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Contract

The year was 1980. Pentagram city was as confusing and chaotic as it had always been. A lost doll wandered the streets. Her legs limped and her ball joints creaked. Her sepia colored, silicone skin had various scratches and scraps covering it. Her seashell colored hair was pinned up into a single Afro puff so it wouldn't get in the way of her vision. She had been in hell for a week and still struggled to remember who she was or how she got here. She knew only two things. She wasn't always a doll and her name was Marionette.

She looked at her surroundings. Different creatures of all shapes at sizes appeared to run wild and rampant. Stabbing, fighting, cursing, and indescribable sex acts were happening at every corner of the streets. She tried not to look anyone in the eyes and dragged herself along. She didn't know where she was going but she had to keep moving. She felt an eerie and shadowy presence behind her but she was too afraid to turn around. So, she ran as far as her stiff limbs could take her until she arrived in front of a store with various brown tv sets sitting on top of one another. They each flicked and buzzed with bright lights until only one was playing.

On the screen a commercial was playing an advertisement for a type of phone that Marionette had never seen before. Despite this, she was more interested in the devil promoting it. The demon's face was nothing more than a flat screen. He had a big cheesy grin on his face as he held up the phone. Marionette was memorized by the tv demon's appearance.

"Hey! Turn around!" The tv demon said.

Marionette stared at the tv screen in confusion. Was he talking to her? That felt impossible. Was she going crazy? Has the environment and insanity of hell finally taken hold over her mind? She kept her eyes glued onto the screen until she felt a hand grab her shoulder and turn her around forcefully.

Standing before her was a creature of pure black and shadow. A mass of inky darkness started to form around her. The formless shadow began to shift and contort into a more humanoid shape. It spoke in a mixture of both a male and female voice. The shadow sounded like two people speaking at once.

"Poor doll. You've been broken and tossed away by your creator. Don't worry. We'll end your misery" The misshapen lips of the shadow demon contorted into a wide smile as they grabbed Marionette's neck. She wasn't aware if death in hell was permanent of not but she didn't want to take her chances. She desperately looked around for any bit of light but found none. She closed her eyes and heard her plastic lids click into place. She figured, if she closed her eyes, she might wake up from this nightmare.

Suddenly, she heard a buzzing and humming sound. A flashing echo rang in her ear like lightning. A mechanical roar reverberated in the air. She felt herself get flung to the ground which caused her to quickly open her eyes. Standing in front of her was a demon of similar height to her with a CRT TV for a head.

"Ha! That was too easy! That asshole has been a pain in the ass for days! They're always blocking out my broadcast." The TV demon chuckled as he looked down at the disheveled Marionette. "Damn. You look like shit. You must be a newbie."

Marionette's body creaked and ticked as she sat up. "A-are you gonna try and kill me too?"

"Honey, Why the hell would I waste my time killing you. Your soul is worth much more than that?" The demon's voice begins to sound more glitchy as he speaks. "What's your name Dolly?"

"Marionette"

"Oh really? Is that your real name?" The TV demon smirked.

"I'm not sure. That's all I can remember. I don't know why I'm here"

"Ha! Perfect! You're a clean slate. You're just the demon I need for my plans. Your clueless image is perfect for promoting me. Listen, demons that come here with a body like yours don't last long on these streets. They either get sold off or exterminated."

"Exterminated? What?" Marionette's eyes started to rattle around in fear.

"Oh. It's no big deal. A bunch of angel assholes come down here and kill off lesser demons every year. It's whatever. You don't have to worry about that because you're gonna be the newest face of Voxtech. All you got to do is make a deal with me." A huge grin appeared on the demon's screen face. A gold contract appeared in his hands.

"Um. I'm new but I'm aware enough to not sign random contracts with demons."

The tv demon aggressively grabs Marionette by the collar of her top and forces her face close to his. His bright red eyes moved rhythmically. "Was I too forward? Sorry about that sweetheart. My name is Vox and I run half the shit in this city. Anything you need, I can give it to you. All you have to do is keep those glass eyes on me and only me." He laughs. "And I'll keep you safe."

"Anything I want."

"Yea Dolly."

"I want my memories back. I want to survive" Marionette spoke desperately as she stared at the glowing contract.

"Sign it and no demon will mess with you ever again."