I had heard stories and watched movies where during a person’s death, dying felt cold. Yet, it was the opposite for me. Maybe it was the blood seeping out of me, surrounding my frail body. Maybe it was the unforgiving sun, as it bore down intense heat at me. Maybe it was the steaming ground, as I lay there, surrounded by numerous pedestrians panicking over the sight of me. Surprisingly, it didn’t really hurt. It felt…bittersweet. In terms of physical pain, it wasn't really much. What hurt more was the realization that I was dying. This was the end. My life was over. My dream was over. Even if I disliked how I had zero control over my life, and that I had nobody to consider a true friend, it was still mine. I still had a lot more to do. But, I couldn’t do anything. All I could do was close my eyes, and hope that whatever came up next, it would be…a place of freedom. A place where I could do what I want to do.
The first thing I saw was complete darkness. The sight of nothing bummed me out. This is it? There’s nothing after death? Well, shit. But then, I realized something. I was still thinking. If this was a place of pure nothing, like the popular theory that nothing exists after death, then how was I still able to think? It was then I realized, I could also still move. It then hit me. It’s not that there was nothing, I was simply looking at nothing. I then turned around, and honestly, my jaw fell wide open. (Pause). I know I probably looked like a dumbass, but just hear me out. I’ll try to describe exactly what I saw.
Picture space as the foundation. Now, imagine that every single star isn’t a star, but rather your memories. Yes, you heard me right. Every single star that I saw was one of my memories. I saw one star that contained the time I went hiking with a few friends when I was younger. Another star was of the time when I was chased by a deranged dog while coming home from school. There were also bigger stars, most of which I assumed were suns, that contained my most “important” memories. One sun was of the time when I saw a map for the first time. I was on a school field trip, and we had gone to the museum. When I learned of how unexplored the world truly was, it fascinated me. The world was that big? To a kid, it sounded like something straight out of a comic book. All of that land untouched by a man’s foot. All of those mountains too cold and steep for a man to climb. All of that water too deep and dark for a man to swim in. It didn’t sound like a warning to me at that time. Rather, it sounded like a challenge. And I was more than willing to accept it.
Another sun was the time when Grandpa and I had that talk. It felt kind of odd to see him again. To see him look alive. But, it also felt comforting. Even in death, he was still with me. It was then I finally noticed the craziest thing about this place. Every single memory, (stars), and every single “core” memory, (suns), were connected by transparent lines. These lines were then connected to planets, or celestial bodies if you’re a nerd. The planets were also not actually planets, but the faces of people in my life. One showed my mom, another showed dad, which were orbiting each other. There was a smaller planet, my grandpa, orbiting the both of them. It was rough to see that his planet looked dead. A bit farther away from them were other planets, my friends. I saw Robert, but he wasn’t as connected as Sam. I knew why that was the case. It seemed that the more I valued something, the tighter the connection was to myself, or rather, my memories. Which is why, despite Robert not being as connected as the others, was still tightly connected to some memories. The memories with him, like the time we first met. The time when we promised each other we’d make our dreams. He’d be a comic book artist, and I’d be an adventurer. How foolish we were.
As I neared the memories for a better look, the purple, blue, pink, and black essence of space itself turned into a trail, leading to each memory. They would also form into stairs, in case some were too high. I did this for a bit, revisiting each memory. It was nice to see them one last time.
I was interrupted by a deep voice behind me saying, “Another accident. Truly, a shame.”
I turned around quickly, to see a cloaked figure walking towards me. If I ever saw something as scary as this in my lifetime, I would’ve ran as soon as I saw it. But, since I was already dead, I figured there was no point. Upon closer examination, the jet black cloak worn by the entity looked actually kind of nice. Hell, even I would’ve worn it. Whoever this was, I had to admit, you got good style. When the entity got close enough, it removed the hood. Now, I don’t consider myself a….”scaredy cat”. I can stand my ground if needed, and I’m more than willing to fight back when the time calls for it. But, what I saw terrified me. It was the abyss. It wasn’t the same darkness that I saw earlier. That darkness had a sense of unfulfillment, as if there was still more to be done. But this was truly nothing. It was the epitome of the end. Nothing stared back at me. It was filled with nothing, but at the same time, void of everything. Just the sight of it filled me with dread. What if that’s what’s going to happen to me? Is that my fate? Just pure nothing? My vision was beginning to blur as I began to struggle with breathing, but the entity spoke again.
“My apologies, I forgot to change my form.”
In what seemed like a mere second, the darkness went away, and a human face replaced it. It wore a weary face, covered by coal-black short hair. He had eye bags, and a tired nose that was too exhausted to even smell.
“I believe this is more acceptable, ???”.
“How do you know my name?”
“I am knowledgeable about every being’s life on this planet. I am aware of all that there is to know about you. I am familiar with your every pain, hope, and dream that you owned.”
“Who are you?” I asked, though I already had an idea of who he was.
The entity let out a deep sigh, a sign of annoyance, probably from being asked this question countless times. "I am what shadows you every step of your life. I am the unspeakable horror that haunts your waking moments. I am the collection of dangers that imperil your existence. I am the destiny of every single human. I am the end. I am Death."
“Damn, that’s crazy.” I murmured while looking at another memory.
Death didn’t seem to be offended by that, but then again, maybe he was just too tired to show it.
I then remembered something. “Wait, what did you mean by accident?”
“Take a walk with me. I’ll answer that question on the way, along with any others that you may come up with.” Death turned around and started walking slowly, probably to wait for me.
I joined him, and followed right behind him, as we passed by my life.
“Your death was not planned for. You were supposed to have died at a much later age, at the end of a successful life.”
What the fuck? “How did that even happen? Didn’t you just say you were with me my entire life? Did you not see that big ass truck going right for me? Is it not in your ability to, I don’t know, prevent someone’s death? Since you are literally Death.” I flailed my arms to get my point across, but that might have just made me look like an idiot.
“I apologize on behalf of fate and the gods, and I understand your anger. But, ever since the Supreme Divinity went into his slumber, chaos has started to infect the natural laws of the universe. Deaths have started to become unpredictable, and some have even begun to happen before their planned fates, like yours.”
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“The Supreme Divinity? Is that like….church God? Brahma? Buddha?”
“He is all. He is known by many names, but one thing is held constant. He is the creator. He is the apex.”
“And He’s…sleeping? He couldn’t make coffee to stay awake?”
“It’s not exactly what you would consider to be sleep. The Supreme Divinity decided to go into a state of unconsciousness, but still retain certain aspects to keep the universe afloat. No soul understands why this is, but there’s no point in attempting to figure out why. All we can do is continue our roles.”
“But, doesn’t that mean you’re being forced to work overtime? Like, you’re leading me to the afterlife, right?” Death nodded his head. “Isn’t that annoying? To work more than what you were promised?”
Death merely kept walking, albeit slowly. He didn’t answer for some time, until he said, “When I was created, the Supreme Divinity gave me emotions. It was vital for me to emphasize with the souls that I would lead to the afterlife, and to be welcoming and kind to the confused dead. He gave me sadness, happiness, but also anger. To answer your question, I do feel overworked. I would like to be able to take breaks, but I can’t stop. This is my duty. Even if I don’t enjoy it, I will see to the end of it. This is what I was created for.”
That’s kind of sad, I thought to myself. What’s up with that worker bee mentality? You’re Death, after all. You should at least get some assistants. But, I kept it to myself. For someone like him, there was no point in telling him all that. But, I was also confused. I would have thought that Death would be able to read the minds of the dead. I mean, they are under his jurisdiction. I only thought of this when I realized he told me he was Death. I already had an inkling that he was Death, but I still asked to be sure. If he could read my mind, why didn’t he just tell me something like, “Your guess is correct. I am the shadowy being that” and then he would yap about himself. So, I tested this by cursing obscenely in my mind. No reaction. I then envisioned very inappropriate sexual scenes. He kept on walking. By now, he should have at least asked me to stop. Did he not care about trivial matters like curses and sex? Only one way to find out.
“If I were in your shoes, I would have just told this supreme whatever guy to fuck Himself. No way in hell I would work overtime for His lazy ass.”
Death stopped walking. He turned around and looked at me right in my eyes. “I don’t recommend insulting the Supreme Divinity. Even if he is unresponsive, he still hears everything. And, there’s no need for that kind of language.”
“Oh, sorry. Do you not like cursing?”
“It’s unnecessary.”
I thought so. That confirms Death’s not able to read my mind. Pretty odd, but whatever. Maybe it’ll come in useful.
The two of us continued walking. As we made our way, I began to see other people near us. It seemed like they were all going in the same direction as us. I also noticed that people with the same cloak as Death led them.
“Who are those people over there?”
“That’s another soul that I’m leading to the afterlife.”
“Wait, that’s also you? But-hold on, how does that even work?”
“I am everywhere. It’s only logical that, especially in my domain, I am capable of existing in multiple areas at the same time. As we speak, I have just now successfully reincarnated a soul.”
“Okay, that’s cool, but you said reincarnation?”
“Reincarnation is one of the possible fates of a soul. Others include eternity in paradise, never ending pain in hell, perpetuity in purgatory if you happen to fall in the middle, and simply being erased, if some wish for it.”
“Then, what am I getting?”
“Yours is different. Since you had an accidental death, you’re obliged for paradise, since you also did no evil acts in your lifetime. You also have the opportunity of being reincarnated, since you still have a great deal of karma remaining.”
Paradise? Reincarnation? What do I pick? As I was thinking, I then saw more people. Most of them were regular humans, nothing out of the ordinary, until I saw the unmistakable ears of an elf.
“Uhhhh, Death? Is that an elf?”
“It is. What about it?”
“That’s an elf. A fictional being. Why is it here?”
“My apologies. I should’ve informed you of the different worlds.”
Different worlds?
“Parallel to the world you hail from, there exists infinite other worlds. A great number are akin to yours. A plethora are filled with magical creatures and races that only exist in fairy tales in your world. Countless others are unique, with much more advanced technology, primitive civilizations, and many more. It’s endless.”
Of course I was born into the one world where adventuring is impossible. Not the literal fantasy world that promotes adventuring. No, I was born in a world where you have to work a job you hate just to live. Thanks, god. I hope your pillow’s warm.
Hearing about the different fates, parallel worlds, and the fact that this supposed supreme god was all of my world’s religions combined into one, I wondered if they were all true then.
“Death, do all the gods exist then? Like the Greek pantheon, along with the Norse and all the others?”
"They all exist. Initially, they were singular entities with their original names, but over time, as humanity evolved and developed diverse beliefs, opinions about the universe's gods began to differ. The Supreme Divinity was firm in not allowing direct interference from the gods once humans became sufficiently independent to thrive on their own. Therefore, He chose to fragment all the gods into lesser forms. These lesser forms are shaped by the religions and beliefs of your world. This explains why perceptions of the afterlife vary widely. Those of the Christian faith might see Hell, while followers of Greek mythology might see Tartarus."
“Then, what about the gods of other worlds? Are they also different from my world’s?”
“Each world contains its own distinct gods, whether centered around a principal deity with supporting gods, worship of multiple gods equally, or submission to a single god's authority. It all depends on the faith of the world’s inhabitants.”
“Does the amount of faith in a god amount to how powerful they are then?”
“Correct.”
“Is it possible for a mortal to become a god from faith alone?”
"To achieve that, a significant amount of faith is necessary. Multiple churches or places of worship must be dedicated exclusively to them, and the world's gods must acknowledge and bless these establishments. They also require power comparable to that of a singular deity, which is why such occurrences are rare."
“So, it’s happened before?”
“It’s been accomplished multiple times. There have been such cases present in your world, Heracles and Perseus. The most recent example I can recall is one that took place in the world of Ghodrea. The mightiest adventurer was elevated to the status of a destined hero after defeating a profound evil. Tales and legends extolled his valor, garnering favor from the gods who guarded their world. Shrines were erected in his honor, and daily prayers sought his protection. In recognition of his bravery and the reverence he inspired, the gods presented him with a rare opportunity—to transcend mortal existence and join their divine ranks."
“What about you? Where do you fall in the ranking?”
"As Death, I stand above the gods. Even the likes of gods are powerless against me. Only the Supreme Deity and the Fates hold dominion over me. The Supreme Deity created the universe, and established laws and order. He then created me, to ensure balance and to keep the universe flowing smoothly. The Fates were created shortly after me, to guarantee that the Supreme Divinity had control over everything. The gods were subsequently formed, to help the universe’s new life forms prosper and grow strong enough to be self-sufficient. Of course, the existence of evil was crucial for the potential of humanity to bloom properly, which is where all your stories come from. Your stories of David and Goliath, Heracles and the Hydra, Sigurd and Fafnir, to list a few. They all were significant for the purpose of developing your race. And for their entertainment."
“For whose entertainment?”
Death stopped moving as he tsked in annoyance. He then turned to me and said in a hushed tone. "Erase that from your memory. It will only bring you grief and misery. I urge this not just as Death, but as a fellow slave. No good comes from attempting to defy your Creator."
The worried look on his face was enough to convince me. If this was capable of terrifying Death itself, then I wanted no part in it.