Life and Death

Chapter 1

Death- 5000

I looked around at the tall buildings with distaste, humans kept building things taller by the century; I could remember when they lived in caves. No, I don't want to go back to living in a cave; I do enjoy living high above the people in a skyscraper. I just miss the simplicity. There was nothing I hated more than the fact that mortals were trying to become immortal, don't they realize life was terrible? Death, the thing and myself, was so much more pure. As if my thoughts had summoned it, I saw one of the new healing centers across the street, Purity & Perfection, was what they were called. Started by a scientist and doctor back in three thousand, over the two millennia since then they'd only gotten better at saving lives and giving eternally youthful looks.

I scoffed at their tactics, just because you looked young didn't mean you were. People still aged, it was just that in this time you could be one hundred and only look forty. It astounded me too, that hospitals were almost entirely gone, and the few that remained were far apart and were only traveled to when Purity & Perfection didn't have the tools to solve the problem. I now lived in a world of wanted perfection, Life, I'm sure, enjoyed it. He enjoyed everything as if he could see the suffering living caused mortals... caused me even! All living ever gave to me was a migraine and pain, sure I couldn't die, but that didn't mean I couldn't get hurt.

A few minutes later I reached a quieter part of the city, away from the traffic and people, though the skyscrapers were still as tall as ever, easily disappearing into the clouds that seemed to always hang over the city. I gave a sigh before walking into the graveyard, one that now stretched for miles below ground after they ran out of space on the surface. The old faded and crumbling stones seemed very out of place with the sleek modern world around them, though it did make me feel more at home. I relaxed as I wandered through the headstones, pausing every now and then if I recognized one that belonged to someone I once knew... there weren't very many of them though. I wasn't one to get attached to people. Eventually I reached the stairs that would go below the surface, the deeper I went the more modern tombstones started to look, at the newest level there were no more stones, only holographic designs to mark a grave. I admit, the intricate sculptures or pictures that were created by the colorful lights were beautiful in its own way.

The part I detested was the fact no one seemed to care about the place anymore, to the living the dead no longer existed. All they cared for was life, and Life didn't need them to boost his ego any more than they already had. With a sigh I turned and walked out of the room, the dead would rest in peace all right... though they were lonely, the people they loved and trusted no longer cared for them. Left to be abandoned for all time until even their dust was gone, they would only have these beautiful grave markers to show they even existed. Over the years I have found the dead were better friends than the living, the oldest of ghosts were my favorite. We could talk on end if their time in the human world wasn't so limited. Sadly no one was here for me to have an intellectual conversation with, living mortals certainly didn't have much brains to have a nice conversation with but once they died it was as if they grew wiser and less vain.

"I knew I'd find you here." I stopped as Life stepped into view; his white cloak and black shirt were easy to recognize, not to mention he had hair whiter than sun bleached bone.

I glared back. "What do you want?"

"I was just passing through, realized I haven't stopped to see you in a while, so here I am." His golden eyes looked like lightning as he leaned against a crumbling statue of an angel.

"Well you've stopped by, you can keep moving." I grumbled.

He tilted his head, a faint knowing smile on his face. "You don't know, do you? There's a war starting to the north, I'm going there to try helping them reach peace."

"A war..." I gave him an interested look. "The last war I had the pleasure of seeing was World War Five... That was a nice moment, all the screaming-"

"That was terrible!" Life interrupted me with a cry of alarm. "They didn't have to die! All the Europeans wanted, was more land from the Russians, the European's lands were going under water they needed more land and Russia refused to allow them on their land! That war took out an entire continent and America is still suffering the casualties their weapons caused."

"You should know that's what life is, you are the one who helps guide it." I hissed. "It is just pain, war, and lies until they see that dying is the reason they live."

Life scowled at me before turning away. "You are the liar. Perhaps if you actually did walk and communicate with the living you would see that life is a truth that shows just how attractive life can be."

I glared back as he left, no matter what he said I just never would get along with the living. I allowed him to leave before the argument could continue, we may be immortal but that didn't mean I wanted to spend my day fighting. I didn't have anything important to do but I would rather wander around aimlessly than try having a conversation with Life, who at times seemed to think we were friends, which we weren't. Now that I heard about the war however, I might just head that way too, at least it would offer some entertainment; I wonder what it's about this time. More land probably, that's what most of it was now, what, with some land now underwater and the rest being over populated. Nations just didn't have the room to keep their people in their borders anymore.