"You have died," a voice announced.

"Yeah, I know," I replied.

Just a moment ago I was holding the cold iron blade that pierced my chest.

It was not as painful as I thought it would be. My vision blurred as I lied helpless on the ground catching out of breath.

I should have been mad about it. I should have been sad. I don't know but all I could feel right now is frustration.

I tried to calm myself as my soul aimlessly drifted in darkness.

"This is the second time," the soft female voice continued. A small white butterfly appeared after she spoke, its wings eerily emit a faint glow.

"You will revive in four minutes and thirty six seconds. Please be reminded that the enemy is reaching the gate."

I checked the blue-colored timer on the bottom left corner of my vision. Four minutes feel too short, I thought.

I want to rest a bit more but I also understand that I have something to do. I have enemies and they're out there waiting for me, eager to kill me again once I came back.

I have to defend the gate from them and I won't be able to do that if I just stay here.

I will revive, yes, that's right. Not as fancy as I first thought it would be. I dont have the ability to force myself back when I want to, either.

All I can do for now is wait. Wait and rest for a bit.

Now that I think about it, four minutes might actually be too long.

"Did I missed something?" I muttered watching the butterfly as it fluttered around. "What do I call you again?"

"I am Ideia. I am the guide. Have I not told you that?" The voice replied.

"Would you like me to explain from the beginning?"

"No, please," I refused. "I think I've heard it enough."

What she was supposed to tell me once more was the reason of my existence. Why am I here or what exactly is happening?

Well, I have no reason to doubt her but somehow I could not bring myself to accept it.

"Feel free to ask if you have any question. You will revive in four minutes and eighteen seconds."

Still four minutes... now this is frustrating.

I could not make myself wait patiently doing nothing but float in the middle of nowhere.

This place is not even the afterlife. Its just plain darkness.

I better do something else.

"Actually, let me hear it again. I might really have missed something," I told the butterfly.

"What would you like me to explain?"

"From the top. You said something about Ethereal?"

In a short pause, the butterfly began releasing specks of light from its glowing wings and the voice on my head mildly shifted to a serious tone, "You are an Ethereal, a soul given a greater purpose; a task to fill the void. The void that is the Chalice, the vessel that is to hold the essence. The essence that is what you are tasked to take."

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The specks of light left by the butterfly formed into a golden cup and the voice continued to explain, "An essence that yields not from peace but from chaos. For peace yields nothing for it has nothing while chaos broods change, it breeds essence. The chaos that is the Empyreal War."

"Imperial War?"

"The Empyreal War," the voice corrected. "The event that is the chaos. The war that every Ethereal given life must partake. Win every battle to collect essence, the essence that is needed to fill the void."

"So this war you were saying... is it the same war I am in right now?"

"Not exactly, Ethereal. You are to face battles that is your fate, but this one here is just a test. Fail and your soul will return to nothing. Pass and you shall continue."

So this is not an actual battle huh? Just a test that I need to pass. Returning to nothing is the proper death I presume. The absolute end. The death that is not the same as this.

"So I can keep reviving again and again until this test ends, right?"

"That is correct, as long as you are in the battlefield. But you have no reason to fret, I believe you would win countless battles in the future. The test is nothing as compared to them."

"That is if I would ever meet that future," I said doubting myself.

I just died twice, that's enough for me to realize that surviving itself here is already a challenge. Winning the battle? This war? Filling that void... this chalice, or whatever it is, would I be able to do that?

What is this about anyway? What is the essence for? What does it look like? What's in it for me after I finish the task?

I took a deep breath and stared at the golden cup noticing the text floating above it.

[ Chalice 0 / 1,000,000 ]

A million... Seems ridiculous.

"Can I really do this?" I asked the butterfly.

"I'm afraid I cannot process what you were asking. Please be specific with your question."

"Will I be able to fill this cup? Will I be able to win this war? I mean, this test?"

"I am not a fortune-teller, Ethereal, I am merely a guide. I cannot foresee the future, but it is my task to make sure that you would be able to pass the test."

"But you said it is my fate."

"Yes, you and the other Ethereals, you have the same purpose: you are bound to fill the void, bound to join the war; I am your guide to fulfill that fate."

Bound to what?

Nonesense. I wanted to scream. I felt an urge to make an argument, to oppose what she is telling me but I could not form a reason. What if I told her that I don't want to? Leave me alone and let me do what I want!

What do I want though? I don't know, Freedom? Peace of mind perhaps? Well, I want to rest a bit more but as she have said...

Fail and my soul will return to nothing.

An actual death... A literal peace of mind, perfect.

Its not like I have anything to fight for my life right now. I do not bear any memory before I came here and the fact that I know that confuses me. I bear knowledge and I recognize things. I just don't know when and how I gained them.

I found myself in the middle of a battlefield and in my hand I held a weapon. There were men swinging their blades against each other and the air was filled with noise of either dins, cries or clash of steel. As the voice on my head instructed I moved to join the fight...

And then I died. I died and now this is the second time. The perfect time to contemplate what exactly is happening.

I still could not accept what she have said: I am an Ethereal and I exist to fight.

Why though? Why me? Why must I bear this task? Why must I do this test? Why should I be born only to die multiple times? My mind was clouded with questions.

I need answers, a better explanation, something straight to the point.

Alas, the only one that can answer me is a white butterfly that speaks right through my head.

...

I guess I just need to trust her.

"You said you were a guide, right?"

"That is correct Ethereal, I am Ideia. I am the guide and I know I already told you that. Would you like me to explain from the beginning?"

"No, but I have a question." I said as I tried to clear my head of thoughts and worries.

If there's anything I need to figure out right now, it should be about this test. If I am to trust what she was telling me, I might really face more battles soon, but if I cannot win this one its simply the end for me.

"Feel free to ask if you have any question."

"Okay. So... I've been wondering," I slightly paused.

Well, before anything else, before asking every little thing I want to know about the test, this battle, or how to collect those essence she was telling me, this question is the one I definitely need an anwer, "Can you first tell me what my name is?"

The butterfly flashed and the whole darkness was filled with light.

I clenched my fist as the voice announced, "You have now revived."