It was dark- it always was. The shadows whispered around him, jeering at him, reminding him of the greed that led him to be stuck here. They hummed and hissed, but they never fazed him. He'd dealt with them for years. Speaking of years, he wasn't sure how long he'd been there. Days, weeks, months... years? Yes, it was years. It was most certainly years. As much as it didn't feel like years, he knew deep down that it had been that long. Still, he didn't care.

"One more chance," he'd beg the dark figures around him. Every day, he'd say the same thing. "One more chance."

But that chance never did come. Until that day, it did. That day, he found himself in a room. Intricate symbols were scrawled across the wooden floors in faded shades of pink, purple, and white. Large purple curtains sprinkled with dust had been pulled back to reveal a wall of fear-inducing voodoo masks, the biggest one having eyes that glowed a bright lime and sharp white teeth that could certainly tear a person apart if the jaw were to somehow open. The masks bore into his soul, and he quickly composed himself.

"Friends!" he greeted. "You listened to me!"

The masks just stared at him, as if saying "You have one chance, don't waste it". He took a deep breath, running a hand through his dark, messy hair and trying to slick it back. His gaze fell onto a familiar top-hat lying on the floor a few feet away. He quickly scooped it up, returning it to its rightful place on his head. Yes... he felt like himself again. Like the man he'd been before everything had collapsed on him. But unlike the man he'd used to be, he knew better than to get too cocky this time. He knew that he couldn't rely on his bargains with the dark forces, either- he couldn't afford to sink deeper in his debt. He needed allies who would obey without much thought. With that in mind, he drew several voodoo symbols in the air with a finger and watched as they began to swirl in a circle. In a puff of purple smoke, two new figures stood there, startled by the sudden change in surroundings. But when they saw him, they seemed to understand in a heartbeat.

"It's good to know that you two are well," he welcomed casually. "We have work to do."

"What's the plan this time, boss?" one of them asked.

He turned around and chuckled softly.

"First, I think it's time I pay a visit to my family," he replied with a smile.

(442 words.  Short (like me), I know, cry about it.)