Someone I'm Not

3. Twist of Fate

Phoenix gasps for air, still finding himself lying on the ground. He groans as he closes his eyes intently, trying to get up. As he takes a small movement, he could feel the heaviness in his head and exhaustion from his body.

"What happened?" He asks himself, still seeing things in a blur.

"Hey. You okay?" He cringes when someone talks behind him. His eyes widen when he recalls the face he sees right now. Quickly, he shouts at him as he sits back on the floor, crawling away as he points last him. "Y-you!" He startles.

"I thought you wouldn't be waking up?" The man asks. The man now stands up as he dusts off his clothes, and all he could do is stared at him and blink his eyes for a couple of more seconds to process everything.

"But... B-but, I saw you! I saw you —"

"Here, let me help you get up—"

"No! No, stay the f*ck away from me!" Phoenix shouts after the man attempts to approach him. Phoenix's eyes roam around the man's body, looking for the evidence he is trying to prove. When he did, he points it out.

"That!"

"What?"

"That! Look at that, and you're bleeding! I saw you, man! I, I, I... You—"

"Oh, this?" The man asks as he realizes what he meant. He touches it first, not showing signs of even getting surprised.

"Yeah, that! I saw you fall on the ground! Someone shot you! He, he pulls the trigger unnoticed, and you—" stutters as he surprisingly remembers everything. He should be traumatized but, no. He feels like he's been drinking too much coffee and eating too many sweets already, the old habit he has. He thought that he is currently experiencing an adrenaline rush.

"Die?" He asks that makes him stop stumbling over his words. But instead of getting more surprised, Phoenix is more astonished at his reaction.

"Are you... Are you smiling?" He asks, not believing what he is giving him as a response.

"Yes. Why?" He asks as he slowly lifts his shirt, revealing his bare chest. There, on his left chest, leaves a hole and a bullet, as the dropping of blood has stooped. The blood is already dry, but the shot is still there.

"YOU DIED! AREN'T YOU SURPRISED!?" He is getting more and more irritated when he couldn't convince the man to panic. But then, something came into his mind.

"You're an immortal." He mumbles as he tries his best to stand up but failed. The man takes action as he's about to stretch his hand to assist him when he pushes his hand away.

"Stay away from me! You're not normal! You're... Oh my gosh! Am I dreaming of fantasy right now!? Gosh, how I f*cking hate this genre!" Phoenix sits back down with so much irritation. But then, the man never gives up. He kneels in front of him.

"Hey Phoenix, are you sure that you recall about everything?"

"How did you know my name! How did y— you're an actual immortal! Tell me, are you a God, a fairy, an angel!? Who the f*ck are you!"

"Phoenix, I need you to calm down—"

"Don't call me by my name, mister stranger! I don't know you!"

"Listen to me right now, kid. I know you're about to go crazy right now, but I think it would make you crazier when I tell you something... But you just have to believe me and process it first before reacting, okay?"

"You're dead! How am I supposed to believe a dead man?"

"Because I am here to help you understand things. So I'm going to ask you again, alright?" He pauses as he fixes his hair. "Do you still remember everything that has happened earlier?"

"The part when I just came in to and took a pee but then you and a guy in a hoodie tries to steal your money, and you refuse, and then I came to the rescue, give him my money, but you ended up dying? Yeah, I pretty much remember everything."

"And how about after that? Do you remember anything after?" Thant question made him wonder.

'Do I remember something after that?'

Asking himself made him realize what happened. His eyes widen as he locks his gaze to him. "Did I —"

"Yes, yes you did—"

"No!"

"Yes, you—"

Phoenix pushes himself up, surprised that he even manages to stand up now on his feet. But then, his body is betraying him. The tiredness is still inside him, and the ache from his head doesn't leave his head for just a split second. The man in front of him notices how pale he is.

"Are you okay!?" Without notice, he grabs him by his arm, but Phoenix instantly pulls his arm away from his grip, feeling how cold his touch is.

"You're as cold as ice!"

"It's because I'm dead."

"You're... You're an immortal!!!"

"I told you, kid. Try to understand the situation first—"

"No, no, no! I am not... Oh my gosh!"

"Phoenix—"

"Stay away from me!" Phoenix starts to run away from the man. All he wanted to do is to get away from that place and meet Soroya.

"Phoenix, wait!" He indeed heard him, but he decided not to look back and continue running away from him.

'She must have been waiting too long for me! I've got to get to her and explain myself.' He mumbles to himself as he quickly runs off, trying to remove the memory of what happened earlier off into his mind.

"No, he is dead. It ist has been my concern and worry that's making me see him alive. No, I can't be crazy, and I can't be d—"

He halts in unison to his words when he can get out of the dark alley. His eyes are more expansive this time, for he cannot believe what he is seeing.

His eyes traveled around the place. The once colorful and lively amusement park turned into something scary and dull. The giant Ferris wheel that can be seen to where he is standing should be turning slowly, but now, it's like a hell of a ride where everyone seems to enjoy.

A kid and her mother walk in front of him, both of them having that smile on their face.

"Did you enjoy the ride?" Her mom asks.

"Yes! Especially that Ferris wheel! I thought it's too fast but, turns out to be a bit slow. But mom, let's get back here again tomorrow!"

What made it more surprising is that the person walking past him wore old, torn clothes that show just the right amount of their skin. But instead of leather, some of them already have rotten flesh. He almost threw up after seeing the kid's gums revealing like his skin is about to be tear-off.

The amusement park has a total makeover, even the persons enjoying around.

"What the hell happened here?" He asks himself, not noticing the man beside him.

"We're already in the Town of the Lost, where everyone decides not to attain justice and live here. Peacefully but lost." Phoenix quickly flinches, not expecting him to still show up.

"Oh my! Are you planning on giving me a heart attack!?"

"No, but I'm trying to help you." He gives him a smile, which he didn't return. "By the way, I'm Hale. I just want to thank you for helping the body I possessed earlier."

"What does that suppose to mean?" He asks, but the man who claims him to be Hale just smiles at him and waits for him to only realize everything on his own.

"So you're an immortal?" He asks again, and this time, Hale nodded. They then face each other, maintaining a two-step distance. The aged man smirks in front of him as there's a small sudden light into his body. Phoenix takes a step backward as his eyes didn't leave where he is staring.

Suddenly, Hale's ragged clothes turned to be a neat suit; his beard is already gone, he got taller, whiter, thinner, and younger.

Now, the older man is gone.

A handsome, tall, and confident man in a tux, paired with shiny black pair of shoes to match his outfit, and a black Fedora hat. His eyes couldn't take it all, but luckily, he didn't faint.

"I'm sorry for causing too much trouble, but let me properly introduce myself." Eduardus pauses. "Hello, Mister Phoenix Dale Oasis, I am Eduardus, and I am the Mystery Defender to bring forth peace to the soul who needed justice, and I am your Guardian."

Phoenix is frozen, and he doesn't know how to react.

"Sorry, you must be confused by now. Hale is the man I used as identification in the living world."

'Living world?'

"So, ready to meet my Queen?"

"Qu-queen?" He managed to ask.

"Yup. The Goddess of Justice, Genrena."

"What... Am I dreaming!?"

"No. No, you're not. You're just dead and see things unclear yet. Come, she'll explain it to you."

"What will she explain?"

"Of course, about everything! Let's go!"

He throws something into the air that creates a bit of silence. Around them starts to move slowly as the portal opens. The color inside looks like a galaxy, making him wonder if where they're going.

"Are we going to hell?" He asks out of nowhere, making him laugh.

"No, you dumb! We're going to the Gerechtigheid Kingdom."

And with that, he push him inside first, making him scream in fear.

"Tss. Humans."