《A path of no return》


 An end for a new beginning

    Beep.... Bee.... Be.... B..


    "Cough cough"


    "Beep ... Beep..


    Tap ... Tap...


    Ahh where is it , where''s my phone. I groggily thought .


    Beep..Beep...Bee-


    "Found it" ..yawn... "What time is it ?"


    I check my phone.


    Click


    The screen emits a bright light "aahhh my eyes".


    I diminish the luminosity and I''m finally able to see what''s on the screen.


    7:30 AM


    While i was unhappy from the discovery of the time and thought about why did i set my alarm this early.


    I did not even have the chance to even think about going back to sleep when the door of my room opened ever so slighty to see if the person in it, me, was awake and at the same time i could here a soft voice saying "Are you awake ?"


    Un.. "Yes"


    "Good"she said "come breakfast is ready"


    While getting up from my bed i reached for the t-shirt by the side of said bed. Trying to put the shirt on while walking and being half awake ended up with me slamming my little toe on the side of the half closed door.


    "Ahhhhhhh ffff-shit" I immediately scream from the vivid pain that was too much for my still not fully awakened brain to process.


    "Are you okay?" Worriedly said my mom while still being in the kitchen preparing what was left to do for breakfast.


    "Yes, it''s okay.I just kicked the door and ended up hurting my little toe.Nothing serious it just hurt a lot"


    After grumbling, i look at the door, while thinking that one of these days i would cut it into trillions of pieces and burn them just to let it taste the repeated pain i had to endure because of it.


    Walking out of my room into the living room i go sit myself at the table and wait for my mother to come back from the kitchen with the milk so that i can start eating my cereal.


    As she come back with the milk and the orange juice and sits herself, i asked her if she had a goodnight sleep even if i can see the dark circle under her eyes.


    "Yeah.. I slept like a log" she said as though she did not want to worry me.


    "Is your work going well, you told me that a colleague who hated you, was promoted to be a manager " while saying this, i start pouring milk on my cereal.


    "It''s going.. how to say it .. rather well"


    "Oh really that''s great " I answered without much concern


    "And you, are you not stressed with the final exam tomorrow ?"


    "No,it''s going to be a breeze" I cockingly declared but i followed by saying in a rude tone, "it''s already the ninth time you asked me this question stop being so worried "


    "I know but the exam is reputed to have a passing rate of only 10% for 1400 participant, self confidence is good but being to self assured is sometimes bad "


    "MOM !!!" I said while raising my voice in annoyance, just stop whining so much. If you have time to whine about my finals just go to work " as I said this I got up from my sit and walked toward the bathroom to take a shower.


    If i had looked back, I could have seen what would have broken my heart any other days ,there siting at the table a tear was going down my mom time worned cheeks.Without saying any word,her eyes conveyed the deep sadness she was feeling and hidden remorse . She finished the last bite of her toast , drinked what was left of the orange juice in her cup and got up.


    I shut the door of the bathroom and started undressing, as I was ready to hop in the shower i heard my mom say goodbye and wished me good luck for my upcoming final training test before the real finals arrived.


    I did not answer her, pretending i did not hear what she said and started showering.


    Clack... Was the sound of the front door closing signifying that my mother was going to work.


    ------------------------------------------------------


    8:15 AM


    I checked the time on my phone, seeing 8:15 I quickly put my shoes, my backpack on ,I grab the keys of the house, step out and close the door and start going down the street to the bus stop 15 min away from home.


    My bus was scheduled to pick us up at 8:28 so i had to up my usual pace.


    When i finally arrive at the bus stop i could see it at the end of the street coming to pick us up.


    Lucky me,i thought, just on time .


    I sit at the back of the bus to not be bothered by anyone, i put my headphones on, and start daydreaming.


    -----------------------


    When i came back from the beautiful place that was my mind, i was at the campus.


    I start walking to my auditorium, on the way I see everyone stressed by the upcoming exam,and when i thought about that i instantly recalled what i said to my mom before she left.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    Sigh...


    "Why did I say that " I mumbled " that was so rude and childish"


    As i was thinking about how i should apologize, an idea struck me.That''s it tonight I will make her dinner since she comes back late from work.Just as the sentiment of triumph was starting to bloom, i arrived to the auditorium. All the previous good feeling i experienced were evaporated to make room for the heavy and stressing atmosphere of hardwork and heavy anxiety permeating the room.


    -------------------------------


    10:47 AM


    Buzz....buzz.....buzz...


    Disturbing my focus I angrily checked what was causing this buzzing sound just to realize that it was my phone who was vibrating.


    Damn, I thought, i forgot to turn it off. I check the phone to see who was calling me just in case and see that the call is from my mom.


    Strange, I wondered, she should be arriving to work it''s almost eleven, plus she knows that I''m studying for my final and unless necessary i should not be disturbed.


    I pick my phone up and try to respond as quietly as i can due to the fact that i was not alone in the auditorium,even if the overwhelming majority of student are at the library to study, there is still about 20 student with me here.


    "Hello, mom,what is it i''m studying right now. Can the call not wait."


    "Hello" said a musky voice.


    "Who are you ?"


    Startled I raised my voice a little too much, to the displeasure of the students in the auditorium who furiously turn to stare dagger at me.


    "What are you doing with my mom''s phone ?"


    I said while lowering my voice to appease the persons who are trying to stab me to death with their stares.


    "Well..." said the voice in an heavy tone, instantly chills started running down my spine and unnease started seeping in my heart " I deduce that your mother is Madam Isabelle, right Sir ?"


    "...Yes ,she is " i said while almost choking on my own breath.


    "Sir, I am truly deeply sorry to say that your mother got in a car accident, the paramedics are taking her to the hospital as we are speaking.Her condition is unstable, she was on the verge of death when we got to the place of the accident ."


    "Whaaaaaat did you just say!!!! Is it a joke? If it is, it''s not funny at all "


    My mind reeling from what i just heard I tried to persuade myself that this was all fake but reality did not spare a second.


    "Sir i would not joke on such matters" said the man in a firm but apolegetic tone.


    "Where is she ? Where is she ? WHERE IS SHE ? ANSWER ME " I screamed histerically , my eyes were starting to tear up, my mind crumbled,the unease that crept into my heart transformed to pull me into the abyss known as utter despair.


    "Where is - She is being transported to the South Hospital" said the man after regaining his mind from me screaming at the top of my lung.


    "South Hospital" i mumbled while my brain started turninh into high gears to think. As a normal person''s mind would, I tried to ignore the despair trying to overcome me, by latching onto the fickle ray of hope, just so that I would not black out from an overwhelming emotional pain.


    "South Hospital" I exclaimed, it''s the hospital right next to my campus. It should not even take me two minutes to get there if i run. I throw my phone away and start running like a madman,leaving behind a group of shocked students.


    Huff...huff....huff...


    My mind blanked out as I was running like I never had.


    Here it is, South Hospital.


    I enter the hospital still running and panting and orient myself toward the reception desk.


    "Hey, you, stop running" A nurse probably said to me, alas my brain totally ignored her.


    When I arrived at the reception desk , i went infront of the receptionist without caring for the line of people waiting next to me.


    Seeing my state of mind, the dried up tears on my cheeks and my swollen red eyes the receptionist ask me what information do I needed.


    "Where''s my mom" I instantly responded


    "What''s yout Mother''s name pleas-" interrupting her I urgently said "Isabelle"


    "Let me check .... She is room in room 108 "


    Without listening to the end of her sentence i run straight to the room.


    Whish


    "But... she just... passed away ... Sir " the nurse finished ad she raised her head to look at me however I was already gone.


    ROOM 108 , was what was written on the door right infront of me.


    I opened the door without a shred of hesitation.


    BANG


    The handle of the door slammed on the wall, scaring the doctors next to the bed.


    "What are you doin-"


    I ran to the side of the bed and as tears flowed down my cheeks like rain, i cried


    "Mom, Mom, Mom it''s me i''m here everything going to be okay i promise you. Right everything is going to be okay isnt''it " i said with a contorted smile on my face amplifying the despair that was oozing out of me.


    "....Huh....umm" the first doctor could not bear to say the news after seing the wretched state of my face,and fear of making me lose my mind.


    "What ...." My voice trembled with sadness and my incessant sobbing "... come on ..say it, ...say it ... Say that everything is going to be okay... " i implored while facing the second doctor.


    "Young man,...your mother..... died a minute ago"


    Huh ..... what did he just say ... did he say that ....she .....she .....she''s dead


    Sob..Sob..Sob


    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"


    "WHYYYYYYYYY ? WHYYYYYYYYYY ? "


    The two doctors alarmly looked at me and immediately called for a psychiatrist to come as what was left of of my mind finally crumbled and disappeared into everlasting despair and darkness.


    Why is she dead,why her, just for what reasons did she die.She did nothing wrong, god tell me why did she die. She worked herself to death just so that i could live correctly and used all the money she saved up for me instead of buying things she needed. Why her, she did nothing , why ,why, why, wHYY HER ?


    I couldn''t even say goodbye to her, the last she remenbered of me was the rude thing I said to her this morning.


    I ran out of the room, doctors followed me but I was too fast, taking the stair to the top of the building,I ran and ran while the doctors were shouting at me to stop, for they feared the worse would happen.


    Kicking the door of the rooftop open , a nurse on her break, still smoking turned to face me as i had just scared her to death.


    Just as she was opening her mouth to say something , i ran to the fence on the edge of the rooftop.


    Seeing me running and hearing the desperates shouts of the doctors behind, she tries to stop me but i shake her hand off and jump over the fence.


    "Aaaah" screamed the nurse. Informing the doctors who just arrived on the rooftop that what they feared happened.


    I look at the ground under me, closing my eyes and facing my incoming death no fear is on my mind only ... A sort of relief.


    If there is an after life I will see you there, Mom.

 After Life

    After what seemed to be a brief yet eternal darkness, I regained consciousness.


    Suddenly, memory come flooding my mind, making me feel like I was watching a film, from a third person view, made of my entire life.


    My early childhood, prebuscent and teenage years fly by in my mind.


    After what felt like 18 years,I could feel the end of the " film" coming, and,here it comes, I jumped and then, nothing.


    The surge of memory stopped.


    I was still entranced by what I just experienced, but strangely I could feel no emotion, it seemed that I was in some kind of zen state where everything unnecessary was discarded.


    Still in this unfamiliar state I try opening my eyes, unexpectedly, it was easier than I thought it would be.


    Looking down, I see that my body is transparent, unfazed by this strange phenomenom I start looking around trying to find something that could help me understand what I was doing in this strange place.


    "Hello, young one"


    Looking toward the direction of the sudden voice , I see what seems like a man wearing an ancient yet majestic imperial robe, after a first brief look at him, I curiously looked at his face trying to estimate what his age was since he just called me " young one".


    Weirdly enough, I couldn''t. His body radiated a thin yet powerful archaic aura, his face was that of an elegant middle aged man with a neatly maintained beard, the spirit and clarity in his eyes were like a child''s.


    Remembering what the man said, I simply responded,


    "Hello,sir."


    Seemingly not bothered by my earlier action and delay in response, almost like he was accustomed to this kind of behavior. Seeing that I was not going to ask him a question he kindly inquired,


    "Are you not curious about this place ?"


    "I am"


    Somewhat intrigued by my answer the man, continued probing,


    "Why are you not asking me questions then ?"


    "Sir, it''s not that I don''t want to ask you questions but I believe that you will say everything I need to know even without me asking, since you should be what we all called God right ?"


    "Oh ...., quite a unique one came today" mumbled the man in a pleased tone while ruffling his hand through his beard.


    "Well you are not completely right .I am not what you earthling called God, I am just someone assigned of guiding dead souls, I will assist in the reincarnation of the one who deserve it and in the same way I will punish those who did misdeed in their past life."


    Seeing that I still was not interested in asking a question, he proceeded to continue what he was saying, "However you are right when you said that I will explain everything you need to know. First, I''m certain that you are wondering where we are, correct ?" Asked the Guide while pointing his finger toward what i assumed to be the ground.


    I nodded.


    "We are in what is called an Artificial Space, like it''s name indicates, we created a space whose only purpose is welcoming new souls to the After life. As you can deduce I am not the only Guide there is, since there are so many souls coming to the After life at any given time. I won''t elaborate on this matter since you most likely will never have the need to know any more than this."


    Sigh...


    As expected I am dead. I unconsciously hoped to still be alive even after everything that happened and, are taking place right now.


    Waiting for me to finish my inner contemplation, the man pursued.


    "Before I send you on your way to reincarnation do you have any questions ?"The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    "I do" without any hesitation I asked the question that was weighting the most on my mind from the moment I got here.


    Breathing in I asked ," Where''s my mother ?"


    Looking at me, the man paused before saying,


    "I don''t know where she is, but she most likely has been reincarnated already."


    Not satisfied in the slightest by this answer, I retort by asking, " How is she ?"


    Seeing that I was not going to give up, the Guide gave in to a moment of utmost pity.


    " What was her previous name ?" He inquired.


    Eyes lighting up with joy before turning back to normal, due the strange effect of the Artificial Space.


    "Isabelle, Sir her previous name was Isabelle"


    Right after my answer the man started pondering, only after ten seconds did he say


    "She is okay, since your mother had a high karma she was reincarnated in a peaceful and wealthy family living her day in happiness "


    "Great", relief washed over my mind, even if I cannot see her, knowing that she is well is enough.


    "Do you have any other question ?"


    "No, Sir I don''t." I respectfully said.


    "Good, follow me." Uttered the Guide while walking toward his left.


    Following him, we walked for what seemed like a long distance, as we were walking I saw the Guide do a strange gesture that was followed by a visible ripple in the "air ".The ripple created a split in space itself, I assumed this to be a sort of rift. Rift wich the Guide walked in without any hesitation.Following the lead of the Guide I walked in the rift , after getting out I was fascinated by what I was seeing, stars were revolving around each other creating a stunning view leaving my mouth agape from stupefaction .This beautiful scenary was all around us.


    One moment the surrounding were a dull black another a majestic array of stars and galaxies were popping up here and there.


    Continuing to follow the man, I speechlessly observed outer space looking at the unknown celestial bodies infront of me.


    --------------------------------------------


    "Here we are, the reincarnation gate."


    Hearing what he said I turned to look at him but it was at this moment that my eyes laid themselves, as if controled by a mysterious force, on something so incredibly imposing, stunning and majestic unlike any other thing I had ever seen before.


    In front of me was the " Reincarnation Gate ", it was so incredibly huge that my mind could not even process it, heavenly bodies and galaxies were rotating around it. The gate itself was meticulously carved from an unknown material, the carving displayed majestic and godly beasts who were emitting a startling and frightening presence, it was almost like the real beasts were here.


    Petrified from the fear that was so deeply rooted in me , my head started spinning and my consciousness started fading .


    Just as I was starting to faint, a gentle and warm aura surrounded me.Looking toward the source of the sudden aura, I could see the Guide smiling at me.


    "Incredible right ?" voiced the Guide with amazement.


    I nodded due to my incapability of voicing out the emotion I was feeling at the moment.


    "Everytime I come here, I am amazed"


    sigh


    " It really is magnificient."


    ...


    "Now that we are here, I will explain what''s going to happen to you in a bit."


    Hearing this, I paid full attention to what he was about to say.


    "You will walk through this door, after going in you will be reincarnated in the Primal Realm.


    The Primal realm is the main realm of reincarnation for souls who have an average to a high karma."


    Delighted by what I just heard, After giving up on the notion of seeing my mom, a spark of hope was ignited from the previous ash.


    Just wait mom I promise that I will see you again.


    Seeing that I was not paying attention, the Guide guessed what I was thinking about.


    "Young one, not to be rude but it''s really unlikely that this will happen. "


    Hearing what he said was like someone poured a bucket of ice cold water on me. My mood instantly soured


    "The Primal Realm is far too vast for this to happen. To illustrate it better so you can understand, your Earth is only a minuscule, not even complete , sub World. Comparing the two would be like comparing a grain of sand to the Sun in your galaxy, the Milky Way, the two are not even in same category. "


    Mind reeling from the shocking revelation, the reignited spark of hope was once again snuffed out by the cruel ice cold reality of things.


    Observing my down state the Guide stopped my thinking,


    "Don''t dwell on this fact too long, for after you cross the gate you will not remenber a thing about your past life."


    "What !, really ?" I exclaimed shocked once again by what was said.


    "Do I really have to lose my memory ? Is there any way to avoid this ?"


    The Guide contemplated before answering,


    "Well it''s not that it''s impossible but it is not recommended since it will worsen your karma by a lot after you reincarnate. Seeing that your karma is above average it will plumet down to the level of someone who did atrocious thing and his despised by the High Heavens. Making your next life a traged--"


    "Sir, with all due respect you don''t have to continue. I will choose this option." I firmly stated.


    "If you decide so, I can only oblige." After having voiced his agreement the Guide made a strange handsign.Following the sign a strange light start floating toward me just to disappear a meter (* 3,3 feet ) infront of me.


    "The deed has been done. Now you only have to walk through the gate."


    I start walking toward the gate while at the same time I marvel myself at how exquisite the gate is.


    ------


    Here I am, being right next to the gate I turn around, bow in the direction of the Guide and voice out in gratitude.


    "Thank you for all you have done for me."


    "It is but my duty."


    I smiled and nodded.


    Turning back I took the final step.


    Whoosh