Tic, tic, tic. "Hey, can you shut that off, please? It's really getting on my nerves," a voice said. A hand quickly turned off the blinker of the car, stopping the ticking. "Crap, sorry, I didn't realize I left the turn signal on." "You're good, man. Don't apologize; you're just distracted by the rain. It's cool." The windshield wipers swiped off what almost looked like gallons of water, only for it to quickly blur again with more rain. Thankfully, the driver had the wipers on full speed, so the rain wasn't obscuring the view too much.
"Jesus, this rain is bad. I'm just glad we're almost home. I swear there wasn't a single dark cloud in the sky on the way here," the driver said, glancing back at the passenger. The two were returning from the gym when the heavy rain hit, catching them both off guard. "Yeah, I know. It's not like you haven't said it ten times already." "It was actually only three or four times, but go off." "AcTuAlLy, I only said it four point five times." The driver couldn't help but laugh. "Man, if you don't shut up... I'm trying to keep us from crashing in this downpour."
Suddenly, a loud screeching noise grew closer. They had just turned left into their neighborhood when a food truck, apparently hydroplaning, hurtled towards them. The driver attempted to speed up to escape the impending collision, but the surprise and panic caused him to slow down instead. His tires lost traction. In a brief, harrowing second filled with the sound of metal crushing metal, pain flashed through their bodies. Before either could comprehend what happened, the impact of the truck obliterated them inside their car.
The next thing they knew, they were standing in a blank, featureless room, both screaming at the top of their lungs. The sudden silence of their voices, as if someone had hit a mute button, snapped them out of their shock. "Good, now that I can finally hear myself think, I can explain to you two what's going on," a voice rang through the room. It was like an explosion going off with each word, the sound reverberating and shaking them to their cores. They both tried to locate the source of the voice, but all they could see was white. That's when they realized the 'room' they were in wasn't just white—it was a blank void with no doors, no windows. The boundaries of the space were indistinguishable; floor and ceiling blended seamlessly into an endless expanse of nothingness.
"Ah, it seems you two have figured out where you are, or should I say, where you aren't. You see, I brought you to this in-between space to give you a small heads-up before I put you both in front of the two mean bean brothers. You were going to die in that accident, but with all my power, I saved you. Now, you must you must be wondering what you did to deserve being rescued by a God, and that's with a capital 'G,' by the way. You see, I made a deal with two other gods after getting a little too close for their comfort. Normally, I'd just wipe their minds or vanish, but these two have just enough power to resist such tricks. So, I struck a deal to ignore my presence and let me observe their creations. The catch? I needed a valid reason for my interest. Declaring mere curiosity wasn't an option; I couldn't have other beings learning of that. So, I concocted a deal: I'd introduce two beings from my own watchings into their world, to see how they'd fare. You two may not be my direct creations, but I've observed your species enough to consider it a fair exchange. And now, I'm about to send you off to meet the 'two big beans.' Just remember, don't disappoint me, or I'll find ways to make your eternity quite unbearable Toodles."
The two boys stood in a trance-like state. They had just encountered what they believed to be a god, and the overwhelming sensation of the voice was just beginning to fade. The one with dirty blonde hair broke the silence. "What the actual fuck was that, Orion?" He looked over at his cousin, who seemed to be in shock as well. It took Orion a few seconds to muster a response. "Man, what the fuck was in that gas station cart?" Panic was setting in. They were dead? About to be sent somewhere to converse with other gods? Before they could process further, the world around them began to shift. Colors bled into the space, the walls and floor morphing, flipping, turning inside out. It was disorienting, painful to their eyes, until suddenly, they felt their stomachs drop. They were falling!
The world around them began to morph, with the god's words echoing in their minds, "Don't disappoint me." The words seemed to have a physical effect, causing their bodies to shake slightly under the weight of the being's presence. As they landed on their backs, light exploded in front of them. Their stomachs felt as if they had been turned inside out, and for one of them, their chest began to feel numb. Before they could comprehend what was happening, the world transitioned again. Now they were kneeling in a bright void. The periphery of the darkness was too bright for their eyes, yet their gaze was irresistibly drawn to the center, as if compelled to stare into the void. Then, abruptly, the void blinked back at them.
Two figures approached them, one radiating golden grace, the other a walking dark void, both in humanoid forms. While both appeared humanoid, The golden one seemed to be more muscular, his muscles more defined, while the dark figure was slim and lean. Both devoured the view of darkness and light in front of the boys. The golden one walked slowly towards them, speaking in a bright, silky voice, yet maintaining a calm demeanor.
"So, you are the two chosen by the Spectator. I must say, I expected more," the darker of the two said as he walked closer, his head tilting slightly, accompanied by a cracking noise. "Do not mince words, brother. We both know this is not what the other meant. These two are nothing like we expected; they are weak, sharing none of our gifts besides vaguely similar shapes," the darker brother said, his tone filled with disgust, as if the mere sight of the two was physically repulsive.
"I do not understand why we don't just strike these two down now and rid ourselves of the pungent god they came from," the brighter brother turned. "Because we made a deal, we will honor it," the brighter brother said, turning to his darker counterpart. As the gods bickered, William and Orion exchanged wide-eyed glances, silently communicating through gestures. Eventually, one of them took a deep breath and cleared his throat loudly enough to catch the gods' attention.
"You dare interrupt—" began the darker god, but he was cut off. "Ah, my apologies, we seem to have strayed off topic," the brighter brother interjected. Before William could speak, the God of Light continued, "You two will be brought into our creation, the world we crafted long ago. Given your limited capabilities, your creator has arranged for you each to receive a familiar gift." The gods slowly rose to their full height, having leaned down to be at eye level with the humans.
"We understand you may have many questions. However, our deal stipulates minimal interference in your journey through our creation. We hope you will learn as you proceed." The God of Darkness gave them a final scrutinizing look. "Do not dishonor our agreement as others of your kind have in the past. Now be gone, and good luck. You will need it." With a wave of his hand with a wave of his hand, a blast of darkness shot toward them. Before they could react, it enveloped them, creating a sensation of limbs being stretched, contorted, and broken, only to be put back together. The pain was excruciating. They tried to scream, but their cries were muffled by the rushing sound in their ears and the impact of hitting a solid surface. Both were mercifully knocked unconscious, spared from anymore agony.
Pain was the first sensation to greet Orion upon awakening. His vision was initially blurry, but it cleared after a few blinks. He felt sore all over, reminiscent of a strenuous gym workout. It took him a moment to realize he was lying on the ground. "Fuuuckkkk, my head hurts, man," Orion groaned, propping himself up. "Dude, I just had the weirdest dream... or was it a dream?" He paused, surveying his surroundings. Beside him, Alex lay motionless.
Alex was lying down beside him, but he was completely unrecognizable. His clothes, face, hair, and body had changed drastically. Orion struggled to make sense of his cousin's appearance, which now seemed almost cartoon-like. "Damn, I really shouldn't have taken a hit off that cart," he muttered. Outside, a light drizzle fell, nothing too intense. Orion turned his head to survey their surroundings. He and Alex were in an alleyway – dark, wet, and dimly lit by the overcast midday sky. "Where are we?" he wondered aloud. Spotting a puddle on the cracked concrete, he looked into it, finding confirmation of what he thought. The reflection wasn't what he was expecting. "What the hell?!" His own face, body, and clothes had transformed just like Alex's. "YO ALEX, GET UP!" he yelled, shaking William's unconscious body, trying desperately to wake him up.
Alex jolted up, his arms flailing as he frantically looked around at the surroundings until his gaze landed on Orion. Recognizing a familiar face, he calmed down. "Dude, I had the weirdest dream too. It was like some random god thing brought us to the brother gods from RWBY." He was on the verge of a tangent when Orion gestured to interrupt. "Wait, those were the brother gods?" William paused, tilting his head.
"You say that like you had the same dream. You didn't, right? Please tell me that was just a dream, not something that actually happened." William's breathing picked up. "Nah, I can't believe that." He quickly stood, wobbling as his foot slipped on the damp concrete. Orion stood up beside him. "Hold up, man. Let's figure out where we are first, and check if we still have all our organs. We just woke up in an alleyway." William hesitated, then moved quickly to the end of the alleyway, stepping into the street. The view opened up before them, revealing
Emerging from the alleyway onto the street, the boys were greeted with an unobstructed view of their surroundings. The distinct cliffs, adorned with giant mushrooms growing along their sides and base, gradually revealed their location. The sight of flushing airships and a bustling crowd, some with what seemed to be animal parts, finalized their realization, particularly for Alex. His voice was faint and incredulous. "There's no way this is real." Then, as if on cue, an airship descended near a landing pad at the cliff's edge. A blue screen flickered to life nearby, and a booming voice announced, "We hope you enjoyed your flights and welcome to Mistral."