As it's clear, this story begins with when I died.
But how did I die?
Well, to answer that, I would say it was probably lightning that killed me.
I was just returning home from a party with my friends, laughing about some silly joke, when I heard a thundering sound. After that, I didn't even have time to understand anything, and "bam"—a bright light shone in front of me, and I was dead.
And how do I definitely know I am dead?
That's because when I opened my eyes—or at least, when I became aware—I realized with shock that I was no longer in the world I knew. My body was gone, replaced by a faint, glowing orb of light.
Around me stretched an endless expanse of darkness, it seemed to swallow all sense of direction, distance, space, and time.
At first, I didn't understand. I thought it was a dream, some bizarre trick of the mind. But as the seconds turned to minutes, and the minutes to hours, the truth sank in.
I was dead.
—
Everything in the void was strange. It felt like I was submerged in a sea-floating and completely weightless-it just felt as if a strange pressure always enveloped me.
Time also didn't flow in the way I was used to. Days, weeks, years—they blurred together until I lost track.
I clung to my memories like a lifeline. I relived every moment. If I didnt I was sure this god forgotten place would have driven me crazy, there is nothing here, no being, no object, not even a sound. The only thing keeping me together were my memories.
I remember my life was pretty good. Both my parents were the best I could wish for, even if they always told me to study, although I was not really good at it. I was raised with my older brother, who was three years older than me.
My father was the man of the house—well, literally, he stayed at home and cared for us. My mom was a teacher, the earning hand of the family, we would all sit down together in the evening, and my brother and I would tell our parents all that happened to us during the day.
My life was just okay. Everything was going normally: first kindergarten, then school, then high school, and finally, I was admitted to a university. Although I didn't really study well, I was just above average.
I was absolutely zero in sports, in contrast to my brother, who went to play all the time. I spent all my free time watching movies, TV shows, and cartoons. When I got older, I watched anime. Later, when it became difficult to find new and interesting anime, I switched to reading manga, then novels and fan fiction.
My brother and I would debate about me watching anime, which he would say were "cartoons for kids", and I would insist it was for adults. But alas, that too was part of life's small joys.
At around 20 years old, I was starting my second year, and that was when my friends and I had a party to celebrate passing our first year. It was a night of laughter, music, and maybe a little too much junk food. Little did I know, it would also be my last night alive.
Well at least I should at least be thankful to god that I could pass away with peace of mind that my older brother would take care of our parents, and I didn't have to worry about them.
Since then, I've been drifting in this endless darkness. Time here feels distorted—it feels like 20 years have passed, almost the entirety of my life on Earth. Or maybe 25 years, I don't know.
It's outrageously dull here, the only thing that I could do is just review my memories again and again, I rewatch anime, reread manga and novels—everything stored in my mind.
Reviewing all my memories was unexpectedly easy to do. They flowed just like a movie. Maybe it's because I don't have any physical restriction of a biological body -just this glowing orb of energy.
During the twenty or so years spent, as it turned out, in the void, I had already managed to go through all the stages of denial ten times and had long ago come to terms with the inevitable.
While looking through my memories, I have been waiting for some supreme or divine being to come and send me to another world, like in all the reincarnation stories.
I am hoping it would happen, although it could have already happened.
....
Now, for all the years I have been trapped in this void—which I couldn't even remember—nothing has happened to me. No supreme being, no reincarnation, nothing at all.
But I have been feeling that the light or the energy that I am right now has been growing continuously. If, when I came to the void, it was the size of a fist, now it would be about as big as a building. But my consciousness was also slowly becoming fuzzy or sleepy.
...…
A long time has passed again, maybe 50 years or maybe more, I don't know.
my body has been increasing nonstop, and my memories are fading –becoming hazy. I watch them again and again, trying to hold onto them, but they slip away. Now I couldn't really remember much.
...….
I barely remember anything anymore, All I have left are a few key memories. My body continues to grow, and I feel like I've eaten too much—bloated, heavy, and uncomfortable. Like I've consumed too much.
I didn't understand it. Was this what happened to souls in the void? Did they grow until they burst, like stars collapsing under their own weight? The thought terrified me.
Time passed, and the feeling intensified. I don't know what to do.
Then, Suddenly, I felt as if I could release the energy within me. It was like when you have been wanting to fart, but it won't come, and suddenly, when you give up, it comes.
When I felt it, I didn't hesitate. I just wanted to do something in this endless void where I couldn't otherwise do anything. Now, I finally have something.
As I released the energy, the heaviness that's been weighing on me for who knows how long begins to dissipate. It was sudden, like a dam breaking. The energy that made up my body was spreading in all directions.
Slowly, I regained clarity in my thoughts. Looking at the previously empty and dark space, I was overjoyed.
It was now filled with bright lights. Surrounding me were several portals in all colors and shapes—some as big as houses and some as small as footballs—all surrounding me.
Finally, something happened in this void. Just seeing something other than the endless darkness gave me a feeling of joy.
–I have been waiting for something to happen, I swear, I would have definitely cried if I had a body. –
but soon all my thoughts and feelings were drowned by a sense of danger.
I don't know why, but all the big portals were giving me a sense of dread, like if I entered, something bad would immediately happen.
I slowly went to a portal in front of me, only for the sense of danger to increase. I felt like standing on the edge of a cliff, knowing that one wrong step would send me plummeting into the abyss.
I backed away, my instincts screaming at me to immediately back away. After confirming nothing happened, I went to another smaller portal, it also gave me the same feeling of danger, albeit less than before.
Slowly, I started to understand: that the bigger the portal, the greater the danger. That also applied vice versa.
After what felt like hours, I found many portals that did not trigger my sense of danger, but they were all small, and I felt… how should I explain… that they are not worth me. Yes, this was the feeling—that it's not up to par for me, too insignificant.
Finally, I found a portal that was quite big but also didn't give me too much pressure. I felt that I could cope with what was on the other side of the portal.
After deliberating and checking other portals, I decided this was the portal for me—the one with the least amount of danger in its size group.
With a mix of excitement and hope for something good to be waiting on the other side, with nothing to lose, I drift into it.
***
In a white space devoid of anything, Unbeknownst to our protagonist a conversation was taking place about him.
An old man with white cloth and a long beard and a young man with short hair stood in the vast expanse of white. The young man's anxious expression was the stark opposite of the elder's calm demeanor.
"Lord creator," the short-haired youth said with guilt on his face. "is it really necessary to restrict him for so long, our guilt before him is incredibly high, and yet we've given him nothing to compensate"
"Ralp, you must look at the bigger picture, sometimes we have to do something wrong for something right to happen" the old man seemingly looking at something said to the young man beside him, "By law, there is nothing in the void, and there shouldn't be; that's why its the emptiness,"
"In the beginning there was nothing, then the Primal elements were born, and after they left, there was only Emptiness for Countless eons. That's when he appeared; the void should have erased him, but he not only managed to survive but was somehow also able to absorb the power of the void into his soul. We have been waiting for someone like him for a very long time." The old man announced in a solemn tone, even slightly glowing.
"I understand, but we condemned him to death and loneliness in the void for more than a million years. It's also lucky that he thinks he has spent only more than 100 years. I want to help him and redeem myself. for, I feel guilty." Said the young boy named Ralp sadly.
"Do not worry, Ralp. I have already done everything within my power to safeguard and help him. If I hadn't forcefully made him aware of the dangers of the portal that appeared before him, he would have stepped into a big realm and the gods of that realm would have immediately sensed and consumed him, as he is the same as the essence of void now, even the realm he has entered I have altered it to his thoughts and to better help him" the older man replied seriously.
But then he smiled "Although if you really want to help him, look after him and if he needs help, give it. If there are questions, answer them. This task will be your redemption and help to him"
"Thank you sir" Ralp responded with a faint smile.
The Creator placed a hand on Ralp's shoulder, his expression softening. "I have done what I can to guide him. The path he has chosen will lead him to where he needs to be."
With that, the Creator vanished in a flash of light, leaving Ralp alone in the white expanse.
After the Old man left, Ralp created a screen with a wave of his hand, on which a 4-year-old boy could be seen.
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Hey there! Thanks for reading my work! I hope this chapter is to your liking. Sorry if you expected more details. Also sorry if you felt it was still too much detail.
If these chapters are a mess of grammatical errors, please point it out and I will try to fix it.
Thanks as always for your time, hope you have a fantastic day and please stay safe.