Beyond Death ( Part 1 )
A wide shadow swept over the military van inside the tunnel, an ominous harbinger that sent a chill down Marcus's (the driver )spine.
He barely registered the creeping dread before the world erupted around him.
The massive scythe cleaved through the upper body of the driver's cabin with a bone-rattling force, the metallic shriek of tearing metal echoing through the tunnel like a death knell.
The van shook dangerously, nearly flipping onto its side, saved only by the sturdy walls of the tunnel that absorbed the impact.
Marcus hit the ground hard, the breath knocked from his lungs, but there was no time to recover.
Before he could scramble to his feet, the scythe swung back in his direction, its edge gleaming with deadly intent.
"So this is the end for me," he thought, a heavy resignation settling in.
He closed his eyes, bracing for the sickening slice that would end it all. But as moments stretched on, the anticipated impact never came.
Cautiously, he opened his eyes, confusion flooding his senses. To his shock, he was still intact, his body unharmed.
The massive, spectral creature had soared past him, a harbinger of doom now focused on the Warrior mage, a new target in its grim sight.
"Carol, I said open these damn cuffs!" Jack's frantic shout cut through the surreal stillness, snapping her back to the reality of their dire situation.
He turned just in time to see the Soul Reaper hovering through the air, its very presence a terrifying specter.
The Dread Ghost had long held the crown of nightmares, but the Soul Reaper was a close contender. Cloaked in a shadowy veil that obscured its true form, it was crowned with a golden crown that dripped a thick, dark ichor—an unsettling symbol of its malevolence.
Towering like a colossus, it rivaled the Dread Ghost in size, its form both ethereal and horrifying.
As it moved, Jack watched in horror as multiple afterimages of the creature flared and faded in its wake, creating a disorienting effect that played tricks on the mind.
Each ripple in its wake felt like a whisper of death, a prelude to the chaos that was about to unfold.
Jack's heart raced, panic igniting his instincts.
The Soul Reaper was closing in on the Warrior mage, who stood poised, axe in hand, ready to confront the looming horror.
"Move it Carol!" Jack yelled again, urgency lacing his voice as he struggled against the cuffs that bound him.
As if this whole scene wasn't enough to deter Jack from wanting to get into a tangle with it , the System decided to go crazy on him by revealing the stats on this new beast.
[
System Information
Name
Soul Reaper
Origin
The World of Praiyas
Threat Level - 10
]
Then his System sweetened the deal , as it had with Caesar , this time even throwing a countdown into the mix .
[
System Information
New Quest ; Defeat Soul Reaper
Expected rewards ; Summoning tickets x3 , Points 400 , Soul Reaper crown x1 , Soul Reaper Cloak x 1
Remaining Time - 00:20:00:00
]
" CAROL ! " this time Jack thundered.
The woman had hit her head badly when the van was attacked, and was finding it hard to concentrate her senses on anything. She weakly threw the bunch at him.
" The long one ," she said.
He quickly sorted through them , trying out two similar looking keys. The second one worked and the cuffs dropped to the ground.
He was free just in the nick of time as immediately after , one of the Wailing Hounds landed on the boot.
It too, had the dehydrated traits of the hound that had first tried to jump them , which now became the obvious signs of possession by the Soul Reaper. That was the reason they were so well coordinated.
Jack didn't know exactly how it happened , but he found himself thrusting the sword that he had gained from the System through the throat of the beast , in the same spot he had pierced to kill the other hound at the company building.
It was a hallmark of how fast he was progressing , taking out the monster even before it had time to let out one of its signature wails..
The System gave him a notification of having gained an additional 50 points , all of them now summing up to 150.
He tried to upgrade his personal attribute of Durability , but the System declined , informing him that the attribute required actual experience to level up. The same went for Strength.
He took the next best alternative and boosted his stamina up a level.
Having done this , he pulled up a summary of all his current stats , keen to know everything before he threw himself into the chaos brewing before him.
[
System Information
Personal Attributes :
Strength - Level 2 Speed - Level 4 Durability -Level 2 Stamina - Level 2
Talents:
1) Rejuvenation - Stage 1 ,level 3
2) Perception - Max level
3) Constricted Surface - Stage 1 ,level 2
4) Flowing Paradise - Stage 1 , level 1
Artefacts:
Excalibur - Refinement rank 1
Points left - 0
]
Killing the Soul Reaper would net him 400 points, and if he could manage to take down Caesar, that would earn him an extra 550. The thought of amassing such points sent a thrill through Jack; it could elevate his unlocked talents to levels he had only dreamed of.
"Time to grind," he muttered, vaulting off the remaining door of van and gripping his sword tightly, adrenaline surging through him.
He reminded himself that Constricted Furnace, unlike his other talents, had a grueling cooldown of four hours. He needed to save it for the right moment—he couldn't afford a mistake now.
Flowing Paradise was a new talent with promise, but he had yet to gauge its stamina consumption rate. He needed to be careful; every decision could mean life or death in this nightmare.
"Aiko, is the Soul Reaper creating all these zombies?" he shouted, slashing through the desiccated husks that surrounded the van, their hollow eyes staring back at him.
"Bossman is correct," Aiko confirmed, her voice steady amid the chaos. "The scythe it carries has the power to turn living beings into undead slaves."
"How does it work? Is it something I can avoid?" Jack grunted, cutting down another zombie that lunged for him.
"The scythe cuts through all physical matter except for bodies with living souls. When it attacks the living, it bypasses the flesh and strikes at the hidden soul itself," she explained.
Jack felt a flicker of dread at the implications, especially when no rewards appeared for dispatching the undead zombies.
"No, Jack! That's Marcus!" Carol screamed, her voice piercing through the din of battle.
His heart dropped as he spun to see what he'd done.
In his blind fury, he had sent his sword flying past the neck of a zombie, but the realization hit him like a brick: it had been Marcus the driver.
The grim reality was crashing down around him, and he struggled to reconcile the bloodshed with the thrill he felt. For some strange reason, amidst the horror, he was alive and exhilarated—the same intoxicating rush he had felt when facing the Dread Ghost.
Across the battlefield, the Warrior mage faced off against the Soul Reaper, his smile wide as he clashed his big heavy axe against the creature's scythe. The impact reverberated through the tunnel, and he felt the weight of the fight in his bones. The Reaper's bony hands—presumed weak without flesh—delivered a punch that sent shockwaves through the mage, both surprising and impressing him.
"Finally, a worthy opponent!" the mage bellowed, the blade of his axe glowing red hot before he swung again at the Soul Reaper.
The beast hissed, dodging the blow with an eerie grace, but not before the mage felt a surge of victory; the creature had flinched, even if it hadn't been wounded.
"Wanna cry now?" the mage taunted, laughter echoing as he pursued the drifting monster. "Float around all you want; I'm not going anywhere!"
Jack's breath quickened as he tried to keep track of the fight. "Aiko, how do you defeat a Soul Reaper?" he asked, desperation creeping into his tone.
"Aiko does not know," she replied, her tone grim. "The Soul Reapers from my world are so rare and powerful that no one has ever defeated one."
The mage flung his axe at the Reaper in a reckless display of confidence, but the creature dodged effortlessly, leaving the weapon to smash into the concrete ceiling above, causing chunks of debris to rain down. With Jack's heart racing, he had to dodge several falling cars coming down with the broken ceiling, retreating back to the military van as a massive cave-in threatened to bury him.
As the dust settled, Jack squinted through the haze, his stomach sinking at the sight before him. The mage's axe lay on the ground, the blade red hot and searing the concrete around it, while the Reaper's scythe was embedded halfway through the mage's chest.
Jack's breath hitched as he watched the skin on the warrior's face drain of color, turning ghostly grey.
"Aiko, we're fucked, right?" Jack said, dread pooling in his gut as he realized the dire situation.
"Bossman is right," she said, her voice barely a whisper amidst the chaos.