I was dead. If by some miracle I had survived, then I had no doubt that I would have been better off dead.

First, there had been the searing agony as my body was burning inside and out, and then, the soothing release of darkness. Now, I saw the light in the distance and wondered if I was supposed to walk to it.

I had no idea how long I floated in the darkness, with no sense of my own body, and staring at the light. It could have been seconds or even hours. Eventually, I realized that the light was coming towards me.

When the light was close enough, I could see that it was shaped like a human. Like a woman. She stopped a short distance in front of me, giving me a good look.

The woman was enormous, standing at nine feet tall, at least. She towered over me, making me feel like a little kid in comparison. That was a strange experience for me since I was used to being taller than most other people.

She was unbelievably gorgeous, with the kind of looks that made an airbrushed supermodel look plain in comparison. Her hair was long and lustrous, waving around behind her as though caught in a breeze, and ending at her ankles. Each strand seemed to be made of light, shimmering through different colors as it moved. The rest of her body glowed too, with some kind of inner light, but nowhere near the brilliance or variety as the hair. And then, there was her clothes, or at least the ribbon of light, which seemed to be what passed as clothes.

“Mortal,” she said, her voice sweet and melodic, somehow seeming to go straight to my very being while bypassing my ears entirely.

At that moment, I was suddenly aware of my body again, though there was no pain or discomfort. I looked down at myself, seeing that I was standing in the darkness, which was lit only by this giant woman. My body seemed to be completely whole and unharmed, not to mention naked. I quickly covered myself.

“Who are you?” I demanded, trying to hide my fear, confusion, and downright embarrassment at being naked in front of this enormous woman, by at least trying to act confident. “What the hell is going on?”

“Your life has just ended,” the glowing woman answered, going straight to my second question without bothering to introduce herself. “You were killed by Nadine Fairlan, the chosen champion of Pfath, god of fire and pain.”

The glowing woman said this matter-of-factly, as though it was no big deal. All I could do was gape as I tried to absorb all this. I was still trying get over the fact that Nadine had killed me.

In the same calm but melodic tone, the glowing woman continued. “One of the gifts Pfath gave her is called ‘sadism’, where if she causes sufficient pain in another, she is granted a brief increase in power. She used you to power her attacks on my champion and her companion.”

I just stood there, staring up at this giant glowing woman and feeling stunned, though I realized after a few seconds, not nearly as stunned as I should have been. My heart should have been pounding in my chest, but I didn’t feel anything like that. Maybe it was because I was supposedly dead.

Then again, was I really dead? Everything that was going on was too strange to be real. Maybe I was drugged…or suffering from a head injury. What was the last normal thing that I remembered? Visiting Matt and his sister? Getting gas? Maybe I’d been in a car accident and was hallucinating all of this.

“You are neither insane nor hallucinating,” the giant woman said, sounding almost amused. “What you are is dead, or more accurately, on the cusp between life and death, held in this moment by my will.”

Still staring up at this woman, I gulped, deciding that whether or not I was imagining all this, it would probably be a good idea to treat this as if it was real…just in case. “Why?” I asked, intimidated by her sheer size and presence. “I mean, I still don’t get what’s going on…”

“Your death came about, because you attempted to protect my champion,” she answered calmly. “You failed in that, but succeeded in earning my attention, and even a small degree of my favor.”

“Does that mean you’re going to save my life?” I asked hopefully.

The giant glowing chick shook her head. “That life is over. Your lungs have drawn their final breath, and your heart has beat its last. The rules would not allow me to interfere, were this not the situation.”

I blinked at that. “Rules? What rules? You make it sound like this is some kind of game…”

With a deep scowl, the glowing woman stated, “That is precisely what this is. This is a game, but one of great consequence.”

“I don’t understand,” I admitted.

For several long seconds, the giantess stood there with a thoughtful expression, before she began to explain. “I am the goddess Maelyne.”

“Goddess?” I repeated with a nervous gulp.

The giant glowing woman…Maelyne, continued. “Long ago, my kind discovered the folly of warring amongst ourselves. With our power, even a minor skirmish can cause untold devastation. During our only great war, most of our world was destroyed. Before it could be obliterated entirely, we came to truce and agreed upon an alternative method of fighting. Now, we resolve our conflicts in your world, through proxies. We each choose a human to champion our cause, and embue them with gifts and power. Our champions compete against each other, and we rise or fall upon their success.”

“What the hell?” I blurted out. “That’s total crap… You mean, Earth is just some kind of game board to you, and we’re all just pieces?”

“No,” Maelyne responded, her voice still calm and melodic. “Our champions are the game pieces. You are, at best, what you would refer to as…an NPC.”

I clenched my hands into fists as I glared up at this supposed goddess, angry at the insult. I was many things, but I sure as hell wasn’t some damn NPC. NCPs were Non Player Characters in games, the ones who were part of the game itself, with no will or purpose other than to fill space and provide plot or material support of some kind to the actual players.

“I’m no NPC,” I exclaimed defiantly.

Maelyne didn’t seem to notice my anger, or she just didn’t care. If she really was some kind of goddess, and admittedly, I kind of believed her, then that probably made sense. From what she’d already said, her people just seemed to think of humans as being nothing more than pieces in their game. However, she was taking the time to explain what was going on, so that was a point in her favor.

For several long seconds, Maelyne just stood there, staring down at me with a thoughtful expression. “You are familiar with games,” she finally said. “Both athletic competition and simulated combat.”

“Yeah,” I agreed, giving her a suspicious look. “Is that a problem?” I knew some guys at the gym, who would mock the hell out of me for being a gamer, and wasn’t sure if I was about to get it from her too.

Then, with a faint look of amusement, Maelyne mused, “If Gorath had been allowed to compete in this round, I believe he might have chosen you as his champion.” Before I could think of how to respond to that, Maelyne continued, “In our latest round of games, many of the rules have been inspired from the games of your world. This should make it easier for you to understand what you have become involved in.”

“You use people as pieces in your game,” I responded, thinking of the strange fight I’d gotten caught up in. “Like gladiators… It’s not exactly rocket science.”

“Each champion is given gifts and abilities,” Maelyne told me with a serious expression. “These depend on both the nature of the patron, and the inclinations of the champion. As they compete…as they gain experience and achieve success, their powers and abilities grow stronger, allowing them to serve their patrons even more effectively. These gifts, and the power that comes with them, are the reasons most champions agree to serve in this role.”

This talk about gifts and abilities really caught my attention, because I’d seen that kind of thing in action already. Back when I’d been dating Nadine, she hadn’t been able to lift me up with one hand, or create balls of fire. Obviously, those were some of the gifts that Maelyne had been referring to. In fact, she’d already said that Nadine had one gift that was called ‘sadism’.

“That does sound kind of like a video game,” I agreed.

“As I have said, this is a game,” Maelyne responded with a deep scowl. “But one with grave consequences for my kind. The success or failure of our champions, determines our own success or failures. And though we do call this a game, it is more akin to war, one with a great many rules to keep it civilized and limited in scope.”

My eyes remained fixed on this giant glowing woman, and I could see her own anger and frustration. Then, something dawned on me. “They killed your champion…”

“Yes,” Maelyne said, her glowing eyes flashing red for a moment and making me instinctively step back. “Normally, this would be a minor problem, as I am allowed to return my champion to life, up to three times. However, Arakthiel, god of the void, has found a way to remove his rival’s champions from the game…permanently. His champion has been given the power to destroy human souls, and has used this ability on my own champion. I could return her body to life, but without a soul, there is no purpose in doing so.”

“What happens if you don’t have a champion?” I asked, though I already had my suspicions.

“What happens in an athletic competition, if your opponent fails to appear?” she asked me.

“They forfeit?”

Maelyne nodded faintly. “And in a war, if one country’s army fails to appear at the field of battle…”

“They forfeit,” I repeated quietly.

“Indeed,” Maelyne responded with a grim expression. “Without my champion, I am vulnerable. My enemies can seize or destroy my home, territory, and people, while I will be powerless to stop them.”

“I…I’m sorry,” I said, not sure what else I could say.

“And I am sorry for your death,” Maelyne told me, staring down with a faintly sympathetic expression. “You were not involved in our game, yet died because of it. You died because you attempted to protect my champion.”

“I died because Nadine is a psycho bitch,” I spat out bitterly.

Maelyne smiled faintly in apparent agreement. “As you were not part of the game, your death neither benefits nor harms me. However, by living, you could be of great benefit…”

“What?” I blurted out, suddenly feeling hope again at that last statement. “I thought you said you couldn’t bring me back…?”

“I cannot,” Maelyne agreed with a twinkle in her eyes…literally. Her eyes were both glowing a little more brightly than before. “However, what I can do, is restore my champion to life…and repair her injuries.”

“Okay,” I admitted uncomfortably. “I’m confused.” I could almost hear Matt teasing me about being a dumb jock.

“Arakthiel used a loophole to remove my champion from the game,” Maelyne explained triumphantly. “I want to use a loophole to restore her… However, there is a very small window of opportunity, so it must be done now, or not at all.”

The goddess crouched down, as if she was going to speak to a child, so I was now able to look her directly in the eyes. They seemed to be looking right through me, sending a shiver up my spine.

“If you agree,” Maelyne told me, “I will restore my champion to life…with your soul to replace the one that was destroyed. You would live again, as my champion. You would inherit all of her gifts and abilities, along with her status within the game, including the responsibility of serving as my proxy. If you accept this bargain, you will face grave danger, and perhaps even the risk of having your soul destroyed utterly. However, you would live again. You would gain abilities beyond what most mortals will ever possess. And, you will have a chance to take revenge upon the one who killed you…”

At first, all I could do was stare at Maelyne with my mouth hanging open in stunned disbelief. That was insane. Completely and totally insane, and not the kind of crazy that came from getting a few too many concussions either. This was like padded room crazy. But in spite of that, I no longer had any doubts about all this being real, or that Maelyne was telling me the truth.

I wanted to live. I REALLY wanted to live. It was too soon for my life to be over, and I wasn’t about to throw in the towel, just because that bitch Nadine decided I should. Getting revenge on her would just be a nice bonus.

“Deal,” I announced, holding out my hand.

Maelyne stared at my hand for several seconds, as though trying to decide what she should do with it. Then, she smiled faintly in amusement and reached out to shake. Her massive hand easily engulfed my own, making me feel even more like a little kid in her presence.

“Your previous experience may serve you well in this,” she said. “But beware the other champions. Many will attempt to strengthen their position in the game by removing their competition between contests.”

“Yeah,” I responded, remembering how I’d ended up here in the first place. “I got kind of got that impression…”

“Now go and serve me well my new champion,” Maelyne commanded with a smile. “Your loyalty will be rewarded.”

As soon as Maelyne had said those words, a soothing warmth spread from her hand into my own, and then through the rest of my body. When I looked down, I was surprised to see that I was now glowing as well, though not as brightly as she was. However, this only lasted for several seconds, before everything exploded into a burst of light, and my world changed forever.

--------------------

I was laying on the ground when I awoke. It was cold, hard, and uncomfortable, but for some reason, I didn’t really mind too much. I felt light and full of energy. I felt…good.

As I opened my eyes and sat up, I saw that it was dark out and that I was still in the empty lot where I’d died. A horrible stench filled the air, and I recognized it as the same smell from when I’d been burning. There were a few small fires where the dark smoke and foul smell were coming from, and my stomach churned and threatened to turn inside out as I realized that they were human bodies.

“No freaking way,” I blurted out, staring at one charred body in horror. “That’s me…”

My own body was sprawled out in front of me, a charred and ruined mess. Enough remained unburnt, that I was able to recognize myself and the clothes I’d been burning. The other burnt corpse belonged to Hammer. And as I looked around, I saw one more dead body, that of the ninja who’d been cut in two. That body left a mess of a whole other kind.

“Shit,” I gasped, covering my mouth to keep from throwing up. “Fuck. Shit fuck.”

As I staggered back, away from the bodies, I suddenly realized that if that was my body over there… I paused at that and slowly looked down, gulping as I did so. Maelyne had warned me about what to expect, but I hadn’t really put two and two together, or at least, I hadn’t let myself think about what it meant.

“Crap,” I muttered.

My body was NOT my body. At least, it sure as hell wasn’t my old body, the one that I’d grown up with and was intimately familiar with. The one that was currently a charred ruin, just a short distance away. This was a different body entirely, though from what Maelyne had said, it was mine now, and probably would be for the rest of my life.

I was smaller, shorter, and without nearly the size or mass that I was used to. And even more distressing, was the fact that I was now a chick. I was wearing slacks and a blouse, both dirty from laying on the ground, but they showed my new body off well enough to make it obvious that I was a girl. Hell, I had two nice round bumps pushing out of my chest, which made quite a statement by themselves.

I could have just stood there, staring down at myself in shock, but a flicker of common sense told me that this wouldn’t be a good idea. There had been quite a show with all that fire and fighting, so it was amazing that the cops hadn’t shown up yet to investigate. They were almost guaranteed to show up sooner or later, and when they did, I didn’t want them to find me here…with three dead bodies.

Once I got over my initial shock enough to think straight, I went to where I left my car, only to get another surprise. It was on fire, though the flames were just burning down. Apparently, it hadn’t been enough for Nadine to murder me, she had to destroy my car too.

“Bitch,” I snarled.

Since I no longer had a car and didn’t think that hitchhiking was a good idea at the moment, I began walking the rest of the way back to my apartment. This gave me time to think about what was going on, though mostly, I just thought about how Nadine had murdered me…how I’d burned to death.

When I finally reached my apartment, I discovered a small problem. Namely, that my keys had been in my pocket, back with my real body. Because of that, I ended up standing in front of my door with no way inside.

“This is NOT my day,” I groaned, in what was probably the greatest understatement of my life.