UPDATED: 11/14/18

Nothing was said; I was dead a second later with icy claws around my soul. Death had come so quickly, like a long-lost friend that had been waiting for centuries for me to join it.

I opened my eyes.

Though I had no real eyes to open.

Still, a white world surrounded me as far as my metaphorical eyes could see. Snow deeper than my knees and soft enough to run my hands through like I was chasing bubbles in a bath. Despite having no shoes or anything over than a simple white shirt and khakis, I wasn't cold.

Wasn't I dead? I remembered it vividly. A sharp pain, the coldness of my blood leaving my body, numbness, a strange sense of peace like someone was holding my soul tenderly. I'd never really feared death – I found the fear of something as inevitable as death to be too exhausting, so it never really weighed on me.

When it had come, I welcomed it. There were worse things than death, after all, and the suddenness of my own spared me from disease, war, torture, or other sufferings. I lived well, maybe a bit recklessly, but I did enjoy my life. Now, here wherever I was, I felt no fear. I woke alone in the middle of nowhere in the snow, but I felt nothing - could NOT feel any fear or hunger or anxiousness.

Snow curled between my toes, never melting. I picked a handful up and stared into the pile, trying to strain my eyes as if I might be able to see the individual designs of each unique snowflake. Of course, I couldn't, but the snow still didn't melt. Snow from above continued to fall peacefully, occasionally being twisted by the wind into a loose whirlwind nearby. For some reason, as I stood in place and watched the snow fall, I felt like this was home.

A calm, empty world like this couldn't possibly be the afterworld. As much as I wanted to just lie back and let the falling snow slowly cover me, I picked a direction at random and started moving through the light snow.

I walked for hours, with the only sign I actually moved being the displaced snow marking my trail behind me. I never felt even the hint of my limbs straining or lungs aching from walking so long, not even when I climbed up this gigantic snowy mountain. I even fell once, down several feet, unharmed and hardly even feeling the impact.

This entire world had a strange, surreal feeling that felt odd but so right all at once. I continued though, unwilling to just let it all go yet. I wanted to find something, to go somewhere I can't really explain, I didn't want to just stop and rest. Although I didn't fear death, I still didn't want to die.

And with that, a blanket of snow fell from above and hugged around me. Any sensation numbed again, and my eyes closed involuntarily. For a split second before it all went dark, I swear I could feel those icy claws again, cradling me gently.