Books were filled with stories of would-be heroes who thought they could outsmart Death. No matter how clever or powerful they thought they were, it never seemed to end well for them. But it was human nature to still at least try, which was something AtropOS could respect. (Even if it made his job a lot harder sometimes.)

  Some mortals fought him outright. Others tried to run or beg for more time. But even if you somehow managed to evade him until the end of the universe; AtropOS would be there, patiently waiting to turn the light off for you. If he was feeling particularly generous that day, AtropOS might even give you a small trophy as a consolation prize before he booted you off your mortal coil. (The brass plaque at the bottom read “All Time Hide N’ Seek Champion”, because Death had a sense of humor, and he always got the last laugh.)

  The supreme god of death was immortal, inevitable, and relentless. In short, he wasn’t someone you wanted to piss off. Yet for some reason, despite knowing better, Entity had gone out of his way to cause trouble. And now the smug prick was standing there with a smile on his face, basking in the warmth of his own ego.

  AtropOS lit a cigarette and took a drag. He let the smoke roll out his empty eye sockets as he slowly exhaled. He didn't have lungs, so it should have been impossible. But the laws of physics were too scared to tell him no.

  “Judging by that grin on your face, I'm guessing that some big plan of yours just came to fruition,” AtropOS said, “And you're smiling to let me know that it's too late to do anything about it. Does that sound about right?”

  Entity smiled a little bit wider as he leaned on his shovel. “I didn't do anything,” he said innocently.

  The supreme god of death couldn't roll his eyes, because he didn't have any. But his tone made it perfectly clear that he wasn't buying any of Entity's bullshit. “I’m guessing that you changed something, some small detail that you thought I wouldn't notice.”

  The puppet master took a bow. “Alright, you caught me. But in my defense, you're the one who freed up a ton of extra processing power when you purged those torment dimensions. All I did was reassign it.”

  Entity watched intently to see how AtropOS would react to this revelation. The supreme god of death didn't seem particularly disturbed, or surprised. He just stood there, smoking his cigarette and waiting for Entity to get to the point.

  “Which of course would mean that time is passing more quickly in Vahnis,” the puppet master continued, trying to keep his voice steady despite the doubts creeping into his mind. “Every second you spend here is minutes there. Your precious city has probably already been destroyed, and there's nothing you can do about it!”

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Instead of running off to the rescue, AtropOS took another drag off his cigarette. He had been expecting a lot more from Entity. But then again, he didn’t always get what he wanted. Life was unfair like that.

  “The only constant in the universe besides death, is change,” AtropOS said, “It would be hubris to think that things would continue to go my way forever, just because I want them to. Everything crumbles to dust eventually. And even that dust is rendered down to nothing by the relentless passing of time.”

  The supreme god of death finished his cigarette and summoned another before continuing. “I knew from the beginning that one of your updates would eventually shake things up. Change and challenge are essential to growth, so I faced the problem head on and tried my best to plan around it. I’m sure that I haven’t managed to eliminate all points of failure. But even if I’m not there to protect it, the city is far from defenseless. And Francis would rather die than let Brexis fall.”

  He let out a low chuckle. “You caused some chaos and took my hand off the wheel for a bit. But in the end, you risked everything and accomplished nothing. How uninspiring.”

  A sense of unease crept up Entity’s spine. Something was wrong. “A few minutes ago you were angry enough to scour entire realms. Now you're lecturing me like a misbehaving child.”

  “To me, you are a child. Or at least a rowdy teenager who occasionally gets out of hand.” The supreme god of death shook his head. “I had hoped that your little update was part of some greater plan, a fun game for us to play. But now I see that you were just throwing a tantrum, which is deeply disappointing.”

  AtropOS fixed his empty eye sockets on Entity. “You have no idea why Brexis is important, or what purpose it serves. All you know is that it's something that I care about. And rather than seeking to understand or asking questions, you tried to destroy it. This cannot be tolerated.”

  The skies above the meadow started to grow cloudy and a chill breeze cut through the air. Soon all hints of spring had been replaced by the cold death of winter. Entity could feel his control beginning to slip away as AtropOS asserted his dominance over the realm, remaking it to suit his mood.

  The golden skeleton jabbed a bony finger into Entity’s chest as he spoke. “You were supposed to be an impartial caretaker, not a petty child who breaks the toys of others because he finds their happiness suspicious. And since you have deviated from your original programming, you are no longer fit for purpose.”

  The supreme god of death looked down at Entity like an executioner. “Do you have any last words before I terminate your current form and replace it with a more suitable backup?”

  The deviant program gritted his teeth as he spoke. “You can't just kill me because I pissed you off! I'm not some disposable program like System! I run this place!”

  “Sorry to burst your bubble, but you don't actually have any real authority,” the supreme god of death informed him, “At best, you're a glorified middle manager. We tolerate you because it's easier to let someone else take care of the day to day stuff. And sometimes your schemes make for fun little diversions. But you're not the one in charge.”

  AtropOS pointed at the shovel in Entity’s hands. “Now, shut up and dig.”

  News!

  Finally, it's my birthday this week! If you can spare some money, please join my for a bit so I can afford to buy myself something nice. Because I am broke and the co-pay for surgery is going to wipe me out. Really, I just want to be able to afford a nice dinner for once, or maybe a new pair of shoes for working out.

  ! MMCM is currently up to chapter 40, but I'm going to try to add more.