Darkness surrounded Kael—an infinite, suffocating void. For the first time in his life, silence was heavier than any sword, spell or crown. The last thing he remembered was the blinding flash of a hero's blade, piercing his chest and plundering him into an unconscious state.
Was it over? He questioned himself as he swam around the rippled void, enveloped in fear and uncertainty.
"Get up," a thick, deep voice commanded.
Kael's eyes snapped open; he moved himself, trying to ascertain the source of the voice. He floated around in the dark expanse of the void—sitting, lying, or even kneeling, perhaps. He was completely disoriented.
A faint silver glow pulsed beneath him forming a fragile platform that threatened to dissolve at any moment.
"Am I dead?" Kale muttered, his voice hoarse, carrying a mix of bitterness and disbelief.
A figure emerged from the shadows, his appearance shifting like a flickering flame. He wore no face, only a smooth silver mask. His form seemed to shimmer between solidity and transparency.
"Dead?" He chuckled slightly, quickly regaining his commanding voice, "Yes and no." He replied, his voice echoing as if spoken by a thousand mouths. "You are in between—a moment stolen from the eternal flow. It is a rare gift considering the atrocities you have committed."
Kael's lips curled to a sneer, justifying the villainous actions he committed before he had died, "Atrocities? I only did what had to be done. The world needed a villain—so I gave them one."
The large figure who identified itself as the Arbiter of Balance raised his hands, and golden chains materialized wrapping around Kael's body.
"Spare me your justifications. You conquered, you burned, you killed. You sought power at the cost of lives. And look at you now—a pitiful shadow of your former self."
Kael struggled with the chains, his pride burning brighter than his fear. The chains twisted and turned but never opened. He raised his gaze to the unusual omnipotent being—the Arbiter of Balance.
"If you dragged me here to gloat, just send me to hell and get over with it."
The Arbiter looked down on Kael, chuckled slightly, and abruptly stopped, commencing the unusual stretch of silence. "Hell? No," he said, tilting his head as if amused. "That's too simple... too plain. Instead, you've been offered something more valuable: an offer to earn redemption."
Immediately, golden text appeared in the air, floating like shattered pieces of glass in the vast expanse of emptiness. The scrambled texts bonded together, forging a message:
[ WELCOME TO THE REDEMPTION SYSTEM
Objective: Restore balance across multiple worlds.
Penalty for failure: Eternal damnation.
Reward for completion: ???? ]
Kael's eyes narrowed at the text, confused and quite bewildered at what he saw. His expression eased to one of unsettlement, not accepting the golden text he had seen. "Balance? Redemption? Who decides what's worth redeeming?"
"I do," the Arbiter replied coldly, immediately shunning Kael from his speech. "You will be sent to different worlds, undoing the chaos your kind has wrought. You will succeed, or you will fail; either way, your soul is mine to judge.
Kael snapped at his derogatory words, fuming in anger as he tried moving from the chains that wrapped him. "My soul? Who gave you rights over my soul."
Suddenly, the golden text shifted, effortlessly catching his attention.
[ INITIALIZING HOST
CONFIGURATION...
WARNING: System Integrity at 76%. Expect Glitches.]
"Glitches?" Kael growled. Before he could question further, the silver platform beneath him crumbled plunging him into the darkness. As he fell, the spine-chilling voice of the Arbiter echoed one last time:
"Redemption is earned, not given. Prove you deserve a second chance or remain as the worthless villain you were. His voice kept echoing in the abyss as if taunting Kael's existence.
Kael's vision blurred as he transitioned from the silver platform into the endless pit of darkness. Pain shot him, followed by an intense rush of cold air. The darkness narrowed the more he fell, his vision completely retired, and in a few moments, he felt his body land on uneven ground, his hands sinking into the damp earth.
When Kael opened his eyes, he was no longer in the void. He stood up from the firm ground and before him stretched a quiet village, framed by distant mountains and lit by a crimson sunset.
As he reminisced in the tranquility of the small civilization, a notification flashed before his eyes:
[ FIRST QUEST: PROTECT THE VILLAGE FROM THE RAIDER KING.
Time Remaining: 72 hours
Failure Penalty: Immediate Termination. ]
He picked to his feet and staggered to a few homes in the distance, a bitter smile surfacing on his pale face. "A villain turned to a savior? What kind of joke is this?" He chuckled his way towards the sunset only to fall back down out of fatigue.
Darkness gave way to sensation. A chill wind grazed his face, carrying the scent of damp earth and distant smoke. He groaned, pushing himself off the ground, his fingers sinking into soft, wet dirt. His body felt different—smaller, weaker.
"Great," he muttered, staring at his trembling hands. "Not only am I alive again, but I'm crippled. Thanks, Arbiter."
He glanced up, noticing the modest village stretching before him. Thatched roofs, wooden fences, and fields ripe with crops—a picturesque place, one he would've burned to ash in his former life without a second thought.
"Why not just let it burn?" he muttered. But as he took a step back, his body froze. Pain lanced through his chest like chains wrapping around his ribs.
Another notification flashed before his eyes:
[ Abandoning the quest will result in immediate failure and death. ]
He clenched his fists. "Fine. I'll play your game. For now."
The first to approach him was a boy no older than ten clothed in dirty rags. His wide, innocent eyes gleamed with hope as he clutched a wooden sword. "Are you the warrior sent to save us?"
He stared at the boy, his expression unreadable as he muttered: "Do I look like a savior to you?" The boy looked back, a smile escaping his lips as he replied affirmatively, nodding his head, "Yes, you do. You're strong—I can tell!"
Kael looked around, noticing a few others approaching, all clothed in rags. The buildings weren't architecturally pleasing, possessing a medieval look.
"Is this a different timeline?" he questioned as the few villagers slowly approached him. "It probably is," he concluded.