Dilemma

My take on life is straightforward. We are all insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Please don't take me the wrong way. I love living, but we result from a tiny probability. Life as we know it has no meaning other than living the little time we have on this Earth and eventually die. We are expected to go through school, get a degree and live the rest of our lives doing a 9 to 5 job.

To me, that's no way to live. But much like everybody else, I concluded I couldn't do much about it. So I found something that I enjoy doing: helping other people am a nurse, and I love what I do. Making other people better while they are in a rough patch of life helps me get some meaning to my life.

So here I am, living in a conundrum. I know for a fact or believe it to be a fact that our lives have no meaning. But life is something beautiful, and that we waste it is stupid because while we were put on this world to die eventually, the time we have here could be something worth dying for.

This rant I am having has meaning because right now, I am facing what looks to be a portal that's right outside the hospital I work at. Well, half the workforce is staring at it, some in awe while others with cellphones in hand.

"Come forward, child."- said a booming voice.

I don't know how or why I could move. My body moved by itself. While everybody just stood there frozen by the sheer pressure the voice had, it was like a god itself was speaking. And here I am, staring at the infinity through the portal when the voice says again.

"Your world will be a stage to a war between demons and gods, as many worlds before it, and some will die a meaningless death while others will fight to survive. But I am giving you the option to sacrifice yourself, and I will spare Earth, or I give you the power to protect your loved ones."

I am shocked. First, gods are real. Who would have thought? And now here I am, stuck with this shitty dilemma. The choice might be obvious. This god, or whatever it may be, gives you the power you play hero, and you get your happy ending. News flash?!! This is real life, not some fantasy book you read. Nothing comes easy, and if this god can give you power, there might be others more powerful. It's not a guarantee that you can indeed protect everyone because Earth will still be a fucking Warzone.

The second choice is more plausible. Earth is spared for now, and they might still come in the future, maybe in some millennia, but by then, me and my loved ones would be long gone. If they return, it's not my problem anymore. It may be a shitty way of thinking, but I deal with Death daily, one downside of my job, but if mine can save the lives of many, so be it. Having lived my whole life until now, I've no regrets. I have been happy and have seen the wonders of the world. I can say that for the little time, I have been on this Earth; I have lived a full life, and if I die now, my only regret is not having a kid, but I guess that is it.

" I will take the second option." - I said with confidence.

All I heard was a laugh of amusement. I guess my Death amuses him. That doesn't come as a shock, and I think that me, a mere mortal, choosing Death instead of power might be amusing.

"Come inside the portal, so I may claim what is mine."

Again, my body moved on its own. I entered the portal, and it closed behind me. And what I could see in front of me was a void. I don't know in what I am standing or where I am. This place is entirely black. I don't think I saw the color before. It was indeed a place devoid of anything. I don't know how I was even breathing. I only stood there, waiting for my inevitable doom.

"Don't worry, child will not kill you. That was a test that you passed with flying colors. You stand in front of a god, and you don't know even flinch. Few can say the same. I can hear your thoughts, and I am impressed by your way of seeing life. Although critical, you still find meaning to it. You don't see the world as black or white. You see it as it is in various shades of grey. And that is why I choose you. I am not a God. I am what gods fear, the boogeyman story they were told when they came into existence. I am what keeps them in check, them and their massive egos. I am the demon, the demon's fear. I am their hell. I am the grey line, where there is good, there must be bad. There must be balance. I am what keeps that balance."

"A test? What does the boogeyman of Gods want with me? A mere mortal?"

"You see, gods have champions. A representative of sorts, someone they give a sliver of their power to,"fight for humanity". Long story short, they give power to humanoids to fight when demons invade a world. You, however, will not be getting power from me. You will earn Power of your own. I am the only one. There is so much I can do. You will help if you choose to, in keeping the balance. Not as my follower. As my equal."

"So the option you gave still stands, but I am not given power. I earn it. But it comes with responsibilities. I would have to leave my life behind and become something more. I would be a force that has to keep balance in the universe."

"And therefore I choose you. You don't take things at face value. The way you see life, the way you understand that the option I am giving you comes with more than just power, and you see what you have to sacrifice."

" So if I give you my life, you can keep Earth safe for how long?"

" A couple of millennia."

" Not much, and I guess Earth wasn't the first and will not be the last planet to be a battleground to demons and gods."

"No, there have been many that were destroyed, many that live in constant war."

"Well, you said Humanoids, and I am not stupid enough to believe that humans are the only intelligent life in the universe. So again, a shitty dilemma. I die to delay humanity's unavoidable doom, or I get the power to change things but throw away my humanity."

And again, I hear a laugh of amusement.

" Only you would say that a decision that could change the universe is a "shitty dilemma" but yes, that's pretty much it."

" I don't know what you are, but you sound old, so I am gonna call you old man."

" Don't you fear my Wrath?"

" Old man, you know as well as I do I came intending to give my life for humanity. You can hear my thoughts. I am at your mercy. If you decide to delete Earth from existence, there is jack shit I can do. So go on, kill me or whatever you like. I am still calling you old man."

"Am beginning no like you more and more. So have you come up with a decision"

"You know I did. You can read my thoughts."

There is no other way to see this. I die, either way. One choice is literal Death. The other is the Death of my human side and being reborn as a force for balance. The way I see it's a chance to be reborn and be a force of change.

"I want to hear you say it."

"I will be your partner. I will, from this day, be reborn as a force to keep balance in the universe."

From the void came a man, ironically an old man, with a large robe and white hair. He was exuding an aura of power with each step.

"Good, a pleasure to meet you. I am Chronos, keeper of time and balance in the universe."

" I guess they knew me as Barrett Dominic, but that name will be of no use. I will need a new one. I will tell you as soon as I earn it, like my power."

" That's the spirit. We have a long way ahead of us."