Author Notes: I won't write a lot of comments, but I have a few things to say.

Couples: There will only be Brittana and Faberry featured in this story. Other Glee characters will make an appearance and some of them will be important, but the emphasis is definitely on Faberritana.

Chapters and length: There will be 23 chapters including prologue and epilogue and the overall word count is about 57k. The first couple of chapters are fairly short in comparison to later ones.

Thanks for the alerts so far.

Chapter 02

A new morning has come, a morning full of hope.

Gantz sings.

I grin in the shadow of my hood as everyone else looks around in disbelief. Gantz might be cruel, but he also has a sense of humor. That song starts right before every mission and although it's us who are being taunted, I can appreciate the sarcasm.

The prayers stop.

"This is not what I imagined purgatory would look like," the blonde with the enormous mouth says as he stands. Rachel studies me silently. I pretend not to look and ignore the fact that her eyes are burning holes into me. Does she really think I meant to help her? Instantly I regret lifting a finger. I should've just stepped aside, ignored the guy who had touched me, and let him have his way with her. But now she's looking at me and my usual act doesn't work anymore. I'm not invisible. I can't pretend I'm nobody.

"I don't think we're dead." Rachel speaks up and straightens her blue plaid skirt. I raise my eyebrow at her. "I'm Jewish and you're obviously Christian," she adds. "If we were dead we wouldn't be here together. It's illogical." I almost burst into laughter. The tiny brunette stands there with wide nostrils as if she'd had the epiphany of the century and her knitted cardigan just emphasizes what a dork she really is. I don't know this girl, but she's hilarious. Right now I sort of like her, even if it's just because I find her entertaining. I seriously hope she'll talk more, just – please – not to me.

Rachel looks around to find out she didn't manage to impress anyone with her little speech. She huffs and crosses her arms in front of her chest. It tells me two things about her: First, she must have an incredibly big ego, which is especially amazing because second, she's obviously used to being ignored. The kid starts to sob quietly and the elderly woman looks up and replies: "Of course we're not dead."

The two tall guys just stand there silently, exchanging meaningful expressions, staring at Rachel before shooting me a look. They're obviously pissed and probably already planning their revenge. I'm not impressed and I let them know.

I show a half smile to prove I'm not afraid and the silent fight is settled. Gantz has taught me a few things and I'm aware of what a simple look can do to a person now. They turn around and take yet another step back. For now I've got them off my back. And later they're going to die.

Then the screen on the black ball appears. In green letters it reads the familiar words:

"Your lives have ended. What you do with your new lives is entirely up to me. That's the theory anyway."

Welcome to the party. Enjoy your stay as long as it lasts. This is Gantz.

Rachel's would-be-attackers glance at each other. I recognize that expression. They won't give up just like that. They won't let Rachel be and they won't accept their fate. They won't play by the rules and surrender to a black ball. Too bad for them, I guess.

You might think I was just the same when I got here and that something bad happened to make me realize I've got to take all orders without questioning them; that I was badass from day one. The truth is I wasn't like these sick bastards at all when Gantz first brought me here. I was a scared teenager, ready to do whatever she was told. Right from the start I never doubted Gantz or anyone else I was confronted with. I was scared to death and I learned everything I know by watching others try and fail.

There was this one guy, Nishi, who was a magnificent fighter. He could use the suit like no one else and he got up to 95 points before he was killed by a sonic wave that made his eyeballs burst. So close and yet so far.

Nishi was a mean one. He was only fifteen and just like me he was a loner. His dark eyes bore right through you and his smile was cold and dishonest. He was the perfect warrior. Well, almost.

Born into the video game generation, Nishi was obsessed with this opportunity to press the restart button to life and start over. Books and schedules and even his parents he couldn't beat, but the evil Gantz would send us into? Not a problem. In comparison to the bullying everyone suffers outside, a scratch from a sword doesn't really hurt at all. Out in the real world your reputation is your armor, and once it's broken it can never be repaired. One push in front of other kids, one laugh that was a little too loud and for the rest of your days you're a loser. Nishi had been a loser; I could see it in his eyes. And every enemy that crossed his way would have to pay for every time he'd been pushed into the lockers.

In here, your armor is your armor. There are no metaphors and all fights are real. Nishi had found his niche. He had found a way to shine, to feel superior for once. He enjoyed the game too much. Where life had made him bitter, his death had made him cruel.

Nishi wasn't a spitfire like me. He couldn't be provoked easily. He was calm and calculated and thought out every step carefully beforehand. But in the end even he had a weakness, and that cost him his life.

That weakness, unfortunately for both of us, was me.

At first I thought he was trying to help me. He taught me how to use the suit, and he taught me about how to use different weapons. But after I had learned the essentials, he would only let me kill minor enemies and claim the boss for himself. He thought he could use me as a spring-board and climb over me on his way to point one hundred. So he used me.

He used me and he played with me. In our very first battle together, my leg got cut off and I lay there for the rest of the mission, thinking I was going to die, thinking I would never walk again. I rolled around on the floor, crying in pain, watching my own blood as it pulsed out of the stump that used to be my calf.

When we were transported back into the room with Gantz, Nishi just laughed at my wide eyes as I was frantically examining my perfectly healthy leg. He kept me wondering for quite a while and only when amusement turned into boredom did he speak up: "As long as your heart is beating you'll be transported back. Once you get here you'll be fine."

It was shit like this which made me start to plot against him. Every time I realized he was playing with me, my anger grew stronger. Every time I had to learn a lesson myself that he should have taught me, I made a little note in my head.

I kept this to myself, though, and after his first obligatory attempts to seem annoyed by my presence, he actually started to form some sort of weird attachment to me, which was really obnoxious. I think in some sick way, he even considered me his friend.

I'll never forget the look on his face when he realized he was wrong.

The fiend opened its mouth to attack by unleashing the deadliest of screams, and Nishi, who had run into a trap, shot me a glance pleading for help.

I lowered my weapon and watched him die. It was quite satisfying, actually. Who did he think he was anyway? No one fucks with Santana Lopez. Not here. Not in the world of Gantz. In hindsight I have to admit: Nishi had been an outstanding teacher.

Too bad for you, Nishi. You almost made it home.

Instead you cried for your mommy. You cried that you were only fifteen. You cried that you didn't want to die. Then why did you?

A quick glance around reminds me that none of these losers will ever be able to survive their first mission. Another reason why I shouldn't have stood up against the bastards in the leather jackets: Rachel will die anyway. I've just postponed it for a short while. The shortest of whiles actually, because Gantz's display has already changed.

"Please kill this guy." it says.

"Please", I mumble. Very funny.

I sneak a peek at the screen to examine my target. It's a green-skinned boy with grass-like hair standing up from the top of his head. The description says: "Onions are enough for me." Oh Gantz, you never fail to bewilder me.

When I first came here I kept wondering what these creatures were and where they came from. "Aliens" sounds so science fiction and I was never a big fan of the genre, but in the end I decided to quit asking and just accept the term. All I care about is that they're uncollected points. What does it matter what they are?

The screen fades to black and the sphere opens on two sides, revealing an arsenal of mostly light weapons. There are shotguns, knives, grenades, tasers and katanas, but also a missile launcher, a flamethrower and even a chainsaw… pretty much everything a warrior's heart desires. But I leave them because my weapon of choice is already firmly strapped to my hip, ready to be ripped from its holster and fired.

There are also a bunch of suitcases with our names on them, but of course the other people in the room with me ignore them because they've noticed the man sitting inside the black sphere.

Nishi told me Gantz, the black sphere, runs on batteries. What he meant was that Gantz runs on this man's life. The mohawked man inside the sphere is naked and attached to a bunch of hoses and cables and he breathes into a cone. Sure, it looks kind of scary, but as long as he keeps sitting in there I don't really have a reason to care. My mission is to earn a hundred points and get the hell out of here.

I watch with growing amusement when the inevitable discussion starts up about who he is and where he came from and why they have to go kill a boy that looks as if he isn't even human.

Well, this much is clear: he isn't. And 'they' won't kill anything. I'll get the points. Oh and that guy in the sphere? He doesn't matter. Not that anyone bothers to ask me.

The blonde guy opens his gigantic mouth to speak as he holds up one of the suits. "Are we supposed to wear this?" What a stupid question. Rachel looks over to me and I roll my eyes and look away quickly. She says: "I'm not getting changed in front of everyone." The gang members smirk at her, but just for a second before turning their heads to me again. This is seriously starting to piss me off.

Go ahead. I won't stop you!

Just as I thought, the two guys don't even try putting on their armor and I consider asking Gantz to kill them right now, just to save some time.