Chapter 2...

Ken was born smart. He was born into a conglomerate family that was all about business and being smart. He graduated top of his class and bagged two degrees in two unrelated courses. He was a business genius.

But.

Ken was so smart that he became stupid. He didn't pay attention to the tiny details around him, and when he set his mind to do something, he focused all his attention on that one thing and forgot to look at his surroundings.

And now...

"Damn it!"

Ken screamed as he ran out of the bathroom, his destination was the room where he was with Asiya.

'If Mum has been trying to reach me for a month and all of a sudden reached me now, it certainly means that I have been tracked.' He gritted his teeth in frustration. 'The court verdict put my life in danger. I have worked with Uncle for ten years and I know how far he can go to get what he wants.' He pushed the door to the room open.

"Ken!!!"

He heard someone scream his name.

And then, a gunshot rang out.

The sound of a gun shot in the soundproof room. It was definitely not from the movies. Titanic didn't have such realistic CGI to make the gunshot so real. But, if the shot was fired at him, how come he didn't feel pain?

"No, no, no, no, no. What have you done?"

He caught Asiya as she collapsed in his arms. Her white gown was soaked with blood, spreading from the bullet wound in her back. And at the front facing her was a man he recognized all too well.

"Uncle?"

He was surprised. He believed his uncle could go this far, but seeing it in person was more shocking than the thought.

Ken held the dying Asiya in his arms. He sat down gently, not to make her wound worse.

"Ken..."

Asiya called out weakly. He could feel her life force fading away from her. She coughed out blood from her mouth.

How could a human be so weak? They were just having a nice conversation and tonight, he planned to finally ask her out.

"Shh..."

Ken signalled her to keep quiet.

"Save your strength."

He said, then he turned to his uncle.

"She is not part of this. Please, please I beg you, let her go to the hospital, they might be able to save her."

His voice was filled with indignation.

"I am sorry, Ken, that is not how the world works."

His uncle apologized.

"She has no part in any of this. Would you be so heartless?"

He was annoyed. Ken really wanted to smash his uncle's face, but beside him were guards and one of them had a gun pointed at him. It was useless to retaliate.

"I will give you a moment with her."

He said, walking out of the room.

"Asiya... I am sorry for dragging you into all of this."

Ken was heartbroken. His mind went blank.

"I wish I showed you how much I cared about you."

Tears streamed down his eyes, but not for himself, it was for how stupid and self-centered he was.

"I understand."

Even till the last moment, she didn't hate or accuse him, she still cared for him.

"It's funny how you planned to propose to me today, but we ended up like this."

She lifted her weak hand to caress Ken's cheek.

"You knew?"

Ken asked and Asiya answered with a smile.

She coughed out blood again, but made a gesture that she was okay.

"You always pretend to be okay, even when you are not."

Ken gave himself a mocking smile. He made Asiya go through a lot for his selfishness.

"You know... the first time I fell in love with you was since the end of middle school, when I came to your parents' home for the first time. There I saw you, all grumpy and cold. You hated everything and everyone, and even hated me for being your sister's friend. But I guess I was the only one who could read your true emotions from your eyes. And you were too handsome not to love."

She smiled as she reminisced the old days.

"You hated your sister to the bone, didn't you?"

She asked weakly.

"Yeah, I did back then. Guess I have been selfish all along."

He answered.

"But then you moaned in regret when she died. It wasn't you being selfish, it was you being indecisive."

She explained to him.

"I told you I could give my life for some I cared about...and I proved it didn't I?"

"Yes, you did." He answered. "I should have been the Jack and you Rose."

"And live the rest of my life in solitude? I'm sorry, but no thanks." She joked, but coughed out more blood in the process.

"I know my uncle. If you had not taken that bullet, he would have let you go." He said.

"Should I have watched you die? Even if I didn't take the bullet, I'm sure I wouldn't rest until I have killed him. And looking at how guarded he is, I'm sure I wouldn't even last a day before joining you in death." She answered.

Ken caressed her cheek and smiled with love in his eyes. "If there is a next life, I would be the one seeking your love and not the other way around."

"I did not expect to see this side of you during my last moment. It was worth it." Ken could tell she was happy as she said that.

"The ring. Put it on my finger." She demanded.

Ken brought out a shiny ring from his pocket, then letting her rest on the wall, he knelt with one knee and held her hand. "Would you like to spend the rest of your life with this unworthy man?" He proposed.

"You don't rehearse that well, but yes." She beamed with a smile, but her teeth and lips were stained with blood, making her look more pale and fragile.

"Time is up." The guard with the gun announced, as he pointed the gun at Ken.

"I'm sorry." Ken cried out, as he hugged the weak Asiya.

"You don't need to be. We spent the rest of our life together, didn't we?"

Bang. Bang. Bang.

'If the universe could take pity on me.' He thought, as his life faded. 'Let me right my wrong.' He closed his eyes, as the bullet penetrated his head, and then another, and the last one was aimed at Asiya.

They both died tragically.

.

********

Ken woke up to a pitch-black void. He could not see anything, not even his own hands. He clenched his fist and felt a pulse of pain. He was alive.

[Welcome]

Ken heard a mythical voice speaking to him. He looked up, trying to find the source of the voice, but he immediately felt a crushing pressure on his chest. He gasped for air, barely able to stand upright.

He saw a colossal entity looming over him. It had three heads. One of them was a grotesque beast, with horns, fangs, and glowing red eyes. The other was a human face, but it kept changing shape and age. Sometimes, it was an old woman, then a baby, then a teen, then a young boy. The last head was faceless, except for a single eye that opened and closed at random.

[Took you long enough to get here]

The faceless head spoke, sounding like it knew him already.

"Where the hell am I? Why am I here? I'm supposed to be dead." Ken said, his voice trembling.

[This is the abyss. It is also known as the place between life and death]

The entity explained.

"Then I'm not dead, but in a coma?" Ken asked.

The entity seemed calm and patient, answering all of his questions.

[No. Those in a coma wander around the world in their soul state. They experience their regrets, worries, and what those who are close to them think of them]

The entity said, then the faceless head opened its eye and stared at Ken.

[I see]

The entity closed its eye again.

[You are lucky. I would have obliterated your soul if you were brought here by the reapers]

The entity said, resuming its original position.

"You mean the grim reapers?" Ken asked.

[You are one of those who run from their obligations]

The faceless head said, sounding stern and disappointed, like a mother scolding her child.

[You are lucky the universe decided to give you a chance]

"A chance? A chance at what?" Ken asked.

[You will be granted power and reborn to fulfill what you were supposed to. Your uncle is your task. You must stop him from gaining more power]

The entity waved its hand and a holographic image appeared in front of Ken. He saw a destroyed world, fire burning everywhere, and his uncle leading an army of millions, armed with futuristic weapons. He heard the screams of children, women, and men.

He felt a surge of guilt, rage, and despair. He had helped his uncle get this powerful, by betraying his family and his people. He had died without fulfilling his purpose.

[You have a chance to change this. You will be reborn with the power of wisdom to stop him before he gets too strong. Cherish this chance]

"Wait! Wait! Wait! How do you expect me to stop someone this strong with just the power of wisdom?" Ken asked, confused.

[You will find out once you are reborn]

The entity answered.

[Oh, sorry, I almost made a disaster. Something needs to be taken from you before you can be reborn]

The entity said, sounding embarrassed.

"What is it? As long as I can take revenge on my uncle for what he did to me and Asiya"

Ken clenched his fists, remembering Asiya dying in his arms. She was his childhood friend, his first love, his only hope.

[That is the spirit. But the memory of Asiya will be sealed. And only when you get strong enough will it be unsealed]

"What?!! Then what's the point of being reborn?" Ken screamed, in denial.

[You have no choice, kid. Don't be cheugy]

The entity said, proudly shaking its head, as if it had done something great.

"What? What's cheugy?" Ken asked, baffled by the slang word.

[Cheugy is a word that describes someone who is out of date or trying too hard to be trendy. It is the opposite of cool)

The entity said, then pushed Ken into a portal that was prepared behind him without his notice.

"Ah!!!"

Ken's scream was cut off as he disappeared into the portal.

....

"Did you have to do that?"

Another entity emerged from the darkness.

The three-headed entity turned to see who was talking to it.

"I did what I had to do"

It replied.

"Did you have to seal his memory?"

The other entity asked.

 "I did what I had to"