POV of Matías Castleboard

  What was the point of my death?

  Now that I think about it... I’m nobody.

  The pain was no longer mine; I couldn’t feel it anymore. But there was no peace either. Just thoughts... thoughts clinging to my failures.

  I can't see anything. Where am I? Ah, right. I died.

  Some say that when you die, you see a light.

  I see nothing.

  It’s as if my consciousness is floating alone in a bottomless abyss, without a body, without form. If this can even be called consciousness...

  The only thing I could do was think—and that’s exactly what I did: think about how everything ended this way.

  First, the warning from the Pillar Nations about an impending world war. Then, my decision to join the military to gain recognition and obtain a status that would protect my family.

  From that moment, everything went downhill...

  Because that’s how humans are: so intelligent, and yet so naive.

  The Prophet... that bastard.

  He didn’t have a transmitter that made him immortal, nor one that could alter reality. In truth, he didn’t have any transmitter at all.

  He just manipulated us all.

  Manipulated.

  That word weighs heavily. Because I… I’m no better than him. I did the same.

  I did it for my own benefit... to protect my loved ones, just as I promised my father.

  How many lives did I have to take before realizing the damage I was causing?

  Why... why do humans only learn through pain?

  I still remember that family. They begged me for mercy.

  The children’s eyes shimmered with tears, the mother looked at me with resignation... and still, she forgave me.

  I… was just following orders.

  Damn it.

  I don’t know when it happened, I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t realize I had started crying.

  That’s when I saw my own tears... and for the first time, I also saw my body.

  A faint glow, soft, almost ethereal, began to form around me.

  Huh... so there is light at the end of the tunnel.

  My hands appeared first. They were no longer stained with blood, but clean, as if the weight of all the souls I carried had vanished.

  Then my legs, firm, strong, ready to keep walking.

  And then, I knew. I was returning. Not to life... but to something.

  As I became aware of the place, my mind exploded with questions.

  Everything was white.

  Butterflies danced in the air, a bright sun shone without burning, and a calmness wrapped around me like a warm blanket.

  There was no noise. No war. Just… silence.

  Is this heaven?

  Or limbo?

  Where am I?

  —This isn’t heaven, Matías. Nor limbo. And honestly... I doubt you deserve either.

  The voice came from behind, imposing, deep, with a power that made me spin around and instinctively raise my guard, though I didn’t even know why.

  When I looked, I saw a humanoid figure. He was dressed like an ancient warrior, but the most unsettling thing was that his body, his clothes, even his aura... everything about him was white. Not white like light, but white like emptiness, like silence.

  And yet, I didn’t feel fear.

  On the contrary.

  I felt peace.

  A sense of familiarity so intense that my arms lowered on their own, as if my body knew I was facing someone… who had always been there.

  My soul was shattered, my voice barely a whisper:

  —Who are you?

  The figure looked at me for a few seconds, with a gaze so deep it felt like it could see my entire life. Then he spoke, with a calm voice filled with authority.

  —My name is Kraidir. Welcome to the Void: the beginning and the end of all creation.

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  The Void.

  My mind twisted, trying to make sense of it.

  This didn’t make sense. Where was I? What was this place, really?

  If my deduction was correct, I was standing before something… beyond human.

  A deity?

  And if he was… what did he want from me?

  I cleared my throat and spoke carefully, choosing each word as if it could cost me eternity:

  —By your appearance... and your words, —I said slowly— I deduce that you're not human. And if our old beliefs have any truth... I’d dare say you’re a deity.

  He smiled.

  But it wasn’t a divine, unreachable smile...

  It was human.

  Warm. Almost fatherly.

  —You're partly right, —he replied calmly— I’m what mortals call a deity. And I know you have many questions... about where you are, why you're here, and what comes next.

  —As I told you before… you're in the Void, —he said as he walked closer.

  —Think of it as a transition into something greater.

  I didn’t understand why, but I started trembling. It wasn’t fear. It wasn’t cold.

  It was... something deeper.

  A visceral reaction I couldn’t explain.

  I tried to speak, to say something… anything.

  But the words got stuck in my throat.

  When he stood right in front of me, his expression changed.

  He no longer looked like an impassive god.

  It was a compassionate look.

  As if he understood all the pain I carried inside.

  —Matías… I’m here for one reason. And that reason... is you.

  All those years of suffering, all your silent screams begging for it to stop...

  They’ve come to an end.

  Dextrina.

  That name.

  A bolt of rage surged through my body.

  My only eye narrowed with fury, and without realizing it, my hand went straight for his neck.

  —You know Dextrina?! Answer me!

  He didn’t resist. He just sighed.

  Then, with a simple movement, he brushed my arm away like it was air.

  —Yes. I know her, —he said calmly, placing a hand on my shoulder.

  —She’s the one who sent me here. And with that, the reason you’re in this place is answered.

  He snapped his fingers.

  A chair appeared out of nowhere, carved in an ancient, elegant style.

  He gestured for me to sit.

  It was clear what was coming... was a long story.

  Dextrina.

  The goddess who gave me the transmitter.

  The goddess of time and history.

  The one who promised me that with that power, I could protect everyone.

  But in the end...

  All I brought was more pain.

  I took a deep breath.

  I wanted to listen. I wanted to understand.

  So I let myself drop into the chair, exhausted.

  —Speak. I won’t interrupt, —I said, resting my elbows on my knees and my head in my hands.

  Kraidir nodded seriously.

  —As I said… Dextrina sent me, Matías.

  Your future is uncertain. Not even the gods fully understand what you are.

  I looked up, frowning.

  —What do you mean they don’t know what I am?

  Kraidir looked me straight in the eyes.

  —Because you did something no one was supposed to do.

  You altered the destiny of your world.

  You achieved peace... when it wasn’t written.

  —What you're trying to say is that… somehow, my actions did something the gods didn’t approve of, or maybe just didn’t find entertaining? —I clenched my fists, trembling with rage.

  I knew what gods were like.

  False gods.

  Kraidir nodded, looking at me as if he expected me to explode.

  —If that’s how you want to see it... you're right.

  And yes. I did it.

  I laughed.

  But it wasn’t a normal laugh.

  It was a hollow, broken cackle, like an echo of everything I had lost.

  I laughed like a madman… like a man who had nothing left to lose.

  Then I kicked the chair violently.

  —So the gods think humanity is just a game, huh?!

  Damn it... Now they’ll see what playing really means!

  Without thinking, my eye bled, and the Calur—my transmitter—activated by pure instinct.

  Kraidir didn’t move. Not a single muscle.

  —You’d better deactivate your relic, Matías.

  It’s useless here.

  Especially… against me.

  In this place, you have no power.

  I gritted my teeth. Rage consumed me from the inside, but I knew I couldn’t do anything.

  Nothing except talk. Yell. Curse.

  —And what are the gods going to do? Kill me again?

  Like I care anymore!

  If you know Dextrina… then you must know this:

  I have NOTHING left!

  I pointed at him, as if he were the cause of everything.

  But deep down, I knew he wasn’t.

  I didn’t even have tears left.

  No strength.

  Only emptiness.

  Kraidir looked at me with a sadness that wasn’t pity.

  It was as if he could see… my whole story, my whole life, all my pain… just by looking.

  My legs gave out.

  I collapsed to the ground.

  Lying on my back, lost in a place that wasn’t a place.

  Alone. Without dreams. Without direction.

  —The gods… have made a decision about you, —he said softly.

  I wanted to ignore him.

  I wanted to act like a child throwing a tantrum.

  But… something told me what he was going to say was important.

  —And what… what did they decide? —I asked, lifeless.

  Kraidir knelt beside me.

  He extended a hand toward me.

  —You’re going to be reborn, Matías.

  You will have a second chance.

  I opened my eyes, in disbelief.

  —"Wait... what did you just say?"

  A second chance?

  He nodded.

  But this time… I couldn’t read his face.

  He no longer looked the same.

  It was as if a mask had covered his expression.

  All I did in my previous life was fight...

  Protect those I loved.

  Chase that freedom every human being longs for...

  And now, fate placed this before me:

  A new opportunity.

  I looked up to find Kraidir.

  But he was gone.

  Vanished… as if he had never been there.

  Once again… I was alone.

  And without realizing it, exhaustion washed over me.

  A deep fatigue, coming from the depths of my soul.

  My eyes slowly closed.

  But this time…

  I wasn’t thinking about the end.

  I was thinking about a beginning.

  It was strange, but after so long, I felt something I thought I had lost:

  Hope.

  Everything turned dark again.

  And my consciousness collapsed.I fell asleep, floating in a space beyond existence itself…

  As if I had never existed.

  I'm just starting The Last Breath and your comments help me a lot to grow and improve.

  I read you with eagerness. ??