It happened on the way to school.
I was running late so I pedaled as fast as I could.
I was out of breath and looking far ahead.
I didn't see this big pothole in the middle of the road.
I don't remember what happened next, but I can guess...
....…
I'm in the dark.
I am floating, and I can't see my body.
In fact, I can't SEE at all.
Where are my eyes? Strangely, my hands do not move towards my face.
Where are my hands? And my face for that matter?
I'm starting to realize that my body is nowhere to be found, and despite my anxiety, I can't hear my heartbeat either.
What the hell is going on?
To get through my panic, I think back to this morning.
What a stupid accident! And now I'm here, in the dark, and I can't feel my body.
Oh no! I hit my head and now I'm in a coma! Is my brain in vegetable state? But then how am I able to think?
And if my body stays in hospital bed for years, am I going to be here all that time?
My mind agonize over more horrible scenarios when suddenly I realize that it is not so dark anymore.
How do I know, without my eyes? It's a mystery.
It's like being I a starry sky. There are many dust trails that reminds me of rivers. It's beautiful.
« Ah but you have à consciousness, you over there! »
A deep voice resounds in this black infinity. Strangely, I feel more relieved not to be alone anymore rather than frightened by this voice coming from nowhere.
« How very unusual! I like this strength of mind! This is not something even I get to see every day! I am Malamec, the God of the Factory! »
Factory? This place? I still don't know what it is but the name doesn't fit at all! Besides, how can I even hear without my ears?
« Ah ah ah! I say the Factory so that you can understand what this place is! The image that your perception sends you is interesting. Know that it is also thanks to your perception that you can hear me! You are here in the Reincarnation Factory. Be respectful, and be amazed, because this is a brand-new, fully automated system! »
The Reincarnation Factory... So I'm actually dead? Maybe it's because I'm getting used to not having a body anymore, but I feel my fear fading a bit... Even that thought doesn't scare me that much. But, wait....
« You can hear my thoughts, Mr. Factory? »
« Ah ah ah! That's right, thanks to my perception! It's not a physical dimension here, dear. I can't tell if you're just in a coma or dead, but since you are here anyway, there is no coming back from wherever you came from! But to reward you for your fortitude, keeping both consciousness and sanity this long, let me explain you some tricks of the trade! This place is not normally in the reach of mortals after all! »
So he spent a long time explaining me that souls from all worlds eventually end up in this place after they die. They rest after the fife they lived and then are recycled. For an eternity, he had to manage the flow of souls all by himself but after much work and efforts, finally the whole system is perfectly automated! Those rivers of dust that I saw are in fact the queues of reincarnation. I can see some kinds of gates at a distance. There are many of them. The dozens I can see from here are in fact some in thousands. Since I was conscious, he said that I could stay and rest and gain strength for as long as I wanted, and choose the place I wanted to go for my next life.
But he warned me that it would be next to impossible to find the gate that leads back to Earth. That was a real blow to my morale. I had hoped to meet my family again in that new life, and to thank them for this wonderful first life with them.
I'm getting used to the idea that I'm dead, which seems much better than being in a coma anyway. I've also gotten used to the feeling of not having a body. Perception sure is amazing!
I took my time and talked with Mr. Factory. We were lazing around and swimming in the rivers of dust.
...…
I don't know how long I've been here. But it must have been a while. I think Mr. Factory is so nice with me because he's lonely. While we were being carried by the rivers of dust, we passed many gates to other worlds. When we pass in front of them, we get a brief glimpse of the landscape, but that fades away very quickly as we continue to be carried by the current.
He told me that to pass the boredom, he sometimes incarnates in a random world. He has lived for so long that he has visited many worlds!
But he has never heard of the Earth. It seems that there are so many gates in the Factory that even he doesn't know them all. We've been telling each other about our lives all this time, and he seems very excited to be incarnated on Earth next time. But he thinks it will take him a few more centuries to find the right gate...
At some point, we became good friends. He offered to reincarnate me soon. Even though I seem to be coping well with my condition, there is no guarantee that I can stay conscious forever, apparently. He offered me a world that he visited. He promised me that it would be an interesting and fun world. He told me about skills, dungeons, magic and monsters. Sounds pretty terrifying and dangerous to me! But since he's offering me a world he knows, I find it much safer than diving blindly through any gate!
That's how we set out on our journey to my new life.
........
I still have no idea how the time passes here, but I think it's been several days since we traveled through the Factory. It really feels like we can travel like this until the end of time! This place is really immensely vast. Probably without end. During all this time, he explains me some useful tricks for the reincarnation. With the right method, I can become absolutely anything I want! Becoming a baby allows me to have a family and an attachment in this new world, but I would have to go through childhood and adolescence again. One way to avoid this is to become a creature that can evolve quickly... But this means that I would not be human anymore! Which could be a lot of fun, according to Mr. Factory.
Having so many possibilities is a bit dizzying. I don't know what to choose, it's too important a decision! I didn't even know what I wanted to do when my parents asked me if I wanted to go to college...
In any case, I would like to avoid becoming a child again. And I also miss my family so much I don't feel the need to replace it. It seems that not being human doesn't necessarily mean being a monster... After all, it's a fantasy world we're heading to! Despite my indecision, I am getting more and more excited about this new life to come.
"Tell me, Mr. Factory, what did you become when you incarnated into this world?"
"Of course, I chose the rich prince route! But not heir, after all, I incarnate to have fun, not to work. In this life, I got married, to an amazing woman of a rare race, a shapeshifter!"
"Gee, does that exist for real in this world? And they can change into what?"
"In this world, shapeshifters are very rare, but they can turn into either an animal, a demi-human, or a human. It doesn't matter what animal the parents are, the child will be a random animal, they can be anything. My dearest Misery was a thunderbird."
Wow, even her animal form is from a fantasy world!
"But then, she could fly?"
"Ah ah ah! Of course she could! Woman or bird, she was absolutely gorgeous. Half human, she was the most exotic of creatures."
"That's an amazing idea, Mr. Factory! I want to fly too! It's decided, I'll take the thunderbird route!
"Ah, that brings back memories... Are you sure this is what you want? Your soul is certainly strong enough for that! If you are resolved, my precious friend, I will help you to have the life you want. But don't forget me, in this new life, will you? When you are strong enough, try to feel my presence in an ancient graveyard, after all, that's where the souls fly to the Factory from..."
Despite my excitement, I remember that Mr. Factory works alone here in this endless place...
"You have your own life to live, you want to go to Earth, right?"
"Ah ah ah! I am a god! I can exist in many places at the same time!"
"I promise, I won't forget you, Mr. Factory. If there really is a way to talk to you from there, count on me to contact you!"
"Of course! Ah, here we are! The door is over there!"
Of course, he doesn't have any arms to show me, but that doesn't even shock me anymore at this point. And yet, I suddenly wish I had a body to hug him at least once. I owe him so much! I would have gone crazy if he hadn't sensed my presence.
"This new life is thanks to you, Malamec! Count on me to live to the fullest!
"Have a good journey! Remember what I told you! But don't show off too much of your soul's energy, okay? See you soon, my precious friend!"
Before I can answer him, I feel myself being sucked into the river of dust flowing toward the gate in front of us. I think back to all of his advice on how to make the crossing successfully. Before I can thank him one last time, I feel the particles that compose me pass through his, like the hug I so longed for. I take with me in the new world this marvelous sensation, and I dive towards my new life!