Death

Chapter 5

I watched in horror as the thing that used to be Jack reached towards me. Is that what happened to all of the souls when they vanished? All of the ghouls started foaming at the mouth, and their eyes were glowing red.

"T-This is what happens to the souls you take? What is wrong with them?" I asked, I had never seen anything like this before.

"All of their humanity is taken away when they wake up. When they're asleep, they sometimes walk the Earth in their dreams, their dreams are the reality of the living. That is why Jack appears to you occasionally." Purgatory explained, the creatures still reaching out.

"Does it hurt you?" I asked.

"The scratching, no." He responded. "They will be going to sleep soon, we must hurry."

"So, when I've been talking to Jack, I've been talking to that- that thing?" I asked.

"Well, technically, yes, but his dream version is exactly like he was when he was alive." He answered.

"Do the creatures know if they are dreaming?" I asked.

"Sometimes they don't even know they're dead." He said. "They aren't aware of their true form."

"Is that what all souls turn into? Or do just the ones who go to you?" I questioned.

"They become what they are in Purgatory automatically, regular souls do too, if they've been around enough." Purgatory answered. "Now can you stop asking questions? They will fall asleep soon. Wouldn't want Jack to pop up right now, would you?"

"I suppose not." I agreed. Purgatory buttoned up his suit again, struggling to push the ghouls back. He snapped his fingers again, unlocking the door, and letting me leave. Jack had been dreaming all this time? He was really that thing? How could he not know he was that damn creature? I had so many questions, but no answers.