--- Some young male's POV ---

I arrived at the location where I will be working at my new job. I should feel elated, but I can't find this feeling on me.

I stand in front of some grand gates like those you would find in a rich estate entrance. Beyond them, a road made of polished stone. To the left and the right, walls made of some uniform white material. They are tall. The gate is made of shiny silvery metal, with detailed engravings of geometric patterns that catch your attention. Is this what people call fractals? The level of fine detail is astonishing. There is not a seam as if it were made of a single piece of metal. Polished like a mirror it glistens with the reflection of the ambient light.

I could even see myself reflected on it If I were not a disembodied soul.

I used to be a person, a salary worker like one of those that you can find walking down the streets of any big city but I died in a robbery attempt. It was painful, but only while I was attached to my mortal body. Souls don't feel pain, I guess. I'm not sad either. Anyway, enough looking back. I approach the gates, and they open without a sound. There is no one in front of the gates, they are moving on their own. I look past the gates, and there is only a dim white nothingness to the left and right of the path. It is as if only the wall, gate and road existed. I just float along the road and find a windowless building made of the same uniform white material as the walls. The road ends in front of a solid door made of the same material as the gates. It opens as I approach. There is someone on the other side. Another soul, just like me, I guess. It is a disembodied head, semi-transparent and with nondescript features. I think I am the same, but I can't see myself. There are nobody and no mirror.

"Welcome. You are the new worker, right?"

"Is this the reincarnation processing center?" I'm afraid I had come to the wrong place. Can you imagine? You go thinking you are at the reincarnation processing center and find yourself in the eternal torment facility. Not nice. But it is fine, I think.

"Yes. You are not mistaken. Come, I'll guide you to your workplace now." The head begins to float away inside the building. I follow.

"Oh, thank you. By the way, I'm ___________. And you are?" Something is strange here. I can't remember my name, and nothing came out when I tried to say it.

"We don't have names here. It is not necessary. We just do our assigned work." it turns and faces me, and continues. "Individuality is also not necessary. We are just cogs in the machine."

Even with all this cold reception, this is not a bad place to work. Instead of money, you earn karma for your soul and can ascend faster to a higher plane. I'll Still stay here for some centuries, but beats by far reincarnating a couple dozen times. We reach another door. There is something written on top of the door: "Transmigration Department."

The guide stops and addresses me in a very polite way "This is where your first assignment is. The transmigration department. In here, we move worthy souls that died in one world to another, in order to correct unbalanced worlds. In here you will learn several useful skills for working in other departments in an accelerated fashion. Please give your best." And it goes back towards the entrance.

I go inside. The transmigration department is really a big one. It is responsible for moving heroes from one world to the other!! I was really lucky to end here on my first assignment. Inside, there are some crystals holding souls that are being prepared for being sent to new bodies that are created in those worlds. I knew that from the training camp, but to see it up front, it is another level of wonder.

Another floating soul comes to me. It looks the same as the guide, but I can feel it is a different soul.

"Oh, are you the new helper? Pleased to meet you. I'm Jack, and I coordinate the transmigration department. I guess you already did the basic training, right?"

"Yes. I look forward to working with you, Jack... hey, Jack, can I ask you one thing?"

"Sure, newbie. Shoot it. And you don't need to be so formal here, we are all in the same team. Ask anything you want."

"Okay... Jack, how do you have a name? I was told we didn't have names."

"Hum, that. I get that a lot. Don't make that face. It is fine. The thing is, you don't have a name, the guide that brought you here don't have a name, but I do. Just that. You can get a name too, you just need to wish for it really hard. And think of one."

"Should I?" I got slightly anxious now. I can't remember my old name, and I was not missing it until Jack named himself. It is something like when a kid at the playground brings a new toy, and all the other kids just think 'How did I live until now without that?' and they go off to pester their parents for one too.

"Up to you. I'd not mind if I were you. Your personality is gone anyway. Not having a name is not going to be a burden, unless you recover your old personality or develop a new one."

There are three things that compose a person. Knowledge, Personality and Memories. They are very intertwined, and most of the time two cannot exist without the third. Remove the memories, and the knowledge is gone and the personality will be defective. Remove the knowledge, the memories will make no sense, and the personality will be warped. Remove the personality and you have an automaton that can only follow orders.

Jack shakes me from my musings "I have your first job here. There is a guy that died recently, we are making a special transmigration on him. You will get lots of rare experiences with this one." He leads me to a crystal. "This boy here, he died on Earth. We are going to seal his memories, and then reincarnating him in an adult body in a different world."

I look at the crystal. It is a shame that this soul died even younger than me. Maybe he hasn't even finished school? It is hard to tell. The process to seal its memories is almost complete. I feel some pity for this kid.

"Hey Jack, why are you sealing his memories, instead of just erasing?"

"Sealing is better. If you erase, it causes all sorts of errors with the knowledge and personality. And we are not reincarnating him as the same species as before, so if the personality warps, even more, it will be really bad. Changing the subject, do you see those void spaces in the lower part of the crystal?"

"Yes, there are black spots beneath the surface."

"Those spots are the condensed potential of the soul's vessel. In this department, we load special powers in these spots. The reincarnated souls in this department are all special, with grand destinies. They need powers to fulfill those destinies. Not that most of them don't die in a gutter anyway. The worlds they go are really harsh."

"I understand. Do you want me to load powers into those spots?"

"Oh, ho ho, I already like you, newbie. Yes, we will load powers here. See, I have even worked up a very special one for this guy. A new one inspired on his habits back in his world. I bet he will like it. It will be very fun. The power depot is over there. Pick some suitable powers, you can choose them. I don't mind. Just leave the big spot for this one here I'm working on."

There is a small blueish crystal in front of Jack. Energy flows from Jack into the crystal changing its quintessential characteristics. I move to the crystal depot and look for suitable powers. If that world is harsh, something that allows for faster growth should be fine... I pick two powers for fast growth and insert them into the lower two spots. Three left.

"Oh, good! Newbie, you are a natural. I haven't even explained how to load powers, and you've already gone and done it. Fine. I need to load this big one now, so please don't load any others until I finish. Can you please go to that station over there to check on the body cultivation? Since we are changing his species, we need to make sure it is synched."

I move to another station, a dais made of the same whitish material as the building. It is also identical as the one Jack was working on his blueish special power crystal. On top of it, there is a square window, and inside I can see the image of a monster body. Is this a troll? It is like one of those Nordic trolls, deformed humanoid giants. The body seems to be growing fine. It will be an adult body before the soul gets ready for insertion.

But to reincarnate that young boy as a troll... It doesn't feel right. He was a person. What is Jack up to? He seems too strange. Too whimsical. Should I do something to help this boy? I think I should. Jack told me to do what I wanted about the powers.

I'll return to the power selection station, and browse for some powers to help him. While I am sifting through the list of available powers, two of them catch my attention. I extract them into the smaller blueish crystals. Yes, those two powers will work just fine.

I return to the boy's soul, and Jack is loading the custom power into the soul. It is a big one. it takes quite some time to finish. Some small cracks spread in the crystal. Is it OK?

"Hey, Jack, the soul crystal is cracking. Is it fine?"

"Ah, don't worry. This kind of thing happens from time to time. Maybe I should have optimized this power's parameters, but now it is too late. This won't cause any problem. These small cracks heal over time."

Something feels strange. Wrong. But I should just do my job. And this job does not include questioning my colleagues' actions.

Jack finishes loading the special power and smiles. "All done. Oh, there is still room for two left. But it is cramped. What is it that you got there? Two more powers? Leaving a void is bad, but I don't think the vessel can withstand another loading process."

"I think I should load these two powers here, Jack. They are important."

"Oh. OK, newbie. This unpredictability, it is exhilarating. Go ahead and load them. It will be very amusing watching this guy's life from here. This shithole of a job is too boring. People only summon righteous heroes, what is wrong with some mayhem here and there?"

Ignoring the ramblings of Jack, I focus on loading the two remaining powers on the empty slots. Then I realize that the energy connections will have to be fed from the big one Jack just loaded. And the big one is set to , so no power will flow through. I have no choice but to lock these last two too. Carefully, as to not create any more cracks on the soul's vessel.

Here you go, my fellow human. I hope you can find happiness in this new life of yours, twisted though it may be.

"Alright!! Let's put this show on the road. The body is ready too, right? It doesn't matter, let this fella go through monster adolescence again. It is fine!!! I can't wait, * HERE * WE * GO * !!!!"

Jack then takes the soul's crystal vessel to the body station and enters the coordinates for the world it is going to be reincarnated at. Some red warnings flash but he dismisses them. He pushes the crystal into the body through the floating window and starts something. Some low-frequency humming arises, and light specks like the reflections on a disco ball flood the room.

The soul and body are sent through the dimensional void to its new world. I'm slightly sad but hopeful. Farewell. Be happy.

Jack shouts as the new reincarnator leaves our sight: "And your life begins. Make me proud, my masterpiece."

Jack begins to dance and sing some song I barely recognize. I just go around checking on the state of other soul vessels we will begin working on soon without minding jack's strange antics.

Jack passes in front of me, singing: "I feel stupid and contagious, Here we are now, entertain us..."