There's a belief that to be greedy is to be foolish, that is a lie. I still believe that, but I may have bit off a bit more than I could chew.

"You want me to kill gods?"

"Yes."

...

"Well, I suppose I got a decent enough power to do so. How many gods do you want dead?"

"Five."

"Any specific information on them?"

"No, information of the gods has a great cost in lower realms such as this."

"Of course it does."

"You can readily find information on them once you arrive in their world. I will strengthen your power with every god you slay, and fulfill it completely when the job is done. Then I will return you to this world. You will not be alone; everyone I've sent to their world works to fulfill this task. Even if they're unaware of the overall goal."

"Good to know."

I took a short moment to weigh my options and listen to the opinions of my team before I finally stood up from the desk.

"Alright, I can accept this deal."

"You didn't have much choice, human. The second you chose your path you were bonded to the task."

My mind idly wondered to the several hundred gallons of holy water I had stored above my office, ready to be released at the push of a button. As well as the priests one room away absolutely itching to perform a real exorcism, alongside the several dozen other contingencies I had prepared. Not that any were guaranteed to work of course. This thing was far more eldritch than demon in my opinion, but that didn't matter. I'd already chosen to take the deal.

Killing a god could be called a fool's task, the height of greed, but I already know of his world and the treasures it hides. An immortal can get a lot done in that kind of place.

"Don't forget, your powers will be limited at first. I can give you eighty lives, any more would be too large of an investment in you. Even if you are a promising specimen."

I turned my attention back towards the demon.

"You want those gods to live?"

"What?"

"It's a simple question. I only ask because that's what it seems like to me. You're limited in what you can do by yourself, that's something incredibly obvious. So I want to ask you an easy question."

I leaned in closer.

"How would you describe everyone else who chose the path of the fool?"

I didn't wait for a response, instead answering my own question.

"Let me take an educated guess. They all fit the title of the path rather well, fools, idiots, morons. Now, how would you describe me?"

"...a fool."

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong. I'm competent, and that's something a true fool can never be. If I had to describe myself, I'd say I'm more...driven than anything else."

I shrugged my shoulders, "Or maybe crazy if I was being less generous, but that's not my point. My point, my friend, is that I'm of higher quality than your other participants. How many have conversed with you as I have? How many do you think chose powers of merit? How many of them even met your gaze?

...

"What is it you want?"

"Give me a hundred lives."

…

…

"Very well."

The demon reached across the table and placed his hand atop my head, and I felt something flow into me as my legs become unsteady. I already knew what this meant. My negotiations had gone well, and the demon had actually given me my power.

"Now go forth and prove yourself, Marcus Keane. You greedy fool."

In the next instant space distorted around me, enveloping me and whisking me away to the world that could finally fulfill my dream.

And then just as soon as it came, the void left me, spitting me out into a small field where fire encompassed everything.

I scrambled up from the ground and tried to get my bearings as smoke billowed up around me, clouding my vision and irritating my eyes and lungs.

An entirely natural reaction, which was weird considering the nature of the power I'd requested. It was probably one of the aspects the demon had weakened. I wasn't given much time to dwell on it though.

There were things moving amongst the flames that surrounded me. They looked like creatures of bone and fire. Charred and melting as they moved through the flames and encircled me. They carried surprisingly well put together weapons considering their states. Iron maces, spears, swords, the whole works, but despite the danger they represented they weren't even my main concern.

No, that would be the twenty-story tall dragon billowing out fire into the field that surrounded me. It all but ignored the monsters cautiously moving throughout the flames as its eyes immediately locked onto me.

The flames it spit out came to a halt as it fully turned its head towards me and once again opened its mouth.

"Ah shit."

In the next instant I was bathed in flame. A dull pain wracking my entire body, lessened by the contents of my power, but not entirely removed. It only lasted a moment as the flames made quick work of my nerves, flesh and bones. Eating me away until my body turned to ash and the dragon roared into the sky.

I died.

---------------------

Seconds later I opened my eyes to immense pressure weighing down on me. It knocked the air from my lungs as I frantically looked around. I was underwater and a quick glance upwards revealed I was a good hundred feet or so from the surface.

I immediately kicked off from the bottom of the lake, ocean or whatever I was in, frantically moving my arms in a desperate bid to reach the surface.

I didn't make it far.

The calm water turned into a roaring rapid in an instant, pulling me back down where I immediately felt a deep pain in my side. Teeth dug into me, ripping through my supposedly bulletproof jacket with ease and rending my flesh. The moving currents jostled me from side to side tearing me upon the creature's teeth. I couldn't even get a clear look at my monster before my blood clouded the water and my vision faded to black.

I died.

------------------------

When I next opened my eyes, I was standing in a meadow. Butterflies fluttered all around me and flowers littered the landscape. After a moment of hesitation I looked down at my torso where I couldn't even find a speck of blood. Hell, my shirt wasn't even torn. Which...was promising. This was one of my more ambitious additions to the power. If it hadn't gotten weakened and worked the way it was supposed to then it would accelerate my plans significantly.

With a slight grin I began to examine the rest of my body, and to my surprise my hands were shaking. I'd just died twice and yet I was still here. It was honestly affecting me more than I'd thought it would. I'd need to m–

I was pulled from my thoughts as a pain erupted from my calf. My eyes shot downwards where I saw a strand of grass had entirely pierced through the limb and was winding its way up my leg.

Which quickly gave out, I fell to the ground where my torso was skewered on contact by dozens of similar strands of grass.

They crawled up my body, giving me no time to think, no time to plan. They pierced through my gut, and even though the pain was dimmed and I knew this wouldn't be the end, I was still horrified.

I tried to tear the grass off me, but no matter what I did I couldn't damage the unnaturally durable plant. It sliced through muscle, burrowing into flesh and ripping my innards to bits.

I was going to die here.

The second that thought entered my mind I reached into my back pocket and pulled out three cylindrical pieces of metal. With shaky, blood covered hands, I began to piece them together.

It didn't take long until I was done.

I immediately flipped two switches on the device and pulled the pin at its top.

"Should've just let me walk away."

With that shrapnel shot from the device, killing me and the plant instantly.

I died.