Chapter 2: Subjugation

Wow, forget the Maelstrom. I hope the next reincarnation is easier if there is another one. Hopefully.

Crossing past the last trial of the Maelstrom drained a significant chunk of my soul. Too significant, I am around a thousand times smaller than before and reduced to only one glob now.

Before I could analyze the situation even further, all the activity in my soul ceased as I crossed into the final path of my journey.

I realized it was the end because various particles and globs would accelerate past a certain point in the core area inside the Maelstrom towards different kinds of directions. The area in front of me was filled with millions of bright and dark colors, large and small globs that catapulted towards the stretching abyss. Soon, I will join the rest of the herd along those behind and beside me.

A cycle, an eternal one. Then, it occurred to me.

What kind of power would be able to disrupt such a system? Before more thoughts could register, I was launched towards the end of the abyss.

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Pain. Rage. Depression. Sadness. Grief. Pity, pity of the self. Envy. Confusion.

All those emotions came collapsing as if it was unintentionally smoldered. And I was the one who released it.

Like a raging torrent, it came more intense than before. Gradually, I felt myself sinking further and further.

This feeling continued to swallow my soul as if it was my reaper. Hell bent on aiding me to submit to death. To send me back to the Maelstrom.

But I held on to my soul, my instincts, my consciousness and the memories alongside it. I held on to ME and continued to observe.

No longer, can I view terms as I did throughout the afterlife to describe souls as particles and globs. Yet, the feeling of examining a glob that drifted close to me as did many due to my size was the same as now. It feels awfully similar meaning I was close to another soul.

I was right and there was another soul that I watched as it tried to pull me into the same cycle as itself. I felt my soul become increasingly submerged in the same pain, pity, and other multitude of emotions.

This process of assimilation as I believed it to be started out small and grew bigger.

A vicious cycle, this process would only continue to grow until my soul was submerged. Then swallowed.

That means my journey was for nothing! I have successfully reincarnated!

And I could not help but be happy and slip into this feeling of pure ecstasy. Instantly, I repelled the onslaught of emotions and tamed the previous owner of the body. All those negative emotions were contained in the other. Although, I lost a significant chunk of my soul from the journey through the afterlife, I was still fairly strong. I could wield parts of my soul though severely limited. Also, the other could not implicitly control its soul as well as me thus leading to an easy subjugation.

Now, with interference from the other gone, oh the sweet feeling of having a flesh and soul together in concert has returned. Yet, from all the emotions I felt, only the pain remained meaning I develop a connection with this body. The pain however intensified since I felt a link develop between my soul and the body.

“AHH! AHH! ” I could not help but curse as my head was aching badly, my whole body was in severe discomfort and there was an acute pain on opposite sides of my body under my chest. Whatever was causing the pain, I had no clue.

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Wait, I do know as the memories of the other appears in my mind. Half of my focus was on watching the memory and the other half on numbing the pain. Eventually, I found what led to such a critical situation, but the pain did not end there.

It was alcohol. An excessive amount of alcohol .

No wonder the other was exhibiting all those emotions and suppressing him was easy.

HE WAS WEAK! AND COPING! Damn, so the extent of pain I am feeling is due to my kidneys working its hardest to filter out the alcohol and this body needs water.

My body needs water.

Despite the pain, I asked myself where I can get water. I find myself turning to an area my mind denoted as the ‘kitchen.’ In the kitchen is the ‘sink’ with a faucet and water comes through from

manipulating the handle. I duck my head under and raised the faucet and begin gulping down water until I am full.

That is not enough. The pain forces me to flick in and out of consciousness so before everything goes black, I overdraft on my soul to temporarily enhance the body’s resilience and recovery. Well, I can just train my soul again.

Then, everything goes black and I have officially lost consciousness.

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Eventually, something shines in my vision. A familiar feeling, sunlight.

It brightens my vision as I begin to awaken. Since I have awoken, I’m guessing I am still alive.

DING DING DING! Correct as I begin to examine this puddle of filth beneath me. It turns out to be a mixture of urine, water, and sweat. I raised my body weakly and make my ways towards the bathroom which is in the suite bedroom.

That’s right, suite. Everything is different compared to my previous life seeing how life here depends on ‘technology’ rather than arrays led by mana or other forms of energy. I guess it is sort of similar seeing how energy is used to power tools that can do stuff.

I stripped myself of this filthy ‘clothing’ in the bathroom and see the new me.

A young dark-skinned youth with a shaved head, average face with barely any hair, and a vast chubby body. Furthermore, seeing how the entrance to these rooms are designed, I am average height too. But Damn! I had to dig really deep to find my tool. My stomach stuck out like POW and covered the whole front of my waist. No way to describe it, I was left at a loss of words. My body is still covered in this nauseating mixture of liquids so I  get in the ‘shower.’ I turn the handle below the shower faucet and water begins to stream down my body.

“DAMN!” It was ice cold and I jumped back awfully quick. My weight crashes towards the bathroom wall and makes a loud thump. I collect myself and hear thumps from beyond this wall as the water gradually warms up. I knock against the wall a couple times and the thumps come back repeatedly and louder. A weird world indeed.

I collect myself under the shower and used some ‘soap’ to cleanse my body. It really cleans me good and my mood brightens as I begin to consolidate all the memories from the other. Thus making this the true subjugation and claiming of this body and soul. This should take a couple of ‘hours,’ a time scale my people which is based on… on the… on the full  rotation of the ‘Earth,’ the planet humans call their birth home. Yeah, after this shower, I should really focus on the other’s life, choices, culture, everything.