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There has been a time where Matthew roberts was scared…. Scared of not believing in god….
"... Just believe in Jesus dude, you don't have anything to lose…god loves you…" jacob was quite the devout christian. And while it might be true, Matthew just couldn't get his will put into it.
Something didn't sit quite well with him about the so-called 'god', the whole concept of bowing to an invisible eerie existence worshiping its divine holiness and praising its name in every sentence sounded quite alien to his ears. Experiencing difficulties and struggles when growing up as an orphan really didn't help either.
But Despite all of that, Something captivated the young Matthew, he didn't know what it is, or what it could be... He felt as if a part of his soul, a part of his personality, was missing... a billionaire mourning the death of an orphan, a politician publicly apologizing and talking of the homeless, a murderer doing public service… 'are we all hypocrites?' something felt wrong, So he took it upon himself to figure out…
Strangely enough, when researching about different religions, mainly the abrahamic three… Islam, Christianity, Judaism… All of them had very similar concepts of hell, punishment and most interestingly death… all of them believed in 'death', in a sweet afterlife where the pious ones will reside, in an angel made of 'corrupt' light ripping your soul and guiding it to the said paradise … All of them preached and gospelled, 'the Will of god' they uttered, and most of these saintly beings feared the divine judgment that would befall them and their families…
Jàhan'nam, an Arabic word that usually refers to hell, or even more accurately the 'eternal abyss'. A massive palace of death and agony. The place where the souls of those bunch, who caused suffering, will experience the same pain their victims did, a thousand fold. And When taking into consideration that it has many 'floors'. with the punishment varying in creativity and torture-level in each one…it would be truly an exciting place to be in…
She'ôl and/or gê-hinnom, a non-physical form of hell. According to some Jewish teachings, an intense feeling of shame and deprivation washes over the sinner's soul, aiming to cleanse it from its misdeeds. When one has deviated from the Will of god, one is said to be in 'gehinnom' or in great 'shame'....
"'... if we live, we live for the lord and savior. If we die, we die for the lord and savior. Thus, whether we live or die, we belong to the lord…'" Interestingly, some Christians believed in a second death. it's said that once the physical body is finally deprived of its soul, from the first and 'real' death, both the soul and body are quickly cast into hell, where they either vanish into nothingness from destruction or turn into ashes from 'inextinguishable' fire…
"...maybe a god does truly exist… a god with many faces… each face presented in its own set of holy beliefs called 'religion' ... a god who oversees death and judgment… a god who owns a faraway, cruel and unforgiving land, named 'hell'…"
"...a god whose might, so majestic and eminent, it doesn't need needless faith or worship… a god who's so merciful, he gently grants a sweet 'deathless' death to his servants… "
"... a god who delivers punishment to those who reject his gifts on earth… a god who saves the sinners from themselves… a god undeserving of incompetent hands serving under his grand figure… "
"... a god who takes and gives... a god who is rich yet poor… a god who is said to be merciful yet cruel… a god who is embodied as pretty yet ugly…"
"...a god whose voice, so melodic and sincere, bewitches his followers and sinners alike… a god who, perhaps, requires a deserving sacrifice…a 'rich' soul…"
"... rich in arrogance… rich in unholiness… rich in sin… rich in impurities… rich in pride… rich in blood…"
"...the many-faced god owes a sacrifice… and who of the three realms (earth, afterlife, hell) would not dare to deliver it… perhaps only the devout acolytes and beasts will... the debt will be striven to be paid in blood… for death is, the real mercy and salvation for the ignorant…"
Matthew's eyes suddenly shined as he stared at the ceiling of his room. Perhaps Jay was correct, god truly loved us, his eyes leisurely drifted into sleep... And a ghostly raspy voice made its way inside his half asleep half awake mind
"*"..Into a faraway land.. A handsome rich gambler ran…
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
For he owed gold and blood.. Yet had none to spare…
The Sorrow and hopelessness…became too much for the poor soul to bear…
Music fell on his ears… and the conductor was a creature, with the fanciest hat the gambler had ever seen…
'fret not, for I know your trouble and I can offer absolutions' the beast said… and the gambler decided to bet on his luck once again…
'can you take me, from this god forsaken land?' the youth asked…'hahaha! Boy, the world is vast, and the many-faced god is its one and only true king!'.
To a remote hollowed town, the handsome gambler arrived … ' my prize, is a minuscule thing. You See… I have desires that ought to be satisfied!' spoke the weird man, his voice? so enchanting to the gambler's ears.
' if you're offering a ticket… that's a deal I will gladly take' The youth agreed, and faraway into the town, he ventured…
Time has passed, and Love, the young soul found… his bride? A gorgeous blonde, and a fancy wedding took place…
Now when the hungry beast finally emerged… the family was terrified, and the gambler, quickly turned to pleadings…
'please, get away!!' cried the now married man … 'The prize is not paid, the god of death now owes two lives…' uttered the monstrosity…
The woman came forward, in hopes of petitioning… but she didn't take notice, as the demon's jaw unhinged.
She cried in agony, as the beast twisted her neck and crushed her limbs… The gambler was no longer stable, as he denied what his eyes just witnessed…
… 'your turn shall come, youngin!, for god is great and merciful'... "*"
<<<<< flashback: end>>>>>
{ luck (unlocked): 1}
{ Mission: a pint full of blood.
-Details: the many-faced god seeks a Devout 'beast'… a sacrifice shall be presented in front of his greatness, bathed in its own pure yet filthy blood... Do not disappoint…
-objective: kill ???? Whose blood would be truly worthy to pay off the debt.
-reward ????}
Matthew quickly opened his eyes, his head aching in pain, and body covered in cold sweat.
' god… is real?' feeling as if a part of him is complete, it was quite uncomfortable. he was just watching over the unconscious girl, who he just carried over to his now small wooden house, only for his eyelids to get heavy, so he decided to take a quick nap.
'this was the worst nightmare yet…' he sighed while reminiscing about his past-life, he curiously checked the system panels.
"w-where am I?" Speaking of the little doe, her eyes slowly opened as she remarked the young man sitting to her side wearing a fake smile on his handsome visage.
"..."
"you can call me Matthew, I found your body unconscious and injured near a scary looking black bear, you have any story to share?"
"..."
" your legs are bruised, hair disheveled, you even have tear stains on your face…"
"..."
"You know what, never mind. Just eat your food" only then did she notice the bowl of meat soup in front of her, served with a side of freshly cut summer fruits.
"... It's Angella" not touching the food, she spoke with emotionless eyes
"....hmm?"
"my name… my name is Angella"
"our village…It was raided yesterday…Two people, 'Rudger' the biter, 'william' the cruel, they referred to themselves as the 'black pirates'. With Rudger acting as the leader, William his right hand, and 5 others, they attacked the village… the stationed guards were brutalized by the strong William, while Rorge, another subordinate, took hostages… mainly tailors, blacksmiths, herbalists, physicians and the like… he kept them on a tight leash, hands and feet tied, he vowed to make them work under his command for the rest of their lives. Should they refuse, their families would pay the prize…" the black-haired girl, looking frail and knackered, narrated the events with a tone of melancholy.
"... Your parents, do they still live?" Matthew was quite surprised at how calmly she spoke of the tragedy.
" I… I don't know"
—--
" captain!. Angella, a girl of twelve, daughter of the local butcher, has fled away…" spoke one of the five underlings
"how come she managed to slip through!?" Rudger spoke loudly, wearing a frown on his wrinkled face. He was wearing a white shirt, an old loose-fitting winter cloak, a red worn-out scarf wrapped around his neck, braggy brown pants and shoes. His face was… ugly, his nose weirdly pointy, not as lengthy as ussop's, his hair was covered by a stylish pirate hat, but one could tell its dirty, just from the grease falling down, a funny looking unibrow replaced his eyebrows.
" captain!, she ran fast, before we could even get a hold of-"
" I don't need excuses, quickly fetch the little whore, if you don't manage to find her, don't bother coming back."
"... Should I help?" entered a giant of a man, William Vermont was his full name, a bulging belly that would put even lucky roux to shame, standing at the height of 3 meters, his head almost hitting the ceiling. He wore a Japanese oni mask, hiding his face, his silver hair was neatly combed, wearing a black tank top that somehow fitted tightly into his Strangely muscular and fat body. As for the the bottom half, it starts off with a black leathered bandolier belt, custom-made black-reddish breeches that ended with a pair of buckle brown boots. He spoke with a harsh voice.
"...!" his mere presence terrified the underling, his mind flashed back to the brutalized corpses…
" there's no need, these useless bunch ought to do their work right. Now get out, will you?" said rudger gesturing to the poor guy…
"here, catch…" after the guy left, leaving the pair alone, he took out two old looking posters from his coat pockets, tossing one of them at William.
'William Vermont, the cruel. Wanted dead of alive. 40 m berries.'
'Rudger blackbull, the biter. Wanted dead or alive. 30 m berries.'
Those were their bounty posters, they seemed to be quite well-known in west blue, as their bounties were on the high-end part. William in particular, had the current second highest bounty in west blue, he had a fearsome reputation with the marines, even the underworld didn't dare to mess with him, which earned him quite a prize on his head…
"... Our dream, William, it's getting closer than ever." spoke rudger with excited eyes
" it is indeed" replied the 'cruel' with his harsh accent, his tone perfectly hid his emotions.