I don't know how long I've been stuck in this place.
Minutes? Hours? Years? Couldn't tell you.
Floating in pitch-black nothingness really messes with your sense of time.
You're probably wondering what's going on. And if you're the kind of person who reads certain kinds of novels, you've probably already guessed.
Either that, or I've finally gone crazy. Honestly, being in total darkness for who-knows-how-long will do that to you.
Anyway… I died.
Yeah, I know... cliché.
It was the day I finished my final exams. The last ones I'd ever have to take. I was in such a good mood I was practically skipping down the street, while singing my favourite song, horrendously mind you.
People were staring like I'd just escaped from a mental hospital, but I didn't care. Graduation plans were already filling my head. The more I thought about it the more depressed I became, as I realised I don't have much of a plan to work with
I'm an orphan who was never adopted, I never knew who my parents were and I never bothered searching for them, if they were willing to give me up then I wanted nothing to do with them
When I turned 16 at the orphanage, I started doing odd jobs, and with the little money I was able to save I was able to see myself through school, and it helped that I was very intelligent and was able to secure a few scholarships that helped me alot
Now I'm done with school, I'm not sure what I'm going to do but I don't plan on going back to doing odd jobs like before, maybe I'll start something on my own, anyway that's tomorrow me's problem, for today I'll just be happy 😊
I was about to cross the road when I saw a truck coming. I decided to wait. Safety first, right?
That's when I noticed a girl stroll right into its path.She wasn't wearing headphones. She wasn't blind. She just… walked. Slowly. Like she was trying to get hit.
Now, normally, I'm not the "throw-my-life-away-for-a-random-stranger" type. But the truck was still far enough away that she could have made it across easily if she hurried up.
So I figured, "Why not?" and went to help.
I don't know what she was going through that she was willing to commit suicide and so publicly too, I can't say I haven't had my moments, but I always believe life is sacred and unless someone has proven to be an animal, only then should they be put down like the rabid creature they are
Anyway that enough about what I think let's hurry up while the truck is still far away
Oh, how wrong I was.
The second I reached her, I heard a loud horn. I turned, and the truck which had been meters away, was now right there.
No time to think. No life-flashing-before-my-eyes moment. Just me shoving her out of the way before everything went black.
And now… here I am.
"So yeah, that's how I died and ended up in this… purgatory? Hell? Limbo? Whatever this is."
"At least it was quick and painless. Thank God for small mercies, right?" I muttered as I floated aimlessly.
"WHO ARE YOU SPEAKING TO?"
The voice shook the void around me. I swear I saw space itself fold.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
What? You expected some cool, composed comeback? Try staying cool when all reality starts tearing apart just because someone said hi.
When I stopped manly screaming, eventually, I realized the darkness was gone.
I was… standing on clouds? At least, they looked like clouds. My feet felt solid ground, but colors swirled and danced all around me. Not just pretty colors, living colors.
"WELCOME, MORTAL SOUL, TO MY REALM."
Right. The voice. Not alone here.
I turned to reply… and froze.
It was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen.
It didn't even have a shape at first, just shifting colors, each one making me feel something different. Some triggered memories I thought I'd lost in the void. Others… I couldn't even name.
Then, slowly, the colors drew inwards, forming the shape of a woman.
She was… radiant, ethereal. Her hair flowed like silk, but its colors changed every second, violet, rose gold, aqua, emerald, silver, each new colour shining like starlight. Her gown mirrored her hair, its fabric alive with light and motion. The air around her glittered faintly, like it wanted to cling to her.
"Greetings, mortal. I am @*#**#@&… but you may call me Hue."
Her voice was soft yet commanding, each word carrying an elegance that made me feel like I should bow or something.
With a wave of her hand, chairs and a table formed from the swirling colors. Before I could process it, I was sitting in one, and she in the other, poised and graceful.
"I suspect you have some idea of your circumstances," she continued, "but I will speak them plainly. You have died. Due to… certain factors, you are to be granted the opportunity for reincarnation into a world not yet chosen. To prepare you, you shall be given two wishes and two roulette rolls, one to decide who you are reborn as and another to decide what world you're reborn into. However..." her eyes glimmered "these wishes must be made before the rolls are decided."
"Whoa, whoa, hold up, lady. What the heck is going on?" He held up his hands as he leaned back a bit. "I mean, yeah, I get the whole ' wishes and reincarnation' thing, it sounds cool on paper, not gonna lie, but I'd really like to know why I'm here before I start picking out powers like it's a game show."
She tilted her head slightly, the colors of her form shifting with the motion.
"What do you mean, mortal?"
"I mean, to most people, what you just offered would be a dream come true. But I've learned not to take things at face value, how would I know you're not some demon planning to steal my soul with promise of wishes, and mean you don't look the part but it doesn't hurt to be careful"
He looked down at his hands, then back at her.
"I grew up with nothing. Lost my parents young. Crawled my way through school, worked myself raw just to get by. And if there's one thing life taught me, it's this, if something comes too easy, you will pay for it eventually. Maybe not upfront, but in ways you never expect, some might say this didn't come easy cause I died, but dying is easy, anyone can die, it's living with the consequences of a terrible choice that is difficult" he said as he looked as if he was remembering a distant memory
A flicker of interest shimmered through her eyes like ripples on a calm lake.
"Curious… You are cautious for one so young. Very well. But by your logic how will you know that I speak the truth? What proof could satisfy such doubt? And what then if I decide that you're no longer worthy for this opportunity"
I shrugged. "I won't know for sure. But even a little peace of mind is better than walking into the unknown blind, besides if you decide I'm no longer worthy then I'll accept jusy send me to my afterlife"
I'd rather miss a thousand opportunities than sign my soul into some shady contract.So I'm using my first wish now."
Her posture shifted slightly, regal and composed.
"Very well. And what is the nature of this wish?"
"I wish that for as long as I'm in your presence, every question I ask you is answered truthfully."
A hum filled the air, like a chorus of windchimes stirred by thought.
"A clever wish, mortal... One rarely spoken aloud. So be it. You have your truth. Now will you speak your questions… or proceed with your remaining wishes?"