Trials

The same scene replayed again, the filthy underground, his meeting with his daughter, the painful reveal by his supposed son, his daughter's mocking. The pain he kept feeling was all too real but Cain had no idea as it went on. Unbeknownst to him, his mind and soul were slowly sucked away.

In the fifth iteration of the First Trial

Little changes kept happening in every iteration of the first trial of the Pain-Bewitching trials, unless one's mind is clear and can notice the little changes, there is zero to no chance of escape as the mind and soul keeps getting dragged away until it is destroyed.

Cain was no different, this was his most painful moment and no matter how cold and apathetic he was now, this memory could never be separate from him, however a change occurred in his very fifth iteration

"...honestly I hate you with every fibre of my being. Do you know how disgusted I was when I shook your hands, ugh, fuck you and go rot in a dump expecting to be rescued. You're a weak man who deserves..."

Cain was still rooted on the spot listening to the harsh words directed at him by his daughter but at this moment when he heard her, his mind jolted as a little clarity returned

'Wait, why do I feel that this is different than it's meant to be' he thought as he stared at his daughter who had an eerie smile on her face and Mason whose hands were in his pockets as a huge smile was plastered on his face looking at him

Like a seed that was planted, the doubts only increased as his mind wandered in this fifth iteration and began to gain clarity little by little

'No!, something is wrong, I just have this nagging feeling th-' he paused in his thoughts as his eyes widened and seemed to recall something

'I never shook her hand, if I remember correctly, it was a hug and-' he faced Mason this time as the world slowly turned a little blurry

'And somehow I feel that his arms were folded, not in his pockets so what is ac-' he paused again and was silent and lost in his thoughts, his mind working at full speed trying to get to the bottom of his current situation.

Then all of a sudden, the world paused as if time had stopped and became even more blurry as it threatened to disperse, Cain's mind became more clear as he stared at this world before it finally dawned on him as he sighed

"So this was my first trial huh, this does bring back memories" he said with a blank expression on his face as the world turned blurrier

He breathed deeply "I don't know how many iterations I went through but that was truly dangerous"

He looked at his body which was also turning blurry and dispersing along with the world before he spoke "the second trial will be even more dangerous but..."

With a determined look and a cold expression, his voice deepened as he spoke "I will not perish here"

His body eventually dispersed as the blurry world turned dark, his mind was dragged away into the another reality but this time, a completely new reality unknown to him

***

In a deep and separate dimension located somewhere in the universe, a very tall man with long and deep black hair, just like the abyss, pitch black eyes with red pupils, wearing a brown shirt and loose black shorts sat very relaxedly on a wooden chair in front of a seemingly simple wooden house that looked extremely ordinary, he stroked his beard as he smiled to himself and spoke in reminiscence

"Finally, I'm at this level, the hands of fate have no power over me, I have no equal, I can go anywhere in this whole universe unhindered" his powerful and booming voice almost threatening to destroy the dimension.

He sighed deeply to himself as he spoke "really, I still remember those days where sometimes I had to eradicate entire families, and even worlds, some intentionally and some unintentionally"

He paused as he gazed into the distance, his eyes directly piercing the fabric of space, the terrifying creatures hidden in the depths of the void shivered, the gods who felt his gaze instantly hid in one corner, some worlds shattered as many lives were lost in an instant due to his gaze, the entire universe had become his playground

He retracted his gaze as he shook his head and smiled, he truly enjoyed this feeling of power, even after a long time had passed he never got used to it, it was intoxicating and truly it made him extremely happy.

He remembered the first time he stamped his authority in the universe, he remembered the feeling he felt, the genuine glee he had not felt in a very long time, he remembered all the titles he was given, he remembered the fights he had, he remembered the fear people had of him and still do. He was at the pinnacle, an existence who stood at the very top.

The man stopped wandering in his thoughts as he just sat there on the wooden chair, and closed his eyes. He stayed in that way for centuries which seemed like an instant to him before he opened his eyes again

His gaze scanned the whole universe before he spoke "Hmm, I guess a few centuries have passed, but...this place is a bit quiet"

He immediately snapped his fingers and a turntable appeared with various of his favourite classics, he immediately controlled the space as one of his favorite old classics, Oats in the water by Ben Howard began playing.

"Ah yes, this song" he smiled as he remembered this song, he had always loved indie folk songs during his time on earth till now. He briefly remembered his time on earth, but now all that was inconsequential, those kind of thoughts didn't bring him any emotion, just a passing thought.

He closed his eyes again as the song played in the background, this time a millennia passed. He opened his eyes again, a different music was playing, another of his favorite. Some might find his way of life boring but he truly enjoyed himself.

He got up and immediately the whole dimension shook as space almost seemed to want to shatter, he quickly retracted his immense energy and resembled just an ordinary man.

He took one step and immediately teleported to a random world. He looked no different than an ordinary human as he just roamed and wandered around, listening to different songs, trying different meals, observing the weak little mortals going on about their mundane lives. He could destroy this world if he wanted but he instead didn't.

He spent over six centuries in the random world just behaving like a normal and ordinary human before he went back to his separate dimension. This feeling of going anywhere without a care and doing whatever he wished with no one daring to question him filled him with immense pride and bliss

He closed his eyes again, this time for over two millennia but still it was nothing for him, when he woke up he did the exact same things, sometimes he would create a world on a whim, other times he would just sit and watch as worlds were destroyed. He would then close his eyes to relax with a beaming smile on his face

This continued for eons as he kept on doing the same things over and over, new worlds emerged, old worlds destroyed but it didn't phase him, he wasn't the least bit bothered by the destructions and creations. It wasn't his problem, he only blamed their luck and weakness.

As this went on, his mind sunk deeper and deeper, this life slowly becoming his new reality, this feeling of power washed his entire being, he had finally let go of his weakness and he was not ready to forget this feeling, his mind went even deeper as his soul was being dragged into the unknown

But all of a sudden he opened his eyes, this time not with his usual relaxed self, he felt something was off, he felt extreme danger. He looked around, he was confused, what exactly could threaten him at his level, he thought long and hard as he remained in that position for a few more centuries, his mind slowly gaining a little clarity but it wasn't enough, he couldn't identify the problem

Still, he felt the dangerous feeling increasing, he was truly stumped as his expression hardened, he scanned the whole universe numerous times but nothing, the rock song playing in his turntable roaring in the background.

But all of a sudden he stood up immediately as his eyes widened, he stared long and hard at the turntable and the song that was playing in all seriousness and only one thought was in his mind

'Since when did I start enjoying this kind of song'