The Holder of the Absolute

I am the Holder of the Absolute. Nothing more, nothing less. And yet, I am the limit of everything from your power to the very ticking of time itself. There is nothing that is more powerful than my might, and there is no tolerance to insolence and no mercy for the fool-hearted and unworthy.

But, I'm not all bad.

Fact is, I'm one of the only kind Holders that I know of. I mean, all of that death stuff... it makes me sick.

I know, I know, in all of your travels to the most extreme of conditions around the planet, and of everything you have seen in those travels, you have never heard of a squeamish Holder. Well, I'm not ashamed. Not in the least. Honestly, half of the time you go after one of the Objects, you're not sure what exactly lies in wait. And I do still have a heart. So, to get things rolling, I might as well tell you everything. Nothing more, nothing less.

I will be found at 446 Main St. in a certain small town in a certain small area of a certain small country. Honestly, the details are so fuzzy; I've been here so long. Go to my house, and ring the doorbell. I will answer the door in an image of what you would think of as being the last living thing you will ever see. Do not be alarmed, I only do this to keep up appearances. I will invite you into my house. Whether you want to go inside or not is entirely up to you, and I will do nothing to sway your decision. When you enter, simply close the door behind you.

Once you enter, the inside of the house will have the appearance of what you believe the world will look like in its last moments. But be warned, no matter what you think of it to be, the things that will kill you in your thoughts will definitely kill you in reality. And I don't want to clean that up after you.

Go to the only different structure in the area and wait outside. I will be with you shortly. When you see me approach, I will ask you to kill me. Again, whichever one you choose does not matter to me. However, if you do kill me, then my advice on what follows soon will be lost, and you will have to figure out what you must do on your own.

There is only one thing you have to do, and I will be the one to tell you what it is that you need to do. I will supply you with any of the Objects you will need, so long as you have already retrieved them. You then have an option. Perform the task, whatever it may be, whether it is my death, performing every task for every Object without receiving any of them, or something as simple as exhaling. Then the Object is yours.

Or, you can refuse.

"Why?" I will ask you. Answer honestly. And I will then kill you. As much as I hate to do it, I'm sure you have a heart underneath all of that experience with the Holders; I will have to kill you in the most painful, evil, torturous, and slow way you could ever think of. Only worse.

And, here is where my name comes in, it will be absolute. No matter what happens, whether the entire civilization is reborn, or even if the dead return to life, you will be excluded from the rebirth. An absolute end to everything that you were.

However, why would anyone do this? If there is nothing to gain... or is there?

With your death, you both receive an item and you help the cause, for the Object you receive will be sent to anyone of your choice. And the best part of the deal is that you can pick what the item is. No matter what it is, the Object will take the form of it. Choose wisely, this opportunity will only come once in your life. Well, what's left of it.

The decision is yours. and Object 446 of 2538 may or may not be with you.