"I've learned a thing or two,
Always stare ahead.
Never look at who's beside you,
Because all you'd see are the dead."
I.
"So, Jean right?" The man said, as he played with a toothpick between his lips. Looking at him, there is a strange scar that goes over his left eye. This made him look like a goon who'd beat you lifeless just for staring.
"Umm it's actually pronounced as John sir." Was my nervous reply; beads of sweat forming on my forehead.
'Huuuh?" The man said with a threatening glare.
"I'm sorry sir call me whatever you like." I replied, whimpering.
Right now I am in the middle of job hunting. That's right, the battlefield known by all functioning adults. Yes, that bloody and horrendous warzone of job hunting. Still unemployed at my age, I've memorized my lines quite well already. I start with my name and correct the employee over and over again because, nobody has ever gotten my name right on the first try.
This is how I make my introductions:
"Good day, Ma'am/Sir. My name is Jean(John) Martin. A thirty-year-old male. Single and still unemployed. My name may sound foreign but believe me, I am a full born Japanese."
My name creates a lot of difficulty for me as the employer would always expect a foreigner to show up. That's also something I've memorized, the hopeful look on their faces which immediately turns into a look of constipation from just the sight of me.
Currently I'm talking to a man like this because I've run out of employment options. The more I look at him, the more I get frightened of the thought that he might just be an organ seller from the black market. Scary.
"Have you ever tried selling takoyaki before?"
"No sir, but I know how to make them."
"Look here Jean"
"John sir."
"Huuuuuuh?!"
"Yes sir, I am Jean."
"Right so, Jean. I'm not asking you to cook, I'm asking if you know how to serve takoyaki. Now, if you have no experience then, I'm sorry man but my takoyaki stand doesn't need your skill set."
I clenched my fists which were rested on my lap and showed no sign of sadness. If anything, I refuse to make myself look more pitiful than I already am. Damn, and here I thought I'd be good enough as a waiter for a takoyaki stand. Guess I'm still trash.
The man in front of me kept spouting other words. At this point, I knew what to do next. Nod and smile. That's all I could do. Then get another drink at the convenience store using my parents' money. Go job hunting again, and repeat the cycle.
"Hey kid!" My attention went back to the man in front of me. I didn't notice that he already stopped talking. That was very rude of me, I should go and apologize.
"Sir–"
"Here" Before I could finish speaking, a plate-full of takoyaki came close to my face. My focus went back completely to the man in front of me. He was offering me a couple of takoyaki from his stand.
"I don't want to order any sir." I hope he doesn't get offended.
"Don't worry man it's on the house! I can't leave an honest young adult roaming on an empty stomach, now can I?" Was his response as he grinned.
"T-Thank you."
I quickly gobbled the takoyaki. I can't remember the last time I had any warm breakfast and it felt good. Tears started forming under my eyes and I wanted to thank this man who showed me such goodness. But before that, I needed to finish eating.
He gave me a glass of water and went back to making more takoyaki. It tastes delicious and I wont mind going back here again. But it's a bit spicy though…
Actually it's even getting hotter…
What the…
The warmth of the takoyaki went down my throat…and it stayed there. Getting stronger and stronger by each passing second.
"Ahh" I wheezed out a sound which was supposed to be a scream. I struggled to grab the cup of water but it slipped from my hand, breaking on the hard concrete beneath me. I don't understand what is happening. My insides are burning but my body feels cold.
Slowly, the world seemed to disappear from me. The last thing my dwindling sight saw, was the owner smiling like a devil.
…
…
…
II.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the show!" Huh? What's happening here?
All my senses slowly came back to me. Everything is still a blur but, after a few seconds, things appeared to be normal again.
"I'm your host for this day, the god of deception Loki!" God of what? Wait, where am I?
"Now, up on this stage are all the contestants we have randomly picked from earth." So I'm not in the world anymore? Wait…am I dead? I can hear roars of laughter, and judging by the way Loki talked, that must be the audience.
"Spotlight, beam those mortals!"
I could finally see everything clearly. I am standing at what seems to be a ginormous stage. Around me are other people whom I do not recognize. But, roughly estimated, I guess there are at least 500 here seeing how big this stage is.
The man calling himself Loki still talked in front, and at this point the people around me have started making noise. Some even shouted but there are also some who just stood still. I also saw a person quietly observing the surroundings.
"Mortals!" The man who called himself Loki made a loud stomp on the floor. It might be from the shock because of how loud the stomp was, but everybody went silent. "Kindly look above the left side of your chest." He continued.
I haven't noticed earlier but there are numbers on round pins, tucked to our clothes. A lot of things are still amiss but the main question I want to ask is…
"HEY! WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS?!" A man came forward, mouthing the words I wanted to say. But in a cruder manner. Judging by his appearance, he looks like a member of a biker gang. He wore a black leather coat with an embroidery of a snake on its back. His hair is long but clean, as it is neatly swayed backwards.
He carried a gun in his right hand which he quickly pointed at the man who called himself Loki. Shrieks and screams could be heard from the stage, but it was strange because the audience did nothing but laugh even more.
"Ohhh scaaaryy~" was Loki's playful response.
"Watch out Loki, he might kill you. HAHAHAHA" A voiced said from the audience.
"Shut the f**k up!" The man said, pointing his gun to the audience.
"All of you shut up! I don't know what kind of game you think you're playing, but you better release me befo-" It took me seconds before I could register what happened next.
The man holding a gun didn't stop speaking because he was interrupted…no. He stopped speaking because…his vocal cords got taken out. Loki held them in his hand, all bloody and unsightly.
Blood gushed out of the man's neck and for a while he kept on firing his gun. The audience roared in laughter even more, but the people with me screamed in terror. This is wrong. All of this is just f**king wrong!
Some people were also hit, and one even died. The bullet must've hit his head or his heart. This all happened so fast and all the muscles in my body wanted me to make a run for it, but for some reason I cannot move. Loki looked at all of us, as if our terror is amusing to him and then…the man finally died. Blood flowing on the stage.
Loki's face went back to normal. He used his hand to brush where the man grabbed him and continued on as if nothing happened. The audience didn't stop laughing. At this point, all the hair in my skin suddenly stood and I quickly understood one thing.
If I want to stay alive, I need to listen and act according to Loki's will.
III.
Loki continued with his hosting, strutting in front of the stage. He stepped on the corpse intentionally and kicked it where the hole was made. "Now where was I?" He fell silent for a second, thinking of what it is he needed to say.
"Oh! That's right! Above your chest is a number. Now you simpletons know what numbers are used for right? It's to show order. Two goes after one, three goes after two. Etcetera etcetera…blah blah blah."
A stage
A host.
Spotlights.
Audiences.
Numbers…and a town's worth of people.
I don't like where this is going.
"Now I need you lot to focus your attention on me." A lot of us are already crying, and some are even murmuring words, probably prayers to the gods.
"I said…" Loki stomped his foot again, but this time it wasn't the floor which he hit. It was the corpse. The man he killed turned into an unrecognizable mush as all its flesh splattered around the stage. I'm sure that people would have screamed again but Loki stopped that. With a mic on his hand he whispered the thing he wanted to say.
"Wanna die?" It should have been inaudible, but his words sent shivers down my spine. A sensation I knew everybody else felt. This silenced the people on stage and finally, he continued speaking.
"As I was saying. We are the gods of your world!" His arm motioned to the audiences which weren't clearly visible due to the spotlight hindering my eyes.
"You all died on earth and we used the power of our dear friend, the ruler of the underworld to bring all your souls back to life! Yaaay!" He said, clapping his hands.
"But there's no need to thank us, because you guys will be repaying us in full." I knew it, reanimating a dead person isn't something another would graciously do. It comes with a price, and right now we are about to pay it.
"It isn't something difficult. All you need to do here is to entertain us because, let me tell you…We.Are.So.God.Dammed.Bored!!!"
"Immortality is only fun in concept ya know? I mean sure it was fun at first, but then we all got bored living. But see that's the funny part. We wanna die but we can't!" He paused for a while.
"So do your best to entertain us okay? It's not that hard. You just need to amuse us by all methods you deem possible. Oh. And if you don't follow us…" he looked at the corpse he is currently stepping on. The look on his face suddenly twisted into a grin full of malice and he spoke again.
"If you so much as bore us…try to escape, or rebel…" He stepped on the corpse again and looked at us with that despicable smile.
"You'd end up like him."