"YOU MORTAL WHELP!"
The goddess's face twisted in fury. Her form flickered, the office suit dissolving into swirling galaxies of dark matter and starlight. Her silver eyes became twin supernovas, pinning me in place.
"You ungrateful insect! You steal the fate of my chosen one, twist her destiny into a cudgel for your pathetic revenge, and you DARE to insult me?"
She raised her foot, not to kick the man this time, but to crush him. A wave of pressure, heavier than a mountain, descended upon his non-corporeal form.
"I will unmake you," she hissed, her voice now a cacophony of collapsing stars. "I will scatter your essence across the void until not even a memory of your existence remains!"
"AHHHH!!!"
Alex screamed as his soul started to feel like it was tearing apart.
The goddess kept slamming her bare foot into his face, not content with just crushing him.
She said she would scatter his essence, but it seemed she preferred to humiliate him before that.
She kept grinding her foot into his face, twisting it as if she were putting out a cigarette.
"Pathetic," she said as she lifted her foot, only to slam it back down again.
But this time she didn't aim for the face.
"Please, stop," Alex cried out as he watched her foot come down towards his groin.
Crack!
Alex's scream became silent as the pain was too much for him to even make a sound. He could even swear that he heard his balls shatter.
"Serves you right," the goddess said with a smug look on her face. She seemed to be enjoying this a bit too much.
The goddess continued her torture for what felt like an eternity, her laughter echoing through the endless office as Alex writhed in agony.
But just as she was about to deliver another, potentially soul-shattering kick, she paused, feeling a presence; a gaze descended upon the room.
"Tsk!" she clicked her tongue in annoyance, then her form solidified back into the office lady's suit, her rage banked but still simmering beneath the surface.
"It seems your luck truly is something else," she said, her voice cold and clipped. "According to the rules, I can't end your miserable existence or keep you here for... my entertainment."
She looked at Alex with disgust.
"Fine," she snapped her fingers. "I can only reincarnate you."
She then started typing on a keyboard that appeared in thin air.
Click.
Click.
Click-click-click.
That sound was more terrifying to Alex than anything he had ever heard.
Alex lay sprawled on the floor, curled into a fetal position, cupping what remained of his ethereal manhood. Every breath hurt. Every twitch sent fresh phantom pain shooting through his soul. He wanted to scream insults again, but his throat felt like it had been sandblasted by a dying star.
Each click sealed his fate.
"Let's see..." the goddess muttered, her silver eyes scanning invisible data only she could see. "Soul ID: Alex Mercer. Crime: Fate theft, destiny vandalism, general mortal arrogance. Previous life bonus points: ...pathetically average."
She smirked.
"Oh, this is going to be fun."
"Wait... wait!" Alex croaked, forcing himself up on shaky arms. "You said you can't kill me! This is against the rules! Geneva Conventions for souls or something!"
"Quiet, worm." She didn't even look at him. "The rules say I must reincarnate you. They don't say where, or as what. And they certainly don't say I can't add a few... modifiers. Consider it community service for the universe you've inconvenienced."
Her typing grew faster. The air around the keyboard shimmered, projecting faint holographic windows filled with scrolling text in languages that hurt to look at directly.
"Option one: Reborn as a blind, legless beggar in a plague-ridden medieval slum. Too cliché."
Delete.
"Option two: A cockroach. Eternal. In a billionaire's kitchen." She actually seemed to consider it for a second before shaking her head. "Too merciful."
Delete.
Alex's stomach dropped. Or whatever passed for a stomach in this place.
"Found it." Her smile was sharp enough to cut glass. "World #4782-B, High-magic fantasy setting, and with one hell of a nice little twist for someone like you who likes to have one-night stands with women."
"Huh?" Alex looked confused for a moment.
Sure, after his ex-wife, he never trusted women again, but that doesn't mean he became a monk. No, he had a few one-night stands, but they were all meaningless. He never loved any of them; he just needed to feel something, anything, to fill the void.
But what does that have to do with reincarnation?
"Don't worry, I'm not going to spoil the fun," she said with a mocking smile.
She then brought up a new window, this one filled with what looked like abilities, skills, and traits.
"Alright, let's see what we have here," she said as she started to scroll through the list.
However, nothing seemed to catch her eye.
"Boring, boring, boring," she kept saying as she scrolled.
"Come on, there must be something here that I can use to make your life a living hell," she said in annoyance.
"Aha!" She suddenly stopped scrolling. "I forgot about it."
She suddenly reached into her bosom and pulled out a small USB stick.
Alex was shocked to see a USB stick in this place, but before he could say anything, the goddess plugged it into the keyboard.
"I saved this for a special occasion, and I guess you are special enough," she said with a sadistic smile.
"What is that?" Alex asked, his voice filled with dread.
The window on the holographic display changed. It now showed a completely new list.
One that doesn't involve any kind of magic or fighting skills.
But one that involved curses.
"Curses?" Alex said in disbelief. "Are you serious?"
"Oh, I'm very serious," the goddess said as she started to scroll through the list of curses.
"Let's see... Curse of Eternal Itchiness. No, too simple," she said as she kept scrolling.
"Curse of Bad Hair Day. Hahaha... that's a good one, but not good enough."
"Curse of the Clumsy Oaf. That's a classic, but I want something more... personal."
She then stopped at three specific curses, and before Alex could catch a glimpse of their names, she added them to her list.
"Perfect," she said with a satisfied smile.
She then closed the curse window and went back to the main reincarnation window.
"Now for the world settings..."
She spent a good amount of time typing and choosing from the menus, her expression a mixture of concentration and pure malice.
Alex could only watch as his fate was being sealed, a cold dread settling in his non-existent gut.
He had spent a lifetime crafting a perfect revenge, a slow, agonizing unraveling of his enemies' lives. And now, he was on the receiving end of a cosmic power with a temper and an eternity to hold a grudge.
Yes, he never considered himself a good man, not after what he did to his ex-wife and her lover, but he wasn't an evil person either, or at least he tried not to be. He took care of his daughter; he built a company that did good things in the world.
Aside from his revenge and those one-night stands, he lived a decent life.
But all of that didn't seem to matter to the goddess.
No one can hold a grudge like a woman scorned, and a goddess scorned is something else entirely.
"And... done." The moment she said that, a big red button appeared on the screen with the word 'Reincarnate' on it.
She looked at Alex one last time.
"Have fun in your new short life," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I'm looking forward to seeing you in hell."
She then pressed the button with a bit more force than necessary.
Whooosh!
"WHAT!" Alex shouted as he felt a force pulling him, dragging him towards the screen.
The screen now showed a swirling vortex of colors and light.
"Enjoy the ride," the goddess's voice echoed from behind him, now distant and distorted. "Don't forget to write. Or, you know, don't."
And with that, he was plunged into the vortex.
The sensation was indescribable. It was like being torn apart and put back together at the same time, every atom of his being stretched, twisted, and compressed.
Memories flashed before his eyes. His father's smile, his mother's tired hands, the betrayal in Sarah's eyes, the trust in Emily's.
Then darkness.
And then... feeling.
No, a touch.
Someone gripped his hand and pulled him out.
It took a few minutes for Alex to open his eyes.
When he did, the world was a blur.
The first thing he noticed was the sky.
It wasn't the normal blue sky he was used to, but a beautiful, cosmic space sky, filled with swirling nebulas in shades of purple, pink, and gold.
It was breathtaking.
But he didn't have much time to appreciate it.
His eyes landed on the only structure in this strange place. It was a stone platform with an altar. On the altar was a woman in chains, a woman who was staring at him with a wide smile on her face.
"Welcome, my dear," she said. Her voice was smooth like honey, but there was something off about it. "It took me a great deal to bring you here."
I hope you're enjoying the beginning on this new novel.
Please leave a comment and share your thoughts.