Chapter 1:
The Otherworldly Patron of Blood
Alone, in her cocoon of sinew and flesh, Hemofemina watched as the unlucky souls of the other world were plucked right in front of her.
Their presence did not shock her. From time to time, the six most powerful kingdoms of Deusterra liked to pluck hapless, recently deceased individuals from the other known world - Earth - to bring them over to serve under them. Their souls did not suffer as much from the effects of Power Imbuement, meaning any land powerful enough to summon such a soul could garner enormous power from obtaining such people. The only caveat was that their powers, although guaranteed to be strong, couldn't be selected beforehand. Only gods and goddesses could choose directly what powers the reincarnated would have before their bodies properly formed.
But when they did this, they usually chose one or two souls to reincarnate. This time, there were fourteen of them, all at once. How? No kingdom, not even Dragonsgrail, could afford the cost of setting up and bringing all of those souls to the same location - and even more curiously, all Six Kingdoms were present. Did they collude to grab these souls at the same time? If only she could ask. Unfortunately for her, she was by all accounts meant to be dead, and she didn't want to risk another hunt for her. Not without a patron.
So she stayed still, not daring to grab any of them. Two by two, the Six Kingdoms whisked the souls away. The best ones - those with strong will and ample experience - went to Dragonsgrail. The rest were of varying quality, but served the five others just fine. Soon, all the kingdoms had their souls...
And two remained, floating around without any purpose.
"Oh?" She thought to herself. Only one other entity remained; the other kingdoms faded away. She waited for the other entity to make a move. Eventually, a hand reached out and grabbed a single soul, retreating afterwards. Soon, only she remained, alone with the one soul nobody touched.
Curious, she reached out to it and took it, cradling it in her hands as she peered into it. Peter Lee. Perished in an explosion at the age of twenty-three. Long black hair. Poor vision, needed glasses. Had no immediate friends. Dropped out of higher education. The more she looked, the more she understood why nobody else chose him. Why would the Kingdoms choose a loner who spent most of his time in his room, choosing to hide from the world instead of living in it?
And yet, she smiled as she led the soul back into her domain. She did not need a man of great feats. She merely needed a patron, a sentient soul to act as her vessel in a world she hadn't seen in five hundred years.
And Peter Lee was a perfect candidate to become one.
. . .
Peter Lee woke up, gasping for air in the darkness.
He sat up, patting his body down in disbelief. What happened to him? Where was he now? Why couldn't he see anything besides himself? He closed his eyes and tried recounting the last time he was awake. He was on a bridge, walking back home, when suddenly...
Ah. That's right. The bridge exploded, and he got crushed under the rubble.
Before he could question how he was still alive, a small, dim light floated in front of him, like a firefly. It spoke no words, yet he understood immediately that he was to follow it. He got on his feet and walked slowly behind it as it delved deeper into what seemed to be a cave system. His feet sunk into the ground a bit as he moved, like soft, muddy dirt. He looked down at what little the firefly illuminated and shuddered - instead of rocks, like he expected, the floor was some kind of meat, reminding him of how muscles were drawn in anatomy textbooks. He soon realized everything in this cavern was meat too. He brushed his fingers against a wall. Wet.
After five minutes, the firefly stopped, hovering over a strange form. Like everything else, it was meaty, but the form resembled a human, sitting on their knees, as if they were encased in a cocoon of flesh. Their arms sat crossed in front of their chest, as if they were bound and tied. The dim light made it extremely difficult to make out anything else.
But what he did notice was a pale nose sticking out of it.
The firefly prodded the nose. He poked it. He expected something hard, like stone or marble. But it squished under the pressure of his finger, and twitched as he retracted it. Whatever it was, it was definitely living. And if it was living... it needed his help to get out.
He grabbed as much meat as he could on both sides of the nose and pulled as hard as possible. He stumbled backwards and fell to the ground, the meat tearing off like construction paper. He got up, glancing at the hole he tore open. As he expected, the face of a woman poked out from underneath the meat. Like her nose, her skin was extremely pale, almost perfectly white, and her eyes glowed a scarlet red. But most importantly, her mouth was now free, and she was smiling at him.
"Hello, Peter." The woman said to him.
"Uh... hi? Who are you?" He stammered over his words, despite his attempts to remain calm.
"I'll tell you later. For now, all you need to know is that I am your goddess, and the one who brought you here."
"Goddess? You mean gods have existed all this time?"
"Perhaps not in your world. But you are not in your world now. You're in mine. And here, gods and goddesses have existed longer than humanity ever has."
"Wait... you brought me here into your world? And you're my goddess? Does that mean I've been isekai'd?"
"I don't know that word, but I suppose it does." As he opened his mouth, she spoke first. "Before you ask anymore questions, I would like you to finish releasing me."
"Oh, right." He tore off the rest of the flesh, exposing her body with each piece he ripped off. He started with the rest of her head, freeing her long, jet black hair. Then, he worked downwards to her neck, shoulders and chest, where he realized that, underneath the flesh, she was naked. He blushed and looked away, only glancing back to make sure he didn't grab her by mistake.
"Stop looking away."
"But-"
"If I was any other god, I would've struck you down on the spot. Our bodies are to be admired, not to be embarrassed by. Look at me and do your job properly."
He reluctantly nodded and followed her orders. As he continued, he noticed rusted chains wrapped around her wrists, binding her arms together. The same applied to her legs, forcing her into a kneeling position. The area around the chains provided the only bruises on her otherwise smooth skin. He cringed. Just how long was she bound like this?
When he finished, he stood back, giving her space to stand up. She wobbled as she got on her feet, her legs struggling after so much inactivity.
"Should I unravel the chains?"
"I can do it myself. But you're welcome to do so."
With trepidation, he approached her again and began unwrapping the chains on her, snapping off the grimy locks holding them together. As he took off each one, they clattered against itself as they landed on the meaty ground. He stood back again; she rubbed her sore wrists gently.
"You're much more of a servant than I anticipated."
"What does that mean?"
"Nothing. Just a small observation. Please, stand still." She went up to him and inspected him from head to toe. "Does anything about yourself feel off?"
"Physically? No."
After a minute or so, she stopped. "It seems your body has been recreated properly. Not bad for my first summoning."
"First summoning?"
"Yes. I don't get many opportunities to get someone such as yourself, but I will explain everything later. For now, you have freed me, and that is enough. Now, I shall send you on your way."
"My way?"
"Yes. You'll be moved from my domain and properly placed into Deusterra. Many things will be different, but you will learn with experience. I just need you to heed a few words." She placed her hands on his shoulders and looked straight into his eyes. "You are my patron. You will be my eyes and ears during your time here. I can provide you with power beyond your wildest imagination. But right now, you cannot let anyone know that I am your goddess. If you do, you will be killed on the spot. Do you understand?"
He nodded.
"Good. Now, have a nice trip!"
Before he could ask any questions, his vision faded, and soon, his consciousness followed.
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