals. As I've said, all archival knowledge I've found on you vanishes upon viewing it. Who are you...what are you? And what are YOUR ambitions?"

"But that would be spoiling things, would it not?" the earwig laughed, "But as to who I am...I have been known by many names in the past. I have also visited realms beyond your imagination, realms more fantastical than Xadia, through many different alternative realities and beyond and behind all that exists. And through my time and my travels, mortals have known and related to me in many different ways. In one world, I was revered as pharaoh, guiding that world's denizens to perform my bidding and constructing pyramids in my honor and to house their own sanctified dead. In that same world, at a different time, I was seen as a towering monster that haunted the woods, known as 'The Howler in Darkness.' In yet another, I was feared as the 'Dark Man' and went under the name of 'Randall Flagg,' and even traveled to another reality under this guise and ultimately destroyed its variation of the planet known as Earth. And still, I even took on a different, less humanoid avatar and chose some three pointed geometric shape and offered myself one eye, traveling between dimensions under the name of 'Bill Cipher,' a comical name for sure, but then that avatar was meant to behave more comical and was much more of a trickster. (There was even a time I visited an island known as Japan and took on a female form, but that was an extremely bizarre experience) But now I find myself here, sealed by this avatar's people behind this ancient mirror.

"Yes, indeed, the multiverse is at my fingertips, and you would be right to question if I have your best interest at heart, but is not each action a gamble? Is not each diplomatic meeting you have something still left to the chances of the attendees' own decisions? Yes, you should after all 'feed your head' as it were and make the most educated decision possible, but know this: half of everything is chaos, and the other half is fate. I have also been known to be an 'Agent of Chaos' as well, so why not take another risk and continue your pursuits? I'm genuinely curious to see what will happen with you as ruler and am willing to help you achieve this goal."

There was a long pause, giving time for Viren to think on this. He thought of his current position and how powerless he felt, looking down at the cold stone beneath his knees. All this manipulation of the powers had failed him. What choice did he have now but to trust this strange elf that spoke to him from the fantastic mirror?

"Truly, your greatness sounds immense and incomprehensible," Viren mentioned, "But if your magic is as strong as you say, there is nothing you can do to aide me in my current predicament?"

"That would be a vulgar use of my power, wouldn't you say?" the earwig chided, "Being locked in this mirror realm, I have no choice but to ask you mortals to act through me..." There was another pause, and Viren envisioned Aaravos contemplating something, as of hesitant to take some action he had no desire to undertake. The earwig sighed. "But I suppose, if sacrifices must be made, I will help you." There was some distant shuffling sound, as that of wood and stone, and then metal gliding against itself. The earwig made a strange breathy sound before letting out a loud, hideous cry, one that Viren thought would cause him to go both mad or deaf had it carried on any longer than a few seconds.

"There," the earwig continued, and immediately, a clinking sound occurred, and Viren was free of his chains, "You are at least free to move."

"What did you…?" Viren began to ask.

"Nothing more than what you and your daughter do for your 'dark' magic," the earwig gave a slight chuckle at the concept, "But seriously, the rest is up to you. I can do no more from where I am..."

"Then how do I escape this confining room?" Viren growled, still ungrateful.

"You are the tactician and weaver of words, are you not?" the earwig replied, "Surely you can find your way out..."

Viren saw something scurrying across the stone floor of the prison. After a moment's focus, he found it to be a cockroach scurrying this way and that, not seeming to find the exit for which it was desperately searching, causing Viren to wonder from where it had come. He reached out and picked up the cockroach. He let it scurry about in his palm for a moment, allowing him a brief pause to study its life-force, its organics, and the fact that it had no comprehension of what was about to happen to it.

He spoke some low words in a language no one, neither elf nor human, could have understood and upon finishing crushed the tiny lifeform within his palm. He felt its hard carapace break and its spindly legs fall off the side of his hands as some liquidesque innards oozed from the center. He now had the power he needed. Now what was left was his tongue.

"Guard!" he shouted.

"Pipe down in there!" the guard yelled back.

"Guard, I'm going to be sick!" Viren shouted once more.

"Then get sick!" the guard barked at him, "You killed several of my friends. You're lucky to feel anything at all below the neck!"

"If..." Viren faked another cough and a gag, "if I die on your watch, will you not have to answer to your commanding officer? How would I face justice according to the law if I die in these conditions?" Viren continued to fake an illness, making a noise that sounded as though he were about to vomit, when the door to the cell unlocked. The guard began walking toward Viren, thinking he might be able to send him to the infirmary, and that's the break Viren was looking for.

Viren then immediately rose to his feet, held out his palm in which he had crushed the cockroach, and blew into it. A bright purple twinkling haze flew from it and into the guard's face, who suddenly fell to the ground asleep. Viren smiled and took the key ring from the guard's belt. He then walked through the cell doors and into the musty stone hallway.

"Well done," the earwig said, "You're almost as deceptive and clever as I!"

"Thanks, I suppose," Viren narrowed his eyes, wondering if Aaravos was insulting him, "Now I must find my staff."