The new world

Chapter 2l Ends

The sun, a fiery orb descending toward the horizon, cast long shadows across the bustling campus. Henry, his chest puffed with pride, clutched his graduation cap in his hand, the air thick with the bittersweet emotions of ending and beginning. He had fought hard, clawed his way through late nights and caffeine-fueled cramming sessions, and finally, he was standing here, a graduate.

"Finally, I'm done with high school" Henry muttered while he was on his way to return his graduation cap. The cap, once crisp and white, now bore the marks of countless celebrations–champagne stains, scribbled messages from friends, and a lopsided feather from a toga mishap. But to Henry, it was a symbol of his journey, a worn-out map leading him to this very moment.

As he walked, his mind drifted back to the ceremony. The cheers of his family and friends, the proud smile of his professors, the feeling of accomplishment that swelled within him.

For a moment, Henry was mesmerized, transported back to his childhood days spent chasing stray cats through alleyways. He almost forgot his purpose, his destination.

Then, in a heartbeat, everything went wrong.

A car, its headlights piercing the twilight, swerved around the corner, its horn blaring a warning cry. Henry caught off guard, froze. The impact was instantaneous, brutal. He was thrown off his feet, his body a ragdoll flung against the unforgiving asphalt.

Pain, sharp and searing, ripped through him. He tasted blood, metallic and thick coating his tongue. His vision blurred, the world dissolving into a kaleidoscope of flashing lights and frantic voices. He could hear someone calling his name, a distant echo amid the chaos.

He tried to speak, to cry out, but his voice was lost in the roaring in his ears. His limbs felt heavy, leaden, refusing to obey his commands. He was adrift in a sea of pain, his consciousness a fragile boat tossed about by the storm.

"Stay with me, Henry!, I'm calling an ambulance" This was Sharon his girlfriend who witnessed the accident while coming out from a supermarket. She exclaimed, her hands trembled as she pulled out her phone and dialed 911.

Within a minute, sirens could be heard from a distance as police cars screeched to a halt on the small street.

Three police officers jumped out of the car, two heading towards the driver to detain him while the other began administering first aid trying to save Henry.

"Richard, get on the radio and tell the ambulance to be fast we are losing him!" One of the police officers shouted in desperation.

As the police officer worked to stop the bleeding Sharon was pushed aside until the ambulance arrived.

Six paramedics jumped out and quickly put him on a stretcher, rushing him into the ambulance with oxygen on his nose.

The officers took Sharon to the car, where they asked for his relative's details.

She provided Henry's mom's number, and they called her to inform her of what had happened.

"What!, my only son" Henry's mom screamed as she heard the information.

The air was filled with the piercing, anguished screams of a woman facing the imminent loss of her son.

Taking the phone Henry's Dad who was currently in town rushed to his car and drove to the hospital.

Sirens wailed down as they speed down the road, the police car closely tailing the ambulance, racing towards the hospital.

The ambulance rushed towards the nearby city hospital, where expert doctors immediately sprang into action upon its arrival.

Henry was bleeding out as they pushed him through the bay doors. Not long enough Sharon arrived at the hospital at the same time as Henry's family.

They all crowded around Sharon asking what happened.

"Come on guys! Stop crowding her. I'll explain" One of the paramedics spoke and explained everything.

They all began to cry and pray to any god who would listen to ensure the boy's well-being.

Hours later, the doctors arrived and were wheeling a hospital bed with the unconscious Henry asleep on it.

The doctors and nurses advised them to maintain a safe distance as Henry remained precarious.

With a heavy heart, they disclosed the grim extent of Henry's' injuries to the distressed family as the head doctor approached them.

"Mr and Mrs Heart your son had internal bleeding. To be frank, he is fortunate to still be alive..." The head doctor spoke only to be cut off due to the sound of an alarm, causing the doctors to panic and everyone's faces to turn ashen as they returned to the room.

Henry's Mom trailed behind them and witnessed him having a seizure on the bed, blood gushing out from his mouth as the doctors scrambled to stabilize him.

Overwhelmed with emotions, Henry's Mom crumpled to the ground, her knees giving out, and the rest of the family rushed to her side as tears streamed down her face.

"He'll be okay" Henry's dad muttered as he pulled his three daughters close.

The background continued beeping like an alarm until the noise just stopped.

Despite the doctors and the nurse's efforts, they were unable to save him.

Tears dripped from Henry's eyes as he saw his cap, lying discarded a few feet away, its white now stained crimson. He saw the theater light shining into his eyes. And then, slowly, the darkness began to encroach, threatening to consume him whole. He lay there, on the cold, unforgiving asphalt, his graduation cap a silent witness to his misfortune. The air was filled with communication from doctors and nurses who were trying to save him. He had been on the cusp of a new beginning, but the future that awaited him was now shrouded in uncertainty, a dark and ominous path leading into the unknown.

The world around him faded, the voices turning into muffled whispers, the faces blurring into indistinct shapes. He felt himself sinking, pulled down by an unseen force into the abyss. As the darkness closed in, he could only hope that somewhere in the vast and unpredictable universe, someone would remember him, not as the boy who was hit by a car on his graduation day, but as Henry the fighter, the dreamer, the one who refused to give up, even when the odds were stacked against him.

And so, with a whimper and a sigh, he surrendered to the darkness, leaving behind the echoes of cries, and entering a world of silence, where the only sound was the steady beating of his own heart, a faint, fragile rhythm that refused to be extinguished.

"WELCOME To Adventure Online" A male voice echoed as Henry opened his eyes and found himself on top of a small golden cloud flying in the sky.

At first, he thought he was dreaming but the memories of the accident flooded in his brain.

"Ha, so that car killed me" Henry stuttered as tears dripped down from his eyes.

Immediately memories of his life flashed before his eyes.

Henry saw happy memories, sad memories, and memories he didn't want to ever see again. At the end of his reminiscing, the image of Sharon made him bite his lips in frustration.

Trust be told he became so worried.

"How will she survive on earth without me" Henry muttered and closed his eyes as more tears dripped down from his eyes.

"You will be okay Sharon" Henry spoke as he opened his eyes and slowly raised his head.

A golden portal was shining in front of him and he knew his journey had come to an end. He never believes in heaven and hell.

The only thing he believes in is reincarnation.

Perhaps, he was influenced by the countless novels he had read in the school library.

Henry narrowed his eyes as he gazed at the golden portal that was getting larger every second.

"Oh my god, who am I about to see" Those were the last words Henry spoke before the cloud entered into the golden portal.

What he saw on the other side of the portal blew him away. It reminded him of the time his class went to the planetarium for the science field trip.

"Just what in the world?" Henry asked absentmindedly as he stared at the vastness of space. Countless stars, galaxies, and planets could be seen in the distance.

Before Henry could even process everything that he was seeing, the cloud speed up and headed towards a giant planet.

A procession of golden clouds numbering in hundreds formed in a minute.

Each of them was also carrying a person.

As they drew nearer to the planet a surprising change happened to the procession of golden clouds.

The cloud carrying others broke free from the formation and headed towards the southern and North parts of the planet.

It didn't take long for Henry to realize that they were being "Segregated" by some unknown powers who seemed to be manipulating the order of the cloud.

"What's wrong with my cloud" Henry muttered as the cloud he was on didn't change direction and it continued to move forward alone.

"Wow," Henry's eyes winded as a magnificent temple appeared before his eyes.

The goddess's slender figure was radiant as she stood and welcomed him with a smile.

Her long, silky white hair cascaded down her back like a river of moonlight, contrasting with her porcelain skin. Her piercing blue eyes sparkled as she gazed at him.

With graceful fingers, she lifted a flowing white dress and slipped it over her shoulders. The garment seemed to shimmer in harmony with her ethereal beauty as if woven from the finest threads of starlight. The dress hugged her curves, accentuating her delicate waist and flowing down to her ankles like a misty cloud.

As she adjusted the dress, her hair fell like a veil around her face, framing her features. The goddess's eyes gleamed with a soft, otherworldly light