Better Beginnings

"So this is how I die?"

Completely worn out, my body lay motionless on the road, battered and bruised, unable to move as the blinding lights approached me at rapid speeds.

I could barely make out the sounds of people yelling at me to get away.

However, none of it mattered.

When did it ever matter?

I had accepted my fate.

There was nothing I could do.

There was nothing else I wanted to do.

My hopes and dreams had been ripped away, and nobody to love me.

Nobody to care about my life or death.

But that did not matter to me.

I accomplished my small goal.

I was finally free, even if for but a fleeting moment.

Ironic that it was only in the face of death.

I couldn't even tell if I was happy.

Maybe I was, but who knows?

As the lights approached my face, only one thought lay in my mind.

'Was it... truly meant to be this way?'

The shining lights slowly faded into darkness as the world around me disappeared and my consciousness faded away.

Contrary to popular belief, my life did not flash before my eyes.

Or maybe there was nothing worth remembering.

However, within the darkness, something darker was approaching me.

It was darker than its surroundings, seemingly sucking away at space itself. The being sent chills throughout my body as it slowly approached me. I tried to run, but I could not feel my body itself.

"Ahh.... Finally... After sℸ ̣m⍑ny yeᓭᔑs! ᓵ𝙹リℸ ̣ ∷𝙹ꖎ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ∴ᔑ|| ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ᓭᔑ⍊ᒷ ᒲ𝙹リᒷ|| ╎ᓭ!"

The figure kept rambling on as his voice became more incoherent by the second. 

It started flying upwards... or was I sinking? I couldn't tell as the distance between me and the dark 'thing' increased

*****

"Where... am I?"

In front of me lay a large wall of fire, so large and radiant that I could barely see anything.

Backing away from the intense fire, I looked around to see myself in the midst of a burning village surrounded by flames.

I was hit by the realization that I was no longer in the same place where I fell unconscious as the acrid smoke filled my lungs. Stepping back in shock, I tripped over a large object and landed on the grass. But nothing could prepare me for the brutal sight of the large object being a burnt corpse.

Not just near my feet, but the entire field of the village was filled to the brim with burnt bodies.

But what shocked me not was the corpses themselves, but the sheer amount of them.

They were covering every inch of the floor, thrown in heaps and piles as if they had been slaughtered.

It was more intriguing than disgusting at that point.

However, there seemed to be no escape. The fire closed in on me as I frantically attempted to look for an opportunity to escape.

"Well. You're definitely not supposed to be here."

I turned around to see a cloaked man standing in the flames, completely unfazed by the intense heat. He slowly approached me, as my surroundings started to become hazy and... spiralled? 

I don't think I was doing drugs before I died, but that might've explained that faceless thing.

Who knows, maybe this was all a dream... or a bad drug overdose.

Suddenly, pounding waves of pain consumed my head as each of his steps blurred my vision further, an ominous convergence of internal torment and an eerie, advancing presence. I tried moving away from him, only to fall yet again as I could now see stars and galaxies forming around the figure.

I was starting to get convinced that I'd been drugged at this point.

"Isn't that interesting?"

As my sight disappeared yet again, I managed to catch a glimpse of his eyes. However, I could not recall what they looked like, as my vision blackened.

*****

"Ugh..."

The consecutive series of events over the last few minutes had left me dazed, unable to properly process my situation.

As I got up from my bed-

'Wait, my bed?'

The room I was in was not, in fact, my bed.

It was a completely different location, resembling... an inn?

It was similar to an inn that you'd see in depictions of houses in the medieval era. The walls seemed to be made of stone and the structure was held up with wood.

At least this was better than being burned to a crisp and wasting a second life.

The door in front of me opened as a white-haired man walked in, wearing strange but extravagant clothing.

"Finally awake, are you?"

The man snapped his fingers, causing the door to slam shut and a seat to appear behind him.

"Now, let's get to talking."

"W-Wait. I think you've got the wrong person."

I could not comprehend what was going on. Everything about this situation was strange, starting from the weird black thing to the burning village.

"No no. I've definitely got the right person. How about you start by telling me who you are?"

"I'm James! I'm just a normal guy. I promise I didn't see anything, could you please let me go?"

"James? That's a weird name."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Noticing my confusion, the man switched up his demeanor.

"Alright, let's try and clear your misunderstandings first. Where do you think you are?"

"Uhh... in Plymouth?"

"Is that... a country or a city?"

"Am I in the United Kingdom?"

"I don't know where the United Kingdom is, but it's definitely not here."

'That's strange. How does he not know about the United Kingdom?'

"Well... then where am I?

"You're in the Carian Kingdom. Does that ring any bells?"

As soon as he mentioned the Carian Kingdom, memories started flashing in my head. 

"Ah... uh... could you give me some time to myself?"

Noticing my shock, the man quietly left the room.

"I'll be back in a few minutes. Don't think of escaping, it'll be futile."

How could I not know what the Carian Kingdom was?

It held a core memory in my heart too, as it was my beloved friend's creation.

After all, it was the place where the setting of his novel was in. 

There was no reason for the man to lie to me about such stuff, and considering the inhuman stuff happening to me, it was the only reasonable conclusion.

I was now inside of my friend's novel.