A Wandering Soul - Prologue

You can only stare out into endless grey mist for a short time before getting absolutely bored. And that's what I was. Bored. Any direction I turned was the same featureless mist, even looking down my body was just a slightly darker grey mist blob.

I feel like that should be concerning. But it's not, its like there is the knowledge that being alone and barely able to move should be causing me to freak out. But I just don't have the motivation to act on that knowledge.

"I wonder if this is purgatory? Can't be Hell, not nearly enough fire for that."

"Oh, this version actually works enough to speak? That's surprising . . . I was expecting to have to start over again."

Well, omnidirectional voices from the mist. That can't possibly be a bad thing.

"Uh, yes? I can speak? Who are you and where am I?"

"Hmm knowledge implant seems so have failed somewhat, you should have known that already. Though in a way it's surprising you can speak at all, oh well.

First, I am what you would call a higher dimensional being. You wouldn't even begin to be able to pronounce my name so I won't bother with that, I guess you could call me R.O.B. even if its not entirely accurate as there is nothing random about you being here."

That phantom feeling of something being very wrong is back. Can I go back to being bored? I think I liked being bored much better than this.

"As for where you are, you are near the edge of the East Dimensional Sea and the Ether Plains. Nice vacation spot overall. Though the restaurants could be better. More specifically you are in a soul jar, so the higher dimensional energies don't pop you like a soap bubble. Not that that will mean anything to you in a bit, and you won't be staying long."

"Right, um, okay then, I guess you could just send me home and I'll leave yo-""Hmm that implant really failed huh? You really don't have a home to go back to. You were made here."

". . . What? What do you mean made?! I definitely came from somewhere else and didn't look like a grey mist person!"

"Okay, from the top then. The first thing you should understand is that I work as a cleaner for this area of the Dimensional Sea. My job is to send out Avatars to clean up individual dimensions and stop them from deteriorating and ruining the view. . .freaking tourists have no respect and just dump crap wherever they feel like. . . and you, are an Avatar. Well more of a template really. A mix of a personality soul copied from someone from a lower dimension and ability souls that when combined are greater than the individual souls. In theory anyway, some combinations tend to fragment the resulting Avatar soul.

Which is why you are in a soul jar. I was waiting to see if mixing 7 souls was possible, I mean the theory is sound, one main soul with six supporting but I didn't account for incompatibility between a few of the non-human souls and then there is the . . ."

As R.O.B. started rambling about the intricacies of soul mixing, I could only blankly listen while trying to process the cosmos shattering details that had been dumped on my head and attempt to understand why I was here.

One, I was not the person I vaguely recalled in my memories. I was in fact a copy that had been spliced together with other copies to create the equivalent of chlorine for a vacation spot.

. . . I am really glad that since I'm apparently just a soul at the moment emotions are more of a side note in my mind than something I experience. Pretty sure I would go insane otherwise.

Two, R.O.B. was trying something new when he made my template. He wanted to use seven non-identical souls when creating an avatar, and it worked! . . .kinda.

So apparently my personality soul mixed fine with four of the souls since they were similar enough to support each other, but when he added the last two they fragmented so badly the resulting mess was barely stable.

I am now the equivalent of a software developer randomly combining several random blocks of code from different sources and being pleasantly surprised when the whole thing runs with no errors.

Definitely not happy about that.

Third, now that I'm mostly stable, I really don't like that that needs a qualifier, R.O.B. will just modify the knowledge implant I was already supposed to have and upload both that and me to my new body.

"I just have to ask, why do you think I'm going to listen to you and clean up some dimensional mess? I mean wouldn't it be easier for you to do it yourself than sending uncooperative experiments that really want to not do things for the random entity that nearly killed them before they were aware?"

"Good to see that your personality came out unchanged." Does that mean there is more me's running around? I guess reusing a personality template makes sense rather than making a new one every time. "Simply put, I don't care what you do. Since you are a test model, I talk to you to get an idea of how well the Soul Splice worked then use that to make a production model. Those Avatars either have a personality that will fall in line with what we want them to do naturally or have a mission given to them from a lower dimensional entity. So you get to go into the sea, and will settle where your soul finds the biggest resonance in the area you were inserted."

"As for why we can't directly fix an individual dimension, it's simple. We are too big. If we even attempted to enter a lower dimension it would explode. Which would make the nearby dimensions explode, very much like nuclear fission. So Avatars it is! Much easier for us too!"

That makes a disturbing amount of sense. And I'm sure everyone in those dimensions likes being un-exploded so I guess no complaining about the cleanup services?

"So you mentioned ability souls? Am I going to have to worry about being overwritten or something?" If I'm at the mercy of some being I can't comprehend and can play with the very structure of my soul, I should at least find out what the hell I have to look out for while I can.

"Nah, nothing like that. Ability souls come in two flavors, talent and archive. They don't actually have the capacity for thought, which is why we can combine so many, otherwise the emergent personalities would cause the whole soul to go insane."

"So you did that before." I deadpanned.

"Couple times, works out the same almost every time."

Wow no hesitation. It's a good thing I'm getting tossed out before he decides to vivisect my soul or something to find out what he did wrong. Guess I should at least know what I can look forward to by being a spiritual Frankenstien's monster.

"So what ability souls do I have?"

"Right, guess you would want to know that, huh? Just give me a sec to grab my test notes and... here take a look."

With that the grey mist seemed to twist in front of me. Condensing and flattening out, sections growing deeper grey until a series of panels hovered in front of me. An experimental swipe of my arm allowed me to move them aside. I shifted between a few of them looking at figures and notes without really understanding anything written on them, until I found one sheet that seemed to be an overview about the experiment that resulted in… well me.

7 Soul Avatar Experiment #29872

Soul Splice experiment to combine (1) personality soul with (4) Talent Souls and (2) Archive Souls.

-WARNING-

Soul fragmentation chance 86%

Soul Instability chance 97%

Personality Soul (Alexandria Cross) -INTEGRATION RATE 100%-Ability Soul (Talent: Archer:EMIYA) -INTEGRATION RATE 85%-

Subject EMIYA - Combat oriented Talent soul focusing on flexibility. Variable engagement range available. Combines well with weapon oriented combat styles and most magic systems.Servant BodyAstralized BodyProjectionReinforcementUnlimited Blade WorksAbility Soul (Archive: Rin Tohsaka) -INTEGRATION RATE 77%-

Subject Tohsaka - Energy manipulation oriented Archive soul focusing on mental spellcasting.Knowledge of FATE magic systemKnowledge of Elemental manipulationKnowledge of Item EnchantmentKnowledge of SummoningAbility Soul (Archive: Lina Testarossa) -INTEGRATION RATE 63%-

Subject Testarossa - Mundane/Magical Technological oriented Archive soul focusing on EngineeringKnowledge of MGLN magic systemKnowledge of magitech engineeringKnowledge of mundane engineeringKnowledge of dimensional navigationAbility Soul (Talent: Nanoha Takamachi) -INTEGRATION RATE 81%-

Subject Takamachi - Combat oriented Talent soul focusing on long range engagement and heavy defence. Heavily dependent on equipment to perform at peak levels.Force-field ProjectionBombardment Class Combat StyleLong Range Detection and MonitoringEnergy Manipulation Spell ModificationAbility Soul (Talent: [ERROR-REDACTED]) -INTEGRATION RATE 11%-

Subject Soul has fragmented. Current attempt of further integration will cause soul to shatter.Ability Soul (Talent: [ERROR-REDACTED]) -INTEGRATION RATE 15%-

Subject Soul has fragmented. Current attempt of further integration will cause soul to shatter.Initial Conclusion: Extreme differences between Soul types caused Avatar soul to degrade. Potential to stabilize, however Template Avatar is unlikely to possess minimum required mental abilities.

Final Conclusion: Template Soul was able to stabilize in soul jar conditions, mental abilities are present but spotty from what should have been implanted. Special care conditions make method for mass creation unsuitable.

Result: Failure

Disposal: Template Avatar released into Dimensional Sea.

I looked over the page, barely absorbing the info through the confusion now running rampant through my mind. Seeing fictional characters listed wasn't all that surprising, I was flat out told there was a sea of dimensions obviously some fictional characters existed in a few of them. What was surprising was that some of the notes were redacted. R.O.B. said these were his notes, why would any of them be redacted?

"It's cause even though you stabilized, you still aren't fully integrated." R.O.B. explained when I brought up that him. "The more you as the core of the soul mix, know about the pieces the closer they come to fully merging with you. But right now your soul is barely holding itself together, so I blocked that info until you integrate more of the other pieces. When you integrate enough the other abilities should develop naturally. Probably. Well even if they don't you get to live so, don't worry about it."

I have a feeling i'm going to worry about that a lot.

"Welp, your body is done. Time to put you together and off your new home!"

"WAIT! I still have ques-" There is a massive sucking force all around me, followed by a pressure. Everything flashes white and then I'm gone

-o-

"-tions!" In an instant I am no longer standing in the grey mist but on a riverbank with a nice looking town in the distance with clear blue skies overhead.

I get all of maybe five seconds to take in my new surroundings before a white hot poker slams into my brain, and I am overwhelmed.

Information flashes through my mind, seemingly trying to burn its place into my new brain. Numbers, equations, movements, theories, images all in a jumbled mess go through my head with no coherency or order. In the distance, I hear someone screaming, and wish that they would stop. They aren't helping me deal with a liquefying brain that may or may not be dripping out my ears by now.

An eternity later, the flow of information stops and the inferno raging in my skull drops to a mere skull splitting headache. Tentatively I open one eye, wincing at the now soft light of the moon hanging in the sky.

Picking myself up off the ground, I took the chance to take in my surroundings in detail. Not that there was much to take in from where I currently stood. A grassy river bank, with a steep sloped hill close by and streetlights suggesting a road at the top. So with no one around and nothing to give me a clue as to where I was, I tried remembering what R.O.B. said would happen to me when I was released.

Wait. He said I would drift to where my soul resonated the most, and from the notes page I had looked at, 3 of those souls I knew came from Japan. So I might have planet, country and location figured out if I'm lucky. And from what I remember the MGLN universe was actually pretty okay between disasters.

Though if I got the FATE universe, or nasuverse. I was fucked. Just the Reality Marble that made up the UBW would be enough for mages to hunt me down for either a chance to study me or give me a sealing designation, and that didn't even bring into account of what they might do if it came to light that I was a mix of several different souls.

As panic started to seep into my already overburdened mind, my vision started to have black creep in around the edges. I'm actually a little impressed that I was still conscious, between all the shocks today and rediscovering emotions, you would think that would be enough for a fainting spell.

"HEEY!" Glancing up to the top of the hill, I saw a man in a suit calling down to me. "You done freaking out yet? Cause listening to you scream for hours was not how I wanted to spend my day!"

Oh, that screaming earlier was me. Oops I guess? Not like I was really in control of myself. Still, maybe should reassure the guy that I'm not completely crazy before he calls the authorities, if he hasn't already. Though he said hours, would it take hours for someone to respond to someone screaming nonstop?

"I-" Immediately I was launched into a coughing fit as my poor abused vocal chords made their opinion of my use of them very clear. Flecks of moisture hitting my palm as I covered my mouth to stop my lungs from vacating my body in protest.

"You okay down there?" The man called out from above. I gave him a shaky thumbs-up so it was obvious to him that I was the very picture of health and wellbeing.

"I'm going to come down now, so please don't die or attack me!" Seems that this guy thought that the person screaming for apparently hours and then coughing up a lung might be a bit unhinged. How rude.

While I hunched over trying to get myself back under control, I saw the man's shoes enter the edge of my vision and feeling self conscious I stood up straight and got my first look at him.

A shorter Asian man in a business suit stood in front of me. Worry etched into his features. Probably worry for me, one way or the other. I swallowed, my ruined throat doing its best impression of razor wire.

"Where-" I rasped, and immediately broke down coughing again. Feeling more moisture hit my palm I glanced at it and realised it was blood. I would not be making any speeches for a bit so best to keep things short.

"Where… am… I?"

"Oh my. You don't know where you are? Do you have amnesia? Was that why you were screaming, cause you don't remember anything about yourself and were overcome by the mystery of it all?! Oh this is bad, I don't know what to do for amnesia, this is so outside of my abilities, what should I do?"

The more the man talked the more agitated he seemed to get. He kept rambling on in an increasingly animated way, describing ways that we might be able to cure my amnesia that ranged from somewhat sensible to absolutely insane. As a plus, his agitation over my imaginary amnesia allowed me to calm down. The black fading from my vision and my thoughts clearing from the amusing sight before me. But still I'm not getting answers so I should end this.

Clapping my hands loudly in front of him I was able to stop the onslaught of words. "No… amnesia… Where...am I?" The noise startled him, and he slowly broke out into a sheepish smile.

"Right, um, sorry. I can get a little excitable." No kidding. I think if he got any more wound up we could use him as a generator. "Hmhmm, well since you don't have amnesia then you clearly know you are in Japan." I didn't but its nice that my guess was correct. "And you are currently on the outskirts of the lovely Karakura Town. Only a few miles from it actually, down this way-"

I ignored the rest of what he was saying as my mind blanked out.

Karakura Town.

The hometown of Ichigo Kurosaki.

I wasn't in the FATE or the MGLN universes.

I was in Bleach.

Seeming to notice that I was no longer listening to him, suit man turned to look at me. He tried to say something but I couldn't hear the words even though I saw his mouth moving. As he shifted, his jacket opened up and I saw a metal plate with a broken chain attached to his chest.

I was in Bleach, and I was talking to a dead man. This was so much goddamn worse than FATE I blearily thought as black seemed to swallow up my vision.

...Yeah this seems like a good time to go to sleep.

And finally I fell over and passed out.

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