Codename: Phantasm
I hate my powers.
No, not really.
I don’t mean that.
There’s no feeling like falling endlessly, sinking towards the center of the world. It’s where I can think freely and just—escape.
No, I don’t hate my powers. I hate that I see spirits. That to phase through objects, I have to enter the spirit world. Especially since I saw her, The One With Many Names. I had heard the rumors from other spirits, not to look in her eyes or risk seeing my own demise. Admittedly, I thought she was an urban legend or a joke the others made to scare me. But she is very real and I see her everywhere now, in the corner of my eyes, a silhouette that disappears in the light, a blurry figure in a reflection. Anubis used to scare me like that too, before I knew there were worse things than ghosts.
I can feel the burning sensation of his hand behind me, reaching for my shoulder, but he’s not quick enough. I phase out of the wall just in time, he can’t follow me back to my reality, at least not that I know of. I must focus on the task at hand, I punch the man holding up these perfectly innocent citizens in the back of the head so hard, I think I actually might have knocked him out. His partner immediately turns to the commotion and fires his gun at me. As soon as I return to the spirit world to avoid the gunfire, Anubis launches his attack, the bullets pass through me, but not the balled fist of Anubis, he knocks me on my ass and I sink through the floor. I float downwards in the solid concrete like water for a moment, regaining my composure, part of me hoping he’d go away on his own. Instead, Anubis closes the distance, grappling with me in a tangle of limbs. We wrestle briefly before I manage to kick him away, using the momentum to move towards the second culprit, still in the process of sticking up the bank. He grunts something incomprehensible at me as I slip away. I move as quickly as I can, it’s sort of like a combination of swimming and flying—that happens to be through solid matter. I catch the thief off guard, rising from the floor beneath him before he can react. I grab the assault rifle and jump through his chest with it, phasing carefully so as to not start a new life as a conjoined twin until I’m behind him. I sweep his legs once I’m tangible again and strike him in the head with the butt of the gun as soon as he hits the ground. The workers and customers rise to their feet after a few seconds of peeking and whispers of reassurance, cheering and clapping for my efforts.
“Th—thank you. Until next time!”
I say awkwardly. I’m still pretty new at this, no media training ya know? I’ve never been one to enjoy an audience. I sprint toward the closest wall and jump through it, momentarily forgetting about my other ghoulish problem. Anubis tackles me in the back mid-phase, our bodies plummet from the wall back into the ground. He knows as long as I’m phased into something, I can’t escape, I’d die instantly on most occasions if I became tangible while passing through objects. A couple close quarter blows exchanged by the two of us and I’m able to break away yet again, I bolt for fresh air and a surface to stand on. Luckily for me, while I’m phasing, objects sort of get this translucent tint to them, otherwise I’d be lost in the dirt for an eternity. My sense of direction has always been a struggle for me, but trees don’t grow upside down, even I know that. Before I can make it, however, he fires globs of ectoplasm to cut off my exit, I twist and turn in an attempt to dodge, he nicks my arm and my ribs, stalling my escape. My torso breaks through the Earth’s crust just as Anubis grabs my ankle. My hands plant into the dirt, trying to gain leverage as my hips and legs remain submerged, halfway between the living and the dead, I flail and kick against his hold, one slip of concentrated focus and I’ll slice my body in half. As I strain to gain the upper hand, I notice her amongst the brush, The One With Many Names waving at me, smiling right at me with that dead look. Panic settles over me like an ocean wave, I kick myself free from Anubis’s grasp with a barrage of desperate stomps. I bring myself up fully and instantly collapse onto the ground, panting, fighting off my panic attack with deep breaths. I look back to where she was, she’s gone, for now anyway. I manage to calm the trembling of my hands after a minute of improvised meditation. My heart rate slows back to normal and my breathing steadies. I know why Anubis is after me; My connection between the two worlds gives him an outlet, he wants to use my body to return to the living. I've worked that much out despite his ancient dialect, thanks to his quite literal soul-sucking ability I’ve narrowly escaped before. This I understand, I can work with things I understand. But why—why does Death follow me wherever I go?