At what moment, do we realize, that fear is always present, no matter what we believe. We see people who are constantly saying they fear nothing, being that there's nothing left to fear. These people, they've closed themselves off to their emotions, failing to realize that there is everything to fear. When they realize this, when you break through this mental barrier in which they are in perfect solitude, this solitude is shattered, and a like a man protected his whole life, soon realizes that he has lived through nothing, that he has been pampered, sheltered, and given everything he has desired.

Any man or woman, surrounded by fear, will realize that they are in hell. To unleash this hell, you must not dive into darkness, but rather beyond it. Then, we may bask in their suffering, fear, pain, hate... and may other sins in which they would rather pretend that they do not exist. That is the beauty of finding a fear that even a person does not know he has. Upon finding it, his will is your will. You are in complete control. His mind will be so twisted after being shattered, that anything may be possible. This... is Death.

Around seven years ago, a group of students got off a plane, infamously known as Flight 180. A teenager freaked out and caused a scene, knowing the plane would explode. Other students and a teacher followed, curious as to what was going on. Minutes later... the plane exploded in the air. These seven people survived... but Death soon came after them. One by one, they were taken down in the order they would have died.

Three years later, a freeway accident occurred in which a woman had a vision, just as the survivor of 180 did. She blocked traffic, saving some people. Once again, one by one, the people who would have died had they not "cheated" death began to die in the order they would have died. They enlisted the help of the only survivor left from the Flight 180 incident to help them. She soon died, doing whatever she could. Only two truly survived: an officer and the woman who had the vision. She sacrificed herself and was later resuscitated, ruining deaths plan.

Three years after that, an incident of the same kind occurred at a carnival. A woman had a vision that a roller coaster would crash. 10 people survived. Seven soon died in following events. What happened to the other three survivors is unknown. They have not been seen in some time.

We focus on the story of another... a man named Daniel Raimi. This man isn't exactly a victim... it seems that he shall be, though. This person has a gift though, a gift that could possibly save him and others. Other saw signs, visions, clues, whatever you may call them. However, he is a step ahead, for he can see death. He can see his shadow, stalking those who will die prematurely. It is his purpose to attempt to save them. However, he will soon realize that Death does not like those who interfere, and that those who interfere who are not on his list? Well... let's just say that the rules of Death can be bent by the creator.

The street was lonely with only a few people traversing back and forth between cars, buildings, and other concrete or metal creations. Some people talked, others just passing by each other. Daniel was the only one who was still in the midst of the crowd, waiting silently in a car, a '01 Honda Accord, watching everyone who passed by. He was young, a high school graduate, and looked even younger by about four years.

He had a face that seemed innocent, but was more or less nothing more than a mask. Although he seemed normal and happy, you could see into his light eyes that he held secrets and felt pain. He was slim, but well built with his size. He was average in height, but lean in body. As such only his appearance was normal. His personality could have been seen as paranoid and uneasy. There were times he would seem perfectly happy and then at a moments notice, he would be cold and cruel.

Daniel grabbed his soda and sipped from the straw, still looking for any signs of abnormalities. The soda was cool and refreshing, but it lost its fizz, which made it less appealing than earlier. Daniel groaned groaned quietly as he set it back in the cup holder, waiting patiently for even the smallest thing unusual to happen. For an hour he had waited, and it seemed that nothing significant would happen.

"Why am I even bothering with this?" he muttered under his breath. "I should be taking a vacation."

The wind soon picked up. Daniel gasped silently to himself as he gripped the door handle, preparing for a quick exit if he had to. He looked around, but nothing was happening. He growled silently as he leaned back into his seat. He rested his head on his hand as he let out an annoyed sigh.

"Forget it. I should just leave."

With that, he leaned forward and turned the keys for the ignition. The struggled for a second and then soon let out a brief roar of life. Daniel smiled as he leaned back and adjusted the rear-view mirror. He grabbed it and ever so slightly tilted it to the side. It was no sooner that a shadowy figure quickly scurried by, Daniel's eyes widened as he spun around. The shadow was gone... but only to his eyes. Daniel quickly turned back around and shut off the car.

"Shit... and I was hoping for a break."

Daniel looked around for the curtain of darkness to show up again. So now he knew someone would die here. His intuition was correct, which gave him both comfort and dread at the same time. It was now that he asked himself the questions: who, what, where? Who: the victim. What: the object or objects that would kill the victim. Where: where exactly in the vicinity would the victim die? He knew that he wouldn't have much time. He could identify the victim easily whenever he saw the dark entity near any given person.

He looked around, hoping to find signs that would help him. Out in the open, anything could be a sign: broken glass, shorting circuits, and even signs were signs. He knew the trick: finding objects that correlate with each other. To find them, he had to find what seemed wrong and out of place. This was of course, always easier said then done. His eyes darted from sign to sign, object to object, and place to place.

There was a slight crackle and sizzle, caused by a surge of electricity. He glanced to the side and saw a body shop sign. His eyes narrowed as he stared at it. The sign, illuminated by light, began to flicker. Daniel had the hunch that it was definitely a clue... or at least a possibility. The picture depicted the car traveling at a fast speed, smoke trailing behind it. The slogan: WE DON'T STOP 'TIL WE DROP DEAD! Daniel nodded to himself.

There's the what... not exactly original.

He looked around, hoping to find the person. it was soon that he saw the shadows moving. He stared at them. It waited above a car and a light-post. Daniel stared intensely. He knew that the who probably owned it. But was that the car that would cause the death? Would it be an accident on the road? Daniel groaned silently as he slowly got out of the car.

Maybe it won't be as simple as it looks.

He looked around, hoping to find a being approach the car. He found the victim. A young woman, a year or two older than he was, began to walk outside and towards the car. She had short blonde hair, a lightly pale face, and was heavily dressed, wearing a winter coat, jeans, and scarf. She held a water bottle in her hand. Daniel nodded to himself. He closed the door to his car and began to approach the woman. She didn't notice him at first. Instead, she was preoccupied with her own problems apparently. She looked deep in thought. Daniel looked straight past her, more towards the shadowy figure of Death. Although he couldn't see a face, he could it staring at him. It had an odd, fearful, daunting gaze to it. He coughed quietly as he approached the woman.

"Excuse me?"

The woman turned her head towards Daniel with a somewhat surprised look. Obviously, she paid no attention to him before he called out to her. She looked younger up close then she did at a distance. He light green eyes seemed to stare at him with confusion.

"Yes?"

"Uh... listen, I wouldn't recommend driving yet."

"Oh?" she asked, half-sarcastic, half-curious. "And why would that be."

"I saw smoke rising from it earlier. I think their might be something wrong with the engine."

"Oh really? How do you know you saw smoke?"

"Well, I naturally assumed that-"

"As far as any of us can be concerned, it could have just been steam."

Daniel gave her a quizzical look. He might have been lying their, but he found that worse than his.

"Ma'am, you're wearing a scarf and coat. With that kind of clothing, you're thinking its warm enough for steam to come out?"

"Well, it's certainly cold enough for something to be visible."

Daniel fell silent. She had a point there. That was a plausible way to make sure he couldn't do anything. He knew she didn't think highly of him already and that she wanted to get away from him. He rose his hands up in a pleading manner.

"Listen, just let me make a quick inspection. I know my stuff. I work over at the body shop over there."

She leaned her head to the side, peeking over his shoulder to see him pointing at the shop with the sign he noticed. She narrowed her eyes.

"Really?"

"Yes... really."

She stared at him, dubious of Dan (even though he was lying, although it was for the better). He shrugged his shoulders and smiled nonchalantly. Soon, the woman nodded.

"Alright. You can give it a quick check."

"Thank you, ma'am."

"Just call me Diane. You are?"

"Daniel."

She smiled weakly and nodded. The two soon walked over to the car. When Daniel looked up, the shadow was gone. Daniel showed a slightly disturbed look. He groaned quietly.

Damn it... where did he go?

Diane placed the bottle on the roof unlocked the car door and moved inside. There was a pop as the hood opened. Daniel smiled weakly as he walked over to the hood. He opened it up and, for the sake of his lie, peered inside. As he did however, he heard a dripping sound. He grunted quietly as he peered in deeper. It didn't sound like it was inside, but... rather below him. He pulled his had back and looked at the ground. There was nothing. He peered back at the engine and the sound was gone. He grunted quietly. The engine seemed fine... based on what little mechanics he knew.

"It's looking good. Uh... hold on one second."

Daniel began to walk around, gently kicking the tires. One by one, he felt how firm they were. He groaned quietly as he scratched the back of his head. What would happened was all he could think about.

"It looks completely fine."

"Thank you. Guess I was right."

Daniel looked over at Diane and gave her an offended look. He nodded as he looked around. A car was driving by. A on the side of the road was snagged by the wheel. It whipped around, slashing at the air. He stared at it pensively. Somehow he had a bad feeling about that.

"Well... maybe I'll see you again sometime."

"I doubt it."

"You know, I think I agree with you," Daniel muttered to himself.

Daniel looked around one more time. He simply wanted to find death's hiding place. He was being sneaky and he knew that if he didn't find it soon enough, he couldn't help this... joking woman. He sighed quietly as he began to walk off. As he crossed the street, he looked up at a window. He saw car speed by, snagging someone by a jacket and pulling them down. He screamed out loud and spun around. All he saw was Diane staring at him with confusion. Daniel stared at her for several seconds and simply laughed nervously. He soon noticed the shadowy death floating around again. Soon, a breeze began to pick up. Diane stuck her head out and looked at him with disbelief.

"Are you alright?"

"Uh... yeah," Daniel said. "Just... seeing things."

She simply continued to stare at him. Soon, she opened the door and walked out.

"You don't look so well."

"I'm fine. Just... tired."

She shook his head. He began to back up as he rose a hand up and motioned for her not to follow. As she did, he noticed something seeping from under the car and spreading out towards her feet.

"Seriously... don't move."

"Why?"

"Just don't move, alright?!"

"Are you threatening me?" she asked, scoffing. "What are you gonna do?"

"It's not what I'm gonna do!"

"Wait... what you're not going to do? Who else is here?"

She suddenly began to sound panicked, sensing danger near her, although the wrong kind. Daniel rose his hands and back up.

"Not who... what."

She looked more confused then ever. She seemed hesitant to move. Daniel pointed down towards the ground. Diane looked down... and saw nothing. She rose her head and looked at him curiously.

"What? What is it?"

Daniel looked back down... and saw nothing. He grunted quietly as he shook his head. He sighed quietly. He chuckled and turned around. Diane simply stared at him as he walked off. Soon, the breeze picked up again, this time much stronger than before. Diane's scarf blew back towards the open engine. The hood began to bob because of the wind. The support holding hod up began to wiggle loose. Soon, the support collapsed and the hood feel down with it. The hood snapped shut, her scarf still in it. The water bottle has spilled as well, water dripping off and onto the ground. Diane swore under her breath as she turned around. She grunted loudly as she tried to undo her scarf. To her, it seemed to have gotten tighter.

"Damn these things, how hard can it be to undo a damn scarf?! It's one long cloth!"

She grabbed it and began to tug at it, hoping for it to tear. As she tugged the water underneath her shoes. As she tugged she leaned slightly back. Death soon came out of nowhere, rushing past Diane. The water underneath her shoe made her slip. She gasped out as she fell down. Daniel gasped out as he ran towards her. It seemed that right as he did, a car zoomed by, preventing him from moving forward. He could feel the wind fly by him. He tried to move forward and another car zoomed by.

"Damn it!"

He stared at Diane, as she seemed to be strangled by the scarf. It would normally be simple to get up, but she was panicking. He swore out loud as he just rushed forward. Another car zoomed by, narrowly missing him. He grunted out loud as he tripped forward. He quickly got to his feet as he ran over to Diane again. He grabbed the scarf tried to pull out the scarf off of her neck. The fall tightened it like a knot. Even if he helped her up, she would still be strangled. He then grabbed it and tried to pull it out from the hood. It wouldn't tear.

"Fuck! Why won't it break?!"

He dashed into the car looked around, searching for what could possibly pop the hood open. As he felt around, he felt the wind again. He turned his head to the side, to see Death dashing forward right towards him. The shadowy force slammed right into the door, closing it right on his leg. He screamed out in pain as his arm flailed to the side as bodily reflex. His hand hit the shift, switching the car from park to drive. The car began to slowly lurch forward. Daniel grunted loudly as the wheel began to turn itself. Daniel rose his head to see a skeletal hand turning the wheel. Daniel did what he could to hit the brakes. As he tried, he found it impossible to do so. Something was stuck underneath, preventing it from being pressed down. He tried to feel around and pull it out,but his efforts were futile.

"The girl... is mine."

You son of a bitch!" Daniel muttered to himself.

Daniel soon felt the car begin to gradually accelerate. The car slowly drifted into another lane. He tried to grab the gear and put it into park. It was jammed and he couldn't put it back into place. He growled loudly. He continued to search around for the compartment to release it. He screamed out loud as his frustration grew. He looked and saw on the lane to his left a car approaching at a rather fast speed. He failed to notice the car drifting towards him. He suddenly kneed the compartment. He heard a click. The hood soon popped open and the scarf was released. The driver rose his head and saw the car. He hit the brakes as hard as he could.

Diane may have been free, but the car still drifted. Daniel pushed the passenger door open and jumped out of the other side. He landed with a hard thud and covered her head. The two cars collided. The car was forced to the side because of it. Chunks of glass flew from the windows. Without thinking, Daniel looked to the side and grabbed a shard of glass that was nearby. He grunted as he gripped it tightly. Blood began to run down his hand he ran towards Diane and used the glass to cut at the scarf. He cut as quickly as he could. Soon, he cut through the scarf, undoing it. He placed his fingers along her neck, feeling for a pulse. He could feel one, but it was weak. He cursed under his breath and he placed his ear next to her mouth. She wasn't breathing.

"Damn it!"

He looked to the side. He could see the shadowy figure slowly approaching them. He swore loudly to himself. Instantly, he began to perform CPR. He blew into her mouth and pressed her chest. He counted as he pushed each time. He blew into her mouth again and pushed again. The shadow that only he could see loomed closer and he tried to hurry.

"Breathe, damn it!"

Suddenly, out from the shadows, the bony, translucent hand of death began to appear, stretching out to touch Diane and take her soul. Daniel shouted out in frustration as he pushed again and again. The hand was close. Daniel could feel the cold atmosphere surrounding it as it stretched out by his ear. His breathing intensified as he tried one last time. Breathe... push... push... push... push... push... push... push.

A cough escaped Diane's mouth as she twitched. The shadow next to Daniel disappeared. Diane coughed roughly as she took in deep raspy breaths. Her eyes widened in shock and confusion, trying to figure out what had just happened. Daniel laughed loudly as a crowd of people began to gather around. Some were driven see Daniel and Diane's condition. Other's went to check up on the driver. His door opened and the driver lurched out. He gasped out as he staggered a bit, holding a bloody forehead. He brought his hand out and stared at the blood, looking some confused and disoriented. It wasn't much longer that he collapsed.

Daniel looked over at the man. The shadowy figure of Death appeared once again. The transparent hand came out of the shadowy body and seemingly grabbed the body. Soon, the hand began to pull out another entity from the body. Daniel grunted quietly to himself as he stared at what was going on. Once again, although he couldn't see it, he could feel the icy gaze of death upon him. He felt cold and fearful.

"A life for a life."

Daniel stared at Death as he soon disappeared, the other spiritual body with it. Daniel shook his head as the crowd began to larger. He heard various people calling for help, some screaming it, some saying it into phones.

"Shit... what just happened?" Daniel asked himself.

"W-what's going on?!" Diane exclaimed weakly.

Daniel looked back at Diane. She looked disoriented and panicked. Daniel looked around, suddenly noticing the position of the cars. Diane was no more than a foot away the tire of the dead man's car. If he hadn't freed Diane, her head would have been crushed. He looked back at Diane.

"You were almost in an accident. You were being dragged by your car and... and you nearly choked and... you almost died two or three different ways."

Diane groaned silently as she soon fell unconscious. She let out a silent breath and closed her eyes. Daniel stared at her for several seconds. He rose his head and looked around. People were in bedlam over the incident. They didn't know what to think. The dead body soon caught everyones attention. He didn't know exactly what to do, but he had a thought in mind: get out of the vicinity. He quickly got to his feet and ran. He ran as quickly as he could, wanting to get away from what just happened.