Too Broke For Afterlife

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I really enjoyed strolling through the forest and drowning out my thoughts with the help of the quiet sounds around me. The leaves rustling in the wind, the soil crunching beneath my feet and at some point I heard four tiny feet quickly scattering away from me. 

I was too slow to see the animal but from I heard I'd guess it was either a squirrel or a wild hamster. But I don't know if either of those animals are native in this country. 

I made a mental note to goggle that once I'd have the chance. Whenever that would be, I was still not allowed to use my phone overall and the gas station has no computer. My best chance would be to find an Internet café. But all that struggle just to know whether there is a Peruvian hamster? Doesn't seem balanced to me. 

Sadly, I am not cut out for the wilderness and even though I was really enjoying the calmness and solitude, my bladder eventually started aching. 

This is not how I had imagined my trip into non-existence. And the way I was raised I am absolutely not the type of woman to pee in the woods. 

No shame to anyone who does, it's natural in a sense but I personally need to be stuck up sometimes to remind myself of who I am. Everything that had been happening lately already changed me enough, I need to hold onto something familiar. 

So I will not and never pee in the woods! 

Back at the gas station, I did everything I could to avoid the others. Their voices came from the break room so I hid in the back office I had discovered the day prior and closed the door behind me.

Here I was alone with my thoughts and I spent the afternoon distracting myself from the inevitable confrontation by flicking through old magazines and files.

You won't believe how interesting a 10 year old Spanish horoscope can be when your ex is waiting on the other side of the door.

I used the opportunity to freshen up my language skills, I don't want what happened at the pharmacy to repeat itself.

But a few hours later, sadly, I was discovered.

Clemens opened the door and after a short moment of surprise, he started smiling at me.

"Here you are, we have been looking for you."

"Oh, really? Sorry," I said, acting like I wasn't actually hiding and didn't know that the others had deemed me missing.

"Yes, we are making a little campfire to enjoy the evening."

"A campfire?" I furrowed my brows. "What about 'The world is ending, we have to stop Satan'? Is that not on your agenda anymore?"

"It is. In fact, we are going to start the next phase tomorrow. So we decided to make use of the free time we've got left. Let's go outside." He waved me up from my chair.

'No' is obviously what I wanted to say but I realized that I didn't have a choice.

And that is why I'm now sitting on an old, dirty lawn chair, cutting up sausages to be put on the sticks that Nox has been carving so passionately for the past 30 minutes. 

The smile on her lips and vigor in her hands makes me wonder whether she once was a brave Russian huntress, hiding in a small village somewhere in the Siberian woods and feeding cooked rabbit meat to her sick grandfather until she got mauled by a rabid brown bear and turned into a robotic partisan - ready to fight the greatest evil of all.

Or maybe she is just a cold-blooded psychopath that loves making weapons out of anything she can get her hands on. 

Either theory would explain her encroaching behavior she has been displaying so far. 

Suddenly I'm reminded of what happened in that motel room, after leaving the casino. The hallucination of Jasper had felt so real and I was left feeling completely disturbed and broken. 

The whole thing with Judy had distracted my mind so much from what happened but it's slowly coming back to me. 

Yet Nox is the one who got angry. I'm convinced that this woman has no empathy whatsoever and would end my existence if I was to cross her plans of battling Lucifer.

With that realization, I quickly count the finished sticks leaning against the tree trunk and decide to check again before going to bed. I really don't want to be impaled in my sleep.

"Hey."

I hadn't even noticed Judy approaching and she is now standing next to me, her hands calmly buried in jeans pockets.

I dare to look at her for a split second and my heart pulls together.

Of course she looks absolutely stunning while I'm sitting here like a zombie. 

Why is only my face showing heartbreak? And how can she be so relaxed?

Judy doesn't look like someone who just got kidnapped. Instead, she is acting like this is just a regular family barbecue.

"Hello." I turn back to the sausages.

"Can we talk?"

"No."

Judy waits for a bit and then sighs. "Okay."

She makes her way to the other side of the chair circle and sits down next to Walter who hands her a cup of tea. My eyes drill themselves into the small fire and I watch as the flames lick the air.

Was this my last chance? Has she given up now? But what result could a conversation with her bring anyway? She doesn't love me and I have to learn how to deal with that. Because my feelings surely won't go away that quickly. 

"Let me take that." Parker grabs the plate on my lap and instead hands me a blanket.

I don't feel cold but wrap it around me nonetheless. I practically build a cocoon and dive deep into the fabric. The more I can cover and hide, the better.

Clemens is the last one to arrive at the scene. He is wearing a long black cloak that makes him look like the Grim Reaper who got stuck in the Matrix and for a split second that image lifts my mood. But only for a split second. 

He claps his hands. "Everyone, let's salute our newest party member, Judy. As the mortal fellows have already heard, we will be starting the next phase tomorrow. So to get to know each other better and enjoy our last peaceful night, we have organized this campfire."

Without a finishing sentence, he sits down on the last empty chair and I'm once again reminded that except for this fancy vocabulary, this man is clearly lacking social skills. If his opponent is not a seal, he doesn't know how to act. 

Honestly, I have better speeches at 4 years old. But I was also practically trained by my dad to become a business shark and worthy successor. 

By age 6 I knew everything about shares and business structures and could create a PowerPint presentation on globilisation strategies in less than 30 minutes. 

But that is not important right now, I'm rambling. 

We are now sitting here, awkwardly in silence. Some munching on the food, the others just watching the fire. The only ones who seem to be interested in each other's presence are Judy and Walter and I watch with burning eyes as they are whispering and giggling.

What is this? The beginning of a new love story? The remake of a shitty Dishey movie? 

If that guy gets just one step too close to her, I swear I'll break his lifeless neck.

Parker seems to notice my tension and clears his throat.

"I think you guys still owe us some explanations. How did you meet each other? How did you die? And why are you still on Earth?"

Nox, Clemens and Walter look at each other and it is our tribal eldest (or at least I'd like to think that he is older than me) who takes the floor again.

Clemens turns to Parker. "Those are some valid questions, my friend. And you also gave me a fun idea. Why don't we each take turns to tell a bit about ourselves and disclose our backgrounds? Maybe this way we will share information that could prove to be useful in the future."

Everyone except for Nox and I seems to be loving that suggestion. 

I really couldn't care less. They are dead and crazy. Period.

"Would you like me to start?" Clemens asks with excited eyes. He clearly can't wait to talk about himself. 

Nobody is protesting so he leans back and folds his hands.

As the flames reflect on his pale skin and the hood of the cloak throws shadows under his eyes, I'm fully prepared for a horror story straight out of Hollyweed. 

And with the smile covering his face a chill runs down my spine. 

"Well, my story begins in a small German city near the Baltic coast."