Alex sat in a comfortable chair in front of a large mahogany desk in a very white room. The corners were vague, possibly non-existent. There didn't seem to be a light fixture though he could see just fine and he honestly felt great. Like the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders. The slender black skinned person behind the desk was a bit disturbing. It wasn't the dark brown sort of black of human skin. It was more like a night sky with no moon and enough cloud cover to block out the stars. The thing was thin, bald, and the eyes were entirely too large. They also lacked pupils, an iris, and eye lids for that matter. It didn't really have a nose and its mouth was thin-lipped and far too wide.

The oddly familiar thing pushed some papers to the side of its desk, rested its boney elbows on the wood, and laced its fingers in front of its mouth. It stared down at Alex with solid misty gray eyes. "Alex. I regret to inform you that you have died, again."

"Oh. Is that why nothing hurts?"

The thing furrowed its approximation of a brow. "Yes." It said hesitantly.

"So, I guess there is an afterlife huh?"

The thing straightened as it was now back on familiar ground. "Yes and no." It spread its hands and took a deep breath. "Firstly, I am not real. I am a construct tasked with facilitating your worlds. You are the only thing in this room that is real."

"How's that…"

The construct held up a hand to stop Alex. "You and I have done this several times before. Let me give you the short version. Long ago, some beings put together a simulation and accidentally created 123.4, souls for lack of a better word. You are one such soul. There are currently six remaining. You just died for the 614th time. While I'm sure I know the answer already, I have to ask… Do you wish to continue living? Or would you like to be consigned to oblivion?"

"Ah? Con-tinue?"

"As expected. And before you ask, yes, the life you lived was a simulation. I understand that this last iteration sucked. No one put you through that on purpose. Once the simulation starts, it isn't altered." The construct reached for its pile of papers and tapped the bottom on the desk, making them all flush. "Now then. As per the agreement you struck a rather long time ago, because you died under the age of thirty, you get to reincarnate with your memories intact in a world of your choosing. You chose a sci-fi universe last time, might I suggest a fantasy world this go round?"

"That sounds fun."

"Excellent. Game elements of hard realism?"

"Is there an in between."

"Of course there is. Something more table-top then? I can do that. Now then, do to spending so much time dealing with…" The construct looked down at his paperwork. "Wow, that is a big word for cancer. You're getting a boon. It can be anything within reason."

"A boon? Like an item or a blessing or something?"

"Yes, I can give you an attack helicopter if you wanted. That would be a very bad idea though. Wrong setting. Any thoughts?"

Alex gave the construct a sideways grimace and a shrug that almost broke the thing's approximation of a heart. "Can I not feel pain?"

The construct stared at the soul for a moment. Alex had been blown up, disintegrated, chopped down with swords, arrows, and clubs. Died of hypothermia, hyperthermia, radiation, poison, car crashes, drowned, burned, and eaten. But it looked like cancer was the one thing that had almost done him in… Almost.

"I can get you a fifty percent reduction in pain. Seventy percent if you are willing to have the same reduction in pleasure and reduced tactile senses."

"That sounds nice."

"Consider it done. A world has already been spun up for you. I'd run you through race selection, but you've always chosen to keep your current look and race. What do you want for a starting weapon?"

"Hmmm. I suppose a sword needs a lot of training. How about an axe and shield?"

"Excellent. Any questions before I send you off?"

"Do you think I'll actually enjoy this?"

The construct stared at him with its gray eyes. "It's a life Alex. You'll find things to love, and to hate. You've always done interesting things in these, second lives."

"Okay well…"

The construct vanished suddenly. Quickly followed by its desk. Alex stood up the moment he felt the chair start to sag under him. It was gone before he had the chance to look. Alex found himself standing alone in the overly white room. Unable to discern the walls from the floor or ceiling. Without the visual cue of the desk to orientate him, he felt off balance. Then the whole world went dark.