Adam the Father of Humanity

One moment, I was crossing the street, headphones in, listening to a new track that was released and next I knew I was hit by a white truck and had found myself floating... here, wherever here was cause if this was the afterlife it really sucked. 

It was endless, this place. A Void so vast and empty that it swallowed every sense I thought I had. No wind. No sound. Just the soft glow of... something. A light, maybe? It didn't come from anywhere, and yet it was everywhere.

I blinked. Or maybe I didn't. My body felt alien, as though I wasn't even sure I had a body. That's when I noticed it.

In the distance—if "distance" was even a concept here—something shimmered, like a tear in the fabric of reality. It grew, or maybe it was getting closer. I couldn't tell. My mind screamed at me to run, but there was nowhere to go. And then, lightning crashing down without a sound, it appeared.

A figure. Humanoid, but unmistakably not human.

It was both a man and a woman, an ancient elder and a vibrant youth, a storm and the calm eye within it. Its form shifted, flickering between impossibilities. Wings, horns, halos, shadows—it had all of them and none. Looking at it hurt, but I couldn't look away.

"You have died." Its voice was like a thousand whispers and a single roar all at once. It echoed in my skull, not in my ears.

"Yeah no shit." I responded back. "I already knew that when that truck hit me. So, what is this? Heaven? Hell? Some sort of purgatory?"

"None of these. You stand before me, and I am beyond such trivialities."

"Right." I let out a shaky laugh, trying to ground myself in sarcasm. "So, uh, you're what? God? The Devil? Some cosmic HR representative?"

It tilted its head—or whatever passed for a head—as though amused. "I am what you perceive me to be. God. Devil. Judge. Creator. Destroyer. I am the end, and I am the beginning."

Well, that cleared up absolutely nothing. My heart—if I even had one here—pounded. "Okay. What happens now? Eternal judgment? Reincarnation as a cockroach? Do I get a refund on the whole 'life' thing?"

"That depends. Your death was... uninspired. Your life, mundane. But your potential remains... intriguing."

"Mundane? Excuse me, I—"

"You were forgettable."

Ouch. "Okay, no need to twist the knife. Get to the point."

The being leaned closer—at least, I think it did. Its presence swelled around me, suffocating and comforting all at once. "I offer you a choice. You may fade into the void, forgotten and unmade. Or... you may be reborn."

My breath—or its approximation—caught. "Reborn? Like, a second chance at life?"

"Not as you were. As you could be. Stronger. Greater. A being of endless possibility."

It sounded too good to be true. "What's the catch?"

"There is no catch. There is only potential. And I will grant you three wishes to shape the foundation of your new existence. Choose wisely."

Three wishes? My brain scrambled to process the enormity of what it was offering. "You're serious? Anything I want?"

"Anything within the boundaries of creation and reason."

My mind raced. I wasn't about to let this opportunity slip by. If I was going to get a second shot, I wasn't going to waste it. "Alright. My first wish..."

I paused, considering. What did I want? What would ensure I'd never feel powerless again?

"Unlimited growth," I said finally. "I want the ability to keep improving, endlessly. No limits, no caps."

The being inclined its head. "Granted. Your growth shall know no bounds, as long as you strive for it."

My pulse quickened. This was real. It was really happening. "Okay. My second wish... I want the skill Raphael."

The being's form flickered, as though amused. "A wise choice. Raphael will grant you unparalleled healing abilities. Your understanding of the medical field will-."

"No not the Angel Raphael, I want the Skill Raphael. You know the power that Rimaru had when he was reborn as a Slime."

"I am sorry?" The being looked so confused.

"Just look up, 'The Time I was Reincarnated as a Slime.'"

I wish I had not told it to do that as everything went quite before thousands of screens filled the void around me playing different episodes of the sereis and I groaned out loud only to get shushed. Guess I could do nothing more than to wait for he... she? Uhm for them to be done watching the series. 

Yeah I wished I had actually stopped them when it took longer than a hour. The being got hooked on anime and spent the next several hours watching the entire thing. I don't know if it was an actual hour but it really seemed like it.

"Alright, I shall give you the skill. Raphael." They finally spoke.

"Alright, finally. For my last wish... I want an unlimited source of mana." I had thought about it for a while and with Unlimited mana I would be able to do whatever I wanted withought worry, I would be able to spam my powers all I want. I could do things that others would struggle to.

This time, the being paused, its shifting form stilling for a moment. "Very well, I shall give you a unlimited source of mana."

A thrill shot through me. "So, that's it? I get all of this, and then I just... wake up somewhere new?"

"Indeed. But know this: just because things turned out certain ways before do not expect them to be the exact same in your new life."

The light around me intensified, blinding and consuming my body as I felt it fall like sand.

"Wait! What's your name?" I called out, desperate for one last question.

"I am beyond names. But you may call me... The One Above All."

"Are you serious? What kind of name is that!" I yelled back frusterated as my vision went dark, and then there was nothing.