Snippet #1619845

"And so the games begin..."

A skeletal-faced figure sat atop his theoretical pedestal and stared down at his brand-new arrivals into Purgatory. A smile adorned his face as he saw their lost faces. He wondered if he should bother explaining anything at all--but then, that could prove boring. They might either just give up and accept their deaths or waste the entire week wandering, lost and confused. That would be amusing for a day or two, sure, but not for seven. He wanted action, drama, romance even! He wanted to see stuff happen! After all, that is what makes a good show for the audience.

Walking down the faded gray stairs of City Hall, Omen stood before the deceased humans and grinned, absently changing to his adult form. "Ghosts! Welcome!" he said and though it wasn't a shout, his voice still echoed over the chatting living nearby. Their little area out front of City Hall was clear of any gray-colored oblivious living humans. Just looking at the faces of those with color, he couldn't help but get a little giddy. "You are dead." A grin adorned his face as he stared them down. Miserable! Absolutely miserable! They will do quite nicely indeed.

"Let me explain my little game to you. You have been killed--thanks to yours truly--and, as with everyone else who dies, have been taken to Purgatory for all eternity." He raised a hand up to halt any possible interruptions, changing into his child form. "You each have a week to amuse me with your game and maybe even learn some things while you are here..." He trailed off, deciding he'd said enough on that subject and changing back to his skeletal form. "You have been given one power each. Why?" He laughed, loud and booming and unnecessary. "Because of the Shadows, of course! You should be meeting with them soon. You might want to keep them away from you, however." He smirked darkly. "In the case that they steal your life from you." He paused a moment. "Oh, right! If any of you little piggies happen to die per se or lose the game by the end of the week, then you all will lose and your lives will be taken from you."

With all that out of hand, Omen felt relieved that he was done. "My name is Omen! This is day one." He grinned widely and changed to his adult form. "Let the games begin!" With that, he snapped his fingers and disappeared from sight, letting the acclaimed Ghosts to stand around confused, left to figure the rest out themselves.

Omen reappeared not too far away, but well out of sight of the Ghosts, where another specially chosen group stood. "My wonderful Shadows! Welcome back to life," he greeted with a grin as he changed to a child form. "Not quite, actually. You have been selected to join in a little game of mine. You have been given a second chance at gaining your life. There are new children here from the living world--miserable brats, really. If you manage to steal their life away from them within a week with the powers I have given each of you, then you may return to the world of the living at the end of the week in their form." His grin only widened, more unsettling than ever before. He changed back to his skeletal form. "But are you willing to take a life in order to have your own back?" In a snap, he was gone once more.

--

Eyes closed to darkness...Is this what death really is? was the last thought he had before all things faded away. Only a minute later, however, Chiko felt his eyes open. He lifted himself up and searched the area, gasping for air as if he'd been dying from--am I dead? He got to his feet. "The world looks different than I remember," he mumbled thoughtfully to himself as shades of gray passed by. Looking down at himself, however, he noted his was still in full color form.

His eyes widened. Wait. Dead. I'm dead. Am I dead? He started feeling himself hyperventilate and he was about to start shouting out names. There was a person nearby and he rushed to the business man, reaching out to grab hold of the man's arm...only for his hand to phase through completely. Chiko watched helplessly as the man continued on his way as if nothing happened. "Wha...?" Then a creature appeared. Still stunned out of his mind, he plopped to his bottom and sat there, watching and listening to the creature numbly. What the man--skeleton--child--was saying registered, but. No, that couldn't be right, could it? Was he really dead?

No more step-dad?

A smile crept up his face and he stood back to his feet. I'm really dead. he stated firmly in his mind, almost accepting the fate that came to him. Chiko noted the other colored-people standing around him. What were they called? He was a Ghost now? He walked into the center of them and laughed out loud. "Hey, guys! I'm Chiko!" He approached a girl with green hair. "So, um, we're dead now? What kinda power do you have?" It almost seemed to not even bother him at all.