The Offer

One day, a man who never dabbled in the occult was approached by a spirit. The spirit saw he had dreams that would never be realized in his lifetime, and it offered him the opportunity to manifest them in exchange for his soul. The man, however, declined, and the spirit left.

When the man was older, the spirit returned, and this time with the offer of immortality.

“You will be young again,” the spirit promised. “No longer bound by the laws of mortality. I only ask for your signature.”

The man shook his head. “I’d rather wait for a cure.”

The spirit laughed. “You will perish before you see a cure.”

“Maybe you’re right,” the man said. “But I believe a lucky future generation will have what I could not, and that is enough to make me grateful.”

“Very well,” the spirit said, and left.

A few years later, a cure became available, and the man took it and was made young again. The spirit returned.

“You don’t have true immortality,” it said. “You are not invincible and could die in a horrible accident. Let me make you powerful. I only require your signature.”

The man shook his head. “I’d rather wait for a cure.”

“Fool!” the spirit said. “There will never be a cure because you will always be mortal!”

“Maybe you’re right,” the man said. “Maybe death is inevitable, no matter how many ways are invented to save a life. But, if I survive to the end of the universe accident-free, I would have lived a fuller life, one without the miseries of a crumbling body. I would accomplish far more than I would have with a natural lifespan, and that is enough to make me grateful.”

The spirit sighed and left in search of a different mortal who would accept its offer.