There came a point in every person's life where they found themselves stuck in a situation with little in the way of an obvious escape. Usually that situation was a metaphorical one, like being stuck with addiction or a dead-end job. For Raziel, his situation was a lot more literal.
"Where the fuck am I going?"
Twist after twist after turn after backtrack, he had completely underestimated just how massive Beacon Academy was. Offices gave way to bathrooms which gave way to classrooms back to offices and then somehow led to yet another hallway filled with doors. Sometimes the doors even led to loops of themselves, with a closet leading to a bathroom which led to a dorm which had the same closet he had just entered.
It didn't help that he had no idea how this place was supposed to be laid out, having never been to Beacon in the Material World. He had zero sense of his position regarding the entirety of the Academy, leaving him more clueless about his path than he could have ever thought. He couldn't even trust stairs anymore, as each stairwell had double doors at the top and bottom. It had been a very aggravating experience, walking down a staircase only to leave through a door which led back to the same hallway he had just left.
At the very least, he was narrowing down where he needed to go. Each claw mark on a door meant another dead-end, and as he was forced through dead-end after dead-end, he was slowly increasing the odds that the next door would be the one he needed. Probably.
It was with that idea in mind that Raziel pulled open the door to some random supply closet, stepping inside automatically before stopping in his tracks once he saw the room now before him.
Massive and burned. Those were the first two words that came to mind as he observed the twisted form of the Amphitheater. The blackened bodies of what were presumably once the souls of students now left burned into the very architecture, flesh blackened as they stood frozen in time, caught trying to crawl away from the center. The walls were at the wrong angles, spreading out near the base and converging near the top where a metal plate sat, a chain hanging at the center of it. Not that it was the only chain, of course. Several dozen chains lined the walls, thick and sturdy as they all converged at the center of the room where a flat arena lay raised above the floor. The chains all wrapped together into a cocoon of sorts, which hung above the arena.
Raziel walked forward, the ground crunching under his feet as he stepped on some of the many scorched carcasses which covered the room in its entirety save for the arena. He could hear their screams still; the souls of the students having been trapped within their own charred bodies. They begged at him, wailing from within their prisons.
Help us!
Save us!
Beware!
Fear the Maiden of Fire!
Run!
Get help!
The Wizard lied!
He ignored them, hands tightening into fists as he stepped up onto the arena. The chains above him groaned as whatever was held within sensed his presence, steam rushing through the gaps of the chains and bathing the Amphitheater in a smoldering heat.
The bones on his arms pointed down towards his wrists, his reavers bursting into existence as the chain began to rattle.
"AAAAAAAAAUUUUUGGGGHHHHHH!"
A pained bellowing shook the entire room, the cries of all the fallen souls going quiet as the many chains strained to hold whatever was inside. Light began to pierce the thick metal of the chains, a miniature sun forming within as the walls shook, the chains finally giving out as the cocoon exploded in a ball of fire.
A shield formed between him and the explosion, chunks of molten metal slamming against it before falling to the ground as the smoke cleared. Floating down from where the cocoon once hung was a creature made of cooled molten rock, its body feminine in shape as it touched the ground. Chains were still wrapped around the creature, but not in such a way that they bound it. Instead, they hung limply all around it, the creature turning its smooth face towards him.
And then, it screamed.
"AAAAAAAAAUUUUUGGGGHHHHHH!"
The rock that made up its body burst into flames as a mouth broke through the beast's hardened shell and let loose the ear-piercing wail which currently rang all throughout the Amphitheater and possibly the entirety of Beacon. Flames burned all around it, but none burned brighter than the two flames which burned around the eyes of the monster, granting it a sort of face that felt wrong in every sense of the word.
Previously lifeless and dull, the chains surrounding the creature began to swirl all around the creature, now so hot that they bore a glowing white color. They flailed wildly, forcing Raziel back as the monster rose from the ground and curled up into a ball. The chains then began to still, whirling more coherently as they formed a protective barrier around the fire beast.
Raziel waited, wondering when the creature was going to strike first. Minutes passed, and nothing happened. The fire beast before him did nothing but wail in the center, chains flying all around it. The sight confused him, and he hesitantly lifted his arms up. Maybe he was supposed to go to it?
Floating through the air, Raziel approached the fiery being, uncertain of what was going on. He reached the barrier of chains, moving a hand into-
A chain lashed out, hitting his shoulder and slamming him towards the floor. He crashed into the ground, the charred bodies of several souls shattering as they broke his fall. He blinked, head spinning slightly as his body healed the damage from the wound. Glancing up at the spinning circle of chains, his eyes widened as one of them shot itself out from the rest, aiming right towards him.
He rolled to the left, avoiding the initial pierce of the chain but being caught entirely off-guard as the chain dragged itself across the ground and hit his midsection. Raziel was once again sent careening through the air, back hitting the wall as he bounced off it and rolled onto the floor. Ignoring the pain in his chest, he let out a sharp whistle and quickly threw himself into the air as yet another chain dragged itself along the ground.
"Damn it."
The chains around the creature were moving faster now, almost as if they were agitated at his continued existence. Several more chains popped out, each one lunging at him from a different angle. Raziel spread his arms, practically growling as he slashed at each one with his reavers, cutting them apart as he rushed towards the core.
"AAAAAAAAAUUUUUGGGGHHHHHH!"
The soul screamed once more, the light around it brightening as fire burst from between the chains. The heat was intense, to the point where even his dead flesh could feel it scorch his skin. The monster was heating up rapidly, destabilizing to the point of possibly exploding. His mind flashed to the scorched bodies, remembering the way they had been crawling away from the beast. Had they been caught in the blast? Would that happen to him?
"Fuck that."
Covering his body in a shield, Raziel flew between the flailing chains straight into the blazing core. Fire grasped at the shield around him, compressing itself around the shield as it attempted to leave him as a little more than ash. He ignored it, keeping the shields up as he tackled the fire monster out of the chain cocoon and into the wall. He grasped it by the throat, dropping his shield as he raised a reaver up to kill the beast, before hesitating.
"What?"
It was holding its arms up in front of its face, weeping as it struggled out of his grip but avoided attacking him. Instead, it just pushed at him with its legs and hands while crying. Why wasn't it attacking him?
The distraction was enough for a chain to catch the side of his ribs, slapping him away from the beast as they wrapped themselves around it and dragged it back inside. The monster wailed, struggling against the chains as they brought it back within the core, its fire burning even hotter as it fought against the heavy iron.
It wasn't trying to kill him. It was trying to escape her prison.
Raziel stood at the edge of the Amphitheater, unsure of what to do with this newfound revelation. The soul was being held prisoner. Did that make it, no, did that make her a victim in all this? What was he supposed to do?
The chains swirled around her, closing in around her even as she fought against them. If he just waited, he could probably sneak out of the Amphitheater and into the Spectral Clocktower once she was locked back up. It was a sound plan, and as long as he didn't awaken her again, he could get out of here scot-free.
But why did it feel like the wrong move?
His legs began to walk towards the maiden in chains, his mind uncertain of what to do but unwilling to do nothing. To ignore such naked suffering… it felt like a slap to the face of everything he believed. He was no saint, he probably wasn't even a good person, but he refused to just watch as someone had their freedom ripped from them.
Calm settled over his mind; a sense of authority unfamiliar to him projecting itself out from him as his lips spoke words foreign to his tongue.
"Maiden of Fire, hear my words!"
The chains stilled at once as his voice echoed throughout the Amphitheater, the fire dying out immediately as his presence took hold of everything within the room.
"Free yourself from your bondage and experience peace within me!"
He held his hand out as the chains began to move once again, lunging towards him in an attempt to kill him before she could accept his deal. Their movement was cut short as the Fire Maiden began to burn once again; her actions more focused as she pushed against the chains towards him. Fire burst from between the chains, stretching them to the limit as the flames tickled his hand but refused to burn him.
Iron groaned before snapping under the pressure, the Maiden of Fire rocketing into him and sinking into his body. He could feel her now, holed up within his being as the flames around him sank into his costume.
Thank you, Loving Death.
Raziel grasped at his chest, claws digging into the flesh as he stumbled back. "The hell was-"
Chains wrapped around his body, yanking him towards the center of the room as they covered him completely. Taken by surprise, it took a moment before Raziel could gather his mind together and act, attempting to phase through the chains to no avail. The still heated chain burned his skin as they dug into him, capturing him as a substitute for the Maiden of Fire.
"LET ME FUCKING GO!"
Ectoplasmic energy exploded out from his body, covering the chains completely as his costume shifted around them. They tried to fight back, but his suit began to meld them into itself as his power forced them under his will, leaving him floating in the air as glowing hot chains writhed around him. The chains no longer burned him, instead somehow merging with his costume.
"…Huh."
Raziel watched with a half-confused fascination as the chains obeyed his will, twirling around him as he demanded them to. It was strange, like having a new set of limbs that he had an intrinsic understanding of. It made little sense, but then again, nothing about the Spectral Realm did. It worked on its own rules.
Glancing up to the top of the Amphitheater, he pursed his lips as he saw the only other exit out of this place besides the door he had come in from. The pulling of the chains must've opened up a passageway up to the Spectral Clocktower, the metal plate that had been there now little more than half-melted scrap.
Looking deeper into the passageway, he grimaced as his eyes were unable to see the end of it.
"Looks like I'll be flying for a while."
With his piece said, Raziel flew up into the passageway into the Spectral Clocktower, unaware of the horrors waiting for him.
… … …
Stumbling through the foul-smelling alleyways of Vale, Cinder leaned against the brick wall of the alley as she dragged herself forward inch by inch. She fixed her gaze forward, unwilling to look to where the corner of her eyes spotted the flowing cloak of her unwanted master.
Ever since that damned deal she had been forced to make, all Cinder could feel was the pain of her body rotting while she still lived in it. She had seen it in the mirror, the way the flesh by her heart had become necrotic tissue, which slowly spread as the days went by. By this point, it had reached the beginning of her neck, necessitating her to skip classes for the day as she found a way to cure her affliction, however temporarily it may be.
She knew there was no fixing what had been done to her. Not when her very soul was withering.
Bums eyed her from the behind the dumpsters, wary of the rot worming its way up her neck. Not even they were foolish enough to get close to her, not when her body looked as if it were going to fall apart at any moment.
"Not even the homeless wish to associate with you, Rodent."
Cinder ignored the chilling voice of Death, clenching her jaw as she dragged herself deeper into the alleyways in search of something to ease her pain. Or at the very least, the pain in her body. Nothing could end the constant wails of the dead in her ears, the near-deafening sound plaguing her every moment.
She hadn't slept since she had been cursed.
"You never will again. But don't worry, you don't get to die until I say so."
Turning the corner, she shivered as not even the hot afternoon sun could keep her warm. The cold was also a constant problem, as her body no longer gave off any heat of its own. She was constantly freezing, her flames unable to provide comfort to her.
"I do so love the irony of that."
"Woah… pretty lady…"
Cinder's wavy vision picked up the sight of another bum, this one leaning with half his body almost parallel to the ground as he tried to whip his head around to get a better look at her. A crackhead, if the lean was any indication.
"Addicts… what worthless scum."
She ignored Death once again, too focused on the salivating of her mouth to comprehend any of what the creature said. She threw her body into the crackhead, forcing them both to the ground as she gripped the sides of his face and opened her mouth.
"Heh, heh… yeaAAAAAAUGH!"
Fire as black as night ignited from her hands, burning the crackhead's skin. Though rather than scorching the flesh as fire should, the black flames instead forced the addict's flesh to rapidly decay within her grip, fragments of his soul floating up into her mouth as she devoured the foul-tasting substance.
"Damn it!"
Standing up suddenly, Cinder regained a proper state of mind as she stared down at the withered corpse beneath her, looking like little more than shriveled skin and bones with its organs leaking from its holes. Her hand darted up to where the rot had been on her neck, sighing as she felt smooth skin instead.
"Amazing what even the soul of a worthless addict can do, isn't it?"
Death appeared before her properly, its face stuck in a permanent grin as the monster stared down at her with twisted amusement.
"I can't stand this. Please, let me die! I would rather die worthless than continue this cursed life!"
Her torturer merely cackled in response, a bony finger caressing the side of her cheek in such a way that sent shivers down her spine.
"I told you before, Rodent, you don't get to die until I say so."
Cinder collapsed to her knees; hands balled into fists as she scowled at her master, the wailing of the dead sounding almost like laughter to her ears. "And when will that be? How long will I be trapped here, devouring souls like some sort of parasite?"
Her throat tightened suddenly, blocking her airway as Death glared at her. "Do not even think of implying me to be like a parasite."
She nodded quickly, unable to suffocate but still feeling the agony of not being able to breathe. The pressure on her throat relaxed just as suddenly as it came, leaving her coughing on the ground as Death predated around her.
"But to answer your question, Rodent, until that plan of yours is complete. I want to see the chaos and feast from it, and I will have what I want. Of course, if you fail…"
Cinder's body was then forced against a nearby wall, body unable to move as Death loomed over her. "If you fail, then you will live forever. And with every soul you devour, the hunger within your own soul will only grow stronger. What could be done with 1 soul, will then need 2, then 4, then 8, until the hunger consumes you and leaves you little more than a fucking animal."
She fell to the ground, staring up at Death as she swallowed her fear. "I-I won't fail you."
"I know."
And then she was gone, leaving Cinder alone in the alley with a rotted corpse.
… … …
Reaching the top of the Spectral Clocktower, Raziel let out a sigh. It had felt like hours flying all the way to the top, the corrupted memory of Beacon Academy having decided to make the passageway unnecessarily long for no good reason.
"It was then that he looked towards the center of the room, finding a green cloaked figure with his back towards him."
Nobody's voice stole his attention, his gaze turning to the center of the room only to find the green cloak of the mysterious soul. He groaned, frustrated at-
"-the realization that Nobody had been the Man of Many Faces all along."
Raziel scowled, feet touching the ground as he jabbed a finger towards Nobody. "Stop-"
"-reading your internal monologue? Apologies, but I won't be doing that. I'd much rather skip to the meat and potatoes of this conversation if you don't mind."
Nobody turned to face him, letting go of his staff and allowing it to float beside him as he reached up with his gloved hand and grasped the edge of his mask. He pulled on the mask, tearing it off alongside his cloak, revealing the twisted flesh within.
"What the fuck?"
The entirety of Nobody's body was made of faces, each one having been melded together as they slowly moved along his body. The features of each face were melted, as if the memory of what they once looked like had been forgotten and as such left each one a haze. Faint whispering came from each face, the spots where their mouths were supposed to be instead resembling a pulsing tumor as each face's lips had somehow been merged together.
"Not a pretty sight, is it? Of course, it is a form befitting a wraith such as myself."
Nobody grabbed his staff again, slamming it against the ground as the walls curved towards the center and cracked, transforming into shards of glass which had been haphazardly forced together.
"Wha-"
"-t does that mean? A simple question with a less simple answer."
Images flashed onto the glass, visions of countless lives appearing all around them. A knight, a drunkard, a king, a settler, a wizard, and so many more covered the fractal walls. It was overwhelming, to the point where Raziel could only get a single word out.
"How?"
Another tap on the floor stopped the flashes just as quickly as they arrived, a sigh escaping Nobody as he gripped his staff tightly. "The result of a man cursed to live forever. Every reincarnation rubs against the veil between life and death at the end of their lives, chipping off fragments of the cursed soul and leaving them behind in this hell. I am the culmination of those fragments, wisps of lives forced into one false soul. A wraith."
The glass walls shimmered again, the room darkening as the glow of Nobody's staff illuminated the Spectral Clocktower. "But enough about me. Let us discuss you; an equally unnatural being."
Raziel looked towards the glass expecting to find himself, surprise and dread filling him as he saw a young woman with the same skin tone as himself instead.
"Keres had been a troubled young woman, with an equally troubling life. Born to a mother who hated her, abused by a father who had raped her, and manipulated by a lover who forced an addiction within her."
The young woman grew increasingly haggard as Nobody spoke, hair fraying and body thinning as she withered before his eyes.
"There was no salvation for her, so she made one."
Keres began writing on scraps of paper, used needles all around her as an ugly old man snored on the bed beside her.
"She wrote fantasies to escape her reality, drowning herself in them as she sought new ways to escape the pain. And then, whether it be by coincidence or providence, she found a rather peculiar book."
The now-pale young woman stared down at a thick tome with a look of wonder before her eyes, words dancing across its pages as Raziel realized what she was holding in her hands.
"The Book of the Dead."
As if it had heard its name, the thick tome manifested itself in his hands, verifying that both books were one and the same. But if she was the one who had the book, then-
"Indeed. Keres had written down her truest fantasy within the book, taking the form of a catalog in which she imagined she could be reborn. She created a character, a fiction of the person she dreamed could save her. An optimistic young man who believed in the good of humanity, never letting life get to him and saving those in need."
His vision grew fuzzy as he saw the truth of his existence, the truth of his false life. The young woman wrote filled out the catalog as he had seen it, writing down an agonizingly familiar backstory within its pages writing down a single name at the top:
Raziel, Saint of Death.
"No, no no no. That can't be right, that can't be real. I'm real, I'm a person. I'm not some, some, OC written by a random girl! I'm a person! That can't-"
His breath caught in his throat as he clutched his skull, head pounding as a migraine threatened to explode his brain. He crouched down until his knees touched his earlobes, holding his hands over his ears as he tried to shut out Nobody's words, to no avail.
"You were, and that should have been the end of the story. But fate has a peculiar sense of humor."
Raizel tried to look away from the sight before him, shutting his eyes as he screamed. Yet even with his eyes closed, the horrible vision burned its way into his retinas regardless.
Keres lay motionless on the floor of a bathroom, eyes blank as several needles covered the ground around her as her lifeless arms clutched the book to her bloated stomach.
"The stillbirth of her child was the tipping point for her, clutching the only thing which brought her happiness as she overdosed in her pimp's bathroom. And that is how your story truly begins."
The tome began to dissipate into green wisps of ectoplasm, circling the corpse before sinking into her womb. Her stomach bulged, deforming as whatever was inside began to slide its way out from under her short skirt.
A baby with blue skin just like his right now emerged from her, having asphyxiated within the womb. The baby began to cry, and in came an overweight man dressed in nothing but a sneer as he stared at the baby, whose skin was darkening until it matched Raziel's own typical brown complexion.
"The Book of the Dead bound itself to the corpse of her stillborn baby, using the catalog she had created to birth you, Raziel."
Events flashed before his eyes, these ones familiar to him as he watched the pimp throw the baby to the curb, where it was picked up by police and taken to an orphanage. He watched his childhood play out, his years in the shitty orphanage to his years outside of the system. He watched as he went through life with a smile in spite of the pain, never questioning his life or parentage. He watched as he died, hunted by Lady Death as he awakened his powers.
He watched his life, horrified by it and a new implication.
"Lady Death… she was in the catalog. Is she…"
Looking at Nobody with weary eyes, Raziel felt his knees give way as the wraith nodded.
"All things come with a price. The Book of the Dead could not fulfill its purpose without first creating an opposing force to maintain balance. It twisted the young woman's wish and soul, creating a new condition for her catalog. Using the pain, hatred, and cruelty within Keres' soul, the tome birthed the being you know as Lady Death."
The sight of the young woman at her prime faded into the visage of Lady Death, their body shapes being a complete match.
"Of course, that is merely a title she gave herself. Her true name is Keres, the reincarnated evil of the woman who unwittingly created you both, now unbound by humanity."
Claws dug into the ground as he grit his teeth, body sagging as the sudden revelation wore away at his energy.
"Why… why tell me this?"
Nobody stared down at him uncaringly, apathy thick in his voice as he answered. "To break you. To tear down your will and rip your heart from your chest. Do you know why I needed to do that?"
Raziel just shook his head, too drained to speak.
"Because as you are now, you're far too weak to stop Keres from devouring the world. Your mind is too soft, resolve not strong enough. To be frank, you are a disappointment through and through. Where is your anger, your rage? Is crying on the floor the only thing you can do?"
Something sparked within his chest at the wraith's words, an indignation so unlike his usual temperament which somehow burned through his heart he lunged at the wraith.
"What gave you the right!? What divine fucking providence inflated your shit ego enough to call me a fucking disappointment!?"
His cloak and chains lashed out at the ground around them as his claws dug into Nobody's wretched flesh, eyes glowing as unyielding fury roared within his dead soul.
Not that any of that seemed to affect Nobody, as he simply chuckled within Raziel's grasp. "There's the Saint of Death I was looking for."
Teeth gnashing together, Raziel threw Nobody to the side and took a moment to calm himself, chains receding as his cloak returned to its normal length. "What was the point of all this, Wraith?"
Standing at his feet, Nobody tapped his staff against the floor one last time, returning the room to normal. "To test you, Raziel. I needed to know if you had the drive to make your way through the maze, the mettle to fight anything that stood in your way, and the empathy to take in a tortured soul. I needed to know if you could be the one to stop the world from ending."
Nobody walked to the center of the Spectral Clocktower, the room transforming into a headmaster's office as he sat down at the recently formed desk.
"Unlike that monstrous Keres, you are not bound to a single realm. You are a unique existence, capable of wandering both realms with ease. By your very nature, you are the only being who can stop her. However, you have quite a ways to go before you can even dream of doing such a thing."
"Your point?"
Nobody pointed to Raziel's chest, a bright orange glow emanating from where his heart would be.
"Within you lies the possibility of an afterlife better than this hell, where souls can finally be at peace. That is a power unique to you and will be the deciding factor in the fate of the world."
Raziel placed his hand over his heart, feeling the warmth of the Fire Maiden within his being. He clenched his fist, still emotionally fatigued but now hopeful for the future. And yet, a single question still lingered in his mind.
"How do you even know any of this?"
If Nobody had a proper face, he was certain the bastard would be smiling with a mysterious twinkle to his eye. "Magic, young Raziel. Now, I fear I've taken up enough of your time."
Green smoke began to pool around Raziel's feet, encircling his body like a tornado as Nobody's disembodied voice echoed all around him.
"We will meet again, young Raziel. But until that time comes, I implore you to find out what kind of Death you wish to be."
The smoke covered his vision entirely, the sensation of shifting realms covering his body before the smoke cleared, revealing him to be on a random building in the Material Realm.
Standing on the ledge of the building, Raziel stared down into the city and watched as the people went about their daily lives, unaware of how close they all were to Death. Maybe some of them deserved it, maybe others of them didn't. but regardless, he found himself unwilling to allow Lady Death, Keres, to slaughter them like animals. No matter his origin, no matter his existence, he made a vow to defend them to his last undying breath. Such a vow…
It was the only thing he had left.
… … …
I was just watching the HBO Spawn show, if that helps explain the darker tone of this chapter. Also, sorry about the delay, it's just been a busy few months. Uni has been a complete time sink for me, and I feel like I rarely get time to just sit down and write. But I am not dead, which feels ironic considering the nature of this story.
Anyway, woo hasn't this been a lot of reveals, huh? For those of you without much reading comp skills, I've tied the waifu catalog into the world by it being some random chick's fantasy thing she made up as an escape from her shitty life, only for her writing to accidentally wind up in the Book of the Dead. To clarify a bit, the Spectral Realm and all that nonsense has always been a part of this particular world, with the Book of the Dead being a relic from there that found its way in the Material Realm because of, to quote Nobody, "coincidence or providence". I'm not going to say how it happened. It just did, deal with it. Now, did I plan this out from the very start? Not at all. Am I glad I thought of it? Yeah. It makes the world feel more real in my opinion and removes the whole multiverse aspect of the Waifu Catalog, keeping things more concentrated. I just prefer it that way, and I believe that it makes for a more interesting bit anyway. Lady Death is still a complete inhuman monster, even if her origins stem from a human, as she's simply the cruelty and hatred of the woman stripped of humanity.
And if anyone is wondering if this sudden change creates plotholes, it shouldn't. I intentionally made a lot of things a bit vague or with room for error in case I decided to do something similar to this. Raziel's interpretation of the book in chapter 1 is just that, his interpretation of it. He could have gotten it wrong. And Death herself was actually written in such a way that it implies that she hasn't been around for very long, as I'm fairly certain I've written lines about her observing humans and Faunus which is something that an eternity old being wouldn't need to do. So yeah, it should be fine.
This has been A Decent Hoonter, and hopefully the next chapter won't take as long to write.