"I'm trying," Mesaraih said, his body standing stock still from its conflicting desires. "My body won't... listen."<br/><br/>He turned back to face Venus, who began to take on her true form. This allowed him a brief moment of respite before she turned her gaze onto him once more, locking him into place with deep, dark eyes. "And you could grant that to me? You can make money appear out of thin air? You can find love? Just how would you go about granting me anything?" Mesaraih asked, his voice slow and strained.<br/><br/>The demon gazed at him, her hands running themselves along her figure as if she couldn't help touching herself. Mesaraih found it perverse, but was strangely captivated by it all the same.<br/><br/>"Yes," it said, in a silky, weighty voice. "All these things are within my power. I sense, however, that you desire something different..."<br/><br/>"I want to be a legend," Mesaraih whispered to the ground. His head moved itself to look at the desire demon, its dark eyes swirling and smoky with excitement.<br/><br/>"I can do grant you this," it said. "You need only-"<br/><br/>"But I don't want it given to me," Mesaraih said, cutting the demon off. His fist was clenched, and although the demon's hold on him was still strong, he felt his mind becoming somewhat clearer. It was hard to pinpoint exactly how he was beginning to be able to resist. The only thing he could think of was that, throughout the exchange, his mind had been practicing, learning the patterns of the demon's will, fighting to assert Mesaraih's will over that of the demon. And somehow, it was working. The strange impulses that made him want to obey the demon were more clearly detected in his mind as lies. And this latest proposition, more than ever, was something that he could reject as unworthy.<br/><br/>"There are plenty of other things I can grant you," the demon said, though a hint of worry was etching itself into its unnaturally loud voice.<br/><br/>Mesaraih looked up and began walking towards the demon. "My desires are not all that extensive," he said. "Except... maybe..." he paused, and the demon seemed to egg him on, wanting him to talk. Then its eyes darkened as it realized what Mesaraih was about to do.<br/><br/>"You cannot lie to me," it hissed, retreating quickly and raising its hands to launch a stream of icy frost towards Mesaraih. He rolled to the side to avoid it, feeling its chill by his boots, which came closest to being caught. He quickly drew his other dagger and positioned the one he had been sliding out from underneath his sleeve more properly. It seemed as if, with the demon occupied in battle, its hold on him had completely evaporated.<br/><br/>He cast an eye towards Ester, wondering if she too had been released.