Overdue Meeting

Michael had expected to return to the forest where he faced off against the abomination. His recollection of the events after he was overcome by rage was hazy. The sudden surge in strength was intoxicating but curious at the same time. He appreciated that he was able to hold his own against the beast but he couldn't shake off the feeling that he had used borrowed power.

It was not by his will that he called upon the shadows, he didn't even know he could do it. After that, his memory was blank. Then he had found himself in the mist-filled swamp faced by a strange man. It felt the same as when he had met Amelia, only this time there was no beauty to it, just intrigue and enigma.

Now he stood in the void of his soul staring at the sphere of his essence floating above his head as it illuminated the void in a subtle dark purple and red glow. His mind was racing and so was his heart. The vestiges of the battle weighed on his body. It was weird, even in the void he could feel... tired. He had not expected it, honestly, he was still trying to understand if he was a spirit or some type of ghost. Yet that was not the subject of his immediate concern.

The man had addressed him as royalty. Considering what Caster had told him, that was not out of place. What was weird was the man, a total stranger, seemed to know about him and his situation. Michael had considered that there might be people out there who knew about emissaries and the whole god of death lore, yet to recognize him as an emissary was not part of his speculations.

It also bothered him how he somehow ended up again in what he considered similar to the void but belonging to the beasts he fought. The first time he considered a fluke, for it to happen a second time threw his earlier assumptions down the gutter. He had assumed the woman from before was responsible for him arriving in Amelia's void. Of course, there was the chance that she and Amelia were one in the same person, but they bore no resemblance whatsoever. This inference was made from the fraction of a second glimpse he had of the woman.

This time, however, he didn't see the face of the woman. Which confused him further. He knew too little, it frustrated him to no end. At the beginning of his second life, he was okay with dismissing mysteries and ignoring anything that didn't make sense. Yet now, a few months into his life, after having decided to commit his efforts to his second life, he was finding it had to ignore things.

He walked around the void in deep thought.

While deep in thought, he failed to notice something subtle that was happening in the void. He only managed to spot it when he allowed his attention to shift to the core of his soul. The darkness of the surface rose from below the sphere and flowed into it in a steady stream of light shadows. it had the semblance of mist; lacking in density or depth of color.

It was odd, but his brain managed to come up with a reasonable guess. Right when rage consumed him, his body surged with darkness. He also remembered feeling a vast emptiness where his navel was and then the shadows had poured out shrouding him and numbing his mind. Involuntarily, he had managed to channel the darkness of his soul and pour it out into the real world.

He felt his heart skip with joy and relief. The realization that he possessed strength put some of his worries at ease. But he was still lacking in control. Putting off quizzing Caster of this mysterious going forward would only stump his growth. Now, he felt like he had a reason to reach out to the man for answers, but he still doubted whether Caster would offer him the answers. He at least had to try.

Finding himself in the void was slightly disorienting, he thought it was only possible for him to access it on will. So how then did he end up here from the void of what he assumed was the beast? Speculations flooded his mind. He entertained the idea that all the voids were somehow connected. It was a wild thought, but it had some sense to it.

However, did his being an emissary make it so the void of his soul held more precedence over the rest? If that were the case, then it had to. That made him speculate he had some control over others' soul-scapes. It was a fascinating thought, the idea of such power almost intoxicating.

Despite the endless possibilities of his current predicament, he still had to go back into the Nether and see what happened after his fight.

Unluckily, the pull that he rode out of his soul-scape was light and had to tug on. His heart felt heavy as the idea that he was stuck here crept through his thoughts. Moving between the void and the outside world was instinctual for him; he didn't understand how it worked. Now, faced with a situation where that method didn't work, he felt... helpless and stupid.

Had he taken time to understand at least the fundamentals of his abilities, or even asked Caster about them, things would have probably been easier. He had allowed his prejudice against Caster to take control of his actions.

"I am still the same", he berated himself as he paced around the void.

He focused his mind on the pull to get out of the void to no avail. It was vague and impossible to focus on; he also had the feeling that something was barring his mind from leaving the Nether. As if there was a barrier between him and his physical body. It was hard to explain, but he felt it and it disturbed him.

Amidst his efforts, the surface stirred and grew turbulent. He felt something pushing against it from below. Something was trying to make its way into his soul-scape. Before he could react, before even panic could take hold of his heart, the surface rippled and tore noiselessly.

Something was coming through. He saw darkness, much darker than that of his soul pour into his soul-scape. It was accompanied by a discomfort in his whole body that went much deeper as if his very soul was repulsed by the intruder. Then from the darkness, the slender figure of a woman stepped into the void. Michael remained frozen as the foreigner's figure became clear, illuminated by the eerie glow of his soul.

She wore a flowing dress of a white tunic with fair skin and hair the likes of a raven waterfall. She was breathtaking, stunning Michael momentarily and taking his mind from the intrusion. In elegant steps, she walked closer to where he stood and stretched out her arm in greeting. Michael flinched at the gesture.

"Hello Michael, no need to be wary. I am Galia, firstborn daughter of Death. Nice to finally meet you"

[Authors Note: late night upload. I apologize for delaying uploads, been held up recently. My schedule is freer now. Juicy chapters in store. Don't forget to vote. Enjoy!]