Aeron was walking back to his apartment after grabbing a quick snack.  It was nearly 3 in the morning, and he had finals in less than 5 hours.  He’d taken a break from cramming to clear his mind and let all the newly learned information be absorbed and digested.

Majoring in business, Aeron was due to graduate at the end of the year.  His life was incredibly average.  Aeron’s dad was a nine-to-fiver, while his mom was a waitress.  He had a group of friends he hung out with, played a sport, and held his own throughout school.

In fact, just the week before, Aeron had proposed to his high school sweetheart.

All in all, a nice, quiet life.  Aeron didn’t mind that.  He didn’t really have any ambitions or crazy dreams to chase after.  He just… existed.  And that was that.

As he strolled through the dark downtown area of the city, Aeron heard some crashing coming from a nearby alley.  Walking past and glancing in, he halted in surprise.

A group of men surrounded a figure, blood on the ground around it.  One held a crimson red knife, and the rest were whispering to each other frantically.  Feeling the bile rise in his throat, Aeron quickly turned around and started hurrying away from the alley.

Before he had taken more than two steps, a hand on his shoulder stopped him, and a serrated blade positioned itself on Aeron’s neck.

“No you don’t.”  A deep, soft voice whispered into his ear.  “Come here.”  The hand pushed Aeron back inside the alleyway, towards the group of men.

“Look at what I found.”  The voice said, a little louder.

The other men looked up, noticing the two.

“A snoop?”  An older man asked, glancing at Aeron.  “Get rid of him.”

“No!  Don’t-”  But before he could finish, Aeron was punched in the stomach.  He doubled over, gasping.

“I’m waiting.”  The older man spoke again.

The first man sighed, then pushed Aeron into a wall.  As he felt the breath being forced out of him, a knife slid into Aeron’s stomach.

Looking down, he felt his vision darken.  Aeron collapsed to the ground, all strength gone from him.  Blood started pooling around his dying body.

Why?  Why had this happened to him?  He’d wanted a nice, relaxing life.  To die old and happy.  What had he done to deserve this?

The last thing Aeron felt was anger.

----------------------------------------

Aeron shot up, gasping for air.  He looked around, confused.  Hadn’t he just died?  Where was he?  Was this an afterlife?

Aeron looked around.  He was in a room.  It seemed to be complete, pure, blinding white.  A door sat opposite to him, and nothing else was visible.

Slowly getting up, Aeron touched his stomach.  Nothing.  No bleeding, soreness, or anything out of the ordinary.  Still confused, he started walking to the door.  Shaking the handle, Aeron discovered it was locked.

It was then that a loud, monotone voice decided to speak.

Welcome, candidate.

Aeron recoiled, surprised at the sudden intrusion.  “What- what are you?”

I am the artificial intelligence designed to introduce you to what awaits.

“Wait.  Am I- is this heaven?” Aeron stammered out.

No.  Your physical body has not died yet.

“Okay, so where am I?  Why am I here?”  Aeron followed up, anxious.

This is an alternate reality in a newly made dimension.  You are here because my creator has given you the chance to become a beta tester.

“A beta tester for what?”  Aeron asked, starting to become even more confused.

In a year’s time, your planet will undergo a transformation.  I cannot tell you why, but several of your race are given the chance to test out the changes before they are made to the rest of the planet.

Frowning, Aeron responded. “What kind of changes?  What will they be like?”

The perception differs from race to race.  Simply, it is assigning numerical quantities to everyday life, breaking the laws of physics, and transplanting new species onto your planet.

Aeron paused, trying to wrap his head around the information.  Maybe this was just a dream.  Maybe he had passed out from exhaustion; after all, he had been up for more than 48 hours.

“But why are you doing it?”

I cannot answer that.  In addition, we are out of initial questioning time.  I am now instructed to teach you the basics of survival.  The lock on the door clicked.  Walk out of this room.  The voice continued.

Feeling no choice but to listen, Aeron opened the unlocked door and walked through.

The second room was almost identical to the first, although there were a couple differences.  While it had the same white color to it, this room was much larger.  It had to be at least 100 feet in width and length.  On the left wall, a huge assortment of weapons were laid out.  From different types of bows to katanas, it looked like everything possible was included.

“Why are there weapons here?”  Aeron asked, pointing towards the wall.

That will be explained in due time.  For now, a variety of notifications will be made visible for you to read.

As the voice stopped speaking, a transparent, multicolored screen popped up in front of Aeron.

[Congratulations!  You have been chosen as a beta tester for your new world!  For a year’s time, you will live inside this alternate reality.  Your goal is simple: clear as many ‘floors’ inside this reality before time runs out.  Good luck!]

As soon as Aeron finished reading, a second screen popped up.

[Due to special circumstances, you have been chosen as your world’s Champion of the God of Death.  Personalized skills will be made available to you after the completion of each floor!]

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Trying to digest the information, Aeron tried asking another question.  “I’m the Champion of Death?  Why?”

You are the Champion of the God of Death.  The voice corrected.  Because you were the most closely associated with death at the time of your retrieval, you have been selected to play this role.  It is the same with the other candidates.  Those the most closely in tune with nature, fire, and other such things play those roles.

Aeron nodded, feeling completely overwhelmed.  It was a lot to take in.  “And these weapons are meant to help with clearing floors?  How?”

On each floor, there will be enemies of varying species you must fight against.  These opponents will become progressively tougher per level.  You are allowed to choose one weapon and starting skill in this room before starting.

Aeron walked to the wall of weapons and eyed the deadly blades.  He’d have to fight?  Kill living beings?  The thought of it was almost enough to make him puke.

Aeron sank to the floor, back against a wall, and cried.  He just wanted to live a normal life!  First he gets stabbed, now this?  Somehow he knew that this wasn’t some kind of dream or an afterlife.  It was real.  The thought made him cry even harder.

“Can’t I just go back?  You saved me, you can put me back on Earth!  I don’t want to do this.  Please.”  He begged the voice.

I am sorry Aeron, but I cannot do that.  If you survive until the end of the year, progressing through floors, then you will be returned to your world.  But other than that, there is only the release of death.  Make your choice.

Aeron, feeling a tiny bit of hope, stopped crying and thought for a minute.  If he put his hardest into it, whatever this sick thing was, then maybe he’d be able to go back to Earth.

“So… I’ll be able to go back?”

Yes, if you survive and clear the requirements in order to do so.

Taking a deep breath, Aeron said, “Fine.  I’ll do what you want.”  He got up and looked at the weapons.  “So… do I choose one of them?”

Yes.  You have approximately 5 minutes to choose a weapon and skill.

Nodding, Aeron walked beside the assortment of blades and other deadly tools.  He had zero knowledge of anything combat related, so he supposed it didn’t matter what he chose.

Stopping beside a pair of daggers, Aeron paused.  If he was supposed to be the ‘Champion of Death’, then he should choose a fitting weapon, shouldn’t he?

He picked a couple of daggers off the wall, giving them a few test swings.

“Do these come as a set?”

Yes.  Is this the weapon you choose?

“Sure,”  Aeron responded.  “Why not?”

Very well.

A screen popped up, signifying Aeron’s choice.

[Skill ‘Dagger Mastery’ (Level 1) Gained!]

Congratulations.  The voice said.  The next step is to choose a specialized skill.

[You can choose one of three skills: Dark Armor; Empowered Strike; Blinding Touch.]

Aeron was surprised after seeing the screen.  It looked a little like a role-playing game.  Level up a skill, get stronger…

“Do I also gain levels from fighting?”  Aeron asked the voice.

Yes.

Nodding, Aeron went back to the skill selection.  The first two options were pretty self-explanatory, Aeron thought.  Dark armor was obviously a defense based skill, while empowered strike was offensive.

“What does blinding touch do?”  Aeron tried asking the voice.

Blinding touch is a skill which blinds the enemy for a specified amount of time.  It requires you or an extension of your body to be in contact with the target.  If any hostile actions are taken against the enemy, the blindness is immediately canceled.

Aeron frowned.  While blinding touch would definitely be useful, the other two skills also seemed like important first skills.  “And I can only choose one?”

For now, yes.  However, after each floor you clear, the skill you have chosen previously is removed and a new one is cycled in.  This gives you the chance to pick a skill that you might have wanted before.

Aeron nodded.  “So if I pick, for example, empowered strike and clear a floor, I can choose blinding touch or dark armor next time?”

Yes.

“Okay,”  Aeron responded.

He sat down against the wall, thinking about which skill to get.  Aeron quickly eliminated blinding touch, since it’d require him to be in contact with the enemy.  He had no experience, so he doubted that he’d be able to be to do that reliably at the start.

Empowered strike, however, seemed like a good choice for a first skill.  It would provide good offensive aid and was a good base to build off of.

“I guess I’ll choose empowered strike,”  Aeron said aloud.

[Skill ‘Empowered Strike’(Level 1) Gained!]

Good.  Now you are allowed to train in the next room for one month.  During this time, your chosen god will visit you.  After that, I will take you to the first floor of the tower.

“The God of Death?”  Aeron asked, immediately becoming nervous.

Yes, you are one of his champions.

Breathing deeply, Aeron attempted to steady his nerves.  He had gone through so much during the past few hours.

Looking around, Aeron saw the door to the next room.  He walked over to it, daggers in hand.

Again, the next room was completely white.  It looked to be about the same size as the one he was in previously, with plenty of room to test out his skills.

“So.”  He said to himself.  “I guess I should practice my-”  Before Aeron could finish his sentence, he immediately felt an immense pressure.  Like the force of gravity had multiplied.  It pushed him down onto his knees, then forced him to collapse, face first, onto the floor.

Aeron was terrified.  He couldn’t move at all, his entire body completely immobilized.

But suddenly, the pressure lifted.  Aeron was able to push himself up onto his knees, panting from the exertion.  Anxious, he looked around for the cause.

“I apologize for the inconvenience.”  As Aeron’s eyes met the source of the sound, he was overcome by a huge flurry of emotions.  Fear, terror, sadness, and oddly, peace.  The speaker was, as he now realized, the God of Death.

It had no visible body parts.  A long, black cloak obscured its entire being, and it carried a huge scythe.  Almost exactly like the stories and myths had portrayed it.

The God’s most noticeable feature, however, was its voice.  Soft yet incredibly deep, it left feelings of peace and contentedness in Aeron.

“I had forgotten to shield myself.”  The God continued.  “You must be my new champion.”

Aeron swallowed, nodding.  It was all he could do lest he faints on the spot.

The God paused before continuing.  “I have one month to train you.  It seems you have no prior combat experience.”

Aeron nodded again, still too much in terror to say anything.  He wondered if the being he was kneeling in front of was really a god.  If so, how had the species in charge of the AI voice discovered them?  Were they gods as well?

“We will start right away.”  The God said, interrupting Aeron’s thoughts.  “Stand up.”

With no choice but to do so, Aeron obeyed, his legs shaking.

“The first part of your training consists of tempering the mind and body.  Prepare yourself.”  The God continued.

It raised its arm, a skeletal hand coming out from under the God’s robe.  Pointing towards Aeron, it snapped its bony fingers.

Immediately, Aeron fell to the ground in agony.  He tried yelling out, tried saying something, but he was in far too much pain to speak.  It somehow felt as if he was being burned alive, frozen, stabbed and more all at the same time.

“Your consciousness is not needed for this activity.  For now, just endure the discomfort.”  The God said, then disappeared into thin air.

…

What seemed like hours passed.  Aeron was still writhing on the floor, gasping in excruciating pain.  His vision had gone dark a while ago, though he still had to endure the hellish torture.

…

Aeron’s perception of time had left him.  The only solace he had was the very, very gradual decline of pain.  He’d only started noticing the change after discovering that he could think again without his mind being entirely clouded.

…

“It seems you are able to think clearly now.”  Aeron recognized the voice, though he still wasn’t able to respond.

Suddenly, the pain disappeared.  Aeron passed out.