I open my eyes with a cold that chills me to the bone and I see almost nothing. I don't know where I am or how I got here. I am enveloped in a sepulchral silence. There is nothing but me and emptiness. I feel nothing but me and the cold.
I feel an unbearable pain throughout my body and confusion that stuns me. Then I understand: I have changed. I have been the victim of something I do not understand, of something that has altered my nature. How strange, this new way of life I have been given.
I sit up with difficulty and look around me. I can barely see a few meters beyond. There is no sound, no smell, no color. It's like being in limbo, in a lifeless place.
But I am not alone. I see other figures moving through the fog, approaching me with curiosity or suspicion. They are like me, or so I think. They have human form, but they are not human.
Their skin varies in color depending on the individual. They are all different. Some have the colors you would see on a humanoid being, and others have completely dazzling, opaque colors, or even black. Their other characteristics seem to continue to slowly adapt to different forms for each of them.
They possess no clothing or accessories, just their naked bodies, but strangely without reproductive organs.
I don't know who they are or what they want from me. I don't know if they are friends or enemies. I don't know if I can communicate with them or if they will understand me.
I feel fear and distrust, but also curiosity and hope. Maybe they know something I don't know. Maybe they can help me understand what has happened to me.
I approach one of them cautiously and say in a trembling voice:
-Hello... Who are you? What are you?
He looks at me with his luminous eyes and answers me with a soft voice:
-Hello... I am... I am....
And he remains silent as if he doesn't know what to say.
They don't seem to know anything either, about what this place is about.
Then I see them little creatures crawling on the ground or flying in the air. They have no definite shape, but constantly change their appearance. Sometimes they look like animals, sometimes like plants, sometimes like objects. They are large, sometimes small, and sometimes invisible. They make strange noises, like squeaks, whispers, and laughter. They cause me repulsion and fascination at the same time. I don't know what they are or what they want.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
One of the creatures approaches me and brushes me with what seems to be a hand. I feel a shiver and a tingle. I swat it away. The creature moves away and changes shape. Now it looks like a butterfly. It looks at me with sad eyes, but only momentarily to go and disturb another of the figures.
As I watch the creature walk away, I again feel the unbearable pain throughout my body and a flood of knowledge that is not mine. Then I understand: I have died.
I have been the victim of an experiment being conducted in the castle and I have inherited part of the memories of those involved. How strange, this new way of life I have been given.
I don't remember much of my previous life, the one that belonged to the dominant consciousness, but that doesn't matter anymore. Now I am Death.
I look around me and see the others like me, who have also undergone the same transformation.
And at the center of them all is him, the one who created us. I feel a strong connection with him.
What a strange being, his body seems to be constantly changing, but at the same time he seems to be just a mass of tentacles.
Without realizing it, I begin to approach him, feeling an irresistible attraction. I feel his presence fix on me, and he begins to speak to me in a voice that resonates in my mind. It seems that everyone else hears him too, according to their reactions.
-Welcome to your new existence,- is the first thing he hears, -First of all, I want to congratulate you on passing the test.
-What test? -I ask, confused.
-The test of the erosion of the void,- he answers, -Only the strongest personalities and the fittest can be reborn. You are the chosen ones, the ones who have managed to transcend your human nature and become something else.
-And what are we now? -asks another of the transformed.
-You are the precursors for change in this world, you are what is necessary to complete my work, and give meaning to all that I have done.
-What work? What change? What meaning? -asks a female voice with a defiant tone.
-Don't worry about that now,- says the creator, -All will be revealed to you in due time. For now, just know that you are my creations, my allies. That they have immense power, that they can travel between the different planes of reality and collect the energy I need for my great project.
-And what is this project? -insists the female voice.
-It is something that goes beyond your current understanding,- answers the creator with a tone of mystery, "It is something that will change the destiny of this world and all the others. It is something that only I can do, but I need your help to achieve it.
-And what's in it for us? -asks another of the transformed.
-They gain the opportunity to live a new life, full of adventure, knowledge, and pleasure. They gain the possibility of being part of something great, something unique, something wonderful. They gain my protection and my gratitude.
-What if we don't want to help you, what if we don't want to be part of your plan, what if we want to go back to our old life,- another voice asks rebelliously.
-That is not an option,- says the creator firmly, -You no longer belong to that world. You are no longer human. You are mine. And I do not accept betrayal or disobedience. If any of you try to escape or rebel, you will suffer the consequences. And believe me, you don't want to know what they are.
Having said that, he touches us with his tentacles and I feel a shiver. I feel him transmitting something to me, a message, a mission: to go to the different planes and collect energy. I obey him, because why not, it sounds interesting, and I can't wait to see what the future holds.