Regular speech "Overlord"

Extra emphasis "Overlord"

Thought in present time (always stands alone on a line) "Overlord Overlord Overlord Overlord"

A line break either represents a change in perspective and/or change of place/time.


I had loving parents. I had a decent job. I had caring friends.

I lost it all.

Honestly? If I were to be asked about what happened, I would not be able to recall. The only recollection that remained was a feeling of falling and extreme terror. Then a splat.

I think I died.

If that was the case however, the afterlife sure as hell wasn't what it was cracked up to be. No nirvana, no heaven, or hell, which was the more likely option knowing myself.

I could no longer feel the familiarity of my own form either, it seemingly having devolved into nothing but a small mass of grey mist.

Yet, for some reason I could still see, and talk.

And the vision that was granted to me was unlike any other. Thousands, maybe even millions of small light tunnels were spread far and wide in every possible direction, lighting up what would otherwise be nothing but a black void. Each tunnel appeared to be similar in size and brightness, yet they all possessed a different feel. An aura, if you will.

It was because of this I could distinguish the one tunnel that I felt I held some sort of attachment to.

Trying - and by some act of god managing to move the blob that I had now become I slowly started floating in the direction of the familiar feeling.

".. And here I thought you wanted something else?" came an all too familiar voice behind me.

"AIieee!" I screamed as I took a 180, coming face to face with a being, like myself, only consisting of mist. While mine was grey however, his (?) was of pure darkness, constantly emitting a sense of decay and cold. The voice was definitely familiar, but I could swear I had never, ever seen anything like this before.

"Oooo.. That's a pitch I haven't heard before, nice one."

"Who.. No, what the hell are you?!"

Is it dangerous? Should I run?

...

Could I even run?

Sure, I prided myself on my somewhat athletic former body. Former, being the key word here. I could barely manage to move this new form of mine, nevermind outrunning a seemingly superior form of life.

With that in mind, I should probably strive to leave a positive first impression, no? It's obviously intelligent.

"Sorry, mind introducing yourself? I'm Alex."

The black mist jerked back, as if slightly surprised by the question.

".. You don't remember then? Your death, I mean."

Huh, guess I was right.

"No, I don't. Can you fill me in?"

I wasn't particularly sad, really. Where there is life, there is death. That's the way the world worked. If not today, then maybe it would have been tomorrow. Reaching the age of 22 could be considered an achievement on its own really, an achievement not everyone could claim to have. The one thing that left me with a bitter taste in my now nonexistent mouth, was that I was unable to properly thank my family, for helping me out whenever. They were a great bunch of people, all things considered.

"Troublesome.. maybe we can do something else to jog your memory."

As he said this the black mist startet morphing violently, shaping into that of a man.

"Well?" he asked in an expectant tone.

He was tall, surely nearing two meters, with a frail structure and coal black hair. He was dressed in simple clothes, a black hoodie, grey pants and a set of sneakers. If you had glanced at him from afar, or passed by him at a street, you might have considered him to be no more than an ordinary teen. I might have thought so t...

!

Oh.. right.

The trees, the rivers, the wind, the death. It's all coming back now.

"I think I remember.. I fell head first down a mountain right?"

He got excited now. "Ah yes! Right down on a sturdy rock, effectively cracking your head open and then some. Glorious really, I have to thank you for that one, most deaths nowadays happens while people are sleeping or through simple gun usage.." he stated with open distaste. "Yours however was a magnificent one! Blood and gore everywhere, disfigurement through twisting of body parts in directions not thought possible. Ah! Simply beautiful, once again, thank you."

"...huh. No problem, I guess?"

Trying, and failing to hide my discomfort about his way of describing my death, I turned my attention back to the situation at hand.

"So then, what now?"

The figure sighs, like a teacher trying and failing multiple times in helping a student understand the subject at hand.

"Really now...try connecting the dots will you? Don't make my job harder than it needs to be. I'm in a good mood after seeing the majestic mutilation of your past body, don't ruin that for me."

..

..

..

"Yeaaaah, I'm drawing blanks here."

Losing all mirth, the man once again sighed loudly.

"I am the death which governs your former world. It is my duty to watch over the souls of the dead into their new life after death." He stopped, weighing the next words in his mind before continuing.

"Your case is a special one, I did not lie when I said it was a rarity for me to show up early. It's not often one gets to give a specific request for their next life. In the usual procedure the space which we now occupy dissects the soul on the way out and into the next life, to find out about their wishes and preferences. Still, that gives poor results, only really pointing it in the general direction. The act of dissecting the soul also leaves the owner of the soul without any memories of their past lives." He paused, letting me absorb in the new information.

"There is no heaven, no hell, only existence. When this reality came to be, a specific amount of souls were created with it. All of the same souls now circulate through reality, passing on to the world that most fulfills one's desires when their end comes. Your time on earth was up, and you are now to be transported to the world which we spoke of while you were living. Got all that?"

".. Yeah, more or less."

I'm usually a sceptical guy, but who am I to question this? Seeing is believing after all. We really were clueless, how I'd once imagined us humans a smart race is beyond me, we were nothing but big fish in a small pond, unaware of the giant ocean right beside us.

"All of these different portals are worlds then?"

"Ooo, catching on are we?" He says regaining whatever mirth lost during the explanation. "That would be correct, each of the portals represent the pathway to different worlds. We can distinguish them through the difference in their aura, you were drawn to one weren't you? That would be the portal back to earth. Your soul recognised it as similar and friendly, ushering you to move towards it."

"Makes sense.. I guess." It didn't, but reminding myself just who the hell I was talking too, I kept my mouth shut not wanting to possible annoy him any further.

"Neat. Now then, lets get down to business."

"What busine-"

Pain.

"Fucking shit balls fuck damn shit fuck!" I scream throwing myself in the fetal position, clutching my hands tightly.

Wait, hands? Since when did I have those?

"Such a colorful vocabulary."

"What...what did you do?" It was an unnecessary question, I knew, it was obvious, I had been given a new body.

My skin remained pale, but that was about the only thing I could say resembled my old self. I had grown taller than the lanky teen who stood before me, someone who towered me in my past life. My hair was long and green, like that of a tree in early summer. On my head a pair of antlers had grown. I had gotten new muscles too, befitting that of an extreme athlete. Lastly, I had gotten blue markings covering my entire body, giving off a small cyan glow.

"Business, didn't I say?"

Seeing my deadpan look, he continued.

"Can't really send you to a new world without a body hmm?"

Ah.

It's really happening then? I'm really going to the Overlord universe? I had a lot of feelings.

Confusion. Terror. Fear. Uncertainty.

But most of all?

Excitement.

I was actually going to walk on the same surface as the monsters in the guild of Ainz Ooal Gown, a terrifying yet exhilarating feeling. Would I try to twist the story to my liking? What role will I take? The hero? The villain? The pacifist?

"This all still seems so surr-ARGH"

Did this motherfucker just shove his hand down my throat?

Excuse me? Death or not, that's just not cool.

"Peh! Blurrg.." God that was awful, and what was with that taste? Grass? Dirt? Flora? Bark? Not a fan of human parts, but I can say with certainty that's not how its supposed to taste.

Not that I'm dealing with a normal person anyway..

He shoved his hand into his clothes, removing all the saliva he cultivated during his adventures in my throat.

"Well then, requirements have been met. Time to send you off," he said as his body started glowing a bright white.

"Hold on just a minute! You're not gonna adress what you've just done? And about how you didn't bother to give me a heads up at all?" I was annoyed, I repeat, Death or not, thats not cool.

"Hmmm? Would you have agreed if I had proposed it?"

"Well, I don't kn-"

"And would you rather I did an anal insertion instead? Only other option."

".."

".."

"Whatever.."

Exasperated, Death sighed again.

"You know, you're lucky it's me you're dealing with and not some other world's Death, having met most of them I can say with certainty you're gonna have to look for a while to find someone as lenient and patient as me. Speaking of which, pray you never come to face to face with the Death that governs the Overlord universe. A sadist to the very core." A flinch erupts through Death's body. "You might even consider him demon incarnate if you think my fascination with your death was any bad. So yeah, avoid that guy."

"How do I av-" I felt a force clamping over my body, making it impossible to move around.

"Hush, we're out of time, I've entertained you enough as it is. I have other matters to attend." He said, followed by a series of strange chants, each somehow managing to tighten the grip around my body more and more.

"Hold on! What powers do I have? How do I fend for myself?"

".. Aum Bhur Bhuva Svah .."

"Answer me, please!" My body started glowing.

".. Tat Savitur Varenyam .."

I kept shouting pleas, but to no avail. My body glowing brighter and brighter following each word.

".. Bhargo Devasya Dhimahi .."

I went quiet now, not by choice mind you. The force which held me finally enveloped my mouth too, making it unable to function properly.

".. Dhiyo Yo Naha Prachodayat."

Acting as the final nail in the coffin, those words effectively made my body stop, eyes no longer responding and my heart feeling like it stopped beating. Yet, I remained conscious. Although barely, only managing to form simple thoughts.

"You know.." Death started talking.

Three...

"Believe it or not, I've grown a little fond of you. I don't interact with a lot of souls, and even then, most of them either bore, or annoy me to no end."

Two...

"Which is why I'll leave you with a little hint regarding your questions just now."

One...

"Seek the dream."

Zero..


At first, I could not understand what was going on.

The world was nothing but a confusing blend of colors and noise.

Soon however, everything settled down and I could make out the several figures that stood above me. Bears, wolves and basilisks surrounded me. A strange combination, for sure, seeing as they were effectively hunter and prey. But the fact remained that they were perfectly calm around each other, as if they were protected by something superior.

I tried to move, to escape from this strange scene. My body did not listen, only my head managing to function properly. The rest of the body was seemingly there, but too exhausted to even twitch slightly at my attempts.

Across from me, just in my field of vision, another figure appeared, human, this time.

There's my chance out!

"Hey! Sir! Please hel-"

Before I could press on however. The man interrupted me, giving off his own shout. "You are as of recently recognized as a threat and therefore enemy of the Sorcerer Kingdom of Ainz Ooal Gown, for the disruption and damage you have caused. Surrender now, or be prepared to deal with lethal force." Six figures stepped forward - Death knights.

..

..

"Hah?!"


AN: I want to thank InsertImaginativeNameHere for helping me as a beta reader, appreciate it.

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