The End Of One

In the office's muted ambiance, computers hummed softly, casting a pale glow. Faces, shrouded in gloom, lifted with surprise and curiosity when they heard. Emmanuel bellowed, "How many mistakes are you going to make?" directed at a young adult with black hair, donned in a white t-shirt and black pants.

Zenith replied defensively, "It wasn't my fault."

"I don't care about the explanation; just fix it," Emmanuel cut him off.

"Okay, I am sorry," Zenith conceded.

"I don't care about apologies; just do it right," Emmanuel stated before abruptly leaving.

"What a dumbass, not even hearing me out and just yelling at me," Zenith whispered to himself.

A girl with blonde hair and blue eyes wearing a blue dress walked over and said, "Hey babe, he was so rude to you; I feel bad for you."

"Oh, it's you, Stella, that was nothing. It happens usually, so it doesn't matter," Zenith replied.

Stella insisted, "Still, you shouldn't take it. Did you finish the project I sent yesterday?"

"Yep," Zenith said.

Stella gratefully replied, "Thank you so much; you're such a lifesaver."

"No problem," Zenith said, blushing.

"I need to go, see ya," Stella said and left.

"Got to do a ton of work stuff," Zenith muttered to himself, simultaneously working on his tasks and quietly cursing Emmanuel's name in his head.

This workload forced him to work double overtime. "That took forever; guess I'll go to the toilet and head home," Zenith said after he had finished.

As Zenith strolled towards the restroom, he inadvertently eavesdropped on two individuals chatting. "He's such a dumbass, believing I'm his girlfriend. Little does he know, I'm using him and seeing other men."

"Wow, I didn't know you were like that," the other girl expressed surprise.

The first girl justified herself, saying, "Like you wouldn't do the same if you found a person like that."

"Yeah, I probably would," the other girl admitted.

'I wonder whom they are talking about; he must be such a dumbass,' Zenith thought to himself as he attempted to figure out who the conversation was about.

In his attempt to eavesdrop, he accidentally kept his foot in a mop bucket, causing him to slip and crash into the door, accidentally opening it.

"Ah ah ah," one of the girls exclaimed.

The other girl quickly asked, "Are you okay?"

Zenith got up soaked in water from the mop bucket to see Stella. "So it was you, huh?"

"Zenith, it's not what you think," Stella quickly explained.

"I don't want to hear your explanation," Zenith declared, turning away and bolting out of the establishment. He sprinted until he reached a bridge for the new highway, towering 300 feet above the ground, with a shallow ocean below.

In the solitude of the moment, he muttered, "What a futile world I live in, and in that, I am the most worthless of worthless trash there is in this futile world. I've been used and thrown away throughout my life, and every single time it has always ended up with me taking all the pain. I shouldn't have been born if I was meant to live life like this, It's just better if I end it." as he stood on top of the bridge ledge, contemplating the depths of his despair.

Zenith started walking on the ledge with a bit of hesitation. Just as he was about to step away from the edge, a car sped by at high speed, startling him and causing him to lose balance. The sudden turn of events resulted in Zenith falling off the bridge.

"Guess I don't even get to decide when I die," Zenith mumbled as he descended through the air.

He closed his eyes, waiting for the afterlife, but after what felt like an entire two minutes, he was still conscious. Growing impatient, he opened his eyes and found himself in a pitch-black area, devoid of even a shimmer of light.

Zenith attempted to move, but an unseen force seemed to bind him, rendering him immobile. In the oppressive darkness, he waited for what felt like hours, utterly alone. "I'd rather just die at this point than be stuck in this darkness. Maybe I deserve this," he muttered in despair.

Suddenly, a voice pierced the silence, whispering in his ear, "Stop being so depressing; you're ruining my mood. And stop calling this darkness; it's called the abyss."

"Abyss, huh? What am I doing here? And if you've been through what I've been through, you wouldn't say that," Zenith questioned.

The mysterious voice retorted, "Do you think I care? Does anyone actually care about you, whether you live or die? At the end of the day, everyone dies alone. You just have to go through it. But there are people like you who fixate on the past, thinking nobody has been through what I've been through wanting pity."

"Why did you bring me here?" Zenith questioned.

The mysterious voice replied, "I need you to get stronger."

"How am I going to do anything if I am stuck here? so you should remove whatever you put on me." Zenith asked.

The mysterious voice replied, "I can't release you from this spell, or you will die."

"Why would I die?" Zenith asked, his concern evident.

The mysterious voice retorted, "Are you dumb or something? You jumped off a bridge, or should I say you lost your balance on the top of the bridge."

"I know that, but I am here," Zenith stated.

The mysterious voice responded, "The Abyss is a spiritual realm; you can only move in it. Once you get strong enough, in the first place, getting you here was already a hassle for me."

"So, then I am going to die anyway," Zenith said, his face drained of color.

The mysterious voice countered, "Not necessarily. You can live if you help me."

"Help you?" Zenith inquired.

The mysterious voice clarified, "I need you to get stronger in a different world. If you can do that for me, I can send you back to your world, and I'll let you keep your powers."

"What do you get out of this?" Zenith questioned.

The mysterious voice replied, "Do you need to know? I am giving you another chance to live and offering you an opportunity to seek revenge on the people who wronged you not just now but your past."

A wave of flashbacks came to Zenith's head that he had forced himself to forget but Zenith asserted."I have been used enough in my life. If I don't get a reason or some type of proof, you will send me back I am not going to do it,".

The mysterious voice declared, "Guess I've been too nice to you. I am giving you a chance to live, but here you are questioning my intentions," sternly applying some kind of pressure that made him feel as if his body were being crushed by a boulder.

Zenith, feeling the intensity, understood he didn't have a choice in this situation, so he said, "Okay, I'll transmigrate to whatever world you want me to, but what makes you think I won't die instantly?" still in pain.

The mysterious voice replied, "I am not dumb. I'll help by inserting my creation, which I have been perfecting for the past millennium," and released the pressure.

Before Zenith could say anything more, he felt something enter his body, causing excruciating pain that made him pass out.