Past

As I look at my 'father', he looks the same as he did before he died ten years ago.

He smiles at me and says, "It's been a while son you look like a man now."

I remember my father as if it was yesterday. A strict man who served all his life in the army, he was a god loving man who never missed the Sunday sermon.

My mother always said that I'm a copy of him when he was younger.

Saying nothing, I simply waited for my 'father' to continue.

"You must be wondering why I'm here? It's simply because I'm here to accompany you through this process."

If it's the process of how to destroy a fake father, then I'm in...

"And what is this process you are talking about?" I ask, raising one eyebrow.

He stands up and urges me to follow him. So I stand up and follow him through the darkness then he begins to speak.

"Pass one trial and you get out of here. Fail it and this darkness will be your personal hell."

He stops before a door.

I grab the door knob and ask, "Where will the door take me?"

"You will see son, I wish you the best luck out there" said the man while smiling.

I opened the door and the world went white.

---

Opening my eyes, I noticed that I was lying in my old bed from the house in my original world. As I opened my phone, I saw it was 8:30 am.

I never could find the date as if every calendar was deleted. But I know what day it was. The day my parents died in a terrorist attack...

Even when I was in the past I still had my thirty-year-old body but without the superpowers.

I jump off my bed and run downstairs. Our home was not the biggest but it was enough for three of us. Since I couldn't find a gun I took a knife from the kitchen on the way to the garage.

Seeing my old motorcycle I sat on it and started driving. The terrorist attack began at 9 am. This time I know there will be an terrorist attack and I can save them and pass this test.

Our village had no church so I needed to drive to the next town nearly twenty miles away (nearly thirty kilometers) to get to the church my parents were in. The church was at the edge of the town surrounded by forest and had only one exit which was convenient for a terrorist attack.

Arriving near the church, I left my motorcycle behind to remain hidden and ran the rest of the way.

Five minutes later, I reached it and hid behind a nearby tree. I saw a man with a pistol in his hand standing outside the entrance.

Suddenly I could hear shots coming from inside the church.

Shit they have already started! I screamed in my mind.

Calming my nerves I began to analyse the situation. According to the police report, the terrorists attacked the church with six people and then crammed all sixty people together and began killing them. And after the police started to arrive they killed themselves too.

The man turned around and looked at the door of the church when he heard shots. That gave me my chance to strike.

I stepped out from my hiding spot and ran towards him.

Hearing me, he spun around but it was already too late. I threw the kitchen knife at him and hit him in the chest. This dropped him to the ground.

I walked past the dying man picking up only his pistol and started to open the door. The sound of shots could still be heard.

Walking in, I saw that the five terrorists were picking up people and bringing them to the front, where they shot them. Because of the cries of the people and the shots fired they didn't hear me open the door.

In an instant, I shot two terrorists who were laughing at the cries, dropping them and simultaneously shocking the other three. Giving me enough time to drop them as well.

Looking around I couldn't see my parents anywhere only people ducking and hiding their heads from me.

When I walked to the front I could see six civilians dead. My parents were two of them.

Seeing this my knees gave in and I dropped to the ground.

The scenery changed and I was again in the black void before the door.

My 'father' said only, "You failed, wanna try again?"

I only stand up and walk in.

The second time I drove my motorcycle directly towards the church, killed the man and stormed in, but this time my parents were also dead.

The next time I called the police and when I arrived, every hostage was dead.

Then I stole a car and drove into the church but they shot me through the car window.

And the fake 'father' always said with a smile, "You failed, wanna try again?"

This went on for seventy, eighty, ninety times, and I was always late or got killed in the process.

I stopped counting and simply continued to try.

After failing countless times, I started to realize the true purpose of this trial.

"You failed, wanna try again?"

But this time I didn't enter so he asked me, "Do you wanna give up?"

"Tell me how many times have I tried now?"

Still smiling he said, "nine hundred ninety and one times"

"Thank you." I said and walked through the door.

Appearing again in my bed I stand up and walk to my wardrobe taking out a black suit. Wearing it, I walk down to the garage.

Now there was my car and not my motorcycle anymore.

Arriving again at the church with two white roses in my hand, I walked past it where the graveyard is. I searched for two identical tombstones that I only saw once at the funeral.

Kneeling down, I placed a white rose on each of them.

Afterwards I stand up and say "Mom, dad I'm back."

This changed the world around me again and I stood again in the black void.

"You pass"

A liquid black humanoid figure stood in the place where my 'father' used to be.

"So this is how hell feels like? Trapped in a scenario that I created for myself, to never win?"

The entity only created a smiling face hearing this.

Then I felt a pull and appeared in the hotel room again. The Ancient One stood in front of me.

"I see you passed. How do you feel?"

I look at her and say, "Free."

"Good remember this feeling. Only by accepting reality and move forward can people like us be stable in this world."

After saying this, she opens a portal and steps through.

"Wait what about the liquid thing who was in there? What was he?"

She turned around with a confused look on her face and said, "Liquid thing? You were alone in there."

And then the portal closed.

---

End of Volume 1