Soul Rejected: 200

Chapter 3: Good bye. Good luck.

Dead. Zephaniah was surely dead. He died in the dark pit of an impossibly large creature. Some might say he died when a dark umbral blade was plunged into his chest. He might have been good as dead from when his wrist was torn off and blood was pouring out of his arm. Some might even claim he was dead the moment he listened to that voice and decided to turn around and go back into Jodie's house. No matter which way you look at it, Zeph was nonetheless dead. And shortly after his death, he found himself staring dumbly at a bright white landscape, a stark contrast to the netherly abyss that was his final resting place.

Above him was an endless expanse of rolling white clouds with the light of some hidden golden sun lining their edges. The clouds tumbled and spilled despite the lack of the slightest breeze. The ground was even more wondrous in that it appeared to be a near-perfect mirror of the sky above it. It was like he was on the surface of still water reflecting the spectacular troposphere above him without error with the exception of occasional ripples that intersect without origin. His bewilderment was soon replaced with anxiety. His gaze darted in every direction hoping to find some sort of landmark or feature. Every which way he looked was empty and indistinguishable from the last. Even looking to the sky, he was unable to pinpoint where the source of the light was coming from. The clouds plumed and billowed, obscuring the elusory light behind them.

"Welcome to Heaven." A voice came from behind and above him.

"Ah?!" Zephaniah started and turned around to find the source of the voice. Zeph looked up at a person atop an all-too-tall podium peeking over the edge back down. The structure was some sort of stone like marble with ornate carvings that made it look ancient. Zeph couldn't make out the features of the podium person from the angle he had at the base, but he was pretty sure they weren't threatening. He was also certain this structure was not behind until just this moment which added to his outward bewilderment.

"Wooah, Jumpy one. You must have had a rough trip. Exciting!" The voice came again when his face poked out further from the top of the podium Zeph wasn't sure which of the owner's features stood out more to him. The androgynous figure leaned over the edge to reveal his frosty white hair, despite matching Zeph's own youth. Under a loose curtain of his hair were crystalline blue eyes, framed in matching white lashes all painted on the canvas of the face so pale it bordered on inhuman. His mouth couldn't be seen from over the edge but his eyes seemed to smile when he spoke again, "Oh yes, I know you. You are late! Oof, very late. Still, welcome welcome welcome! Better late than never, I always say. Believe me, I know a good guy when I see one. Congratulations! You did it. You weren't a dick."

"Who are you?" Zephaniah breaks his focus on the podium to take in the sight of the sky once again. "And what is this place?"

The man rolled back on his heels to also take in the beauty of the realm around them leaving him out of sight once again. "This, Zephaniah Rios, is Heaven. Well, sort of. This is actually the gate but it's more like a formality. It's pretty much Heaven. We basically just need to check a few boxes and you can be on your way to the afterlife! As for your other question-" He pauses for an effect that was lost on Zephaniah but still earned his attention as the man peeked over the edge of the podium, this time to reveal a smile when he spoke "You can call me Pete."

"Am I dead?" Zeph responded.

"Not a requirement but yes you are quite dead. Weird how everyone asks that..." Pete trailed off before starting again. "Doesn't matter now! Welcome to the Gates of Heaven. Like I was saying, it's pretty much a formality. We just need to verify your sanctity and cause of death." Pete flips some papers just out of view. "Ooh, babysitting? Self-sacrifice to save an innocent? Never double parked? This is practically open and shut. You should have no pro-" Something Pete was looking at made him stop his verbal onslaught.