The first thing Chelsea Host noticed when she woke up was that she could feel her legs. While her groggy mind struggled to comprehend, she thought she was dreaming. The tingling in her legs remained, and she became alert. This must be Heaven. She must be dead. The last time she fell asleep, it was into a coma, and she never expected to wake up again.
She opened her eyes to see that it was dark. Shouldn't Heaven be bright? She felt like she was floating, but a weight covered her body. She grasped the weight with her hands and discovered it was a blanket. Sitting up, her head hit the ceiling. This didn't seem like Heaven. Where was she?
The blanket fell off her as she rolled over, putting her back to the ceiling. Her head spun dizzyingly. It was disorienting looking down, even in the near darkness. Maybe especially in the darkness. Her hands splayed flat against the ceiling to keep her from moving too much. A bluish glow illuminated a bed below her.
Her bed. Not a hospital bed.
So she was in her room at home. Chelsea glanced at the bedside table. Comics were neatly stacked there. The top one showed a young boy in a black and white jumpsuit with a "DP" logo. Her cousin Jacob had drawn the comics to help cheer her up. He lived in a different state, so she didn't get to see him often.
She reached for the comics and realized her hand and arm were the source of the glow. Her whole body glowed! Why was she glowing? Was she… a ghost? Like the comic book character?
"The comics are true?" Chelsea marveled.
Two bright white rings started at her middle and moved up and down her body. After, she fell onto her bed and the glow was gone. Unfortunately, the tingling in her legs stopped. She had to struggle to get herself on her back again.
Only then did she realize she hadn't been breathing. Maybe she was a ghost, and now she was human again? She wondered if she could trigger the transformation. It would be cool to be a ghost hero like her favorite character.
Concentrating on the feeling of weightlessness, Chelsea closed her eyes and said, "Ghost time!"
…
Nothing happened.
"That's okay," she said to herself. "It probably just takes practice…"
She picked up a comic and brushed her fingers over the cover.
"How long did it take you to learn how to be a ghost?" she mused.
The rings of transformation finally reappeared. Dropping the comic, Chelsea sighed in relief that it wasn't just a one-time thing. She wanted to practice flying, so she thought about what it would feel like. She floated a few inches above her bed and moved over to her mirror. It was right across from her bed, so she had caught her reflection a time or two and wanted a good look at herself.
Her brown hair was now stark white. It was a ratty mess, though normally it would hang past her shoulders. Her eyes used to be brown, but now they were sky blue. She touched her face curiously. It was as pale and cold as death.
"Well, that's a bit creepy. I guess that's what comes of being a ghost."
Chelsea went back to her bed and settled in. She reached for the comic again, but her hand went right through it.
"Whoa!"
She concentrated and tried again. This time, she was able to pick up the comic. She turned a few pages, paying closer attention to the different powers her hero had. Would she learn how to use those powers?
Wait, what was the point of powers? It's not like there were bad guys where she lived.
It would be cool, though.
Wanting to try one more thing, Chelsea said, "Ghost powers be gone." The transformation rings appeared, and she felt her body sink into the bed. So she could control it. Sometimes. She grinned, ready to go flying for real.
"Ghost time!"
Her ghost form came back, and she floated to the ceiling. She went right through it and popped her head into the room above. The quiet sounds of sleep reached her ears, and it took her a moment to realize she was under her parents' bed. Without trying, she turned invisible. Well, that's a handy trick! She rose above the bed and through the ceiling into the night air. Time for some flying!
When she made it outside, though, she didn't recognize the neighborhood. Where was she?