The Gods are slightly surprised at his reaction after they told him he was dead, but upon further thought, they suppose they shouldn't be.
After all, he's been through so much during his time on Earth, and that place didn't treat him kindly at all.
They don't blame him. His reaction... saddened them, still, that Sora thought so little of his death since he was leaving behind nothing of value, but it also went to encourage and fuel the Gods desire for what they're going to do for him.
Meanwhile, Sora was pleased that his suspicions were confirmed. So he really was dead. He just hoped that the lady was okay, back on Earth.
As if his mind was read, a purple haired woman who was the furthest back in the room said, "She's doing fine now, all thanks to you. After you fell from the bridge, she tried to reach out and grab you, but by then it was too late.
And before that... filth, could cause anymore harm, the authorities arrived and apprehended him. You saved her, my dear Sora. If it weren't for you intervening in the first place, I'd hate to imagine what could've happened to her." She smiled softly, proud.
Sora smiled back in relief. His actions had made an impact after all. Now that was out of the way, there was another question at hand.
"Um, so what happens now? Where am I?"
"Well, after death, usually souls would immediately travel to the Gatekeeper, who sorts them out. But we decided to steal you for ourselves and summon you here." The bearded man chuckled, flapping the sleeve of his white robe.
"And this place, this is the mid-ground for Gods. A conference centre of sorts, as well as accommodation. Usually, we would have our own realms and homes we reside in, but whenever we need to have meetings and gatherings, such as this one, this is where we come. It's much easier this way. Some of us, like Kora and Hugo," he gestured towards the woman in the red robe and the muscular man, "-live here full time."
"Ah, I see..." Sora frowned. "...but for what reason have you summoned me here for?"
A charcoal haired male carefully glided forwards, staring at Sora with his piercing green eyes. His pupils were not round- but vertical slits instead, reminiscent of a serpent. His aura was so striking and heavy that Sora had to refrain himself from stepping back.
"You see, ever since you've been born, you've been an anomaly." He casually reached out and brushed a fingertip gently across Sora's cheekbone, before he suddenly pulled back, as if he hadn't been intending to do that. In the room, someone secretly smirked to themselves.
"...An anomaly." Sora repeats blankly, ignoring what just happened. There was too much going on already. So he's abnormal? Great.
"Yep. I mean, usually we'd all be off doing our own thing, but we've gathered here together today because of, well, because of you. I could be binge watching all those human tv shows right now, but nooo."
A girl whined from his left, flopping over her chair in an undignified manner, letting her long pink hair drape across her body. She looked the youngest out of them all, in the form of a child, but Sora suspected he shouldn't let appearances fool him.
And since when was that chair there?
This just kept getting weirder and weirder. Maybe he was hallucinating after all.
"I'm… sorry about that?" He apologised. Sora never intended to waste these God's time, even if this might all be in his head.
"Licia, don't be rude." The bearded man reprimanded, making her pout, before looking back at Sora. "You're not wasting our time at all, young one. We're immortal, we've got all the time until the end of the universe to spare."
"..." Sora stayed quiet. Yeah, they can definitely read his thoughts. His reply just confirmed that. Oops.
"If you will, please let me explain." Sora startled by the sudden appearance of another God at his side, turning his face towards a hooded figure, catching a glimpse of silver hair underneath his cloak and stormy grey eyes that crackled with lightning behind those glasses, fierce and electric.
Damn, these people were so intense. Or rather, these Gods. Sora felt incomparable and small just by standing next to them.
Steel grey eyes flickered to him in amusement, the tiniest smirk on his lips, and oh sh*t, Sora forgot that his thoughts are practically being broadcasted for everyone to hear. Nonetheless, the God continued.
"Earth, your planet of birth, is unable to efficiently sustain a certain energy we call mana. However- you were born with innate mana, which should be astronomically impossible, considering the circumstances." He pushed the glasses up his nose, the gesture swift and elegant.
"So, we've been keeping a close watch over you, to see if you were able to perform any magical activities- which, you weren't ever able to, we realised, due to your body's conditions. Human mortal bodies unfortunately do not have the capacity to properly hone and physically manifest mana energy, so you were never able to utilise the power you had inside you."
Sora released a shaky breath. Oh my f*cking god- wait, was he allowed to say- think- that? Since he was in the presence of actual Gods, after all. But anyway, this was all insane. Sora swore he heard a snicker behind him just then.
"Mana?"
No way, mana... exists? Mana as in mana, a very familiar thing in fiction books and games, especially the game he used to play? That can't be possible, surely they're not talking about the same thing-
"Oh but it is the same thing, and it's very, very real. Mana, on simpler terms, is a powerful force of energy that can be manipulated to a user's will, and the fundamental core of all magic and creation. You've suffered from a condition of chronic pain your whole life, have you not?"
His eyes widened in pure shock. They knew that about him too? "Y-yeah, I have."
For the longest time, Sora has been victim to erratic spikes of pain that overtake his body. Sometimes they were mild, making him uncomfortable, but other times the pain is so excruciating that it leaves him paralysed, unable to move a muscle for the fear of the pain attacking him.
When he went to the doctors about it, they had diagnosed him with chronic pain disorder, but no amount of meds or physiotherapy would ever relieve the unsettling ache plaguing deep within the core of his being.
"Well, those bursts of phantom pains throughout your body aren't just any chronic pain flares. It's actually the lash backs from the mana pent up inside you, since it was overflowing. And your body suffered the consequences."
Sora was completely speechless.
It took a few moments for him to even begin processing this newly gained information. "Okay… okay... and all of you... all of you are Gods," he said in a daze.
"Yes, I thought that much was clarified. Although, we're not your particular Gods. We're not one of those Gods that the people of Earth worship or are associated with... We're something else, from somewhere else, another realm in space and time."
Sora shook his head in disbelief, no way- "A-and in this realm, mana exists?"
The purple haired woman from earlier leans her chin on her palm. "Mana exists everywhere, but that realm especially is where it is most abundant. Your soul was always so easy to spot amongst the other humans because of the mana brewing inside you. You've suffered far too much in your lifetime, Sora... and so we decided that after your death we would bring you to where your soul really belongs."
There's a short pause that felt like an eternity. This was a lot for Sora to wrap his head around. "Where my soul belongs?" He whispered shyly, in awe.
They nodded. What was this sense of anticipation building up inside him?
"And that's on our planet, Vedriysia. Here, you'll be able to use the mana your soul has been accumulating for the past 24 years to its fullest potential. Vedriysia, you'll love her, she's full of life and nature, and is definitely the most prettiest planet in the cosmos. Infinitely prettier than Earth, too." The red robed woman, Kora, gushed.
Sora shook his head, "Wait, I still don't understand. How are you going to get my soul there?"
"You're going to be reborn. Not from the very beginning, though. Coincidently, there was a young boy who has the same name as you, who has recently passed away too..." he let out a long sigh.
"He was taken by enchanted slumber when he was just nine years old, and has been in a coma for seven years. His time was already up. He was a good kid, and I know you would've liked each other. Before his soul reached the Gatekeeper, we talked to him and he gave his express permission for you to be the new owner of his body." The old man said, as if it's the most normal thing to hear.
"He what?!" Sora cried out, but they ignored his apparent turmoil.
"Ah, before your journey, I'd like to give you my blessing," The old bearded man said quickly.
"Oh me too! Me too! Sora, have my blessing,"
"Might as well join in,"
"Me too,"
"A blessing is a given in this circumstance,"
After receiving the blessing of all the present seven Gods, Sora felt overwhelmed, blushing wildly from all the attention that was focused solely on him.
"I apologise my dear, but you might feel something we call 'voyager sickness'. It's what happens when a soul transcends through universes. Don't worry, you'll only feel it for a few seconds after waking up in your new body. Bye bye, safe travels!" He heard Kora say before he's enveloped in a blinding glow.
Suddenly, Sora felt his transparent body dissipating, getting pulled by an unknown force. He was alarmed, and hadn't yet finished asking his questions!
"Wait, hang on a-?!"
Sora was mid-sentence when his soul flew off in a group of tiny iridescent particles, travelling through the universe at a speed beyond light. The Gods stared at the now empty space in front of them, the room enveloped in silence.
"...Will he really be okay, old man?" Licia asked the white-robed God, twirling her pink hair around her fingertip nervously.
His eyes trailed to her, "Are you concerned about him?"
"W-Well, with the amount of power he has… while on Earth, his mana has grown exponentially inside him, constantly overflowing since it had no outlet, and has been tempered to the point where its purity is unheard of… and with his rebirth, you do realise that the limits imposed onto his body that stopped him from using his magic in the first place, will no longer exist?"
The white-robed man clasped his hands together behind his back. "Tell me. Do you think he's the type of person to misuse power?" he questioned.
Licia shook her head, as did all the other Gods. They've watched Sora grow up. They know exactly what he's been through, and the type of person that his experiences have shaped him in to- and a power like that is safer in nobody else's hands other than Sora's own.
"...Then you have your answer."
As he walked gracefully out of the room and into the hallway, he stroked his beard. His eyes were deep and wondering.
Hopefully, this time... Sora will have the opportunity to live the life he has always wanted.