With the boy’s declaration, the man in the suit finally broke his countenance.

“That is entirely premature,” he replied. John noticed that his eyes were filling with swirls of light.

John then turned to the boy for his response, and noticed that he had visibly aged by several years, having grown in stature. The register of his voice had dropped.

“You have enough to make your assessment,” the now young man shot back. “I need not remind you of our agreement.”

“Do you honestly think,” the man in the suit began, “that he will be suitable for what -“

“Who are you two?” John blurted. He regretted the outburst, but was limited in his ability to control it.

Both men studied him unnervingly for an extended pause. The younger one finally spoke.

“You believe in a good and an evil. We claim neither, but represent both. These are not our true faces, and our disagreement over you is not what you’re hoping it is. You’re dead, as far as you know, but try not to think of this as Hell. Because it isn’t.”