Spiritbound

1: Penny Dies and Gets Drafted Into the Army

   Admittedly, Penny didn't remember much at all.

   She remembers being at Olix Lake, with her parents. She remembered they were taking a day to relax after her father had finally saved enough money from their monthly stipend to go down and rent one of the sheds on the lake. She remembered standing on the old rickety peer, the wood dry and cracking as the acidic water broke down its supports. She remembered the pier breaking underneath her, sending her plunging into the acid below. And that was the last she remembered, before she turned up here.

   Here seemed to be a void...at least that's how she would describe it. There were no physical objects around her, only a seemingly endless expanse of blue. She frowned to herself, shrugging and pacing around the void. If she had to guess, she'd say that she was dead. Which means this place, was the Spirit Realm, where every Aelevonion went when they passed. Which means she was about to be-

   Before she could finish her thought, a large desk popped up out of thin air, almost knocking her right off of her feet. She huffed, glaring at the man who had materialized in the desk chair. He was short, plump, with a long beard and clothing that belonged on someone from ancient times. He glanced at her, setting some papers on the desk.

   "Penny Heisenberg. Death by drowning in the Acid Lake," he read, frowning, "I suppose I don't need to brief you on the Spirit Corps?"

   Penny shook her head, "Of course not! Everyone knows about the Spirit Corps, Mr. Um-"

   "Johnson. Frederick Johnson," he said, "now Ms. Heisenberg, I just need to ask a few routine questions.

   She frowned. "What sort of questions?" She asked, "and what for?"

   "Just standard questions so we can bind you to a compatible living. Now, age at death?"

   "Sixteen."

   "Ah, so sorry about the early demise. Height?"

   "Five foot three. What happens if I don't bind with someone compatible?"

   Frederick looked up. "The livings body is torn apart and you disapate into the atmosphere forever."

   Penny shuddered to herself. That didn't sound like a pleasant experience at all. She sat, answering any questions Frederick asked, watching as he wrote the information down and placed it into a folder. She couldn't help but wonder what sort of person she would be bound to. Would she end up on the front lines, face to face with the enemy? Or would she be one of the soldiers nobody noticed, pushed into the background, who's only purpose was to face defeat in place of her living? She frowned to herself, looking back up at Frederick. The man had clearly died a long time ago, his thick sweater being a dead giveaway. Nobody wore sweaters anymore, what with the realm being so hot all the time due to the effects of the war. In fact, if she had to venture, Penny would even say the man had died before the war. Deciding to ask, she cleared her throat. "Frederick? Um, how long ago did you die?"

   He looked up, frowning. "How long? I don't know, a couple hundred, maybe thousand years ago? Time doesn't really exist in this place so it's hard to keep track," he shrugged, going back to writing, "now, any medical issues or past injuries?"

   "I broke my arm when I was seven and it never healed properly. But, do you remember what it was like before the war?"

   He huffed. "Sorry kid. I've been dead so long I can't remember much from when I was still kicking," he said, "all you need to know is that the war has been going on for longer than you've been around, and we need people to fight in it."

   "People like me," she stated, watching him nod with a grim look on his face.

   "Exactly. You know how it is. Stick a spirit inside a living, have them do the fighting, when they get defeated, all it does is expell the spirit, you still technically have your soldier alive."

   "You don't sound like you believe in the system very much," she pointed out.

   "It's a fine system. I just got lucky enough they needed someone to do the paperwork," he said. "Alright your all set. You can go through that door and relax until we get you paired up."

   She frowned "What do-" her question was interrupted when a door showed up out of the void. "Right..." She said to herself, standing. As she walked towards the door, the desk, and Frederick both vanished. She turned her vision to said door, turning the knob and stepping though.

   On the other side was more of the same blue void, endless and empty. Except for there were more spirits here, talking amongst themselves. These must have been other dead waiting to be paired with a living. Frowning, she began walking around, hoping to find something to occupy her time before she had to leave. It was probably going to be the last free time she ever got.

   After all, in Aelevon, not even death got you off the hook.