“Say, Sal, since I'm undead and all… What's to stop me from amassing like a shit ton of wealth and attempting to rule the world or something?” Leo asks out of curiosity.

Sal lets out a chuckle. “Well, first of all that would put you in the public eye. And any undead who gets put in the public eye is doomed to die. They're still undead, but they eventually age and die. For the sake of the smooth operation of the world, the Black Star corporation sort of has to step in and start removing privileges. They can't have people questioning why people are living past a hundred and still young and kicking. Sometimes they get offered a way out, but more often than not, they lose their undead privileges.” Sal explains.

“Damn.” Leo says. He didn’t think it would be so serious.

Sal lets out an amused smile. “And when I say undead privileges, I mean it is a privilege. We’re essentially props for the lives of living humans, nothing more. I’ve been told that it’s sort of a test for us; whether we can live for something other than ourselves. And if we pass… I hear that we’re allowed to continue…” Sal says, his mind wandering.

Leo raises an eyebrow. “Continue? Continue to where?” He asks.

Sal lets out a laugh. “I don’t know man. Just continue. Think about it. The Black Star corporation has the technology, or magic, or voodoo, or whatever, to essentially make people immortal. What else do you think they have up their sleeves? Maybe there are other worlds to explore or something. Maybe the higher-ups are essentially gods. So it’s not so crazy to think that there’s a next step.” Sal says, explaining how he saw things.

Leo’s eyes widen. “Damn. You’re probably right. I did see that there were magic skills and witchcraft stuff available at the reward store. Maybe that’s the next step? Evolution or something?” He says casually.

Sal smiles. “Exactly, my friend. A lot of undead I know are working towards skills like those. But they cost a shit ton. It’s like the Black Star corporation is asking us to work for a few lifetimes before we get access to those. What a bummer. Maybe they just want us to get used to the idea of immortality, or make sure we can handle not loosing our minds from two to three lifetimes of tedious work.” Sal says with a bitter laugh.

Leo lets out a chuckle. “Maybe.” He says, amused. “Anyways, thanks for the advice. I’ll try to get a job, I guess I mean, what else am I going to do?” He says, not really looking forward to just working for the rest of his life.

“Yeah, man. Keep it real. Let me know if you need anything.” Sal says.

Leo smiles. “Yeah, man. Thanks.” He says before ending the call.

Leo lets out a sigh. A few lifetimes of work… Damn, that sounds boring as fuck… He couldn’t help but think.

…

…

Leo opens his eyes in the middle of the night. He felt funny. He gets up and begins to move around before a frown appears on his face. Fuck, I feel like I’m a doll. There’s barely any feeling in my body. And damn. My sleepiness is gone. Fuck. What the fuck am I going to do then? I guess I really should sign up for night school… Leo thinks with a sigh.

Leo decides to test it. What was the limit of this undead experience, what he could and could not do.

Leo pours himself a large cup of hard alcohol before chugging all of it down. Leo wipes his mouth before going over the experience. Yup, nothing. No burn and no drowsiness. Just nothing. Fuck. Leo exclaims.

He quickly takes out a cigarette and lights it before inhaling and exhaling. Soon after he throws the cigarette to the floor and steps on it. Fuck. Still nothing. He thinks, depressed.

Leo’s eyes are drawn to a knife and a thought crosses his mind. Ugh, fuck it. Why not. He thinks before picking the knife up. He takes a deep breath before plunging the knife into his palm. “Ah!” Leo exclaims, expecting pain. But... There was nothing. Leo lifts the blade up and some blood leaked out, but soon the blood clotted before the wound began to knit together. Fuck. He exclaims before taking a few deep breaths. Stay cool, Leo. We just gotta keep earning work points. Let’s just relax. He thinks, calming himself.

It happened. It was done. Leo had essentially died once again, and he felt terrible. Fuck… Leo thinks, depressed. At least I still have fanfiction… He thinks, consoling himself.