Elliot stared at the sterile white ceiling as he struggled for each labored breath.
The incessant beeping of the machine that was barely keeping him alive seemed louder than usual.
Ever since his lung cancer diagnosis, he had lived each day battling the merciless disease, clinging to the hope that he might prevail.
But for those who could not afford it, hope could be a dangerous thing to cling to. And Elliot was realizing it quite early in life.
He blamed it all on his workplace.
As an esteemed engineer and valedictorian, intelligence was an understatement of his brilliant and creative mind.
But he had been naive, falling for the wrong woman and working under her ruthless father.
Her father had been excavating gold from a perilous site and had needed to hide the operation. So, building an oil rig provided the perfect cover, and while it was under construction, the gold could be hastily extracted without arousing suspicion.
Elliot's ingenious mind had been exploited throughout the whole charade. Like a tool, he had been used completely and then discarded by both his girlfriend and her father.
Just seven months into working there, Elliot had been diagnosed with lung cancer, though its origins remained unclear. Shortly after, his girlfriend left him, and her father erased his existence.
All of Elliot's life savings went towards desperately trying to battle the cancer. That fight now seemed profoundly foolish.
He should have surrendered from the very beginning.
Gritting his teeth, Elliot resentfully replayed it all in his mind. Why, why, why had he been cursed with such misfortune? Why couldn't the world be a better place?
As Elliot felt the remaining life drain from his body, he forced himself to release his bitter hatred. At least he didn't want to die and become a lingering, wandering spirit.
'If I die now… I wish I could start over in a better world...'
He knew it was pure fantasy, impossible in reality. But as death approached, such thoughts preoccupied his mind.
Ever since he started chemotherapy, Elliot had developed a love for novels and comics about characters who died, awakened, and became reincarnated in other worlds.
Why not indulge in a bit of fairy tale? He was a dying man after all… cut him some slack.
Elliot smiled slightly, losing himself in fanciful daydreams of life beyond this one. Baseless and fleeting, such musings would simply scatter like dust when death's candle blew out his flame.
Yet, for now, imagining another chance is what kept the faint smile on his face.
The machine's beeping slowed... Nurses rushed in as doctors desperately tried to save him.
"Charging to 120 joules. Clear!"
Beeeep!
"Charging to 150 joules. Clear!"
Beeeeep!
Their efforts faded into the background as Elliott's smile faded into a lifeless one. His eyes glazed over as desperate chaos unfolded around his corpse.
With a last failed jolt of electricity, the doctor conceded defeat, dropping the defibrillators. "Time of death, 3:04 pm..."
**********
Peace at last...or so Elliot assumed.
Where was this place? He wondered to himself.
He couldn't feel his body, just an orb-like essence.
Strange glowing orbs traversed a vast expanse of white roads leading toward different portals.
Curious, he wondered— what are those things?
"Those, my friend, are souls," a masculine voice replied unexpectedly.
Elliot tried glancing upwards but could only see about ninety degrees above.
Then, without willing it, his orb floated up toward the source of the voice.
What met his gaze was someone, or rather, something too perfect to be mortal. Flowing silver locks framed striking yet sage features with flawless symmetry.
Garbed in ornate floral fabrics, everything about this being oozed cunning intellect and absolute authority. He had a divine, terrible beauty.
"Hello, odd one," he murmured while closely scrutinizing the soul in his palm.
"Never have I encountered a soul so curious about other souls."
He twirled his fingers, blue sparks dancing around them. Then his eyes shot wide.
"Oh my!" His mouth fell open in astonishment.
An ear-to-ear grin stretched across his face.
"In three thousand years, never did I expect to discover such a rare treasure!"
He shouted joyously, giddily tossing the soul up and catching it.
Thoroughly perplexed, Elliot wished the exuberant stranger would explain what was happening instead of throwing him around like a ball.
But before Elliot could question anything, the being conjured a portal with a swirl of his finger.
"I'm sending you somewhere exciting! But given the urgency, explanations will have to wait. I promise to give you help and answers soon!"
Laughing, he hurtled Elliot's soul towards the shimmering portal. But in the final moments, an external force knocked his trajectory off-course, sending him tumbling down endless glowing pathways.
The man whipped around furiously.
"How dare you!" He spat.
"You'd be stupid to think that I'd let you have your way, trickster," a wispy female voice retorted.
An ancient, diminutive woman leaned on a cane, seemingly materializing from thin air.
"Meddlesome hag!" The man hissed.
"What could you possibly know?"
She shrugged indifferently. "I know nothing. But that soul's not going back to you."
Cackling, her entire presence exuded a mischievous, cunning aura.
The man glared at the sea of souls and then smirked coldly.
"Foolish old crone. Have you forgotten that I am the God of Deceit? No matter where he lands, I will find him."
With that foreboding declaration, the man disappeared, and the woman's triumphant expression chilled into unease.
Meanwhile, Elliot's soul continued falling further down the glittering cosmic maze. Then, after a few more aimless tumbles, he landed on an empty, isolated path.
Gazing around, Elliot saw no other souls. He couldn't fly or climb back up the brilliant white web.
But directly ahead lay an open portal.
Ominous yet enticing, it offered the only way forward. Against his better judgment, Elliott entered the ominous gate.
His vision faded into darkness. Müddled sounds of chaotic chatter and a woman's pained screams filtered through.
"Push! Push my lady! Push!"
It felt arduous… oppressive. Then Elliott felt himself being pulled out by a strong force both inside and outside.
With cold dread, he suddenly understood.
'Oh crap...'
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[A/N]
I don't talk much because I'm very introverted, lol. But I want the support, I want the power stones, I want the golden tickets, and I need my readers for this book to make it to the end.
Welcome to the start of a wonderful journey.
You can join the discord server:
https://discord.com/invite/XVNaUKEPmbTH,