He felt the teleportation take hold over him, blinked, and he was gone.

But not on Earth.

Around him was a small room with brown planked walls and ceiling, with a cold tile floor. He sat in a generic table chair at a generic wooden table. There was nothing else in the room to catch the eye.

"Dei, Is this your home planet?" Perumah asked in suspicion.

"No… I have no idea where we are."

[Please Hold] the familiar voice of the system rang out.

With no other choice, he did exactly that, drumming his fingers on the table before going silent and waiting out whatever was happening.

[Dei Grrata. Perumah. Allow me to explain the situation. Your universe is under quarantine due to a demonic incursion, a threat to all life. Normally, nothing is able to exit the universe, but your situation is unique]

[Because the origin of Dei's soul is outside of my purview, I do not have total right to decide your action. Because Perumah has reached for ancient power and bypassed system boundaries, I do not have total right to decide your actions]

[I am ultimately unable to hold you indefinitely within my boundaries, but one of my tertiary directives insists that none who are potentially infected with demonic concepts may leave. The final resolution is to obliterate you, should you not turn back]

'That doesn't sound good.'

[Appeal: However, Dei has been given a quest-]

[Appeal: DENIED]

[Appeal: However, Dei is unlikely to perish if his soul is stripped and cast into the Void-]

[Appeal: DENIED

[Appeal: However, Dei's fate is not mine to decide. His ultimate allegiance is to System X0-239214-RG993. He must be turned over to their jurisdiction for their decided punishment for an attempted break at quarantine]

[Appeal: APPROVED]

[Tertiary directive states he must not leave quarantine if infected. Energy expenditure for cleanse permitted]

[Perumah irrelevant to case. Required to remain within System jurisdiction]

[ERROR! Perumah is fused with Dei under Right of the Leviathan]

Dei quickly glanced at Perumah, noting that they were still attached with a string of Connection.

[Attempting separation-]

[Separation overridden, reevaluation requested]

[Appeal: Right of the Leviathan dictates their souls are-]

[Appeal: DENIED]

[Appeal: Energy expenditure to cleanse Perumah is less than that of separating-]

[Appeal: DENIED]

[Appeal: Energy expenditure to cleanse Perumah is less than that of a Leviathan challenging System actions. Though the chance of such an outcome is low, it is not negligible]

[Appeal: UNDER CONSIDERATION]

[Opinion required. Raising issue with System Consciousness]

[That is me, I think the chance is too high in this case. I approve the demonic cleanse of Perumah as well]

[Appeal: APPROVED]

[Commencing Conceptual Cleanse]

Dei felt as the entire room was basked in radiant, pure energy. It did nothing for or against him, but he felt cleaner than he'd ever been. Like the idea of filth was completely removed from existence.

[Conceptual Cleanse Complete]

The room flickered for a moment, and he thought he was about to be sent on his way, but it quickly came back into focus.

[Congratulations!] The System took on a much different tone, confusing him. [Through effort or intelligence, you have discovered a universe without System influence, and will soon enter it. Before doing so, however, your soul must be prepared. The rules in this new universe are much different than your current one, so please wait a moment while the laws are evaluated and issues are found]

Dei waited in silence until. Five seconds later, the System's voice returned.

[Existence in this universe appears to be lethal to defined soul structures. Obscuring soul structures]

[Class, Profession, Race partially integrated into souls, removal considered lethal. Outer System Integration commenced]

Dei grunted in pain as he felt an invisible hand surgically open his soul, place something within, connect it with everything else, then sort of… blur the line between himself and the new structure.

It didn't stop at the new structure either. The hand of the System blurred everything within him- taking the defined lines of his Skills and making them much fuzzier, linking everything with everything else. There would be no free lunch from this point forward with looking into his own soul, it was more maze-like than it'd ever been. And it was already confusing before.

[Outer System Integration complete]

[I wish thee luck! Remember though- should you enter a neighboring Systemless universe, the System will not be able to assist you in your journey. You will either have to change yourself to fit in with the newer laws, withstand any damage taken, or retreat. If you somehow find your way to a new Systemless universe, it is recommended that you return to the System bounds, then journey to your new Systemless universe, that way the System may adapt you to the other Systemless universes as well]

[Prepare for landing in your new universe]

[Do not do this again Dei, I will not be able to justify the energy expenditure of a second demonic cleansing without further probable cause. Either stay outside of the infected universe, or be ready to stay within it forever. Or until you Ascend, whichever comes first]

Before he could respond, the room around him faded away, briefly leaving him in darkness before a second room blinked into existence.

A cursory glance around the room stirred familiarity within him, but he instantly felt several things within him that started to rush away.

He felt like a draining glass, but was able to plug it with a force of will and conscious effort. It, luckily, wasn't as powerful as a human existing in a total vacuum of space- where they would be pulled apart rather quickly- but it still was not easy to remain whole.

After a few seconds, he'd stabilized himself enough to take stock. Trying to call up his Interface, he was not surprised when it failed.

Instead, he remembered back to what it looked like before, then tried to mentally fill in the gaps with what he pictured it would look like right now.

[Name: Dei Grrata Race: Union (Gem Dweller Variant)

Class: Watchful Slaughterer (Level 140) Profession: Pondering Sage (Level 37)

Achievements: Void Walker, Soulspeak, Beyond Understanding, No Rulers Above All, Bearing the Burden, Slayer of Giants IV, Cruelty of the Slaughter (II), Dammit, Slaughterer, Untethered, Risky Business, Golden Voice and Silver Tongue, Supreme Inquisitor of (Eternal Refuge)

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Contracts: Soul of the (IIIIIIII), Mutual Respect, Deal of the Almost-Dunce

Soul Strength: 440-445/453 HP: 453/453 MP: ???/151 SP: 302/302

Stats:

Physical: 151 Mental: 87 Spiritual: 215 Magical: 88

Affinities:

Kindness: Mid-Treasured: 1% Wrath: Mid-Rare: 59% Soul: Mid-Uncommon: 47% Fortitude: Mid-Rare: 6%% Void: Mid-Uncommon: 2%

Inner Skills:

Kindness: Pandora's Box (Sealed) (346) (13808/13840), Call for Help (71), Good Samaritan (157), Meaningful (91) Wrath: Growing Rage (275) Soul: Empower Self (27), Connection (11) Fortitude: Solidity (156), Fortress of Denial (65) Business: Value Sense Void: Roving Gate (20)

Health: Homeostasis (231) Mana: Meditation (228) Stamina: Disconnect (59)

Confluence: Identify of the Stout Protector (129), Pandora's Box (Unleashed) (2)

Outer Skills:

How About a Demonstration?, Fine-Tooth Comb (64), Vigilance (100), In Tune (100), Commune with the Universe (2), High Mind (100)]

The two things that drained out of him, and thus were unknowns, were his Soul Strength and his MP. Soul Strength was easier to track as it had a more tangible nature, but MP was a lot more esoteric. He couldn't even tell how he knew it was his MP being pulled away, as he'd never been able to pinpoint exactly where it was in his body.

The only way he'd ever been able to track his MP was through the Interface. With his affinitied mana, he could easily pull one point and compare it to another. MP didn't seem to exist before it was poured into a spell.

Either from the lack of System, or because he had to grab it, or perhaps for some other reason about this universe though, he had a much better idea of what the MP was. It wasn't localized to any one part in his body, but spread around evenly, like energy that permeated him entirely. It was like magical ATP, small pieces of it within every cell that he could burn to cast magic.

When he was more stable and his body not pulling itself apart, he checked on Perumah through their connection.

He saw that she was struggling much the same as he was, but she couldn't keep her MP from draining out, although much slower than it might've naturally.

Stepping in, he helped take up some of the burden, keeping all the MP within her.

"Thanks" she said, now that she had the mental energy to spare.

He nodded but didn't respond, looking around to see where, exactly, he'd come out. It tickled a part of his mind, but he didn't immediately recognize the area. The curtains of the windows were open, letting a small amount of light in from outside but showing that it was, in fact, night. His Darkvision let him see clearly despite the dimness, showing stacks of cardboard boxes and organized dusty furniture.

His eyes were drawn to where he stood, a familiar floor. Looking behind him, there was a closed, familiar door. The door to his old bedroom.

He stood in the place he'd died. Where he'd been shot down by the cop trying to protect his cheating wife and former friend.

He didn't explode with emotion, but resentment still built at the thought. He had to plan quickly and take stock of the situation. What would he do now? He hadn't exactly thought this far…

He'd have to scout out the house, as some things were clearly different in the year he'd been gone. This room used to be the master bedroom, but it was clearly not any longer.

"Perumah, I might need to leave you here for a moment. Are you good on your own? Will your mana flood out?"

"I'm getting better at it, it will be fine. The spells in this world… seem easy to make? I might have made one already for keeping the mana within me…" he was confused, but he'd have to investigate later. He intended to spend several months on Earth, he'd make time to train a bit in the unique conditions it presented.

Perumah shrank and he placed her behind a wall of boxes. A small gray nub in the corner was as hidden as she was going to get.

When he was confident and ready to sneak away, he dipped into the Spirit Realm… or tried. Despite expending a small bit of Soul Strength, he bounced back, like there was nothing below him. Perhaps because there wasn't anything below the Physical Realm.

Did Leviathans not exist on Earth, so there was no Spirit Realm? Dei always pictured the Primordial Children more as wardens than active designers of the realms, but now he doubted himself. Were Dragons real in Earth's universe? Thoughts for later. Even if he could not dip into the Spirit Realm, he was still able to burn SP to fly, dip slightly below the surface of the Physical Realm, and go through walls.

Resolving himself to a more inefficient scouting operation, he disappeared and slowly scouted out his former house.

It was surreal. Everything was different, yet the same. The placement of decorations were mostly untouched, but things had shifted slightly. Clearly used. The couch was a bit more worn, the table moved a bit from where it'd been when he perished.

He couldn't help but gravitate towards the second largest room in the house, the kids bedroom he and Emily had planned out. With the boxes, he'd assumed they might've been in the process of moving out of the house, but everything looked mostly whole. It had to be something else.

Making sure he was still invisible, he phased through the door and looked around. Three figures slept in the room, but his eyes were drawn to the one in the crib.

'It was never mine.' he realized, and the fact sent him reeling. The kid had darker skin than both him or Emily, it was Taj's.

With the force and pace of a glacier, he inched to the two beds closer to the back of the room, his periphery turning dark as he only had eyes for the one he hated most, the one he could just barely see peeking out from under his covers. Carefully reaching out with a single hand towards the neck of his victim-

Taj bolted upright, head swiveling around in a panic as he drew the covers over himself. Dei hardly processed what he saw before Taj was lunging out of the bed and, for a moment, he thought Taj was able to see him as Taj reached into the nightstand.

Rather than pull out a gun though, the man pulled out two incense and a lighter, hands shaking violently as he desperately tried lighting them, without releasing even a squeak.

When the two sticks caught the flame, Dei felt a gentle push against his soul, a pleading communication. It did not try to forcibly calm him, but begged him to spare the life of the man before him.

His brow scrunched, and his perception relaxed, allowing him to see and hear things he hadn't moments before.

The baby was awake, crying loudly. Emily quivered under her covers, eyes darting around the room. Taj hyperventilated in place, shaking and holding the incense out like a weapon.

Carefully, Taj put both incense in one hand and reached out for a stick next to his bedside with the other- except it wasn't a stick, but a crutch.

Taj pulled himself from the bed, and Dei finally processed everything about the man that'd changed, and wondered how he hadn't seen it before. With his soul-sight and Taj's weak spiritual defenses, Dei was able to see deep into him, all the injuries laid bare.

Taj's right eye was gone, along with the entire right half of his face and jaw. He was missing his left arm and right leg. His hip was replaced with steel, pelvis… completely gone. He would never have kids again. Multiple ribs were stitched together with metal sutures. His left lung was all but gone, and the right lung was severely damaged. The few limbs he had were clearly weak, having been fractured severely and healed.

He was broken.

'I'd forgotten that I wasn't the first in my family to inherit Wrath…

'Dad, what did you do?'

Taj wheezed, stumbling forward and making his way to the cradle, standing with his back to it and the incense as far out as possible.

"W-W-" Emily tried to say something, but her fear had clearly frozen her.

"A bad one. I don't know what set it off, but it seems to be receding now."

Dei focused within, trying to find what was happening. He was pretty sure his Presence hadn't leaked out at all, as he'd been careful to hide it, but the more he reviewed his previous actions, the more he realized something was out of place.

Dei was in control of his emotions now, much more than he was before, yet he did not act with conscious decision to kill Taj. His body just moved on its own.

No matter how he searched the mana within though, he could find nothing foreign. Nothing out of the ordinary, without looking deeper into his own soul- but that entire tangle was unfamiliar now. Whatever the System had done, he'd need to do an overhauled review to get everything in place. For now though, he sensed nothing pushing at him, no mental effect… yet, he found himself goaded into violence. He wanted to Kill Taj. Kill Taj. Kill.

Shaking his head, he withdrew himself from the room, phasing through the door and leaving. Something was wrong, in a way he was not equipped to understand. He had to leave, now. He stumbled as he walked away from the room, finding that he, too, shook. Not with fear, but rage.

He threw patience away, rushing into the old master bedroom. Quickly phasing back into reality, he grabbed Perumah again and used Connection to link himself to her once more. She tried asking a question but he was in no state to listen, slinking to the window, opening it, and flying through.

He phased back into the Spirit Realm, seeing that Perumah was still attached to his hand- simply floating on nothing.

'Nobody will notice a nub flying through the air' he reasoned, then shot off into the distance

'I need to get to my previous parents house… they will know what is going on. I need answers from people I trust.'

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