The Holders Volume 13 (121-130)

(NOTE: All 545 Object entries in the Holders series aren't credited to any authors so I'll just link to the official website)

## The Holder of Midnight

In any city, in any country, go to any mental institution or halfway house you can get yourself to. When you reach the front desk, ask very politely to visit someone who calls himself "The Holder of Midnight". The worker will give a solemn, knowing nod and beckon you to follow him.

He will lead you down a long hallway and eventually gesture for you to enter a door. Do not enter this door. Instead, enter the door on the exact opposite side of the hall. You will come upon another hallway. At the door you entered will be a man who is almost identical to the worker who led you, except this one is a mirror-image version, with all features reversed. Ask once again for the Holder, and this mirror worker will give a solemn, knowing nod and beckon you to follow. If you say anything else after this point, then this mirror world will collapse upon you, erasing all evidence that you ever existed.

The worker will take you back to the front desk and gesture for you to exit out the front door. Do this, and you will find yourself in an incalculably vast room. It will be impossible to determine the room's appearance or features, as it is filled with sourceless, eye searingly bright lights - too bright for your vision to adjust, so that the entire room appears to be a blaze. Just walk forward on ground that feels like sand.

Start walking in any direction into the room. Everything should be completely silent, but if at any point you hear a high whistle, like the sound of a teapot, then stop immediately and shout with all the ferocity you can muster, "I can see what I must do!" It is best you not know what eternal horrors await you should the whistling continue.

If the whistling stops, however, then you are to proceed as you were. Eventually, no matter which direction you walked, you will come upon a small area of the vast room where the lights, by some strange means, are not quite as blinding. Sitting in a meditative cross-legged position in the exact middle of this area is a peaceful-looking thin man wearing nothing but a loincloth. He has not a single hair on his entire body, but it is his head that is truly unusual. He has neither nose nor ears, and his mouth has no lips, so that it is just a slit on his placid face. His eyes have odd pupils, exactly like those of a goat. This man will have his arms held forward and his hands clasped together as though hiding a small object between them. He will stare at you impassively until you ask one question: "What lies in the depths of His heart?"

The man with the goat eyes will give a knowing but benign grin, then open his hands. Darkness will flow out from them like a mist, very slowly filling the room. It is crucial that during this time you stare intently into the man's strange eyes, for otherwise you will be consumed by this darkness forever.

As the darkness overwhelms the light, it will reveal the true forms of the goat-eyed man and this vast room. The man is a truly nightmarish specter, more bone than flesh, his countenance no longer suggesting peaceful benevolence but rather a dark and violent hatred. You will see in the distance the immense walls of this room; they are made up of a collage of anguished faces. These are the souls of every Seeker who has ever failed the test of any Holder. The visions of the man and the room will overwhelm your sight as a loud crackling sound, like that of a raging fire, overwhelm your ears. No matter what, though, you must keep your gaze fixed upon the man's eyes. After what seems like an eternity, the assault on your senses will stop abruptly, and the room will revert back to its light-filled state, the man once again a tranquil in meditation. The goat-eyed man's arms will be outstretched, presenting a little brown bag. Take the bag gently and give a respectful bow before turning to leave. Go back the way you came: back through the mirror world and into the hallway of the regular world.

The gelatinous substance in that bag is Object 121 of 538. Never open the bag.

## The Holder of Health

In any city, in any country, go to any hospital emergency room you can get yourself into. Wait for an ambulance to arrive and unload its patient. As long as the patient is alive, no matter how mangled he may be, ask him to see "The Holder of Health". Should the patient you're talking to die at any time during or after you've asked to see the Holder, the object you're after is no longer there. Run for your insignificant life, and do not stop until the sun rises the next morning. The medical interns have lost their patient, and are eager to find someone else to treat.

If the Object you seek is still there, the patient will go into a massive seizure, and the medical staff accompanying him in the ambulance will try to save him. The patient will thrash violently, disemboweling the EMTs working on him using whatever is at hand. During this time, you must not move from your current position or the patient will come for you next. Once the patient has done away with his victims, you must ask one question, lest you be maimed for eternity: "What was the price for longevity?" The patient will then tell a horrific story, a story showing every malpractice, every accident, every excuse and every experiment in medical history that helped to bring about the convenience people enjoy today. He will then explain the true price of convenience, that sacrifice and convenience go together as do day and night; that the greater the convenience one wants, the greater the sacrifice one must give.

If your sanity is intact after his horrific story you must react fast as the patient will lose his patience and lunge towards you. Grab for the syringe that has appeared beside you and stab it into his head, or what's left of it. He will soon die and you must extract a liquid that comes from his head.

This syringe will never run out of the liquid inside it and will not extract anything else. Injecting yourself with some of this viscous substance will give you demonic strength for a certain time, depending on how much you use. Beware, however, for the liquid concentrates itself from the life force of the people you care about most.

The syringe is Object 122 of 538. You now know the price. It is up to you to decide whether you can afford it or not.

## The Holder of Obsession

In any country in any city, go to any beach and you will find a lonely looking person staring off into the ocean. Sit next to him. If at any time he looks at you before you can sit next to him, leave and never look back. If he keeps staring into the distance just wait and do not do or say anything. Take this time to enjoy the scenery; youâ€™ll need the peace of mind later. Soon heâ€™ll stand up and start walking, follow him. After walking for what seems like weeks youâ€™ll reach some rocks underneath a jagged cliff that wasnâ€™t there before. Among those rocks will be an old door that has been worn down by the sea, its wood rotting with some seaweed hanging from the cracks in the wood.

Calmly go through this door and you will be in a hallway that seems endless. Numerous doors will line the hallways with little windows near the top. If you value your sanity you will do well not to look in any of these windows. From the echoes that come from the doors will hear that the inhabitants of these rooms are busy doing something, though what this something is you donâ€™t know, and would be better off not knowing. The inhabitants scream intensely, seething with madness and obsession over their assigned tasks. These were the previous Seekers foolish enough to look into the windows or fail the Holderâ€™s test. Walk straight through the hallway until you reach Room 123. Enter the room and you will come upon an impossibly white room, deafeningly quiet in stark contrast to the other rooms. In the middle will be a faceless apparition, kneeling quietly on top of a pedestal. As you approach the creature, the room will start to dim, you will start hearing screams of pain far more horrible and maddening than any of the screams youâ€™ve heard before. Youâ€™ll hear the sound of flesh tearing, bones breaking, and the crackling of great fires. Ignore all of this and continue toward the center. You will know that youâ€™re an inch from the creature once you cannot see anything and you cannot hear your own thoughts over the screams of the damned.

Through the madness all around you only one thing can stop it. You must scream with all your might, â€œHow did you get your first?!â€ After this all will become silent and a pair of blood-red eyes will glow and stare back at you. He will then narrate his horrific story of how he got his first, then his second, then his third. He will recount how with every step he took forward, the closer he came to insanity, being pushed by unseen forces, drilling constantly into his mind, to know everything that he can about Them, and how it ultimately resulted in his destruction. The eyes will then fade, and all will return to darkness. You will feel an object being handed to your right hand, take it. If you feel it in your left hand, you can do nothing but kill yourself with it and end your journey there. If it was in your right hand, raise it and slash it to where the creature wouldâ€™ve been. You will feel the resistance of flesh, so make it one decisive cut. From your slash will be a bright light, blinding you. Open your eyes when it is safe and you will find yourself in the beach you were before, its waves gently caressing your feet. In your right hand will be a farmerâ€™s sickle dripping with fresh blood.

That is Object 123 of 538. Plow your way through the madness, as it is your only salvation.

## The Holder of Prestige

In any city, in any country, go to any theater or gallery you can get yourself to. When you reach the front desk, ask to visit someone who calls himself "The Holder of Prestige".

The worker should assume a bland, neutral demeanor as he leads you down an endless maze of hallways that seem to bear an increasing degree of disrepair. If at any time you hear the mournful sound of an organ playing, continue walking and think clearly to yourself, "There is no status." If the organ continues after you think this, it's best you close your eyes and not know what hits you.

If the organ's music stops, continue following the worker as before. He will lead you along this maze for an eternity, before coming to a door that seems impossibly clean and well-maintained, especially in comparison to its decrepit surroundings. Thank the worker, then enter this door. Inside is what appears to be a very stylish, very modern, very cosmopolitan high-rise apartment. A party is going on, the guests wearing the finest and most expensive clothes as they drink and fill the air with their loud chatter.

Now you must find the host, who is the man dressed as a woman. He is much harder to identify than you would ever imagine, but you must find the right man, for getting the attention of anyone else at the party will prompt all the guests to play a game that revolves around tearing you to pieces with their bare hands. Find the man dressed as a woman, however, and get his attention - make sure you have his full attention, for he is rather sociable, but flaky, and might chat with other guests before you have the chance to say anything more - and ask one question: "Are they proud of what they do?"

Upon uttering your question, the entire apartment will fall abruptly silent. The music, as though on its own volition, will shut off. Everyone will look at you, but their faces will be impossible to read. The man dressed as a woman will shift his weight uncomfortably at your question, but will then invite you to go with him to another room so he may answer your question in private. Refuse the offer. He will insist, but you must remain steadfast in refusing the offer, for your life's sake.

If your will is strong, he will give in and answer the question. He will tell of many, many stories, starting with the nauseating, continuing with the maddening, and finishing with those that may well drive you to suicide. By the time he is done with his answer, he will have collapsed and begun to cry. The guests will appear startled and troubled by their host's state. Use this as your chance to get as close as you can to the door through which you came. You will need as great a head start as you can achieve, for as soon as they shake themselves from their surprise the guests' hands will transform into long, grisly claws, which they will use to attack you en-masse in the cramped apartment. Get out of the apartment as the guests conduct their onslaught like a pack of velociraptors.

If you make it out the door and shut it quickly behind you, you are safe. You can even open the door again and find that it no longer leads to the apartment, but to an empty cell.

Go home, and in roughly three weeks you should receive a package in the mail. It will be a small, bronze statuette of a man with no head nor hands, and inscribed in an indecipherable, yet elegant-looking, language.

That statuette is Object 124 of 538. There is no longer any cause for boasting.

## The Holder of Forgiveness

In any city, in any country, go to any mental institution or halfway house you can get yourself to. When you reach the front desk, ask to visit someone who calls himself "The Holder of Forgiveness."

The worker will promptly slap you across the face and insult you. Do not lose your temper. Calmly ask again; this may have to be done multiple times. Eventually the worker, not hiding that he does it very grudgingly, will give in and tell you a room number.

Look at a directory of the institution to find the room. You might note a long hallway extending from the eastern edge of the building, even though such a hallway was never there before, and may not even be logical. Go to this hallway, and you will find the door with the number the worker gave you. Enter the door, and it should lead to an enormous fairground, complete with game stands and rides. If the door leads to any other location, just sit down and quietly accept the impending death, for resistance is a waste of effort at this point.

If the door indeed leads to the fairground, the sky should be dark as nighttime, no matter what time you entered. All the lights in the carnival are on, and music is playing, but there are no people, and none of the rides are moving save one: the merry-go-round. Wait at the turnstile for the merry-go-round to come to a stop, then embark.

Once the merry-go-round resumes turning, two people - a man and a woman - will appear. They will be dressed as though they are children, and their appearance is grainy and in black-and-white, as though from an old projector. They will each ride one of the horses, but not right next to each other - there will be an empty horse between them.

Sit on the empty horse as the man and woman laugh in a ghastly, mirthless fashion. Do not touch either of the two, or come in any kind of physical contact, or else their guardian will arrive early. No force in the universe can save you from your torment once their guardian strikes out to defend his charges.

Although the man and woman ignore you completely, stare straight ahead and, as though to nobody in particular, ask, "Who is to be forgiven when the time comes: them or us?"

Grip tightly to the pole, for the ride will come to a very abrupt stop. Your horse will be aligned right in front of the turnstile, where there is now a haggard old worker with filthy, tattered clothes and long, greasy, grey hair framing his dilapidated face. Look into his tired eyes. If he deems you unworthy of the answer, your innards will rip themselves from your body by their own will.

If you are worthy, however, then the man will give a respectful nod. The merry-go-round will start up again, but this time it will spin at breakneck speeds. Hang on tight. The man and woman who are dressed like children will cackle with glee as everything becomes a blur. Soon you will be moving with such speed that the world has resolved itself into a solid blur, and the pressure will nearly crush your innards. The cackling will exponentially increase in volume, intensity, and speed, to a point far beyond bearable. You will feel (though not see, for the speed at which you travel makes it impossible for you to see anything but a blur) that the merry-go-round - nay, the entire plane of existence you're in - is falling apart, and then all will go black.

When you awaken, you will be at the ticket booth at the carnival's entrance. The man who was operating the merry-go-round will be standing over you with a disgusted countenance. Do not get up or make any sudden movements; lie completely still, as he will now answer the question. No matter how pessimistic or negative a person you are, you will find yourself far, far, far less optimistic or hopeful than you ever imagined a person could be. Even the most bitter and jaded person will feel that he has managed to lose more faith in humanity than ever before. You might feel the vicious urge to end your life immediately, but you must resist.

Once the operator is finished with the answer, the man and woman from the merry-go-round will emerge from the carnival, except they are now children rather than adults. They will rush to the merry-go-round operator and embrace him, and they will enthusiastically call him their father. Once they embrace, they will emit an impossibly bright light. Shield your eyes, lest you be blinded.

When you no longer feel the heat emitted by the light, you may open your eyes. You will be standing before the front desk of the mental institution. The worker there will inform you that something belonging to you was discovered in the lost-and-found. Accept it.

The carnival ticket you receive is Object 125 of 538. It will allow you entry when the time comes, but only then will you discover if that's necessarily a good thing.

## The Holder of Isolation

In any city, in any country, go to any apartment complex you can get yourself into. When you reach the front desk, ask if you can see someone who calls himself the "Holder of Isolation." If there is no front desk, use the buzzer and request to look at the twenty sixth room for sale, which will prompt a doorman to appear. In either scenario, the worker should lead you down a flight of stairs that wasn't previously there. Soon you will arrive at a door, and the employee will open it for you. Do not enter just yet; rather, look into the opened door. Ask for the worker to close the door and leave you alone. If he insists that you enter, you have two choices: to wait for the worker to reveal his true form, or to step into the door and feed yourself to the horrors that lie within. Either way, your journey ends here. If the worker obliges you, wait for him to be out of sight. Be certain you are alone before you open that door.

Beyond that door will be a gathering in a high rise apartment overlooking the capital city of whatever region you are in. You will notice that everyone who you love and cherish will be present in that room. Friends, family, and loved ones will all greet you with loving and open arms. Talk to them as if they were the real thing, laugh with them, reminisce with them. Treat them with respect, and you will treated in kind. Doing any less will result in a punishment far worse than any mortal could conceive of. One by one, the guests will start excusing themselves, saying that they have somewhere else to go. Do not stop them for anything, as they have obliged you enough already. Slowly the room will drain of people, and before long the only ones left will be you and the person that you love most. Cherish the time given to you, as they too will eventually depart, and you need to muster every ounce of mental strength for the coming trial. Even though this faÃ§ade is not real, it knows enough to be effectively emulate its real-world counterpart. Here you can say anything you would like to confess to them, but ensure that you give them the proper respect. When they make a motion to leave, let them. There is no turning back now. As soon as they close the door, everything will slowly turn black. You are free to do anything here, shout, panic, or stay calm, it is your choice. Once everything has faded away, there is nothing to be done but wait.

You will spend what feels like weeks, months, or even years here in this darkness. You will start missing the people that were surrounding you earlier, and will long to feel their warmth and hear their laughter again. You felt that you belonged when you were with them, but now, you are alone to fend for yourself in this darkness. You will start looking for someone, anyone, to accompany you in this trying time, but only darkness greets you in any direction. You will feel no hunger, no thirst, but you will feel the energy drained from you with every second. This realm will not allow you to sleep, and even if you try, you will be unable to find slumber to temporarily relieve you of your loneliness. Many before you who could not bear this feeling are all a part of this darkness now, and want nothing more than for you to join them, though their wishes will never be granted.

Again, you are free to do anything here, though ending your own life now will only leave you in that darkness forever with those before you. Steel yourself, and eventually you will see a point of light on the horizon, which provides a shocking contrast to the bleak world in which you have been existing. As soon as you see it, close your eyes and ask, "Is this how they feel?" Wait for approximately three minutes before you open your eyes.

If the light has gone, and darkness surrounds you again, sit down and relax. Your journey is over, and this darkness is now your home for all eternity.

If you are lucky, when you open your eyes you will be outside of the apartment complex. At your feet will be a picture frame, and inside of it, a picture of you and the person you love engaged in a warm embrace in the apartment. Do not let anyone see it, though; they will certainly wonder about the origin of that picture.

The picture and frame are Object 126 of 538. You have felt their pain, now you must end their suffering.

## The Holder of The Seven Masks

In any country where there are still untamed woods, go to them while clearly thinking "The Holder of the Seven Masks." As you enter the woods, you should feel a gentle force pulling you deeper into the center. If not, leave immediately and come back another day.

As you walk deeper into the woods pay close attention to your surroundings. They will grow unnaturally dark, and you will see shadows darting between the trees. Do not be afraid of them, unless they stop moving and head toward you. If you value your life, you must close your eyes, put your hands together in prayer, and as calmly as you can say "I just wish to see the elders." If they do not stop they will grab you, ensuring your end will be met in that wood; all your flesh will be torn from you and your still-living body will be fed to wolves.

If they recede, continue following the gentle pull. Eventually, when the forest has become so dark you can no longer determine if there is a canopy or simply night sky, you will see a campfire. Walk toward it, and around it will sit six men, wearing only loincloths and masks, each one identical but for color. Sit down in the empty space in the ring and look at each one in turn before asking, "When will it die?"

They will each turn toward you one at a time, and as you meet each one's gaze, you will see horrible visions of how the world could end. Each one will last an eternity, but will be condensed into a moment. Many go mad from these powerful visions, and some attempt to put out their eyes with sticks from the fire, but you must steel yourself. If you, by some miracle, survive and remain sane through all the visions, you will find a new mask in your hand. You will feel an incredible urge to put it on. You must do so, because if you disgrace these elders, you will be cursed to ritual sacrifice. Your soul will be split into seven parts and sent into seven separate hells of suffering.

When you put on the new mask, you will see the true end of the world. This vision will be the most powerful, and no matter how resilient your mind you will break and lose all consciousness. When you awake, the fire will be dying, and the elders will be gone. All that remain are the seven masks. Pick them up and close your eyes. You will appear outside the wood, and you will see yourself at the beginning of your journey into the woods. Do not stop your past self, however, for if you do you'll be trapped in a time paradox.

The seven masks are Object 127 of 538. If one is lost, the other six will also vanish, and with them all hope.

## The Holder of Memories

In any city, in any country, go to any mental institution or halfway house you can get yourself to. When you reach the front desk, ask with a grin to visit someone who calls himself "The Holder of Memories." The worker will cock her head and narrow her eyes, as though she isn't convinced you are being serious. Ask again, but this time appear less at ease. The worker will still appear incredulous. Tell her, with a sheepish grin and an embarrassed demeanor, that you thought she was in on the joke, then excuse yourself in a flurry of apologies.

Once you have exited the institution, begin walking eastward. If the street does not run eastward, then walk northward. In either case, you should eventually come across a fifties-style diner that was never there before. Enter it.

The diner should be bustling and busy, even though there appear to be no customers. You will notice that all of the employees are exactly identical to the worker with whom you spoke at the institution. The meaning of this is not clear. Regardless, take a seat, preferably one from which you can quickly and easily bolt to the exit if need be.

Do not look at the menu yet. A waitress will come and take orders for drinks. Order any drink at all, so long as you order something; it is best one does not know what happens should no drink be ordered. When the waitress has returned, tell her you need more time to decide on your meal. You may now peruse the menu.

You will find that the menu is in fact a long, winding narrative about your life from the moment you were born. Read it carefully; it may take many, many hours. You will find that you have many memories, especially in your early childhood, that are long-forgotten. These are memories all humans share, but nobody remembers them; the mind deletes these memories for sanity's sake, so hellish are they.

When you read the descriptions of these memories, however, they will return to your mind with full power. You may well snap at the ferocity of the experiences you never knew you had, but you must not show any sign of weakness, for they are watching.

As you read, the waitress will come by periodically to ask if you are ready. Tell her you still need more time, and she should leave. If she doesn't leave and instead remains at your table, then they have become impatient. Your only hope is to dash IMMEDIATELY for the exit and out the door, and to keep running, down the street, out of the city, and on and on until the city is far, far behind you. If you value your life, you will never again set foot in that city.

But if you manage to read through the entire story safely, you will find that it ends rather abruptly at the point where you enter the diner, then give way to a rather mundane-looking menu listing that features hamburgers, french fries, milk shake, and the usual fare of such themed diners.

The next time the waitress comes by, order "Joe's Hamburger Special", even though such an item is not listed on the menu. The waitress will turn 360 degrees, and when she faces you once again she will somehow be holding a plate with a monstrous hamburger on it. When she gives you the hamburger, begin eating it. You may notice that the hustle and bustle in the diner has stopped completely, and all of the carbon-copy employees are now intently spectating your meal. Pay them no mind and wolf it down. When you are done, the waitress will ask, "Would you like the check?" you which you must nonchalantly reply, "Why do they flee from their memories?"

As soon as the words have escaped your lips, all of the identical employees will suddenly double over and, while emitting grotesque, painful sounds, vomit blood. A moment later, the entire diner will shift rapidly, and you may realize that the entire place is acting as though it is being sucked into a vacuum. When this happens, grip tightly to the table and do not let go, for the table at which you sit will be the only object in the diner that will not be sucked into the vacuum. The pull is immensely powerful, and it will be nearly impossible to keep your grip on the table through the ordeal, but still you must hang on, for there is no hope for you should you be drawn into the vacuum.

It will feel like an eternity, and the entire process will be violent and powerful, but eventually everything but the table will be gone without a trace. You will find you are clinging to a table in the middle of an unoccupied field several dozen miles away from the city in which you started.

That table is Object 128 of 538. They want so badly to forget, but you know better than to deny your past.

## The Holder of The Downtrodden

In any city, in any country, go to any homeless shelter or soup kitchen you can get yourself to. Ask the first employee or volunteer you see if he knows where one can find "The Holder of the Downtrodden." If the worker looks around to make sure nobody's listening before he responds, then you have come to the right place.

The worker will imply that he requires a bribe before he will take you where you must go. Give him a substantial amount of cash, and hopefully he will consider it a large enough amount. He will then show you to a door that was not there before, which will lead to a staircase the building should not have.

The worker will take you to a nonexistent floor with many, many rooms arranged in a chaotic fashion. The rooms do not have hallways connecting them, and thus one must walk through various rooms to get to his destination. The worker will make his way through the illogically-arranged floor with speed and efficiency born of experience, and it will be difficult to keep up. You must keep up, however, for being lost on this floor is eternal emptiness. Also, be sure to keep your attention focused solely on the worker whom you follow: the rooms through which you walk are occupied with people who have given in to despair and loneliness, and to pay them any heed is to join them forever.

After what will have felt like days, the worker will bring you to the only empty room, then gesture wordlessly to the door on the other end. Humming nonchalantly to himself, he will walk back the way he came, leaving you in that empty room. If you have any doubt in your heart, then you'd best leave, and hopefully catch up with the worker. Otherwise, push through the door.

You will find yourself in a dingy rathole of a place. Despite the effects of centuries of neglect, the room is just barely recognizable as a living room of sorts. On a seat that once was a respectable recliner will be a dour-looking old man. There is something to the man that tells of a life once filled with pride and success, but somewhere along the line went into a sharp nosedive that brought him to the bottom of the barrel.

With an angry-sounding, though unconvincing, bark, the old man will demand to know why you've come. Immediately snap back that it is none of his business, and assume a posture and demeanor as though you have absolutely no respect for this old man - that he is, to you, just human trash, not worthy of respect or dignity.

If you are convincing enough, the old man will cave in and lose what little bluster he had. He will meekly bow his head and become silent. Now you must rummage around the room as though you own place. Open every little cabinet and drawer you find, and rifle through. Take anything you like; so long as you maintain your facade of domination, nobody will dare stop you.

After you have looked through every storage place in the room, march up to the old man and demand to know where your payment is. The man will mumble and fumble for a while, but you must force a direct answer out of him, even if physical force is required. If you are successful, he will tell you how he ended up in his current situation. It is a story of dreams crushed by insensitive rivals, of opportunities missed, of dreams dashed by unfeeling bureaucracies, of success destroyed by a society mired in dogmatism. This man once had great potential and resolve to change the world for the better, but the world he tried to save turned right around and destroyed him for his noble efforts. It is a story of uncaring powers-that-be, of close friends becoming enemies in the name of ambition, of loved ones turning away because they only cared about themselves, even after everything he'd sacrificed for them. If you feel any remorse - any at all - for what you have done to this man after hearing his story, then you are doomed to take his place. You must harden your heart and feel no compassion if you wish to remain free.

Once the old man's story is finished, grab him by the collar of his shirt and snarl, "What do they gain from the suffering they inflict?"

As the answer rips from him with force enough to bring you to your knees, you will gain the exact answer to your question. What little life was left in the old man will leave him, and he will sink back into his pathetic excuse for a chair. Now you may exit through the door from which you entered, which will open directly into the homeless shelter or soup kitchen in which you started. You will feel, right then, that what little compassion, what little care for others, you had inside you has died with that old man.

The hardness in your heart is Object 129 of 538. Your path will lead only to despair and oppression, for which the meek and compassionate will suffer the most.

## The Holder of The Script

In any city, in any country, go to any mental institution or halfway house you can get yourself to. When you reach the front desk, ask rather bluntly to visit someone who calls himself "The Holder of the Script." If the worker freezes for a moment, then puts on a weak facade of normalcy, then you have come to the right place.

Nervously, the worker will direct you down a hall and to a door, then hastily dash away without another word. Enter the door, and you will find yourself in another hallway, this one without doors. Make your way down this bare hallway, making sure to exude nothing but confidence.

Should you, while walking down the hallway, hear a soft applause, stop immediately and shout, "I do not deserve any credit!" If the applause continues, then be thankful that your end will come quickly, though not without extreme pain.

If the applause dies down, you may proceed. At the end of the hall, the wall will be bare. Push the bare wall to find that is a hidden door; the entire wall will spin around and allow you passage. Enter to find yourself on a half-complete, harshly-lit stage. The rows of seats before the stage are all empty, save for one at the front and center. There sits the director, a man who appears to be in his late twenties, though you may notice he has no eyes.

Before you have a chance to collect your thoughts, the director will proceed to bark out a series of directions. Without missing a beat, you must do the exact opposite of each command, so think and act quickly. The director will grow increasingly agitated as you fail to carry out his directions, but you must not allow his anger to disrupt you, for breaking the rhythm at this point would mean inviting your understudy to take your place. No words can adequately describe what that would entail.

After hours of exhausting instruction and mounting frustration, the director will throw up his hands in defeat and declare you unworthy of playing the part. Before he has a chance to rise from his seat, quickly ask one question: "What is the part I must play?"

The director will guffaw incredulously and shake his head. Then, with a flick of his wrist, the stage below you will vanish, and you will fall into a seemingly bottomless pit. As you fall, you will hear the sounds of the most brutal massacres to ever occur, and those yet to come. You will hear the bones of the innocent crushed under the boots and treads of good and evil alike. Through it all, you will come to understand what your part is.

Be prepared for when you finally hit water; from the height you will have fallen, hitting the surface will be a painful blow. Allow yourself to sink to the bottom, for when you come into contact with the floor, you will appear suddenly in a cell in the institution. Lying at your feet will be a stack of papers stapled together.

If you read any part of what is written on those papers, then you accept your part in the script. Refusing to accept the part means one day being a victim of His rise. To accept the part means one day becoming the person responsible for it.

The script is Object 130 of 538. Only you can choose whether or not you accept your part.