"I remember the water. The way the riptides threw themselves at me, the way the liquid suffocated what little air was left in my lungs..." With my eyes close, all I see is darkness. But even then, I can feel the memory tingling just on the surface of my skin.
The way the moisture, the iciness of the unforgiving swash rushed at me and seeped through my pores. The merciless lash of rain that smashed against my hairline, that elicted a gasp from my airways.
Fractures that veined my body, transparent lines that sloped the slant of my arms.
All so real.
"Chase, you need to get over it. I have three hundred more deceased paperwork to fill. Just tell me you drowned." The frustrated click of Penny's tongue resonates with the hollow thump of a chop, stamping down against paper. My eyelids flutter open, allowing daylight to pull me into the view.
The confined room, an open structural defiance to anything remotely interesting contains a compressed table wedged in the middle and two chairs. The metallic top rail digs against my spine, biting along the thin fabric that is creased from the friction of the material.
"I drowned." I tap the surface of the table twice, the momentary stroke of my fingertips brushing brisk lines onto the wood.
"See, now was that so difficult?" Penny shoots me a forced smile, the stretch of her lips a painful posture for her mouth. I return the gesture with a tired smile, "Not at all."
"Alright, I just need your date, time and location of death. I-" Penny's statement is met with a sharp rap. The door to the room swings open, creaking on its hinges with the motion. Standing along the doorframe is a rail thin girl armed with a thick binder. Her dark hair drapes along the collar of her shirt, a pigment the carbon copy the shade of her eyes.
"Penny. I can take it from here." The girl announces, stepping over towards Penny's seat. Penny eyes the girl worriedly, her lips now compressed into a line of fear and her features sharpened with anxiety.
"A- are you sure?" Penny checks, her voice wobbling.
"Have you ever seen me uncertain?" The girl questions as Penny leaps out of the seat, swiftly gesturing towards the chair in a series of frantic arm movements.
"Be my guest, take him!" Penny's voice emerges as a high pitched squeak and the effort paints her face crimson right before she races towards the door, her wavering figure fumbling to shove the door shut.
The silence starts to settle, a thick blanket that fills me with uneasiness. I shift in my seat, allowing a temporary window to fidget before letting myself down. Once of us has to speak and by the girl's arrival, I'm definite that I have to initiate the conversation.
"So... Penny seemed quite scared of you."
The girl answers with a snort, letting her fingers tilt parallel to the edge. "I hope so. Fear is the main driving force when exerting authority."
"Authority... sorry, who are you?" I break into a smile, no longer able to deny the confusion leaking through my veins.
"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. How unprofessional." The girl leans back against her chair, her arms sliding into a cross over her chest. Her eyes flash with brief amusement as her gaze flickers across the length of my body.
"I am Death. Nice to meet you, Chase Woods."
I throw my head back and answer with a bark of mirthless laughter. The amusement spills right down my spine and floods my blood.
"I'm sorry, what?" When I finally catch my breath and steady my ricocheting heartbeat, I lift my eyes to meet the girl's again.
Her stare is cold and annoyed, a fragment that threatens to pierce my skin.
"Oh. You're serious." My lips are parched with the taste of realisation and my body is left hollow with the thought unravelling in my mind.
"Would you like a white heterosexual male instead?" The girl sneers, her voice snide.
"I- I didn't think you were being serious."
"You're dead. Don't you think being in a state of death would be the right era to be serious?" The girl- Death, snaps harshly, letting the thick binder tucked under her arm collapse against the table.
"I have never been dead before. You're seriously blaming me for not knowing Death is more than a concept?" I argue, pulling my shoulders into a tense shrug.
"No. I'm blaming you for not considering that Death could be a genderfluid Asian." Death replies swiftly before ramming her fist against the cover of the binder, causing the table to jerk in its place.
"Anyway, I'm not here for banter that I'll forget within minutes. I'm here for something that I think you would be interested in."
"Five extra minutes in the shower? A excercusion trip around the Medium?" My snarky answers shuttle back and forth, a rambling battle that brings Death's brows to an arch.
"Don't test me, Woods. One week here and you're already receiving complaints. If I were you, I would shut that huge mouth."
"You know, I actually have some constructive criticism for you, Lady of Darkness. How about getting the paperwork completed the moment someone arrives at the Medium rather than waiting a whole week?" I continue, ignoring Death's previous suggestion.
"I'm just going to dismiss everything you have just said. Ranting and raving- another side effect of dying with regrets. You'll get past this stage." Death sniffs with disdain as she flips through the binder. She stops at one of the pages and meets my gaze.
"I know that all this joking is just a facade. You don't need to admit anything, I know all your secrets. Especially that bit of devil's avocade with Penny- I saw right through that."
"I don't know what you're talking about." I say.
"Self-denial, huh? I would categorise that as a last resort thing." Death shoots me a thinly lipped smile and I draw backwards, the air sucked out of my lungs. Dread begins to bleed through my bloodstream and I position my arms just beneath the table, hoping that the rigidity of the wood would steady my trembling wrists.
"If you have read the news recently, you would know that the Haven's budget has been slashed. The money has been transferred to the Medium for my usage." Death watches me closely and I glance away.
I have heard of Haven before. The place people who pass away go to if they aren't assigned to the Medium. But that's all I know about Haven.
"Under different circumstances, I would have used that money for other purposes. For example, integrating stricter bylaws to keep this place running smoothly."
I nod along, barely paying close attention to Death's words.
"But that money isn't mine to allocate. I have been tasked by a higher-up to do something else with all this cash." Death's face clouds over with irritation.
"And what is that?" I ask, finally daring to speak.
When Death replies, the blood in my veins curdle.
"It'll be for a great game, Woods. The Game of Living Death."
Word Count: 1203
A/N: Hi, this is my first time participating in the Open Novella Contest. I'm kind of excited because I had a similar idea to the prompt that I wanted to pen down but never did so I guess here's my chance.
Also, while I know there are probably thousands of entries, I hope I have a chance at winning. (I think I might cry if I don't but whateves!)
Oh yeah, the prompt is under 'Fantastical Fiction', prompt number 7 for 'Gods of Death'.
Cover by Anonymous_115.
YOU ARE READING
The Great Game (2019)
Fantasy[ 2019 ONC rounds one and two qualifier, the lost episode script ] Chase Woods would give anything for another shot at life. After his accidental death, he receives a special invitation- an open slot for a tournament that grants the champion redempt...
