***NEED WORK

That was it. I had lost.
Everything I had struggled for, everything I had built, crumbled into nothing. My life, my struggles and my hard work all unraveled out of control right in front of my eyes. Every promise and resolve I made to everyone and to myself laid shattered at my feet.
My promise to my English teacher, Mr. Avery, to have my essay in on time on Monday.
My promise to arrange next week's schedule so I can hang out with my friend Amanda.
My promise to keep Liana from pain and resolve to never give my mother the satisfaction of seeing me breakdown.
All those promises were all thrown up in the air.
I was dead; none of that mattered now.

I became aware of the raindrops hitting my body in heavy pelts. I felt the cold ripple through me in small waves. There was no pain, just the cold and the rain. But I was determined to keep my eyes shut, afraid to see the truth.
I died...I was killed.

I breathed in deeply, the cool damp air filling my chest in soothingly light vapors. I couldn't stay afraid forever.
Slowly, I opened my eyes. I swallowed as my heart jumped to my throat.
This was unreal.

There; on the wet, muddy ground, laid my broken body, twisted and bloody. My head was twisted to the side at an uncomfortable looking angle, my cheek pressed against the ground. I saw my face, expressionless and numb. My eyes stared back, wide, empty and unseeing. My dead body was completely still in the mud, cold and vacant. And I stood from the outside, looking down at myself.
Weak. Pathetic.

"Amazing, isn't it?" a dark velvet voice purred.

I bristled, hating that cool voice. I turned, fear and dread freezing in my chest.
Viper stood there casually, smirking at me.
"Seeing yourself from the outside after death. Some people say it's a result of shock and disbelief. Some say from the desire to keep living. What do you think?" he asked me in a cool tone.
I took an involuntary step back, not answering. A cold lump was stuck in my throat, making it hard to swallow. Viper chuckled.
"No matter. You're dead. No denying or regretting that. It's far too late." he hissed.
His eyes were wide with excitement and hunger. He lifted his arms up towards me, his hands set in eager claws.
"Come now, sweet child. No more troubles," he purred.

I shrank away, cold with fear. What is he?
"Stay back, you freak," I spat, my voice shaking.
Viper tilted his head to the side, a mocking frown on his handsome face.
"A 'freak'? Now Cella, that's very hurtful, coming from you. What have I done to deserve such cold treatment?" he pouted, placing a bloodied hand over his heart dramatically.

The hand stained in my blood.

My chest clenched painfully and another heavy lump rose to my throat.
"You killed me, you took my life. Worst of all, you stole all that I have lived for in a matter of seconds! And you're asking me what you've done wrong?" I cried incredulously, my voice shaking through my clenched teeth.

I took another step back, fighting back hot tears.
"You've got to be kidding," I gasped.
I sunk to the ground, splashing into the mud. I pulled my arms into my chest, as if to suppress the pounding pain.
"You've got to be kidding," I echoed, trying to control myself.
Viper shrugged carelessly, looking bored and impatient.
"Oh, cry me a river. It's only life; move on." he said rolling his eyes. "Or rather, I'll be more than delighted to take care of the pain for you,"

He paused for a moment, and then took another advancing step forward, the impatient hunger returning to his eyes.
"There was a whole purpose of killing you, you know."

I froze, his words echoing in my mind.
"A 'whole purpose'?" I echoed, confused.
Viper smirked darkly, menacing and teasing.
"Well, 'freaks' like me have to eat sometime," he said casually.

Everything around me seemed to have stopped, frozen in their spot. I couldn't tell if it was still raining or not.
"'Eat'?" I rasped, my head spinning.
Viper's smirk grew wider, but he didn't answer. Cold realization hit me hard like a speeding truck.

Me. He wanted to eat me.

I swallowed and looked back at my empty body.
"What are you?" I breathed, afraid to hear the answer.

The creature in front of me flashed his perfectly straight, white teeth.
"I am Viper, a Soul Predator. A Death Fisher. Call me whatever you want, but I'm still hunting for one thing: souls"
He inched towards me, eyeing me eagerly.
"And see, it just happens to be my hunting night," he said.

I looked back at my dead body, fear jolting through me.
"No, I---I can't---I need to live!" I whimpered.
The monster clicked his tongue and shook his head amusedly.
"I told you, it’s too late. Your connection to your body had been severed. There's no going back." he said.
Panic pulsed through my head, making me dizzy and sick.
"Then take it!!" I cried, motioning frantically to my body. "What more can I lose? Just leave me alone!"

Viper laughed, his voice ringing smoothly in the night sky.
"I don't think you get what I'm after, dear Celeste. What good is an empty body? It's like eating the shell, but not the egg. Eating the wrapper, but not the candy." His eyes locked with mine, his gaze dark and piercing.
"What good would it do if I ate the body, but not what's on the inside?" he crooned.

Suddenly, the air around the playground grew heavy and biting, and I felt the hair on my skin stand on its end. There was a low buzz and a sharp pop, followed by a small flash of light from somewhere behind me. I looked up and saw one of the few lights in the playground slowly dim into darkness. I gasped, panic and dread choking me. One by one, the lights went out, until I was left with the last one. Then, I remembered Mr. Connor's last moments...how vulnerable he looked.

"No! Leave me alone!" I screamed and started to kick through the mud, trying to push away from my murderer.
Viper laughed again, this time, sounding like a crazed lunatic.
"Don't worry; you won't be forgotten. I always keep souvenirs. Let me see... ah, how about this?" he said.

He swept his hand smoothly through the air, and a dark, ominous light cut a seam in the air. The light flashed, and then faded, to reveal something small and glinting…
A small silver chain with a pale purple stone charm hung suspended in the air, floating just an inch above Viper’s open palm. The sight of the accessory confused me; it wasn’t something I owned or seen before; completely unfamiliar.

Viper mused thoughtfully, inspecting the jewel curiously.
“Lilac purple… very interesting. I’ve never met a soul of this color before.” he said to himself.
He then smiled, licking his lips with his pale tongue.
“I can’t imagine what it must taste like.” he murmured eagerly. “Though it’s quite a shame, you are a beautiful thing. It’s no wonder that boy back there treasured you so preciously. I wonder what kind of expression he will wear when he discovers your passing.”

That boy…

Another stab of pain shot through me as I remembered the pained expression on Bryce's face. The fear that had been running through me up until now shrank back, and in its place was that cold, dark, and empty abyss. I stopped fighting, losing all hope. I deserved every pain and suffering.
"Just kill me, please." I whispered.

I heard Viper chuckled.
"You forget; I already did," he said.

The atmosphere around me grew dark and heavy with a tangible negative energy. Shadows pulled away from the ground from all around me, screams and howling echoing and piercing the air.

I looked up and saw Viper's face---and I screamed.

His eyes had sunk back into his skull, making them glow like beacons in a dark tunnel. His skin thinned like paper, and his teeth grew sharper and deadly. The shadows howled and started to close in on Viper as his form changed. He hunched over, shrieking out in a sharp pitch. My scream died down in my throat as I watched him morph. His skin was now completely white, almost blue against his sunken eyes and blackened lips. His mouth was twisted and curled back tightly in a permanent grin revealing jagged, razor sharp teeth. His body structure altered into a thin and bony frame, almost like a skeleton. The shadows came still and the howling died down. The creature that was now in front of me, just few feet away, turned its glowing slit eyes in my direction, grinning hungrily.
There was a sharp snap, and the last light left started to fade.

"No!" I cried out desperately into the sinking dark.

I would gladly die---I deserved it very much after all I have done to Liana and Bryce. But not this way; anything but this.

The wind stirred and I flinched, shielding my face with my arms. Viper's hiss echoed from the dark from somewhere in front of me. I looked away in fear as I saw his razor sharp claws flying towards me. My whole body started to tingle anticipating the blow.
This was it; the real end...

I waited.
And waited.
Waited...and waited... And why am I still waiting?

Suddenly, I noticed that I was warm and comfortable, despite the fact that it was my death day and it was pouring rain. Slowly, I opened my eyes and lowered my arms from my face.

The corner of a black fabric flicked in my face as the wind whipped it around in its gentle current. I saw two feet planted securely in the ground before me, standing in a strong defiant stance. My eyes traveled up, trying to figure out what was going on. A black figure loomed less than an arms length away in front of me, towering protectively over my pathetic self.

Who is this person? I thought, bewildered.
The stranger's face wasn't visible, and he was wearing a black cloak...

My eyes caught sight of something pale as the cloak flickered back in the breeze. A slender hand that was half covered stood out from the dark, its light skin almost glowing in contrast against the surrounding black fabric. A slight jolt went through me as something in my mind clicked into place.

...I looked down the street and saw Mr. Connor's ghost curled on the ground, still shaking. Right in front of him hovered a figure, wearing a black hooded cape. He reached down and placed a hand on Mr. Connor's shoulder...

The hand...

I gasped loudly, shocked. Here in front of me, just an arm length away, stood a familiar dark stranger.

Mr. Connor's Dark Angel.