Everything had gone dark.
After spending his entire life in a hospital bed suffering from an illness that no one had a cure for, his body seemed to have finally reached its limit, and honestly, he felt relieved. Enduring constant pain, which even anesthesia or drugs couldn't completely numb, wasn't the best way to live.
The only reason he had lived so long was not because he did not want to die, but because the disease he suffered from was so strange and unknown that they used his body to study it. Yes, he was basically a lab rat that the medical community studied with enthusiasm.
But it was finally over; his body went numb, his eyelids felt heavy until he finally closed them and sank into darkness. His body stopped hurting, his lungs stopped feeling like they were on fire with every breath, and his head didn't feel like it had been hit with an iron mallet multiple times.
Finally, he was calm....
...
...
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!
Or at least that's what he thought before a thunderous voice that seemed to come from all directions echoed directly in his brain.
Surprised, he opened his eyes only to see a bunch of colored lights and confetti flying around what looked like a room just like the ones he had seen on those TV shows. His body... he didn't have one, but he was "standing" in the center of all the action.
Before he could process what was happening, the thunderous voice echoed again.
"Soul 8,693,877,476,894, you have been chosen as the winner of the Great Multiversal Lottery!!"
Confetti and fireworks exploded again, filling the room with bright colors.
"You're probably extremely confused right now, but don't worry, we've got everything covered!"
Suddenly, a flood of information came into his mind. Well, he didn't have a mind, since he didn't have a body, but he still received the information necessary for him to understand the situation. And, honestly, it only made him feel even more confused and dumbfounded.
The Great Multiversal Lottery.
In short, a group of bored ROVs decided to play a little game, a lottery where the winner would receive the opportunity to be reincarnated in a fantasy world along with a special ability; in exchange, they would gain some fun in their monotonous lives as omnipotent beings.
"And you, Eric, were the winner! Out of all the solar systems, galaxies, universes, and multiverses, you were the chosen one! Basically, you used up the luck of about ten million solar systems!."
"I, uh... thanks? Sorry if my reaction is lame; it's just that my brain is still trying to process all this."
He felt confused, extremely confused and surprised... but not as much as he expected; perhaps the ROBs were helping him so that he wouldn't lose his mind and his emotions wouldn't completely spiral out of control. After a few minutes, he was finally able to digest, at least in part, what was happening.
"I see you've calmed down a bit; well, in that case, how about we begin?"
The room suddenly went dark as several lights began to spin until they finally focused on a podium where a huge, ornate roulette wheel had appeared; on it were written the names of all the anime, manga, and weeb novels he had read.
"First things first! The world you will be reincarnated into will be..."
The roulette wheel began to spin at a blinding speed accompanied by a drum roll. Eric watched with nerves on edge. Before his illness escalated to the point where he couldn't move, he spent his time in the hospital either reading manga, watching anime, or reading novels. He knew many worlds and works, so the final result could be very good or very bad.
"Please, don't be Berserk, please, don't be Berserk..."
In a matter of seconds, the roulette wheel came to an abrupt halt; the golden arrow pointed to one of the hundreds of names written on it. Because he wasn't very close, Eric had trouble reading what was written in that section, but almost instantly the thunderous voice shouted the result at the top of its lungs.
"The world where you will be reincarnated is Shadow Slave!"
Fireworks flew and exploded behind the roulette wheel, but Eric wasn't very happy with the result.
The world of Shadow Slave was brutal and full of dangers; however, what really worried him was the fact that he hadn't read the entire novel, only the first two arcs and a little bit of the third.
"Maybe I could—"
"I know what you're going to say before you say it! And no, we can't give you knowledge of what will happen in the future; the fact that you don't know much makes it even more interesting, don't you think?"
Before he could finish his sentence, the thunderous voice had already given him the answer. He felt discouraged by this, but his mood changed at what the voice said next.
"All right, it's time to choose your ability!"
A wheel appeared that was much larger than the previous one and had many more sections. Eric, upon seeing it, cheered up; it was okay if he didn't know everything that would happen. The knowledge he possessed was already something that gave him a certain advantage, and if he managed to acquire a powerful skill, things might not be as difficult as expected.
"For certain reasons, we removed some overly powerful abilities; we don't want things to get boring too quickly. But don't worry! There are still a couple that are very powerful and useful!"
With those words, the roulette wheel began to spin, accompanied by a drum roll. Despite not having a body, Eric tensed up as he concentrated on the outcome. Soon, the wheel stopped, and the result was announced by the voice as fireworks flew and exploded.
"Your ability will be the Byakugan from the Naruto universe!"
"Byakugan... that's good."
It wasn't the most powerful, but it had a lot of potential; Eric was confident that if he used it correctly, he would be able to hold his own in the world of Shadow Slave.
"Congratulations again on being the winner of the Great Multiversal Lottery! Also, I've just been informed that the Robs have decided to give you a little surprise gift!"
"A gift?"
Eric was interested in this; he would accept any possible help or resource it could give him. However, before he could ask any more questions, a black hole opened up beneath him and sucked him in. Before he faded away, he managed to hear the voice one last time.
"Enjoy your adventure; we'll be watching you!"
...
In a filthy alley on the outskirts, leaning against a wall and surrounded by trash, a long-haired young man lay unconscious, almost lifeless. But in the next instant, his eyes opened, and he looked around in confusion, as if he didn't know where he was.
Eric was bombarded by the smell of garbage and the discomfort of his dirty body, and his body ached a little, but ironically, he hadn't felt this good in years.
"So it wasn't a hallucination..."
For a moment, he thought he had imagined it all, that when he opened his eyes he would hear the beeping of the machines that kept him breathing, smell the characteristic smell of medicine he had become so accustomed to, and see the white, sterile ceiling of a medical facility.
But fortunately, he had been blessed with the scenery of a dirty alley, the smell of garbage, and the sound of rats eating trash.
This made him extremely happy, and he began to laugh; if anyone had been watching him, they would surely have thought he had gone mad or was under the influence of some strange substance.
"I've truly been reborn..."
The only drawback he found was that he felt strangely sleepy... oh.
"They won't let me waste time, I see."
That was fine with him; with some difficulty, he moved his battered body and began walking in search of a police station.
____
A/N: Here we go, sorry if there are any spelling mistakes, English is not my native language.