DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognizable people, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original lyrics are the property of the songwriter and their band. The author is in no way associated with the band/owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended. "Death's Bliss" is a short story that is bascially based off of the music video, "Bliss" by Muse, my favorite band of all time. The first chapter is essentially what I thought (a fantasy background story, if you will; like what if the video was just a snippet of a bigger story and that's how this short story was born) when I was watching the video- and so the story was born. Please enjoy!
The world was a dark planet. A planet corrupted into chaos; rampaged by destruction from the humans that inhabited it. The world was a dark, deep and mysterious place and only one full city stood. The full city was robotic and completely metal; most things were covered in thin layers of dirt and dust. No one could see life anymore. No one saw large, grassy green meadows or woodland places where wildlife roamed.
Life? There was no life anymore. Normal citizens led boring lives; the most exciting they probably could possibly have was danger and everyone avoided danger at all costs. Except prisoners. Only prisoners- people who risked the danger to have a true life- led exciting lives. These people, of course, were the prisoners kept at the very core of the outskirts of the full city. A hole, the core was; surrounded by flat fields of metal. A few feet were dug in secrecy long, long ago for each bad deed the founders saw and heard about. You could imagine this hole got very deep, very fast. Some say it goes through the whole world.
They're right. And which is why the government allowed those people to live. Not to scare the public into thinking that the world is failing, but to spread the truth. Because as soon as those people came public with their ideas, they were trialed for conspiracy. No one knew why or how this happened; but people had grown uncurious in their ways and soon went on with their lives, like nothing happen. They did not care.
The people, however, were not forgotten by the government. Put into shades of black, white and grey uniforms, the prisoners as they were called were taken to the core. And put into little antigravity cells; many stayed there until they had gone insane and were killed. That did not take long. No contact with people. The only other thing you would see is the food and water given to you at meal times. And occasionally, you would catch a glimpse of a body falling down the core; the government's ultimate way of capital punishment…
A rebellion was rising in the world and the city was the one hiding the main cooperates of who started it. Their leader hid in the city, below the government's very nose! He had been safe for many years, his two other partners the ones daring to leave the city. Of course, it was romoured that he had not wanted to stay in the city at all- but he was told it was for his own safety,
He was the leader of them all. The one the government had been digging and digging for; he was the match behind the wildfire that was taking over the world. But this rebellion had become too late; the man was alone, his two closet partners-in-crime captured a year or so back. They were in their cells, watching above from time to time. But he was the one the government wanted so badly! And now they had him; victory almost felt too sweet to a few but the rest were full of morbid joy. Finally this man could be destroyed!
His partners wondered if he still lived. But their memories were muffled and foggy; they could not remember correctly. What did he look like? Where did they see him last? But where were their cells? Inside the core; on each side, little cells were placed so the other prisoners could watch the assassination that was going to take place. Of course, with no human contact, they would never know what is going on until the body of the person goes by.
The man faced Death like a man. He showed no emotion; a blank sheet of metal. But as he stepped onto the very long ledge, alone, he felt sadness grow into his eyes. He had failed. His task is now left to his followers and he would never see the end- good or bad. He just wanted bliss, joy and happiness. No, he truly wanted peace. But in this world the planet had become, peace was unheard of.
His red hair swayed gently in the breeze from the air coming up from the core. Red hair- the government had forcively dyed it. Red to remind him of the blood he had shed; the blood they were after. He thought about the wind brushing his face instead of Death. Refreshing, he thought blankly. Such a devastating thing the core was and here it is, calming his soul before it faces its ultimate demise. The irony would have been funnier on a brighter, different day.
He spreads his arms out, like he was going to fly and takes the final step and this time, no flat metal ledge is there to meet him. He falls over, into the core. At first, it is peaceful and then his mind starts to break down. He is dying now; Death will greet him at the end. And soon, his body starts to refuse it. The flying; he twists and turns but no avail. It was gravity's law here and the law was that he would fall until the end. Then he will float and die, forever lost to the universe… yes, that's how his followers described it…forever lost.
His voice comes to him at that moment. A deep, beautiful voice; something his followers had called the voice of the heavens. The words formed on his tongue, bubbling and fighting to come out. There was no fight in him left already and so he sang. Hopefully his partners will hear it but he knows they may not remember…
The man in the grey, loose sleeve floats to his window. There was a wind in his cell from time to time- he didn't understand but perhaps it was some sort of battle tactic the government was using. For once, the antigravity cells seemed to be working with him today. But for all the leader knew, it was Fate bringing them together one last time. He wandered over to the window, an oddly shaped thing. He paused in front of it, his blue eyes looking up and down at the wall in front of him, across the core. Today, he felt his memory was terrible. He had lost count of the days long ago but still felt… needed to do something! And so he waited.
He wondered if the government was going to kill someone, shoot them down the core. He would love to see another face again; even a soon-to-be dead one. His dark brown, spiky hair seemed to stand on end too; like it knew what was coming… such a silly thing to assume! To think your hair knows something is going to happen…
He looks up and out his window, his eyes narrowing. What is what? Is it falling? For a moment, he hopes it's someone but no emotion displays on his face. No happy, go-lucky has touched his face in months, even years! Then the body goes by.
Red hair flicking in the wind. At first, his brow pulled into a small frown. He knew that hair, though it had not been red the last time he saw it. Last time he saw it, it was black as the midnight sky with no stars- he had dyed his hair to match that, hopefully confusing officers when they saw him from afar for the leader.
The leader. The words in his head were deafening though not a sound was heard in his cell.
A bright red shirt flapping, free of the pant's hold; the pants were a shiny, almost leather-like appearance. The prisoner watches as the man falls, past his cell. The con of being on the top, most part of the core- everything comes and goes in the blink of an eye.
He closes his eyes and slowly opens them, waiting for the tears to come. His partner, his lifelong friend! Going to meet Death in the end... He waited for them and none came- at all. He merely continues to stare out the window, remembering not to forget what he has left of his friend. A great heaviness weighs on his shoulders; something he knows he'll never get rid of.
As soon as that man flew by, this man lost all but a shred of hope. He hoped for one thing- not for the world to be free again, for the rebellion to win- but for his friend to enjoy his fall. For his friend to enjoy singing (he saw the man's lips moving, even from here) his last song and to die a happy death. A death that felt complete.
Perhaps he will. Perhaps he won't. The prisoner knew that he could only hope but hope is an emotion and not an action. He could do nothing but stand here and think of him falling. He was glad he only saw him for a moment; to remember him when the sensation of free-falling was still fresh and young.
The leader spun and twirled, singing. He felt the words shake his vocal cords and felt the air being rushed out of him, but sang nonetheless! He was free of the burden of leading now. He was always looking for new dangers, new challenges to face; ones that would be quite a challenge. He knew he had found his ultimate challenge as soon as his foot stepped off that ledge and he also knew another thing.
This was a challenge and danger he would never defeat.
The second partner looked up; he had seen the body drop, merely a little speck to him. But the brightness was uncanny; he knew who was falling the moment he could make out the flying redness.
Every rebel knew that the government had publicly came out and stated that from now on, only the leader of the rebellion shall wear red when he's executed. Obviously, they meant to keep that promise and dyed the leader's hair. The second prisoner felt sorry for him; but perhaps the leader enjoyed the very striking difference… he was always an odd fellow…
He frowned, trying to recall a name. No name came. Today, his memory was especially bad. All he knew that this man, the one falling down to past his cell, was the leader and his friend.
Nothing more. He bowed his head slowly, allowing his eyes to drift close as the man past. Yes, that was him. The red hair… the moving lips… the flailing arms… everything screamed the leader and this man could do nothing to stop the Death the leader was going to meet.
He pulled away from the window, deciding to spin around until he would go mad and fall asleep. He spun and almost danced though he was never a dancer. His feet touched the walls of his cell and he pushed away, floating slowly between his two walls; the one on his left and the one on his right.
The leader thought he had saw his partners. But he had gone too fast to notice; all he knew is that they would know who he was when he fell down. That is, if they were still in their cells and not already on the other side, with Death and waiting for him at the end. If they were, at least he would no longer be alone. But there was no true other side.
The first prisoner refused to open his eyes as he floated, trying not to make a lot of movements. His chest felt like he couldn't breathe but yet, every other second, he felt the small wave of air go through his nose. For a moment, he wanted to stop it and end it all. He wanted to be with the leader- he didn't care if he had any chance, no matter how big or how small, of getting out of the core. He wanted out with Death, like the leader… like his friend.
He was trying to bring back the lyrics of the song he knew the leader was singing. He could only think of one word and he wasn't sure what it meant. The title of the song or the emotion he would feel if he died along with the leader? Bliss.
He opened his eyes, somersaulted and touched the floor with his hands, while pushing his feet against the ceiling. He wanted to escape; his mind rattled the emotionless cage he had set up in his mind to keep partially sane and his mind screamed for freedom. But his body did not listen; around and around he went, touching every little corner of his metal hole as he could…
The leader truly felt like he was flying upside down. He was going headfirst one moment and the next, his arched leg pointed towards the bottom. He almost had lost a sense of… everything. Well, not everything; most things. He knew he was going down, not up; that was about it.
The words were like soothing honey to his throat. He seemed to breathe easier (though he knew that was all in his head for that would go against the laws of physics) while singing and the twirling reminded of him what he would have been stuck in till he finally fell over did. His friends were probably still stuck in there. And he pitied them.
Perhaps the government would kick them off the face of the planet too, so they could be together. He was becoming selfish and he knew it; but he wanted nothing more than to be with those two that completed his life. If he had been dying with them or knew they were going to be there at the end, Death would seem half as scary.
Suddenly, he was falling on his back and he felt scared. Where are they? He thought. Where are his friends…
The second prisoner did not dare to look out his window; spinning and spinning he went. He would keep this memory forever, he knew this, but it felt good to be strong enough to keep it at bay. It became a game in his head. A fun little game… perhaps he would be the first one to die of the two- they both knew they were here. They could feel it but they were almost high maximum prisoners. Only those type of prisoners were put in the core's cells.
The first prisoner had floated back to his window. He felt an evil emotion in his gut; it twisted and turned like he had ate something bad. But he knew this feeling all too well; hatred. Anger. Fury. He frowned again, glancing at the core's middle. His arm reached out and his palm hovered above the glass. He knew if he touched that glass, he would feel like he was completely trapped. That this wasn't some trick illusion…
Still, he dared and hovered his hand above. He felt alive again; he felt the rush of danger and the adrenaline of challenging something. Even if it was as useless and stupid as this. Alive… he hasn't used that word in a long time.
The leader flailed his head around, singing on top of his lungs. He wanted to scream it; shout and defy Death's almost overwhelming silence but that would break the spell he was putting himself under. He didn't want to be truly afraid and numb until he reached the outer universe… whenever that may come.
The second prisoner looked up, feeling quite dizzy and alone. He wondered if the leader had reached the bottom yet or met Death. He wondered if his other partner had seen the leader fall; he wondered what his friend, the one still trapped inside a cell, was feeling…
The leader saw it. It was almost exactly like the "white light" movies and books had portrayed as Death seemed like. But he suddenly knew he wasn't meeting Death right away; he held out a long note, letting it fade. He knew this song by heart and the beat was in his head; he could hear the drums, the bass and guitar and all the other wonderful instruments. Yes, he could hear it perfectly even if everyone else couldn't.
The leader felt small as he passed from the core, it spitting him out like a bad flavored candy. He floated now; he was no longer falling to impending doom but floating on Cloud Nine's evil twin, the one that tricked you into thinking you were on the original Cloud Nine.
He felt the cold air of the universe and wondered if he should hold his breath. That would stop the song of course but it may give him a few more moments on consciousness before everything went dark and his mind took its final pulse before his body and soul were destroyed.
No, he would sing. He would sing until he lost unconsciousness. Then he would fade and die.
He glanced at his arms; black lines traced where his veins were. What had he done that for? He was already forgetting. The blackness around him was covered in shades of dark blues and purples; dotted with little glowing stars that were only small circles. He waited for his cue to start singing again.
He was falling facing Death; he was falling on his back, like he was laying down to go to sleep. It switched and changed for him so much; he wondered if he was too proud to not lay on his back, because he was trembling on the inside.
He sang again, his voice taking up most of the oxygen in his lungs. As he spun and floated down (now he wasn't sure if he was floating or falling; he had forgotten what the difference was between the sensations), he saw shooting stars.
He did not wish. His wishes were useless now. Death was near; he could feel it in his numbing body, his fingers slowly turning blue and his eyesight becoming hazy…
He closed his eyes, trying to calm his restless and panicked soul. He felt the brightness leak through though; it burned his eyes, like he was looking directly into the Sun. The light was the purest of all the lights, artificial or natural, he had seen in his life. Is that why it hurt so much? This light was light in its rawest form.
He held out the last note and then he fell silent. He slowly turned, realizing his body was weighing which way to fall. Perhaps he was too proud to lay on his back, ignoring doom. He met the light, head on- just like he had led the rebellion.
The last few lines of the song burned in his head; he had memorized them long, long ago. Wasn't everything long, long ago? It seemed to be. He kept his eyes close, even though the light was completely burning away at him.
Give me
All the peace and joy in your mind
I want the peace and joy in your mind
Give me the peace and joy in your mind
His body spiraled into the light; it consumed him like it did all of its meals. His body disintegrated and for a moment, he felt excruciating pain. His whole body was on fire! Then it cooled off and he sighed; he let the coolness, the numbness wash over him and the leader was no more…
The second prisoner shunned all light from the window, falling into the darkness that his mind was turning into. He felt the leader pass on or at least, he imagined he did. He wanted to scream and shout; to sob and die but he could do none. He could do the first too but felt… there… was… no… reason… to… fight… anymore. He gave up the battle.
The leader was gone.
The first prisoner felt his body shake and tremble- in agony and fury. He wanted to break and smash things; he had never felt so angry before! He wanted to smash the window in front of him to pieces and leap into the core, follow the leader like the true friend he was…
The second prisoner shook his head, refusing to think of the rebellious thoughts of breaking out. They were the reason he was in that whole mess and they were the reason the leader was no more.
The first prisoner narrowed his eyes into angry slits. He too felt the leader pass on. Why had he not taken him and the other man with him?
He was confused and his chest ached. He stood, floating and staring down the core. He would follow soon- he was damn sure of that. But for now, he could only wait. But while he waited, Fate stepped in again and soon, the wheels of her moving became active.
The rebellion was moving. They were looking for their leader and their co-leaders. Where were they heading? The full city… and the core. But no one knew this but the rebellion group; they had planned it as soon as the first leader (the second prisoner) disappeared. They were going to rescue them!
Nether prisoners felt they were going to be saved. The man that had lead them through their crazy lives was gone. He was gone! Accepting this, the first prisoner felt the wild wave of emotion wash over his body. This is what he has been waiting for! Instead of breaking down like he thought and hoped for, only a small reaction came.
A single tear rolled down from his eye as he stared out the window.
People
No, the characters aren't directly Matthew Bellamy, Dom (Dominic) Howard and Chris Wolstenholme; in a way, they star as the main characters. The main characters are, essentially, their own characters- I suppose (think of them as actors, if that's the only way you can wrap your head around it, lol). And for the people who were confused by how I "named" the characters, here is some enlightment on your confusion (hopefully).
The Leader- aka Matt Bellamy (he never gets a true name; will always be referred to as "The Leader"; minor character from now on)
The First Prisoner- aka Dom Howard (does get a name later on; will be the main, main character)
The Second Prisoner- aka Chris Wolstenholme (does get a name later on; main character)