"Everything is ready Watson."
"I appreciate it Jhon."
I hung up from the phone call after Jhon informed me that the bodies are ready and the cards that I gave him are also in place.
Now all I have to do is to wait for the conclusion of the current event.
Tonight is the final night, Jhon finished his preparations on his side while I'm done with mine. Soldiers are also on the wait for my signal so everything should go as planned.
The plan is to let the other me finish her last job, although I'm the only one who knows the existence of my other self, so all they know is that I'll be giving them a signal once everything is cleared up.
By the time that my other self finishes her part, it will be my time to show up and reveal everything to Jack. Who's now currently about to reap my other self's soul...
Jack tried to reap her soul a couple more times before realizing that he's not able to reap it and he will never be able to reap it. Since it's soul.. Already vanished along with the Paradox.
I walked normally towards Jack's position and after getting close enough, I heard him saying...
"Wh-What is this?! Her legs are fading?!", he shouted in question.
"Ah, so looks like the Paradox already caught up to her huh..", I said as I stopped walking.
Jack turned around and made a surprised yet scared expression on his face.
'Yes, I'm loving that reaction', is what I thought to myself.
"Watson?!", he shouted after seeing me.
"Hey! Jack the Reaper!", I said as I waved my hand once in the air.
"I-I thought I killed you!?"
"You did... Kill the other me."
The face he wore earlier was happiness and satisfaction, but now.. It turned to despair and confusion.
"It seems that you're confused Jack, allow me to explain to you... After I beat you up."
After saying those words, Jack was about to say something but I pushed the watch that was in my pocket the entire time. After pushing it, time stopped.
"His face is amusing.", I said while grinning in a stopped time.
After saying those words and after looking at his face which gave me amusement and satisfaction, I stored up strength on both of my legs and jumped towards Jack.
After getting close enough to him, I landed my left foot to the ground and the right one... Onto his stomach.
But before my foot could even land to his stomach, I pushed the watch once again which undoed the stopped time and it turned back to which time was flowing to normal again.
After time flowed normally, my right foot reached his stomach, giving him one hell of a kick.
He spouted saliva instead of blood which did not get me satisfied, so I stopped time again before he could finish another sentence and gave him another kick to his side using my left leg and before my left leg landed, I pushed the watch once again, undoing the stopped time.
And when time flowed back to normal, my left leg reached his side and gave him another hell of a kick.
He spout blood from his mouth, and it gave me little satisfaction. And my kick also got him to fly away on a distance.
I breathed in after giving him two kicks and said..
"That's not enough.."
I wasn't satisfied yet so I need to beat him up more. And this isn't just for myself, it's also for all of the people that he's murdered and victimized on his entire plan just to kill me. But, it looks like.. I'll be the one that's going to kill him.
I approached him slowly and menacingly while feeling the bloodlust.
"S-Stay away!!", he shouted after seeing me in a distance.
"I thought you're a Reaper? Is this a behavior of a Reaper? To be afraid, of a human being?", I asked him in a low tone voice.
"I-I said stay away! I-I got the cards!", he shouted.
"What cards?", I asked.
"I'm holding them hostage, so you can't touch me—"
Before he could finish his sentence, I stopped time and dashed towards him and gave him another kick. Repeating the process of undoing time again, the kick that I gave him on his face made him spout more blood from his mouth and nose. He also got a bruise from his face.
"Could you check the cards once more?", I asked.
After asking the question, Jack immediately checked the cards and after taking a look at it, he immediately realized that the cards don't have connection towards his powers. Unabling him to slice/murder the Amelia's.
"Wh-What did you do?!", he asked.
"I just made a duplicate, that's all."
"W-When did you...."
He stopped his words and after some time he said..
"I see.. No wonder the Empress calls you.... The Time Gremlin."
"Empress..? Time Gremlin..? What are you talking about?"
"The Empress that I served, was the one who ordered me to eliminate you and send your soul into the Underworld. So that you will be punished from your sins!"
"Sins? What are you talking about?"
"Don't try to hide it Watson, the Empress knows everything... About you."
Empress huh... According to the word 'Empress' which is the female term of the word Emperor, it proves that a woman ordered Jack to eliminate me. And she somehow knows about my past. And yet, I still can't trust what Jack is saying.
After Jack told me those things he suddenly started to grin as he was looking behind me.
And after realizing that he was just stalling me, I stopped time again before turning around.
After I turned around, I saw roots that had spikes on it.
'So this is what he used on the other me.. Too bad it can't move in stopped time.', I thought to myself.
I started to point out the possibilities that will occur after I undo the stopped time. Will it chase me after I avoid it? Or will it go straight towards him after I avoid it?
I could choose one from both of these possibilities, but like Holmes said...
'Always think in 4 dimensions, Watson.'
After remembering the advice, I brought out my gun and started shooting at stopped time. The bullets flew towards the specific areas on which I targeted for a millisecond and stopped after it followed the laws of physics.
After shooting the bullets, I also chose the option of avoiding it just in case if the root is stronger than the bullet.
I undoed time again and watch the scenario happen.
The bullets were in fact weaker than the roots, but it also gave it momentum or friction that made the roots focus on one direction. Which is.. Jack's current position.
"AAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!", he screamed as the roots stabbed him on both face and shoulders.
"Ahh, the scream of pain. It always give me pleasure whenever I hear it from a murderer.", I said.
Jack, while still grieving in pain due to the roots on both his face and shoulders, he tried to grab his scythe which was meters away from him.
I thought it was impossible but the scythe suddenly floated up and flew towards him.
He managed to take his scythe back, but with those wounds and injuries that I gave him. He had a hard time to move or even stand up...
"Y-You.... You'll.... You'll pay for this... W-Watson....!!!", he screamed.
"Try me.", I said.
He snapped his fingers which erased the roots on his face and shoulders, after doing do he dashed towards me with incredible speed. But before he could reach me, I stopped time and gave him a kick on the face.
After time flowed back to normal again, it made him flew away for a couple distance, but this time he was able to land using his feet and hands. He dashed towards me again after landing, but I stopped time once more.
"This guy's persistent... Just like my assistant.", I said.
I gave him 6 kicks on his entire body before undoing time back to normal.
It gave him blows and the last one that I gave him which was on the stomach blew him up on the sky.
I stored up energy on my legs and jumped really high, high enough that I was able to outrun the speed of how fast Jack was flying up.
After reaching on top of him, I gave him the last and final blow which I called, Groundpound.
As the name says it, I kicked him on the stomach while we were on the atmosphere and pushed him downwards and with the help of gravity, it pulled us back down to the ground.
Due to the added strength on my legs, I was able to add more impact on his body when it reached the ground.
Making him spout blood even more than earlier and break more than 50 bones on his body.
It also resulted the ground to create a small yet deep crater-like form.
After doing my final move, he was still breathing which was good news to me. Since I wanted him to be alive so that I can beat him up even more next time..
"I-It... L-lo....", Jack was trying to say something but due to his injuries and loss of blood, he had a hard time pronouncing one word.
"What?", I asked as I breathed in and out heavily.
"You... Win, W-Watson....", he said while struggling.
"I won from the very beginning.", I said in response.
"However..... This is just..... The beginning.", he said.
"What do you mean by that?"
"My.... My... My E-Empress.... Will... Come for you...."
Despite having a hard time pronouncing a word, he's still trying his best to tell me something. That is one thing that I am able to commend to him.
"Who's this Empress?", I asked.
After asking the question, he started to smile despite having broken teeth and said..
"You'll.... Meet her.... Soon...."
"Huh?? Just tell me what her name is."
Jack no longer tried to say another word and his eyes started to close slowly.
"Hey! Hey hey hey! Don't you dare die on me! You're a Reaper right?? Reaper's should have tougher bodies right???", I asked desperately to wake him up.
But it was no use since his eyes are completely closed shut. I leaned towards him with caution and checked his pulse, but there was nothing..
"He.... He died...", I said.
'How did he die...? Did I overdo it...? I thought he's a Reaper...?', those questions flowed into my mind.
After some time thinking, I remembered about a book that I read once. Grim Reaper's have Astral or Spiritual bodies, which normal humans don't see. But Jack was physically present in this world..
After some time thinking, I came to a conclusion.
Jack was an Astral Body all along, but he acquired a physical body by possessing a human and killing its soul. And since it's been a month since he stayed on that body, it somehow connected his spirit and physically body, resulting to have the ability to feel physical pain..
After analyzing and realizing everything, I knelt down in despair and said..
"I see... So in the end... I'm the one who lost.... Because...."
Tears started to fall in my eyes.
"I... Couldn't save all the humans... That he reaped...."
Yes, I was only able to save myself and the 6 Amelia's. The others that he reaped in killed for month, which I thought he placed the souls on the cards, are now all in the Underworld...
After realizing my defeat, I grit my lip and gripped my fist as hard as I could...
"DAMN IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!", I shouted as loud as I could, not being able to endure the pain and anger.
After I shouted, the soldiers that were on standby suddenly came. Maybe they thought it was my signal that I told them..
But it wasn't, it was just... My pain and anger.
I may have won from the others perspectives, but I know that... I lost.