1 Chapter 1: A Lost Friend

My name is Ryner Lync. And I am beyond fucked. Right now, I am just floating through a seemingly endless abyss, with nothing in sight.

Hi there. Yes, you. Are you my friend? Do you want to hear my story? Find out how I died? How I ended up in this godforsaken place? I'll tell you my story. It will be interesting, and maybe I won't be so bored with a FRIEND around. Well, I have time. I have all the time I need. We can spend ALL that time together, Friend.

Here's my story. I am just a pathetic human, one who has lived most of his life in isolation, in a "mental health institute". I was crazy, they said. A lunatic, they said. Well, I turned out great, didn't I? I was free for a few years. I tried, you know. I really did. I tried being nice. Giving other people what they want. Making friends. It was fun, though tiring. Changing your personality to fit others is exhausting, as I found out. But I worked hard. I really wanted to be good. I even managed to save someone's life! That was the epitome of my life, or so I believed at that time. I started to care for insignificant things. I started developing emotions. It was really cool. But then, something happened. Something that changed me forever.

The fateful day started off just like any other perfectly normal one. I woke, took a nice, warm bath, grabbed a steaming cup of coffee and left straight for work. The roads buzzed with cars. The exhaust polluted the fresh morning air. Everything was going well.

"MOMMY!"

A little girl's scream pierced through the air. The daily flow of the city was interrupted. I turned my head to the direction of the noise and I saw her. Cars were swerving away to avoid hitting her. But a truck doesn't look like it would make it. Its momentum carried it forward. The color drained from her face, white as a ghost. She was rooted to the spot, hands clammy. There was no time to think. It was do or die. And I did. Ungodly amounts of adrenaline pumped through my veins. I ran recklessly into the traffic. And I actually made it. It was all I could to restrain myself from doing a victory dance. The screeching of the truck's tires brought me back from my thoughts. I grabbed her and tried to jump away, but I didn't completely make it. It crushed the entirety of my lower body, and I was losing liters of blood by the second. I was going to fucking die. The girl was perfectly fine though, and I hated that. Why did I have to suffer for her? Fuck this. I used all the remaining strength I had in my arms to do one last thing. I grasped her soft, fragile neck, and snapped it. Everyone looked at me, horrified at what I had done, but I was done with their bullshit. I was going to die soon no matter what, who cares what they thought about me?

"HAHAHAHAHA", I laughed maniacally, and darkness slowly melded into my vision. I wondered what death would feel like. Was it painless? Is there an afterlife? Many questions ran through my head. I wonder what will happen now… And that was the last thing I thought. A low hum rang out continuously. My consciousness was slowly shutting down, which meant I could still feel the excruciating pain of having a pile of flesh as legs. Oh, it was horrible. But it was slowly subsiding. Ah, the sweet release of death.

I could feel myself seeping out of my body. I guess I was not dead? It felt… weird. I could feel things I never knew I could feel. I could… see? I looked around at my surroundings, trying to perceive what was happening. A huge crowd had gathered around the little girl's and my body. Their mouths opened and closed as if they were saying something. But I couldn't hear anything. Seeing my own body was unsettling. My lower body was nonexistent, with lumps of flesh and the pools of blood being the only evidence that they had once existed.

With no warning, I started floating upwards. Slowly at first, but gradually picking up speed. Soon, I left Earth's atmosphere, still speeding. I was going in no particular direction, and it was very boring, after the first few days. I tried to determine the number of days by using my sleep cycle, but I soon gave up. The first few days were enchanting. I absolutely adored the scenery, the planets were beautiful. The stars were blinding, yet mesmerizing. Entire galaxies made of stars floated past me as I picked up speed. Now, it's just boring. I quickly came to realize that space is mostly just black. Nothing much to see, after all. The brief views were glorious, however. Supernovas, black holes, and the like. Yet none of them could impede my path. Where to? I still have not figured that out. And that is my story...so far. And it brought me here, the middle of absolutely fucking nowhere.

I don't know what to do now. I was so bored. But now I have you, right? Oh, I can imagine this in a book, 'The Epic Adventures of Me and You'. It would be so cool! You are so much more than a space rock that looks like a face, don't let the others tell you otherwise.

It probably has been a few hundred years thus far. I have seen so much. Hold up… what's that? It looks like… nothing? The shade of black there is so much more concentrated than here. Have I finally reached the end of the universe? Maybe our journey together has come to an end, my friend.

As soon as I reached it, the intense darkness engulfed me. I couldn't see anything. I don't think there was anything to see around here. And then it started.

The …thing I was started to distort. Some parts of me started intensely contracting and expanding as if trying to rip me apart. My best friend, the space rock, was nowhere to be seen. He was probably in pieces. RIP rock. I imagined myself wiping away a tear in honor of my buddy. Shivers ran down my spine… if I still had one. I didn't know what was going to happen. I was scared. Was I finally going to die? Really die?