It was a normal Tuesday for my coworkers in their cubicles. No one seemed to notice my dead body.

  Work more! Earn more! For my dream vacation!

  My inner mantra. Every time I think I've done enough and it's okay to stop or slow down, I will repeat it inside my head. I had a plan. A great plan that would enable me to finish work for the rest of the year, way ahead of everyone else. I had been toiling days and most of the nights in the office, trying to do and earn as much as I could. All for the ultimate goal.

  An early vacation.

  An early vacation a month before December 25 and come back on the 5th of January the next year. I counted my hours and calculated my possible shifts. I organized all the possible meetings in advance so that the office could function in my absence. I guess it was all for nothing.

  Floating with a new translucent self, I watched as my coworkers went on about their morning. And there's me on the side. ‘It’ must have smelled so bad. My lifeless body still wore the same gray, checkered blazer, and nobody bothered to ask why. Maybe it's because of the strong perfume Maria used. Those things are nasty. It left me wondering which scent a housefly would be charmed with, her perfume or a dead body.

  Maria Gray and yours truly, Julien Dela Cruz. With both choices waiting for their test subject, it's time to find out.

  Speaking of flies, my coworkers suddenly stopped chatting. My gaze landed on the elevator gates outside our glass walls. One of the two seven-segment displays on the side of those elevator doors had its numbers increasing before it stopped. With a “ding,” it opened, and a stuck-up brute emerged. Our manager walked with hurried steps. His eyes immediately glued onto my hunched, dead body.

  A conclusion has been reached, and it’s good enough for me! I need to run—or float, I guess, whatever souls do.

  As if on cue, a tug vibrated over my entire being. I darted my head around to find the source. My neck first craned down below only to notice the office lights seemed brighter than usual. I looked up, and it was quite sudden; a flash of light devoured me.

  ~~~

  It felt like a very long time had gone by. It’s either my eyes gradually adjusted to the light or the light dimmed on itself. Shades of blue appeared in my vision, followed by the outline of something white. Clouds? Am I in the sky?

  Julien's translucent body hovered over a sea of clouds, below the azure atmosphere. A moon sits at the edge of her vision with no birds in sight. She couldn't feel or smell the air. It appears only my mind and eyes function in the afterlife. Julien thought as her eyes wandered below.

  Thin clouds of white piled up below her. Julien couldn’t see through its layers nor locate the source of the ambient light. But it feels nice. Is this Heave—?

  “Julien Dela Cruz. I have a mission for you. I apologize in advance, but you must be confused.”

  A deep, lofty voice interrupted her thoughts. It came from behind her.

  Learning to control her new self took time, and it was harder to turn without both feet touching the ground. It took a while, but she had done it. Julien's eyes lay upon a featureless, white porcelain mannequin. It looked like it could break on the slightest touch as if it were an ageless antique. A white mannequin? You look...expensive? Is this heaven? Are you St. Pe-?

  “I am not St. Peter. And yes, you are dead. Let us not delay any longer. All will be clear in due time.” The white mannequin lifted an arm and brought two of its fingers together.

  Snap!

  Like a thunderclap, the sound reverberated in the entire area as if it were an enclosed room. I could feel something had changed, something deeper in level, but I couldn't put my finger on it. Julie planned to ask what was going on and why it could understand her thoughts. Are you Go-?

  “That’s all.” The white mannequin waved its hand dismissively.

  What in the actual fu—are you crazy? She thought it was jesting, but a powerful tug pulled Julien’s very soul down below the clouds. She plunged beneath its layers, leaving the featureless mannequin behind. The featureless mannequin gazed at the empty sky for a few moments.

  “Calling me crazy? Heh.”

  The peace didn't last long before it happened.

  “Where. Is. That. Soul?”

  An earth-shattering voice disrupted the calm atmosphere. The clouds began to boil and moved with no unified direction. The sky darkened as if the sun were being snuffed out. The breeze transformed into an uncontrollable gale in response to the voice. Twisters transformed into immense cyclones, exposing the hidden waters below.

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  Thud. Thud. Thud.

  Thundering footsteps sent ripples across the sea’s surface, birthing tsunamis and whirlpools. The atmosphere turned into an apocalyptic storm. It was about to swallow the minuscule figure at the center.

  The featureless mannequin stood still. Its head gazed nonchalantly in the same direction. Its white, porcelain skin slowly darkened, turning gray. It became ominous, unapproachable.

  It started to change. The grayish-white skin became darker and darker until it resembled the clear night sky. Brilliant stars and distant galaxies filled all over its body. The featureless mannequin turned around as it got larger and taller until its figure reached the darkened skies. It gazed at the approaching shadow outside the calamity with its head tilted. With a voice so ancient and lofty, the featureless mannequin asked, “What soul?” Even with its voice changed, there were still traces of amusement it had earlier.

  Snort!

  Even with torrential winds and gigantic tidal waves, a rough, harsh sound could be heard. It exceeded the calamitous pandemonium devastating the world. A large shadow stopped before the calamity. A couple of large, brilliant dragons of lightning manifested behind him. These magical dragons crackled and coiled around a silhouette, never merging, never-ending. But still unable to illuminate his figure.

  “Don't. Play. Games… I. Know. You. Change. On. How. You. Are. Perceived... That. And. Time… Possibilities. Were. Narrowed… Attempt. To. Hide. The. Soul. Is. Futile.”

  “Man, you talk slow. How about you try saying something with more syllables, like Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis? ”

  With a voice coming from the ends of calamity, the titanic, shadowy figure asked, “Buying. Time..? That's. A. First… Even. For. You…” After a few moments of silence, the voice increased several octaves and blurted out, “What. Have. You. DONE.!?” Along with its voice, the draconic lightings opened their crackling jaws. Points of light began appearing between them that coalesced into a single point. The featureless mannequin's stance never bothered moving. It faced the growing ball of energy full of destructive concepts with a relaxed stance.

  Snort!

  The apocalypse started to subside as the snort echoed. The draconic heads retracted their jaws, and the ball of light dimmed. The shadowy figure backed away. Bit by bit, the apocalyptic storm receded. The figure of the intruder collapsed as if he were built on sand.

  The turbulent oceans gradually settled as the torrential winds subsided. The massive mannequin that remained never transformed back to what it once was. It redirected its gaze below, where a certain being occupied earlier.

  ~~~

  What the actual fudge is going on!? Who? How? Where the fudge am I going!?

  Flashes of sensations penetrated Julien's mind as her consciousness started to return. Her mind spun as she tried to make sense of what was happening. The feeling of weightlessness didn't stop. A strong invisible force kept dragging her down as white light enveloped her being. Strangely, she could feel the temperature start to rise. A smell of pungent sulfur penetrated her nostrils.

  Cough! Cough!

  I have a nose and a throat? Clutching her neck, she could feel her skin again! Her eyes darted around and noticed two sets of sharp, black nails attached to crimson fingertips. Black veins traveled around the arms and across the crimson body. A hand reached out and cupped a feel of the small bulges behind the long black hair covering the chest. A thin, crimson tail wiggled behind, peeking in between her legs from time to time.

  “Haha. It's small. Wait. That’s not the problem! Why am I red? Why do I have a tail!? I can talk again-PFH!? ” Two dull, yet long teeth almost pierced her tongue.

  Julien’s mind was a mess. One moment, she hovered in her office. The next was somewhere she thought to be heaven. Then an invisible force yanked her down so hard that she could do nothing to fight against it. And finally, her senses were back. Unfortunately, she found herself inside a body of something red and sinister. A chill ran down her spine as realization kicked in.

  She was about to panic and go full scorched-earth mode when Julien noticed an obsidian ring. It sat idly on the middle of her fingers, shining with an iridescent luster every time she moved it. All her movements and screaming stopped as her crimson eyelids fluttered. That looks expensive. Why am I wearing it? She asked inwardly.

  Julien’s other hand reached out to hold the ring and discovered it to be soft and cool to the touch. Something deep inside told her to continue wearing it, yet her reason didn’t want to. It looked suspicious. Even if she was told it could sell for hundreds and thousands of pesos—maybe even millions, she would never wear it.

  Suddenly, a small, translucent rectangular window with a blue hue appeared. It hovered a few centimeters above the ring. She jolted out of her trance and tried to move her hand away, only for the translucent window to disappear.

  She stopped.

  Julien's hands were shaking. She brought her hand, wearing the ring, towards her. The translucent window magically appeared over it.

  [Ring of Deceit] It displayed.

  “Ah!?” Julien panicked. She had experience with RPG games, plus web novels, and watched a few horror movies back as a kid. She loved the first and second ones but stayed away from the third. The ring's name sounded ominous. I must not wear it! She grabbed it when a dense white fog instantly enveloped her mind.

  In a split second, she appeared right over the sea of clouds. The featureless white mannequin stood before her with its hand raised. She was back at the place she thought to be the happy place.

  Snap!

  The sound jolted Julien from the chaotic events that had just transpired. She had a lot to ask but didn't know where to start. She deliberated for a moment, but she couldn’t move! Her mind existed, but her body wasn’t. Julien couldn't do anything and was about to lose her mind when a familiar voice disrupted her.

  "Uhm... I think it's rude not to introduce yourself."

  Her inner voice!

  Her thoughts when she couldn't speak!

  She wanted to do this follow-up question. However, an invisible force dragged her to the darkness below before she ever could. How is this possible? It could be a regression, a dream, or a figment of her imagination. Julien considered all these, but none matched the clues she had with her. She could still think for herself and still had her memories of what happened. But the new turn of events didn't match what she remembered. All her confusion stopped when the featureless mannequin continued.

  “My name will only be disclosed after everything else. Your memories would be sealed henceforth.” The lofty voice spoke inside her mind. But something felt different. It didn't sound as hasty and deep as she remembered. The loftiness was still there, but it didn't have the urgency it once had.

  Silence. Her inner voice didn't say anything, but Julien knew it was confused.

  “The knowledge I am about to impart is not for the faint of heart or any mortal mind."

  “So, let us start.”