Prologue - Down and out, but not done yet.
Hey there, my name's Mike Brooker. I'm a student at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, studying in the Media & IT program. I got accepted about a year ago, when I used to work at this Gas Bar in my hometown. I'm 19 years old and have a huge interest in technology, especially video games. I also watch My Little Pony, and care very little about what other people thing about me.
But enough about me, it's time to tell my story.
It began on a cold spring morning. It was about 7:50 AM, time for me to hop on the bus and get to class. The walk to the bus stop takes about five minutes, and the ride to campus another fifteen, leaving me with a good twenty minutes of social time to get ready for class and catch up with some friends.
It was as I was crossing the street to the bus stop that it happened.
Cars came screeching around the corner of the block and people came running out of the alleyways, holding what looked like some pretty dangerous guns. The first instinct I had was to duck, and to get the hell out of there. From what I could tell, I just got caught in the middle of a gang war, which was pretty rare in a city like Edmonton. Usually crime around the city consisted mainly of minor things like theft or vandalism, or more major things like drugs and murder, but not gangs. It wasn't long before members of either side opened fire, spreading panic throughout the streets. People were running for their lives in every direction. Chaos ruled the street for minutes that stretched as long as hours. Finally, I hear police sirens in the distance, and the gunfire stops. I take my chance, get up, and start running. One of the gangsters probably thought I was an enemy, because he started shooting again. Searing hot pain shot through my shoulder, my back, my knee, and my neck before it all went black and silent.
I didn't know what was going on, where I was, or why I was there. Was I dead? Was this the so-called "afterlife"? I wasn't sure. I never really followed with religion. I thought it was just silly to put my faith in anything like that. Suddenly, my vision was flooded with a white light, and I felt myself being pulled upwards, feeling weightless as a feather. Then the white cleared, and I could see again. I was in a large hall, a desk in front of me. A huge man sat at the desk, and I mean huge as in, over twelve feet tall kind of huge. He was busy writing notes and stamping pages. If anything he reminded me (a lot) of King Yemma from Dragon Ball Z. So I was obviously in some kind of purgatory area, waiting to be judged. Great, this is gonna end well. Like I said earlier: I cared little for religion, and now it was gonna come back and bite me in the ass. I was probably going to Hell.
"Next, please." called out the big man.
I stepped forward, my fingers fidgeting, I was so nervous.
"Your name, son?" he asked.
"Mike, Mike Brooker." I stammered.
Big Guy just flipped through his books for a minute, apparently looking for my name, before saying:
"You died prematurely, boy. You were supposed to live through your eighties and die of old age, not get shot in the neck. I usually offer a choice in this case: Either you accept your judgement now, and I send you up or down depending on how you lived your short life, or i give you a second chance and you try life again. Let me warn you, though: After your second life is over, prematurely or not, you will face judgement. Another thing: I can't send you back to the same world you died in, so I'll send you to the one you wanted to live in the most after that."
I nodded. "Okay. I'll go for the second chance."
"Are you sure? After I send you on your way there's no going back. If you kill yourself I'll just send you straight below." he warned.
"Yeah, I'm sure. But I do have a question: Will I retain my memories of my previous life?" I asked.
"I'm not sure. You'll have to find that out yourself. Now, come step over here." he pointed to a spot next to his giant (most likely mahogany) desk. I walk over to the spot he pointed and started to feel heavier as soon as I got to it.
"Don't worry, boy. Your body is simply getting it's mass back. Anyhow, I wish you thew best of luck in your second life. Don't mess up."
And then it was dark again.
