My name is Death (part 2)

Warning: the following content contains mention of the grim reaper and death.

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By: Audrey Yeung

“Could you please see who that is?” Cadmus asked, not breaking eye contact with the crystal ball. I opened the door. A man wearing a messenger’s uniform approached me.

“Jonas Calvus? The Elder found this from your mother.” The messenger handed me a folded piece of paper and left abruptly. On the surface, I recognised my mother’s handwriting. I closed the door and sat on the large armchair, cradling the paper as if it were made of glass.

“Who was it, Jonas?” Cadmus asked.

“A messenger from my village. He gave me something my mother had written.” I answered. Cadmus rushed to my side.

“What are you waiting for? Open it!” he urged. It was a very hastily written letter. It read:

Jonas, I write with worry and hope for you. I have seen some horrible and frightening things with my seeing crystal. What I saw was something called ‘death’.I, and I believe death will fall upon everyone in the village. I do not think death is something that you can get rid of, but you can try. Go to Castinia and visit your uncle Cadmus, my brother. He might be able to help you.

In my vision, I saw a figure. They call him ‘The Grim Reaper’. He holds a weapon, though I’m not sure what it is. The handle is long and the blade is curved. He is the master of death. I hope you will never see him, but I’m afraid my time is almost up. Cadmus might be able to help you drive off The Grim Reaper. Be brave, my son. Goodbye.

My uncle read the letter over my shoulder and as I watched him read, I saw his eyebrows furrowed even more.

“A scythe. That is the weapon The Grim Reaper wields,” he said gravely. “I know what to do now.” Cadmus took two bottles of potion off his shelf and poured a small amount of each on his desk, swirling them together with a stick. He then took a vial full of white powder and sprinkled it onto the mixture.

“This,” he told me. “Is an offering. Now listen carefully before I add the last ingredient. This will attract The Grim Reaper. When he arrives, you must ask him for his scythe. Now, when a normal human being so much as touches the scythe, their skin will crack and shrivel and they will feel like every part of their body is on fire. Eventually, they will die. You must drink a specific potion in order to be able to hold the scythe. Are you ready?”

“What happens when I hold the scythe?” I asked. My uncle hesitated.

“You… will become The Grim Reaper.” he replied softly.

“No. No no no. I cannot do that. I’m sorry.”

“Jonas, The Grim Reaper is taking lives and souls unfairly. You can bring justice to the living. I can’t do it because I am a magic practitioner. The potion is useless on me. Please.” I lowered my head and thought about my mother. How The Grim Reaper took her life. It made me furious beyond belief.

I nodded and Cadmus handed me a gleaming golden potion. I drank it as he poured some onto the existing mixture. Suddenly, a black-cloaked figure materialised. Its face was a skull and he held a scythe. The handle was black and long, and the blade glimmered dangerously, curving downwards.

“I-I-I would like your scythe.” I said nervously. The skull face loomed over me and I could have sworn it was smiling evilly. The Grim Reaper presented me with his scythe. I reached out and took it. It was heavy and it burned my skin, but I tightened my grip and thought about my mother. Eventually, the burning stopped. My skin started to dissolve until only my skeleton remained. Meanwhile, the Grim Reaper’s bones were disintegrating into dust. His cloak then rose and fell on me. I grew to what used to be its size and felt nothing. All my emotions had been stripped away – where my heart used to be, there now existed only an empty void.

I refused to be called ‘The Grim Reaper’. From that day forward, I was Death.

End