An ONC 2024 entry
A regular museum worker one day, Raul Mendez finds his life turned upside down when he gets dragged into a supernatural grapple for power that threatens to plunge the world into eternal darkness.
A cold chill went down his spine as he suddenly realized that it meant he would probably run into angels who would want to harm him as well.
"Are you alright?" He heard Kali's voice from outside the bathroom.
"Yeah, just give me a minute," he replied as he walked over to the sink to wash his face and rinse his mouth.
He felt awful and the worst part was he wasn't sure if he'd even get better. Whatever was wrong with him was not something he was familiar with. It felt like something dark and powerful slowly tearing at him from the inside out but he didn't know what it was. He just knew that that nausea kept getting worse no matter what he did.
Swallowing the bile in his mouth, he slowly walked out of the bathroom. Kali was relieved to see him and gave him a smile when she saw him.
"Are you okay?" She asked him again as she fussed over him like a mother hen.
"I'm fine. I'm sorry I made you worry." He replied as he shied away from her. "So where the hell are we anyways?"
She narrowed her eyes a bit trying to call him out on his bluff but he remained adamant and kept up the smile. In the end she had no choice but to play along with it.
"Come. Let me introduce you to the others." She said with an encouraging smile.
"Others? Like other reapers or just normal people for once?" He asked her, his eyes wide with curiosity.
"Other reapers. I'm afraid we're your new normal now, Raul."
"... Right. So how many reapers are there exactly?"
"Well there are an infinite number of reapers just as there are infinite universes..."
"You're kidding, right? You don't intend to introduce me to all of them, do you?"
"Oh no no no. I'm only introducing you to six. There are seven of us who you could oversee the rest."
"I see. So the kid who attacked us before?"
"That is no child. That is Samael, a fallen angel."
"Fallen angel? You mean demon?"
"No. Fallen angels are not demons. Fallen angels originated in heaven from where they fell. Lucifer, Samael, Gadreêl among a few I could name are fallen angels. Demons are either hell born or they were once the souls of sinners so wicked and twisted their essence was transformed upon their damnation into hell. People often confuse the two but they're not the same. Fallen angels have higher ranks in Hell and are way stronger. They make up the princes of hell, Lucifer's own personal henchmen if you can call them that."
"All of this still sounds like a bedtime story to me, by the way. If I hadn't just seen that child monster try to kill you I wouldn't believe any of it. And you... You had four arms."
"You saw that, huh? That is my true form but it is quite rare for mortals to be able to see me in that form or to see the true forms of other beings and entities. I suppose it must be your power that allows it." Kali replied as she gave him a strange look.
Before he could say anything they came to two large black doors with a large skull doorknob. The hall beyond the door was large vast and very dark. A large fire burned bright in the middle of this hall eliminating the eight stone statues that rose high and majestic, arranged in a circular manner around the large hall. The eighth statue in the center looked different and it seemed somewhat to be embracing an element from each of the other seven.
At the feet of each of these statues was some sort of throne molded to suit the design of each statue. He quickly noted that five of these thrones were occupied.
"Kali, there you are. We were getting worried you wouldn't come." Came the voice of a more familiar face. Raul remembered he was the same man who had somehow rescued them.
The young gentleman now wore a deep crimson suit with black highlights. Unlike everyone else he seemed to have a thing for high fashion and stylish outfits of the 1950s with a top hat to match. He also wore glasses with no lenses and had a cigar with him. His skin glowed a rich coffee colored and his rich black hair was nicely trimmed.
"When has she ever been on time? She likes to be spontaneous. Whether it's early or late." Another voice said. Turning he saw a beautiful young woman with shimmering long black hair and striking blue eyes.
This woman wore a simple long black gown but the more he looked at her he began to realize that the right half of her face was showing bone and that the same side of her throat had bone exposed. Even half of her hair was white. It was almost as if half of her was nothing but bone.
"Instead of starting a fight with me maybe we can get on with the issue at hand." Kali snapped.
She took a deep breath to calm herself before she turned to Raul.
"Allow me to introduce you to the Reapers."
Words : 1546
Oups ! Cette image n'est pas conforme à nos directives de contenu. Afin de continuer la publication, veuillez la retirer ou télécharger une autre image.
