[Thank you for dying! Have a nice day!]

That was the first thing that appeared in front of me when my eyes snapped open. Staring blankly, I let out a short groan that comes out somewhat incomprehensible and muffled. Probably because my mouth has been sewn shut.

“Hah, we got another moaner here!” A voice suddenly calls out, far too cheerful for me to really make sense of just yet. Especially since I’m laying on my back, feeling oddly stiff while staring at a floating blue screen in front of my face. Beyond it should be a sky, but all there is to see is swirling grey mist.

At least until some big, red skinned and horned guy walks into my field of vision. His features are square and blunt, but there’s actually a wide-mouthed smile on his face that at least makes him seem somewhat good natured. Especially when matched with those pitch black eyes he has.

“Take it easy for a moment, dude. You stiffer guys always require time to get used to this whole thing.” Yeah, cheerful is definitely the way to describe this red guy, even more so when he takes a knee and holds out a wickedly sharp blade. It reminds me of obsidian, gleaming in the poor grey light of what likely constitutes daytime here.

That said, it doesn’t stop me from making another muffled moan while trying to move my body. Which is as stiff as a board. Ugh. Just like the red guy said, a ‘stiffer’, right?

“Ah, don’t be that way. It’s for the stitches, promise.” That cheerful voice doesn’t change, but when the red guy says ‘promise’ something weird happens. A vaguely golden string comes out of his chest and connects to mine, filling me with the knowledge and absolute certainty that he isn’t going to hurt me with that blade.

“Heh. It seems you are awake enough for my special -gift- to work on ya. Well, good for you! A devil takes his word and bond seriously, after all!” The red guy actually laughs at that, but his eyes suddenly become serious as he holds that blade over my face. “Now, don’t move and this will be over quickly. It’ll be odd, but that’s just the way things are, alright?”

I’m barely able to nod my head, but the red guy only grunts and suddenly the blade is passing by my lips. I can barely feel it, like an odd pressure, before it’s gone in a flash. But when my lips come apart is when things do get weird. And I say that lightly.

First off there’s a sudden scream that rips out of my throat; a sound of primal fear and terror I’ve personally never experienced. Followed by a gagged groaning and puffing as something black and nasty comes up my throat. The red guy grabs me by the shoulder and tips me over so I chuck it across the ground beside me instead of all over myself or him.

Once all of that is gone, I’m flipped back over and take a deep breath. That deep breath though is where things go from odd to weird. Because the swirling mist in the ‘sky’ suddenly starts to funnel down toward me, turning whiter and cleaner until only a string of it reaches my mouth and is swallowed into my body. And I feel every moment of it burning into my stiff body, almost as if I’d dumped boiling water into my stomach or something. Or acid, perhaps.

It also goes on and on, seemingly forever; although I’m sure it’s just that my focus is totally consumed by it. Or would be, except I see out of the corner of my eye the big red guy holding out a small blue bottle and is drawing some of the mist into it. For some reason that triggers something inside of me, almost like a blinding rage.

Overcome by the feeling, my arm jerks upward stiffly and with far more force than I should have been able to exert. The red guy, not paying attention, ends up taking the blunt blow across his hand holding the bottle, which causes it to shatter in an impressive spray of white mist and what seems like glass shards. All of which gets sucked right back toward me, joining the continuous daluge pouring into my wide open mouth.

Except those blue shards are definitely not glass, because as they enter my mouth they dissolve into something far more potent than the white mist itself. The feeling of power that comes over me is almost as blinding as that previous rage had been, but at the same time I could feel something else from it too. Like a piece of myself had come back, leaving me feel far more whole than before.

“Damn dude! Shit, that was my last soul glass too.” For the first time the red guy actually curses, and for a moment his smile slips into something like anger before it fades and he’s left shaking his head. “Should have asked first. These new guys are a touchy bunch.” I could hear him mumble.

Then it all ends as the swirling mist/clouds/whatever above me start to disperse. Taking in my last mouthful of white mist, I feel something inside of my body uncoil and loosen, and my muscles all seem to unlock all at once. It leaves me panting and flat on the ground still, but I soon raise a hand up to my face and watch as I clench an oddly grey-toned fist. Through the blue box that still hasn’t gone away yet.

“What was all that?” My voice comes out far more rough than I’d imagined, but then again the inside of my mouth feels like sandpaper anyway. Like I hadn’t had a drink of water in forever.

“Ah, first you’ll want to dismiss your message. Just think of it going away. It can be really distracting seeing the blue mirror of it on the black eyes, ya know.” The red guy has gone back to being overly cheerful, which is just as well, and helpful indeed as only a thought sends the blue screen popping out of existence.

“Good. Now then, as your official welcoming party, I welcome you to Limbo! The land of the lamentable dead, home of wandering souls and all that jazz. Congratulations, you are dead! Or not so much.” The red guy actually starts to laugh, although I assume gallow humor is par for the coarse around here. Especially if this really is Limbo.

“I’m Tobias, by the way. But I go by Tod for the most part. Way better than Toby, right? Haha.” The red guy finally has a name! And I actually nod, because Tod is generally a better name than Toby. At least to me.

“Sounds good to me, Tod. So I’m dead, this is Limbo, and my name is…” And that stops me cold, because I don’t remember my name. Not one bit of it. Or most of my life, or previous life for that matter. Except I know I know it. Yet I don’t. Just thinking about it about makes my head explode in pain.

“Ack! Don’t go thinking about it just yet! Newbies always try to do that and it never ends well. Last guy I saw ended up killing himself again when his head popped like a damned leech-infested pimple. The chunks were gooey, to say the least!” Tod interrupts me, and I blink and take a deep breath as I draw my focus away from what would probably have been a very bad ending.

“Ooohkay…” I breath out, before finally putting strength into my limbs and rising up in a sitting position. I was tired of laying on the hard ground. Which I find out is black rock as far as the eye can see. And mounds of grey dead bodies piled up in hills and mountains. Some of the bodies actually squirming. The sight doesn’t bother me as much as it should have though. Guess being dead is being dead, right?

“At least you can already move, that’s great. Anyway! The grey mist above us is the sky here in Limbo, and is commonly referred to as Soul Energy. It’s what makes all of you deaders’ live. Harvesting the stuff is good for making money too, which is what I was doing until you broke my soul glass. Ugh.”

Okay, explanations are good. As is the fact that I now know what keeps me alive. Got it. And Tod, a self-identified ‘devil’, seems more than happy to talk about it.

“Soul Energy, got it. And sorry about that. When I caught sight of the glass out of the corner of my eye I just couldn’t help myself. It was…” I struggle to find a way to describe it, at which point I realize that things are actually really weird for me right now.

Like, I’m dead, you know? And I should feel something about it. Like piss scared or maybe screaming mad. Or both. Or something else. Yet everything is muted, to use a term. I don’t feel hot or cold, I don’t feel tired, or hungry. I don’t feel out of breath, although checking myself I’m breathing just very slowly. And I’m not even sure my heart is beating at all.

“Ah, I get you. You dead guys always start this way. Your emotions and stuff are muted, so don’t worry too much about it. Also, ‘zombie’ would be the term you are looking for to describe your current situation. A dead body revived via magical means. Thank the Lords of the Pits that you guys don’t rot or stink, otherwise Limbo would be a nasty place to be instead of just being bleak, ya know?”

Okay, that explains a bit. And oddly enough I’m okay with that. Like part of me already realized it and acceptance was easy or something. Just weird. Weird is better than being truly dead though, right? So I nod to Tod to continue his explanation.

“Okay, so Soul Energy is what keeps you living. It replaces food and drink and all that jazz. You also have a natural reservoir of the stuff inside of you, which the ‘Awakening’ opens up the first time you get unzipped.” At this Tod wiggles his big red fingers over his mouth, where I’d previously been sewn up.

“Now, the part of you get that is zipped up the first time is nearly totally random from what I can tell. For you, it was your mouth. For others, it might have been their eyes. Or their nose. Or their ears. Or their fingers or toes. It represents the sealing of a sense, and although I’ve unzipped your mouth, I bet you can’t taste anything. And you won’t for about thirty days or so.” Tod starts to explain this clinically, and even manages to pick at this black fingernails at the same time.

“First timers speech really that dull?” I cannot help but ask, which causes the red guy to laugh and slap his knees.

“Yeah, I go through it almost daily. Along with the two thousand or so others out here doing the job with me.” Tod says, before he turns around and looks off into the distance where he nods to another red guy leaning over a body as well. Only this one is thrashing around and won’t sit still enough for the devil to use his blade on ‘em.

“We all work for Helen City, welcoming the new recruits, as it were. In any case, let’s finish this up. The ‘Awakening’ process is automatic, drawing in the Soul Energy and purifying it for first timers. We generally collect a ‘drop’ of Soul Energy using soul glass to make a bit of money on the side. It isn’t harmful or anything, but Limbo doesn’t like interference. Which is why you wracked the glass quite good.

“Soul glass, on the other hand, is processed out of ‘Soul Stone’. Which is a type of stone in which Soul Energy naturally collects and condenses. Somewhat rare though. And fragile, as you could see. Lots of people use soul stone to quickly replenish their soul energy or to gather more, so it’s a rather useful consumable by itself. Questions?”

Tod starts going off about a mile a minute, but I listen as well as I can and nod as I keep up with him. So far so good, and I shake my head in the negative about having any questions.

“Okay, good. Now then, Helen City is the nearest point of reference around here. It’s also known to have the most zombies as well. Other places in Limbo deal with ghost types, skeletons, and very rarely vampire types. That is one thing I have to explain to you though. Because undead sorts in general are all mutable. You could be a zombie today but get stripped of all your meat and you’ll become a skeleton. Get blasted into bits and you could become a ghost. With me thus far?”

I take a moment to think that over, and actually purse my lips. They feel thick and heavy, but then again my mouth itself has been odd ever since the ‘awakening’ anyway. It was like it was half numb.

“So deaders, was it? Deaders stay dead throughout whatever form they are? And they can both become less… hu… human or more?” For some reason I stumble over the word, as if my mind really didn’t want to touch upon the subject. Or whatever humans are. Another headache spikes across my mind, but it fades just as fast. But Tod catches my grimace and nods to himself.

“Yeah, for the most part. And humans are what the living are called. Or most of ‘em. Plenty of other races in the Above World, but most of them have their own places for their dead to go. Limbo is almost solely for humans. That said, there are more than just humanoid deaders down here. An example would be us Devils. We actually come from one of the realms of Hell and often work as scribes or contract employees for others. A Devil’s words are his bond, after all!”

Tod goes off laughing to himself again, but it definitely gives me something to think about. For example the knowledge that there may be other Limbos out there for other races or the like. And the realms of Hell. No clue about those, but the information sounds important. Yet thinking about it actually sparks something in my head, like a long forgotten memory.

“Never make a deal with a Devil without a contract…” The words come unbidden to my lips, which causes Tod to stare and laugh again while nodding.

“Exactly! That golden thread thing earlier? That was my contract. But contracts can be both simple or complex! Just keep it in mind, yeah? Not all devils are as honest as I am, after all! Haha.” Tod nods to himself, grinning to himself.

“Moving on, and this is possibly the most important part, so listen up! That blue screen from earlier is called originally enough ‘The Voice of the World’. Or simply the Voice. It’s kinda like an automated system used to keep the various planes of reality going about their business. Humans love to call it the ‘rules of reality’ or some shit.” Tod actually starts grumbling about that, frowning for the first time I’d known him.

“Anyway, enough about pointless human shit. The Voice controls nearly everything outside of free will. And anything free will touches. Which is your person, and others. And anything you are holding or working on. It’s really powerful, if you didn’t catch my drift. At the same time, it does have an effect upon everything. Including yourself. It won’t care if you curse at it, but it will respond if you try to break something you shouldn’t. Now, I want you to think ‘Status’ to yourself. It’s the easiest way to see what’s what.”

Okay, that’s interesting. An all-powerful automated system? Sounds almost like… Ack! Damned headache again. I can’t even think of that, can I? Shit. Yet for everything I can’t remember it just starts to bug me more.

I put it aside though, and turn my thoughts to the task Tod had set for me. Easy enough, right? Just think ‘Status’.

[-Personal Statistics-]

[Name: -Locked-][Titles: None][Status: Civilian]

[Racial Type: Dead | Zombie][Rank: F | Level: 1]

[Soul Energy (SE): 10/10][Soul Points (SP): 5 (-Locked-)]

[Body: 1/3 | +1 (10 SE)][Mind: 1/3 | +1 (10 SE)][Soul: 1/3 | +1 (10 SE)]

[Feats: None][Abilities: None][Skills: None]

[Perks: Newly Dead][Detriments: Newly Dead]

“Good, I see you brought it up. Now I’ll run through your status real quick. You don’t have a name, because your memories are still sealed. Shouldn’t have any titles or anything either. Your soul energy should be full up, and you’ll have some ‘soul points’ that are currently locked too. Soul points are something you gain every time you raise your rank. You spend on them feats, abilities, skills, and perks. Or removing detriments. That said, you can gain just about all of those without spending your points.

“You should have three starting attributes, although it’s been known for others to have more. Just not very common though. Body represents your physical self. Your strength, endurance, dexterity and the like. Mind represents your innate intelligence, wisdom, and cunning. Soul represents your ability to control soul energy and esoteric stuff like charisma, and luck.”

It’s kind of hard to look at Tod through the blue screen hovering in front of my eyes, but I nod as I listen to him while reading over my status a couple of times. Much of it is to remember it all, and another is to actually pick up on anything Tod may have missed out on. Which isn’t much. There’s no help file or anything to go along with it… although why that memory just came to mind, I have no clue.

“Now, and this is IMPORTANT, all in Capital Letters! Your attributes can change. And not just go up or down in number. We call it ‘spawning attributes’, but once you reach the limit of what your overarching stats can hold, they will split into individual progressions. Strength, Endurance, Agility or Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom, ect. Each of these spawned attributes inherit the total of the previous primary attribute and thus represent a baseline. Each point added to those new attributes will be represented as a decibel added onto it. So if you have 10 Strength and you add a point to it, it’ll become 10.1 (ten point one).

“This is done because every RACE has a standard for all attributes. For living humans, that standard is 10 points. Anything above that is considered ‘superhuman’. And that leads us into the next subject, your Rank, which is paired with your Race. As a regular zombie, your standard is 3 points. Which, as you can guess, is really weak.”

I break in there though, unable to keep it from blurting out.

“Three points? 3.0? Holy…” Yeah, not very intelligent of me, but I cannot help it. Which is why there’s suddenly a hot burning sensation running through my body that makes me cry out in pain.

“Ack! Don’t go saying the ‘H’ word here!” Tod yells, scrambling back across the black rocky ground as he does so. At the same time there’s a distant pearl of laughter, and I realize it’s coming from the other devil off in the distance that’s looking this way. Not that it helps, cause I literally just burned myself.

It’s gone in an instant though, but my insides feel rather toasted and I groan in discomfort as my hands pat my somewhat smoldering body. Thankfully besides from feeling a bit charred, I can’t see any damage.

“Jeeze, warn a guy first! That could get nasty if there was any real intent behind it.” Tod grumbles before shaking his head with something like a rueful laugh. “Saying the ‘H’ word down here will invoke ‘punishment’. Thankfully the intent behind using the word matters much more than the word itself, so there’s no damage done in this case. But if you started cursing blatantly you could get blasted to bits. And anyone around you for that matter. So just don’t say it, got it?”

I listen and nod, but at the same time that really scared me. Just saying a word could cause very real damage, which sucks. Everyone curses, after all. And it just sort of slipped out of me, which is nasty in its own way. Probably a lingering memory or something.

“Thankfully saying the ‘H’ word here isn’t likely to kill you in one go. Saying it in the Hells would invite lightning from the sky on the other hand. Although to be fair, I hear the heavens get blasted with black flame if they invoke ‘Hell’, so there is that, haha!”

“Okay, got it. Don’t say the ‘H’ words in either places. Good to know.” I mutter dryly, although when I open my mouth a bit of hot hair and ash escape past my lips. Ugh. It really did try to burn up my insides apparently. Which is why it hurt so much, no doubt.

“Yep! Now then, back to what I was talking about… Oh, right. Races and Ranks. Ranks have ten levels, 1 to 10. Each bump up in rank level allows you to place 1 more point into your attributes, to the rank limit. As a Rank F zombie, your limit is 3 points. That’s a hard limit. But when your rank level goes up past 10, it resets to level 1 and your Rank goes up to D. At Rank D, your hard limit raises. For Zombies, that increases to 5 points.

"For that reason you DO NOT want to spawn attributes at low ranks. Because it’d take a whole lot more ranks to raise them up later. Not to mention a whole lot more soul energy to do so. However, attached to this is your Race. Zombies are run-of-the-mill in these parts, and are way better than either ghosts or skeleton types. Skeletons can only get to 3 points in Body, but are stuck at 1 point in Mind and Soul. Ghosts can only get to 3 points in Soul, but only 1 point in Body and Mind. With me so far?”

Yeah, I’m listening, and both dread and am thankful for being reborn as a zombie. But it is at least better than being a skeleton or a ghost, right? Heh. Boneheads and Spooks. Yeah, I’ll save that bit of humor for later and instead settle for nodding for Tod to continue. I’ve been doing a lot more listening than talking anyway.

“Alrighty! This is where it gets real interesting, because you can change your Race! This is done a few ways. The first is to collect or be granted a Race Token. These are special little baubles either granted by the Voice or gifted from others. Usually for work well done and that sort of jazz. Race Tokens will reset your Rank and level back to F, but you’ll receive bonuses for any attributes and the like over the limit. This can be good for quickly becoming stronger. Although expensive if you intend to actually try to buy Race Tokens.

“The other way is through Evolution! Reaching the prerequisite rank and level for any race grants special evolution options that reset everything just like Race Tokens, without costing you more time and effort. The flip side of the coin however is that your new race is always based upon your previous one. A zombie can become a zombie knight, for instance. Or a lich. Or a ghoul. The choices are varied and vast. Especially at higher ranks. A zombie knight requires you to reach Rank D level 10 and have both the [Sword Mastery] and either [Shield Use] or [Armor Use] skills, for a full example…”

Tod trails off there, as a nearby crunching of stone brings both of our attentions to a newcomer. Only it’s actually the other devil and his newbie. They’d wandered over, and while the zombie guy gives a wave there is a scowl on his partners’ face. Which is soon mirrored on Tod’s face as he stands up and pats his black trousers clear of dust. A totally unneeded gesture, given the red guy doesn’t have a speck of dust on him. Neither of the devils’ do, when I look to compare them. Huh, interesting.

“Still talking your newbie into an early grave, Tod?” The other devil asks with a sneer as they wander close enough to be heard without talking. The sarcastic words actually make Tod huff a bit, red flames coming out of his nose in the process.

“What’s it to you, George? Your unfriendly attitude is why you always have such trouble calming down the newbies. That or the fact your black thread always ends up burning you. A devil is his word.” Tod retorts, and I’ve never thought I’d see a guy with red skin go green in the face. That’s actually rather amusing.

Thankfully I keep the laugh from passing my lips, and instead make to stand up while returning a short wave to the other zombie guy. He probably looks just like me though, with grey lifeless skin, black eyes, and bone-white short hair. The only difference I can see is that his nose is bleeding a bit. Rather it be from George’s carelessness or his own thrashing, I can’t tell though. Also the stitches are completely gone, which remind me that I haven’t checked my own. Probably similar though.

“Bah, whatever. I’m done for the day and taking my newbie to Helen City. Got a nice drop of soul energy to turn in and a drink waiting for me at the pub.” George is smirking again as soon as he opens his mouth, and I catch the eye-roll the other zombie gives behind his back. Probably not the first time he’d heard the same thing repeated.

“Yah yah, get on with it then. At least this newbie is actually listening and asking questions.” Todd retorts, although that only makes me feel a bit bad for breaking his soul glass. Extra income seems like it’s pretty hard to come by around here.

“Yeah, and burning himself too. We saw the poof of holy… fuck!” George just had to have the last word, and ended up getting burned himself for it. And none of us, not even his newbie, stop ourselves from laughing at his expense. Except where it had been like a flash in the pan for me, for George it was like a white torrent of light suddenly speared down from the heavens.

It was done in only a moment or two, but what it left was a man-shaped charred roast. A moaning, groaning charred roast. That soon flakes off into ash in the rather non-existent wind and reveals a somewhat burned red skinned devil beneath. One that is now missing half a horn from atop his head, actually.

“Hahahahahaha! That’s what you get, George! Going from a muscle-brained Hellion to a Devil via evolution didn’t do anything to add any brain cells to that head of yours. Hahahaha!” Todd bursts out laughing, while George was panting and trembling. He’d taken far more damage than I had with that slip, probably because of the sadistic glee he’d put behind it. As Todd had said earlier, the intent matters. Making fun of others with it obviously counts on the heavy side.

At the same time though, I was watching George. He’s shaking, rather in pain, anger, or rage I cannot tell. But what I can tell is that his clothing is slowly becoming crisp and clean, and the burn marks across his body are fading quickly. At the same time though I notice that his already broken horn is becoming smaller and smoother. There is something else there as well, a feeling that tugs at me.

I reach out toward it, not with my hands but with my thoughts and mind, and as I concentrate the feeling becomes stronger and easier to hold onto. No doubt furrowing my brows, I reach out to the feeling even more, straining to hold onto what I’m feeling until something in my head seems to ‘snap!’ and suddenly the world changes in front of my eyes.

Where previously the world was dim and somewhat misty, with swirling clouds above and black stone below, now there’s like an extra layer over all of it. A layer of silver-white, mottled grey-black, and a few sparks and dashes of color. For a moment it was like some painter had just sprayed his entire collection of dull paints over everything, but blinking my eyes it all soon comes into focus.

[Energy Sight ability learned!]

[Soul Energy Manipulation skill learned!]

[Over-Sight feat gained!]

Three messages then appear within my vision, and the world goes back to being dull and generally lifeless. It’s only then that though I realize that I’m panting, and everyone is looking my way. I feel utterly drained though, and huff quite a bit as I lean over to rest my arms on my knees. Amazingly enough even a bit of sweat drips off my nose and onto the rocky ground at my feet.

“Well ain’t that somethin’. Never seen a newbie grasp something like that so quickly.” Todd ends up saying, half mumbling to himself while George stares in almost a daze. The other guy looks a bit lost and somewhat fearful. He probably has no idea what’s going on, which I can relate to.

“Oooh,” I breath out before straightening up. “Gained an ability, skill, and feat all at once. What the Hell?” I cannot help but say and question all at the same time. I really can’t tell what happened.

“Hah! No wonder you look like the dead warmed over then.” George was the first to respond, going back to his asshole-ish smirk. The guy really made me want to punch him. Thankfully Tod is far more helpful.

“Gaining skills, abilities, and feats take effort, man. And effort requires you to spend soul energy. No freebies around here, ya know. Now what’d you do and what’d you get?” Tod finishes his short but to the point explanation with a question of his own.

“Ah, I was watching George there heal up after his punishment.” I say, motioning to the devil whom is likewise listening in. “His clothing cleaned up, his burns disappeared, and his broken horn got smaller but smoother. At the same time I ‘felt’ something, like a heat wave or the like coming off of him. But I wanted to see it more clearly, so I focused on it…”

I end up falling off there, thinking about the feeling again. Only this time it comes to me far more easily than before, and without even thinking about it my eyes blink and suddenly the word is full of color again. This time though I can actually make out what I’m looking at.

The red and silver light running around Tod’s body. The red and black in George’s. The silver-white mist buried inside the other zombie guys’ chest. And off in the distance other marks of red and the occasional dash of other colors that are too blurred to make out properly.

And then the vision fades, and my insides suddenly feel very much empty, leaving me gasping for breath again. This time though the exhaustion is too much, and I actually stumble and droop to my knees. It was like the wind had gone out of my lungs and I’d finished a 50 mile marathon. Wait, marathon? Where’d that come from… Ugh.

“Easy there, my man. Using skills and abilities use up soul energy, of which you have a very limited supply right now. Thankfully you can’t overdraft yourself, so there’s no harm, but you’ll be winded for about half an hour until you generate some.” Tod steps forward and grabs me by an arm, hefting me up with almost ridiculous ease while explaining.

“That said, Energy Sight is a fairly rare ability all its own. It’s also non-attributed, so you can see all sorts of energy with it. No doubt there’s red and silver around here, from a devils’ demon energy and the soul energy all about.” Tod then gives a little run-down of what I had been seeing, to which I nod in thanks for while catching my breath.

At the same time the other zombie guy is staring at George, whom is ignoring him. It seems that George hasn’t explained anymore than the bare basics in comparison. I almost feel sorry for the guy. Almost.

“Alright… I got the Energy Sight ability, Soul Energy Manipulation skill, and the Over-Sight feat. Which does what?” I ask after a few more breaths, and I could almost swear that I could see the ears of the others perk up after my question.

Thankfully Tod was also paying attention, causing him to snort with another bout of flames coming out of his nose. It reminds me of… a raging bull, yeah. A red skinned, horned, flaming bull. For some reason that mental image just makes me want to chuckle.

“Not now, dude. You never want to discuss your skills and the like with others unless you really trust them. Or have a contract with ‘em. Information is power down here, and while us Guides are down here to get you started, we are bound by contract to keep you alive for a while. So save the questions for later, yeah?” Tod responds after giving George a stare, which makes the other devil put a stop to his grin. It seems the contract they have with Helen City is quite the big deal for the ‘Guides’.

“Okay, got it.” I say simply, starting to stretch and get feeling back into my body. Being low or almost out of soul energy doesn’t seem to be a good thing, given how stiff and dull it’s made me feel. Then again Tod did say that it was literally what’s keeping me alive, so keeping a reserve is something I’ll really have to think about later.

“Now that this fiasco is done and over with, why don’t we head to town? The Plains of Corpses is relatively safe during the day time, but I don’t want to be out here after dark. That and a pint sounds just great.” Tod finally changes the subject, and I personally don’t have any reason not to follow along.

The same could be said for the other two, although there is far less boasting or talking going on between the pair. George must really be a dick, and I wonder how he even managed to get this far as a Devil. Then again there are all sorts, right?

The trek to Helen City on the other hand was somewhat enlightening. If only because we were quite far from the place. That and there is literally nothing out this way. The Plains of Corpses is aptly named though, because other than black stone and jagged ridges that’s all there is. Mounds and hills and mountains of corpses. Dead, grey, lifeless.

Not a hint of vegetation, or anything. On closer look however it seems that not all the corpses here are whole. Or even dressed, for that matter. Which when asked, Tod actually explains in his previous jolly mood.

“Corpses that are whole and wearing clothing tend to be un-awakened zombies. They are all the same, either male or female though. For us Guides from Helen City, we dig through the mounds and pull out the ones that match and see if we can get them to awaken. It can be quite the game, truth be told, haha!”

“Yeah, until one of the shamblers try to bite you. Then you have to give ‘em a beating to get them to back off.” George actually puts in his two cents there, which actually puts me into something of a juggling match in my head.

First off, what the hell are cents? Why would George have two of them? And what are shamblers? The answer to the first two questions allude me, but the third is easy enough to answer because I soon see it for myself.

A zombie missing an arm and with his head on lopsided squirms off of a nearby corpse pile and groans in our direction. Eyes of yellowish white stare at nothing, but even I flinch a bit. The whole front of the zombies chest is ripped open. And what I thought was a guy is actually a woman. Or the body of one.

“That’s a shambler. Un-awakened zombies that become feral and manage to rip open their stitches. Not always in that order. They can be quite the nuisance, especially when digging through the piles. But they tend to stay away from those stronger than themselves or their awakened counterparts. Around here they are like the rats you’d find in town. Hoarders and eaters.” Tod points and tells, smiling again as he does so.

I’m not the only one listening though, as the other zombie guy makes his way over. I give a nod in greeting as we walk on by the shambler, although it is rapidly becoming annoying at not having a name to give or the like.

At the same time I realize that the shamblers are probably what I saw moving on the other piles earlier. That thought brings up another question, which I’m quick to ask.

“What happens if a shambler gets ahold of the body of another un-awakened?”

“Then they become a shambler too. The awakening is considered a ceremony, requiring ya to have both your stitches and a whole body. Lose either of those before you are awake and you lose your chance at a new life. That’s why us Guides dig the piles daily, to pull you poor sods out of harm's’ way and set you up to go about your new life. Often a thankless task, but most of you new guys are far more talkative than usual. Haha.”

Okay, that’s enlightening to say the least. It seems that being granted this un-life has restrictions and meaning. At the same time, many of the newbies like myself and the guy listening in seem to be subtly different from the ones that have come before us. That thought brings on another feeling that something isn’t right, or that I’m missing something. But I just can’t remember, and trying to force myself only brings about another splitting headache.

“I thank you, at least.” I finally say after a moment, the headache fading as quickly as it had come. Tod must have noticed the grimace on my face, because his own suddenly lights up as if he’d just remembered something.

“Oh, right! Forgot to tell you about that. Pull up your status again real quick.” He instructs, to which I nod and follow through by doing so.

[-Personal Statistics-]

[Name: -Locked-][Titles: None][Status: Civilian]

[Racial Type: Dead | Zombie][Rank: F | Level: 1]

[Soul Energy (SE): 2/10][Soul Points (SP): 5 (-Locked-)]

[Body: 1/3 | +1 (10 SE)][Mind: 1/3 | +1 (10 SE)][Soul: 1.3 | +1 (10 SE)]

[Feats: Over-Sight - Rank I (2/10).]

[Abilities: Energy Sight - Rank I. (2/25)]

[Skills: Soul Energy manipulation - Rank I. (1/25)]

[Perks: Newly Dead][Detriments: Newly Dead]

“Okay, so besides the other changes to your status, including your new goodies, you should have a perk and a detriment listed by the same name. ‘Newly Dead’, yes?” Tod begins and questions, to which both me and the other guy nod. I don’t think the other zombie has opened his mouth the entire time though.

“Good. ‘Newly Dead’ is counted as both because it has both pros and cons to it. Now I’m going to teach you two something, an ability called Inspect.” Tod says then, stopping in his tracks only to reach out to both of us.

His hand is oddly warm against my forehead, which actually feels kind of nice. The other guy sort of freezes up though, and I can see his fists clench up as if he were about to make a run for it. Thankfully he doesn’t though.

“Teach: Inspect.” Tod intones gently, which causes his body to faintly glow in a red light before something is forced into my head. It’s uncomfortable, but after a moment it finds whatever it was looking for and settles into place as if it had always been there.

[Learned the Inspect ability! Rank II gained from Mentor Skill!]

Then Tods’ hands are gone from my head, and he even as somewhat of a sheepish smile on his face. It looks really weird on a red skinned, somewhat bulky, and horned devil though. After a moment he clears his throat, no doubt from the rather curious stares we are giving him.

“Ah, yeah. Right. You two are newbies. Anyway, the Inspect ability allows you to discover additional information on an object. Including parts of your status. The Mentor skill is one I’ve been training up. It allows me to teach you one of my own abilities at a lower rank than my Mentor skill itself.” Tod explains, going back to his friendly grin. Nearby though George actually snorts, finally turning his head to look at us.

“A devil actually teaching people. Lords of the Pits help us.” George retorts, only to be startled when both myself and Tod actually flip him the bird. In union. Which is pretty cool.

“Hahaha! A man after my own heart!” Tod laughs when he realizes I did the same thing he did, and I kind of get this goofy grin on my own face. No clue what I look like though, although I’m thankful my hands work as intended.

Beside us the other newbie also chuckles a bit, although he turns his head quickly when George shoots him a hateful look. Not that any of us seem to mind it though. I wonder if anyone actually likes George.

“Yeah though, it’s actually pretty hard to get the Mentor skill, but it is something I thought would be helpful. I’ve been a Guide for longer than George has been alive, so I’ve seen plenty of people come and go. Some go up, others go down, but it’s always the same.” Tod finally explains once he finishes laughing, and I nod as we start moving again.

“Now then, you’ll want to open your statuses again and then say ‘Inspect Newly Dead’ while staring at that line. Or in your mind, whichever one works for you.”

[-Personal Statistics-]

[Name: -Locked-][Titles: None][Status: Civilian]

[Racial Type: Dead | Zombie][Rank: F | Level: 1]

[Soul Energy (SE): 2/10][Soul Points (SP): 5 (-Locked-)]

[Body: 1/3 | +1 (10 SE)][Mind: 1/3 | +1 (10 SE)][Soul: 1.3 | +1 (10 SE)]

[Feats: Over-Sight - Rank I (2/10).]

[Abilities: Energy Sight - Rank I. (2/25); Inspect - Rank II. (1/50)]

[Skills: Soul Energy manipulation - Rank I. (1/25)]

[Perks: Newly Dead][Detriments: Newly Dead]

I do as instructed, which seems to be all I’ve been doing lately. For some reason that ticks me off a little, but I shrug the rather muted feeling away and concentrate. ‘Inspect Newly Dead’ I speak up in my mind, causing a new blue screen to appear.

[Newly Dead - Perk/Detriment]

[You are newly dead! Your soul is mutable for 30 (29ds, 8hs, 24min) days.]

[Newly dead can only be slain by soul dispersion.]

[Newly dead can inhabit any body or form containing Soul Energy.]

[Newly dead have enhanced soul energy absorption rate.]

[Memories locked until soul is properly mounted in a body or form.]

[Advanced Titles, Feats, Abilities and Skills cannot be learned.]

[Newly dead can be revoked early.]

Whoah, there’s quite a few things there. And I can obviously see why it’s considered both a Perk and a Detriment. For one, it allows for almost true immortality, for 30 days. For another it gives enhanced soul energy absorption, which I don’t think we’ve gotten to in the discussions with Tod yet.

At the same time it locks our memories, and disables our ability to learn advanced abilities. Which may be a real downside, depending upon what constitutes ‘advanced’ abilities. Because those may be important, if Limbo is dangerous in any way, shape, or form. Actually, it may be bad even if Limbo is rather peaceful. If only for the inability to move up the social ladder.

“Good, it seems the both of you found it. The ‘Newly Dead’ perk is a great thing when you are starting out, that’s for sure. Always been kind of jealous of it, in fact. But it’s only a safety net. The detriments though are the real kicker though. Advanced skills are also called ‘Professional Skills’. Skills like Alchemy, Blacksmithing, and Scribing are all Advanced Skills. They require knowledge as well as training, usually through an apprenticeship.”

This time both myself and the other guy are listening to Tod seriously, because this is really important. It seems that the downside is a real kicker, especially when wanting to go with non-combat professions. That sucks a bit, but thirty days isn’t really that long of time.

“That also means that most forms of magic that require active training are out too. Summoning, Thaumaturgy, Healing, and Enchanting are big examples. That said, there is more leeway with magic. Sorcery, magic based upon emotion and experience is just fine. That’s basically run through Energy Manipulation, borrowing power from nature and the like. So if you wanna go tossing around fireballs, go ahead. Just don’t do that here in the Plains, okay?”

Tod actually starts to joke about it, but the talk about magic really catches my attention. I’ve already gotten part of that, after all. In fact, the other zombie is looking quite put off at that. But the bastard still hasn’t said a word the entire time.

“I think we get the idea, Tod. So we are stuck being grunts or laborers until we choose a body, right?” I end up asking the question that came to mind, and Tod naturally turns to flash a grin at me.

“Got it, boyo. That said, you can technically ‘learn’ all those Advanced titles, skills, and whatnot. You just can’t get access to them. Which is really annoying if you try to do everything manually. A Blacksmith with a rank of 5 (Rank: V), would normally spend about an hour or so on a common grade steel sword, for instance. Doing it manually could take you twelve hours or more.

“That said, you can choose not to activate the skill and go about it, which gives a great boost to the skill should you succeed. The Voice records it as effort without assistance, so there’s a big bonus once done. It’s seen as something any professional will do in order to really get their skill ranks up there. It’s even rumored that the Blacksmith Ocre crafted the Overlords Armor in the Hells while doing it all manually too. And that’s a Legendary grade armor!”

Heh. A little off topic there, but I don’t mind letting Tod go off because it is informative. Probably more than it needs to be, but hey information is information. Even if it’s just rumor.

"Sounds pretty neat. So it is possible to do actions without the skills required. Bet it get expensive though, like through trial and error.” My response gets Tod nodding up and down as if his head were all on swivel, which makes me chuckle a little.

“Exactly! Back onto the subject though. The reason why you want to hang onto ‘Newly Dead’ as long as possible is for the boost in absorbing soul energy. For most of us, soul energy is hard to pull in. We have to worry about purity and all that jazz. You don’t, so you get to skip that entire process. Which is important, because it’s the only way to grow how much soul energy your body can hold.

“Which, by the way, is quite simple. Starting out, you have 10 points of Soul Energy. By spending 9 points of it, you can gain one extra point of maximum capacity. Then for the second point you have to spend 10 points of energy on it. And so on and so forth. Really simple, yah? It gets really insane when you start having hundreds or thousands of points though. Which is why people really dig soul stones, because it can rapidly replenish your spent points.”

Okay, yeah, that makes sense. And sounds like a boring and time consuming task. At the same time, it makes me feel as if I’d heard that bit of information before. I just can’t place when or where. Thankfully I’m able to jerk my thoughts onto other matters before another headache strikes.

Which, by the way, happens to be the end of the Plains of Corpses. Or rather, a glimpse at the first green I’ve seen in the place since I woke up. Lots of green, in fact. Tod must have caught my distracted gaze, because he turns his head to look as well and hums to himself in a somewhat happy tone.

“Ah, we are reaching the farmlands outside of Helen City. Can already see the fields outside the mounds there.” He says, pointing it out for the other newbie. Whom is just as quick to look as I had been.

It really is quite the sight as we make our way past the last few large hill-sized mounds of dead bodies. The black rock of the Plains smoothly transitions to thick black soil, upon which fields have been plowed and planted. There’s also water, although it is milky white in appearance running through irrigation ditches dug between the fields.

“This here is Demon’s Grain.” Tod starts to point out what is being grown, pointing a thick red finger at the different fields. “Dead Flax, Soul Flowers, Ghost Vine.”

Okay, so there’s quite a few things that grow in these fields. My attention wanders a bit as we step onto a well-traveled road built into the space between fields that stretch as far as my eyes can see. The road itself is paved in black stone, likely mined from the Plains of Corpses. Almost like… cobblestone, yeah, cobblestone from the Above World.

“Demon’s Grain is basically wheat. Used to make bread and the like. Dead Flax is a fibrous plant used to spin yarn and make cloth out of. Soul Flowers are used in alchemy, a base for a variety of potions because it has a small amount of Soul Energy in it. Ghost Vine is roughly chopped and can be smoked.”

The explanations keep coming, as Tod doesn’t seem to be able to keep his mouth shut. Not that I mind, as listening to him go on like this actually is a bit relaxing to me. Odd, I know. But it’s just how I feel. At least until he speaks up about the Ghost Vine and mentions smoking.

That has an interesting effect on me, because suddenly I have a very real craving to have something held between my lips. Like I really need a smoke. Or a cigarette. That thought though brings about another spike of headache, and I reach up to rub my temples with one grey hand. Only this one is quite longer lasting than the previous ones. I really want a smoke.

“Uh. Tod, what is the cost of these things?” I finally force out between gritted teeth, trying to change the subject and actually stop my head from exploding. I haven’t forgotten about Tod’s earlier warning, but the damned craving is just way too strong. Like I’d been starved of nicotine for far too long. Nico...tine.

“Huh? Oh, right. You see, money down here in Limbo is a little weird. There’s coinage, used in trade between the various cities or in large orders. But most people trade in soul stones. Or rather, pieces of ‘em. Shards, we call them. If you break a soul stone, you’ll get ten regularly sized shards out of it. It’s something the Voice regulates, so it’s a standard used everywhere.

“A loaf of bread in Helen City costs a single shard. Or three copper coins. A full meal without meat, three shards; or nine copper coins. Almost a silver. A full meal with meat ranges from five shards to seven or so. Which is right at a silver or a little more. Like I said, the money thing is a bit weird. That rates between shards and coinage changes daily. But everyone wants soul stones, so that’s what most people trade in, ya see.”

Thankfully Tod is quick up on the update, and starts actually explaining something useful. For which I’m grateful for as the headache finally leaves me alone. Really, having my memory sealed really sucks. The headaches are likely to be the death of me.

“You’ve been grimacing quite a while there, dude. I hazard a guess that you are far more sensitive to the memory sealing than others are. Just be careful with that, okay?” Okay, so Tod may actually be a bit too observant as well. But then again he seems to be rather old as a devil, and experience is a big thing.

“Yeah. I keep getting flashes of thoughts and pieces of memories. Things that leave me wanting to know more or remember better.” I explain as I glimpse the other newbie glancing my way with what looks like worry on his face.

“Using your head too much there, brat. Dropping some points into Mind will take the edge off later.” Sadly it wasn’t Tod that speaks up first, and instead George actually decides to rejoin the conversation. Only his tone is more pensive than smug, and I throw a look at the red guy.

“George is just worried about losing his pay for the day. Guides get paid daily per bringing in at least one newbie. But part of the contract is that allowing you guys to die before you get to Helen City means docked pay. And George isn’t known for saving his income.” Tod actually grins again as he tells it as it is, making George scowl and look away while walking in front of the group.

“Truthfully though he has it right. The Mind attribute does lessen the impact of the memory headaches a bit. Soul helps too, although mostly on the emotional side of things. Emotions are weird for you dead guys though, because usually they are really muted. But when they come out, they tend to be really strong and overbearing. Maxing your Soul attribute helps with controlling those impulses.”

It makes sense, so I nod again. At the same time though I look at George’s broad back thoughtfully. And take the time to actually look at his clothing. Which consists of a pair of black trousers, almost like slacks; boots of leather of some sort; and a long-sleeved tunic shirt that almost looks like a short robe belted closed with what seems to be a silk sash. His black blade is nowhere to be seen. Weird clothing for weird people, I guess.

“Thanks for the advise, George.” I finally say after a moment, which seems to startle the devil before he huffs and raises a hand. Big guy definitely doesn’t take thanks well, but it seems he’s more than his asshole attitude would suggest. His newbie actually looks surprised though, shaking his head abit.

“Heh. Don’t worry about George. He used to be a Hellion, which is a race that’s all about smashing shit and being as big and mean as possible. Grunts, soldiers, and the like. Being big, mean, and stronger than the other guys is what Hellions are all about. Which is a bit of a conflict with Devils though. So just take it as George having some rough patches.

“But no Devils come out here to be Guides without a good reason or the desire to actually help. Devils as a whole tend to be lawful neutral or evil, as such things go. Contracts, bonds, and personal ties matter a whole lot. A Devil is his word.” Tod explains in a much quieter voice, although there’s something like a pride in his little smile.

“A Devil is his word.” George’s voice echoes back to us, although he doesn’t look back at us at all. Still, it makes me smile a bit. It seems both Tod and George are far more complex than I’d originally assumed. And really, Tod is the biggest mystery right now. He seems almost too nice, too helpful.

However, I’m not in any mood to ask because over the horizon a far brighter light starts to peak. At first I actually thought it was the sun coming up over the misted sky, but it doesn’t seem to be at all. Instead, it’s a ball of light perched on top of a very, very tall black tower. A tower that actually pierces past the soul energy mist that is the sky of Limbo.

The nearly absurd sight of it stops me in my tracks, and I stare transfixed. I can only see the top of the tower from this point, but that ball of light really gets to me. For one thing, I can actually feel it’s warmth from here. As if it really were the sun. But at the same time something screams at me that it’s completely artificial. Possibly because of all the soul energy I can feel radiating from the thing.

I’m not the only one to stop though, as the other zombie guy also stares upwards at the sight just a step or two ahead of me. It was almost dumbfounding, and really there wasn’t anything else in my mind at all. At least until I hear both Tod and George start to chuckle.

The sound seems to break me out of whatever funk I was in, because my eyes snap downward fast enough to make my head spin a bit. The other guy is just the same, although he turns to look back at me, his black eyes open wide. I could all but feel the awe and fear coming from him.

“Haha. It’s always nice to see the newbies respond like that!” Tod is still laughing, and George is nodding his head as well. Which is kind of weird, given that they are both agreeing about something instead of bickering like an old married couple.

“The Sol Light is how we measure time in the vicinity of Helen City, heh. There’s no sun or moon or stars here in Limbo, so the only light is what we make ourselves. Further from the cities the deeper the twilight becomes.” Tod starts yet another explanation, but I actually glance back up at the ball of light. Or Sol Light, as Tod put it.

“The Sol Light is a magical construct built atop the Keeper’s Tower. It’s the literal heart of Helen City, along with the other Keeper’s Towers in the other cities. And it radiates enough Soul Energy to be felt from vast distances, once you know what you are looking for. That, and is what allows all these fields to grow and whatnot.” Tod looked like he was going to continue, but George grunts and interrupts him.

“Enough of that. We still have a ways to go before we get to the city, so we should get a move on.” Yeah, that sounds just like George, but I think all of us can agree at this point. I especially want to see the city and what it has to offer. So far there’s just been an awful lot of walking and nothing else going on.

That, and I haven’t seen anyone else out here but us four the entire time. It is almost disconcerting. The fields look well cared for, for instance, but there isn’t a single farmer or worker for as far as my eyes can see. Which says something, because even as a zombie I’m quite a bit taller than even the fully grown Demon’s Grain stalks.

There are also no animals of any kind that I can spot. Just plants, the road, and the black soil. All of which just strikes me as really odd. Which is a feeling that’s getting really old and annoying really fast.

“Where is everyone? Are there no animals, monsters, or beasts around?” I finally cannot hold it in anymore and start spouting questions. To my side the other zombie guy nods his head, and I could almost see a big question mark floating above it too.

“Hm? They are there, you know.” Tod seems a bit put off with his reply, even as he idly motions to one side of the road. Looking though I cannot see anything though. Before I can say anything though Tod’s eyes go wide and he stops in mid-step, almost falling over in the process.

“Wait, you can’t see anyone?” The words come quite fast this time, and in far more seriousness than I’m used to from Tod. At the same time George has stopped again, his back straightening to the point where it almost looks like he was about to bend backwards. Almost like someone had stepped on his imaginary tail.

Tod doesn’t even wait for me to reply though, his black eyes rolling around almost frantically before he suddenly shouts. I almost couldn’t make out the words, it’s so loud and fast, but I do make out “[Mana Surge]” before all hell breaks loose.

Which is saying something, because we are in Limbo, right? The Realms of Hell are only a short distance, figuratively, away. But the vast surge of ‘power’ that suddenly surges out of Tod’s big red body almost knocks me off my feet. My fellow newbie is actually blown off his feet and onto his back. At the same time the sound of glass shattering reaches my ears, and everything suddenly changes before my eyes.

The clean and well kept fields are gone. Burning and smoking ruins are all that’s left of them. The smell is astringent to my nose, bitter and smelling acidic. The smoke is so heavy in the air I could almost taste it.

Sadly that’s the least of my worries, because what appears out of the gloom is a scene out of a nightmare. Grey skinned zombie bodies are scattered all over the place, in bits and pieces; as if broken toys. Time whitened bones of skeletons are the same, although many of them are crashed. And the bodies of little red men have been torn asunder, having splattered dark red blood all over everything in their surroundings.

Above them all are the silently screaming souls of the dead and slain. Each of them has been pierced through via great black chains, connecting one to the next in an endless macabre parade. Black chains that spark with purple lights that causes the nearby translucent souls to howl in silent agony and flicker as if they were about to be snuffed out of existence at any moment.

Even me, stunned by the sudden assault of sights and sounds and smells, can tell that those chains are bad news. In fact, it were as if those chains were draining the souls dry, ready to consign them all to oblivion at the drop of a hat. The sudden fear that clenches up in my chest only makes it all the worse.

My saving grace however is the fact that I wasn’t the first target. Instead it was my silent companion, who isn’t so silent once one end of those black chains whips out at him and grabs him around the throat. At the same time, his sudden outburst of ‘Holy fucking shit!’ actually manages to save his life.

Yeah, the punishment burn seems to hurt the black chain even more than it did him, allowing him to wiggle out of it’s loosened grip and stand back up. At the same time Tod finally steps forward and pulls the guy back, while shouting at me.

“Move!” That one word is all I needed to hear as I break out into the fastest sprint of my short undead life. In fact my suddenly motion is so terror-driven that I even reach inside myself and force my limited soul energy into focusing into my legs, giving me a sudden speed boost that sees me driving even past George, who’d gone pale in the face while glancing around frantically.

But I must have had the best idea, because soon enough both George and Tod are yelling for us to run, and to run as fast and as long as possible. I barely make out the words, but I can hear the heavy stamping of running feet on the shattered black rock road. The scattered bodies and floating souls and the black chains make it a somewhat difficult thing, like running through an obstacle course. None of us are complaining though.

And then my energy flags, my already reduced soul energy running out after only a couple dozen feet. It leaves me huffing and panting for breath, clutching at my aching chest as sweat pours down my face. But I keep my legs moving, shambling or jogging, whichever way you want to say it.

“Fucking Scourge! Fuck fuck fuck!” George is bellowing somewhere behind me, but they are all catching up as I try to force strength back into my legs to keep going. I really don’t want to look around or see what may be following us. And I definitely don’t want to end up like those poor bastards already chained up by those eerie black chains.

“Shut up and keep running, George! The main body isn’t here!” Tod yells at the other devil, although I can hear the tightly controlled fear in his tone. I take a moment to glance over my shoulder just as George comes bulling up behind me.

Thankfully he doesn’t brush me aside, and instead his large hands grab me around my chest only to hoist me over one of his shoulders like a sack of potatoes or something. I can hear his bellowing breath beside my waist somewhere, but I’m really so exhausted that once the weight are off my legs they are left dangling almost uselessly.

“Damned slow newbies!” George curses as he continues to run. Carrying me doesn’t seem to slow him down one bit though. Taking the chance to glance around, I find Tod only a few feet behind George, carrying the other guy too.

Only the other zombie isn’t looking so good. The area around his throat where the chain had whipped him is an odd black-brown color and he seems to be wheezing for breath. Only to suddenly cough up black bile that reminds me of what had happened when I first woke up.

“Shit, your guy has Scourge Poisoning, George! I’ll try to slow it down, but we need to get back to the city fast before he croaks. Again!” Tod bellows between his own panted breath. He obviously isn’t as strong as George is. But I get the distinct feeling that Tod is still far more powerful than George.

That especially becomes evident when his body starts to glow with red energy, which I take is his normal ‘demon energy’ he spoke about before. It wraps around him, coiling and bunching up almost like a snake or a serpent, before drilling into the zombie guys body with a faint sizzling sound. This makes the guy scream out in pain and another mouthful of that black bile, but soon afterwards that black-brown bruising around his throat starts to fade, although it never disappears completely.

George for his part only grunts again, shifting me on his shoulder as he picks up a bit more speed. Almost too much speed, because the world around me starts to blur. My eyes or my mind just can’t keep up with everything passing below my head. And in all honesty I’m not sure I want to keep track of everything. I’m just far too exhausted.

Which is why I don’t even notice it when I doze off and fall asleep. Or unconsciousness, as the case may be. I simply black out while ignoring the yelling, crying, smell of blood and shit all around me.