Nimbus clouds covered the whole sky as a majestic lightning cracked through it. A roaring, rumbling sound followed. It was deafening to the ears, but one man sprawled on the grassy ground, covered in filth and blood didn’t so much as care.
This man was named Jacob Arnold St. Fair. He only cared one thing and that was his family—his wife and daughter—probably sitting cozily inside their house just a few walk away, clueless of his current dire situation.
He was just inside the tool shed at the back of their house when the heavy rain started. The plan was to ditch what work he had left of the customized dog house and run as fast as he could to the main house, be with his family, and enjoy the evening meal together.
However, an unexpected visitor standing and waiting for him at the entrance of the tool shed exactly interrupted that plan.
The visitor had a hulking frame, wearing a baseball hat and a large coat that covered his body. The collar of the coat stood stiff, framing his pointed jawline and shielding any uninvited inspection of his face.
Fear gripped tightly on Jacob's nerves then. He knew exactly what this visitor wanted, but he couldn’t possibly give it. He couldn’t when so much was at stake. No, not only for his family but for all of humanity.
Displeased, the visitor decided for an alternative payment instead: his blood.
And blood indeed gushed forth from the many blade wounds inflicted on Jacob a couple of minutes later.
He tried to fight back, using what skills he knew best, but even with those, it couldn’t contend with the visitor.
Until something appeared.
An image materialized behind the visitor just as he was about to deliver the final blow to Jacob. By this time, the rain had ceased and it effectively showed what or who the interruption was.
The image first was distorted, fine ripples surfacing and breaking the continuity of reality. Jacob couldn’t believe his eyes when in a second, another man appeared from the ripple dressed in all black, in his right hand a scythe—the thickness and sharpness of the blade screamed of terror.
The new man had the most lustrous blue locks cascading all the way down to his waist. It seemed it was the only color he had other than black. But then again, it wasn’t. Another color—a swirl of red and green—filled his irises.
They were beautiful, captivating, but to Jacob, entirely deadly, the same as the scythe he was wielding.
The next second came by as a surprise.
The visitor, unbeknownst of the new arrival, was hurled away, gained airtime for a millisecond and then crashed into the tool shed. The cracking of bones and a blood-curdling scream followed, cutting through the air and mixed with the sounds of thunder and raindrops.
“Halpas, ” the scythe-wielding man said, his voice dripping with authority. He ignored Jacob and went to the one named Halpas—his hulking frame now sprawled on the destroyed wall and tools.
Jacob watched as the two exchanged words. His breathing was uneven and he felt lightheaded from the heavy blood loss. He knew he’d die soon but not now. He couldn’t pass this opportunity. He needed to know who this unknown man was who—although not intentionally—would exact revenge for him.
“Your death has been long overdue. How had you eluded me these past few decades?” the scythe-wielding man said as he crouched down near Halpas.
“If I tell...you how, would you...spare me then?” the latter asked in a raspy voice, blood spilling over the corner of his mouth. He was no weak man. Heck, he even got his supernatural abilities thanks to a generous friend, but it seemed this wasn’t enough to fight his way away from this Creature of the Night.
The scythe-wielding man considered his offer for a moment, or maybe, he was just acting to look like he was considering it.
“You joke. Of course,” he answered and saw Halpas’ eyes lit up. “Not,” but then he continued. Upon hearing the unsavory word, those said eyes dulled again.
“Then you...wouldn’t know how I was...able to dodge death all this time!” Halpas negotiated, a flood of fear started filling from deep within his gut. He wanted to use what useful limbs he had left—one right leg and two arms—to scramble away, but an invisible force held him down.
“Oh no, I disagree, ” the man holding the scythe cocked his head to the side and grinned. “I already know who helped extend your petty little life, Halpas. I was merely testing you. You could have made it into the Valley of Cleansing if you squawked his name, but now, hmm...I think I’ll put you in Gehenna instead.”
This time, Halpas cracked. Terror reigned over him and he quickly clawed his way out of the mess of the tool shed.
“No. No! Not there! Please!” he cried out in desperation. “I don’t want to go there! Give me a chance!”
The scythe-wielding man stood up and tsked.
“I’m afraid it’s already too late.”
He raised his imposing weapon and the curved blade shone brightly thereafter. He didn’t hit Halpas with it but the man screamed in pain as if he was slashed down to pieces.
“Your soul is mine, ” the scythe-wielding man said as his eyes glowed of bright red.
With this, Jacob realized who this unknown man was. He was an Angel of Death, a Collector of Souls, The Executioner.
The Grim Reaper.
With no energy left, Jacob fell down and hit his face with the wet grass. Despite this, he pushed himself to watch the next scenes as the Grim Reaper collected Halpas' soul and literally vacuumed it into the blade.
When this was done, the Grim Reaper waved his hand and opened up another distortion in space. He was ready to leave the mortal realm until a voice, although weak and helpless, caught his attention.
“He...y, ” Jacob groaned through his blood-soaked mouth. He watched as the Grim Reaper paused from his tracks seemingly listening to his voice.“Hey! He...re! Look...here!”The Grim Reaper looked down into the poor state of his caller and arched a brow feeling genuinely surprised.“You can see me, human?” he asked.“You’re a grim rea...per, ” Jacob stated, disregarding his question. “You...you mu...st be from that clan.”The sentence definitely hit a nerve. ‘How?’ the Grim Reaper thought. How could a normal man know of a clan of grim reapers? It was supposed to be a well-guarded secret, unless...Unless this man wasn’t that normal as he thought at first.Halpas—the half-baked demon man—tried to kill him after all. Maybe, there was more to this
(Fifteen years later...)Death had always fascinated humans around the world. It holds a certain kind of mystery nobody could describe. What does one experience when one dies? What happens when the soul leaves the body? Will there be an unknown universe waiting for the soul? Or a messenger perhaps? An angel who would guide the soul in the Afterlife?Death may most always tie-up with sadness and agony but yes, people still regard it as a fascinating phenomenon.Be it in whatever religion, gender, age, social status, and race, a person most likely welcomes the thought of death and dying at least once in their lifetime. Fear it, accept it, or ignore it, death is the one thing that is...“... constant in the ever-changing world, ” Solene finished and then twisted her lips. She stared at the sentence longer than any geek would and munched on the lesson it was trying to relay.
“You’re late, ” an old man sitting on a couch pointed out the moment Solene walked through the front door. For a seventy-five-year-old senior, he still had a thick mass of gray hair and could still walk properly without the aid of a cane.Solene dipped her head shyly and approached her grandfather.“Sorry pops. I’m on a tight schedule with my school work.” She stooped low and placed a quick kiss on his forehead.Her grandfather cringed.“Seriously, you’re the only college student I know who goes to the library almost every day, ” he commented.Solene didn’t see it as a complaint though. She just chuckled and walked towards a bookshelf near the kitchen.“All part of a student life pops, ” she answered whilst placing her newly acquired books on the shelf.“Bah!&rd
The next day, Solene took her little brother in the local supermarket for a quick shop of produce and fresh fruits. She parked her mother’s SUV first near the entrance of the supermarket and hand-in-hand, they walked inside the building with an eco bag in hand.Solene picked the biggest wheeled grocery basket so that her brother could ride inside it. They entered into the Candy and Chocolate’s Section first by AC’s insistence. Solene didn’t mind as she also loved to buy her favorite chocolate-covered macadamia nuts.It was past nine in the morning on a Friday so the local supermarket was filled with customers. Some were together with their families and some others were buying alone.On their way into the C and C Section, Solene noticed a commotion some distance away. It was the manager of the supermarket arguing with the delivery men about the late deliveries. She just shrugged her shoulders, seei
By afternoon, despite her conscience telling her otherwise, Solene braved herself to leave the house. She had only one goal in mind and it was to go to the library and ask Dally for a copy of the log records yesterday.She remembered the time when she had seen the man inside the library. She knew how to focus her search and oust those names which were students of the University. She could narrow her search down to his name — whatever name he had — and possibly try and track down his address.By the time Solene arrived in the library, there were only a handful of students in sight, mostly men taking their IT major. Dally was in her usual counter, busily sorting out piles of magazines.“Hey Dally,” Solene greeted, showing a soft smile.“Oh, back so soon?” Dally looked at her from behind thick-rimmed glasses and smiled back.“Yeah, I need to
With a strong conviction to hunt for the truth, Solene decided to visit the supermarket and ask to see the security camera of the building, specifically while the tremors happened.There was footage found, yes, but it only showed pictures before the shaking started. Solene couldn’t be more disappointed when the video stopped right when she and AC were about to approach the Nutella shelf.‘A technical malfunction,’ the manager explained, but Solene didn’t buy it. It was damn too coincidental. Something in her gut told her it was intentional. As to why and who did it were the two questions that filled her mind.Ultimately, she returned to her house with more questions than answers, and those lingered until the next day.Early in the morning, Solene met with her thesis partner and best friend, Myrna — a redhead with a short bob and thick lashes. They chose the
“Okay, let’s pick up where we stopped,” Myrna stated once they settled onto their seats. This time, they chose the University library to finish their planning instead of anywhere outside the school.After the incident they experienced that morning, Solene returned to the house to change clothes. She had coaxed her best friend not to visit the hospital. She didn’t need it when really nothing had happened to her. Myrna told her she had an insane amount of luck, but Solene just shrugged the statement off. Clearly, her best friend knew nothing of her growing fear.“We were about to make the second draft of our thesis, Myr,” she reminded, getting comfy with her chosen wingback chair.The latter puckered her lips and grinned.“Oh, so you really were paying attention to me other than just checking that stranger in the cafe.”Solene rolled
A black limousine pulled over the curb just as Meridith entered the kitchen. She had just finished attending to AC’s needs in his bedroom when she decided to prepare snacks for Solene on the road. Sure there would be more food inside the plane, tastier and fancier ones even, but Solene preferred her cooking, and she loved the tuna sandwich she always whipped up.Some minutes later, she heard the doorbell rang. She wiped her hands clean and sashayed towards the main door.“Madame St. Fair, good morning,” a Caucasian man wearing an MIB-inspired suit greeted once Meridith opened the door. He had a perpetual passive look on his face that said he wasn’t here for leisure. There was no hint of a smile nor a grin, just a signature straight face that she knew came from a certain family.‘Right on time,’ her mind commented. She expected no less from the staff of the Rantzen Household.&nb