One Only Dies Once

– YOU WOULD HAVE LONG AND PROSPER LIFE, AND YOU CAN TAKE MY WORD FOR THAT. INSURANCE POLICY? A WASTED INVESTMENT! YOUR SAFETY IS GUARANTEED. IF YOU DECIDE TO BE RUN OVER A TRUCK, YOU’LL WAKE UP AND REALISE THAT YOU’VE JUST BEEN DREAMING THAT… SORRY ABOUT THE TRUCK, I DIDN’T BRING IT UP INTENTIONALLY. JUST AN ILLUSTRATION. – She said it waving with Her hands and the scythe, so I got a little scared.
– I’m not quite sure… – those travel agencies here succeeded to intrigue me indeed. A large number of interesting voyages and travels for a free-minded (it refers to all the free minds which has no other obligations – like Hell, for instance). Like journey to the Sun core, or a tour to a Spook Houses where you can get spooked from the spooked living, or taking part in the book-classics – which you haven’t read, of course, or you can’t recall – and you can be any character you want; as an attractive supplemental to the arrangements, you can take any of the character’s good personal distinctions as a souvenir.
– JUST IMAGINE, NEW EXCITEMENTS, RISES AND FALLS, JOYS AND COMMON ANXIETIES… – Death wasn’t that much convincing, when I reconsider. Actually, I felt like someone has come at my door to sell me something I don’t want, but I just can’t refuse because that salesman holds a shotgun right at my forehead.
– Will I remember my previous life? – I was ready to show some good will.
– WELL, THAT CAN NOT BE. YOU DON’T SEEM LIKE THAT, BUT YOU CAN USE WHAT YOU KNOW TO START A NEW RELIGION, OR TO BECOME A PROPHET, SO WE CAN FACE A CRISIS. WE’LL HAVE TO CREATE A BRAND NEW SCENARIOS, SHORTLY THERE WILL BE A NUMEROUS SECTS AND WE’LL HAVE TO MARK ALL OF THEM WITH OVER 5000 OF FOLLOWERS, THEN COMES THE CENSORING OF THE HOLLY BOOKS… A WORK ALL OVER OUR HEADS.
– And if I give you my word? – I took a blind shot.
– NO! – Death was clear about this matter.
– Well, O.K. then. – I said that pretending that I was completely calm, like I was sitting in some cafй in a warm Saturday afternoon drinking a cold and stimulating drink – Besides, I couldn’t guarantee my silence about this anyway. – I took an attitude as I’m the one who’s making the decisions. Of course, Death noticed that, and in the air was the “who-the-hell-you-think-you’re-talking-to” question, but I didn’t allow that moment to get accented with a noticeable pause and I continued – may be I would just write a book about our encounter, some kind of a fantasy; maybe I would add some science elements to it, so it could be science fiction, but in that case I would have to consult a numerous scientists…
– SO YOU READ SOMETHING OF THE GENRE? – Death seemed intrigued.
– Oh, yes! A lot! I’ve read quite a lot! I was literally swallowing everything! I was drowning in some of the genre masters. The books were hot and wet when I would finish reading. Afterwards, I wanted to burn them, so no one could read them but me. – I did exaggerate with my enthusiasm, but Death was defocused somehow. Or maybe it seemed to me that way then.
– HAVE YOU READ SOMETHING BY BLAKE F. DEADLY?
– I don’t have a clue who he is. – Death seemed offended by this my remark; the fact about Her strange inclinations occurred to me to late, but anyway, I tried to mild this awkward situation – Although He has an interesting name, and quite impressible and well chosen pseudonym. – It didn’t help much – It is real truth that anyone who wants to wants to write a good material, but to stay out of the any public circles at the same time, that one must choose his alias very carefully. Unfortunately, the publishers don’t have much understanding for the new talents who wants to stay anonymous.
This seemed to work. One must – dead or alive – be careful what’s saying, if one doesn’t want to provoke uncontrolled rage of the supernatural authorities.
– AND WHAT ABOUT THE HORROR FICTION? – well, the last one of the row of tensed moments passed, for time being, so I got back to my usual mood.