All the warmth in my body that I felt vanished as soon as I realized what Death wanted me to do. He...he wanted me to leave. I mean, I don't remember who I am, was, or even if I know anybody, but surely I had some things in my future that I was suppose to accomplish, right? Like-like getting married, o-or owning a successful business...
No...I-I can't leave. I don't even know where the heck I'm going to go if I enter that...that thing! I look at Death, and though he has no face...I could see-no, feel that he was sad about this. What...what does he know? He's never had a life! He doesn't know death! HE DOESN'T KNOW ANYTHING!
AH! Okay...calm yourself. Breath. Oh yea, I can't, I'm freaking dead! Just...just calm down...calm down...calm...down.
I looked him directly in his eyeless sockets, and with all the courage I could muster, I spoke. "I...I don't wanna go. I-I can't!" Still, he stayed silent. I decided to speak again. "P-please, I can't leave, I didn't do anything wrong! Please, bring me back to life, I'll...I'll change! I'll do good things! Just please! give me a second chance!"
Death looked at me, then looked at the swerving light behind him. He sighed. I saw him close the portal with his tool as I hear the slicing of the air close right back up. Is...Is he giving me a second chance?
"Bargaining. Strange. The stages seem to be progressing slowly and inaccurate at the same time."
The next thing I know, he appeared in front of me yet again, as if he warped without a moments notice. This time, I did not jump back, mainly because I believed he would appear in front of me with ease again. But, what did he mean by that last word? Bargaining?
I backed away from him slowly, attempting to run away. As I started to run, he warped in front of me again, this time scaring me. He sighed again, and his flames in his eyes appeared to be shining a lot less. They were getting dim. I backed away, and tried to run away again, but just as the last time, he warped in front of me. This time, I was getting angry, and I began to shout. "Leave me alone! I was never suppose to die in the first place!"
"Anger...So the stages aren't in chronological order after all..."
Chronological-The heck is he talking about? I started to get angrier and angrier each second, and I couldn't control my self. "Chronological order? Stages? What do you mean!? TELL ME!!!"
Then the Reaper looked up at me, giving me a stare that sent a chill down my.... transparent spine. He then backed away a couple of feet away from me, placing his tool right next to him.
"The Seven Stages of Grief."
"The...The what?" I say, confused at Deaths' words. What...What is he talking about? He looks at me again, this time grabbing his tool. He slams the ground with the bottom of the stick, and small images of people pop up around me. Then, one image appeared in front of me.
It was me, talking to Death not moments ago.
"The Seven Stages of Grief, also can be defined for a man or woman not in a relationship, are seven stages of a man or woman who is going through a crisis. Such as death."
The image starts to play slowly, and I can hear my self talking and talking to myself. Telling myself that everything is going to be okay.
"This is one of the stages. Shock and Denial. You do your best to tell yourself that everything is going to be fine, that everything is going to be okay...When you know it's not."
This...seemed to make sense. It...It just does, but I want to know more! Are look away from the image, and find myself surrounded by patches of white, almost screen-like clouds. "Why aren't there images here? Why is it blank?"
He then destroyed the screens, turning them into a puff of smoke. They floated away in the wind, and I could see Death walking towards me.
"These other stages are to be revealed when you have experience them. Currently, your stages are out of wack, and you are currently in Anger and Bargaining. For you to experience these, you need to go through them."
He then looks at the chalk outline of my body.
"Unfortunately, your body is too...unstable to put your soul back in. I am very sorry young one, but perhaps you can witness these stages in Purgatory as you wait to be judged."
"No...I am not going anywhere! You can't-"
"Do you not understand!"
The street lights began to flicker, and I could feel more chills being sent down my spine. This is the first time I heard him yell...And it was frightful, Yet, I kept my ground, and I responded. "No, I don't understand! Aren't you able to revert things back to the way they once were? Before I was hit by the bus!?"
"That is impossible for me to do. I can only harvest the souls of the dead, and nothing more. Besides, if I could do such a thing, would you still want to save that old women? Watch her die in front of your own very eyes, living the rest of your life, knowing you did save her, but would rather revert time for your own selfish needs!?"
I was silent. He was right. What kind of person would do such a thing. A monster, that's who. The tension in the air began to thaw, and I could feel more comfortable than before. I look up at The Grim Reaper, and he sighed once more.
"Humanity is hard to judge alone. I do not decide why they die, or even how, I only know when. This is the life of a reaper. Between judgment and favor, I must choose the right one and not go with the one I believe is a good choice. This is life. This is death."
I still stared at him, but I could feel my heart sinking with each cold sentence he would say.
"I am sorry, I truly am."
This is it. I guess I am going. I'm not angry. Or sad. I- I feel nothing. Like all the emotion I once had was sucked out of me, spat out onto the cement ground. Shit, I don't even know who I am. I fall to my knees, thinking hard. Why...why is Death so cruel...
"...However..."
I look up from the ground, shocked at what he said. Could...could there still be a possible chance of me living? I got up from the ground, body shaking and mouth going dry. "However? What, there's a way for me to-"
"Yes...But it comes with a price. Since your body is too mangled up to be used, I'm afraid you'll have to remain as what you are now. A ghost. You will be able to roam around, but not socialize with anyone there that you would want to talk to. Only a certain group of beings."
A ghost. Which means that nobody could talk to me, and I could not talk to them either. I look down at my hands, and I could see how they began to fade slowly. I look back up nodding. "I...I accept."
He nodded at me, tearing a giant whole into the air. I could see a field of green, a town and a large barn. It appeared cartoonish, yet very real at the same time. He looks at me again. "Another warning. If you enter this world, you will forget everything. That is including this conversation, but not your death. You will see it as an act of saving an elderly women, and entering a light. That is all."
I nodded. I know I might not know who I once was, but at least I'll be living a new life. Even if nobody can see me. I gulped, slowly walking to the portal. Before I entered, I asked Death about this world. I swear, I saw him smile under that dark hood.
"This land is filled with peacefulness and friendliness. It is nowhere near the horrors of this world we are both currently standing in. No famine. No current war. Just peace. Honesty, Loyalty, Laughter, Kindness, Generosity...and much more. Once you enter this world, you will realize that friendship truly is magic."
For a being who does nothing but harvest souls, he has both a dark and beautiful view of my world and this new, foreign one. I nod once more and enter the portal. I could here Deaths' voice as my vision is filled with bright light.
"Goodbye, human. May your new life be filled with peace in Equestria..."