Monster's Mercy

by William D. Arand

  “Why not? I’m not worshiped in the world you’re in. Not for a very long time at least. My name would mean nothing.”

  “Aren’t you Death?”

  “Goodness, no,” said the man with a laugh, as he rubbed a thumb and forefinger across the head of the creature in his lap. “Though she’s a friend of mine. Very close friend.”

  “What if I wanted to call you Goat Fucker?” Rene asked, his hands trying to discreetly check for his equipment. There was something unusual about the man that implied more experience than his youthful appearance would suggest.

  “Goat Fucker works, I suppose, though I don’t particularly find it appealing. And don’t bother looking for anything. It’s all gone. Not that it’d matter– I mean, did you forget that you’re dead?” The man laughed. “Splat. Right in front of them.”

  “So… are you a messenger then?”

  The man sighed and shook his head.

  “Such a rigid mind. While you’re working through that part, I’m going to pretend we skipped ahead to the next part of the conversation.”

  “There’s a next part?”

  “Of course there is. I mean, unless you want to die and move on?”

  “Not particularly. Truth be told though… my life wasn’t worth much; I can’t imagine my afterlife would be any better.”

  “I know. You’re honestly scum of the earth. But hey, you didn’t pick the hand you were dealt, and you played it as well as you could. Not to mention, your demise was amusing and not of your own choice. So, yeah.”

  Standing up, the man set the furry critter on the throne and then moved over to stand in front of Rene.

  Comparing their heights, Rene thought the man could only be about five foot ten. Maybe five nine. Rene was an even six feet, which made measuring others easier.

  “So, here’s the deal. And believe me, this is a deal, contract, agreement, whatever you want to call it.”

  Rene cocked his head to one side, listening.

  “First, I’m going to stick you into a pregnant woman, and have you be reborn. In this world, since you were summoned here. As part of this rebirth, I’ll be removing that little bit of you that… well, was fucked up. You’ll no longer enjoy killing people. You’ll even feel these wonderful things called remorse and regret. Shocking.”

  The man held up a finger as if to clarify that part was complete.

  Blue text began to appear out of thin air in front of Rene. It was writing down what the man had just said.

  “Second, you will retain all memories of your past life at the time of your birth. This is to make sure you remember all this and the deal you’ve struck. No point in sending you back if you can’t even remember why you’re going back.”

  The blue text began another bullet point with the most recent addition as the man held up a second finger.

  “Payment?” Rene asked.

  “Err, what? I don’t follow,” the man admitted, two fingers in the air, watching Rene.

  “You can’t read my mind?” Rene was still trying to get an idea of what he was dealing with, and any information was good.

  “I could if I wanted to. I choose not to. Now, you asked about payment?”

  “No contract is ever one-sided. What am I paying you in? Since I have a soul, I’ll not be bartering that,” Rene said.

  The man started to laugh again, smiling wide at Rene.

  “You’re a real treat. Payment. Payment is to be made in good deeds. Consider this,” the man said with a flick of his left hand, “your bank account.”

  Floating in mid-air at the upper right part of Rene’s view was a bar. It looked quite similar to a loading bar. Except vertical.

  The top part of it was blue and the bottom red.

  “Every action you take will shift that little marker in the middle. Actions that are good? Moves it up and into the blue. I expect that blue bar to be full. For you to live a life worth living and enjoy it. And help others enjoy life.

  “Actions that are bad? Well, that’s when you move into the red there. If you get to the bottom of the red…”

  The man stopped and let both of his hands drop to his sides as he stared deep into Rene.

  “I’ll pull your soul out of you personally and use it for a cum rag when I’m done skull-fucking your corpse,” the man said with a smile.

  Rene shuddered involuntarily. Little had ever actually created fear in him, yet the cold assurance of that statement did.

  The promise of it.

  “I understand,” Rene said.

  “Good! Should you adhere to the contract, there won’t be a problem. Now, off wi—”

  Chirping from the throne interrupted the godlike man.

  “Huh? But—”

  Before he could finish his statement, the furry creature interrupted him with continued chattering.

  The back and forth continued for nearly a full minute, with the man trying to interject only to be chittered down by the furry creature.

  Eventually, the man turned to Rene and shook his head.

  “Pfft. Fine. One more thing to add, it seems.” The man smiled and held up a third finger.

  “Going to change things up here a bit. Should you find yourself in trouble, all your previous abilities, training, and learning will return to you as if you had never forgotten them. This includes all things you’ve already forgotten up to this point. I think it’s a little much, but I’ve been overruled.”

  A single chirp from the throne punctuated that statement.

  “Yeah, yeah. One word of caution, by the way. Should this happen, it’ll be fairly obvious and you’ll be… different. Let’s just leave it a surprise what’ll happen. I will give you this in advance against that though. It’ll probably help. Maybe.”

  In the bottom left area of Rene’s view, a screen came into being. Oddly enough, it seemed to be a written log of everything they’d been discussing.

  Like it was subtitled.

  Though the man had no name attached to his lines. It was blank.

  “It’s like a video game,” Rene blurted out before he could think about it.

  “That it is! You were from a modern world, after all, so yeah– video game. Alright, off with you. Try not to have too much fun.”

  “Wait, what about the Monster? The one in my head.”

  “There was no Monster. You knew that from the very beginning. There was only ever you. Don’t worry, though, you are a much better person now. Try not to rip your mom apart on the way out. She’s a nice lady and that’s a low-tech world and all.”

  And then Rene was born.

  Again.

  Chapter 2

  Rene let his eyes rove over the walls and decorations that were spread throughout the office. Simple tapestries and strange odds and ends, for the most part. A single portrait on a far wall of someone in a headmaster’s attire. Other than that, it looked like any other office you could expect. Desk, chairs, cabinets.

  Only feudal.

  Rene flexed his muscles and tried to keep himself from stiffening up in the chair. He’d lived as a normal person since being reborn, but he’d never fully let go of his previous life. At least, all the things that didn’t require other people.

  Tilting his head to one side, he heard the faint footfalls of someone coming up the corridor behind him.

  They wore soft-soled shoes, and had an unhurried gait, heavy and uneven.

  It can only be the interviewer or a house-maid.

  Rene straightened himself in the chair and laid his hands calmly in his lap.

  The latch clicked as the door swung open behind him.

  “Ah, Mr. Anatolis. Thank you for waiting,” came an elderly-sounding voice from behind him.

  Rene made no response. He didn’t like leaving the man behind him unchallenged, but there was nothing else he could do as the current young man he was.

  There was also no need for him to respond to the statement. There had been no question and that seemed more a comment than an invitation to spe
ak.

  There was a soft tut from the interviewer as he passed by Rene’s chair to sit down behind the desk.

  Rene looked him over quickly and dismissed him just as swiftly. Older, authoritative, more girth than he should have, with far more lines around his mouth than his eyes.

  There was nothing there that meant any harm to Rene.

  Picking up the paper that had been laid out on the man’s desk, the interviewer read it over slowly.

  “You’re the only son of Master Anatolis,” the interviewer said suddenly, looking at Rene over the top of the page.

  Anatolis wasn’t a common name, but it wasn’t unique either.

  “I am,” Rene confirmed. Most conversations came to this point eventually. His father was an extremely successful money lender. So successful that he had more wealth than much of the nobility who looked down on him for his lack of noble blood.

  “Your marks are top notch as well,” the older gentleman murmured.

  “My father pays the entry fee, I earn the education,” Rene said smoothly. It’d been a long-standing agreement he had with his father.

  All Rene needed was the opportunity to demonstrate his intelligence.

  The interviewer grunted at that statement and then laid the paper down.

  “Eighteen years old, no clubs, no activities, no job, no stated plans. This isn’t just an education you’ll be getting if you’re accepted here, but the expectation to be a member of the alumni,” said the man.

  “Of course,” Rene said easily. He’d expected to be sold that bill of goods and had counted on it. He imagined the man was quite excited about pulling in the Anatolis family.

  Rene waited, with nothing else to say.

  He didn’t owe this man anything and, honestly, this was more out of politeness for custom than anything else. Supposedly, everyone had to have an entrance interview and would be judged accordingly.

  Turning Rene down would be a career ender for this man and everyone he knew or loved, Rene imagined. Even if the interview went as poorly as possible and culminated with Rene emptying his bowels on the man’s desk.

  Rene wasn’t concerned however.

  He’d go here or elsewhere. It wasn’t as if there was a shortage of schools that wanted money. Countless universities would be more than willing to take in Rene, along with his money and his father’s support.

  And knowing his father, Rene had no doubt what the outcome would be. He was fair but strict with his debtors. Kind to his friends and family.

  A terror of a monster to his enemies. Rejecting Rene would put them cleanly into that last category for his father.

  As if sensing his thoughts, the interviewer cleared his throat and looked back to the paper.

  “And why have you chosen our prestigious Laetus University?”

  “My family lives in Laetus. It’s the closest to home. I treasure my family. My friends. I’d be able to live at home while attending. It also met my father’s requirements,” Rene explained.

  It was all the truth, too. He really did feel that way about his parents and his little sister. The friends he’d made here and grown up with.

  This life had been nothing but a blessing for his wounded soul. Something he’d never experienced before and had previously considered to be little more than a silly dream.

  In the beginning, he’d wondered if this had been a poor choice. Being trapped in a baby’s body and then a child’s, all with an older man’s intellect and life experience.

  He’d chosen to not draw attention to himself. To instead perform to the average as closely as he could, even if he was beyond the curve. Making it seem like he was neither gifted nor behind.

  Why give up his secrets for nothing but a pat on the head? That was a fool’s choice.

  A prideful choice of a short sighted individual.

  That direction had only changed when it came time to getting grades that would matter for university. Only then did he alter his stance and shoot for the best possible. He wanted to get into Laetus University without a question or a concern.

  Everyone attributed it to him studying so hard as well, thankfully. Which was something anyone could do.

  “I… see.” The man picked up his quill and scratched something onto the paper.

  Rene kept silent and waited. The only thing that would disqualify him was how he answered.

  The man’s face puckered up as he read through the rest of his paperwork.

  “I’ll just… move this along. Do you have any questions for me?” the interviewer asked. He stamped the bottom of the paper and slid it into a folder.

  “No.” Rene blinked and then stood up.

  “Welcome to Laetus University, young Anatolis,” said the man, extending his hand across the desk.

  Rene nodded his head and accepted the hand in a brief shake. Then he turned on his heel, opened the door, and left the office. He’d never bothered to learn the man’s name, and it didn’t matter.

  There were few realities in the world. One universal truth was that money opened doors and eliminated obstacles.

  Problems weren’t the same for those who had money as they were for those who didn’t.

  That was just how the world was.

  Right now, though, Rene had a lunch date with his sister and a few of her friends. There was nothing else on his agenda for the day, and he enjoyed spending time with his sister.

  By next week, he’d be spending most of his time here at the University, which meant he wouldn’t see her very often. So he needed to see her more now before that happened.

  Rene managed to leave the administration building without incident or having to talk to anyone. He’d had a lingering fear that someone would attempt to stop him to talk to him about his father and their business.

  Walking without haste, he left the area where many of the universities and schools made their presence. His destination was where most of the middle to upper class merchant families lived in Laetus. A home his family kept there despite everything that’d changed.

  It just happened to be the home he had grown up in as well. Wealth hadn’t changed their family so far and they tried not to display their affluence as some might. Keeping their “ancestral home,” as his father called it, was part of that.

  A feeling Rene hadn’t experienced since coming to this world swept over him.

  His skin itched, his palms cooled, and his feet tingled.

  Someone was watching him. Tracking him.

  Rene bumped into someone as if he hadn’t been paying attention and apologized. Dropping his satchel in the process. Casting a surreptitious eye down the street, he caught sight of what he believed was his pursuer.

  Both of his pursuers.

  One happened to be his sister with her friends.

  Watching him.

  They were probably trying to arrive after he did or perhaps play a prank on him.

  Neither option would be out of character for his sister. She could be as shifting as the wind at times.

  He dismissed her group as the concern immediately.

  What he felt was a threat on his person or his life.

  There.

  Rene spotted someone who was far more likely to be the problem. A man who looked ill at ease in his own clothing, standing near a shop window, drew Rene’s attention.

  The man fidgeted with the collar of a clean, smart-looking shirt. As if he’d never worn such a stiff collar before. A slight bulge at the man’s hip indicated a weapon of some sort. More than likely a small club or a dagger.

  Laetus’ guards wouldn’t disguise themselves as such. Which meant private security or someone who didn’t belong here at all.

  In either case, it’d be best for Rene to break contact and move off. Away from his sister and her friends.

  Standing up, he slung his satchel back over his shoulder and adjusted it for a moment. Getting it to sit right on his person, he took off at an easy pace. He continued down the street as if he hadn’t noticed the man or that anythi
ng was wrong at all.

  When a small group of people passed behind him, Rene ducked his shoulder and sprinted down an alley he was crossing at the same moment.

  Rather than turning right and moving in the same direction he’d been traveling, he kept straight. Running down the alley in a perpendicular fashion to his last-known approach.

  Unfortunately for Rene, someone had done their homework on him. They knew his schedule.

  And knowing that, they’d mapped out his route, knew his time-table, and had even taken the time to have people stationed accordingly in the alleyways between that location and where he’d be.

  Even as he identified the ambush, saw the blow that would be coming, and how to dodge, deflect the attack, or even subdue his enemy, he was physically incapable of doing so.

  He was a gangly teen who hadn’t put any effort into his reaction speed, strength, or agility. All the training and combat reflexes he’d given himself in his previous life were old. Rusty.

  Unmaintained.

  Damn. I got lazy.

  That was the last thought Rene had before the blackjack cracked against his temple and sent him into the void.

  ***

  Consciousness returned slowly to Rene.

  On top of that, he felt like he’d been out for a while.

  Or so he guessed, since his hands felt like he’d slept on them and his feet were throbbing. In addition, his head felt like it’d been stuffed with cotton.

  Poisoned. Sedated. Bound and tied.

  People who don’t know how to tie someone up without hurting them.

  Novices.

  Cracking open an eye, he saw little of the room he was in. It was dimly lit and reeked of mildew with no windows and only a single door. There was no sound of anything other than his own breathing. It was a simple room that had the appearance of a stone cell.

  Near water.

  Cold stones without any heat.

  Underground, then?

  Realizing he was alone in the room, Rene opened both eyes. Working quickly, he cataloged anything else that was useful or notable about the room.

  Which was nothing.

  Testing his bindings as he lay on his side, he felt no slack in either his wrists or ankles.