So this is what dying feels like? My heart was out of control and my veins were on fire. The thumping was driving me insane, every inch of me was thumping with my heartbeat and was growing weaker by the second. It was so hard to breathe. My blood was turning cold. I was choking. There was no air coming in and I knew that I was dying. I looked at my partner, barely turning my head and straining my eyes to see, but she wasn’t moving. Was she dead too? Or just unconscious? I didn't see any blood on her but you don’t need to bleed out to die, crushed organs came to mind. I wasn’t going to live long to be able to tell. I look to the left, to see the bastard… The Baby Killer O’Brien. He was out of the car and to the left of the driver's seat. He had a calm smile on his face but there was a gleam of wickedness in his eyes. He said something that I could not hear over the thumping in my ears. I should have cuffed his hand behind his back. It was a rookie mistake and It is my biggest regret. If I died putting him in custody, that would have been one thing and I could rest in peace but to die a let this evil man free was intolerable. His hand was hot as I was rapidly cooling by blood loss. His hands are wet and all I smell is blood, It stifles me, it chokes me and then I am vomiting blood. It doesn’t give me any satisfaction that I coated the other man in blood and vomit.

The seat is wet, I look to see that it is my blood. My left arm is gone, the arm was cut off from the bicep and everything under that was gone. If I thought I would survive, I would be panicking. There was just clarity, as I remembered the purple claws ripped off the front and back door, had caught me and the seat belt. I hit the steering wheel with my chest, and that’s why I can’t breathe, my lungs are full of blood. The claw must have been super sharp, it cut through the door and my arm like nothing. The blood that was like a geyser was now just dripping away. There was so much blood everywhere. When I was distracted the bastard found my keys. He said something else to me, I saw his lips moving but I didn’t understand any of it. He moved in as if to kiss me, I jerked my head away, and he stopped and looked at the keys, shook his head, got up, and then started to run into the forest. I hadn’t even noticed outside the car, that there was a forest that was covered in the same pink crystals that were on the road before. There were just a whole lot more of them now. The world is now gray and slowly turning black. I was told that there would be a white light, but it was not there. There was a profound silence, that thumping was gone. And so was I.

When I woke I found that I was dead. Stone cold with no more blood to bleed. I was looking at my body, I guess it is not mine anymore just something for maggots to eat, a meal for the bugs. There is indeed no such thing as a pretty corpse, i was not a vain man but I wish I looked a little better, chalk white and painted in blood was not a good look for anyone.

I check on my partner, I lean over my own body to take a look, She seems to be unconscious which is better than I thought. Her breathing looked painful but it was breathing. I looked around as I walked around to the car. Taking stock, I didn’t want to try phasing through anything quite yet. I did occasionally jump and float for a bit, just to see if I could. The woman in the back seat seemed to be still unconscious though she seemed to be more banged up than Officer Murray was. There weren't exactly seatbelts in the back seat And her face seemed to have hit the Metal grate in between the front seat and the back seat. She had a mark of it on her left cheek It looked like it was going to bruise. I recalled that her name was Moon. Usually, I would only remember the last name but I seem to have perfect clarity now. My life before seemed like writing on a crumpled piece of paper bits and pieces Were Missing Because they folded over them themselves And the memories were faded. If my life was a book it would be in perfect condition now. I remember it all. Even when I was a baby. Honestly, it is a little disturbing.

I seem to be able to walk around the car or float around the car but I can't seem to leave my body very far behind to chase after O'Brien. I just couldn't get that far. I had never expected myself to become a ghost but that's the only thing I could be. As my body had no more blood left to bleed. Honestly, I didn't know what to expect when I died. I was under the impression of nothingness or maybe a bright light but there was nothing. I'm just waking up near my body. Made the concept of burial worse. Being stuck day in and day out next to a box in the ground. It was no wonder ghosts would go out to Spook someone just for some entertainment. This seems to be a very deadly traffic stop, and I worry for my partner that they're going to go through a very rough time. Officer Kenza Murphy was a good egg but this was a complicated case. This time I noticed the pink glowing crystals the darkness inside the crystal seemed to swirl with a dark light. The whole forest grove was shining, twinkling and glowing. It felt like there should have been a sound that went with the change. It could be too bright to see even with my undead eyes and then I heard a voice. It suddenly changed back to normal well as normal as jutting pink crystal could be, And a forest with trees I'd never seen before.

“Well this isn’t good,” It was not in a language that I knew but somehow I knew what was being said, my hearing had been muffled since I died but these words were clear as a bell. I looked back and forth to see where the voice was coming from. Then I saw it, it wasn’t human, it was a small Iridescent elephant with green mushrooms growing off the top of its head and back. It was looking at him with a concerned look. Its eyes are gold, reflecting of my face staring back at me.

“Pardon me?” At times like this it paid to be polite, I didn’t know what this elephant was but it was not a normal elephant, that I could figure out by himself. I had a feeling that I know what this pachyderm was and on the off chance that I am right, I did not want to piss off the Death with a capital D. Who knew what would happen to me if that was the case?

“This isn’t good, I have no place for your soul to go…” The Elephant Death said. I am sure of it now. Its trunk grabs one of the mushrooms off the top of its head and eats it. It's teeth Gleam silver. “You’re stuck by your body, there is not much I can do… ” The Elephant munched on the mushrooms.

“This is not what I thought death would be like… there is no place for me? was I that bad of a person?” Arnold Clay said in words only heard by the dead and the gods. As the dead as so often said to talk to the living, it is rarely true and when it is they don’t publicize it. No one truly wants to know the thoughts of the dead. It may inconvenience some theories that they have. As a cop, once or twice he thought it would be nice if the victim could tell them who had done it. But if there were any certainty mediums would be the first people to start dying. And If a medium was real, then there would be fake ones alongside and that would make the whole ‘He said’ ‘she said’ a whole lot worse.

I stopped thinking for a bit. Was I just thinking in the third person? Why was I thinking in the third person? I just didn’t do that, was it just a side effect of being dead? Is this what all good people went through? He would never know because he… he was doing it again.

“It’s not that you were a bad person,” The Elephant paused and then added “that I know of, It’s that, you just came out of a huge dimensional hole and are on the wrong side of the wall. I don’t know you, Your Death is on that side of the wall” the Elephant points Its truck to the thickest batch of crystals “They would know what to do with you, me on the other foot” the elephant points Its trunk on its self “Have a very organized system and you just don’t fit.” the Elephant Death Shrug its shoulder.

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“So I’m to be trapped next to a corpse” as a ghostly finger points to his recently deceased body with a purely emotional shake. At least I had both arms in death “I hate to do this but is there anyone higher up that I could talk to?” Sometimes it was time to call the manager, but I was not sure what the manager of Death would be. No one liked a manager being called having time to get his supervisor involved when in his younger days or with somebody who is particularly entitled. In the later years, he was called the manager, the supervisor, As the one who knows all the rules inside-out His job is to deal with them. I could not imagine what the Minefield must be to Be a manager of Death itself.

The Elephant Death just humph with a trumpet on their trunk. “Rude, but since I have no idea what to do with you.” Then the Elephant Death trumpeted louder than a steam engine. Holding his ears did nothing to help the sound, as both his arms and ears were insubstantial. It was a sound that will always be in his memories.

There was silence then the world rippled and a monster of a unicorn stepped into reality. Imagine a Unicorn then now imagine its weightlifting cousin. The unicorn was huge, its body unlike a horse-like body instead try imagining a moose. It had sky blue fur and its mane and tail an orange-pink. Its horn was as long as a sword and it looked just as sharp.

I was hooked by the majestic look of the unicorn. It was the scariest thing I had ever seen, but the loveliest as well. It had no shadow, for it was light itself.

“… ” The sound it made hurt and I could not understand it, It was like the most perfect bell, blasting from loudspeakers for a concert when you're 3 inches from it. I could hear nothing but the bell-like sound And it was so close that I couldn't understand it. The unicorn looked embarrassed and spoke in a whisper “I have come, what do you need Death?” it looked curious at me like it wanted to ask about me but was too polite to do so. the voice was beautiful, Like bells Tinkling and chiming and dinging It was Musical It was undescribable And if he had been alive He thinks it would have driven him insane. Apparently, there is some sort of clarity after death. The veil lifted and I suddenly realized my whole life was on a stage and now the lights were down and I could see the whole room looking at me. At the end, I wonder if they're cheering or booing. Then This Unicorn would be the person sitting in the back taking notes.

The Elephant Death did not have that same problem that the unicorn did. It didn't care to be polite “That!” it glared with its gold eyes and pointed its truck at me. “is not one of mine and you need to deal with it.” I was not happy with having the Elephant Death talk about me like I was the dog stool on the carpet but I was too fearful of what The Unicorn might do. If Death was an elephant what stops God from being a Unicorn?

“You’re right, he does not belong here” The Unicorn looks around “The world is bleeding, did you do this?” a three-hoofed foot pointed at the crystals. the crystals before but this time I really looked at them, the slow-moving lightning strikes in the crystals, the crystals were everywhere trapping birds and bugs alike. The crystals look like ice shards, Despite the happy color, it was cold and terrirfing. They look sharp like Shattered Glass or Dangerous icicles.

“It was not I, but my prisoner O’Brien who started this mess, he ran into the woods as I was dying. I had caught him for a heinous crime But He did something I didn’t understand and then we were in a hall of beautiful stone with a creature that ripped the doors off and dealt me the fatal blow” Officer Clay said, flowery was the way he was going to play it. He had always loved old Plays and he died anyway who cares about cringe?

“Ah so it was Demos was the one to slay you, they must be heartbroken not to have stopped this tragedy,” The Unicorn said with little emotion. There seemed to thoughts running through its eyes but it was still, unnaturely still. It wasn’t breathing and it wasn’t hold its breath. it … just didn’t need to breath. Then the words caught up to Me.

“My death is a tragedy?” I was touched until the next words were said. I knew that my life was Probably going to end in a violent fashion but I would have never put money on this outcome.

“You being here is a tragedy!” it was a harsh whisper “Look around you! These crystals are the blood clots of the universe, everything that they touched is dead!” Air blew out of its great nostrils “I can get you back where you belong but I need all of you in one place!” the was anger in its beautiful face.

“Then what will happen to me?” I said

“You will be free and go into the afterlife,” said the unicorn

“So my reward is death?” As Officer Clay said he wondered if an officer was an important distinction at this point. It was till death that he worked that job, wasn’t his part over?

“You are a ghost from another world, you can only attach to things that are from that world, your ‘reward’ is a fair judgment from your Universes Death” it flapped its mane “It’s only on a loophole you do not face oblivion” The Unicorn was annoyed.

If the dead could gulp I would have. “I see, pardon my impertinence.” I hurried to say.

“A ghost with a core code is a dangerous thing, my lord,” The Elephant Death said

“He was through Demos’ halls, it is the only reason that they did not all die by hitting the dimensional wall.” The unicorn said and I wished I understood what they meant.

“Who knows what damage they did to the hall.” the unicorn stomped its foot and there was a small tremor in the world. “Otherwise the core code would not be intact. The dimensional wall is the last step of death.” the last part was said to me.

”That madman almost killed us all,” I said to myself.

“That would have been better for all involved. If killing you and them now would solve anything I would do it, what I need is for you to go back to your universe. You all as ghosts could do a lot of damage to the land.” The stare was unnerving I noticed that the unicorn's eyes were not black but a whole nebula of stars.

“What do I do? I have nothing, I am but a ghost” Clay was at a loss.

“Then you are lucky that you have no work to do. May the living deal with the living. I have to talk to the remainder of your party to get you out of my world as fast as possible.” with that, The Unicorn stepped out of Death's domain and into Life’s.

My focus was back on the car, where the muffled sounds of life were coming from the car, the Ow’s and gasp of breath. They were alive, even though The Unicorn made it sound like a bad thing.