Chapter 1 - A Lost Soul

A/N: Welcome to my first fanfic, I hope you have a good time.

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Drifting in a sea of stars, one might contemplate the beauty of the universe. Perhaps seeking to disturb that everlasting peace, however, is a distortion in space that can be seen in what seems to be endless stars, gleaming in the dark echoes of reality.

From that distortion, suddenly, a portal opens, and what were thought to be motionless stars in the far etches of space, started moving towards that portal.

If you look closely, you can tell, these were not stars, but faint white, roundish esoteric objects floating in unison.

This was the sea of souls.

A faint light shone, and a new soul arrived in line to join the others as if suddenly phasing into reality.

'Where...am I?'

Although he had no eyes to see nor ears to listen, a burning in his chest pulsed, and made him aware of his surroundings.

'What is this feeling? Why am I here?'

The young soul struggles to remember but nothing comes to his mind, it was as if he never existed until now.

'What is going on...Why can't I remember anything?'

Pulse

'There it is again. It doesn't hurt...but why, why do I feel so...melancholic.'

Pulse

'Again, just what is it? Every time it pulses, I feel a wave of emotion, as if urging me to remember.'

Pulse

Pulse

The burning feeling rose like it had a life of its own, and then, fragmented memories of a distant past flashed before the young soul's eyes.

'Ahhh what is this!?'

Memories too fragmented to be made sense of, but for some reason when he saw those scenes, a constant feeling of regret and loneliness washed over him.

'Stop! No more! I don't want to remember!'

As if answering his call, the blinding visages of past memories ceased. Stopping on a few sorted images.

The young soul opened his non-existent eyes to see once more.

'This...ah yes. I remember.'

The assorted images, too jumbled to be made sense of, seem to depict an adventure of a wide-grinning young man with a straw hat.

'It seems that I have passed away. I truly wished I could have seen the end of your adventure before it came to this.'

Pulse

The images changed once more, now depicting the struggles of a boy with red hair and a scar on his forehead.

'Demon Slayer...I can't believe I passed away right when the red district arc started airing. At least I read the manga beforehand I guess.'

Pulse

The sensation pulsed once more, but nothing was shone. It seems that his recollection ends here. Yet, the faint gnawing feeling remained. A yearning in his heart.

'haa...what happens now? I guess I'm in line to reincarnate or something, judging by what's happening.'

The young soul continued to drift ever so slightly towards the portal that drew ever closer.

'What even is the point of reincarnating? I doubt I will remember anything.'

The soul wiggled, swaying back and forth, but each time he always returned to his place.

'No good, I can't move at all. This is so frustrating.'

'Why, why must I suffer to live again? Isn't once enough?'

His anguish grew, recalling the feeling of regret and sadness that the previous pulsing sensations showed him.

'I just want to stay here. Drifting in peace.'

The soul continued to struggle in vain, but as fortune has it suddenly a new soul appeared next to him, his constant wiggling caused them to collide, bumping him out of line.

'Whoa, what was that?'

The soul started drifting away, off course from the many endless lines of souls awaiting their turn to the portal.

'Isn't this bad? Won't this mean I'll be stuck here?'

The young soul cursed his previous thought, as surely nothing could be worse than drifting in the darkness alone.

'Damn it. Just my luck, screwed in life and afterlife.'

He continued to drift, ever so slowly, but certainly away from the natural order of this place. With no one, not even any of the other souls, paying him any attention.

'I don't see any movement from any of the other souls. Is no one else conscious?'

'Whatever, I'll just...sleep. Maybe this isn't the worse thing ever. At least now, I can rest.'

Time passed.

The soul kept floating away, and soon, it was clear he would never make it into any of the myriads of portals. His consciousness began to fray, as his fragmented memories began to settle and collapse in his mind, leaving behind only a few faint images that he held onto during his eternal rest.

As he began to wonder and contemplate how long he has been here between his faint moments of lucid consciousness, a voice suddenly rang in his head.

"What are you doing over here, young one?"

Snap

As if suddenly being reeled him, his consciousness snapped back to reality and what he saw with his non-existent eyes, a faint silhouette of some kind of being, too esoteric for his fragile mind to make out or understand.

'Who are you?'

"I am a guide, for souls such as you. You shouldn't be here, why have you drifted so far away from the rest? Better yet, I wonder why you are conscious at all."

'I don't know, I just...I didn't want to go back. To that life, to that world.'

The being didn't comment but seemed to make an inquisitive gesture as if he was thinking.

Seizing the opportunity, the soul wanted to ask something.

'Mr. Guide, I wonder if you can tell me. You probably have been here a long time right? Tell me. Why are we given life, just to experience suffering?'

The guide contemplated an answer for a while before speaking once more.

"I don't know, young one. As you have surmised I have been here a long time, but I wasn't always here. I have seen many things and experienced much more, before deciding to take up my post here, as a guide to souls as they rejoin the cycle of life."

"I do not know what you have experienced in your past life to make you wonder such things. There is no clear answer I can provide you that will ease your mind. But I what do have, and it is why I am voluntarily here, is hope. Hope that in life, one can aspire to find meaning and happiness."

The soul seemed to wonder as to what the guide meant. Confusion filled his mind as he was unable to accept what he was hearing.

'I guess that just wasn't in the cards for me. There was nothing in life but suffering...and regret.'

The guide seemed to sigh as if in understanding.

"I understand, young one. Let's change the topic, I wonder, would you be willing to indulge me in the tale of your life? It has been ages since I have conversed with anyone."

The soul thought about the guide's request and soon acquiesced. It wasn't like he had anything better to do.

'Sure.'

The guide listened patiently as the soul told him his story, what little he could tell anyway from the fragmented memories of a life long lost. Generally, his tone was grim, sometimes brimming with anger, but occasionally a melancholic tone arose, as he talked about his hobbies in following the adventures of fictional heroes.

Time passed as the soul continued to speak about all he could, while the guide listened ever patiently.

"I see. That was quite the tale, young one. If you will allow me, an old soul, I want to offer you some advice."

The guide waited as if to ask for the soul's approval before continuing.

'Alright.'

"Life is...complicated. To say the least. But if there's one thing of which I have no doubt, happiness can be found, if one is willing to fight for it. For in struggle and suffering are we reminded of the peace and serenity of a new day. You may not understand fully what I am talking about as you are now, but I hope that one day, you will be able to find that happiness you seek."

"For agreeing to my selfish request and accompanying me for our brief period together, I want to give you a gift. Through which I hope you will be able to find happiness."

'A gift?'

"I will open a portal for you. Ruminating here in this vast emptiness will not help you find the answers you want. I will send you to the world of One Piece. I hope that there, in a new land, can you start again."

The soul wiggled excitedly upon hearing the guide's words.

'Really!? You'll do that for me!?'

"Yes, it is of no consequence for me. Though this world, from my understanding, is full of danger. It would be irresponsible of me to promise you a second chance for happiness without some favoritism. I shall grant you another two gifts. The first one will be basic survival knowledge for that world so that wherever you find yourself landing, you should be able to handle yourself."

'Thank you..I...I don't know what to say. No one's ever been this nice to me before.'

The guide seemed to smile, but his form remained ever esoteric.

"The thank you was enough. For your second gift, I will let you choose. Though my abilities are limited to opening portals and providing knowledge, however."

The soul spent some time thinking about what he wanted. He really did not want to waste this second chance. There were many things he thought about that could potentially make his life easy, such as business knowledge or supreme levels of charisma and people skills, but he eventually landed on a single thought.

'I know what I want. Can you provide me with knowledge of all the breathing styles in Demon Slayer?'

The guide seemed bewildered for a moment before chuckling.

"Mhm, I can indeed. Are you sure? Even I don't know whether or not they will work in your new world."

'I'm sure. Since you've given me this chance, I don't want to waste it. I want to take both saviors of my sanity from my previous life with me. Even if it's impossible, I'll make it happen.'

The guide's form did not change, but the soul could tell he smiled.

"Very well, here you go."

The guide shone slightly and a wave of knowledge washed over the soul, implanting him with information foreign to him.

"Now for the last part."

Another shine of light came and before the guide and young soul, appeared a small portal.

"Off you go, I hope that when we meet again, you will be able to tell me about the wonders of your travels."

'Thank yo-'

The soul could not finish his sentence before being dragged into the portal. Before losing consciousness he could sense the guide waving him goodbye.

'I swear I won't waste it. This next life.'