Chapter 1: Rebirth
Shrugging off sleep, he threw his legs over the bed. Standing up, he moved to the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. He lived alone, all alone, and it had been this way for years. He raked his eyes over his scarred torso, and sighed.
Once upon a time, he had been in the military. A special forces unit, with extensive training. He had been there from the age of eighteen, to the age of twenty-nine, when he was honorably discharged. Flipping the sink on, he grabbed his tooth brush, put toothpaste on it, dipped it under the water slightly, then brushed his teeth quickly.
Making sure he got the spare toothpaste off of his brush, he put it in a spare cup before grabbing his mouthwash. He used it, then applied deodorant before leaving the bathroom, flipping off the light.
Heading to his dresser, he threw on simple black jeans, then some socks before applying his combat boots. Grabbing a belt, he threaded it around his waist and buckled in.
Hearing his phone go off, he moved over to it while half dressed, then clicked on the message, using his fingerprint to access his phone.
Seeing the message of, "'*Your daughter wants you to stop by today'"*, he smiled slightly. The one good thing to come out of that failed, rushed, marriage, was his daughter. He loved her. Though, she had an odd fascination with some Nickelodeon shows. The Thundermans and Henry Danger were her favorites. He knew everything about them, and he was not kidding. Though, she preferred The Thundermans, and so did he. They were just... more interesting than Henry Danger was.
That and some of the actresses were complete eye candy.
Grabbing a sleeveless shirt, he threw it on. Reaching for his holster, he slid it into place on his right thigh before sliding his pocket knife into his, well, pocket.
Grabbing a combat knife, he reached down and strapped it to his boot, leaving the combat knife readily available. Grasping onto his watch, he slid it onto his wrist upside down.
Reaching a hand up to scratch his stubble, he saw hair dangle in his eyes. Sighing, he grabbed a hair band off of his dresser and put his hair up quickly. It was a small ponytail, not anything large, just a slight, beginner one. The hair when undone only went to his mouth, so there wasn't much.
The sides of his head, and the back, were shaved down. There was only the top of his hair that was long. Tied up, it looked good. Apparently, it made him prettier (his daughters words, not his), but he was comfortable with it. Along with his ear piercing. It was only his right ear, and it was a basic, black ring.
Cracking his neck left and right, he grabbed his phone and placed it in his back pocket. Grabbing his pack of gum, he placed it in his other pocket as he walked out of the room.
Moving through his apartment's living room, he moved into his small kitchen. Gripping onto a coffee mug, he pulled out his definitely cold, and definitely sitting there way too long pot, he poured some. Taking the cup, he put it in the microwave before heating it up for about thirty seconds.
Once it beeps, he opens the microwave and grabs the coffee, taking a sip and flinching back. That burned a bit. He always does that.
He set it down on the counter, and out of the window on the other side of the room. All he saw were clouds, and a plane really far in the distance, but that was it. He was high up in his building, the view was nice, and rent was cheaper than he thought it would be. It was perfect for him.
Grabbing onto his mug, he took a sip, able to swallow it down this time. Swallowing more coffee, he got lost in thought. His time overseas... did something. There weren't many pleasant memories. All he remembers was fighting, terminating, then retreating, repeat.
Finishing the cup, he placed it in the sink before flipping the water on. He quickly washed the cup, then put it in the dish drainer.
Walking to his door, he grabbed his leather jacket and threw it over his shoulders, then grabbed his keys.
Closing the door behind him as he stepped out, he put his key in the door and flipped the lock. Once he hears the click, he pulls the keys out and puts them into his pocket.
Passing his neighbors, he gave them a nod as he stepped into the elevator. Hitting the button, he tapped his foot while he lowered down into the garage area. Once getting there, he walked to his car and got in, starting it before driving off.
~~Time Skip~~
Around nine hours later, he had gotten off of work and was heading to the house of his ex-wife. Getting out, he hit the button that locked his car before moving to the front door.
Knocking, he waited for a response. He grinned when the door opened to reveal his daughter.
"Daddy!" She yelled, reaching for him to hug. He knelt down to her level, he pulled her into one. Giving the six year old a gentle squeeze as he picked her up and set her on his hip. Walking in, he closed the door as he rounded the corner, his daughter cheering gleefully in his ear.
He saw his ex the second he made the turn. "How was the drive?" She asked, friendly. They were on good terms. Their passion and love for each other just... ran out. Now he did only one night stands or long term booty calls. He had quite the collection of numbers he called regularly, or met up with by accident.
He tilted his head in an 'eh' motion. "Traffic seems more hectic today." He notes simply, moving his free hand to his daughter's stomach and giving it a tickle. She giggles and fights his hand.
"Oh, well, sit down. I'm making dinner for us."
"Okay."
~~Time Skip~~
Driving, it was raining, heavily. And the traffic was insane. There were constant locks in traffic, and he hated every second of it. He needed to get to the apartment, and quickly.
Stopping at a red light, he heard someone start to call him on his phone. Glancing over, he reached for it while looking at the road. Hitting his phone, it fell off and into the floorboard.
Seeing the light turn green, he started driving again. Continuing, he took a turn and looked at his phone that was still ringing. Getting onto a straight, open road, he leaned over and grabbed his phone.
A single blink, and he was on his side, head hitting something. He felt his phone hit him in the side of the head, he felt his arm get crushed by a seat, he felt pain shoot through every fiber of his being, then he blacked out.
~~Hours Later~~
Waking up, he looked around, but found himself surrounded by a void. He was confused, he looked down and saw... nothing?
He seemed to float in silence, looking around at literally everything, but seeing nothing. He kept floating, and floating, and floating...
When could he find something? Like, anything at all!? It would be extremely useful!
He thought he had lost it when he finally found something he found interesting. It seemed to be a white... building? But they were... he had no idea where.
Floating into it, he looked around and found nothing. He kept exploring, eventually coming across a woman who had her back to him.
Getting closer, he was about to clear his throat when-
"Hello. Feel free to get closer. I don't bite." She speaks, turning around to look at him.
He gets closer, then stops. "What's going on? I have been floating around for a few hours and-"
She interrupted, "A few hours? No, it has not been a few hours. It has been thousands of years. Centuries, actually. You have been floating for a very, VERY long time."
His eyes widen and he starts breathing heavily. "Centuries? B-But my... my daughter-"
"Died a very long time ago, I am very sorry. She did not, uh, 'qualify', for this." She responds.
"Qualify for what!?" He goes to grab onto his hair, but for the first time in apparently years, he notices he doesn't have arms. He also notices that he doesn't feel anything. No body, no need to breathe, no hunger, absolutely nothing. "What happened to me!?"
She gains a sorrowful expression. "You were in a car accident. You reached for your phone, and a semi-truck slammed into the side of your vehicle. The vehicle you were in rolled, a lot. When the first responders got on scene, you were dead. There was zero possibility of you living through it. The damage was so extensive, it took a second for them to identify you, and your ex-spouse took over three minutes before she realized who you were. I am sorry, but you died, tragically. If you feel any better, your daughter grew up and joined the military in your honor. She died peacefully with a family." She offered, and he attempted to take a large breath but failed because he doesn't have lungs. He also tried to nod but failed.
"At least she did something. Now, back to my first question, what did I qualify for?"
She looks at him, then answers, "During life, you showed remarkable promise. You showed a willingness to go past lines people would fear mentioning. You fought bravely, you gave everything you had to a mission. However, since you died young, you were never able to live up to your full potential. So, you are being offered a second chance. You will get transported to a world you know intimately, so that you may live there freely, with knowledge of what has happened and what will happen later on. You will be placed into the shoes of someone, and you will control their actions, behavior, appearance, everything, on your own. Do you wish to have it? We do not offer this to anyone, and there are very limited offers. If you say no, it will be reserved for someone else. However, if you say yes, you get a second chance. No strings attached."
He thought for a long minute or two. "Is there any other information I can have?"
She nods with a slight grin. "Yes. After, you will not hear from us again. Like I said, you would be placed into a world you have intimate knowledge of. After you are placed, you are on your own without any outside influence. We would pick where to place you, depending on circumstances at the time. You will have all previous knowledge of the life you take over. That goes into the next one. Adding a whole new person into the world is a major risk, so you would be taking over the life of someone else instead. They would still be present, however they would simply be a voice in your head, or a memory they bring to the surface. Their traits would also be something you would inherit. Such as genius intellect, sass, traits like that."
He takes a long second to think, needing to be sure. His daughter... was dead. His friends, gone. He was floating for thousands of years. He had... nothing. But maybe this was something... maybe this was something he could use to heal. Make new friends, new... 'acquaintances', and... maybe be happy?
"I accept." He says simply, looking at the woman, who he had to admit, looked good.
She grinned at him. "Good. I am happy to get you out of here. Maybe... maybe once you get acquainted, I could... pop in for something. I do not really get to leave much, and it would be worth the trip." She bites her lip as she waves her hand, and he starts feeling tired. "Oh, for the road." She smirked as her top became see-through, and he was able to catch an eyeful of breast. "I am rooting for you." She spoke as his eyes slipped shut, and he blacked out.
~~Unknown Skip~~
He shot up out of bed, breathing heavily. Looking around, he noticed he was in a room where he felt familiar, but he had never been in it. He glanced at the walls and saw posters. He could swear he was in a basement, based on the walls and high window.
Looking around, he saw a cage. Throwing his feet over the side of the bed, he moved over to the cage and looked in it, noticing a sleeping rabbit.
Recognizing the familiar pattern, and noting that he was in a basement, he quickly backed up and looked to his right. Seeing a Dark Mayhem poster, his eyes widened and he hurried to the desk. Grabbing a handheld mirror, he raised it to his face and looked at it.
The face staring back? The face of one Maximus Octavius Thunderman.
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