The Domain Of Celestials

After what felt like a trip through an eternity, his eyes finally shot open with a slam into darkness— undefined.

"Where am I?"

The only thing possible was his sense of feeling and he tried making up where he was, but the entire orbit he could feel seemed endless as if he were a speck of sway in the wind.

He wasn't sure if he was standing or floating, but one thing was sure; he was still existing.

The sudden ripple of a substance gave him a subtle hint of where he might have suddenly been sucked into.

"What is this place?"

Suddenly, in the far distance, Vincent could see a little light emanate from nothing. 

He squinted his eyes to get a good look, but the absurdity of the distance between him and the light was appalling.

The light drew closer and closer with each blink of his eyes, falling into two fragments which he finally recognized.

Footprints.

As if that was a cue, the darkness surrounding the orbit began to shift as the footprints approached, revealing what was undoubtedly the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.

Her extremely long hair which was in the form of liquid light was elegantly draped over her body like a shimmering gown, gracefully covering her bare form.

Her skin was smooth and well toned with silky delight and her warm face spoke many charms unheard.

Vincent was at a loss for words as she marched towards him, but the closer she drew near, the sharper the glint of his instinct warned him to come back to his senses.

With a slight stutter, he spoke.

"W-who are you?"

She refused to respond, her eyes still closed which made his heart pound faster and eventually, five steps away from him, she stopped.

Her eyelids lifted up, unveiling her beautiful starry eyes like a moth growing its ethereal wings to freedom and death.

The moment she opened her eyes, the whole orbit was gushed with bright lights, revealing a gigantic palace-like construct whose beauty and vastness was immeasurable.

Filled with gold and unmatched allure, the once dark abyss was now a fragment of what heaven might be.

Thirteen statues of gods and goddesses stood like towering constructs in the heart of the domain.

It was as if they had an ongoing meeting before they all turned into gigantic pillars of porcelain slabs.

On a normal day, Vincent would have given it some time to make out the entire abyss and its hosts, but the paranormal events surrounding his sudden existence in that strange palace-like place after being sucked into his computer gave him no chance to pull that through into place.

His heart tightened against his chest as he watched the goddess who was calm and serene— a sharp contrast to his disturbed spirit.

The aura and charm she exuded made him cry out a solid confession in his thoughts.

'I would be mortified if my intrusive thoughts tried to get a portion of her attention back in my world.'

"Welcome to the domain of celestials." She said,

Her voice was very sweet to the ear and could calm a tide that's on a raging attempt to wipe out humanity.

Vincent pulled himself together, gathering enough composure to sell him off as not fazed by the information his eyes and ears had just received.

"Domain of celestials? Is this heaven?"

"Not quite, Vincent. This is the domain of gods and goddesses, but for a while now, only I exist while my other counterparts are locked in the depths of illusion."

"You mean you're a goddess?" He knew that was probably the dumbest question that had come out of his mouth in a while, but his natural instincts would kill for confirmation.

"Yes, I am."

"And you know my name?"

"You should be more concerned about why you are here."

Vincent took this in for a moment and his mind couldn't help but raise an alarm about events similar to this moment just like in the previous books he had read.

But something was not quite right. The look in his eyes straightened into a sharp stare, threatening to put the goddess into a weave of uneasiness.

"I am sure I'm not dead, yet, so how am I suddenly in a realm meant for celestials after getting whirled into my computer? By chance, am I in a simulation?"

A warm smile glistened on the goddess' lips as she responded.

"Yes, you are right. You are not dead, yet. Your summoning into this realm is the beginning of your punishment of which offense will be made known to you after you have successfully brought balance into this world."

"Punishment? I am a man of no sin. What absurd blasphemy is this?"

"This is a rather bittersweet punishment and I hold the power to withhold certain information from you for a while. Your purpose is to restore order to this world which means you have to awaken all the sleeping gods and goddesses." She explained.

Vincent was indeed confused. He couldn't makeshift of what information was being passed on to him. This only happens in fantasy, did I just get sucked into a fantasy world?

Seven cards intricately lined with gold suddenly appeared out of nothing and began floating in front of him.

"One of these cards will serve as a huge determinant for your survival from here henceforth, please make a pick as time is coming into existence." The goddess said with the most unhinged expression he has ever seen, her smile turning away into a distance.

Nothing made sense to him at all. The confusion gnawed on him continuously and before he could speak again, two cards suddenly turned to pixie dust, drawing an alarming ding from the time.

"Wait! I need a detailed explanation as to why all these are happening before I make a choice." He announced impatiently.

"The existence of time is shortening your chances of survival. Make a choice, Vincent." 

Another card vanished and with the look of things, he figured out he was probably at a loss, putting him in a state of panic.

"Seven, my lucky number." He mumbled, stretching out to grab the card, but it vanished before he could touch it.

"Seriously?!"

He reached out to another, snatching the last card hurriedly while the others dissolved into nothing as he made his choice.

Vincent flipped the card to read after regaining his balance.

"Duke Alaric Thorian Hawthorne?" He read with a confused look, but somehow, the name stood out like a thorn.

He was indeed familiar with the name and the title, but…

"When you open your eyes, you will be born as one of the sons of Duke Alaric Thorian Hawthorne." 

"Wait a minute! Is that not a name for a character in the book— BATTLES OF HEAVEN?"

The goddess smiled, "Affirmative. You will undergo a full transmigration into a new world."

Now it made sense. The bittersweet punishment and all— a blessing in disguise, a break from the world outside his computer and finally, a fresh air of experience in the world which was his yardstick of happiness.

And to top it all,...

'I will be reborn as one of the sons of Duke Alaric Thorian Hawthorne; one of the most powerful characters in the book with infinite blessing on all his offspring!'

"Vincent," The goddess broke through his noisy thoughts. "After your arrival and awakening in that world, I will come find you and when that time comes, you should be prepared for what is coming."

"Eh, but…"

"My name is goddess Elysia. I wish you a safe trip out of your mother."

"Wait, what?!"

"Do not forget me, realm-weaver." She said before drifting into nothing just like she had arrived.