The alarm blasted Cole awake at 5:30 am sharp, getting him up and ready for a morning full of activity. As usual he reached down to do his first stretch of the day, a swift pull of the plug out of the wall, silencing the electronic noise that had disturbed his dreams.
Cole instantly went back to sleep.
He woke up at the much more reasonable hour of 7:30, to the sound of rain pattering outside his window, just the right time for breakfast. He cooked some bacon and eggs on the stove and wolfed them down. While he wasn’t fat, Cole definitely wasn’t skinny. He liked to tell himself that he was just bulking.
Cole lived alone in his apartment. A few years earlier he’d been injured in a construction accident while working as a labourer, and the compensation payout from that had been more than enough to allow him to retire at the age of 20. Cole now lived comfortably, not spending too much money, but just enough to allow him to enjoy the simple pleasures of life.
He spent much of his time browsing his favourite webnovels and light novels online, as well as playing his favourite VRMMORPG, Vestria Online. In that world, he could be whatever he wanted, and he’d invested just enough to become one of the strongest players in that world, able to hold his own in both PvP and Raid events.
In that world, he was a mage who had discovered the unique Instant Portal technique, and so was one of the strongest ever in combat, while many strong mages could use the teleportation and Spatial Gate techniques, his ability to instantly create portals across space and other dimensions meant that he was nigh unkillable. All other forms of instant transportation took up either time or huge amounts of resources. All it took for him was a mental picture of two points he wanted to bridge, and the gate was created. In fact, he had become so respected that he was even referred to as the Magus Supreme, aka, the strongest sorcerer in existence.
He might not be the most crafty wizard, or have a huge library of spells to call upon. But no one could argue with Cole’s sheer power. It was a chilling feeling to have someone who could relocate oceans in mere moments in your presence.
After finishing his breakfast, Cole realised that he needed to head out to the shops to pick up his painkillers. The accident at work had left him with permanent nerve damage, which constantly flared along his limbs every time he moved them. The painkillers made it manageable, so that he could live a relatively normal life, rather than being paralysed by the pain. He felt sad for a minute, remembering all the things he would like to do in terms of exercise.
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Oh well, I can’t let it get me down, thought Cole. He put on his warm puffer jacket, and prepared to leave his home to go down to the local chemist. He could feel the pain beginning to return, so he knew he needed to be quick. Normally he didn’t let his supply run out before getting a refill, but the last few days had consisted of an intense, multi-stage Raid in Vestria Online.
Cole had the important role of quickly funneling in new troops and other players into the battlefield against the Storm King, the latest Raid boss that the Nexon company had added into the game. Luckily his hard work was not in vain. Everyone who had participated in the raid had earned a huge sum of gold for their efforts, while the guild who had contracted him for their help had given him a $100,000 USD bonus for helping them be the first guild to beat the Storm King. This meant that they could use the Storm King as a Titan level summon in the upcoming annual Guild War event. Often Titan-level summons were the deciding factor in the various battles that would be fought in events, however these types of summons could only be used once per year, so it was extremely important to be strategic.
Cole didn’t really get involved with the Guild Wars, instead working as a private contractor to whoever offered him the most cash. With this method, he remained well-respected among all the players of Vestria Online, while also not being tied down to one specific group of people. Besides, Cole didn’t like people. Not after the accident anyway.
He shoved his chin into the collar of his jacket, bracing against the chilling wind that was currently trying to push him back up the street. The cold was particularly intense today, stabbing into his body with a vicious monotony, which just kept reminding Cole of the pain that was building along his nerves. He quickened his pace, fighting the wind every step of the way.
The cold reminded him of his greatest PvP duel, against the previous Magus Supreme of Vestria Online. That opponent had been a powerful Ice mage, who like Cole had his own unique skill. The skill, called Blizzard, allowed that man to change entire battlefields into a wintry wonderland that he would then have complete control over, able to appear anywhere. The cold of that skill would leech away at the flesh until it was completely frozen through. One strike, and his foes would shatter into a thousand pieces.
The shops where his chemist was located was just across the road now, and he stood at the traffic lights, impatiently hammering the button even though he knew that it wouldn’t make them change any quicker. Cole rammed his chin back into his collar, staring at the pavement as he wriggled his toes in a vain effort to keep them warm.
The sound of the lights changing in his favour rang through his ears, and Cole briskly strode onto the street, eager to reach his painkillers.
Time froze.
He saw it first, in the corner of his eye. The other crossing signal had gone off, not his.
As he slowly turned his head to the left, the sound waves reached his eardrum. Two sounds distinctly stood out.
First, a piercing squeal, trying in vain to stop the onslaught of the doom that was hurtling towards him.
Second, the horn, an almost comical sound that now seemed to spell only death, frantically warning him to get out of the way.
He tried to move, but his body was determined to work against him. A jolt of pain, far worse than the ones he’d had before wracked his body, paralysing everything but his neck.
So as Cole was frozen, doomed to remain in the middle of the street, he could only turn his head towards the angel of death, while his body was ravaged by agony.
Then the truck hit him, and Cole felt nothing at all.