Vindictive: Chapter 1: I am Death
The first thing I felt wash over me was a drowsiness...not the drowsiness I get from when I just woke up...but...A drowsiness...from exhaustion...I felt drained...tired beyond belief...Yet I had the need...to get up...wake up from my slumber...I rub my eyes and immediately grab my back.
My back is weak you see...It's the equivalent of an eighty year old man's back...It's what happens when you play football...not my choice but, whatever. The reason I have this pain is because I'm actually not in a bed...I'm on a cold hard floor...I look down and I'm slightly puzzled as to why the floor is pitch black.
...Huh...pitch black floors...I don't remember my room having that...maybe it's dark...
I take a look around and all I'm greeted by is debilitating fog surrounding background behind the fog is nothing but, the same pitch black coloring that greets me on the floor. It's...unnerving...
Ok, So I'm not in my room right now...I'm somewhere completely different.
The question is...where?
Ok calm down...Don't hyperventilate...There has to be a logical explanation for this...
Sweating slightly from the uneasiness of the situation I stand up a bit on shaky legs.
I look around myself but, no matter how hard I look I see nothing but, dense, heavy fog.
"Hello?" I call out to someone. Anything to find a sign of life besides myself-to no avail.
"What the hell is going on here?" I mumble as I walk forward hoping to find something other than blackness and fog. It's at this moment I realize I'm strangely wearing clothes I didn't go to sleep with.
I recognize the attire...It's a regular I always wear...but still...last time I remember I was just wearing boxers and a white-T for bed… Now, I'm wearing faded blue jeans with a pocket chain hanging from my left pocket. Black running shoes don my feet comfortably. People usually wear converse shoes but, I always wear athletic shoes. You never know when you'll need to run. I'm wearing a black pea coat unbuttoned at the moment with a Black Metallica shirt on.
"So why the hell am I wearing all this non-Pajama clothes now?" I ask myself in wonder.
"Those that approach their final fate wear what will be most suited for them." A hollow chilling voice said behind barely at the point above a whisper. I slowly turn around I'm so startled I can't even scream in surprise.
In front of me is a some sort of...I don't even know what it is. It's some sort of humanoid, a person floating in mid air. He's wearing a black tattered cloak that hides his face, his feet are invisible, nonexistent. And he's holding a sickle that is almost as long as his body, the bladed part looks as if it's sharpened and made of steel. There is a skull at the part where the blade and handle of the sickle connect...the skull is black...like the pole part of the sickle...It's being held by his thin bony, skeletal hand.
I want to scream but, my voice is stuck. I want to run but, my legs feel like jello. I want to look away but, my eyes refuse to leave the sight before me. What I'm looking at is a clear definition of what is truly irregular and bizarre.
"Rick Helgan..." My name...It knows my name...What else does it know? How the hell does it know my name?
"Rick,throughout your life you've been anything but, a person deserving of mercy...Throughout your life, the many sins you committed have done do nothing but outweigh the good deeds you have committed in your past life...therefore...I have come to cast judgement upon thee in the fairest way possible-an eternal damnation of your soul in the pits of hell."
Hell? Damnation? Sins? What in the actual fuck is this guy going on about? What is going on here!?...wait...maybe this is all a dream...a figment of my imagination?
"It is with the power invested in me by the dark lord in purgatory. The heavenly forces in heaven. And the unholy power in Hell, that I deem your sentence...Unworthy. You are unworthy to enter heaven for all of your sins..."
What? what, what, what, what, what the hell is this shit? What in the actual hell is going on? If this is a dream why does this seem so real!? This is one of the more vivid realistic dreams I've ever had of!
"And such,there is only one place deemed fit for someone of your circle of wrath in hell, where you will wallow in a fiery inferno of pain matching your unbridled bitterness and rage..." The cloaked being raised his scythe, descending on me...I want to run but, my legs feel frozen. I want to cry out in despair but, my throat is dry.
"You cannot avoid death...To live is to die...They are one and the same...much like time...And your time, Rick Helgan,Is up." The scythe descends on me. I feel time slowing down as my life flashes before my eyes.
Is this the end? Am I truly dead? Do I deserve hell?
'You deserve it but, that don't mean you don't gotta take it.' A voice foreign to me rings in my mind 'Tell me kid...do you wanna live?' The voice asked me.
Do I want to live?
...NO SHIT! Of course I wanna live I wanna-
'Do you want to know how you died? Who's responsible for your death? Don't you want revenge?...Are you feeling vindictive Mr. Helgan? Say yes and accept help and you will not descend into hell, this I promise you.'
Hmm...A voice in my head is offering help...Yes I wanna know how died, but it feels like I could be going crazy right now...\
I then look at the scythe slowing down as if the weight of the world were keeping it from splitting my skull in two...
Fuck it. Nothing ventured nothing gained.
"Alright fine!...I...I accept your help I want your help!"
'Do you also desire revenge?'
"Yeah sure why the hell not! Just save me dammi-
'Very well...' The voice replied almost...happily?
Suddenly I felt a surge...A cold shivering, icy surge of energy rushingthrough my body. Time sped up again as the scythe descended on me. On pure survival instinct I leaped out the way letting the blade of the scythe hit nothing but the black ground with a loud clang.
An awkward silence ensued for a few moments.
"What?" The cloaked man asked, clearly confused. He turned towards me "Howdid you dodge that?" He asked sounding perplexed. I just raised an eyebrow, not really understanding it myself.
"Um...A voice in my head?" I replied speaking as honestly as I could muster. His arms seemed to shake at that.
"You dare mock me..." He rumbled.
Oh shit did I piss him off?
"But I'm not-"
"NO ONE CAN ESCAPE JUDGEMENT! NO ONE CAN ESCAPE DEATH! SO HOW COULD YOU!?" He roared in a raspy voice as he ripped his scythe from the ground and flew towards me with a vengeance.
Freaking out that he was gonna try to behead me, I did something stupid.
I charged at him.
Why you may ask?
Well think of it this way, If I ran he would easily catch up with me and behead me, if I stood still He would behead me, and if tried to dodging it well...thinking on it now dodging may have been a smarter idea...screw it.
He seemed completely caught off guard that I rushed him though. So shocked that I tackled him to the ground...I know I've done sports but, was I always this strong? He seemed surprised as well as he struggled to get up with me on top.
But that didn't last long. Like a zombie out of a grave he slowly rose up pushing me off of him. Trying to get some sort of leverage so I don't become minced meat I held on to the pole part of his scythe. He holds on too, and suddenly it's a tug of war between the two of us...And he's winning.
'Cripes you're hopeless...Can't even beat this old bastard in a straight up brawl...Guess I gotta do everything for ya.' The voice rings out in my head. Suddenly I feel my muscles burning And I feel like I'm bursting with energy. Using this new found strength I begin getting the better of the tug of war.
"What are you...this is impossible!" The cloaked figure exclaims, but I just grumbled and glared at him.
"That's my question to ask!" I grunt fainting him out by suddenly pulling on the scythe with a huge jerk yanking it out of his hands.
Now what?
"You bastard! Return my scythe to me and accept your judgement!"
"HELL NO!" I yell back at him. He lunges at me anyways clearly enraged.
'Don't just stand there you dolt! Get that bony bastard!' I don't hesitate in following direction as I position my grip with the scythe in a swinging position and slice horizontally. My swing was so fast - I had no was so damn so strong. It was so fast in fact that it caught the cloaked menace off guard slicing him across his chest, black blood-like fluid splurting out of his new wound.
The wounded being howled in an ear splitting shriek that nearly blew My ear drums. I didn't have enough time to really wallow in pain as my opponent rushed at me once more despite his injury.
Not hesitating this time I cut down vertically with the scythe slicing the cloaked man's shoulder blade, going with the motion he whirled in a horizontal motion with the scythe and impaled it's blade into the Man's gut. He now began coughing splurting from his hooded cloak.
"Not...Possible...Im...possible..." He wheezed between haggard breaths, and coughing up blood. "You can't kill...me...I...am Death...The reaper of souls...Judge of everyone...I...I...I cannot be killed...this..." He kept no rambling on and on. He lost me at Death...This guy?...Is death...?...something like this...should be impossible.
He says I'm to die...He has a scythe...a black cloak I can't see past...Not knowing where I am...wait...if Death is here then does that mean...?
"I REFUSE THIS FATE!" Death shrieked as morbid sight appeared before my very eyes. He ripped himself in half. The part of him that was impaled on the blade of my scythe remained on it...however, the upper half of his body. Death tackled me to the ground as old withered hands appeared from his sleeves forcibly wrapped themselves around my neck to strangle what life I had out of me!
I frantically grab his hood! Vision...getting hazy...most likely due...to...lack of oxygen...I rip off his hood...and I see a withered form of skeletal skull snarling down on to me.
"ACCEPT YOUR JUDGEMENT!"
"FUCK YOUR JUDGMENT!" I roar with adrenaline pumping in me as I sock him right in his bony face. It hurt my hand like hell since it was flesh meeting bone but, I grit through. Suck it up. Where is the scythe!? OH about five meters away! DIVE! GRAB! Face that mother-oh shit!-
"DIE!" He roars as much as his raspy voice allows him. On instinct I swing the scythe right into his upper chest,black blood oozing out. Death stops moving and slumps over on the blade...Oh god that is just disgusting. I feel the bile rushing to my throat as I drop the scythe and slowly back away from my would be killer now victim….
Dear God what have I done.
Oh who the hell am I kidding it was self defence...Right?...s-so therefore I was in the right to kill him...Wait...Why his body starting burn...strange...I don't remember fire being black...
My mind seems to stop when Death's body, well if I can call it a body anymore since it starts to disintegrate.The flames continue to burn until his black cloak is ashes, revealing what's left of his skeletal body. His skull is still intact...which is facing me on the ground in an upright position...It's hollow eye holes boring into me.
I feel unsettled as I see the scythe sticking out of his fleshless ribs...nothing but, bone.
This has to be a dream. It has to be a dream. There's no other explanation as to what happened here.
I mean come on it has to be since the skull of the skeleton is slowly turning itself to stare at me with nothing but, it's sockets.
"You fool. Do you have any idea of anything that you have done." The skeleton rasps out in wheezes. "You...You've unleashed a possible chain of events that cannot...be undone-" Whatever this...thing use to be it sounds old as he chokes on those last set of words before continuing. All the while I'm praying to whatever higher power there is that this is still a dream. While I'm doing this he continues.
"It's almost sad yet fitting...For me to be killed by a babe of a new bathed in the naivety of the trials and burdens that they have no idea will be forced on them...You young poor...fool." I swear I can almost hear some pity in that voice, which is bizarre in itself since I'm pretty much responsible for his current state. His pause in dialogue however allowed me to ask the elephant in the room question.
"...Is this a dream?" I ask with hesitation. After I ask, there's a pregnant pause for about thirty seconds, not a single sound from either of us. This silence is shattered as soon as I hear wheezing from the skeleton that calls itself Death. The wheezing turns into hacking and coughing until, it finally resembles something close to...laughter?
As soon as he finishes he says one final thing to me. "When all is said and done...You will wish it was."
And 'Death' grows silent. Permanently. Call me superstitious but, when someone as old and frail looking as a skeleton like him grows silent after getting impaled into his stomach and not say anything after staring at him for a full five minutes you have a feeling he's no longer of this world...That's just me though.
So here I stand in what is 'apparently' and a dream with me wearing nothing but, a pair of faded jeans, my black Nike running shoes, and grey Metallica shirt, with a scythe lying a few feet away from me.
This might be a good place for a new chapter. The action has finished and hte reader has a sense of the scene being over. Even though the story continues, and builds right away, it would be good to have a pause where the reader can gather what happened. This first section is really meaty with a lot of action and new things, so a break to process and break it up might be useful.
Then, I notice, the skeleton is burning again.
This time I see black flames sprouting up around his body leaving a very heavy smoking scent to purfeate the area. Which seems bizarre since there seems to be a whole lot of nothing but black here.
Anyways slowly yet surely the skeleton's remains is being burned away into nothing but, ashes as smoke is forming above it's body...wait...that's not smoke...Is it?
No wait that's not smoke at all. Smoke is black and that shit is white right there. But, it can't be steam can it?
"WH-UUURRRGHH!?" I grunt unexpectedly because as fast as I can breathe part of this white smoke rushes into my body. I look at my hands with wide eyes as this white smokey substance is seeping into my skin, leaving a cool sensation to enrapture my body. The other part of this smoke...seeps into where I believe the ground is...it's hard to tell with everything being so black colored.
Other than shock I feel fine from this exchange which is odd. So now I just need another million dollar question answered.
WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED?
"Heheheheheheheheh...Wouldn't you like to know kid?"
My body flinches at the voice that had been harrying me since my arrival here. I look frantically in all of my directions trying to discern where it came from, now that I have the time. While looking for this invisible newcomer I quickly deduce what I can of the voice.
The voice wasn't that Death fellow that I just saw go poof in white smoke. Couldn't be. Death's voice was raspy and withered. Almost old and frail.
This voice was a different ball game altogether. It was filled with energy, but snide and taunting, with nasally undertone.
It's almost as if he is talking down to me with condensation.
In immediate response, the voice says,"It's Cause I AM talking you down with condensation Ricky boy!"confirming two things for me.
One: He not only knows my name.
Two: He somehow knew exactly what I was thinking.
So this proposes a conundrum that I don't believe I feasibly have an answer for. How is this even possible?
"Wellll it could be possible if I were in ya head, dontcha think? Which I am-OH! You're welcome by the way for helping you kill tall, old, and bony earlier. It was no big deal really."
I feel like this guy may have answered several questions I had earlier. But, I fear now I may have more questions than ever.
"Not my fault you're clueless and keep over thinking things."
"Are you expecting me to suddenly know everything in this crazy situation I've been thrusted into?" I declare finally addressing him to get to the bottom of this mess.
"No but, It's pretty damn annoying that I have to deal with it Nonetheless."
"How's that my fault exactly?" I retort my annoyance growing.
"IT'S YA FAULT CAUSE I SAY IT IS WISE ASS!"
"Why, cause your word is law?" I bite back with a raised eyebrow.
"DAMN RIGHT IT IS KID! CUASE I KNOW MORE ABOUT YOUR SITUATION THAN YOU DO YOURSELF I'M THE ONE WITH THE CARDS!"
I get that but, why does he have to shout so damn loud. My head is practically ringing.
"Cause I'm in your head remember? I think I mentioned this before?"
"Ok Wise ass but, what exactl-
I wish I could have finished my sentence but, unfortunately a rather unexpected event prevented me from doing so.
It felt like an earthquake if I were to be honest with ya. But, I'm not sure that would be an accurate description. You know how I mentioned the entire area I'm in is nothing but, pitch black darkness?
That's no longer the case.
Allow me to take a page from Chicken little's book and say that the sky is falling cause, not only is the ground shaking the sky is fucking falling from above. Shards of black fragments from well, I guess the ceiling are now falling down from above and are shattering on impact of the black floor. If that isn't enough, the floor is falling as well. Likewise with the ceiling the floor is falling from around me. and In place of the black shards are blinding white lights from above and below. It's almost as if the heavens themselves are shining light into this dark realm. I would almost feel happy at the sight if I didn't think there wasn't a chance of me dying in the process.
Proof that I can die? Well a piece of the black falling ceiling shattered to sharp glass like pieces that sliced my arms that I used to cover my face from the explosion of glass. I can now see small lines of blood coming from my forearms now.
Now imagine if that got in my eyes. Yeah that's a chilling thought.
"Y'wanna know what else is chilling kid? What's gonna happen to you if you don't move your ass into first gear! Bolt it!"
"Believe me I have no desire to die! The problem is I don't know where!" I all but, shout trying to keep calm in this situation which is quickly falling apart...no pun intended.
"Run to your right! Run for all ya worth kid! NOW!" The being voice booms and resonates in my skull loud enough for me to wince in slight discomfort.
Doesn't mean I'm not gonna listen to him.
As he so aptly put it, I run for all I'm worth, (which I guess at this point isn't much) and try to navigate my way through the falling ceiling and ground. No easy feat mind you, when your life or lack thereof is on the line. I think I've only been running for about 30 seconds and I feel like I've run a marathon.
A situation that could mean life or death in instant if fate decides to go against me and cause part of the glass 'ceiling to crash down on top of me. I almost think for a very brief moment until a light at the end of the tunnel...
...quite literally. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I'll admit I almost had a panic attack since all the other light on the ceiling and floor obviously didn't mean anything good. Those lights however were different due to color. The light on the floor and ceiling held a golden like tint to them. This light is almost silvery white in a way.
"There it is Ricky boy! Our ticket outta here! Move your ass!" The voice booms.
A grunt is all that I offer in a reply as I make a mad dash towards my supposed escape.
And promptly fall.
Luckily despite the shock and dread that comes with the floor suddenly coming up to my chest I have the blessed reaction to grab onto the floor. Despite this I can feel the black glass shards cutting into my painfully.
I REFUSE to let go however. I'd be the biggest fool in the world to. That doesn't stop blood from seeping out of my palms however.
"Quit pussyfooting around and climb dumbass! If you don't hurry we're history!"
"It's not like I WANT to die asshole!" I growl in frustration as I begin to see blood streaming down my wrists. I hiss in pain but, bite down remembering that my life is on the line. With adrenaline pumping my veins in desperation I pull myself up on the on the black floor. Not before cutting my left leg slightly on one of the shards, making me bite my lip hard enough to draw blood.
Once I'm back on somewhat solid ground I make a break for the same silvery white light. It appeared so, so close.
I couldn't help but, yelp in pain as another part of the ceiling fell on the black floor exploding with pieces of the black like glass substance. A few of the damn black shards cut my cheek and shoulder tearing into my shirt. I growl like wounded animal and even stumble a bit, not used to be sliced up in so many places. My hands, leg, shoulder and face? What's next?
"Forget the pain! Just keep going jackass!"
"I am you fuckwit!" I roar back at the peanut gallery in my head. This asshole isn't getting sliced up, so he can shut the hell up.
Besides, I think my exit is getting closer!
Ignoring the sound of breaking glass and black shards falling everywhere I sprint like hell is hot on my heels towards the bright door. I'm nearly blinded by the how bright it is but I run forward regardless. The ground leaves me and I'm falling as soon as I'm in the light. I think I was screaming before my vision seemed to fail me.
"Haaaaaaaaaah" The voice sighed almost in relief. "Great job Ricky boy...You just took your first step into God hood...though I doubt it'll be an easy road for you to drive on...heheheh...Like the old saying goes. Out of the frying pan and into the fire eh, kid? Just like old times."