"WAKE UP!"

Zac bolted upright at the rather rough voice, irritation apparent on his face from being woken up. He had never been a morning person.

It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the blinding light, but eventually his surroundings came into view. He found himself sitting on a chair, a fancy one at that. Only one problem, the chair seemed five times the size of a regular one.

Was this made for a giant?

The chair could easily hold a few people sitting side to side.

"Finally, you're awake. "

Zac's eyes shot upwards, leaving the absurdly large chair for the source of the mysterious voice. In front of him was a desk, and the same as the chair, it was too large. So large, in fact, he couldn't see over it.

Standing up, and using the fancy chair as a boost, he peered over the edge, only to freeze at the sight of two red orbs staring at him.

"There he is! You know, you sleep like the dead. Hahaha."

"I see," Zac said aloud, rubbing his chin.

Turning around, he laid back down on the massive chair, closing his eyes.

"What are you doing?"

Zac ignored the mysterious figure's words, all the while stifling a yawn. He had to change positions a few times to get comfortable, but he eventually found a cozy spot in the corner of the chair. He preferred a blanket when he was sleeping, but at least the chair was comfy.

This is obviously a nightmare. I'm going to close my eyes, and when I open them, I'll be in my nice, cozy bed.

"Insolence! I'm talking to you, mortal!"

Zac felt a pressure close around his leg. Before he could react, he was hoisted high into the air, eliciting a rather girlish yelp from the surprise of being extricated from his rather comfortable sleeping position.

Even while dangling in the air upside down, he continued to keep his eyes closed. Just a nightmare. No crazy monsters here. No, siree. Gonna wake up any second now.

"Open your eyes, mortal, lest I rip them from your skull."

Zac gingerly opened one eye, only to instantly regret it.

He was able to get a better look at the mysterious figure, not that it helped much. A dark, shadowy mass in the form of a human, one with the size to fit the large furniture, and with two large red orbs for eyes. It's clawed hand held firmly onto his leg, keeping him suspended just before the figure's eyes.

"Just a dream. You have these all the time, Zac," he spoke aloud to soothe himself. "No giant shadowy monsters here."

"Hmphf!"

Zac felt the pressure around his leg relent, sending him careening towards the earth. Well, the overly large desk. The impact momentarily dazed him, washing away any sleepiness he still felt.

"This is no dream, mortal."

Zac's eyes were now wide open, taking in his environment once more. The desk of the creature was covered in folders, papers, even a writing quill and ink. All in all, a desk you'd find in maybe the early 1900s, only ten times the size. Besides the odd choice in furniture, the rest of his environment was just an endless expanse of white, with no end in sight.

Looking down, he found himself on a stack of papers, each the size of a king-sized bed. Each paper was covered in writing he couldn't make heads or tails of.

"Let me make this simple for you. You died!"

What? No. I was sleeping. I just… I was studying for my exam. No, no, no.

"Me? No? I could never! Blah, blah, blah."

Zac felt the papers he was standing on pull out from under him, sending him tumbling to the ground once again.

"Let's see shall we. Zac Thompson, age 23. Died of… Well, that's embarrassing."

" Dead? What? How? Tell me!" Zac shouted, confusion evident on his face.

"Some things are better left unsaid, mortal. But fret not, you've been given a second chance! I plucked you from your journey to the afterlife and brought you here."

Zac put his head in his hands, thoughts swirling through his head like a maelstrom. Dead? No, this is a joke. An elaborate joke.

"Take your time. You mortals are so fragile, after all," the creature spoke, while organizing the rest of his papers.

"Okay. Well, if you brought me here, how about you just pluck me right back?" Zac shouted to the giant figure. "You can do that, right?"

"Hahaha. Silly, mortal. No, I have other plans for you, but if you play your part well, then returning to your mundane life should be doable."

The large figure bent sideways, seemingly opening a drawer, and pulled out a stack of cards, each as tall as Zac himself.

"Pick a card, any card," the creature spoke, showing the cards to Zac.

There were 22 cards, each of them seemingly intricately designed, but he could only the ornately designed back of each card. He still had no idea what was on the other side, nor the reasoning behind picking a card in the first place.

Thoughts started to flash through his mind.

What happens if I pick wrong? Did I really die? What about my-

"Pick! Now!"

Zac jumped at the voice. The huge figure could swat him like a mosquito, not leaving him with very many options. He raised his shaking hand, pointing to one of the cards closer to the left side.

"Not that one!"

What?

He furrowed his brows, before picking one on the right side.

"Mm-mm. Choose again!"

"Are you sure you don't want to just choose for me?" Zac snapped, momentarily forgetting their size difference.

"If you insist!"

Wait, no!

The large creature's orbs perused the cards, finally seeming to stop on one near to the center.

"Yes! Yes, I think this will do just fine."

The shadowy figure separated the card from the rest, revealing the front side for the still-confused Zac to see. It reminded him of a Tarot card, with large letters covering the bottom of the card.

"Death?" he questioned, reading the words aloud.

A snow white skeleton was above it, dressed in a ruby red robe and sitting on a throne made of the dead. Bones, to be specific. Its bony hand firmly gripped a large black scythe, rather simple in design compared to the throne.

As he continued to study the card, his eyes widened in curiosity, before furrowing again as he tried to make sense of what he was seeing.

Is it moving?

The skeleton steadily turned its hollow sockets in Zac's direction, staring him down with no eyes. Its free hand reaching out towards him. Zac stepped back in horror as the hands started piercing through the card, inching their way towards him.

But before it could, the shadowy figure retracted the card, placing it with the rest.

[User has been granted Initiate of Death class.]

What the…

A transparent floating bar was blocking his vision, much like one you'd find in a video game.

Initiate of Death?

"What was that?" Zac asked, still in shock at the moving image. "What the hell is going on?"

"I am a merciful god. You don't think I would send you out without a little help, do you? With this, you should be able to hold your own. Well, maybe… Hopefully."

Zac froze at the words of the figure. Did he just say god?

"Think of this as a game, and you the player. If you survive, well, I'll send you back from whence you came, or to a different world, or whatever else your tiny brain desires. There is so much more than your tiny little world in the universe, after all."

"And if I don't," Zac gulped before finishing his question, "... win?"

"Well, I hear the underworld is very nice this time of year. Although I hear they don't take too kindly to souls that seek to escape their punishment."

"What? But you brought me here!" Zac voiced angrily. "I didn't, I didn't…"

Below the two glowing orbs, a wicked grin spread on the mass of darkness, splitting the shadowy figure's face from ear to ear. Zac tried his best, but couldn't stop the shivers that ran down his spine.

"Good luck, mortal!"

"Wait!" he shouted with an outstretched hand.

He tried to intervene, to ask more questions, but with a snap of the mysterious figure's fingers, the world warped and shifted. The color was drained from the world, as stars began to twinkle in the sky. He could even feel a cool breeze on his skin.

-Beep, Beeeeep!-

He only had seconds to react. Seeing the blinding headlights and high pitched hoot of the car, he dived to the side, scraping his arms as he tumbled along the tar road.

"Get out of the road, moron!" the irate driver shouted while passing by, not even stopping to see if he was all right.

After catching his breath, and trying his best to gather himself, Zac looked to the sky.

"Are you trying to kill me?!" he seethed while climbing to his feet.

Looking down, he could see his bare feet, only now taking into account that he was still in his pajamas, which consisted of a plain black shirt and a pair of dark gray sweatpants.

Did I die in my sleep?

Lacking shoes, he could feel the uncomfortable sensation of the road beneath his feet.

It was night, with only a few cars traveling the road Zac found himself on. Looking around, he spotted a sign, which was momentarily brightened by the beams of another car passing by.

Brockton Bay. 10 Miles.

"Brockton Bay? Brockton Bay?" he muttered to himself.

The name tickled his brain. He had heard that name before, but was struggling to place it. Either way, he was far from home.

"Also, 10 Miles?!" Zac shouted to the sky. "You couldn't have put me in the city?"

He tried to calm his emotions. Someone shouting to the sky in their pajamas on the side of a highway late at night wasn't going to convince a passerby to perhaps give him a lift. Even so, he was struggling to make sense of his situation. He had, apparently, if you took a self proclaimed god's word for it, died, and now he was God knows where.

-Beep, beeeeep!-

Seeing as the city was 10 miles, he decided to start walking. He doubted anyone would offer him a lift, especially this late at night.

I mean, would I if I was them?

Even so, he gave a thumbs up to anyone driving by. If they asked, he was going to say he had sleepwalked all the way here, because the truth would probably land him in a mental asylum.

Brockton Bay? Brockton Bay? Where have I heard-

-Beeeeeep!-

"Just drive around me! There's a whole fucking highway for you to use!" Zac snapped, giving the middle finger to the driver that was a little overzealous with his car horn.