Around me, there was nothing. By nothing, I didn’t mean that there was nothing interesting, I mean literally nothing was there. Nothing to see, nothing to stand on, nothing to even breathe. Hell, I couldn’t even make out my own arms, if they were even there. Which I wasn’t sure of due to the fact that I couldn’t feel them. Then again, considering that I couldn’t feel a single part of my body, I guess it wasn’t all that surprising that I couldn’t feel them.

  I tried to spin around, to see where I was, but nothing happened. Or at least, I don’t think anything happened. I couldn’t really tell. Not when there was nothing to see. There wasn’t even a speck of light far off in the distance. So much for there being some sort of light at the end of the tunnel.

  Then again, why would anyone know of such a structure? Wouldn’t death know if they were going to pass on or not? Wouldn’t it prevent those who were destined to return away from what comes after lest it ruin the surprise?

  Wait. Was I in the afterlife or just in a sort of limbo? Players, well, people from Earth were supposedly sort of able to come back after dying. But did that mean they saw the other side or were they in a sort of universal buffer, waiting for their turn to be sent back to respawn? Speaking of respawn, where was mine?

  A piece of darkness coiled in front of me, cutting my rambling thoughts off as it yanked every bit of attention to figuring out what the fuck it was. The thing was black, yet I could see it when I shouldn’t be able to. Not only that but the thing twisted in and out of sight. Parts of it vanished into the distance while not moving away from me in any direction. Suddenly, a part that seemed an infinite distance away slid close enough that, if I still had hands, I would have been able to touch it.

  Its skin was shiny, as if every bit of it was covered in slime. There also seemed to be a lack of anything sticking out of whatever it was. Almost as if the coiling darkness was the entirety of it. Which made some sense given that there was no light, but it begged the question as to what it used to navigate with. Of course, that wasn’t the only question I had, but it was the one that stuck in my mind, mostly. The other question that competed with it for attention was that of what the creature ate.

  Afraid that it would notice me and decide to take a bite, I stayed as still as I could. Given that I didn’t know how to breathe, let alone move, this wasn’t all that hard. The creature moved, if one could call what it was doing moving, past me. Eventually disappearing into the distance.

  Minutes and years later, another creature moved past me. Unlike the last one, this one blurred a bit as it dove into and out of sight. Moments later, a smaller creature zipped past me. Its dives were short and fast as it chased the second creature. Too bad I wouldn’t be able to see what it would do when it finally caught up. After all, the creature, given its size, could be a child, or it could be a top predator. I had no idea but I wanted – no, I needed to know. Especially if I was going to be here for any length of time.

  There was no sense of vertigo or movement. Between one moment and the next my line of sight changed. It went from the nothingness of the void to yet more nothingness of the void. Only this nothingness contained the two creatures that had passed me.

  The tiny thing quickly caught up to the other creature. Based on how the big one flailed and attacked the smaller thing. Or at least it tried. The moment one of its tentacles crossed half the space between the two, the small one became not so small.

  As if it was a whale exploding out of the water, the no-longer-so-small creature exploded out of wherever it was. Waves of tentacles erupted around the creature, blocking off every avenue of escape. Before I could understand what was going on, everything constricted and pulled its victim out of sight.

  Seeing that reminded me to not underestimate anything, especially when one added some other dimension that I could not see or sense. That was what it had to be after all. How else would something disappear into the distance without moving away in the traditional sense after all?

  Thankfully, the tiny creature didn’t notice me, it instead took off in search of more food. Maybe it was even chasing the first creature I had seen. Still, with it gone, I had nothing to anchor myself to. Nothing to occupy my mind and keep me sane as I drifted in the void.

  The sound of shattering glass reached my ears. It was the first sound that I had heard since waking up here and it sounded…weird. Without warning, a flat line appeared in the distance. While I could make it out, I had a feeling that it would vanish if I looked at it straight on. Almost as though it had length and that was it. No height nor any width. But that wasn’t possible, right?

  A pattering, tinkling glass sound filled the space as the line twisted, expanded, and shrank. Then, whatever it was, shattered outward. The reverberations of which vibrated through the void. Yes, I know how that sounds. How could something vibrate that which was empty? How could it make a sound when there was no air? I have no goddamned idea how it worked and something told me I didn’t want to know. That the act of trying to figure it out would drive me even closer to insanity than I was already.

  The thing, whatever it was, went from a flat line to a dot before opening up. Flat panes of something expanded out in every direction. While each had only two dimensions, together, they created a facsimile of a third dimension.

  Various images played out on each pane, most of which sent shivers flicking across whatever form I currently had. A swarm of little formless creatures circled a cloaked creature. When I first saw it, I nearly cried out in joy at seeing something humanoid, but then I caught a glimpse of what was under the hood. It was empty. There was no creature, no life, nothing, just more void. Just looking at it gave me the feeling of hunger that could never be sated.

  Tearing my eyes from one pane to another, I found this one full of light and life. Grass, trees, and even a town lay in the distance. I almost cried out in joy at the sight. Then I noticed the creatures, or at least the dead and the dying. They were twisted things. Their bodies were no longer even reminiscent of something that should be allowed to live as something else worked its way inside. A hungry blackness oozed through a crack in the soil as it worked its way into the nearest bodies. Either to eat the creature or to take it over.

  “Not something one expects, is it?” Someone said from next to me. Their voice was as neutral in tone as I had ever heard. As if this place wasn’t so odd. As if it wasn’t so….wrong. I tried to respond but found that I couldn’t. “Here, let me.” It said as a body hand waved in front of whatever passed for my eyes in this place. I felt a wash of heat from whatever it did. Before the heat even had time to dissipate, I felt the icy coldness of this place. It stabbed at my skin as it tried to get to the heat.

  “Where am I?” I asked while trying to skin to face whatever it was that stood next to me. “What is this place and why am I here?”

  “You died.” It said as it flicked out its hand a second time. The sounds of tinkling glass returned as the panes retreated into themselves. Losing their various dimensions as they returned to the line that originally caught my attention.

  “So this is hell?” The laugh that came from it lacked the joy that I expected given its volume.

  “There is no heaven, nor a hell, at least not as you would understand them. This is the void between worlds.” It gestured around at the expanse of nothing.

  “So it is space? But then how are we talking?” Space around me twisted as the creature went from next to me, to standing in front of me. Its face was covered in a hood, but that didn’t stop me from seeing what was under it. One moment it was a young woman, then it was an old man before suddenly becoming a skeleton.

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  The constantly changing face nearly caused me to miss what it said. “Not space, the void. There is nothing here. It is not a part of any reality. Time, space, distance, mana, and even life as you know it, none of that exists here. What you see flying around are creatures of the void. They live in, thrive in, the void between worlds. Still, like the void, they hunger for more. Pushing to enter where they shouldn’t as they look for more to eat.”

  It stopped talking as it looked off into the distance. After a moment, I broke the silence with a question. “So if I am dead, what happens next?”

  “You have two options.” The way it spoke said that it didn’t care which options I took, just that I make my decision so that it could move on. “You can choose to stay here, to try and survive, to make your way back to reality on your own, or you can let me help you return.”

  “So wait, a person could just die, pop up here, and then simply come back to life on their own? Or would they come back as a ghost or something?”

  It shook its head. “While that is possible, in my entire existence a mortal has never managed it. Being able to traverse the void is one of those things that separates a god from a mortal. After all, how else would we gods stop these things from infesting reality?”

  I shot it a confused look. “So if one made it back on their own they would be a god?”

  “No,” it shook its head once before looking into the distance as if contemplating something. “For one to navigate and travel in the void, one must be able to force their will upon it. For example, my will is why you are able to converse with me freely. It is why you currently have a body. It is partially why this section of the void is so free of creatures.”

  “What do you mean partially why?”

  “Those that survived my visits have learned that they need to simply wait for me to leave. Of course, this means that, if the soul decides to not take me up on my offer, they are eaten quite quickly.”

  That was…this was…this creature was hustling me. This god, creature, thing, was basically saying that, unless I accepted its offer, I would be eaten shortly after it left. Though, there was another question that bugged me. “Whatever happened to the river Styx? Was it ever real or something we humans made up?”

  Its head was that of a skeleton as it sighed. “Just like every other story revolving around death and its many forms, they are all based on what you see. Eons ago, I used to meet a soul at the moment of its death and take it to its next destination. Where it goes from there, I am not at liberty to say.”

  The way it answered the question was odd. “You said it used to be. What do you do now?”

  “You think the gods simply sit around, not willing to change in any way as time passes us by? I got a few of the other gods to help me automate the process. This whole picking up the dead and returning them to the land of the living is new. An experiment if you will.” It waved its hand as if dismissing any further discussion on the topic. “Now, back to the decision you need to make. To return or not. To take my offer or not.”

  “And what is your offer?” I asked, a bit annoyed that I had no choice. Then again, it wasn’t like I knew how to navigate in this place, left alone in which direction a planet, any planet, was in relation to where we floated.

  “I will take you back to the Tree of Worlds in return for ten percent of your gathered experience.” It shot me a thoughtful look. “Though, I could also agree to take your experience spoils for the fight that ended up killing you.”

  “What is the difference?”

  “If you gave up ten percent, you would be unable to gain experience for a bit of time. After that time, any experience you gained would be spent on just getting you back to where you were. Your level and skills would stay stagnant until you managed to regain what you lost. All of which can be avoided and mitigated by simply giving me what you have yet to claim after your fight with those two.”

  “And that is all you want. You only want experience in return for bringing me back to life?” I asked, a bit skeptical.

  “What, did you think I wanted money or some nebulous favor?” It scoffed at me. “Money serves no use for me. As for favors, while they are nice, they come with too many strings. I would have to keep you alive and healthy enough until I come to collect them. Been there, done that, it is not worth it.”

  Suddenly the thing had a large scyth in its bony hand. The hand and weapon flickered as it moved faster than I could see. Something in the far-off distance let out a scream. It was joined by a second scream, then a third. The number and pitch of the screams increased faster and faster as more and more things reacted to whatever it had just done.

  “While I would love to continue this conversation, I have a feeling we will not be left alone for much longer and I doubt you would survive the fight that would ensue. So, unfortunately for you, you must make your decision now.”

  So either I chose to stay here, likely to be eaten, or to return. To pay the ferryman’s toll and return to life. And what a toll it would be. Given how much experience I had gotten from the demon, the amount that the maid and her mindless minion would give me was likely quite substantial. But was it worth a sudden boost in power only to stagnate until I earned a large chunk of it back? Probably not.

  While I needed the experience to jump up in power so that I could survive on my own, what good would an immediate jump in power be if I couldn’t gain anything for a short while? Hell, it might not even be a short-term loss. Not when one considered the number of creatures I would likely have to hunt to regain what the ferryman demanded. No, a near-term loss in exchange for a more constant and maintained growth was my best bet.

  “Take me back,” I stated without so much as a quiver in my voice.

  “And the payment?” It asked while holding out a hand made of bleached bones. Its scythe held in the other, ready to strike anything that came too close.

  “Take the experience from my most recent battle as payment.”

  “I, Thanatos, The Final Curtain, Mors, The Doorway Beyond, The Great Equalizer, The Reaper, and The Angel of Death ask you one final time.” Its voice resonated with power as its hand grasped mine. A cold chill whipped up my arm and through my body as it continued. “Kyren Vulpier, formally Alex Morgan of Earth. Born human, remade into a Kitsune. Do you, while being free of any external influence, accept this bargain, with full understanding of what it entails?”

  “Death,” while the words were drawn from me, I felt as though they would stop if I suddenly changed my mind. They felt more like a ritual. Like the way I answered was important. “I, Kyren Vulpier, accept the bargain. I am willing to pay your modified price, knowing not what I lose but caring little for the loss when compared to what you have offered in exchange.”

  “And the bargain is struck.” It slammed the butt of its scythe down. While there was nothing below us, the move still seemed to produce a thud that reverberated through the very fabric of this place. Then the creature moved. It tugged me along just behind it as the void, and all the creatures inside it, flashed by. Given how the place stretched and twisted, I had a feeling we were not just moving in the normal three dimensions either.

  Almost as soon as we started, we came to a stop. Shimmering in front of us, blocking our path, was a barrier made of pure white light. Death reached out with its scyth. From where I stood, the tip sank into the barrier without any resistance. Between one moment and the next, a hole big enough for the two of us to pass through appeared.

  Through the hole, a massive tree appeared. It was both beautiful and horrifying to look at. The trunks and branches twisted in dizzying ways that defied reality. The sight of it reminded me of the creatures of the void. And, while most plants would have their fruits hanging from various branches, this tree was different. Sure, there were orbs of various colors and sizes that hung off various branches but they were equaled by those that did not.

  Others made up parts of the trunks and the branches themselves. Others were surrounded by leaves and flowers while yet more made up the roots. Then there was one off in the distance. It had a thin line connecting it to an orb in the middle of the trunk and looked almost as though it was being pulled in. But that couldn’t be right…right?

  Death pulled me through the hole and started across the gulf between the edge and the middle org. The very planet connected to the one far off. The one that, as we got closer, I noticed was covered in a darkness that reminded me of the void. Wisps of the darkness rose off the surface only to fall back to its surface. As we grew closer to the tree, I noticed more and more darkness. Where the orb in the middle had traces, the upper orbs were devoid of any such taint. Which was very different from those at the bottom. Those down there were fairly covered, if not completely blacked out.

  Something told me, this was not how the tree was supposed to look. That it was sick. Yet there was nothing I could do that a God couldn’t. Given how Death seemed to be ignoring everything, I assumed it knew what was going on and who was dealing with it.

  Soon enough, we came to a stop just in reaching distance of the orb in the middle of the tree. It was the one that was tied to the orb in the distance. From here, I could see clouds, mountains, snow, and ice, as well as some of the longer rivers. Something told me that this wasn’t just an orb or a fruit. That it was a planet.

  Which made no sense. How was there a planet buried in the trunk of a tree? How did that even work? What planet was I anyway?

  “And here is where we part ways.” Death spoke as it released my hand. “I am sure that I will see you again soon, Kyren.” With that, the creature backed away, gesturing toward the orb. I shot it a confused look. It simply shrugged, then shoved me in the back, sending me tumbling into the orb face first.