Method Acting

Oh boy, that had been a doozy. Definitely filled with surprises. I did not at all expect that much resistance, but it had made it a lot more fun. Surprise is the spice of life or was it variation is the spice of life? Either way, they both applied perfectly to the situation.

The screaming had been a bit disconcerting and had made me worried that it might have attracted people but nobody was coming out so I assumed they couldn't hear them. Which made a lot of sense since they were no longer part of the living. Though I must say the girl's screams were inexplicably satisfying. Am I weird for thinking that?

The two souls I'd taken were now currently in the fulcrum, I could sense them there. I could feel their fear and their confusion. I could sense their movements and their heartbeat. I knew exactly where they were at all times.

I could also see that Iz was curious about them and for some reason he was messing with them. Particularly with the guy though I couldn't tell exactly what he was doing. He seemed happy so I didn't intervene.

Apart from that, I couldn't tell much else but that was really all the information I needed. Though I did need to take a breather before hopping in myself. That moment of capturing those two had gotten my blood boiling. I was too giddy right now and that wasn't a good state to be in when I go to confront them. It wouldn't be easy to stay in character.

This was the best time to act. I'm not sure I would be getting an opportunity like this for a while. I had two participants right now that had no idea who I was. I could make up any story and feed it to them. It could be my very own Lovecraftian scene.

That had been the plan from the beginning but now that everything was in place, I felt nervous since I didn't want to mess it up.

After I'd managed to recompose myself, I took a deep breath and then I willed myself over to the fulcrum. As I entered my senses expanded and encompassed the entire void. That hadn't happened before but for some reason, the presence of those two had triggered it.

These guys were presents that just kept on giving. Now I had to give them a spectacular act. I did feel a bit bad since they seemed so scared, but I didn't plan on damaging them. It was just a little bit of fun honestly. I had appeared a bit farther away from them so I could prepare myself and get everything into gear.

In this space, I could create almost anything I wanted. This is why even though I had never tried it before, I attempted to change my appearance. Thankfully like everything else to do with the void it shifted almost immediately.

I took the form of a tall and lanky humanoid with extended claw-shaped hands and long slender inverted legs. The skin was made to look like the night sky. Stars sparkled here and there but it honestly just gave a sense of staring at eternity. I even added the motif of the screaming faces and whispering voices to it. It was a nice little bit of continuity in my opinion.

The eyes were made to be a blinding white, like hospital lights. They emitted a bright light that penetrated through the fog. Willing into resistance and mirror I examined myself. I was happy with the transformation. It had gone much more smoothly than I expected, in fact I looked even better than I thought I would. It looked so good that it almost gave me the feeling of looking into the abyss. The eyes were a really nice contrast.

Off into the distance, I could hear them screaming for each other, their voices sounded so desperate and raw. Yet there were still some things that needed to be done. Next, I created a Crown of the same night sky motif as my skin. It was a bit lopsided on my head, but I make sure that it never fell, then I added some cracks and signs of damage. Finally, I created a massive spear as long as my current body's height. It carried the same general motif, but I threw some gold in there for a little bit of contrast.

Now I stood over 3 meters tall with a rather lanky body and skin that would make many shudder. Accompanied by an equally intimidating spear and a crooked broken crown. It made for a rather intimidating figure. This was the character that would be played whenever someone entered the fulcrum. I didn't have a name for it yet, but the concept had been floating in my brain for the past couple of days.

Now, I wasn't an actor by any measure of the word. I had never tried to do any acting in my life, but I respected actors. A good actor could turn a mediocre movie into a good movie and a great actor could turn that same movie into a masterpiece.

Today I would try to imitate one of the most notorious forms of acting known as method acting. It basically consisted of trying to fall in the mindset of the character being played. So, what I was attempting to do was play a character who was a higher being with an unknown purpose. I had to come across as intimidating without trying to be and to not seem human. I was really restless from excitement and there was even a little giggle. Damn I was really acting like a child waiting to open his Christmas present.

I did a quick check in a mirror that I created and straightened up myself before walking into the mist with a slow deliberate gait. I moved side to side looking like a tree swaying in wind, faces continuously appeared on my body. They encompassed all emotions, but they were all exaggerated beyond belief. The light from my eyes cast a harsh glow onto the surroundings.

Lumbering through the mist I approached the guests. The light of my eyes flashed on them, but they seemed to not be able to see it. Courtesy of Iz I guessed. As I approached them, I ordered Iz to bring them together. I didn't expect the man to attack his companion though. That really came out of the blue, did I pick a person with mental issues? Though the girl didn't seem too angry about it, he did seem to feel guilty.

The voices of my faces slowly started to grow louder. Screams and whimpers and exaggerated laughter began to echo through the void. I heard the girl begin to pray to God, the man's eyes darted around trying to figure out where I was. They both reeked of fear.

As I approached closer to them, I allowed myself to be seen through the mist. I watched as the man's eyes found me. A flurry of emotions passed through them. Shock, fear, contemplation then determination. When the girl finally saw me, she screamed and fell backward.

Her entire body was quaking in fear and her expression of fear was priceless. I was happy, it seemed like I was doing the character justice so far. Wait till they see what I did with the voice.

The man grabbed the girl and pull her in the opposite direction but was stopped immediately as he slammed into the fog. Iz had stopped him from escaping. I adored the look of anger that sparked through the man as he realized he was stuck here with me. Not many people had the courage to be angry in the face of fear.

Stealing a famous opener from the Bible I said "Do not be afraid. I'm here to offer you Salvation from death."

My voice was the voice of a thousand anguished souls howling from all directions. There were voices of anger, pain, and frustration. There were voices of men, women, and children. It reverberated within an unnatural sound that seemed to seep into bone.

I didn't think it possible, but the color drained further from their faces. The girl was the first to recompose herself surprisingly. She faced me with a look of determined fear. I could see that fear turn into anger as she recognized the line.

"You are no Angel, and it would be an insult to demons to call you one." her voice was shaking but she faced me regardless.

"Indeed, you are correct I'm no Angel. At the least not in the sense that you might believe. That however doesn't matter as your God doesn't exist." I could see the disbelief and denial in her eyes. She was starting to draw into herself, that determination that was there before was starting to crumble.

So far so good.

The man grabbed onto her and attempted to reassure her, but she pushed him away. She was already in too deep. The voices were whispering in her ears already. They were tearing at her resolve and I could see it.

This was turning into an amazing scene.

"What do you want?" the man asked as he turned to me. The anger that had once been in his eyes had been pushed down and was now replaced by conviction and a cold calculating gaze.

"There is nothing you can give. You have been brought here to accomplish one task."

"Oh yeah, and what might that task be?" it was the girl who spoke. She was calm, perfectly calm.

"You have been assigned the task of rekindling humanity in a different universe. Before you go on and express your disgust it's best, I tell you your reward. If you accomplish this goal, I will bring you back to life. So, you can live with your loved ones once again. No strings attached."

I watched as their rebukes got stuck in their throats. They were completely silent. They had both died just recently, the longing for their families and friends would definitely be high. The opportunity to return to their families must have sounded heavenly to them.

I could have waited for them to respond but honestly, I didn't want to. They seemed to be in too much shock to respond immediately.

"I will grant you powers to better survive in this world. In addition, I have crafted bodies for you that even the most elite of humans could not imagine happening. Now be gone."

Reaching out with my will, I sent both souls into my Universe before I slowed down the passage of time within it immensely. I hadn't actually created their bodies yet, I needed time.

I turned back into my regular body and pulled myself out of the fulcrum. That had been interesting. I feel as if the performance could have been a bit better and I probably should have been a bit more patient, but I had let my nervousness get the better of me.

I had thought that too much talking didn't suit the character that I had created. Which was why I panicked and kicked them out, but I think I could have done it in a better manner. Next time I would have to do better.

Now really, I was just going to have to brainstorm their titles. Unlike the novels I read I couldn't give them a system or abilities directly, or maybe I could with the right title.

Anyways I wasn't going to give them any titles of that sort. When it comes to the girl, I must say that I admired her spirit. She recovered very quickly for someone who had her lifelong belief shattered only moments ago. Though I was sure that she had shoved it down. So, I might give her a title related to spirits or something flexible and I definitely had to include something that would further shatter her beliefs.

The man had managed to suppress his fear relatively well once Iz stopped messing with him. For someone that looked so frail that determination was a nice addition. While that was impressive it was his calculating gaze that had impressed me the most. He gave me a lot to work on when it came to titles. I definitely had to try something a bit more unconventional with him.

My only worry now is that they might refuse to reproduce. I was already planning on giving them a nice big carrot, but I wasn't against using a big stick either.