The man of pure white held 'His' chin, seemingly pondering 'His' decision.
"I am. People with his mindset are rare."
"Mhm... Are you sure it's not because of his name~?"
The 'fog' covered Lady teased, and the two before 'Her' shared a laugh.
'He' smiled, his lips widening to a degree beyond normal, maniacal almost.
"But you can't deny he fits the job."
Ruby eyes nodded 'Her' head, though 'She' wasn't seen, 'Her' body no different from the void around 'Them.'
"He does, but his mental strength is… lacking. I'm sure we'll see him struggle much more than the other candidates."
The Lady's eyes narrowed.
"Right. Dealing with my Blessing is tough you know? The original one went insane, I doubt this one wouldn't"
The shadows turned to the man of white.
"I'm sure you've already thought of this."
'He' pointed at Malik.
"Just watch him. 'Her' Blessing is a non issue to guys like him."
As if summoned by 'His' words, another figure materialized from the dark, joining their space.
Unlike the Lady of blue, this being was entirely shrouded in 'fog' with tendrils of purple swirling as though alive.
To an outsider, it might seem as though his 'fog' shielded others from his presence, but the truth was the exact opposite.
It was to protect him from seeing 'Them.'
For if he did, death would be the least of his worries.
Glancing at the man of white, he asked:
With a single flick of his fingers, a reverberation passed through the void.
Then, under their collective gazes, Malik's soul began to move, leaving what remained of its body behind.
It was on a journey not to where Reapers usually took souls like it, the Nether's River, but beyond, far deeper in the vast expanse of the universe.
And there, where its destination was, four souls could be seen, waiting, specks of white on an otherwise bleak planet.
"Good luck... I'm sure you'll need it."
Malik's first thought when his soul stirred was pretty simple:
'Oh… I'm actually dead.'
He expected a rush of panic, regret, or maybe even some deep, emotional reflection about all the things he didn't do.
But nope. None of that. If anything, he felt… curious.
He wanted to know what'd happen next.
Was it reincarnation? Unity with God? A day of judgment? A Heaven? A Hell? Devoured by a demon? Or just a plain boring spiritual realm?
'Most people would probably cry about the stuff they didn't get to do. Like, oh no, I never dove ruin whatever, or, I never told Stacy from Sector Management I loved her...'
'Kinda wish that I did actually... ah, wait.'
Malik realized that he had just contradicted himself.
'I'm a hypocrite, so what? Sue me!'
But yeah, he shook his metaphorical head and continued:
'Screw Stacy. What's happening next sounds way more interesting.'
It was hard to describe the sensation of floating through the universe as a soul.
He couldn't see anything. Couldn't feel anything tangible.
It was like being blind in the deepest part of an ocean, the pressure so immense he should've been crushed a thousand times over.
Or, better yet, it was like being a sperm cell inside a vagina the size of a galaxy, swimming aimlessly, hoping for an egg to inhabit.
'That's probably not the metaphor anyone else would've gone for, but hey, it works.'
It stretched and bent, and Malik wasn't sure if minutes had passed or centuries.
He didn't feel bored, though. If anything, he felt… aware?
Yes, hyper-aware of the vast nothingness around him.
It was like being on the edge of something monumental, except the edge never ended.
But eventually, like all good things, that awareness began to fade, replaced by a kind of dullness.
His thoughts slowed, his curiosity dimmed, and for a moment, he wondered if he was just becoming part of the void itself.
To combat that, he began to cook up theories, busy his mind, and the main one sounded quite pheasable.
'Maybe this is on purpose... Like, a way to prep me for whatever's next. Or most likely it's some bored god screwing with me for fun.'
Malik leaned more towards the latter, but he could easily bet that either of them was true.
He would've kept spiraling down that rabbit hole of existential dread but change began to occur.
It was subtle at first, a flicker of sensation in the void.
Then, without warning, everything rushed back.
Light, sound, feeling—it all hit him like that truck almost did.
And suddenly, Malik wasn't floating anymore.
His fingers twitched. His lungs sucked in a sharp breath.
His eyes snapped open.
'I've got a body again.'
But before he could even think of celebrating, his fate of being interrupted continued:
"I, Zafar, announce that this VILLAIN is defeated!"