A/N : Hey guys before you start reading those new chapters of 'DEATH COMES TO EVERYONE' I have some things to say first =
-First of all, thank you for those who recently favored and/or followed my story so far as well as the people who reviewed me.
-Secondly, this story will soon come to an end… but I plan to do more stories in the future !
-Thirdly, I hope you are ready for what is about to come ^^
-Fourthly, I'm also working on the second book of 'Vampires, Shifters and Teddy Bears' and I hope I can publish it soon…
Now that everything was said, I shall leave you alone so you could enjoy those new chapters in peace… GOOD READING EVERYONE !
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(Previousy in 'DEATH COMES TO EVERYONE :)
Blinking a few times to be sure they weren't blind, the crowd all looked up to see… Thanatos only. The Golen Dragon was nowhere in sight and instead, they could see a cloud of ashes slowly descending down the air toward the ground.
Then a ball of pure energy appeared in the air before entering slowly Thanatos' body. The embodiment of Death closed his eyes with a sigh as he allowed the ball to mix with his very being, ignoring everything at the moment.
On ground, the audience took them a moment to realize what had just happened : the God of Light had been annihilated by the embodiment of Death's attack and Thanatos had absorbed his powers ! Salem fell on her knees with nothing but pure joy on her pale face as she looked at Thanatos.
After so many millenniums, her greatest wish came true : the Twon Gods were no more !
"He did it !" Ruby cried out in joy as she jumped repeatedly from her place, soon followed by the rest of the other students who started cheering Harry's name for his victory.
Summer herself was cheering her Lord for his rather easy victory. Blanche and Amber were crying in happiness as they looked at the embodiment of Death while Emerald couldn't retain herself for sighing deeply in relief by the fact he won.
The Beacon STAFF, along with Taiyang, Raven, Ghira, Kali and Ironwood, all remained there with stunned expression on their faces. However, they soon joined in the celebration…maybe because the younger ones' good mood was rather contagious.
Ozpin was the only one not cheering as he was staring at the embodiment of Death with shock and fear, his mind still processing the fact that this man had killed the very beings that created their worlds.
However, silence came again when they saw Thanatos himself slowly heading toward them with a stern expression on his face. Many shivered as they watched him approaching and one question was starting to feel everyone's mind :
What is going to happen now ?
00/(Present time)/00
As Thanatos slowly descended towards them, everyone watched him approach nervously. After the short battle they saw between Death and the Twin Gods, no one wanted to challenge him. Blanche, her, was thinking about what to do as she looked at the more mature version of the young man she loved with some nervousness.
The White Wolf Faunus was still a bit shocked about the fact Harry James Potter never existed… but instead was a clone created by the embodiment of Death himself. She was also shocked about the fact AMBER knew about it ! Her own friend knew of her boyfriend's true identity and never once tried to told her !
Internally, she promised to have some answers from not only Amber but Thanatos… if possible.
Ruby, and the rest of the students were following Thanatos' descent with wariness in their eyes. Sure, some of them were in awe at being in the presence of such a powerful individual but majority, many felt nothing but fear as they were in the presence of DEATH itself !
Penny Polendina, being an Android, was still in shock as nothing in her database prepared her for what happened moments ago. After all, nothing in her database suggested that Powerful Entities such as the Twin Gods or Death existed so it was no surprise.
Pyrrha was scared to the core : why ? Because after the truth came out, the redhead was afraid of having offended Death by fighting him repeatedly. Jaune, seeing her fear, gently pulled her against him in a comforting embrace which she appreciated greatly.
Yang, in contrary, was glad to not have fought against him… same thing for a good portion of people present. Ruby, her younger sister, stared at Thanatos with fear but also with stars in her silver eyes. Being the child she was, it was not a surprise to be in awe at seeing a creature no one thought existed.
Weiss was shivering as her skin turned even paler. The Heiress of the Schnee Dust Company couldn't believe what she saw and learned so far despite the fact it DEFINITELY happened ! After all, like many people on Remnant, she believed that Gods and supernatural things didn't exist except in fairy tales…
Look like it was not the case…
After all, it was difficult to deny something when you see it with your own eyes !
Blake Belladonna felt nothing but fear as she looked at the approaching embodiment of Death with wide eyes and pale skin. As the man came closer, she went to stand with her parents who had the same expressions that her on their faces. However, the Cat Faunus (and her family) would be lying to themselves if they said they weren't amazed by the current situation.
Glynda, her, was sweating profusely as her green eyes watched the man slowly approaching them. Her skin was pale… deadly pale. She might be a stern teacher and Headmistress but ever her knew that she stood no chance against a literal GOD ! The same could be said for the Beacon STAFF… except for Oobleck who internally was bouncing in childish amazement.
Qrow was shivering madly as he stood next to Taiyang and Raven whose eyes showed nothing but uneasiness and fright. Which was understandable seeing that they were facing DEATH itself !
Ironwood, while being shocked and a bit frightened by the entire situation, couldn't help but thinking about something… less than good.
"Many it is time to create some new weapons…"
Behind him, some of the Atlesian Soldiers and White Fang thugs started panicking… especially at the sight of Thanatos' stern expression. A few people could be seen starting praying, hoping to not be severely punished for past crimes they might have committed in the past…
Summer, her, was snickering in amusement as she saw the faces everyone around her were making at the moment. She was among the few people to know that the embodiment of Death, while being stern, powerful and a bit of a sadistic bastard (and proud of it !), was also someone with a big heart.
Salem, for her part, was still on her knees, crying in happiness at the fact the Gods were no more… all thanks to Thanatos. She was now forever in his debt… in this life and another if she somehow got reincarnate. Shooting a glance away from her Lord, the Queen of Grimm looked toward her former love… who had a look of pure fear on his face.
If she still was the naive woman who loved him, Salem would have comforted him to make him feel better… but this woman died millenniums ago… all thanks to the God… and him.
Looking away from Ozma, Salem smiled as Thanatos landed on the ground, his neon green eyes looking at everyone present with a sternness that could scare her mightiest Grimm ! She internally gulped in fear herself at the sight and after shooting a glance at the other people present, she could see that it was also the case for them…
Suddenly, Glynda, Qrow, Oobleck and Peter started bowing with respect and deference and they were soon joined by Ghira, Kali, Ironwood, and their respective soldiers. Ruby and her team, along with the rest of the other students all followed, no wanting to disrespect Thanatos and be the subjects of his wrath.
"No…" the embodiment of Death's command caused everyone to pause before looking at him with surprise.
"You do not need to bow to me…" Thanatos said with a tiny smile , breaking the stern facade in the process.
Many blinked in surprise at those words before slowly straightening up… but while a few of them looked at him with relief and some joy, the fear and respect still shined in their eyes.
Well, in MOST eyes…
Why ?
Because one of the young adults looked at Thanatos with stars in her eyes and instantly she broke away from the others to lunge at the embodiment of Death.
"You did it ! You were incredible !"
Thanatos rolled her eyes in fond amusement as he felt a pair of arms wrapping around his form (or at least tried to). Trust Amber to still act like a child from time to time.
"Isn't Ruby supposed to be the child here ?" the embodiment of Death inquired the Fall Maiden with a smirk of amusement.
"HEY !" the silver eyed girl in question cried out in indignation as she pouted childishly at him.
Many started laughing at this and awkwardness of the moment was broken thanks to this.
"Harry..." a voice called out shyly which caused everyone to stop laughing to stare at who spoke.
Thanatos frowned a bit when he saw the familiar form of Blanche Moonflower approaching him. The embodiment of Death didn't like the expression of hesitation and nervousness currently on the Wolf Faunus' face.
"Blanche..." he called back in a soft tone and an expression of pure love in his eyes as she stopped in front of him.
"So… this is the real you huh ?" the White Wolf Faunus asked him in a soft tone as her yellow eyes started examining him.
Despite the fact he looked to be in his early twenties, had a strange green marking on his forehead (which bore an uncanny resemblance to the symbol left by the portal that sucked in the God of Darkness), was 12 feet tall and had neon green eyes instead of emerald green, he was the same man she grew to love.
"Yes it is..." Thanatos answered softly while still looking at her with kindness and love… but also regret and… what that resignation in his eyes ?
Blanche blinked at that before a flash of realization passed through her yellow eyes. The embodiment of Death must be sad because he had lied to her and resigned because he might be thinking that she was about to leave him for that !
There was no other explanation… and while she was a bit angry by the fact he hid such informations from her… she still loved him dearly. A loving smile soon appeared on her face as she looked up at him.
"Once you told me 'Since the day I met you, I never thought you would be even more gorgeous that you already were… but I'm glad to be wrong...'" Blanche began to say with a fond smile before adding
"Today I'm saying this : since the day I met you, I never thought you would be even more handsome that you already were… but I'm glad to be wrong~"
Thanatos blinked at those words before chuckling a bit. Just with some words, all his fear faded away like snow under the sun… replaced with pure love.
"So you don't mind me being… well… Death ?" he asked her with a raisebrow while crossing his arms over his chest.
"Not really… but !" Blanche said before jumping.
Thanatos blinked when the White Wolf Faunus slapped him on the right cheek… even if he didn't feel pain at all. In fact, even when Blanche landed on her feet, his cheek looked normal instead of red and marked with a hand-print.
"THAT was for hiding me who you truly are !" Blanche began to say before punching him in the guts… with no effects again.
"THIS is for scaring the hell out of me earlier !" she added with a stern expression on her face.
"And THIS !" she cried out, seemingly in anger before jumping again at him.
The embodiment of Death blinked when he felt a pair of arms wrapped around his neck and lips pressed against his own. Behind them, everyone stared at the scene with bewilderment, shock and surprise… except for some people who merely smile tenderly at the scene taking place before them.
"This is for me~" Blanche whispered with a playful wink after pulling her lips away from his.
"You cheeky little wolf~" Thanatos said teasingly with a chuckle, shaking his head a bit.
Blanche smirked at him toothily as her tail wagged behind her before giving him another peck on the lips. Soon enough, she released her hold on his neck and once her feet touched the ground again, she looked up at him with narrowed eyes
"However we WILL have a serious talk later Mister !" she growled at him .
"Yes Ma'am..." The embodiment of Death answered with a roll of his eyes and a shake of his head.
Behind them, snickers could be heard from the other teenagers which caused Thanatos to shoot them a brief glare that manage to shut some of them… except for Team RWBY, Pyrrha, Jaune and Emerald.
Grumbling under his breath, Thanatos's face then turned serious as he looked at Summer Rose… who was standing near her family.
"Summer Rose… Step forward..." he called her out strongly.
Hearing this, the Ghost gulped nervously before approaching him with her family looked back and forth between the embodiment of Death and Summer. Once she stopped before him, Thanatos didn't say anything as he slowly raised a finger (from his left hand) before touching her forehead with it.
Soon enough, everyone gasped when they saw Summer's transparent body turning more and more 'alive' like and soon… a seemingly living Summer stood before them. The former Leader of Team STRQ looked at herself with wide eyes before looking at her Lord with a questioning look.
"Summer Rose… For helping me and Salem in our quest, I, Thanatos, allow you to remain in the Mortal Plane for a month so you can be with your family one last time !" Thanatos declared solemnly but with a smile on his face.
Summer's silver eyes grew as large as plates at those words before a squeal of happiness escaped her mouth. Soon, she rushed toward the embodiment of Death before hugging him as best as she could (which wasn't easy considering the size difference), thanking him repeatedly as tears fell down her cheeks.
Thanatos chuckled in amusement as he patted the top of her head before watching as she quickly rushed toward her family who engulfed her into a group hug. The embodiment of Death, along with many people present, smiled tenderly at the scene but then he cleared his throat loudly, catching everyone's attention.
"Raven Branwen… step forward !"
At those words, Yang's mother blinked in surprise, taken aback by this, but slowly approached him. Qrow looked at his sister with hidden excitement as he hoped that Raven would be punished but what she got instead caused him to be shocked to the core.
"Raven Branwen… For helping me and Salem in our quest, I, Thanatos, own you a favor ! If you need help or a service in the future, don't hesitate to call me..."
Yang's mother bowed her head once those words escaped his lips while internally being shocked to have been given such a honor : a favor from Death.
"I only want one thing Lord Death..." Raven began to say which caught Thanatos' attention.
"I want my tribe to be safe..." was her next words.
Thanatos nodded at her before closing his eyes as he extended a hand forward. From the palm of his hands, everyone watched in silence as a small brown bag appeared in thin air. Re-opening his eyes, the embodiment of Death smiled as he handed the bag to the Leader of the Branwen Tribe.
"This bag contains Runes… place one at each side of your camp and no one will be able to see ot nor will be able to hear what happen in it..." Thanatos explained in a gentle tone which caused many to stare at the bag with shock.
Ironwood's eyes shined as he immediately thought of trying to create the equal same thing. It would be wonderful if Atlas could possess such a weapon !
Hearing this, Raven's eyes shined a bit as she slowly picked the bag, thanking him softly before going back to stand with Summer and Taiyang. Qrow stared at his sister with wide eyes before looking back at Thanatos with slight anger.
The embodiment of Death merely narrowed his eyes at him and the man quickly turned his head away in fright. Satisfied, Thanatos then turned his head to look at someone else.
"Salem… Approach..." he called out gently.
Blinking, the Queen of Grimm slowly did what she was told as she went to stand in front of the one who helped her achieving her goal.
"I promised you to break your curse once the Gods are deal with..." Thanatos began to say in a stern tone before adding with a soft smile
"And today, I honor this promise~"
Hearing this, Salem's eyes showed nothing but gratitude as she looked at her Lord with a bright smile. Smiling down at her, Thanatos then pressed a finger against her forehead before saying in a language no one recognized
"Εγώ, Θανάτος, σε ευχαριστώ για τη βοήθεια και τη φιλία σου και σπάω την κατάρα που σου επιβλήθηκε και σου επαναφέρω την αληθινή σου εμφάνιση ! (I, Thanatos, thank you for your help and friendship and I break the curse placed upon you and give you back your true appearance !)"
As those words escaped his mouth, Salem found herself levitating in the air as her body was engulfed into a bright light. The light was so strong that everyone present had to cover their eyes to avoid being blinded by it.
Thanatos, him, was unaffected by this and his neon green eyes watched what was going on while a smile grew on his face. Soon enough, the light deemed and everyone could watch again. What they saw caused many to gasp in shock.
Salem's appearance had totally changed : she now had fair skin, pale platinum blonde hair and light blue eyes. Most of her hair was wore in a half up-done bun style with a small, simple bun on the top, and the remainder of her long, straight hair hanging at the bottom. Most of her bangs were tied back, barring some large locks that framed the left side of her face.
No longer she looked like a Humanized Grimm… now she looked like a normal human being. Her attire was still the same but her appearance had changed.
Salem looked at her body with shock and happiness for a moment before looking up at her Lord with gratefulness in her blue eyes. Ozpin stared at the scene in shock, his eyes couldn't leave Salem's new appearance. He couldn't believe that the curse placed upon her by the God of Light himself… was broken with just the touch of a finger.
The Headmaster had never felt so afraid before…
"You look much better now my friend~" Thanatos commented with a smile and a wink.
The previous Queen of Grimm smiled at him with appreciation before asking "Can I ask you a question my Lord ?"
"You just did but yes you can..." the embodiment of Death responded with a playful smirk which caused some people to snort in amusement.
Salem rolled her eyes again at this but opened her mouth to say "My Lord…What will happen to the Grimm now ? Without me or the God of Darkness, they will dissipate !"
"No they will not… Sure they were created by the Purple Hothead but thanks to all the time without his presence, they grew to be less dependent of him… Sure you controlled them for a time but this was it… You don't create them so they will now follow their nature..." Thanatos explained calmly with a shrug.
"Will you destroy them all then ?" Jaune asked him with a frown as he held Pyrrha against him.
"No…" was his answer.
"WHAT ?! WHY ?!" Many cried out in shock and slight anger at the words.
Thanatos' eyes narrowed dangerously as he looked at them and they instantly flinched in fear.
"Because they are part of one of the delicate Balances of Remnant : If the Creatures of Grimm disappeared, Humanity would grow in number and draw even more on the resources of this world… and in time, Remnant would become a desolate and lifeless land..." the embodiment of Death explained in a somber tone that sent shivers down everyone's spines.
"Worse, without the Grimm, Humanity and Faunuskind will enter into more conflicts than usual… It will definitely lead into another war and this time, there will be not only for World Domination but for the resources as well !"
"LIAR ! Remnant as limitless resources !" Ozpin snarled at Thanatos with narrowed eyes.
The embodiment of Death turned his head to stare at him with a bored expression on his face as he said those words "Nothing is limitless… Just as I proved earlier that everything can die..."
The Headmaster of Beacon felt a shiver at the reminder but staid strong as he sneered at him those words
"'Everything can die' you say ? So that's mean you can as well !"
Many people started to pull out their weapons but were all stopped on the spot when Thanatos spoke again in a calm tone
"Its possible… but I'm sure it won't be before a long time... " there was a bit of melancholy in his tone but then glared daggers at Ozpin as the man snarled
"What is that supposed to mean ?!"
"I am Death… If I'm not here to make sure people are… well… dead… then this world will be overload with people and Remnant will not have enough resources to provide everyone in it..." Thanatos explained calmly with the sternness in his eyes caused many to shiver in slight fear.
"So you DO kill people !" Ozpin snarled at him again with a strange glint in his eyes.
"For millenniums I have lived… and yet… I only directly took the lives of a handful of people… The rest died naturally…" Thanatos began to say calmly before his eyes brightened a bit with power causing Ozpin to froze on the spot.
"My main duty is to judge the Souls entering my domain ! I don't care what people do in their lives but once they enters the Underworld…" He paused at the last part as he glared down at Ozpin who was shivering in fear while staring at him with wide eyes.
Behind him, the other people present were silent as their minds were processing what they just heard. Some of them looked shocked by what Thanatos just revealed and two people among them widened their eyes in not only shock… but also anger.
"Excuse me ? You said you took the lives of a handful of people right ?" Weiss asked him after a second of hesitation.
The Heiress of the SDC stiffened when neon green eyes looked away from Ozpin's form to stare at her. She was internally thankful that there was no anger in his eyes as he nodded at her, not saying anything.
"By any chances, have you taken the lives of people recently ?" Weiss asked him with a firm expression on her face even if we could hear the nervousness in her voice.
"I did…"
"By any chances, were they named Jacques Schnee and Roman Torchwick ?" Ironwood inquired him with slight anger in his tone.
Clearly, he was still frustrated about the criminal's death as he wanted Roman to pay for his crimes.
Thanatos hummed in contemplation as he ticked his chin in thoughts. For a few seconds, there was nothing but silence… until it was broken by the embodiment of Death who opened his mouth to answer the general.
"I'll have to check my register for this Torchwick but for Jacques… I admit that I did took his life..."
His confessions caused many to stare at him in shock. Salem merely glanced at him with a raisebrow : she knew that he HAD taken Roman's life but seeing the twinkle in his eyes, he was only doing this to annoy the General.
"Why ?" Weiss asked him in a soft tone. Surprisingly, there was no anger in her tone… just surprise.
"Over the years, I have judged countless of Souls… many of them were Faunus who died in Jacques' mines..." Thanatos began to say with a sorrowful sigh before resuming
"I didn't thought to take his soul at first… but when I started to have CHILDREN visiting my domain… I decide that it was enough… Life is a precious thing and yet, your father didn't care about the lives he was destroying for his own gains..."
A scowl soon grew on his face as he added coldly "Once his soul arrived in my domain… I almost lost my cool as Jacques Schnee was one of the most distasteful people I have the pleasure to judge…"
Many Faunus and even some Atlesian Soldiers (Ironwood included) nodded their heads in agreement along with Weiss herself ! Heck, even some of the Beacon STAFF looked in agreement to his words !
Turning his head away from Weiss, Thanatos then looked toward Salem before asking "Are you ready ?"
At first, she looked at him in confusion but then a flash of remembrance passed through her blue eyes "Yes I am…"
"Remember, you will have to pass some time in the Limbo..." the embodiment of Death told her in a soft tone.
"I know… but I would do ANYTHING as long as I get to see my babies again !" Salem answered with sincerity.
Thanatos nodded at her in understanding before waving his hand toward a spot at her right. Instantly from the ground, appeared a very familiar symbol, (the same one he had on his forehead) that started glowing in a greenish color before it turned into a portal.
Salem shot one last look at everyone (and a somewhat triumphant look at Ozpin whose face reddened in anger) before entering the portal. Soon, she disappeared in a bright light, leaving behind the embodiment of Death, her former love and the others.
Once she disappeared, Thanatos turned his eyes toward Ozpin, his face turning grave and stern before opening his mouth to say
"Ozma… It is time for you to suffer punishment for your actions !"
The Headmaster of Beacon blinked at those words before asking with confusion and anger "What are you talking about ?"
"You know very well what I mean..." the embodiment of Death started to say coldly before adding as he pointed a finger toward the man.
"From this day on, like Salem, the curse placed upon you is no more !"
At those words, a white ray shot out of his finger before heading straight the Headmaster. Ozpin barely had the time to blink before pain filled his body. For a full minute, he trashed and screamed but then it all stopped and everyone could see him simply laying there, panting.
"This is your last life Ozma… Once you die and you will, your soul will not take another's body again ! You will end straight to my domain where you will be judge !"
"And why aren't you doing it now Creature ?!" Ozpin snarled at him defiantly but his body was still shaken by the pain he felt.
"I think some people would love to have a little chat with you first~" Thanatos said with a smirk before looking over at his friends
"Sorry everyone but I have to go… Duty calls and all… but I will return…" he told them gently but his eyes were focused on Blanche's form that anything.
"I know you will… Because I will eviscerate you if you don't Mister !" the White Wolf Faunus snarled playfully at him and he smirked back at her before disappearing in thin air.
Once he was gone, Ozpin suddenly felt dread entering his body and paled drastically when he saw everyone staring at him with anger and narrowed eyes. The Headmaster of Beacon gulped loudly in fear as soon, he was entirely covered by their shadows.
The man swore that he heard a sadistic cackle in the air…
(To be continue…)