The Holder of the Middleman

In any city, in any country, make your way to any halfway house, mental institution, or hospital that you have sought and obtained an Object in. Once there, find a receptionist to the establishment. If this receptionist is the same one who you spoke to when you obtained your Object, then you have chosen wisely. If this is not the case, this establishment will remain mundane.

Once you find this receptionist, walk up and speak to them. If you wish to seek the Object, the receptionist will know. Even so, it is best to try to lead the conversation informally and speak as you would to a friend or family member. You do not want the receptionist to hate you any more than they already do. Once you have been talking for some time, thank them for their help in your quest, and ask them how they know so much.

The receptionist will grow silent, any cheer in their face will fall away, their gaze will wander to the floor, and they will begin to walk away. Follow them, no matter how long the walk. They will eventually stop at a small apartment or a large storage closet. The receptionist will look directly into your eyes and ask with desperation and sorrow in their voice, "Why?"

They mean to ask why you seek, why you want to seek, why you had to ask this receptionist in particular for your Object, and why you followed them. You must answer with detail, as much as you can muster. Your memory may start to fade as you explain. If it does, hope that it comes back or that you have enough memory to answer. If you do not, your fate is one of demise from an uncertain source.

If you finish your tale, and the receptionist is satisfied, they should continue to look into your eyes. You must take your turn, and ask your question, "What?"

If the receptionist was satisfied by your answer, then the receptionist will explain what "the receptionists" roles are, what they themselves are, what they stand at the receptionist's desk for. The receptionist's tale will have the same effect on you as yours did on them.

After they are finished speaking, they will walk inside the closet or apartment. If they walked to a closet, they will look back at you from a background of sheer blackness, no larger than the outside would suggest. If they walked to an apartment, they will walk inside a purely black living room and sit on an unseen chair. They will invite you in. You must sit directly in front of them, several feet away, in another unseen chair. Be very careful to sit on a chair and not the floor, as it is not entirely real. The receptionist will begin to drink something from an unseeable cup, sipping at it like tea.

Either way, they will tell you their tale. Who they are, who they were, what they went through, why they help the Seekers, what you must do to them, and things that go well beyond.

They will hand you a black item, unseeable in the darkness, and they will beg you to kill them, release them from what you know they go through and the memories of what they went through. You must do so with haste and efficiency, otherwise, the death they beg for will be your own. If you manage to end their life painlessly and quickly, you will suddenly awaken in an armchair, despite never falling into slumber. In front of you will be a television, tuned to your local news station.

They will report an establishment burning down, the establishment you went to, leaving no survivors. If you watch for a few minutes after, they will report a mass disappearance around your area, most of the missing persons being receptionists, several will be found in the fire days later, but not nearly as many as the television states were lost.

When you reach for your remote, you will find the Object of your receptionist's death, still completely black. On it is a small sphere on one end, and a blade on the other. This Object is 1298 of 2538. There is no middleman now, no guide. Speak to Them directly.