Huh? What's this? Hill wondered as he stared at the glowing message before him. It was a struggle to even wrap his head around it, but some things were starting to become clear.
Igashia—the supposed name of the planet displayed before him earlier—was probably where he was going to be sent. For what reason, he wasn't sure. The language used to describe the planet wasn't pretty, and the wording made it seem like he was a hero being sent there to save the world. He'd read about superhero stuff like this in the city library, where a hero would be sent down to save the world in a time of need. But these heroes possessed power beyond human capability.
Hill was just a child, though. How would he save a mysterious unknown planet when he couldn't even save himself? As he thought back to his death on the bridge, he remembered feeling rooted in place as the monster closed in. Would monsters like that appear in this world? If so, why was he being sent there? Surely the entity behind these mysterious events should know how incapable he was of putting up any meaningful resistance, especially against monsters like that.
He read the last few lines, his eyes glittering as they saw the promise at the end. Divine mission? Greatest wish? A slight cough left his lips. This seems like the stuff of fairy tales!
The glowing message flickered brightly once more, then partly vanished, leaving a bunch of unreadable glyphs behind. These glyphs converged on each other to form a new series of messages—but it was incomplete, and there was something wrong with it.
[Congratulations on proving your worth.]
[For your efforts, you will be granted a bless—]
The sentence was never finished. Instead, the remaining glyphs converged into another line.
[You died.]
"H-huh?" Hill sputtered. "What's going o—"
The message began to tremble and warp, causing strings of light to come undone. Hill watched in contained confusion as the words before him began to break apart. Then he noticed that something strange was happening to him as well.
Thanks to the feeling of losing all five of his senses earlier, he was in a sharpened state of mind. This enhanced state allowed him to notice the strange numbness overwhelming him. It felt like he was floating away from his own body while being simultaneously trapped inside it. Thoughts began to get hazy, and he struggled to do anything in particular. The trembling of the glyphs got worse, and as it did, so did the melting of his mind.
Something of his was fading away—something he didn't understand or comprehend. He began to panic, his body barely responding to his commands as he repeatedly slapped himself in the face. The pain nearly brought him back, but the numbing got stronger, causing his hand to fall harmlessly to the side. It was as if his existence was fading away. It was death.
Unlike the 'deaths' he'd experienced before, this one was much more cold and potent. It was absolute and horrifying, unlike anything he had ever experienced.
But before the numbing got worse, the trembling ceased. The glowing glyphs, which had been trembling as if an earthquake was passing through them, were suddenly straight and calm. Hill still felt terribly numb, but he could tell that the awful sensation wasn't getting worse. His eyes drearily observed as the glyphs broke apart and moved together again. The new message was much more chilling.
[You're a lucky one, human.]
Hill's eyes widened slightly.
[It has been many...many years since something of this nature has happened. I must admit, I wasn't prepared for it at all.]
[But fret not, I can fix this.]
[I believe I possess the materials necessary to correct this unexpected...error.]
[While I won't be able to undo the damage to your soul, I should theoretically be able to fill in the gaps... This process shouldn't cause any issues, I'm...quite sure of it.]
[After all, the taste of a soul shouldn't matter that much, right?]
[Hah! What am I doing speaking to a human? I've truly lost it! And in their language, no less!]
[Anyways, prepare yourself.]
[It's going to hurt.]
Before Hill could even understand what was happening, searing pain shot through his body. Screams tore unconsciously from his throat as he writhed in agony. The pain was an exploding star at the core of his being, a shredding force that felt like invisible hands were ripping apart the foundations of his consciousness.
Thoughts were destroyed before they could even be fully realized, only to be violently reborn into something he couldn't recognize. The sound of his screams blended with foreign sounds that he couldn't separate from his own. In fact, he felt like he was screaming several times, except at the same time. He was pleading, he was crying, he was roaring—all at the same time.
The vanishing sensation that had occurred before was now replaced by a crowding sensation. It felt like things were being shoved into his soul, but he couldn't tell exactly what it was. The numbing sensation was completely gone and now he felt as if he was bubbling back into full form—in the most painful way possible, of course.
Strange memories began to flash within his mind for microseconds, but he could perceive and remember them all with incredible clarity, despite the pain.
An army surrounding him, wielding weapons of unfamiliar make and purpose.
A fiery red sky with a blackening sun.
A sharp blade flying towards him on a snowy day.
A dead child, cradled within his arms.
A bloodied woman fiercely clinging to his legs.
A mirror with the reflection of a pasty white girl, her eyes bleeding and her lips smeared with the same.
A furious battle against a monstrous titan the size of a mountain.
A horde of winged monstrosities, kneeling in submission before him.
A corpse of a raven-haired boy, blood still spreading beneath it in a puddle.
And finally, a pitch black sphere, filled to the brim with an immense nothingness.
After he saw all these things, everything went black.