Nearly all magical contracts function under the same general principle; a list of actions is enumerated which the contracted becomes unable to perform willingly. While this is an incredibly useful and flexible tool for a variety of situations, there are some inherent deficiencies in this method. One obvious flaw is that actions can only be prevented, and not forced. The interpretive flexibility of magic allows a contract maker to give orders which may seem to be causing action, but in truth the contract functions in those cases by making the inverse of the order a banned action. As an example, if a contractor orders a contracted to make it a cup of tea, the magic would activate by punishing or preventing any action by the contracted which will not result in making tea. In most situations this is merely a technical difference of importance only to scholars, but, particularly in the case of intelligent contracted, it is important to keep such minutia in mind. Demons and intelligent slaves are surprisingly adept at abusing the difference between a contractor's orders and actual enforcement.

Another limitation to keep in mind when utilizing contracts is that the spellwork almost always determines if an order is being followed or not from the perspective of the contracted. One example is the incredibly common order to not tell lies. Even with such an order in effect, contracted can still tell falsehoods simply due to ignorance. Or, if they are particularly clever, they may say things which are technically true but are misleading. Imagine you ask your contracted demon if there are any monsters around the corner, and they tell you 'yes, there is a goblin'. You turn the corner to find there is indeed a goblin, right next to the angry fire dragon.

-Excerpt from Understanding Contract Magic

Three middle aged men and two women sit in comfortable chairs around a wide desk of polished mahogany. Setting down a document, a massive man with a thick handlebar mustache coughs lightly. "Hmm, well that's all we have to report for the month. Overall a pretty average harvest from the dungeon."

A mousy and overweight man with deep bags under his eyes dabbed some sweat from his forehead. "Thanks, Ghul. Keep up the good work. It's reassuring to have such a steady income for the city with you running the Association." Reaching for his cup of water, the mayor of Geltheas took several deep gulps.

Looking concerned, a bookish older woman with a grey bun spoke up. "You don't look so good, Guy. You're overworking yourself. You ought to take a break and get some rest."

Smiling sweetly at the kindly old lady who had run the schools since he was a child himself, he replied "Thank you, Mrs. Bloodhammer, but I just can't. If I took a break now, it would be even worse when I got back. Anyway, things will calm down after the festival."

A shapely woman in a shimmering purple robe, the captain of the City Guard, leaned forward. "If you can't take a break, you should at least stop by Cithlars place and see if he can whip up a tonic or something. I don't think he would ignore a request from the mayor if it's something simple like that."

"Actually, that reminds me." Lifting himself from his slumped posture, a corpulent and energetic merchant sat up straight. "Cithlar didn't pick up his groceries this week. That's pretty unusual for him. Ghul, did he get called away on a special assignment?"

The Association Master leaning back and crossing two muscular arms. "Not that I know of... and he's retired, so if he got called in for something I would have definitely heard of it."

"Maybe he's dead" said the guard captain followed by a giggle.

Mrs. Bloodhammer turned to her aghast. "You shouldn't joke about such things in regards to people our age! Cithlar may be a genius but he's still mortal. You'll feel like a right fool if it turns out to be true."

"S-sorry..." Looking slightly ashamed, the magus who was feared by the underworld as the 'Lightning Disaster' withered at the glare of the schoolmarm.

"Well, maybe I'll go check up on him later. As soon as I can find a hole in my schedule, that is. If he's fine he can mix me a tonic to deal with my fatigue. If he's not, well..."

In the fifth chair, the head priest of the local Church of the Venerable Gnostics snored peacefully.

Mud crept slowly through the branches high above the fern dense forest floor. Using its favorite 'rock fall' tactic had unfortunately been impossible in the previous day due to the flat and open terrain, but that was not a problem in the forest. The massive and tightly packed conifers made it possible for the flexible golem to travel from branch to branch, moving like a mix between a snake, a monkey, and an octopus. Despite the strange method of locomotion, the intuition of the Stealth skill allowed Mud to slip silently through the tree tops.

[Climbing Skill obtained at level 1]

A welcome announcement appeared, and the bizarre movements were refined further. Experimenting with new ways of gripping branches, Mud noticed movement in the nearby underbrush.

Looking about restlessly as it advanced from behind a tree was a large furry quadruped. Its body was thin and lean, appearing more designed for speed than strength. Its only natural weapons appeared to be hardened plates on the end of each of its limbs, and two branching bonelike growths on its head.

It wasn't a predator or magical best, but the red deer was certainly more dangerous than a rat. If Jabrax was to be believed, this should give a larger volume of Experience if killed. Additionally, it will help Mud determine its combat capabilities against a larger target. Making its decision, Mud slowly and silently positioned itself above the skittish herbivore. Entrusting itself to the gentle nudging of the Sneak Attack skill, Mud waited for the perfect moment to strike.

Several tense moments passed until the red deer finally lowed his head to take a bite of a particularly juicy looking patch of grass. This is it! Mud released its grip on the branches and plummeted towards the oblivious ungulate.

Unfortunately, in this attack Mud's inexperience showed. As it released the grip it had on its perch, the flexed branch sprung upward to its original height. The resultant rustling of leaves alerted the deer, which quickly lifted his head and prepared to bolt.

Oh no you don't! Mud spread itself wide, pushing Amorphous Form to the limit. Creating large gaps in its body, it managed to spread even wider. The deer, spotting the falling figure as it drew near, began to run. But he was too late, and couldn't escape the massive coverage of the net. After wrapping around the neck and torso for a firm grip, Mud pulled in the rest of its body and coiled tightly around the deer.

The deer bucked wildly and kicked the air, but was unable to dislodge his unwanted passenger. Having secured a grip, Mud attempted to squeeze the deer as it had the rats, but found little success. The deer was much larger and sturdier, and the constriction had no immediate effect. Switching tactics, Mud formed a club of densely packed dirt from near the creatures back and attempted to bludgeon the deer’s head.

While he was unable the dislodge the golem, the red deer's efforts were not completely ineffective. The construct's focus was spread thin due to the complex shapes and pressures it was trying to maintain under such chaotic circumstances. As the red deer spasmed and kicked wildly, small parts of Mud's body flecked off into the surrounding undergrowth. It was not to the point that it caused damage, but Mud was starting to feel considerably uncomfortable from the slow loss of mass.

Eventually, either due to his stamina running low or the bludgeoning taking effect, the deer began to slow.

[Unarmed Combat Skill increased to level 2]

With a final heavy blow, the deer finally stopped moving and, with two more strikes, passed away.

[Experience Gained: 10]

Mud was ecstatic. This one kill had been worth two full days of ambushing rats, and it had only been hunting for a short time. If this was the difference in gain for a target that Dictionary still considered low risk, what sort of returns could it expect from a medium or high-risk target? Eager to get back to hunting, Mud began diligently collecting the small amounts of its form that had been dislodged during the scuffle. As it reabsorbed a particularly large glob, Mud heard a rustling from the direction it had left the corpse.