The Unseen Price

It was a stormy night, and the rain lashed against the windows of the small, dimly lit office. The timepiece struck night, and the hopeless salesman, Mark, sat hunkered over his office, his eyes bloodshot from hours of gaping at the computer screen. He'd been floundering to meet his deals targets for months, and the pressure from his master was getting unsupportable. With his job on the line, Mark felt as if he'd no choice but to resort to drastic measures.

In a moment of despair, Mark rumored into the darkness," If there is anyone out there who can help me, I will do anything."

A unforeseen gust of wind blew through the room, extinguishing the fluttering candle on his office. The temperature dropped, and Mark fiddled as he felt a minatory presence materialize behind him. A deep, husky voice echoed through the room," I can help you, Mark, but there will be a price."

Mark dithered for a moment, but the study of losing his job and the life he'd erected for himself pushed him to accept the offer." I will pay any price," he replied, his voice pulsing.

The voice chortled darkly," veritably well. You'll achieve your deals targets, but in exchange, you must give me commodity precious to you."

Mark agreed without a alternate study, and the presence dissolved as suddenly as it had appeared. The coming day, Mark set up that his deals had soared. He was praised by his master and associates, and he birled

in his newfound success. But as the days went by, he began to notice strange circumstances.

At first, it was small effects – objects moving on their own, murk fluttering in the corners of his vision. But soon, the incidents grew more minatory. Mark would wake up in the middle of the night, paralyzed with fear, as he felt an unseen force pressing down on his casket. He'd hear whispers in the darkness, riding him and reminding him of the deal he'd made.

As the weeks went by, Mark's life began to unravel. His musketeers and family grew distant, seeing the darkness that now clung to him. His formerly- thriving social life atrophied, leaving him insulated and alone. But the worst was yet to come.

One night, as Mark lay in bed, the whispers grew louder and more pertinacious. They demanded that he fulfill his end of the bargain and give up commodity precious to him. Mark tried to ignore them, but the voices grew angrier and further threatening. Eventually, in a moment of weakness, he cried out," Take whatever you want, just leave me alone!"

The room fell silent, and Mark felt a cold dread settle in his casket. He knew that he'd made a terrible mistake. The coming morning, he awoke to find his woman

and youthful son gone, their beds cold and empty. Frantic, he searched the house, but there was no sign of them. It was as if they had dissolved into thin air.

Mark's life entwined into darkness. His deals success meant nothing to him now, and he was consumed by guilt and despair. He knew that he'd brought this horror upon himself and his family, and he couldn't escape the terrible price he'd agreed to pay.

As the times went by, Mark came a shell of his former tone, visited by the recollections of his lost family and the deal he'd made with the devil. He tried to find solace in his work, but the darkness that had formerly helped him achieve his deals targets now sounded to repel implicit guests. His career atrophied, and he was left with nothing.

One stormy night, much like the one when he'd made the cataclysmal deal, Mark sat alone in his now-empty office. The rain lashed against the windows, and the wind howled through the cracks in the walls. As the timepiece struck night, Mark rumored into the darkness," Please, give them back to me. I will do anything."

But there was no answer, only the sound of the rain and the distant grumble of thunder. Mark knew that he could noway undo the deal he'd made, and the price he'd paid was far more intimidating than he could have ever imagined.