CHAPTER 7: THE UNIVERSE IS AMONG US

The evening glow gleaming through the cool night time air, the stars sends tiny rays of light through the night and into the distance, small groups of Fireflies flicker in the grass as they dance their way through in a rhythmic symphony, the moonlight filters in through the locker room window and shines down on the cobbled, blood stained floor as it reaches a boy laid out on it.

A light glows at the middle of his chest in between his ribs, it shimmers in the steady beat of a heart, contracting and relaxing at a gentle pace. The boy mentioned is of course.. Ethan.

Ethan was left unconscious on the floor stained by his own blood, he was having a strange dream where he was in front of a strange white mansion, it was covered in a dark fog all around it which further illuminates it in an eerily glow.

The strange mansion called on Ethan's subconscious, it was a peculiar feeling that seemed to draw him in.

As he reached the top of the stairs he saw a white and majestic light. The light was faded at its edges and blurry to those who seek to understand it. The wobbly shape forms slowly and the figure becomes clearer over time, the light is actually an Android adorned in white robe so white it looks like it's made of light, the Android has a long white beard and long white hair that reaches his back.

"I've been waiting for you, Ethan" he deadpans.

"Have we met somewhere before?" I asked, confused as to how he knew my name.

"Nope, we have not met before, I know everyone… well, at least those that are in the rankings."

"My name is system and i welcome you to the Universe" he smiles and stretches his hand out in front of you.

You don't say anything, you keep staring at him for a long while. Many questions whirl in your head but you don't even know where to start.

"This is the universe? But it's so… small" You say awkwardly

"Oh, this is the headquarters where guides come to register their chosen pilots, I myself am an almighty so I cannot chose a pilot"

"Wait… pilots? guides? what are those?"

"Pilots are beings with an intraspecific purpose that appear across the universe at a given time, they are rare among the masses and are about 1 to 1 million of species in the universe. Guides however are Godly beings with interspecific purpose, they are very rare and very powerful, they guide their pilots to the Pinnacle of glory"

The man stares at you after his speech, he sighs after a while of looking at your confused 'uhh?' face.

"Pilots are normal beings like humans but with immense talents and purpose while guides are Godly beings like me, who invest in pilots and help them reach their peak, do you get it now?" You nod

"What of the almighty you mentioned?"

"Almighties are guardians of the universe that keep the rules of that universe and it's guides in check, just as there isn't one universe, almighties are not one either. They belong to many universes in this cosmos" System explains.

You give a nod in understanding and he waves his hands calling you over. You both walk into the mansion and your eyes almost fall off in shock from the sight of all the expensive stuff in the hall, you're not even sure you've seen so many expensive things in one place at once.

"But what's the catch?" This time system is the one confused.

"What do the Gods gain from helping people reach their peak?" You mule

"They gain faith"

"Faith?"

System nods "Think of it this way, the fame and glory the pilots get from reaching their peaks will be converted into faith which the guides seek, faith is the power that Godly beings get from their believers, the more believers they obtain through pilots the more faith they get."

"By believers you mean like… fans?" You ponder

"In a general sense, yes. But it has to be a fan who believes in you no matter what you do or how you play"

"What happens if they don't have any believers?" You can't help but ask.

System's voice turns grave although his face still remains stoic "A fate worse than death will befall them, they will plunge into an endless abyss where no one will hear their cries and none will remember their names, there is also the scenario where, the more faith they lose the more ordinary they become which means if they lose enough faith…"

"Even the greatest gods can be stabbed to death in a back alley in china" you chime in wide-eyed and all.

"Not the word I was looking for but still the same nonetheless" (also racist)

You nod as you both reach a small passageway, system touches a door which you can't be sure if painted gold or is actual gold. The door rattles a bit before opening and you both enter inside.

The inside of the door shows a list of names ranking from first all the way to ten millions.

"This is the talent rankings, it shows the number of talent points an individual receives at birth, it can also be unlocked due to certain events." System explains

You try look at it but System hurries you up, "You have an appointment with your Guide, we should hurry you up to avoid having any problems"

"Who is my guide by the way?"

"Hercules, son of Zeus" you both walk the rest of the way quietly.

{Look, I know Heracles is actually the son of Zeus but you can't blame me for wanting to mix 'em up, can you?}

You reach the end of the hall fairly quickly and System opens the door. You look at the fairly plain room with a face filled with surprise not expecting any part of the mansion to be plain.

"You must be my pilot, Ethan Parker, nice to meet ya" You see a screen with a moderately handsome guy with blue hair and blue eyes on it, he waves at you and smirks.

"Yeah, hey…" you return awkwardly

System seems to sense your distress (or maybe it's his habit) as he quickly adds " I don't have much time, let's get this over with quickly and we can return, alright?"

"Sure"

"Yeah"

"Good, now since Ethan is new to this I will help you bear the pain but you must remember not to close your eyes"

"Wait, what…"

"Okay, we are starting now.. Hercules please give Ethan a drop of your blood"

"Sure thing" Hercules yelps

"Hey, why should i…"

"Initiate ritual" System puts your hand in front of this screen and a drop of blood falls on your skin.

"No, wait…." You try to voice out your concerns but your complaints hang in your throat and your face twists from the intense pain that hits you.

Your face squirms into a million different emotions within a single second.

"Try to bear it for 5 more seconds and the ritual will be complete" System assures.

The pain within doesn't quite agree with that, it eats at your flesh making you feel like a million flesh-eating ants are crawling all over you.

5…

Cold sweat stains your brows and rolls down your cheeks burning it way down your throat and through your lungs.

4…

Your blood rolls through your veins and cycles through your body at blinding speed all the while your veins and arteries pop and crackles non stop.

3…

Your bones crack and heal at a repeated pace making your body feel immense pain and your skin sheds and wilts only to be replaced by new skin which continues to shed and wilt indefinitely.

2…

Your heart thunders through your chest and hammers against your already breaking ribs like a thousand daggers stabbing at you repeatedly, its pace seems fast enough to be almost abnormal.

1…

Your skull cracks and brain fizzles , it grows hot, so hot it feels like a fried egg on a hot Sunday afternoon, millions of Sparks twists and turns through webbed lines.

"Arrrrrrrgh…" you let out a blood curdling scream and your vision blurs, your pain lasts till the end unrelentlessly hitting your body again and again, the last thing you see before your vision wanes is System's annoyingly stoic face. (Not much to go by in that case)