Ciera dropped to her knees, her body going weak with fear. Just moments ago she had gathered with the other warriors of her small village at the request of their clan leader. Everything was normal at first, but suddenly her mana senses were overwhelmed by something of intense power. It was unlike anything she had ever felt before, and she couldn’t tell where it was coming from, everything surrounding her was being smothered by the presence. Looking up she could tell the others sensed it too.

Suddenly their leader dropped to the ground next to her. Reaching over to his neck, she felt no pulse “He’s dead”. Ciera barely had time to get the words out before others began dropping all around her. Scrambling to her feet she ran out of the meeting hall to find her village in chaos. Many bodies already lined the streets, with the panicking villagers desperately trying to find safety. With every passing second more and more dropped dead.

Ciera raced through her village and barged through the door of her home. “Mom!” Ciera ran room to room in a panic. Rushing into the family room she found a woman on her knees in prayer, her protruding stomach revealing she was pregnant. “Mom we have to go now” Ciera said, grabbing her mom's hand and pulling her to her feet.

“What is happening,” She asked Ciera calmly, but the look of fear in her eyes showed that she could feel the same presence. Ciera began dragging her mom towards the exit “I don’t know, we have to” her mom's hand went slack, and then she was pulled backward by the force of her mother falling to the ground.

“Mom!” Ciera grabbed at her mother, feeling for her pulse. “No no no” she gasped. Cradling her mother in her arms, helpless, she closed her eyes and began to pray.

“Let me help you.” Ciera’s eyes shot open to the voice. In front of her stood a tall man she couldn’t identify. “Who are you… have you come to answer my prayers?” Her eyes began to water “Are you God?”

“God? Not quite, but I did hear your prayer.” The man reached out his hand “Come with me, and together we can save your world.”

……

Ciera hopped up onto a raised table, the metal was cool to her touch. After taking the man's hand she found herself whisked away to a strange room almost instantly. Teleportation magic wasn’t unheard of, but what she saw around her was unlike anything she had witnessed in her village life. Across from her, on a similar table, laid her mother. Devices and contraptions Ciera had never seen before were attached to and surrounded her.

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“Are you ready?” The man entered the room and checked the various devices around Ciera’s mom.

“Not really, I still can’t believe it all” Ciera fidgeted nervously. The presence she had felt just hours before was stronger than ever. “What will it be like when I get there?”

“I’ve been observing it for many years, It won't be very different from what you’re used to.” The man replied. “Except to them, you will be almost a God in comparison.”

“A God huh” Ciera whispered as she looked over to her mother “I wish I could say goodbye to her before I go”, a mix of sadness and apprehension in her voice.

“I’m sure she will be very proud of you, we all are, and we are all counting on you and your soon-to-be sister. I will be sending her through first, as she will need to be born on the other side to fulfill her role.” The man turned to the unconscious woman. Placing his hand on her stomach, his power poured into her. Seconds later, one of the machines made a long continuous beep, indicating the baby had passed.

“She has been sent over. It will take time for her to grow, so I will be sending you some years after her. I will try to send you to a host close by.”

“A host, isn’t that someone’s body I would be taking? Is that really what God… what you want?” The girl still sounded apprehensive.

The man held her hands to reassure her. “Our world is dying, this is the only way, you understand? Your mother, your village, even I, we’re all counting on you. You’re our only hope. Whoever you meet on the other side, they may look like us, or act like us, but they are not us. They will not understand what you are trying to do, nor have empathy for it. They may resist you, they may fight you, but you can not let them stand in your way. We are depending on you.”

The man pulled her into a hug. “I know this will be difficult, but I chose you for your exceptional power levels, in addition, I have granted you and your sister as much power as I can. I believe in you both.”

“Ok,” the girl nodded, hugging him back. “I trust you. I will not fail, I promise.”

The man helped her lay back. Smiling at her, he brought his hand down to her forehead, repeating the same process he had done on the pregnant woman. Seconds later, the girl went motionless and limp.

The man sighed as his face returned to a neutral position. Walking to a seat nearby, he stopped next to the pregnant woman, touched her hand gently, and continued to his seat as her heart rate monitor also flatlined.

“And now we wait” the man sat into a chair, going completely motionless. The lights snapped out and all machinery stopped functioning, plunging the room into silent darkness, the same silent darkness that stretched across the entire world, every world, never to be disturbed again.