There are times in every mortal's life when they begin to question the universe around them. What is their purpose in life? Why does the world play out the way it does? How do we begin to change our fates? All laudable questions, but I never expected to ask them after being proposed by two completely and utterly different women.

"Well, there you have it hero. I'd suggest just agreeing to my deal so that we can get to the fun parts as soon as possible."

"A sure sign of this fiend's lack of confidence, noble ${character name}. You would do well to consider your options carefully, though if you wish to affirm our sacred pact, I shall not halt thee."

"Hold on for a damn second. Or, um, you know what I mean," I say, hesitantly bowing my head towards the woman sitting to my left.

Her full lips pull up in a gentle smile, light seeming to pour from her emerald green eyes. Or, actually, her eyes are literally glowing. Wings of pure white feathers fan out behind her as a golden halo spins above her similarly radiant hair. One perfectly smooth leg crosses over the other, barely shifting the thin white robe that covers her form. "Have no fear of your language, ${character name}. You have lived a hard life up until this moment, and such living is bound to manifest in a rough tongue. We will have time to smooth out such unappealing features in the future," she says. Her voice is hypnotizing, as though every word has been weighed for maximum effect and delivered in a husky tone that oozes confidence.

"There you go again, insulting a damn hero without an ounce of hesitation. I tell ya, ${character name}, this bitch is never going to make you happy in the slightest. Probably just wants to make you into a fancy little servant to add to her collection up in the sky." The other woman, sitting to my right, is the angel's complete opposite. She's shorter, for one, with dark skin that almost melds into the shadows of the room. Dark red horns curl from her temples, around which pours hair black as night; framed by those raven locks, her purple eyes glitter like amethysts, full of mischief. Instead of anything decent, the demon wears a set of high-end lingerie that barely hides an inch of her slender body, yet she doesn't have a shred of shame for showing off such an incredible body. It might lack the obvious curves of the angel, but this demon has a casual beauty that rivals anyone I have ever seen before.

Which leads to my current predicament. "Look, you can't just run into my life like this, drop a bombshell of this magnitude, then expect an answer on the spot. You haven't even told me your names yet, for starters!"

The angel blushes a bit at that, but before she can say anything the little demon speaks up from where she's slumped in her chair. "Oh, right, sorry bout that. I was gonna do introductions till miss prissy over there decided to jump right into the details. My name's Ash'ala, but you can just call me Ash if you want, since we'll be real close in the future. Her name's Veronica something-or-other."

Anger twitches up the corners of the angel's mouth, but she manages to restrain herself for the moment. "As this demon just said, my name Is Veronica, of the House of Maios, which has ever been tasked with the guidance of Heroes such as yourself. For the sake of clarity, shall I once again explain why the two of us have come here?" When I nod in affirmation, Veronica continues in that lovely voice of hers. "The past few wars between the Celestial Realms and the Demonic Emperium have been catastrophic on our populations, not to mention the casualties that this world has had to suffer, having been stuck between us."

"Only because these angels can't help trying to stick their noses where they don't belong. For the record, demons have never tried to rope you mortals into our nonsense," Ash'ala chimes in.

As if never interrupted, the angel speaks on. "What has decided many of our wars has been the intervention of mortal Heroes, beings of immense skill and power that can stand against our Heavenly Archons and the Demon Kings or Queens. You, young ${character name}, have been chosen as the Hero of this age, a task I am certain must seem daunting to you. Were this the past, I would have been chosen to guide you in your quests to put down the loathesome fiends that plague both our worlds."

Ash'ala lets out a snicker. "Bunch of pretty words, but to tell you the truth, Veronica's so-called House of Maios has actually managed to turn the last three Heroes against the Celestial Realms, so they're on thin fucking ice with the rest of their kind." When the angel turns a hateful glare towards her, Ash'ala just starts to pick at her long nails with a dagger, though I have no idea where she could have been hiding it. "Long story short, Veronica wants to avoid any more embarrassment by meeting with you as soon as possible. We couldn't just let that happen, so our current King made a suggestion; both our worlds would send a single representative to meet with you, and whoever you choose to marry, would win this age's war. Lot less wasting of money and lives, huh?"

Veronica sighs before nodding, if more than a bit reluctantly. "It was a welcome suggestion, truth be told, and I do relish the chance of righting the mistakes of my ancestors. However, this agreement was made only with the stipulation that you agree to it, as neither of our realms wish to force you into our business. After all, it is fully within your right as a Hero to ignore the matters between angels and demons. I can understand your concerns, which is why I suggest you take some time before coming to a conclusion."

"What she didn't mention is that whoever you marry gets to ascend to their throne next as well," Ash'ala says, pointing one of her fingers towards the angel. "I win, I get to become Demon Queen, and so our demons and humans will be joined like never before. She wins, she becomes Archon and same thing applies. So it's in our best interest you choose to participate, since the other option is another actual war. And I'll be honest, I'm real tired of those, y'know?" For just a moment, Ash'ala drops her mask of indifference, entire body drooping with exhaustion that I can see mirrored in Veronica. The demon turns towards me, a half-hearted smile stretched across her youthful face. "This whole mess is completely unfair for mortal-kind, especially for you in particular, but you gotta understand where we're coming from, literally."

I raise a hand towards the demon, head spinning from all the information these two have dumped into my head. Honestly, a lot of it goes completely over my head. This whole 'Hero' thing makes no sense, and what am I supposed to think about hearing two women I've never met before are seeking my hand in marriage in order to stop a war between their races?

One thing is clear, though. I've never thought about romance a day in my life, I don't know a damn thing about angels or demons, and even my experience in the mortal world is limited to a few short adventures. It's a wonder I don't simply pinch my arm and treat this scenario like a dream. But if there's someone I out there I can help... "That's enough. I don't think I'm anything special, so bear that in mind when I say I'll go along with your agreement for now."

Ash'ala and Veronica both look surprised before the demon actually slaps her knee and starts laughing. "Guess that's a Hero for you, huh? Decisive and so cool looking while they're at it. Anyways," she pauses to drag Veronica out of her chair and starts pushing the angel towards the door. "Anyways, we'll give you a break for now, let you think stuff over. I'm sure we can find some rooms somewhere in this inn ourselves." Veronica almost pauses to add something but allows herself to get sheparded out the room, leaving me alone.