Fear

A Reaping Blade

The soft echoes of our footsteps were the only sound the filled the halls as we walked, side by side. I curiously appreciated Slender’s form. His long legs, his slim torso, his pale, featureless face. He was strangely gorgeous, to me. His lengthy, boney fingers held mine tightly, my arm stretched above my head as our height differences clashed. I felt his gaze on me as well, exercising my imagination to try and figure out what he was so interested in.

Our silent conversation was perfect, completely comfortable. We walked at a swift, but nice pace, and I found it easy to keep up with him. Slender’s fingers slowly released mine, and I couldn’t help but feel a pang of fluttering disappointment. He paused, turning to look down at me.

I faced him, biting my lip and looked back, up at him. Silence blanketed us for a moment, but then he spoke. /You are beautiful./ He said matter-of-factly.

I blushed, eyes wide. “Y-You think? Thank you.” I looked down awkwardly, embarrassed.

A tentacle gently cupped my face, pulling my chin up. /There isn’t any need to be discomfited, Frauke. I was only speaking the truth./

My blush intensified. “Thank you, Slender.”

He chuckled. We began walking again, until we reached a doorway and passes through it into a large vault of some kind. Within it were hundreds upon hundreds of weapons. There was any sort of weapon you could think of. Bows and arrows, spears, lances, and modern guns. There were even cannons and machine guns. I glanced around us, surprised. Slender strolled into the room, inspecting a sword that was hanging from a rack.

/This is the weapons vault./ He told me, sweeping an arm around us. /You may pick whichever you like for your Reaping Blade./

I bit my lip, worrying it between my teeth as I looked about us. “What do we use them for besides going between…realms?” I inquired, turning a small pistol over in my hands.

/Reaping Blades are used to realm-jump, kill any adversary, and hone our powers. They often help us by becoming an extension of ourselves, and we are able to use them for whatever cause we see fit./ Slender responded, making himself comfortable by sitting on a crate of ammunition and folding his long legs.

“Oh. Would you recommend any for me?” I asked, setting the pistol down carefully to avoid any accidents.

/You must choose for yourself./ He said nonchalantly, placing his hands in his lap.

I nodded and hesitantly moved off between the shelves, eyes scanning the room for a weapon that caught my eye. After seeing more different guns and knives then I’d ever imagined even existed, a single dagger did indeed catch my eye.

I picked it up, turning the wickedly long blade over in my hands. Careful not to touch the sharp edge of the blade, I swallowed shortly. It served as a reminder to my previous months of self-harm. However, it was a very pretty knife. The handle was ornate, intricate tendrils curling up towards the blade from the hilt.

I selected a scabbard the would fit the knife that had a strap to attach to one’s belt and wrap around one’s leg and returned to Slender’s side. I held it out to him, watching shyly as he inspected my choice. /It fits you well. This is the dagger used by Queen Celeste, who’s chambers you inhabit./ Slender told me, stroking the blade with a bony finger. /She used it to kill all those around her before slaying herself in a fit of desperation./

My eyes widened. No wonder I had felt the dagger calling out to me. “Oh. That’s…peculiar.”

He chortled as he stood, extending a hand to me. I took it and held on to it as we exited the vault, his fingers cool on mine as I one-handedly strapped the scabbard to my right leg and slipped the dagger into the sheath. We traveled through the halls and down a few flights of stairs before entering a new room. /Since it’s getting cold outside, you may find an article of outerwear to have./ He offered, gesturing at the many coats and cloaks in the room.

I immediately noticed a black leather trench coat which stretched to the backs of my knees. I slipped into it and smiled into the mirror before me. /Beautiful./ Slender commented, making me squirm again.

I slapped his arm lightly and danced out of the room, spinning so the two tail-like portions of the coat swirled out behind me. Walking made me feel like a badass. Smiling, I reached for Slender’s hand as he joined me in the hall. He took mine and we began walking back the way we came, away from the massive entrance doors of the castle a few yards before us.

“So…being a Fear. What’s it like? What do I have to do?” I asked as we climbed a flight of stairs.

/To be a Fear entails your presence in all three realms. It is your job to instill your fear into those alive, and ferry those who died from it to the Beyond or keep them in the Grey Realm-our realm. Those who stay in our realm are able to travel to the realm of the living, known as paranormal entities./ He described, raising more questions in me.

“So… they’re like ghosts?” I inquired.

/Yes./ He began. /Those trapped here will become either demons, poltergeists, or many other paranormal creatures. The more malicious they were in life, the more malicious of a creature they become./

I nodded, silently absorbing the information. /Fears are those who control those beings and to assist the Choir in the deaths of the world./

“What’s the Choir?” I wondered out loud before realizing I’d asked him.

/The Choir is our superiors. They are…the God of the realm of the living. They decides who lives and dies, and what happens in the world to a certain extent./ We reached the top of the stairs and made our way down the corridor.

“Is that who you were seeing this morning?”

/They were who approved your becoming a Fear./ Slender said as we reached my room. /Now get some rest, Frauke, you must be tired. I’ll return for you in a while so we can prepare for your first Reaping./ With that, he bent and pressed a lip-less kiss to my forehead before striding off.

I stood at my door for a moment, attempting to absorb all of the new information, then entered my chambers. 

-ooOoo-

A/N: Thank you to all my lovely readers for the reviews and votes! If you have any suggestions or requests, leave them in the comments section and I'll upload as soon as I can. ~Genuine-Discord.