Choose a Deity to bless your path!
Izuku groans as he rolls on the floor. His body aching from sleeping on such a hard object. Opening his eyes Izuku finds he isn't in his room. Instead he is inside an empty black void with the only light coming from a neon sign that says "start your run" that is situated ontop of large black oak double doors. Looking around and rubbing his eyes Izuku is confused as to what is happening until he hears a chuckle.
Turning to face the new voice Izuku is met with the visage of a man of american descent. His skin a healthy peach tone, his eyes are shining as though they were cut from the most valuable emeralds. His hair as blue as a sapphire gemstone and his smile is wide and baring his filed to a sharpened point teeth. Blood clearly visable on his clothes and even running down his mouth and bits of flesh stuck in his teeth.
"Welcome young one! My name is Mathias! I am a representative of certain beings who wish to ...hmm shall i say.. Test? Your will and your resolve. Might i inquire as to what your name is?" Mathias asks as Izuku is confused as to how he got here he goes to ask only to have Mathiss hold a hand up and stop him.
"Now now, i know you are confused. Let me start by saying WELCOME! Yes, Welcome to the proving grounds. This is a little area the old ones bring those they wish to test. It is also where they bring chosen champions when staring over if theu even bother too. It is a place between dimensions outside of time. You young one have been chosen for they saw something in you. Something they wish to test. Something to refine and something to take away. Now, you name is not important. Your old life no longer matters and your soul? Well, if you accomplish a certain objective lets just say you'll be fine. Now! Choose a deity to bless your path!" Mathias says as he pulls out a deck of cards. The illustrations alone convey the very viceral and tangible power these Deity's possess.
The 5 cards in the mans hand show the direct middle Deity named "The End". The diety having nothing but reds and blacks for colors for his robes and armor. Spikes coming out of them. A crown of red light in the form of a halo floats above his head. The Deity has no face and instead just has a black void where the face should be along with the ancient symbol of an Ahnk. Just under the portrait the deity is tagged with the words 'Find solace in the inevitable'. Showing he increases attack and speed but reduces Defense and health.
The next Deity is named "The Harvest" who is a femanine deity that looks as though she were made of wood. She has no face and wears a blood red cloak with a cast iron clasp and around the cloaks top are bone like supports that rest on the deitys collar bone. The tag line for her says 'A bounty for the patient' with buffs to gold and items while she debuffs defense and experience.
To the farthest left is a deity named Chaos whos face is a theatre mask. One half smiling while the other is just a dark star filled void with tentacles splayed out of it. The creatures body is also made of the star filled void while it holds two dice as it only has a cape to wear. The tag for the Deity states 'Your fate is in their hands' showing nothing but ??? For all its buffs and debuffs.
The Deity to the farthest right is named "The Wanderer" showing a heavily armored being with a horned helmet and it having an upside down cross on the front lined with smaller details and trim on the helmets sides. A big cloak/cape with furred edges is also seen. The deity's tag line reads 'Protection, for a price' as he gives Health and defense bit takes away gold and items.
Finally the last diety is one named "The Wisened" that is fully covered head to toe in hand sewed cloth and armor. The hood and clothes patchworks of different fabrics as they were used for repairs. Writings and runes show up on all the different tattered cloths as the beings mask is one half white with a half Halo and metal teeth connecting to a black void with four bleeding eye designs. That deity's tag line is "Forbidden Knowledge" showing Izuku would gain Xp and items but lose attack strength and health.
Izuku looks at the man and tries asking something before he is shushed by the man who then holds out the cards once more. As Izuku picks "The wisened" his mind is assaulted with knowledge he wanted as he feels himself get physically weaker. Dropping to his knees Izukus eyes go blank as he's drawn into his own thoughts on what he just learned.
Turning around Izuku gasps at the fact he's seeing the Deity he chose floating just behind him with it's hands behind its back not speaking. Just warching him, observing him, learning from him. Izuku turns to talk to Mathias only to see he is gone and nowhere to be seen. Turning to the Deity Izuku asks in a scared tone.
"So, i just get through this and i can go?" Izuku asks as the Deity does not answer him. Merely stares at Izuku before turning his body to the door. Izuku sighs wondering what lies ahead as he walks towards the door. Izuku in followed by the diety he chose as The Wisened floats behind Izuku. Izuku opens the door and walks in. Inside the doors is a elegant entrance room lined with some of the most beautiful art, pottery and rugs he has ever seen. Izuku walks around the entrance way in awe as he obsereves everything around him but not touching anything.
Izuku walks through the next set of double doors and inside are a few people walking around in suits holding weapons. They immediately take notice of the open door and izukus head explodes in a flash of light and gore. His blood and brain matter splattering on the walls behind him as his body convulses and thrashes about while blood gushes from his wound and his tongue flails about before his body slumps to the ground.
Izuku screams as he wakes up with a start from his nightmare panting as hebgrabs ar his head feeling it's still there and sweating profusely as he rubs his eyes at the strange nightmare only to sigh in relief that it's over.
"Welcome back young one. Your journey isnt over yet. Choose a Deity to bless your path." Mathias says as he holds out the same five cards as before. Izuku's eyes widening as he looks on at Mathias's twisted smile. Izuku swallows hsrd and once again chooses the wisened.
Izuku notices that Mathias dissapears once again nowhere to be seen and the deity he chose is floating behind him. Something izuku takes note of is that the deity seems nearly see-through. Intangible if he had to guess and he is proven right as the deity floats through the front door before izuku gets to it. Izuku walks in and carefully opens the front door peeking inside seeing his own dead body lying down infront of him. Izuku holds his hand over his mouth to stop his gasp from being heard as be quickly runs to one corner of the room and throws up.
Wiping his mouth clean Izuku once again peeks through the door seeing 5 men on patrol Izuku sees they all have guns and are patrolling in a smal pattern only stopping to check corners and to peer down what look like hallways. Closing the door Izuku looks at his deity and instinctively can pick up what the deity wants. Walking over to one of the books on a table Izuku picks it up and begins reading. The book details the adventure of someone. Someone who's been in this place for a long time. The name is long since been removed due to blood soaking the top of the book.
The book details how this place is a never ending maze. A shifting reality that never ends and goes on infinitely. How every room has mindless human looking monsters that only attack and kill anything on sight. Izuku gulps as he rubs his neck having just experienced that. Looking throughout the book the Person undergoing what is called "The Trial of Chosen" explains that death is real and so are heaven and hell. This realm lies outside of all of reality in a place between time and dimensions. A place where the chosen are tortured, tested, gifted boons and returned home. The book drives home that if you die it is not the end. Until the deities get what they want you just start over from the beginning with what ever you had on you at the time.
Izuku is about to turn the page again before his spine is blasted with a shotgun throwing hin to the floor as the men from the other room rush in and begin repeatedly stabbing him over and over as they stomp, kick, punch and rip out his guts and tear the flesh from his bones.
Izuku screams again as he jolts up from lying down. Looking to his right Izuku is shivering and shaking as Mathias is once again sitting on a chair infront of him.
"Choose a deity to bless your path." Mathias offers as Izuku chooses "The Wanderer" as that deity is now standing beside Izuku walking towards the door. Izuku turns and sees Mathias is gone. Sighing once more Izuku hesitantly walks into the room once more. Waiting for his moment izuku kicked the door when it opens knocking the shotgun out of the creatures hands and he races to pick it up. Izuku aims the gun and goes to speak but can't as the monster lunges at him. Izuku in a panic closes his eyes as his fingers began pulling the trigger blowing the humanoid monster apart. As shells for the shotgun float out of the being along with a small stack of gold coins. Izuku walks over to pick up the shells but is tackled by another creature as Izuku feels his throat get torn out by the creatures teeth as his eyes go dull and his blood pools around him. Izuku dies choking on his own blood as his face is being eaten.
Izuku leans forward breathing slightly heavy as Mathias holds out the cards once more. His smile never leaving his face as Izukj picks again and then again and then again. Izuku constantly reappears at the same spot. More time passess between each and every revisit. Izuku picking and unlocking more deity cards as he fights through the trial of chosen. Izuku's deaths are countless, his eyes dull and yet determined. Each mistake that hurts him makes him smarter. Each enemy he defeats makes him more confident. Each death makes him stronger.
Everytime Izuku gets stuck he kills himself to respawn at the enteance and pick another deity. Days turn into months, months to years, years into centuries, centuries into millennia. Izuku doesn't know how long he's been at this little game. All he knows is each failed attempt brings him closer and closer to going home. His skills with guns, hand to hand and melee weaponry is unrivalled. His brutality unmatched, his intellect incalculable and thanks to the Deity's of his countless runs his magical acumen is on par with the very deities who brought him here.
Izuku has spent what the Wisened states is 13 millennium in this trial and izuku can't help but smile. Funny enough izuku was able to find the author for all the books he's been reading. It was himself the entire time. The creatures he's been fighting? Other versions of himself who have lost their minds and bodies and only know to kill and hunt and eat. Izuku has spent so long in this realm, so long he wishes to return home. To return to his mother, to his life, to his world! He continues fighting, continues dying all for a chance to finally win the run and go home.
Izuku smiles as he wakes up once more and Mathias is once again waiting for him. Mathais's never ending grin plastered on his face as Izuku walks over with one of his own.
"Choose a deity to bless your path" Mathias says as Izuku smirks at him before pointing at Mathias himself.
"I chose you Mathias. I choose you to bless my path to returning to my mother. I choose you to bless my path back home. Most importantly, i choose you to bless my path to being a hero!" Izuku says. The countless millennium spent in this place training, learning, dying it would all be worth it. All he has to do is make it home.
Mathias smiles as he looks at the boy in front of him. The old ones chose right. This boy will definitely be worth the trouble they'll cause. Mathias's smile widens more and more as he begins laughing hysterically dropping the deck of card revealing every single deity belonging to the old ones as they all appear solid this time around as Mathias's form melts away revealing a solid white faceless entity with no features and a simple black outline of eyes blinking into and out of existence.
The now featurless pure white being smiles a very happy smile and starts clapping as all deity's walk around forming a circle around Izuku.
"You have chosen wisely my friend. You knew after the first 3 months but chose to stay, chose to fight and most importantly you chose to die. To die and die and die and die and die and die AND DIE!!!! countless times you werenlead to your own slaughter and NEVER did you give in unlike the other yous of other universes. Your deaths were marvelous and each one garnered attention from a deity you chose. You wish for a deity to bless your path home? To bless your path back to your flesh? To bless you on your path to heroism? IT SHALL BE YOURS!" The being speaks as Izuku smiles at him nodding making sure he keeps everything he's taken and learned and written on his person.
"Before i go, what is your name?" Izuku asks as the being smiles at him happily showing his perfect teeth. The entity hands Izuku the massive stack of cards holding the deity's on them before one card unlike the rest is shown on it. The card is blank for a portrait as the name isn't there. The only things on it are the tag line. 'What is hidden shall be known' with the buffs saying ??? As Izuku begins glowing and disappearing from view.
"I am "The Truth". Good bye!" The Truth speaks as All the deities including truth turn into orbs of light that shoot into Izuku. Izuku shoots up from his bed panting heavily and sweating. Looking around Izuku sees all his All might gear and sneers at it. Looking over to the clock Izuku sees that it is literally the exact time he went to sleep before waking up the first time in the trials. Izuku carefully heads over and takes down every last bit of memorabilia of all the hero's he has and puts them away. He'll sell them later but what matters now is making sure he redecorates his room with his newest fascination.
As Izuku spent all night drawing up and casting magic to create memorabilia of all the Deities including The truth he hears his mothers alarm go off and he knows it's 6am. Smiling at this Izuku reaches for the door only for the world to turn gray and time to stop as he hears the truth speak once again.
"Choose a deity to bless your path." The truth speaks as the first 5 deities cards he saw are floating infront of him intangible but Izuku's smile is unmistakable as it turns into a manic smirk before he laughs insanely happy at this new outcome as he reaches his hand forwards choosing a deity.