Dead by Sunset I
1579 Words
"Heaven.
Up in Heaven, the residents of Heaven are the 'Blessed'. They lived a life of good and were therefore allowed to live in eternal peace in Heaven. Should they choose to be reborn into the living world, they will be given a chance. By sacrificing their memories and their souls, they would be granted new life.
A human soul after its death is collected by the Angels from Heaven and brought to the Halls of Judgement where they will be judged. If they are good enough, they end up in Heaven for the rest of their afterlife.
In Heaven, there are a set number of Angels.
Exactly twelve.
They spend most of their days collecting the lost souls wandering the living world and guiding them to the Judgement Halls.
Heaven itself has a beautiful palace where the Angels resided. The palace is made of marble and gold which shines atop the mountain in Heaven. The Blessed get to enjoy life in Heaven at the base of the mountains where mansions of all their holy desires were constructed. If a Blessed wished to meet an Angel, it would only be to request for reincarnation into the living world.
The only time a new Angel would have to be appointed would be when an Angel dies. Angels are unable to be harmed by their weapons made of pure light but could be killed by a weapon of pure darkness from Hell.
If an Angel dies, a new Angel amongst the Blessed would be appointed as a replacement. That new Angel would be granted gifts; A weapon of pure light, a halo, and wings.
The weapon served as protection against any Demons that might hold ill will toward them, and act as a guiding light for lost souls. The wings gave them the ability to fly and travel at a quicker pace. The halo held the key between realms. With the Halo, the Angel can freely cross between the living world and Heaven, but not Hell."
"Wow, amazing story!" Exclaimed a girl in the back.
The room was filled with a bunch of kids sitting on the ground listening to the man at the front tell the story. At the back was a girl who wore a white long-sleeved buttoned-up shirt and long white pants. She had raven black hair and black eyes that sparkled with energy and charisma. She hopped to the group of kids, sitting down all the way at the back of the group.
"Tell me more," She requested.
Some of the kids were already starting to fall asleep, and several others were so bored that they resorted to staring at the floor. They did not turn around or even acknowledge the presence of the girl. The man's gaze shifted between her and the kids before he asked, "Wait... Where did you come from?"
He got up, closing the book.
The girl smiled cheekily, telling him, "Well, you might want to ask yourself why I came here, hm?"
The man noticed the two silver bracelets on either of her hands. She also had a gold ring on her right ring finger. The most noticeable part of her outfit was the silver slim waistband around her waist that was cracked at the front and split. She also had a necklace that hung a single gold angel wing. She cleared her throat, telling him, "Well, I'm decently new at this job, see? I mean, it's been like, what? Five? Ten Decades? Lost count some time ago."
She pointed at the man. "But what's up?"
The girl got up and approached the man, who took a step back. She extended a hand and forcefully shook his hand, saying to him while making direct eye contact, "Hey, a pleasure to meet you. It's nice meeting you this way instead of you trying to run away from what you can't avoid, huh?"
Her hands were cold.
Her eyes had a glint in them. "Unless you really want to~"
The man pulled his hand away from her. The girl put her hands up, smiling cheekily. "I'm sure you're confused and all, but hey, look at the good side of things!"
The man stumbled and fell, noticing that the kids still had yet to notice the commotion. He shouted at them, "Kids, leave the room now!"
The girl glanced back at the kids. She commented, "Aww! Aren't these little devils just adorable? C'mon, what're their names, tell me. You gotta tell me."
She looked around the place. There was a simple shelf against the wall. There was floral wallpaper decorating the walls. It was a childcare centre. Outside one of the windows, the sun was already starting to set. The man followed her line of sight, still wary as to how the girl managed to enter the building. Something was wrong.
His gaze rested upon the wooden chair he had been sitting on just moments ago.
He screamed, scurrying backwards. The girl glanced at the body, then pointed at it with a smile, "Wait, you didn't know about this?"
The man's body was seated in the chair, the book on his lap. His head rested against the backrest of the chair, his eyes closed. His body was not moving, and the kids just assumed he was asleep.
"Well, Mr..." She stared at the man whose gaze was fixated on the sight of his own body. "Mr... What's your name again? Hm... uh... Mr... Mr Sickle! Yeah! That's right!"
"That is not my name..." He muttered softly.
She cursed, putting her hands on her hips. "Well, that sucks. But hey, you gotta look on the brighter side of life, eh? Or death? That phrase doesn't really work the same."
"I'm... I'm dead?" He muttered.
"Oh yes," She nodded. "Very dead."
She tapped her chin, trying to remember the information she was given. "Let's see... died of cardiac arrest, I think? It's kinda funny when you think about it, considering you were seated down."
He was frozen stiff. He whispered, "Then who are you...?"
The girl crouched beside him, patting his back. "Well, buddy, I'm sorry to say, but your time has come."
He shoved her back, finding how easy it was to actually push her away. She stumbled a few steps before collecting herself, her eyes shining, "Are you gonna run? Run away? You want to try running away?"
He rushed to his feet and reached out for the door, noticing that he passed right through it. The girl grinned when she saw him run away. The man ran down the hallway, finding the door wide open. His wife was there, a sweet lady who helped run the small childcare centre with him. He reached out and tried to touch her, but passed right through. He stood there, eyes wide.
"Honey, I'm back!" She announced. "How are the kids?"
He turned around slowly, the girl in white clothing stood by the doorframe. She gestured to the woman, commenting, "Oh, the love of your life? You lucky dog."
The girl hung around his wife, asking, "So, how did you two meet? Under the tree? In a cave? Do you like caving? Oh, did you meet her when you were a kid?"
She appeared by his side, slinging one arm around his shoulders. "Very cool, very cool."
Soon a scream could be heard.
"Why aren't you taking me to Heaven?" The man asked, staring at the ground. "I'm not resisting at the moment."
"Who said you were going to Heaven, bud?" The girl laughed.
He took a closer look at her. She smiled back before stepping away from him, punching him lightly in the chest. "Just kidding man! You're most likely going to go to Heaven."
She closed in, whispering with her hand by the side of her mouth. "But between you and me, they don't always have the best of people in Heaven, nor the worse of people in Hell. You get my drift?"
"I would absolutely love to send you to the Judgement Hall right now and be done with everything, but there's just a small request I have for you," She continued.
"I've already accepted my fate," He said.
She shrugged. "Accept your fate or not, I really don't care. What I care about is if you-"
She pointed at him.
"Ran away."
"What?" The man asked, stepping away from her again.
"Run away," She told him bluntly. "Do it. I'll allow it."
"What do you mean?" He demanded.
She gestured to his translucent legs, telling him, "I'm gonna let you use those legs of yours to run away from me. As fast as you can, and if you outrun whoever is chasing you, you get to remain here, in the Living World."
She gave him a double thumbs-up. "Cool?"
"Outrun.., you...?" He asked, leaning away.
She waved the idea aside with a chuckle. "No, no. You'll be running away from someone completely different. It might even shock you!"
She glanced back at the hallway they came from. "If you succeed, you might be able to be with your wife again. You just gotta run until the full moon reaches its peak."
She rolled up her sleeve to check a watch that wasn't there. "And that would be tonight. It's already sunset."
The girl raised an eyebrow. "You up?"
The man sprinted as quickly as he could, only hearing the fading sound of the girl laughing behind him. Before he knew it, darkness enveloped him.
- Writer
