I stood, gazing up at the figures towering over me. Her emerald green dress glowing faintly, her green eyes piercing my soul, as her black hair fluttered slowly as a gust of wind danced around her.
"This won't work," a voice called out. He was wearing a crimson tunic embroidered with flame-like patterns that matched his crimson hair, which glowed faintly, "We should just intervene like I mentioned, Zephyra."
"Oh, shut up, muscle head," a woman spat as I saw her pointing a finger, adding, "As if you knew any better!" Her icy blue robes shimmered like frost as the two argued.
What the hell am I looking at?
"It's weird that we're only seeing him as a wisp," said a woman whose golden armor and blonde hair shimmered in the sunlight as I saw her snap her finger, and suddenly I fell to my knees; I felt pain again, felt my body as I looked at my own arm.
"Terra, you perverted freak!" A girl yelled, her robe a cascade of running water. "You're giving him the body of your ideal man," she added, her blue eyes sparkling indignantly.
"So what?" she replied as I stood up and looked up at them as 'Terra' looked down at me. "I'm the goddess of Geo; I created the bodies of man in Elysium, so I'll give him what I desire for a man as a gift for someone who will save the world."
I froze, not understanding what they were saying.
Save the world?
"Enough!" grumbled Zephyra, the woman who had summoned me when I first came to this place. She stared at me, as did the others, who had finally stopped muttering and bickering at each other.
"Victor Marcellus, Father of Earth," she called me by title. I find it too grand for myself as she continues, "The world of Elysium needs you; we need you."
I stood there too stunned to speak of my current situation. "What the hell is going on?" I blurted out. "Did I just die?" I asked.
"Of course you did. Aren't you the genius of Earth? Why didn't you realize such simple facts?" said a man whose purple coat crackled with energy and whose violet eyes pierced me as he sneered.
I staggered back, my heart pounding. "Dead?" I whispered. "No... this has to be a mistake." My thoughts raced to Lira, her laugh, the warmth smile, thoughts of her resurface, my hand shaking at the thought "Where is she? Where are my parents?" My voice cracked as desperation clawed at me.
Later, a soft voice said, "They're not here; you're currently in the pantheon of Elysium right now, not of Earth," she said, her green eyes showing pity, her dress adorned with blooming flowers that faded into greenish gray, reflecting her pity to me.
I was stunned, speechless, didn't know what to do, and despair spread through me. "You're joking, right? It's all a joke," I said, looking around for cameras. "Very funny, Nilsson," I said, laughing nervously, but the figures above me said nothing.
As anger and despair overcame me, I shouted, "Say something!" clearly not enjoying this anymore. "Who the hell are you?" I shouted at them, pointing my finger at them.
I felt the gravity intensify as I stumbled to the ground, my body suddenly heavy. "A mortal like you dares to raise his voice?" a man shouted, his black robes and crimson eyes glaring at me.
"Morgrim, stop it," the woman named Zephyra said as my body now felt lighter while I was panting from exhaustion. "Tch, mortals like him need to be taught a lesson," I heard him say as I stood up, still panting.
Are these people gods? If so, why are they asking for help?
"We understand your frustration and sadness, Victor," Terra, the goddess who gave me a body, said, adding, "But Elysium needs you, and you must hurry."
I met her gaze while the other gods seemed to agree with her statement.
"But what do I care about that? I just died; shouldn't I get the rest I deserve?" I argued, unwilling to just give in and say yes like an idiot.
"This is a lost cause," said a woman. Her dark purple robe matched her eyes, as her robe was embroidered with constellations that shimmered faintly, and continued, "I am losing followers as we speak. Damnit, if it goes any further, I would die because of this pointless conversation."
"Why do you need me?" I asked, throwing up my hands. "You're gods, aren't you? Fix your own damn mess."
Zephyra's gaze softened, her voice calm but firm. "We tried, Victor. Our last intervention nearly destroyed Elysium. The magic we gifted them to fight monsters... they turned it on each other."
I crossed my arms, still unconvinced. "So you want me to clean up your mistakes?"
"Not mistakes," Terra interjected, her voice resolute. "Misplaced trust"
Suddenly a particle of vapor turned into water and began to gather above me as it slowly turned into a giant ball of water; I panicked, and fear set in.
Are they attacking me?
Then suddenly the giant ball of water projected something above me as I looked at it; I saw a town burning. There were these green little monsters with broken, crooked swords running around.
I gasped when I saw that humans and also what looked like elves were scattered on the streets, the whole scene was chaotic. The scene changed to another; it looked like war as formations of knights and humans in robes marched together with staffs in hand while a battle was going on, fires cast as fireballs rained down.
"A massacre…" I muttered as I saw countless corpses with broken armor lying on the battlefield; the scene changed as it showed what looked like slaves.
My hand clenched into a fist and turned white with frustration and anger as I saw a young elven girl tied up and being bullied by a group of men. Whatever this projection is trying to show, all I can say is that a world like this is so backward.
"Enough!" I shouted. "I don't want to see any more of this," I added, my voice laced with frustration as the ball of water collapsed on top of me, slowly evaporating. I felt little droplets of warm water raining down on me as I looked at Zephyra.
"If this continues, our followers and even the entire civilization of Elysium will collapse under the monsters and human greed," she said, meeting my gaze.
I stood there, still hesitating, but there is a side of me, the rational one, that wants to take on the task.
"Many gods and goddesses have already perished, Victor, our existence and our power are tied to the people that follow us and believe in our divinity," Terra explained as she pointed to the broken and destroyed walls of what should have been a pantheon of gods.
"Solara, the goddess of Lumina, my closest friend, died 67 years ago," a woman said faintly, her purple robe with constellations glowing faintly as if reflecting grief.
I looked around as I saw the markings of those who were supposed to be above this wall, fifteen gods, and now only nine were left as the others were on the verge of dying as their statue and aura weakened.
My jaw clenched as I was split between helping them or not. "Even if I agree, how can I do this alone? We're talking about a world that looks like hell, and it might even take more than one lifetime," I argued, still hesitant.
"We're going to give you a system, a skill called 'Archive of Earth' that will allow you to search and retrieve everything humanity has done on Earth, inventions and other complicated things that can help you," Zephyra said, her voice serious.
"I'll slow your aging," Terra said, while Morgrim, the one with the black robes, added, "We'll all give you the blessing of elemental affinity."
I stood motionless as Zephyra's voice rang out again; her eyes looked at me pleadingly: "You are our only hope, Victor. We are willing to give you all this as long as you save Elysium in any way possible, a world where war could be a distant memory."
Her words struck me like a chord, bringing back memories of Lira, her dream of a peaceful world. I clenched my fist, the memory crystal clear as I was once again asked to bring peace to a world that was even more war-torn than Earth.
Her voice echoed in my mind, clear as if she were standing beside me. "Will you bring peace to the world for me?"
My chest tightened. I could see her smile, her unwavering belief in me. For her, I had to try.
I took a deep breath as I looked up at them. "Fine, but remember, I'm a man that min-maxes all I can, so…" My voice trailed off as I sat down cross-legged on the floor.
"Care for a deep negotiation?" I said, grinning.