Chapter 1: Rebirth

In the cold dark reaches of space, a golden sword shaped object was floating slowly towards the nearest universe it could find. What was strange was that this golden object was wrapped around a transient entity; apparently it was a soul.

Rayden had been floating in a sea of golden flames for what seemed like an eternity. He had simply lost interest in counting the number of years he had spent floating in this endless Chaos. At first, he was panic-stricken, but the endless sea of golden flames swayed his mind quickly washing away the depressing thoughts that still lingered within him.

Currently, he found himself engulfed in a comfortable way he had never been before. His body was light, and it floated around in the sea. He was completely without worries as he casually moved around observing the flickering golden embers which the sea was made of.

He was well aware that he had died. Though the golden sea was doing everything it could to wash away his sorrows, there was still a feeling of loss which could not be filled. Whenever Rayden thought about this, he remembered the face of his loving parents who died inexplicably leaving him and his little brother to cater for them. The large amounts of inheritance left for the siblings were snatched by his parents' associates because they were too young at the time. So he had to work part time to cater for himself and his little brother. Due to his hard work and perseverance he successfully got admitted into the nation's best university. But on the very day he was supposed to report at school he was also knocked by car and died on the spot.

He vaguely remembered that just before losing consciousness he noticed the family heirloom on his neck emit a golden light and wrapping around him. He thought he would be somehow miraculously saved by this necklace but instead woke up drifting in this endless chaotic space. His only worry now was how his brother was to survive in this brutal world.

Although Rayden kept thinking about his life, he also knew that there was no way he could ever return to his previous life. Death, however, did not seem as terrible as he expected. There was no darkness. There was nothing apart from this endless warm golden sea.

Because of the constant quenching of his soul from the golden sea, his soul gradually went from light grey to a very bright golden colour. He now felt that his thought process become clearer and complex computations completed with a thought. He felt that if he were back I his previous life, his current computation speed could rival that of the top super computers in the world. But this was all useless to him as he wanted to get out of this damned chaotic space.

Suddenly, Rayden was startled as he heard a faint crushing sound. A sound that came from far away. His soul became alert, and he strained himself trying to pick up that sound was but he suddenly experienced an abrupt impact which made him loose consciousness instantly.

Rayden felt his consciousness flicker slightly. He regained consciousness as he felt that he was being rushed down a dark blue tunnel falling towards an unknown location. His initial fear had long since passed because these events felt as if they took years to complete. Every stage, every meter travelled was clearly visible to the alert Rayden.

When he noticed that he was rushing through a dark tunnel, falling towards an unknown location, his speed suddenly picked up. It changed from a few meters each month, to a few meters each day, and eventually, he could feel himself falling at a high speed near the end.

A hint of fear snuck back into his heart as he was unaware of what his future would bring. He had no idea how this golden sea and the black tunnel was capable of controlling time or at least his sense of time. However, he forcefully calmed himself down with the thought that he had already died and with no body, he should no longer be able to feel pain.

Rayden focused on suppressing his fears so that it would not cloud his mind. He attentively observed everything which was happening around him. Soon he had stopped moving, but it was not an abrupt stop rather his speed slowed down before he almost unknowingly stopped. He noticed subtle changes in his surroundings, but currently, he was still unable to understand what was going on. His senses were alert; however nothing seemed to be happening.

A moment of complete silence followed Rayden's arrival, at wherever he was. Nevertheless, after that moment, he heard the voices which were mumbling. The voices seemed to be hurried voices seemingly yelling right next to him. He needed a moment to understand what was happening around him. Once he relatively understood his situation he noticed that he was no longer just a consciousness but once again contained within a body. Shock filled his heart and increased his heartbeat. The darkness which surrounded him he finally noticed was from having his eyes closed, and opening them was not an easy task.

Rayden was rigid with fear and curiosity. He had been dead, of that he was sure, but now he suddenly found himself in another body. It was impossible for him to move in this body though, and even opening his eyes seemed to be a cumbersome task; however, even if he had to live his life as a vegetable, it would be worth it, as long as he could see his brother once more.

Rayden decided to try moving his limbs, testing whether they were still attached to him, and relief flooded him as he noticed that they somewhat followed his orders. However, although they followed his orders, he could not help but feel that something was amiss.

Rayden's entire body felt very different from what he was used to before the crash, but he decided that details like this could be focused on later. The fact that he could control a body left him feeling relieved, and he focused all his energy to force his tired, sealed eyes open.

As soon as his eyes opened, he instantly screamed. His heart felt as if it had tried to escape his chest and fear shone in his eyes. He saw the face of a giant was in front of him. It was a rough looking man with a bearded face so close that Rayden was certain that he would reach it if he stretched out his arm.

After containing the scream, Rayden dared not make another sound let alone move a muscle. The fear in his eyes was apparent to this giant as well, but he seemed not to care. Rayden's first thought was to escape instantly and find a safe place where he could focus on understanding this changed reality he seemed to be in. However, right now, there was no way to escape with this giant staring at him.

At least this giant did not seem hostile in any way; however, it still seemed to be a dangerous situation to be caught in right after waking up in a new body, being completely unguarded.

"Richard, don't be so close, you're scaring him." An exhausted but gentle voice sounded from the side, and Rayden slowly turned his head to look in the direction of the voice.

It was hard to move his head or even keep his eyes open, but he forced them to do so as he currently had no choice but stay alert to understand what was happening around him. As Rayden moved his head, he noticed that he was currently located in a worn out bedroom in a old style building. Looking at the interior of the building, Rayden furrowed his brows and wondered if he had travelled back in time. The interior resembled a wooden shack that commoners would have owned back in the medieval periods.

Something about the air here was much richer than what he was used to, but most importantly, giants definitely did not exist, and Rayden suddenly understood that he was in another world. The bed in the bedroom was currently occupied by a woman who was clearly beautiful, but right now her beautiful features were filled with exhaustion and pain. The lower part of the bed was covered with blood, and a young girl was washing the injured woman.

Rayden was both scared and confused as his eyes widened while he stared at the bed. The entire situation was something which he completely did not understand. These giants did not seem hostile is what Rayden thought while observing the two adults. He continued to contemplate for a while but decided that the easiest way to gain information would be to simply ask them.

Although he had decided to seek help from the friendly giants, it still took a few breaths for him to stabilise himself and calm his soul before he finally opened his mouth.

But what came out were a bunch of inaudible words. Rayden's eyes widened as he got quiet and had a strange and rather uncomfortable premonition.

"Listen, darling," the bearded giant said as he reached down and carried Rayden towards the fatigued woman. "Our son is already trying to speak." There was tenderness in his voice, and the same tenderness was shown on the woman's face.

The tenderness and care that these two people showed Rayden's made his heart ache as he was reminded of his parents and the pain he felt with their premature death, not to mention his own suffering. Seeing these two adults made him long for his parents. It made him miss how they would talk with him randomly, or lovingly scold him when he broke things.

Lying on his new mother's bosom, Rayden forced himself to ignore the pain and sadness he felt from the loss of his parents and little brother. Instead, he started thinking about everything that had happened to him. However, as he was thinking about his situation he said in his mind, 'I wish I knew how I went from death to rebirth.'

"Right, Richard, What name should we give him?" Martha suddenly asked. "I asked you when I was pregnant, but you weren't happy with any of the names. Now that he's been born, we have to come up with a suitable name."

"Let his name come into the world alongside him." Richard said. "How could I not be careful about it? I hadn't made up my mind in the past, but just now, I suddenly thought of a name…let's call our son 'Rayden', meaning 'thunder ruler'. No matter whether his life is normal or exciting, no matter if he is weak or becomes strong; let him strike fear in the hearts of his enemies."

"Rayden?" Martha murmured. "Gol D. Rayden..."

"Gol D. Rayden?"

The infant in his mother's arms stared with wide eyes. Was this the name that he had been preordained to have? How could he have this surname? Or was it just a coincidence?

[Ding! Alternate world rebirth completed. Scanning host's stats. Beginning generation of system database]"

A mechanical voice spoke from somewhere inside of Rayden's mind at this time causing the already frightened young man to become even more frightened.