A Second Brush With Death

Session 1: Stairway Stomp

A light. A bright light, shining against his closed lids. He involuntarily closed them tighter, in a futile attempt to escape the burning. A pounding in his head. He slowly brought a hand up to press against his temples. Did he need a prairie oyster? No, this didn't feel like a hangover. He wracked his brain, trying to remember what had happened. With a start, his eyes flew open and he pushed himself up. Memories flooded his head as he winced from the bright light and increased headache, shielding his eyes. The syndicate, all the death, all the blood, Vicious...

Julia.

He looked down at himself- his eyes weren't adjusted enough to look anywhere else. With yet another start and a quick glance down his shirt, he realized that all his injuries were gone. And yet... He was still on a set of stairs. He moved his hand away from shielding his eyes, scratching his head as he blinked slowly. When his sight finally came to him, he raised an eyebrow. He was, in fact, on a set of stairs, yet not the ones he had fallen upon. Glowing, yet rickety; unfamiliar, yet somehow... He felt he had seen them before. He shrugged and tucked his hands into his pockets, walking up them one step at a time. He watched the steps pass by as he looked down, trying to keep the bright light away from his eyes. He stopped when he heard something in front of him, and slowly looked up. His eyes widened and he nearly fell down the steps as he saw who it was.
"They say that this is the stairway to heaven. Didn't think it existed." Julia's voice was like music to his ears, and all he could do was nod slightly. Julia leaned on the railing as he took in the sight of her. She was resplendent, glowing with the staircase, and it took his breath away. She sighed, drawing his attention back to her face.
"What a way to run away, huh? Didn't think this would end up turning into Romeo and Juliet... But I guess the story's not over yet. At least, your story isn't over yet." She mused, climbing up a few steps. He tried to follow her, but stopped when she placed her foot against his chest. He looked up at her, questions in his eyes, but he still hadn't found his voice.
"You can't come with me just yet. There are people who still need you, things you still have to do... So you're gonna have to survive without me for a little while longer. Think you can manage that, Cowboy?" The smile on her face was playful, yet... sad. He took a breath and found his voice at last.
"Julia...?" He asked, unable to articulate all of the questions that he wanted to ask. She leaned forwards and pulled him into a kiss, catching him off guard before pushing him down the stairs. Time seemed to slow as he fell, his hand raising up to reach out for Julia. The light began to grow brighter and brighter, until he had to close his eyes again. Julia's silhouette was the last thing that he could make out. All that he could do now was listen.

"Good luck... Spike."

And everything went black.