Dance of the Gods

The world was beautiful, ethereal. There was nothing anywhere, just the emptiness of space.

'What a peaceful dream. Can't remember the last time I had one this relaxing.'

'Uhh... What is this?!'

'Why is my chest in so much pain?!'

Suddenly there was light, but Veronica Navarro couldn't open her eyes. Inside her chest there was only pain and the previous dream still had a hold on her. The pain was similar to the one everyone felt at least once, a sharp pain that reminds you of getting stabbed. Only this time the pain didn't pass after a second. It only increased.

'It hurts so bad! Am I dying?'

'Is this the end of me?'

'I'm only 21 years old?! And this is how I die? A heart attack in my sleep?!'

After a couple more seconds of excruciating pain, it finally started to lessen and Veronica could breath again. Her thoughts on the other hand became more serene. She just couldn't focus on anything.

'Where am I? Who am I? Is this real or just a dream?'

'There was a pain. I remember that I'm supposed to be in pain. Where did it go?'

'What am I? Am I just a thought?'

Suddenly a new pain appeared. Different and much worse, but at least it brought Veronica some semblance of reality perception.

'Why does it hurt again?!'

'I thought I escaped it!'

'And why is it different, this is definitely not a heart attack!'

The pain started to decrease again and her mind started to scatter again. This time she concentrated on what is real. The stone floor below her. The disgusting smell coming from all around her. The liquid trickling on her skin near her left breast. The feeling of something foreign piercing her chest.

'Wait what?!'

Her eyes snapped open, but she closed them. Veronica just wanted to go back to sleep, to the sweet tranquil dream of hers.

'No! Snap back to reality!'

Veronica pried open her heavy eyelids and began to gain back control over the rest of her body. Her vision was still quite foggy, but her right hand finally responded to her constant commands. She reached for the source of her previous pain.

'Wha... Is... Is this?!'

Her eyes finally cleared enough to look at the objects sitting in her chest cavity. The sight nearly made her vomit, but she still couldn't move enough to do so.

'Why Is there a knife in my chest?! And how am I still alive?!'

The sight was truly shocking, but there was only one thought on her mind. 'Should... Should I... Pull it out?'

'I mean, I can't really make it worse than this... Can I? What if the knife keeps me from bleeding out?'

'In movies they always say don't pull the object out and wait for a doctor!'

'I am pulling it out!'

After the very careful and thoughtful debate of whether or not she will die if the knife leaves her chest. Veronica made a very stupid decision and reached for the handle. Her breathing quickened and a small amount of pain returned.

Veronica took a couple of deep breaths and tried to get her hand's shaking under control. Of course the fear and panic was overwhelming, but the need to get rid of the knife and the ever increasing pain in her chest gave her strength.

'Phew... Okay... Let's do this!'

With her right hand on the handle Veronica began to pull. At first not much happened, but then gradually the knife blade started to show as it left the wound. The sight was mortifying, but Veronica didn't stop.

'C'mon... It's nearly there!'

The knife was about three quarters of the way out. It couldn't even be called a knife, it's blade was close to 30 centimeters. Veronica's breathing quickened as she started to lose the miniscule control she gathered.

'Okay... Steady... I see it's point! Phew... It is finally out...'

After that ordeal she wanted to give her mind to the sweet embrace of unconsciousness. Instead Veronica slapped her face so hard, that reality returned fully. Her hearing, that at some point disappeared, her sight that were getting blurry again, her sense of smell that only smelt blood, her sense of taste which only tasted iron and her touch which felt the cold stone beneath her. Then there was the severe pain on her cheek caused by the very powerful slap.

'Ouch... Why did I hit so hard?!'

With her senses finally working again and her mind not being in constant change, Veronica looked at the wound on her chest, but this time she turned on her side and vomited.

'What?... Why did it?... What?!'

The wound itself wasn't too bad, but seeing it slowly knit itself back together was just too much. She spent a minute or two recovering, during this time she realized a thing or two.

'So this is how I survived. Since when can I regenerate? Last time I cut myself in the kitchen it took weeks to fully heal! And also, I just realized... what is this dress on me?!'

Veronica looked down at herself, if you ignore the blood she was wearing a really nice dress. It was green with a couple of white parts and exactly like the ones Veronica saw people wear in movies and theater. Like the ones from the Victorian Era.

Her eyes lingered on the dress, then she began to notice another couple of things. Since there was a knife in her chest previously Veronica forgot to ask a very big question from herself. How do you get stabbed in your own room?

The answer is quite simple in her case. Veronica wasn't in her own room. Instead it was a grimy, dirty, rat infested alley, she was standing on a cobblestone road that led two ways. The buildings next to her were made of stone as well. They had doors opening to the alley and there was a lot of trash around.

With the knowledge of the trash and dirt her nose suddenly cleared. It was truly one of the worst things Veronica ever had or will smell. She didn't need to be an oracle to know this.

'Why am I in an alley? And what kind of alley is this, it looks different from the 21st century, especially those roofs!'

From her point of view Veronica could barely make out the roofs of the neighboring buildings. They were made of slate, with many little ornamental decorations and carvings, some even had a metal fence running around it.

The next thing she noticed was the sound. From the looks of it she wasn't near the main street, but the sounds still traveled. The shuffling of feet, neighing of horses, wheels turning on the cobblestone road. It only made her grasp the situation even more.

'This... This isn't my home... But then where am I?'

The thought already appeared in her mind, but it still took Veronica a while to acknowledge it.

"I woke up in a very different place, than my bedroom. I was in a lot of pain, with a knife in my chest. When I pulled it out it healed completely."

"But no... That is impossible! It only exists in fiction!"

"Did... Did I transmigrate? I am correct aren't I..."

Her thoughts became quite lethargic, contrary to a lot of fictional characters who get transmigrated, she had an amazing life with a loving family. She was just about to finish her degree and begin to work. Her love life was pretty miserable, so she didn't miss that.

But all was not lost! If Veronica could get here that means she could get back. The alternative... she ignored it. There was a chance that she was stuck here, but she will cross that bridge when she gets to it.

'First things first, I need to learn more! Have to find out how exactly I got here. After I know that, I will revaluate what to do. But what do I do now?'

She was about to begin walking, when a door opened right next to her. She got frightened, jumped back and fell down into the dirt. In the doorway there was a woman at the end of her prime, she still looked quite good, but a couple of small wrinkles started to appear already.

The woman was of average height, her hair was the color of straw, her eyes were a darkish gray color and her body was bountiful, that yellow dress on her helped in that quite a lot. Overall she looked very pretty.

In her hand was some trash that she was about to dump into the alley. Noticing Veronica falling over she looked a bit startled, then she probably spotted the blood on her dirty dress. The woman's expression changed and her whole body language was emitting trouble.

'She is not a woman who can be messed with.'

After observing Veronica for a bit the woman spoke. Her voice kind, but firm.

"Are you alright?"