Jax slowly opened his eyes.
A hazy blur clouded his vision, gradually sharpening with each passing second. At the same time, he felt his strength ebbing away, leaving him barely able to wiggle a finger. But as his sight cleared, his vitality slowly returned, and he regained his strength after a good while.
The first thing he noticed was the moonless starry night sky, casting a soft, ethereal glow over his body and the surrounding trees. However, his mind was a jumbled haze, and the serene scene before him barely registered. He failed to spark any immediate interest.
After a short while, Jax finally regained the strength to get up from the ground. He didn't notice it yet, but when he pulled his body up, his body absurdly became two — one that remained lying down lifeless, while the other one was conscious but looked somewhat transparent, radiating a soft, eerie glow, and, above all, naked.
Only then did Jax notice the dim surroundings added by the occasional chirping of the unseen night birds and the howls of animals that seemed to echo in the veil of the night.
''It's evening already?'' Jax muttered, one question mark floated over his head. ''Just what in the world happened to...''
Jax swept his gaze around to confirm his crazy conjecture. That strange object earlier... He hoped that he was just dreaming. That what happened earlier was nothing but a wild imagination.
However, when reality struck him right in the face, his eyes went wide with horror, his spectral pupils couldn't help constricting in shock. At the same time, his spectral heart tightened, terror and disbelief forced their way in like a disastrous flood.
Before him lay a lifeless body, eerily still and devoid of any vital signs. Drifting closer, Jax found his heart sinking further into the abyss of growing terror. The worst fears he wished were false were confirmed.
''This... How can this be happening...'' Jax's cold muttering stuttered in a disbelieving manner. His spectral body recoiled, his mind racing.
Only then did he realize too that he was now in midair, unhindered by the confines of gravity and physical constraints that once bound him. He could now move freely, as if he was one with the wind.
Trembling, Jax lifted his hands, holding them up for inspection. But instead of solid flesh, he saw semi-transparent limbs, and his entire body glowed with a faint, eerie white light, as if he was made of mist and moonbeams.
"NOOOOOOO!!!!" Jax's anguished scream shattered the night air, his ethereal form erupting into a frenzied whirlwind, spiraling upward like a vortex of tormented energy.
Before him lay a body on the cold, unforgiving ground — a body that was his mirror image. No, it was more than that. It was him, it must be. Undoubtedly, unmistakably him. Every feature, every contour, every detail was identical, leaving no room for doubt.
There was no way he could mistake himself for someone else.
But while that was something to fear, the realization of his craziest assumptions to be true only sent a chill down his spine, unleashing a deeper fear that threatened to consume him whole.
"THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!!!" Jax's anguished scream tore through the air, his voice cracking with desperation as his throat strained to its limits. "I'M NOT A GHOST, RIGHT?! TELL ME I'M NOT A GHOST!!"
It took him quite a long while for him to calm down a bit. And as the storm of emotions finally began to subside, Jax found himself hovering above his lifeless body, his spectral form assuming a cross-legged position as if in contemplative meditation. His mind, still reeling from the shock, struggled to wrap around the unthinkable reality.
The irony was not lost on him. Jax had always been consumed by an irrational fear of souls. The mere mention of which could send his mind racing with anxiety. Yet, now that he had become a soul himself, a spectral entity stripped of his physical form, he felt... numb.
The fear that had once gripped him so tightly seemed to have lost its hold, replaced by a sense of disorienting confusion.
Instead of fear, what he felt right now was close to sadness. No, it was greater than that. It felt like it was an overwhelming sorrow deluging his fear and making him lose his hope of being alive.
But although his sorrow had momentarily overshadowed his fear, it still lingered in the shadows, waiting to pounce. The primal dread that had once gripped him at the mere thought of ghosts still simmered beneath the surface, a constant reminder that his transformation had not eradicated his deepest fear.
That aside, he was now really dead. The truth was inescapable.
The evidence was right there in front of him.
What should he do now? Where was the Grim Reaper that would come pick him up and bring him to the other side?
''Maybe God took pity on me as he's letting me see my beloved first before I go to paradise?'' Jax suddenly had a wild thought. A faint, wistful smile crossed Jax's spectral face as he entertained the fanciful notion.
But as his gaze fell upon his lifeless body, his expression faltered, and a soft sigh escaped his ethereal lips. The stark reality of his situation was a harsh reminder that his time with the living was truly at an end.
Still, the wishful thought lingered, and he imagined seeing his girlfriend for the last time. He had to see her. Yes, even if it was his last.
Having decided on what move he should make next, Jax drifted away, abandoning his physical body alone in the cold. But despite his newfound form, his spectral body still shuddered at the prospect of encountering other souls. As a spirit himself now, the likelihood of meeting another was all too real, and he knew he had to tread carefully.
Who knew, perhaps he might encounter some random wandering souls and devour him? He should be more be vigilant, no matter what.
Jax's ethereal form drifted silently through the dense forest, the starry night sky casting a faint glow over the winding path ahead. Despite the disorientation and fear that had gripped him since his unexpected transformation, a burning determination propelled him forward.
As Jax moved through the forest, he marveled at his newfound abilities. The constraints of gravity and physical limitations no longer bound him – he could float, drift through solid objects like trees and boulders, and cover ground with a speed that would have been impossible in his corporeal form.
Yet, these gifts brought little comfort, for his heart ached with the longing to hold his girlfriend, to feel the warmth of her embrace and the gentle touch of her hand again.
But he knew too well that it was impossible anymore. And the most he could do was to see her.
As the distant outlines of the village came into view, Jax felt a surge of both hope and trepidation. He hurried his way through the winding streets of the village, his ethereal form gliding effortlessly over the cemented rough road.
Just as usual, the night air was still, save for the occasional barking of a dog or the faint sound of laughter from a distant gathering.
Soon, he reached his destination. But as he approached the modest home where his girlfriend lived with her elderly parents, a sense of unease crept over him.
Phasing through the front door, Jax found the house giving off the same comfort and familiarity. The strange feeling of longing etched deep into his spectral heart, shaping him with a long face that did not seem to fade away.
Jax swept his gaze, and there he spotted his girlfriend's old parents — eating together at the dining table with a serious conversation. He looked around, drifted through each room to search for every nook and cranny where he could possibly find his beloved. But to his sadness, she was nowhere to be seen.
He drifted back to the dining area, only to overhear his girlfriend's parents talking with a hushed voice.
''That explosion earlier is really terrifying. I thought it was a bomb, but to think that it's only caused by a foreign object.''
Straining to hear their conversation, Jax moved closer. His spectral body remained unnoticed in the presence of the living.
''Just how can a block of rock form into a stone statue upon landing? Those who claim to see it must be making things up.'' The old woman asked, her voice revealed a disbelieving tone.
''But it's true that it's a stone statue. I saw it myself, so I will naturally believe in it.'' The old man answered with a growing sense of unease.
The old woman sighed. He shook her head slowly as she replied, ''I know, I know, but what kind of statue can give off such an ominous feeling?" She took a moment of pause before she added, "I really think that this is a sign of a great calamity that is soon to transpire.''
The two of them continued to talk, and Jax strained to understand what he heard. Explosion... Stone statue... Calamity... What on earth was going on here?