A Snake's Life Read online

  Table of Contents

  Summary

  Shadow Alley Press Mailing List

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Interlude: A godly conversation

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Interlude: A godly confrontation, the serpentine security system, and Fenris fights for his life

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Interlude: The serpent and the highwayman

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Epilogue

  Books, Mailing List, and Reviews

  Books by Shadow Alley Press

  Books by Black Forge

  LitRPG on Facebook

  Even More LitRPG on Facebook

  GameLit and Cultivation on Facebook

  Copyright

  About the Author

  About the Publisher

  Summary

  The afterlife isn't always what you think...

  A LOVING FATHER OF three children, Albert lived a life of few regrets. He served his country far from home. He outlived his soulmate. He died alone.

  However, his assumptions about a peaceful eternity, reunited with his wife, are thrown out the window when a meddling god digs his fingers into Albert’s afterlife.

  The positive? He will have a chance to see his wife again.

  The negative? He has to survive the dangers of the legendary World Tree for the next three hundred years. He’s been reincarnated into a world full of magical evolutions, monstrous deer, sassy ten-year-old elves, and untold hidden dangers. It won’t be easy, but if life has taught Albert anything it’s this: If something is worth having, it's worth fighting for. And he intends to fight.

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  Prologue

  HELLO, EVERYONE. MY name is Albert and well... I died. Not in some fantastical way, mind you. I died in my sleep. I lived a good, long life. Far longer than I realistically had a right to. I had children that I loved very much. A wife that passed far too soon. And a home in the southeastern part of the United States of America.

  When I finally died, it was an easy death. It was easy to head into the light because I didn't have any true regrets. I was old, tired, and ready to see my wife again.

  But fate... it had other plans for me. After I died and went to wherever it is souls go, I met... I hesitate to call it God as it didn't claim to be such. But I cannot for the life of me think of another way to describe it.

  It was composed entirely of golden energy and lacking features that would denote a gender. It didn't so much speak, as it projected its thoughts into my head.

  "Your wife isn't here," it said, its voice echoing through my mind like a gong.

  "Did she... She’s not in hell, is she? If so, there must be some kind of mistake. My wife was a kind, gentle woman. Always putting others above herself. If she’s in hell, then why—"

  "She’s not," it interrupted.

  Hope flooded through me. “Then where? Where is she? Can I see her?”

  "No."

  “What? Why not?”

  “As I said. She’s not here. She’s far, far away on another world.”

  I was rendered silent by that statement. My mind raced as I considered the possibilities. “Is that where heaven is?”

  “Heaven?” Its gong-like voice softened to that of a wind chime. “No, she was chosen for a different path.”

  "Chosen for what, exactly?"

  "To become a hero. To save the universe from a growing darkness that would otherwise swallow it whole."

  “A hero?” It did make sense. Sarah—my wife—spent most of her life saving people. Whether as a field medic with the US Army Rangers, or as surgeon at a hospital in Miami, Florida. She lived to help people. That was also how she died. She’d attempted to save the life of a small boy who had run into traffic. She did manage to get him to safety before the car’s bumper snagged her satchel and she was dragged off her feet and into the street. The driver of the UPS truck that hit her swore that he couldn't stop in time.

  The doctor that performed her autopsy told me it was a quick death. Painless, even. Which was no consolation for me or the kids. But, after our grief began to subside and we could think clearly, the knowledge that she didn’t suffer in her final moments set our hearts at ease.

  Whether through chance or providence, the little boy Sarah gave her life to save grew up to marry our youngest daughter and the rest, as they say, is history.

  "Can you send me there as well?"

  It remained silent.

  “Please, I need to see her... I need to know that she’s okay.”

  "I cannot."

  "Why?” I asked through gritted teeth.

  "Laws far older than your Earth say that it cannot be. Only one hero can be present at any given time.”

  “I—I can’t go? No, wait—the laws said only one ‘hero’ can be present...”

  “Let me guess. I’m supposed to be a hero too?”

  “Eventually, yes. Though your time will not arrive for millennia.”

  “And what am I supposed to do in the meantime while my wife is out there fighting for her life, huh? Am I supposed to just sit back and watch?” I was beginning to yell now. I’d gotten better about controlling my temper in my later years, but this thing was trying my patience.

  "What if I don’t want to be a hero? What if I was something, anything else? Could I see her then?”

  "Anything?” it asked, its voice resuming its earlier gong-like cadence. “Even if you were no longer human?"

  “... Yes,” I said after a moment to think it over. “Even then.”

  "Then I suppose it would be possible. But there would be no going back to the way things were. You’d be giving up your human life, and your chance at an afterlife.”

  “Afterlife?” I asked. Apprehension settled inside my stomach.

  “Yes, the creatures in that place are not allowed to enter the same afterlife as humans. One of the old rules forbids it.”

  I moved to rub my neck, but my hand passed through it without resistance. I stared at my hand in awe. Wisps of greenish light were seeping through my skin and, if I looked close enough, my hand was entirely translucent. “You swear I’ll be able to meet her?”

  “On my honor, I guarantee that you’ll have a chance.”

  “A chance, huh?” I weighed my options. On the one hand, I really didn’t trust this thing. For all I knew it could be lying to me and I was about to sign my soul away to the devil himself. And on the other, if it was telling the truth, then I could again see the only woman I’d ever loved.

  Even if I couldn’t have her.

  “I’ll do it. If you swear on your honor that I can meet her again, then I’ll gladly give up my humanity.”

  “Truly? You’d give up so much for her?”

  “And much more.”

  "...Very well,” it muttered after a moment. “Your request has been granted. It’s goi
ng to take some work, but I can squeeze you in while there are no living heroes. That should keep the others off my back. Though you’ll have to wait a while for her to show up.”

  “That’s fine. How long are we talking, here? Two—three months?”

  “Three hundred years, give or take a decade or two.”

  "What!?" I protested. “I can’t wait three hundred years. I’ll be dead and buried long before then!”

  "You can, and you will. Provided you can become something capable of living that long. The creatures in this place are not the same as the ones you’re used to. They are capable of living for millennia under the right circumstances."

  "What’s that supposed to mean? Are you going to turn me into one of the creatures?”

  "No,” it laughed. “But the world you’re going to is... unique. You can grow more powerful there than you’ve ever thought possible.”

  “You’re going to need to explain that one in a bit more detail. I’m not stupid or anything, and something tells me it’s not going to be as easy as you’re making it sound.”

  "Very astute of you,” it admitted. “Yes, it will not be an easy journey. The path you’re about to embark on is similar to one an infinite number of others have walked and will walk on. It is a path fraught with danger. A path that so few beings have completed the percentage cannot even be calculated... the path of evolution.”

  I felt my right brow quirk in amusement and had to pull it back down. I knew what the thing was telling me should have freaked me out, but the overly dramatic way it was speaking was almost enough to make me laugh. Or maybe that was just my mind finally fraying? I was handling this entire situation oddly well.

  Maybe I had finally lost it.

  “And... how am I supposed to evolve, exactly?”

  “All will become clear in time. Evolution follows rules so simple even children can comprehend it without instruction. I have faith that you will also be able to figure it out on your own—” It stopped mid-sentence. Its head swiveled to look at my feet before trailing back up to my head. “It’s starting..."

  "Mm? What’s started?"

  "The translocation process. In a few moments, your body will begin the transformation into your new form, and you’ll be transported to another time and place. If you have any questions, now is the time to ask. I will not be able to contact you for a while after you leave this place.”

  I racked my brain for any questions and realized I had a few pretty serious ones that I didn’t know the answer to. “Will Sarah still look the same as she used to? Where can I find her?” I fired off my questions as fast as I could. A coldness was beginning to seep into my body, as if I was slowly being lowered into ice water.

  “In a sense. She is being reborn much in the same way you are, though her body will remain closer to her original form. She likely will not be human once she’s been reborn. Possibly an elf of some kind? As for where you can find her, I am not sure. My ability to foresee the future is quite limited at this time. I have a feeling you’ll run into her eventually, though I’m not sure when or where that will be.”

  The cold reached the underside of my eyes and my vision began to blur. “Will she have the same name? Will she remember me!?” I frantically asked.

  “Mm... I think her new body will be called Reina. As for whether or not she remembers you, well, we can only hope—”

  All sound came to an end as if someone had hit the mute button. Darkness crept into my head as my mind blanked under an onslaught of ice.

  I’m unsure of how long I floated in the icy abyss. Time seemed to matter little there, not that I had any way to measure it even if it did. Then something extraordinary happened.

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  Welcome to Planet Rualea

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  Chapter 1

  I WAS UNSURE OF EXACTLY how much time had passed. Could’ve been a few days, or a few weeks. During that time, I came up with a plan. That... thing said that I could become more powerful here than I ever thought possible, which also meant that other beings could do the same.

  What would happen if Sar—Reina was killed by one of them because I couldn’t protect her? What would I do then? I lost her once because some little brat decided to play tag with cars. I... I couldn’t afford to lose her again.

  So, my plan was twofold and as simple as I could make it: Become something capable of living just long enough to meet her again, and amass as much power as possible, as quickly as possible.

  Not long after I’d decided on my future course, I was finally told what race I was to be born as.

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  Congratulations on your new life! To accompany your new body, you have been given a new name befitting that of your station/race.

  Name: Torga

  Race: Non-Venomous Serpent

  Classification: Tier 1

  Skills: Minor Stealth, Heat Detection, Lesser Gluttony

  Traits: Gluttonous

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  Although I didn't care about the new name, since I doubted anyone would use it, the rest of the information displayed did pique my interest.

  I would have preferred to be a venomous snake, rather than a non-venomous one. But I'd take what I could get.

  The so-called Tier 1 classification also made sense. I wasn't venomous, nor did I feel as if I was all that big, so my choice of prey was limited. That meant my overall power level was, without a doubt, on the lower end of the spectrum.

  As for my skills, Minor Stealth and Heat Detection were ideal for an ambush predator, I supposed. I certainly could have gotten worse skills to start out with. Seeing Lesser Gluttony in my list of skills was weird, though. And aside from the Gluttonous trait, which I didn’t understand either, I didn’t know why I had it.

  Focusing on the “skills” in question caused additional windows to appear.

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  Minor Stealth: Your ability to remain undetected is always at its natural peak and will not degrade through aging or lack of practice

  Heat Detection: Through the use of the pit organs located above your mouth, you have the ability to sense sources of heat in your general area.

  Lesser Gluttony: Your stomach acids are capable of dissolving much denser materials than usual. However, you must also eat more frequently lest you starve to death.

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  And that left me with only one question for the moment. "How do I get rid of this window?" As if it’d heard me, the window vanished just before I felt a pulling sensation near the rear of my body... which, I assumed, would be where my tail was?

  A silver portal opened beneath me and I was dropped onto a soft, damp surface. After shaking off my initial surprise of actually being alive again, I took my first cursory look around.

  I was in a small clearing surrounded on three sides by trees so tall they blocked out the sky and swallowed the area beneath them in shadows. Luckily the Heat Detection skill activated immediately after I landed and, after a brief feeling of vertigo, I could... er... “taste” the differing heat levels in the area. Currently I was tasting, for lack of a better word, a monotone flavor of nothingness, which led me to believe that I was probably alone.

  The sound of flowing water caught my attention. It sounded like it was coming from immediately behind me, but that didn’t mean much at the moment since I wasn’t sure how much I could trust my ability to detect sound.

  It took a surprising amount of effort, and multiple failed attempts, to move my body into a position where I could see behind me. Who knew snake bodies were so awkward to move?

  "Maybe there's fish?" I hoped. I could tell my new body was already hungry, which wasn’t surprising considering I hadn’t eaten in god knows how long. Although, that did lead me to another thought, one I was slightly surprised hadn’t occurred to me before now. "What do I have to do to evolve?"

  A window appeared before my eyes in response to my question.

  ꝏꝏ�
�ꝏꝏꝏ

  Consume 50lbs of meat to unlock: Water Boa

  Consume 100lbs of vegetation to unlock: Tree Boa

  Consume 200lbs of stone/dirt to unlock: Stone Python

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  "That's rather convenient. Can I have a description of each evolution?" Though I waited for a minute or so, no new windows appeared. A disappointed sigh escaped me, and I shook my head from side to side. It was just my luck that it wouldn’t be as easy as asking which was the most powerful and going from there.

  Reviewing the list again while trying to guess which evolution would be the most powerful from the names alone, I noticed that it didn't say what would happen if I unlocked all three paths. A window appeared in response to my idle thought.

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  Fulfilling the requirements for all three evolution paths will unlock: Titan Boa

  ꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏꝏ

  "Titan Boa, huh?" I did like the sound of that. It sounded strong. Powerful. It would also be more beneficial If I unlocked as many evolutions as possible, even if I didn’t see them through to the end.

  "I guess that's what I'll aim for. The Titan Boa evolution."

  I’d start with fulfilling the requirements for the Stone Python evolution, as It seemed to be the easiest to unlock. Also, it didn’t require me to move, which I still hadn’t figured out how to do.

  Lowering my head to the ground, I opened my mouth and dragged it across the ground as if it were a shovel scooping up dirt. Then I tilted my head back and let the dirt fall down my throat. The loose grass and dirt I was eating tasted like crap, and hurt my throat going down, but I’d tasted worse in the army.

  After a few minutes of this, I shifted my head to the side to pick up a stone and felt a tug from inside my stomach. Glancing back, I noticed for the first time that my body had been slowly swelling from the constant influx of “food.” However, before my very eyes the mass of “food” began to shrink. "That's convenient." Already, I could feel what I'd eaten being dissolved at a rapid pace. After watching my stomach shrink for several minutes a horrible thought occurred to me: At the rate my meal was being dissolved, I’d be starving again within an hour. So, I began to eat faster.