Akakios sauntered over to a bird cage. It was an exquisite stru, gilded in gold, though iron still y underh the finer, but soft metal. The cage was full of perches, had an assortment of little rests in the shape of small houses which were stuffed with all manner of preetal tris and gens, and the toys the crow inside excitedly pyed with let out a discordant cacophony of chirping and cttering and tinkling. The corvid fluffed its wings tentedly as it saw its master approach, and hopped towards the cage's door in anticipation.

  The vilin was oddly domestic, as if he had fotteranger currently trapped inside his mind. He hummed a pleasant tune while he opehat door, and the crow greeted him with the same song. Akakios fed the little creature, scritched its neck, and then tched the cage once more.

  As they left, Mars couldn't help but ask "What's its name?"

  "He doesn't have o," the vilin said, pletely unbothered. He should be bothered. Shouldn't he? Mars was an intruder. He should be met by shock er or fusion, not indifference.

  But Mars thought it uo remind the vilin of that fact. So he focused on the domestibsp;"Why doesn't it have a name?"

  "It's yet to need one." Matter of fact. He was so deeply ung to the creature he clearly doted on just minutes before. The human could not his mind around the vilin's, even as they shared the same space.

  They desded down a series of stoairs that would have left Mars exhausted had his inal body trekked the same path. The body he was in didn't eve as they made the jouro the boratory below.

  There, they faced a dozen minions, milling about the vast cavern that housed the vilin's most important experiments. He had been using captured prisoners as test subjects, attag different limbs to some of their bodies. Others, he had fed magical cos that altered their natural forms. Some of those had sprouted wings, or spoke in tongues, or shifted their po parts from cells to spirit-filled waters. Each was strapped down, caged, or tained in any possible manner sidering the requirements of their new forms. The person molded of spirit water was tained in a fish tank rge enough to hold a shark, but ne enough for that shark to survive its hold.

  The test subjects were in various states of distress. Some were bloody, others were screaming. Those who still had faces torted their expressions into anguish. Mars would have puked as soon as they ehis horror show, but even involuntary responses were tied to the inal's disposition. However, a weak wave of nausea mao settle. The vilin winced.

  "You're not a fan, I take it?" Akakios asked, amused.

  A few minions turo their master, but his words were directed to the air. They were not there to question their vilin, so they simply went back to their tasks when they realized his words weren't meant for them.

  Mars, unheard by a the vilin, did answer. "What are we doing here?"

  "Fixing our little issue."

  The human didn't uand why this powerful, arrogant demon deigo answer him. Everything he had read of Font of Demons led him to believe Akakios was less than acquiest, proo urained malice. Yet the vilin had been nothing but calm this eime, even pg Mars' questions when his underlings wouldn't dare to look their master in the eye.

  Laika had said the novel was based on the world, not the other way around. Maybe the story had taken liberties. Maybe the narrator was unreliable. Maybe the vilin was different from the one-dimensional fanfic fodder that graced the novel's trashy, tropey pages. For referehe amount of Akakios x the Hero fics were only matched by the ohat shipped the Hero with Lars. This is because when is devoid of substahe world bees a bnk ste for any aspiring freak to color in to their heart's desire.

  This world arently real, so the sandbox M.X. Brady created was no longer so malleable. This pce was not sand. Mars could not build a castle. Whatever impression the vilin had left in the inal work was insubstantial pared to the real thing, with his own personality and motivations.

  In Brady's text, the vilin was nothing but a few scraps of malicious, toying dialogue that was easy to misstrue for fatal attra to the hero. It was also easy to misstrue for pure, unadulterated evil. The boratory filled with cruel, painful experiments at its surface would pel ao agree to su assessment. But there was clearly more to Akakios. Mars just couldn't figure out what it was. Was he maliate? Was he more?

  In short, the vilin was different than he had expected. That nuance might save him. But he couldn't trust what he knew of the text to navigate this world. So maybe he was screwed. He simply didn't know.

  The only thing the autistic human could think to do was... ask. What was the worst thing that could happen? That the vilin would grow angry? Find a way to murder the intruder? If he was already pnning on doing that, asking couldn't make it worse. If he nning on something else, asking a question probably wouldn't ge his mind.

  But just in case, he said first, "I'm sorry."

  The vilin ughed. The minions pretended not to notice. "Sorry for what?"

  "I don't want to be in your head any more than you want me here. I don't even know how this happened."

  "Oh, I'm aware. There's few foolish enough to want this pitiful existeu the mind of a demon."

  "I didn't try to take your body over, either. I had no io fuck with you. I don't know why I'm here. I swear."

  "I believe you." His voice still carried a lilt. He didn't sound mad.

  "You don't sound mad."

  "That's because I'm not." Mars would have sighed with relief. Instead, the vilin chuckled again.

  Okay, okay. The human was ready to ask, "Are you pnning on killing me?"

  The vilin stopped ughing to answer a matter-of-fact, "No."

  Before Mars could stop himself, his thoughts blurted out, "Wait, why?"

  "Do you wao kill you?"

  Mars hesitated. A few months ago his answer would have been different. But he hadn't been pgued by his own mind in so long, he desperately wao stay alive to relish in his mental respite. Unfortunately, less than 24-ho he had died anyway. Now, he wasn't giving up a ce to live. "No."

  "Good. We're on the same page."

  "What are you pnning, then?"

  "I didn't expect your pany, so I've not yet perfected dual-spirit extra. We o get you out of my head, preferably without damagiher of our souls." Without damagiher of our souls. Why was this versation going so well? "I've decided this is the perfect opportunity for experimentation. While I've been trying to perfect soul transference, few souls are willing to undergo my trials. Resistance has made the task needlessly difficult. If you work with me, I might finally get the ce to study a successful implementation of the procedure. Then, I refine my process from there, one day to the point I manipute even unwilling souls. You, Mars, are a blessing, it seems."

  So that was the reason. Unfortunately, it meant Mars was going to help the vilin with his nefarious schemes. Fortunately, he wasn't really in the position to resist. He couldn't be atable for whatever terrors the demon po unleash following his release. But what would bee of him, once he served his use?

  "What will happen to me when we separate?"

  "Are you worried I will torture you? Or make you py hen?"

  Would answering yes offend the demon? Mars didn't want to insult his lifeline. Before he could think of how to answer him, the demon spoke again.

  "Don't think too much. As long as you don't stand against me when we separate, I don't have any reason to harm you."

  "So, how do we get this started? I'll help in any way I ."

  "Good boy," Akakios muttered under his breath. Mars heard it. Of course he heard it. The body he was in said it. "I'll let you know if I have anything I need you help with. But right now, I have a lot to get set up before we attempt the procedure."

  The vilin made his way to a young man strapped down iher bindings. He caressed the man's face with his fiips, studying the body with a malicious humor once mlinting in his eyes. Even while struggling, the prisoner was beautiful. He had deep olive skin that matched Mars' inal form, but no freckles speckled his cheeks. His hair fell in thick bck waves that half-covered his face as he struggled. The vilin's caress moved some of the locks to see him better. He was mase, but still carried a refined beauty. Mars was envious of this body. He would give anything to call it his own.

  "Is this a good vessel?" Akakios asked.

  "What do you mean?"

  "When you transfer, would you like this body?"

  He had thought he'd give anything. But as Mars realized what the vilin was saying, his heart sank.

  "I'd share a body with him instead?"

  "No, you'd take this one over. It's much more vehat way."

  Mars' jaw would have dropped in horror. No. Fuck. He hadn't anticipated the cost of finding a new body, and he did not want to pay the price. He wasn't going to kill someone over this! How could he live with himself?

  "Absolutely not!"

  The viliracted his hand. "Is it not to your satisfa?"

  "I'm not going to kill someone for their body!"

  "You wouldn't be killing him. I will do it for you."

  "NO!"

  Akakios frowned. "That's the only way, Mars."

  "Then kill me instead."

  The demon stared at the body, strugglih his soft touch. A dark glint surfaced in his eyes, and as he raised his hand from the priso transformed into a cw. He baded the young man. As he stepped away, a thin red line appeared on the prisoner's neck. The lihied as blood leaked forth. The young man who had once been struggling against the bindings now struggled for life. His eyes widened with horror, and he gurgled up a few painful, wet final breaths.

  Then, his body scked. He fell still.

  Mars couldn't do anything but watch.

  "Why would you do that!?"

  "If you didn't want the body, I have no ood use for the subject."

  "SO YOU KILLED HIM!?"

  "Yes." Even his malicious humor was gone. All that was left was cold, heartless psychopathy. Mars wao cry. "Don't worry. We find a body that suits you much better."

  Mars was going to be sick. Except he wasn't. Because Akakios' body wouldn't eve him do that. His luck hadn't turned for the better. He was still stuck with the vilin.

  And the vilin was, in fact, a vilin.

  ~~Author's Note: I hope y'all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing! This chapter and the are a little serious. Don't worry, there will be silly antics soon. But Mars is stuck with a vilin. I'm not going easy on him.

  See y'all again with a neter!