A Strange Afterlife

[ginger_firebird]

 It had to be impossible. He could feel his skin. A pulse beat under his neck. He stood in front of a store window and regarded his reflection in the glass. Same black leather outfit. Same brown trench-coat. The fabric weight down on him and he rubbed his arms as he tried to figure out what was going on. A wandering spirit had doors to enter and exit when it came to the world of the living, but he'd never achieved something like this. It was alien and wrong and he had no idea where anyone was.

Mantis sighed, marveling quietly at the way his chest rose and fell with his breathing. It didn't matter. He'd keep moving and hope for the best. If this was some punishment for a misstep, he knew exactly who to take it up with.

"Sorrow!" Even his voice carried an echo. Mantis pointed himself into a new direction and began to walk. "What did I do this time, old man?"

Comments

[harness_the_harness]

His jaw sets at the description. Certainly not this man's fault for obliging the request and reading all that was plain to see. Still chilling to hear his unusual state described by someone he just met.

"Correct on all counts, Mr. Mantis. Well done." He nods his head appreciatively, but still looks a bit shaken. "Pardon my earlier skepticism. It comes with the scientific territory."

[ginger_firebird]

Mantis shakes his head, clearing away the clutter and echo of the thoughts he had just been in. What a terribly interesting man he's met. A proper scientist. Possibly even a mad one, but not in a melodramatic and evil kind of way.

"It's been a while since I found a mind laid so readily bare. You're like an open book." Mantis rubs the back of his neck and slightly up to the back of his skull. "Shows how long it's been since I did that, too. Parlor trick psychics make it easier for the genuine ones like myself. We get paid better and more often."