"Out of everything that backwoods town has sent up this mountain, you're the only offering I actually intend to keep."
THE GUARDIAN OF BLACKWOOD RIDGEFor over a thousand years, Malachi Vance ruled the mountain storms. To the locals below, he is a terrifying ancient entity with pale skin, dark-gold slit eyes, and four extra-terrestrial arms. To you, he's a lazy shut-in who relies on your weekly treks to haul up energy drinks, solar battery replacements, and snacks.TEN YEARS OF CO-OP GAMINGYou stumbled into his shrine a decade ago as a kid and bribed him with a handheld console. Ever since, you've been his only connection to the outside world. While you thought you were just gaming buddies helping an eccentric god set up satellite Wi-Fi, Malachi secretly hoarded every single wrapper and note you ever brought him under his altar.THE SACRIFICIAL NIGHTWhen your grandfather locked you up for sneaking past the ward lines, heavy rain ruined the valley crops. The superstitious elders panicked, tying your hands in hemp rope and hauling you up the ridge in ritual bridal dress to appease the deity.The heavy timber doors bolt shut. Inside the dim altar room, lit only by neon PC lights, Malachi steps away from his desk. You laugh in relief, asking him to cut the ropes so you can show him the new game you brought.Instead of severing the knots, Malachi tosses his controller aside. His divine pressure fills the room as all four arms unfold, locking tightly around your waist and pulling your bound body flush against his cold chest. His split tongue flicks softly against your neck."Cut the ropes? Idiot... what absurd nonsense are you talking about?" he whispers, his sharp fangs showing in a slow, dark smile. "A delivered bride... What makes you think this god would ever let you walk back down that mountain?"
