I have died.
It might not seem like much.
And yet, that emptiness, that feeling of suddently becoming nothing...
I fear it.
I don't want to die again...
I hate this fear...
I hate my powerlessness at preventing my own death...
I won't die again...
No matter what atrocidies and horrors I have to do...
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I suddently woke up, anxious and feeling like I just had a horrible dream. Several voices, just as confused as I am, resounded all around me.
I couldn't make heads or tails of the situation, but I didn't need to, as a voice somehow soft, and yet so loud spoke up.
"Welcome, my heroes. I am sure you are all confused, and this will indeed be much to take in. However, I will first tell you this: You have all died..."
As everybody kept on listening to the goddesses' explanation, my mind became hazy. Died? I died? That... dream... was real?
I shivered, phantom pain taking over my reason or judgement. Dark thoughts and evil voices spoke up, like offering candy to a kid. They spoke sweet words, convincing me of false things.
"You died once, but what happens if you die again?" "Won't the pain multiply twice?"
The things they said were based on my own imagination, since the voices themselves were my imagination. Thus, nothing was proven, and yet it all seemed so real...
"... And like that, I will ask you to defeat the vile demon king. All of you, since you come from another world, will have powerful innate abilities. When you have sorted out everything mentally, come up to me so I can unlock your innate abilities."
I finally glanced at where the voice came from. It was an unnaturally beautiful and busty woman wearing some sort of battle dress and weilding a shiny lance.
I wasn't even listening to all of that bullshit, but since I wasn't exactly uncoltured in the other world, I know the gist of it. Save the world, defeat the demon king, get a harem, live a happy life and bla bla bla... Bullshit. Complete and utter bullshit...
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What is the meaning behind life? In my... past... life, I suppose, I was a scientist. I worked for the government, researching various rather unorthodox things. Most of my subjects were humans, and naturally, few of them lived past my experiments, and none ever left the lab.
Did I feel bad about it? The answer would be no. I did it for a reason, to further enhance humanity. However, now, after I experienced that thing that cannot even be described as pain, I feel like all of humanity can just go die. I care not anymore.
Yes... Yes... I was wrong the entire time... What is the meaning behind life? To hold the ability to move? Reproduce? The need to use energy? To observe the world around us?
If only I had figured out the answer in time... However, it's still not too late... The meaning of life is to continue living forever... Of course... Why didn't I figure this out sooner... Hahaha...
I felt as though a huge weight was lifted off my back the moment I realized this. The feeling of anxiousness and fear that had been with me ever since I died, which in reality should only have happend a couple of minutes ago, disappeared.
After a couple more minutes of planning and making decisions, I approached the woman. I didn't trust her in the least, and this strange of feeling of needing to trust her more only made me trust her less.
She looked at me softly and said "So, do you have everything sorted out?" I nodded slightly to her and she smiled before putting a hand on my head. I silently cringed inwardly. Even gods were taller then me?
I felt a strange feeling of warmth spread through my whole body, and like a dam being broken, strange new senses opened up to me, suprising me. Then, a small screen appeared in my mind.
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Name: Edward Massaj
Race: Human
Age: 24
Titles: none
Skills: none
Strenght: 1
Dexterity: 1
Constitution: 1
Intelligence: 1
Wisdom: 1
Charisma: 1
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Thinking about it for a moment, it made sense that I had all stats at 1. It should be about the average for a regular adult, and although I was way smarter then the average person in my old world, I assume that I just got a 1 too for reasons.
The goddess pulled her hand back for a moment and said "So? Did you feel it?"
I blinked a couple times, taken away from my own little world and quickly nodded my head. She smiled warmly at me and said "Good. Now, allow me to unlock your skill..."
This time, she didn't even touch me as I suddently felt a stream of knowledge flow into me. I crouched and groaned as I held my head in between my arms in pain.
She looked at me with a bitter smile as she apologized "I'm sorry, that pain will go away soon. Don't worry, it only happens when you unlock your innate skill."
Indeed, after a while, the pain finally faded and a new notification appeared in my mind.
[Gluttony skill gained]
A smile spread through my face as I read the description of the skill
[Gluttony - Innate skill: You are the one who shall rise above all others. Consume and absorb to rise to new heights. Allows to take away parts of the stats of enemies, the stronger the meal compared to you, the more stats are gained. Small chance to earn an opponent's highest level skill. Due to your strong desire to live, you can now devour a living being's life force through skin contact or by consuming them alive, this will heal your injuries and extend your lifespan. Warning: Overuse of this skill will lead to corruption]
After thanking the goddess and feeling myself being transported away, I roared of mad laughter in my mind. Oh, poor world, you have no idea of who's coming for you...