The Second Chance (Open Novella Contest)

Chapter Two - I Hate Heights

So. Not my finest moment. Evangeline gave a yelp of surprise, but I screamed like I was about to die all over again. Which I suppose I was. My feet hit another floor, but I kept screaming. I was vaguely aware of Eva yelling at me.

"Oh, stop screaming already! Sara! Shut up!" After a few moments, I managed to convince myself that the floor wasn't going to drop out from underneath me. I stopped screaming.

"Finally." Eva stepped back. "You okay?"

"No." I gasped, still trying to shake the feeling of certain doom and utter terror. A memory surfaced. The day my mother died. She fell from a cliff on a family holiday. I was there. I saw it. Terror took hold immediately. I could never go anywhere high, I was too terrified. Both of the hight and the threat of falling. Only days later, I was diagnosed with and basophobia. " Not a fan of heights. Or falling." Understatement of the year.

I looked around, taking in our surroundings. The walls and floor were both black with swirls of grey. Wait-no-I felt sick.

"Are they..." I couldn't finish my question.

"The souls of past losers? Probably." Eva said, her face paler than usual.

"I thought they were destroyed."

"I think they are. Just a lot slower than we guessed." Eva pointed at a white swirl. It solidified into a face, mouth open in a silent scream before dissipating into nothing.

"Changed your mind?" A male voice asked from behind me. Eva and I turned and my jaw dropped. Standing behind us was Thanatos. And behind him - god, that must be Hades. Thanatos was handsome, but more in an I-will-literally-kill-you kind of way. His black hair moved in a phantom wind and his dark skin looked chiselled from stone. His eyes were the dark, cold blue of the Arctic Ocean. When he smiled his teeth looked like tightly packed snow.

Hades is harder to describe. He looked kinder than Thanatos, but also harsher. His brown hair was streaked with grey, and his tired, pale blue eyes were accompanied by dark circles. His skin was pale and you could see the dark blue veins pulsing under his slightly wrinkled hands.

"No." I said, and, maybe I was crazy, but I meant it. Yeah, I was definitely crazy.

Hades studied me for a moment. "You are a brave girl Sara. Foolish perhaps, but brave nonetheless. Be careful it doesn't get you into trouble. Evangeline." Hades turned to the young girl. "Do you have each other's backs?" Hades vanished.

"What was that about?" I asked. Thanatos gave a dry laugh.

"Hades is not known for being specific." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Or sorry. This is a rare occurrence. I hope none of you wastes it." The room filled with shadows. When they lifted Thanatos was gone and about a dozen other souls were standing around the room. Seven boys and five girls. They were of all ages, races and from all time periods. I counted four Asians, three of who were fairly young and one with grey hair. Five African-Americans and one young girl who looked as though she might be an Aborigine from Australia. She was glaring around and Evangeline, me and two boys who had light skin. I wondered which of us would get a second life and which of us would get trapped in the walls for half of eternity. I looked at Eva. The terror in her eyes was unmistakable. I'm not sure why, but I decided then and there that I would do everything I could to give her a second chance at living a full life. Then the floor vanished. Again. Why is that the only way to get around the Underworld?