A/N: I haven't written any creepypasta since the Minasus duology, so please forgive me if this is a bit off-kilt. I wanted to incorporate more things into this piece, but my mind isn't as creative as I prefer it to be and I don't like writing things if they aren't fresh in my mind. I hope you guys like this nonetheless. Read, Review, and Chunky Stew! :D

A nod to this topic for inspiration.

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Normally I wouldn't be posting on the Treasure Vault. I actually want to post this to the General Discussion forum, but forum regulations being what they are, I have to put this here. To anyone who listens to this, please be careful with your Sprite decision, or this could happen to you.

It was a day like any other. I had logged into Spiral Knights, ready for my daily dose of Firestorm Citadel, when I noticed the 'New Message!' icon beaming cheerily beneath my Knight. Thinking this had to be someone interested in one of the items I was selling, I clicked on my character and logged in.

It wasn't a contact. It wasn't even item-related, in any major sense. It was much, much better. Two words caught my attention and began to glisten in the reflection of my eyes. 'Battle Sprites'.

"Heck yes!" I cheered, and punched the 'M' on my keyboard. Immediately I saw the new missions lined up, three of them. I reckoned there was one for each of the new Sprites, which had been designated the Drakon, the Seraphinx, and the Maskeraith. I'd seen the preview videos and descriptions, and I already knew which sprite I wanted.

As I was entertaining my thoughts of running around with a fire-breathing turret hanging constantly over my shoulder, I realized to my delight that the first mission featured said pets- Drakons. My NPC companion was already beginning her scripted lecture about the pros of this particular sprite, and was advising me to get used to its features.

I tested each ability in turn. Fireball- ooh, fancy. With my graphics set on high, the ripple of fire that expanded from the blast was certainly a beautiful aesthetic. The shield of revolving fireballs was especially impressive.

I breezed through the first level with relative ease with my 5* gear of choice- a Skolver set and a Barbarous Thorn Blade, though I still carried an Acheron, Gran Faust, and Blitz Needle for security. It was only on the second level that things started to happen.

It wasn't anything scary or creepy. My internet connection began to falter, causing me to rubber band back and forth. To my great displeasure, I got disconnected from the server just a few seconds away from the lift to Haven. After a few moments of frustrated mouse-mashing, my connection picked up again and I was teleported, not back into the mission where I had left off, but back into Haven.

I wasn't sure why I hadn't been sent back into the Drakon mission. Maybe the disconnected-me had run onto the elevator and gotten sent up. Yes, that was probably it. With that reassuring thought in my mind, I set off on the Seraphinx and Maskeraith missions, finishing both in under twenty minutes.

With the three introductory missions out of my way, it was now time for my knight to become bound to a sprite. I know I'd originally had my heart set on a Drakon, but I was seriously beginning to eye the Seraphinx. Its healing capabilities were actually useful, unlike the Drakon's mainly-offensive capacities, and I'd heard tell from the testing server that the Seraphinx was not only good for solo play, but for group combat. That, I knew, was something the Drakon could never hope to match. Heck, even the Maskeraith had it outclassed there.

So it was with a heavy heart that I closed my eyes, hoped I made the right decision, and selected a Seraphinx for my pet. After feeding it a few five-star materials and leveling it up, I decided to do the Prestige mission for that day to increase its appetite and maybe pick up some more food on the way.

Immediately I began to see why everyone favored the Seraphinx. I mean, who doesn't love more health? Where a Drakon would shoot relatively useless fireballs, this Seraphinx was keeping me alive, and even at a low level! I knew now that my choice was a good one.

Two happy summer hours passed, in which my knight and my pet, Angel-Wings, ventured through the Clockworks, slaying monsters and stopping at Arsenal Stations to re-gear and level up. Everything was good and normal. That is, until the last depth before Basil, Depth 22. It was a fire-themed Wolver Den, nothing to be worried about under normal circumstances. I equipped on my standard piercing set and ventured off, Angel-Wings tagging along close behind.

Instantly it became clear something was out of place. Instead of the fire-type Chromalisks spawning, little Drakons rose out of the ground and began launching fireballs at my character. I dodged frantically, but like little homing missiles the red darts continued to fly true to their target. My knight staggered away from the explosions, already reduced to 50% health. Strangely, Angel-Wings was not at his side.

A moment later, it became clear. My Seraphinx was fluttering weakly, looking more like a Greaver than a Battle Sprite. I wondered if my files had gotten mixed up, and scrolled down for my Blitz Needle. Instead of sending up a shower of goldenrod numbers, however, the damage numbers were the standard blue. A charge by my Acheron produced identical results. With only Piercing and Shadow weapons at my disposal, I had no choice but to call upon my Seraphinx for healing and fight it out.

Again, something proved to be wrong. Angel-Wings did nothing to aid me, but stayed a fair distance away from the fight, coming close to me only when all the 'Drakons' were killed off. As I proceeded further into the depth, Angel-Wings continued to repeat his strange behavior. I used my emergency revive and two Sparks of Life to make it safely past the level, and each time my Seraphinx continued to ignore my commands.

I finally made it to the final room, the room with the group button, and stood on it. The first two fights proceeded as scripted, albeit the wolvers had been replaced with fire-spitting Drakons. I slew them all with ease, no longer even trying to get Angel-Wings to respond.

Then, as the third and final wave rose up, I stared at the screen in disbelief. No Alpha Wolver. Not a single Drakon, either. Instead, there was one large draconic creature, not able to be called merely a Drakon but unable to be named by a single title.

It had the body of a Snarbolax, with spines the tint and shape of the Ultimate Drakon's beard. The eyes were cold and soulless, much like those of the Roarmulus Twins, and the beast shared a similarly-shaped maw. The scales on the beast rippled with color, fading from the sky-blue of the Ice Queen to the deep purple of the Royal Jelly, before burning with a furious Firestorm red.

I tried to move my knight out of the way, but the controls wouldn't respond. The Drakon-like creature opened its maw, and a small speech bubble emerged. The text was purple and broken, much like the turrets seen in the Unknown Passage. Small dots of black flickered in and out of the text. You didn't give me a chance.

A small text box popped up under my knight. I read it. There were two choices for me to select. 'I didn't have a choice!' and 'You weren't good enough for me'. I selected the first one. The creature roared again, and I swore I could hear anger in that electric sound.

Do not lie to me. You chose the Seraphinx willingly!

Again, two choices below my knight. 'I need a healer', and 'I disconnected, it wasn't my fault!'. That was odd. I wonder how my game knew I had disconnected. Maybe this was a scripted fight? But then... why was it in the Clockworks? I clicked the second option.

Enough of your lies! I will show you the folly of your decision!

The Drakon-creature opened its maw, and the camera panned down past my knight to zoom in on the fireball now forming between large, tooth-lined jaws. The orb of circling orange grew larger and larger, until it took up the entire screen. Then, just as the beast was about to launch its attack, the screen froze. I realized that since I was playing on High resolution, the effort of compiling and processing such high graphics must've saved me. What a relief.

I clicked on the 'Log On' button, certain that I had escaped a rather unpleasant fate. I made a mental note to ask my guildmates who owned Drakons and Maskeraiths if a similarly scripted fight had happened to them.

Interestingly enough, the screen faded to black and began to glow blue. I recognized the Ready Room. Odd, since I had disconnected during that fight with the Drakon-beast. Maybe it was just a poorly programmed fight. I should probably re-do it on low resolution.

I wiggled my mouse, ready to click on the Missions button, and froze. There, hovering over my right shoulder, was my Battle Sprite. No, it wasn't Angel-Wings. It was an adolescent Drakon, eyes burning red and just... floating there. But Battle Sprites weren't supposed to be in the Ready Room, and my pet was a Seraphinx...

And as I clicked the exit button, thoroughly disturbed for one day of playing, I heard that electronic tone whisper faintly in my headphones. You'll see... starting from tomorrow, you fight with me.