Memories of Lost souls

(Is this voice too distracting?) he asked, his voice still echoing.

"Yes, it is."

(Alright.) He poured a cup of coffee for both of us. "Is this voice good?"

"How did you do that?"

"Do what? Changing my voice isn't that hard. Now, ask any question that you may have?"

"Okay." I took a cup and organized my questions. "First, what is this place?"

"You can call it part of your subconscious, so it is part of your brain."

"And who are you?"

"I am you." he adjusted his glasses and looked at me. his eyes gleamed a dark gold shade. "to be more precise, I was the soul that now channels through your body."

"So, if it is in my body, why are you still here?"

"There was a little error in the recycling process. My ego survived through the process and I am stuck here. and don't ask if they could have removed me, it would have killed you."

"So you are like the previous owner of my soul and are now trapped here?"

"Not exactly trapped, perse. I am free to go and visit the record rooms. I can also say that I exist because you do."

"So, how does this 'reincarnation' thing work? like, is there a procedure for it?"

"One soul is created and sent to an organism. and after they die, each soul is recycled for another creature. the limit for this reuse is found to be seven."

"Why seven?"

"Are you really asking that?" he sighed, "do you know about the seven deadly sins? because of that."

"You will need to elaborate."

"I got this information from reading the case files, so it may not be accurate. When one soul is made, it experiences a life as one of many different creatures. Each life experiences one of those sins more than others. after each sin is lived through, the soul is worn out and is placed into a lesser creature before it crumbles away."

"Oh, wow." I put the empty cup down, "so, which sin are we supposed to be experiencing?"

"I have no idea. they don't let us read our own files. I have only read the files of exhausted souls. but I suspect that I am either Greed or Envy."

"Oh." I had already run out of questions.

"Wanna walk?" He filled in the silence and our view changed. The chairs and tables disappeared and I fell down. When I looked up, my eyes were met with an open grass field. The view combined with the red sunset was really enchanting.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" he asked, looking at the set setting behind the trees at a distance.

"It is… kind of calming."

"I died here." he said nonchalantly. "this is the last thing I saw before I closed my eyes for the last time."

I looked behind me. It was a total disaster. a train was laying there, upside down and totally ruined. Through the broken window, I spotted a teenager hanging from his seat and looking at the distant sun.

"Must have been hard for you." I spoke after the boy had closed his eyes. He looked younger than me. "how did it feel?"

"Lonely." He took a deep breath and turned to me. "but you were there. your life gave me good memories and made me feel better. and after getting access to the record room and library, I got busy enough not to care."

"Are you satisfied like this?"

"Honestly, no. But I get to do whatever I like. and your life that I get to watch is better than mine."

"...how so?"

"My world lacked the ability to manipulate mana. We mostly relied on machines for our entertainment. I spent all of my life living the life of a side character and wasted it. and unlike you, I am dead." he said and our view changed back. We were back inside the room with the reading desk and a pile of books on it.

"What are those books?" I asked as we sat down.

"They are the stories of different egos, memories of a soul. all once lived a life, and went through a cycle of life. you can say that they are tales of lives of souls that no longer exist in the cosmos."

"Are they good stories?"

"Yes. Most are plain and boring, but all are good stories."

"What kind of stories are they? how many kinds of life does one soul experience?"

"The first seven are usually creatures that are capable of thinking at larger scales. ones that can create a society and think for things other than just plain survival, creatures other than themselves. Most creatures that fit the criteria are humanoid creatures with large brains. the last life is lived as a simpler creature, like small plants or microorganisms."

"Oh, is that why we both are humans?"

"Maybe. I know a few that are bound to dragons or lycanthropes." He remained silent for a few moments before asking, "So Ray, what kind of weapon do you prefer?"

"I don't really have a preference, but I would like to avoid blades. I can't use blades very well, unlike my mother."

After he heard my answer, he smiled. I felt a sudden chill as his eyes changed colors. They now gleamed obsidian black. he leaned his chair backward and pulled out a thin book out of the darkness. After flipping through a few pages, he put it on the desk. The next time he looked at me, his eyes were back to normal.

"What happened to my body?" I asked, unable to bear the silence that he built up.

"you got hit, pretty sure you know that. then you broke your neck after you fell." he kept tapping his finger on the book that he had pulled out as he spoke. "Then I took over your body for a day and a half."

"What? How? What did you do to me?" I panicked. the entire space around me seemed to crack.

(Nothing. you are safe. you'll know when you wake up.) he leaned his chair a little far too back and began falling. as he fell, he threw the book at me. (I hope we never meet again. show me a good life.) The book hit my face before I was able to react, and a crack appeared in my vision.

The next thing I knew, I was in an unfamiliar room. it felt like I was thrashed around a lot, my entire body felt stiff.

"Where am I?" Almost immediately after I said that, a wave of pain suddenly came all over my body. my head hurt for a solid ten seconds before it came to a sudden halt. all of the memories from the last two days came back to me. {That damn guy, he made a lot of progress in such a short time.}

"Looks like my leg is healed, at least." I removed all the bandages I had on my body. It felt good to clean it all up. Rose was sleeping on a bed next to mine. Deciding not to wake her up, I silently left the room to visit the infirmary.

"Everything looks good to go. I don't think you will have scars after this. make sure to eat something, things will get hard in a few hours." he got relaxed and entered his 'dad' mode now, "why did you have to choose the least effective weapon? there were a lot of better options."

"Which one did you pick when it was your time?" I asked as I straightened my clothes.

"I used pistols, very effective."

{Shouldn't have asked you.} "Which one did mom use?"

"She used blades. Both short and long ones, and some ranged blades as well" he looked at the clock, "now, go and get changed, take a shower if you want. there will be an announcement soon."

***

"Morning Ray. you look good, is your leg healed?" Robert asked as we both bumped into each other. Both of us headed to the restrooms.

"Yes, I am healed up. but it wore me out, so I am trying to fill up."

"Good. others seemed to be ready as well. you should finish that sandwich before they announce the next task." he advised and went to check up on other kids in the infirmary. There were a few more teachers there talking to their students. only a few kids seemed to be in the room at the moment.

"Wassup ray." Tom greeted me as he was busy tying up his shoes. "It is pretty late to get breakfast. How's your injury?"

"It is gone. Where is Rose?… and Sarah is also not here."

"They went to get some food quite a while ago. they'll be back in a few minutes." he got up and did a little stretching. "What do you think our next task will be?"

Just as I was about to answer that, the emergency alarms started making loud noises. I looked around the room, and everyone seemed to be on alert. Robert took one glance at each alarm in the room and dashed out, almost colliding with Sarah at the door.

"What is going on?" rose asked, panting. She and Sarah probably rushed here after alarms started making sounds.

"I don't know, but…" I had a very bad feeling. The test last time left many injured, and dad hinted at the next task as well. "I think we should get ready to see some action." I put the last of the remaining sandwich in my mouth.