“Welcome to the midnight hour, little owls.”

“As a boy growing up in a commune, we weren’t allowed video games. Isaiah believed they were Arcadia’s way of numbing the populace to the far reach of the devil.”

“A way of controlling the masses with mindful attempts at appeasing and sating their desires to go outside and own their world.”

“When we wanted to play games, we’d play Snakes & Ladders. That was our video game.”

“The funny thing about Snakes and Ladders, little owls, is that as you move throughout the board, you’re very weary of both aperture and what effects they may have on you.”

“When you approach a ladder, you move up the board. It’s a joyous occasion marked by success and opportunity. By climbing those rungs, you advance further on your competition and get closer to the finishing line.”

“But when you approached a snake, oh boy, that was a treacherous endeavour. You see, those snakes would drop you down a level if you slipped on one. They’d have you retracing your steps back to the position you were in, giving yourself a mountain to climb in order to catch those who’d certainly overtake you.”

“You have to ask yourself, little owl – what would you rather be, a snake or a ladder?”

“Because in this world of ours, the devil is in the details.”

“You chose to be a snake, Yellow Python. You chose to be the very thing that punishes people. A venomous being, slippery and devious. In the game of Snakes and Ladders, the Snake is to be feared for its treachery. It’s understandable why you’d want to embody it. It’s agreeable in fact, that you’d like to punish those around you.”

“I understand that desire. The devil has taught me well.”

“You’d think that I’d want to be a snake too, little owl. You’d think that I’d like to slither in the grass, venomous and dangerous – but that’s not me. I’m a ladder. I don’t attack unless I must and I don’t wish for people to fall. That’s not what servitude to the midnight owls is all about.”

“I like to lift people up, Python.”

“I let my disciples climb me rung by rung like a ladder to the top of their hopes, dreams and aspirations. I want to raise them up so the devil himself can see them for what they’re worth.”

“It’d be weakness to destroy them.”

“That’s not what Malakai Midnight does. That’s what snakes like you do, Python. You set people back, just like in Snakes and Ladders. You punish, wholly and for no reason.”

“I never did like Snakes and Ladders.”

“And I really didn’t like snakes.”

“I’ll be seeing you at Carnevil, little owl.”

“Because when the clock strikes midnight…”

“We’ll have a hoot.”