Nate woke to a strange blue light blinking at him within the dark apartment. In his half groggy state, he childishly swore to destroy the one behind his early and abrupt awakening. His non-sense made the blue light shine brighter and he quickly realized the light was coming from straight in front of his face. Sitting up in his bed, he quickly noticed the three transparent blue screens following his vision as he moved his head.
What the hell is this? He thought to himself as he started reading the words in front of him.
System announcement:
Welcome to the system, human. As of this moment in time, your universe has joined the system and can benefit from all its perks. REJOICE! Spawning of monsters will begin in 23 hours & 56 minutes. For more information on the System, you can check out the Tutorial tab on your status screen. Good luck!
“Right…” Nate reread the words a couple of times. Whatever this system was, it was definitely not generous with explanations. “Either this is a dream, a really good prank or the start of the apocalypse.” He slowly moved on to the next window.
Oath sworn!
You have sworn an Oath! Your Oath of Mutilation has been heard and acknowledged by the system. As the first to swear an Oath in your universe you have gained a title:
Oathswearer: Not all have the strength or courage to swear an oath recognized by the system itself. Sentient beings will find your words true more often than not.
“Oh… There is just no way this day ends well for me is there?” Nate sighed. The last window was bolder and had a darker blue color than the other windows.
The target of your Oath is aware of your enmity. Forced relocation commencing in 60 seconds.
Called it. As Nate watched, the counter on the screen began ticking down. Oh, fuck me sideways. He thought as he quickly got up to get dressed. Pulling on dark blue jeans, a long sleeve shirt and his old leather jacket faster than he ever had before, he was ready to go with 15 seconds to spare. He took a couple of them to think through what he could need, before running across his rundown studio apartment to dig out his old baseball bat from a closet. Just as his hand gripped the bat, his world lurched.
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Nate knew he was sitting, probably on a chair, but that was all he knew. He could not move, could not speak and worst of all he could not see for shit. There was not a lack of light that blinded him, but rather as if his eyes had been disconnected from his brain.
“So, you are the one swearing your destruction on me?” a light voice sounded in his head, humor in its voice.
Nate’s eyes snapped back into connection, bringing with it a light headache as the unfamiliar sensation rocked his head. As his sight came back into focus, he saw white marble floors reaching out in a small square around him, an ever-white expanse stretching past the square in all directions. And he saw the creature in front of him. Calling it massive would be an understatement. Its gigantic humanoid body had pale skin and was covered in a fabric that looked like some sort of silk. Even trough the silk, Nate noticed the toned muscles on the being. So even if the size of the thing had not discouraged him from his Oath, the strength he could see in its muscles did. His bat would probably break against the humanoid skyscraper, not that he could see his bat anywhere. Its face, positioned straight in front of his tiny square of marble, had no mouth nor nose, instead it was fitted with six eyes. One in the middle of its forehead, two on each side of the middle of its face, and one on its chin. All eyes held a golden shine. Nate kept looking from eye to eye, fascinated and not just a little unsure of which eye to look at.
Realizing he had been silent for a good minute, and that the giant seemed to expect an answer, he quickly got a hold of himself as well as he could. “Eh, yes?” he answered uncertainly. “Although, I mean, there seem to have been a mistake. I had no intention of swearing any oath.”
A rumbling went through the ground beneath Nate’s feet and the young man quickly realized the creature was laughing. “I am well aware of how you came to be here, young Nathan Thorne,” the creature’s words sounded once again in Nate’s mind. “And it is safe to say unique is not a descriptive enough word for the situation you find yourself in.”
“Where am I and who are you?” the friendliness of the creature allowed Nate to muster the courage for some of the many questions on his mind.
“Ah, my apologies, I should have introduced myself,” the creature said, some of the humor fading. “I am Binah, The Librarian and Keeper of Knowledge. You find yourself in my library, The Library of Imum. Here you will find any knowledge you seek.”
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“I appreciate the answers Binah, I really do, but I have no idea what they mean.” Nate said, frustrated at his lack of understanding.
“You are young, Nathan Thorne and while there is no time to give you answers to your deeper questions, as I sense them in your mind, I might have an answer or rather the answer for the question of your Oath.” Binah’s deep voice boomed into Nate’s head now, all humor gone, replaced by seriousness. Before Nate could answer, the Librarian continued as its eyes took on a tired glean. “I have been the guardian and keeper of this place for a long time. Since before the creation of your universe. I know the truths of all, the meaning and reason behind everything. And you are not here by chance. For the greatest truth of all, is that all things end. All things must die. While I have had more time than anyone to come to terms with this, I have always feared the end. That is until you showed up just now and I realized my time had come. It was not fear I felt then, but elation. For the only way for you to fulfill your Oath, is through my freedom. As I am of the race that created the system, your Oath was directed at me because of the Library's natural connection to the system.”
Nate didn’t know what to say. This was all more than a little overwhelming. He had just been asleep in his own bed a couple of minutes ago, or was it hours? It was impossible to tell time in the blank white space. “What happens if I break the Oath?” Nate asked in a low voice.
Binah’s eyes seemed to look at him with sympathy now, a feeling of heaviness seeping from the creature. “Torment and anguish for long times, ending in death, most likely,”
Anger spurred in Nate for a moment. Anger at his bad luck and at the system. It faded just as quickly as he looked into Binah’s eyes. The creature was ancient, and he could feel a sadness in those giant six eyes just by looking at them. It was not a sadness for itself, no, Binah felt sad for him. For the impossible choice Nate had to face, because of the creature’s need of death. This just wasn’t his day.
“As pleasant as that sounds, I would rather help,” Nate said, while mustering a cheeky grin. “How bad can it be anyways,”
Binah’s laughter rumbled through the white expanse once again, sadness transformed to happiness in its eyes. “The pain of the transfer will be pain like nothing you have ever felt but bearing the mantle of Librarian and Keeper comes with many perks.”
Glad to see the giant cheering up a bit, completely ignoring the statement about pain, Nate figured it was time to get this show on the road so he could get home. “So, how do we do this?” He asked up at the six golden eyes.
“The process of it all is rather simple, though there are a few things that you need to know before we begin.” Binah said, “Listen well Nathan Thorne, for as your human body cannot hold the connection to the Library of Imum, you will be changed. You will join the ranks of the Seraphim.”
“An angel? I’ll be an angel?” Nate asked confused, having heard the word before.
“Though they might be known to some as angels, the Seraphim are the race that created the system and the ones that guards its rules. Be careful not to anger them as you grow into your role.”
“Grow into my role? I thought I would become Librarian after your death?” Nate asked cautiously.
“That is the other thing you must know,” Binah continued. “While your race will change and the Library of Imum will be within you, you are still new to the system and therefore still incredibly weak. Your race and mantle will guide you in growing stronger, but it will not be easy. If you cannot grow strong enough fast, you will perish under the weight of the mantle’s responsibilities.”
“That doesn’t sound ominous at all,” Nate mumbled to himself. “Well, let’s just get this show on the road, I assume the system will help guide me as well.”
“Yes, it is getting harder to hold you here as well, we must hurry. The system will guide you, but your connection to the library will be your greatest strength, now and always. Use it wisely.” Binah thought to him, and Nate thought he could hear some strain to the creature’s voice.
Suddenly the chair and marble underneath him disappeared and he was floating in the white expanse alongside Binah. The giant creature moved its body slightly forward, sprouting giant white wings from its back. The white wings were made up of countless huge feathers, gleaming a silver radiance. Nate stared with undisguised curiosity.
“All seraphim have wings, but all wings are unique. Once you awake and your own wings have sprouted, you might find them to be completely different than my own.” Binah answered Nate’s unspoken question. Reaching back Binah ripped off a feather from its wings with a wince. “Thank you once again, Nathan Thorne, for doing this for me. I know you do not have much of a choice, but that does not diminish the kindness of your act today.”
“It is my pleasure to help you Binah, I hope you find the peace you deserve.” Nate said and found he meant every word. If Binah had had a mouth, Nate would have sworn she was smiling.
Quick as a flash Binah stabbed the feather at him, the feather piercing his heart as a knife through melted butter. As the pain reached him, he screamed. Clinging to his consciousness, he could see Binah’s giant body melting, the golden glow of its eyes having faded.
“Thank you, young one. Good luck,” came Binah’s final words, echoing through his mind.
Then, everything went dark and there was only pain.