7 Chapter 7

Arc 1: Character Creation

...

And just like that my Character Creation was complete.

Overall I felt happy with my choices.

They weren't perfect, nor were they too overpowered but they were useful and I was happy and content with what I had taken.

It wasn't like I couldn't improve by training, all my choices practically guaranteed that from now things were bound to go up!

[You're finally done? I was beginning to think that you were going to spend the next eternity just creating your character.] Said the snarky and mocking voice of Mr. Screen.

My eyebrows twitched in annoyance but I stomped it all down.

Acting annoyed and angry wasn't going to serve any purpose, I didn't know what this mysterious being would do to me should I offend it and I didn't want to test it.

"Yeah, yeah." I waved my hands(?) dismissively. "You do know that I have to choose these things carefully right? I won't exactly be able to exchange anything if I make a mistake."

[But that's where fun is!] whined the supposedly super powerful entity that can casually grant powers beyond ones imaginations.

I sweatdropped. You could practically hear the pout in his voice as if I had taken his favourite toy away from him.

I was once again annoyed by his rather... irritable personality but I stayed silent.

I had practically no guarantee that the mysterious entity was going to do what it said and won't just back out of this deal, so I had to behave if it increased even the slightest chance of this being true.

"How long will I have to stay here?" I asked irritably but still in a polite tone.

[Again, you're no fun Mortal! But you're right I should send you off if I don't want my siblings to mock me for taking so long just to process a puny Mortal.] He muttered.

I chose not to comment on it cause I strictly believed in the term 'ignorance is a bliss'.

If I didn't know it, it wouldn't effect me.

Hopefully.

[So listen carefully Mortal, here it goes~] He said in playful voice before changing in the 'strict no-nonsense' tone I had heard in the Mission Impossible movies.

[Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to eliminate or defeat the main 'antagonist' of your adventure and of your 'World Setting'. You will not know who they are and you'll have to find it yourself-]

"-Wait! That's it?! That's all I get!?!" I interrupted in outrage when I heard that I also had to figure out who the 'antagonist' was.

Just dealing with them was going to annoying now even having to find them!?

Not to mention they could literally be anyone! From a small and innocent child to a full on cosmic god!

But despite all this, I quickly reigned in my anger.

Breath in... Breath out... Breath in... Breath out...

Fuuuu... It was no use crying about it now.

But I had some lines that I would dare not cross, and hurting innocent kids was one of them.

[Can I continue now?] Mr. Screen asked in a bored tone seemingly having no effect despite my outburst.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I talked while taking deep breaths(?).

[If it's some solace to you Mortal, it will be a person with 'Negative' or 'Evil' alignment and you won't have to hurt an innocent.] He said in an almost understanding tone.

'Maybe I was wrong about you Mr. Screen, you're a bro!' I thought internally as I smiled.

[But you're still a Loser, Loser.] He snickered.

"Hey! What was that for?" I asked in a faux-hurt tone. "And I was beginning to think we were becoming the best of friends!"

[Yeah right :P] He scoffed.

I sighed but the smile was still on my face(?).

It was a relief. It truly was. I don't think I would have been able to hurt an innocent person.

And even if did, I wouldn't have been able to show my face to my family if I did so...

So after a huge sigh of relief I cheered up and shook off my worries.

I was getting too worked upon this anyways, the 'antagonist' was probably going to be either Thanos or Knull.

Maybe Beyonder or Doom but it's a big maybe.

Even Mephisto but it would be a stretch.

It was very predictable nowadays since literally all fanfics went the same way...

My adventure would also be not that different... Right?

[Ahem!]

A cough from Mr. Screen quickly pulled me out from my train of thought which I dismissed to focus on what he was going to say.

[As I was previously saying Mortal, you won't know who they are and you'll have to find them yourself-] He continued.

[But even if you don't, you may have some 'Chance Encounters' with them and you'll also get a strange feeling when you're around them.]

'That'll be handy.' I thought in approval.

[In return, you'll be granted the powers, perks and complications that you have chosen and if you succeed in defeating/eliminating the main 'antagonist', you'll be granted two choices. First, you can return to your world at the same place and time of your death/departure with all your powers, perks and everything in your own body. Or Second, you can continue your adventure to other worlds with an another chance at character creation.]

[If you accept this mission you will be knowingly and willingly giving up your place in afterlife and if you die again or fail in your task, you will be sent to Oblivion.]

As Mr. Screen finished talking some changes happened to the CYOA interface in front of me.

The grey button that was at the bottom of the page turned green, thus signifying that it was ready and I could start my adventure right now if I wanted to.

While I was conflicted for not knowing exactly who I was being sent to defeat, anticipation and excitement were still drumming in my heart(?).

I was going to live the dream of all the weebs!

I was going to go on a literal Isekai adventure with freaking superpowers!

So why...

Why was I feeling so... Empty inside?

Deep down I knew the answer.

It was going to be long, long time before I could see my family again.

I could even fail for I knew...

And then... I won't be able to see them... ever again...

It was terrifying thought, that I wished desperately not to come to pass.

Even if I win and defeat whoever I was being sent to defeat, I would probably be a very changed person by then.

'Will they even recognise me by then?' This was one of my biggest worries.

That I would change so much that... That they wouldn't be able to even recognise me...

'Will I even be able to recognise myself?'

Just then I remembered a memory.

It was the next day after the Pony Incident, I had woken up in a hospital room after I has passed out from the shock and pain of the bite.

When I woke up both of my parents and even my baby brother were there besides me as if they had never left.

It had brought tears to my eyes then, which had woken up my parents.

They had tried to console me when they saw that I was crying, thinking that it was from the pain.

But I was crying tears of happiness.

I knew that I was loved. I always did. But it was the first time I had seen just how much my family loved me.

So I had hugged them while they tried to console me.

'We'll always love you Sam.' I heard their voices as if they were here right next to me, but I knew they were not.

But it was enough.

Any and all reservations and insecurities that I still had, vanished.

Remembering those times hardened my resolve.

I was-No! I AM going to go back to my family...

Whatever it takes.

So with renewed resolve I pressed the green button...

And...

And...

"Why isn't anything happening!?" I asked/shouted.

[Oh! Well it seems that the maintenance guy didn't fix it properly. Sorry I'll have to do manually.] Mr. Screen said sheepishly.

...

I giggled which quickly turned into laughter.

I just couldn't help it.

I laughed like a mad man.

And afterwards, I felt ten times lighter.

Someone was right when they said that 'Laughter was the best medicine'.

"Never change Mr. Screen. Never change." I said while shaking my head and still occasionally letting out small chuckles.

...

[-That goes there, a click here... And Done! I've fixed it Mortal, now you may try again.] He says.

I sighed in relief, I was beginning to think that all of this was just a sham.

Thankfully, it wasn't.

It took a few hours (I think? Time was weird here) but Mr. Screen solved the issue.

The button was now blinking green, and with just one click, I could go and start my new adventure...

But before that.

"Thank you for this opportunity Mr. Screen. I won't disappoint you." I said gratefully.

I was nothing if not grateful for this opportunity.

Even if I had been chosen at random, it was still his decision to continue with it.

A little 'thank you' went a long way sometimes. And there was nothing wrong in being a little grateful when someone helped you.

Always remember, they didn't NEED to help you, but they did anyway.

[You're welcome Mortal.] Answered the voice of Mr. Screen.

[Now get on with it! I have other things to do!] He beckons me and I'm sure if he had a body, he would be moving his hands in a 'shoo-shoo' motion.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm going!" I replied excitedly.

So without any further adeu, I pressed the glowing and blinking green button...

Instantly, strong winds(?) started blowing in my face(?) and all over my body(?).

A kaleidoscope of colors started shimmering around me in the dark void as the CYOA screen was dismissed and replaced by prompts by the mysterious system.

[Initiating Resurrection Of The Body...]

[Complete!]

[Inserting Soul...]

[Complete!]

[Applying CYOA...]

[Complete!]

[Initiating World Travel...]

[Complete!]

[... We Hope You Enjoy Your New Adventure!]

By the time all the prompts and preparations finished, the void I was in previously had been long replaced by the shimmering kaleidoscopic colours.

The winds(?) had picked up so much speed that it felt like I was in the middle of a hurricane.

Then just as the prompts ended, a blue coloured wormhole opened beneath me and sucked me like a vaccum cleaner.

I had no time to react before I was sent hurling through a tube(?) of blue energy.

With each passing second my speed kept increasing as did the force of the hitting my face(?)...

But rather than being afraid, I was excited and thrilled.

There's just something about moving at extremely high speeds that excites and exhilarates a person.

Well as long as the person in question doesn't have motion sickness that is.

Good for me then, cause I don't.

But I discard all those thoughts for the sheer exhilaration I felt...

'It's as if I'm flying.' I gleefully thought to myself as I felt the wind(?) hit my face(?).

Flying has always been a dream of mine, ever since I sat on a bike with an older cousin of mine and felt the cold air of winter hit my face.

I had wondered at that time 'What would flying feel like if even this feels so good?'

And since then, it's been a constant dream of mine.

In fact, jumping off an airplane (with a parachute, of course) was on my to-do-list of things to do before I died.

Shame I couldn't complete even a quarter of them...

But for now, I forgot all those thoughts and the countless worries floating in my head...

And I simply enjoyed the moment.

"Woooohooooo!" I yelled in joy and of the sheer exhilaration I felt at this moment as the strong winds(?) swept past my face(?) and the blue tube of energy filled my vision as I traveled through it like a bullet.

Unfortunately my enjoyment quickly came to an end as the speed reached another level where the blue colour started to fade into white and white light seemed to start enveloping my vision...

At that moment, for a brief and fleeting second, I felt truly Free.

Before everything turned white...

My eyelids(?) suddenly felt a lot heavier...

I started to feel tired all of a sudden...

And I slowly lost consciousness.

...

[End Of Arc 1: Character Creation]

===============

And Done!

We have successfully completed the first Arc!

While some will say that I had unnecessarily made this Arc longer, I would beg to differ.

I wanted to flesh it out and show a little personality of the MC. You know, his motivations, likes, dislikes, fears, etc...

And sorry for the delay, I had gone to sleep thinking I would wake up in an hour but surprise surprise! I woke up the next morning :P

The Pony story is true btw.

The next Arc will be started the next week, or the week after that, depending on If I have time to write.

Please leave some good reviews and Power Stones! They motivate me to write a chapter much quicker!

See Ya Later!