Chapter 1: Reborn

[3rd POV]

"You're lucky... soul."

An otherworldly voice sounded blazing with power.

Those words sent ripples of energy through the universe, but the soul remained protected to avoid bursting and returning to the River of Souls.

This soul appeared in a small room clearly floating in space, where countless stars twinkled, and soon the "soul" began to take on a humanoid form.

At first, what looked like arms came out, then legs and a head.

It was impossible to see faces or anything like that because the soul itself simply took on a more convenient form in this place.

"Where am I?"

The weak voice of the soul sounded.

"In a place called "The Edge of the Universe" or "The Abyss," but I don't think you care about the name. You can assume that ordinary people can't get to this place…"

"...this all feels oddly familiar to me."

"The previous one like you said something similar, but he was from a different version of your planet's timeline from the early 21st century. I imagine you have more descriptions of what's happening."

"I died... I remember it vividly... unless, of course, I survived after the plane exploded... I did say it was a bad idea to fly over that country's restricted airspace."

The soul seemed to exhale and continue looking around.

"So, this is what death is like?"

"If it were a regular death, you wouldn't be asking such questions and would simply clear of all memories for the next life. Of course, that's not how most people experience death."

"You're not saying I'm the son of some god? Or that I once seduced some goddess?"

The soul began to ask.

"By the way... who are you?"

"It's not particularly important, but you can think of me as the will of your universe, and I took a suitable form to communicate with you."

The otherworldly voice replied, and the soul could see that there was a vast cosmic head composed of stars.

"And no, you're not some son of god, nor have you seduced goddesses... at least not right now."

"Well, it was worth a try."

The soul spoke lightly.

"And forgive me if I talk too much..."

"Don't worry, I'm not one of those 'gods' who would be angered because of your words... and yes, I know what you're thinking. It's fine with me. It would be hard for me not to do so, and try to think quieter if you wish. I'm here precisely for you. That's why I said you're lucky. It was so rare that it only happened three times before you—people from other parallel Earths ended up here. And yes, specifically from parallel planets of your Earth. Why? Because HE favors this planet greatly."

"He?"

The soul swallowed while sensing something strange.

"Yes, HE. The one whose will is eternal, the one who can do anything and everything. He has many names, and you can simply say he's the true God... but that absolutely doesn't describe his capabilities. He's called ROB."

"ROB? That's a very... strange name for the Almighty."

"It's not for us to judge. So, your soul ended up here, and you're given the opportunity to spin the wheel of fate. Yes, the same thing happened in several 'fanfics' from your world."

"Oh... and if I get something awful, can I refuse?"

The soul asked.

"No, this determines your future destiny, as strange as it may sound. You spin it twice. The first one is the choice of the world. It can be absolutely any world you know or have heard of or even didn't suspect."

"The second one is the possible powers. Yes, both the world and the powers are divided into ranks from D to SSS. It has a High and a Low status for each rank. The powers are also divided into levels associated with these ranks, from first to tenth. This is done to make it easier for you to understand."

"That's... quite a lot."

The soul managed to squeeze out.

"And what about my memory? Will I still remember things even if I get a powers?"

"Yes, your memory will be with you, and you'll end up in a body suitable for your age and appearance. You can't adjust or change this, but most likely you'll end up in a person with your appearance."

"Got it... well, I wasn't that ugly."

The soul shrugged.

"Then spin."

The otherwordly voice said, and a wheel appeared with various descriptions of different worlds.

'It's a good thing I don't have any parts in this state otherwise, I would have bitten all my nails.'

The soul thought.

'But the fact that I feel strange in general is... well, a fact there's no hysteria, no shock... it's like I'm under something.'

The soul spun the wheel and gazed at a small glowing arrow.

'Hellsing Ultimate... dear God, thank goodness it's not this world. I hardly know anything about it. MHA won't be bad, and it's a rather peaceful world if you don't consider the villains. It's much better than Naruto. Warhammer 40k? It's better to hang myself right away...'

The soul remarked on the more or less familiar worlds it saw. Then the arrow began to slowly stop, and...

"DC world, or rather one of many."

The otherwordly voice spoke.

"It's an SSS-ranked world."

"Um, maybe we could go back to MHA?"

The soul spoke somewhat dejectedly.

"It's good that you feel so at ease... but no, the choice has been made. There are many powerful beings there, but it's not the version of the world you're thinking of. There may or may not be some beings from the Prime version."

"Are you sure some heroes won't just kill me when I arrive?

"No. The world has been chosen, and you already have past not as someone coming from the outside but as someone born there. You already have a body, a past, and a life. Think of it as taking on the form of yourself but as someone with a slightly different life. Your memories and, possibly, traits would be different. Now, it's time for powers."

"Oh, alright... the hope that this is all just a dream still lingers in my... my soul, yes."

The soul grumbled and spun the wheel again.

"Sharingan... Kryptonian genes... Power of Love? Reality manipulation... so many different powers, if I'm lucky, I could become somewhat powerful right away and fit into history..."

"Is this... Gacha?"

The humanoid soul suddenly glowed.

"Hm, you're lucky again, very much so... or is the will of the Almighty involved here?"

The otherwordly voice spoke, who could be the Almighty for very, very many beings.

"This is the "Universal Gacha," and it's also of a high SSS level because it literally has everything."

"That's... reassuring."

The soul uttered still unsure whether to be happy or not since it had never been fond of gachas.

"That's it. The world and the powers have been chosen. Good luck on your journey."

The otherworldly said and the soul barely had time to come to its senses before it felt as if it were being sucked and all vision had disappeared.

...

[1st POV]

My consciousness returned as abruptly as I had plunged into darkness. There was no sense of pain just a slight numbness in my hands and feet.

My mind went over memories as the body lay on something soft and my new soul tried to understand what was happening.

My other "self" was similar in appearance and habits, but his story was very different from mine.

I am the original and remember myself as a child born in Massachusetts with loving parents.

My father was from one of the CIS countries, while my mother was from the USA. I knew three languages by the age of eighteen— Russian, English, and Polish.

The first one was because my dad loved that country and his family there, and the last one was for a friend.

Overall, my life wasn't unusual. I grew up in a comfortable family and had friends, one girl with whom I didn't end up getting along with.

It was nothing special. I also loved games and some anime, and in recent years, I have become interested in various books, fanfics, manga, and so on.

This didn't prevent me from studying and hanging out with friends... that's all worth knowing.

I'm sure of this because I have a second collection of memories.

My new name is Anthony Joseph Luthor, or just "Tony." He's nineteen years old, and I am the younger brother of a well-known criminal mastermind and Superman's number one enemy.

I was born into the Lionel and Letitia Luthor family, but my childhood wasn't very good due to my cruel father and mother who ignored it.

Lex Luthor is now in charge of a rapidly growing company, but it is still not the huge multinational corporation from the comics.

My parents died in an accident, and Lex quickly became rich thanks to the life insurance he received on them sometime before their deaths.

I was somewhat numb, and as Anthony became older, he realized that the world wasn't very colorful.

This was particularly obvious when his older brother left him with his sick sister and took all the money.

I have a sister here, and her name is Lena Luthor.

She was about twelve years old when she was diagnosed with a disease that made it hard for her to walk, and she's now stuck in a wheelchair.

We don't have the money for treatment yet, and Lex can't help.

It's frustrating because I've lived a whole new life and can't help but see him as someone who isn't related to me—distant but still related.

"Oh, just great."

I blurted it out as soon as I opened my eyes and saw the blanket in front of me.

I was lying in my bedroom in an apartment in Metropolis, where "Superman" works, but no one knew him yet.

Lena and I have settled quite nicely in a small apartment on the outskirts of the city.

I was smarter than my past self... probably because of genetics. Lena is also very smart.

However, I had no doubts about that, so Lena works remotely through a laptop.

I also sometimes work as a web designer to create programs. Lena and I are the same age nineteen years old.

We both are still studying at Metropolis University.

I don't even know how to fix myself right now... whether I am me with just an additional set of knowledge or if I stole the body of my parallel "self."

I hope for the first option, and there's no need to think too much about this.

"Hmmm."

I got out of bed and opened the door to walk to the kitchen.

I reached for the fridge with the motion of my hand, but I saw myself in a small mirror just above the handle.

"Why did you wake up so early?"

A beautiful female voice sounded.

"Lena."

I smiled at the sight of my sister.

I can see now from the outside why she often wanted Anthony to go out more and make friends... she thinks I am wasting my potential by being around her.

After all, she considers herself crippled and just a burden to me.

Anthony never even thought about it, but now it makes me sad that she could think that way.

"Oh, wow, what's gotten into you?"

Lena smiled at me as I walked up to her. I bent down and hugged her tightly while lifting her a little from her wheelchair.

Anthony was saving money for her treatment, but only a third of the total amount needed for the surgery had been collected so far.

"I just miss you."

I honestly confessed what I felt.

I was living my life and not thinking much about anything, and I died.

Then I found myself somewhere unknown, gained powers, and moved to another world where I have a sister... It's like a plot for some fanfic.

...

Words: 2,012