The Phantom of Veil-19 - Silas Grieves

Note; This is a horror-themed article, and some of the descriptions within may be a bit unsettling in nature. So please be forewarned before you begin reading this article.

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The Story and Death of Silas Grieves

Silas Grieves had no remarkable origin, nor was he a man of repute or notoriety. Grieves was everyman; he clocked in, did his job, and went home to spend his limited free time with his husband. He wasn't particularly hard-working, but he wasn't lazy either. He was just Grieves. He got along with most of his coworkers, though he occasionally clashed with management over the availability of tools and parts. But he managed, despite the small annoyances.
Grieves was a mechanic on Veil-19, a desolate mining colony. He and his small team kept the mining equipment in working condition so operators could continue their relentless extraction around the clock. Veil-19 never slept; it was a place where the cycle of work was ceaseless, and the atmosphere was as oppressive as the darkness of space.
One day, Grieves clocked in as usual, grabbed a cup of Stim Drink, and prepared for his daily routine. While prepping his checklist, he received an emergency summons from a manager deep in the mines. It was an annoyance, but he couldn't argue. He ditched his checklist, grabbed his toolkit, and caught a freighter to the designated zone.
Upon arrival, a frantic manager approached him, explaining that a nearby power conduit had gone dead. The manager needed Grieves to open it and fix whatever had burnt out. Grieves hesitated, knowing that a proper power cycle had to be conducted to safely repair the conduit. The manager, however, was insistent, threatening docked hours if he refused. Grieves knew that despite union protection, the manager could have him let go for little to no reason. He had no recourse unless he wanted to risk his job.
So, Grieves went to work on the power conduit. Within moments, an unexpected power surge sent thousands of volts through his body. The sudden jolt electrocuted him instantly, leaving his corpse a charred, twisted husk on the cold ground.
The incident was deemed an accident. Worse still, Grieves, despite being the victim, was blamed under the guise of "negligent work methods." The only notice his spouse received was a bill for the damages dealt to the power conduit supposedly caused by Grieves.
The manager who forced him into the dangerous task was marked as absent that day, escaping any repercussions. Yet, as if fate had a final say, the manager would meet his own demise sooner rather than later, in the eerie, silent corridors of Veil-19.

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The Phantom of Veil-19 Appears

Soon after the incident, strange occurrences began in the dimly lit tunnels of Veil-19. Small occurrences at first, the dim lights would flicker, and static noises would hum through the intercoms. And eventually, a charred figure, seen hobbling down the tunnels, burnt black from head to toe.
Moaning his dying words over and over in a curse to those who had caused his avoidable demise. Charged with residual energy, Grieves spirit is locked in a haunting visage of burnt flesh, electricity arcing from his spiritual frame and he wanders.
He was only spotted a few times at first, late into a shift when the tunnels were bare in between shift changes. Grieves was clearly hunting though, slowly finding his form, and soon he was around much more frequently. He began primarily causing equipment malfunctions, an ironic twist on his profession in life, Grieves now began to break what he was once charged to fix.
A few weeks of this went by until one day, the manager who was the cause of Grieves's fate was forced to return to the halls in which Grieves haunts. You see, the manager felt his fate from afar and made excuse after excuse not to return his post.
But soon, he had no more excuses left and his options were to return or be let go. An ultimatum that he once made to the affable Grieves mere moments before his death. And ultimately, the manager's fate would be much the same.
On the same day on which the manager returned, he met his grisly fate. While nearing a power conduit the spirit of Grieves suddenly apparated next to the manger, looming over him, the smell of burnt skin and hair overwhelming the horrified manager.
Grieves's hollow eye sockets met with the manager's frightened gaze, he wordlessly reached past the manager and stuck an arching hand of electricity into the power conduit causing it to violently explode. The explosion tore into the manager's frame, engulfing him in flame and electricity.
His body was left as mere moaning shreds of flesh, barely clinging to life. The manager's last few moments were spent in agony, much like Grieves had endured weeks prior, before expiring.
Despite Grieve's revenge being completed his phantom remains, wandering the halls and tunnels of the asteroid in which he perished. He does not harm any employee, in fact, his ghastly voice often whispers through the intercoms warning them of impending danger. However, for any employee or especially management who dares to threaten or abuse the rights of his fellow co-workers, a nasty demise may soon befall them.

Summary 

Silas Grieves was once a mechanic working on a mining asteroid called Veil-19 in the territory of The Exon Authority. Many years ago, Grieves was lost in a catastrophic accident caused by neglect and malpractice of one of his managers while working on the asteroid. His malevolent spirit now haunts the asteroid's mining tunnels seeking revenge against those that caused his death. He specifically targets management and those of authority, while warner his former colleagues of impending danger.

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Silas Grieves in Life

Grieves in life was a middle-aged man, in his early to mid-forties. He was of average height, and somewhat portly weight, though not unfit in the slightest and capable of hard work with only minor effort. He had short salt and pepper hair, usually covered in his hard hat while at work and a cap while off duty. He had a large beard that was almost ginger in colour, having held on to its colour far longer than his hair ever did.

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Silas Grieves After Life

As a phantom after his grisly accident, Grieves appears as a slouched semi-translucent phantom. His skin is blackened and charred, and all of his hair has been burnt off from the electric blast that ended his life. His eyes boiled away in the intense heat, and all that is left are hollow holes that peer into a darkened eternity. Grieves teeth remain, though they are smudged with soot and chipped from the blast. Grieves moans his last words over and over again in a hushed whisper as he walks, no one has ever been able to hear them clearly enough.

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