Author note

 

📚 Dear Readers,

I hope you've been enjoying the journey through this story so far! Your thoughts and feedback mean a lot to me. I would love to hear what you think about the characters, plot twists, or any elements that have caught your attention.

Your insights can truly shape the course of the narrative and enhance the reading experience for everyone. Please take a moment to share your remarks, comments, or any suggestions you may have. Your valuable feedback is the heartbeat of this story.

Thank you for being a part of this adventure. Let's make this story even more remarkable together!

Best regards,

Naman Goel

Chapter 12: A chat with Death

Jason: "Hey Raf! What happened, pal?"

Rafael took a deep breath before responding to Jason's question. The weight of his revelation bore down on him like a heavy burden.

Rafael: "Jason, I wish I could tell that to you right now."

Jason: "What was up with the dragon?"

Rafael: "Again, I wish I could tell that too, Jason. There are many secrets that have been revealed to me in the mind journey of mine. Jason and Gorion, I thank you for taking care of me all this while, thank you for bringing me into this world, and keeping me safe until I recovered my memories back."

Gorion: "You are most welcome, little one."

The air in the room grew somber as Rafael continued.

Rafael: "I have an apology to make. I am pretty sure by now you must have realized, but I am not an ordinary mage; I was a powerful wizard in my previous life and then I was killed, only to be reborn in this body years and years later."

Jason and Gorion exchanged knowing glances and then laughed, breaking the tension that had settled in the room.

Jason: "Oh, we already knew you were no ordinary mage. Gorion knew ever since he met you, so did I. We do share a special bond, Rafael. But do you really think a General of Alexandria would have time to train every ordinary mage? You are special, Rafael. We thought you were a prodigy, one born maybe once every millennium or even rarer. No one could complete their training as fast as you, no one could kill the spirit bear on their first arrival. You are talented, Rafael, with potential that borders infinite. Your talent was enough to attract the immortal elements to your side. They don’t just come at anyone’s beck and call, you know?"

A mixture of gratitude and humility filled Rafael's heart as he absorbed Jason's words.

Gorion: "Do you know who you were, Young Rafael?"

Rafael: "Yes, Gorion, I do know, but unfortunately, I can’t tell you who it is right now. There is something that I have to do first, but before doing that, there’s the matter with Death that needs to be settled."

Gorion: "Have you found out a way?"

Rafael: "Yes, there’s a ritual, an ancient, strong, and powerful ritual that’s basically a one-on-one battle. It was designed by the Dragon, especially to help those people that were struggling with the Four Horsemen. Only one of us is going to be back from that battle, and whoever wins is going to be the permanent controller of the body. But before that, I have a favor to ask of you."

Gorion: "What is it, young one?"

Rafael: "I want us to go back to the training room. Once I enter the room, seal the room with as many spells as you can that would ward off evil. If I lose the battle, and you sense any evil trying to break off the seals, transport this room to the farthest corner of our universe. It will at least buy you guys some time to think of a way to deal with me till I get back."

Gorion: "What’s the ritual?"

Rafael: "It allows me to have a conversation with Death."

Gorion: "What’s the catch?"

Rafael: "Like I had said, only one of us walks free permanently. Whoever wins is the sole controller of the body."

Jason: "Raf! Do you realize the gamble you are playing? Do you realize the stakes you are playing at?"

Rafael: "Yes, Jason, I realize that, but there’s no other way. Either I will win, and the matter of Death will be over forever, or he will win, and it will be the end of Rafael Windcaller. No more reincarnations; my soul would become a part of him for all eternity."

Gorion: "Are you sure about this, young one?"

Rafael: "Yes, Gorion. I am sure."

Gorion: "There could be other ways to deal with Rafael. Safer, surer ways."

Rafael: "It would take ample time and research. The kind of time that I do not possess right now. With the way things are going, I need to leave as soon as I can."

Gorion: "Alright, let’s get going then. Jason, would you create the portal"

A few moments later, Rafael, Jason, and Gorion were standing back in the training room, courtesy of the purple, swirling vortex that had teleported them back there.

Rafael: "Okay, I officially hate portals."

Gorion: "Haha! You’ll get used to it, in due time."

Rafael, Jason, and Gorion gave each other a courteous nod, and then the latter two left the room, sealing it as Rafael had asked.

Rafael himself had gotten to work and drew the exact symbol that Gorion had drawn on the day they discovered Rafael had Death as his sub-element. The only difference was that he kept unlit black candles instead of bones.

He sat in the center of the pentagram holding a mirror in his hand and tried to picture himself having a face-to-face conversation with Death, much like the one in his dreams.

He started a slow but continuous and monotonous chant in an ancient tongue. His focus and mental image remained unbroken as the candles lit one by one. When the candle right next to him lit, Rafael knew Death had arrived. He looked at his face in the mirror, which suddenly twisted and turned to form that of a man possessed, and then the skin started getting wrinkled and falling off until nothing but a bony face was left.

Suddenly, the sadistic laughter of Death echoed throughout the room, and finally, the face in the mirror morphed from Rafael’s to that of Death. Death’s hollow eyes shone with an eerie light, and within that light, Rafael could see himself—an evil version of himself. He saw how much power he had gained, the ability to destroy cities in the blink of an eye, the power to rule the world, or demolish it if he so desired.

Death: “Well, well, well, what do we have here? Was the chicken finally able to grow a pair? I am impressed, boy. No one has ever had the courage to challenge me to a one-on-one for supremacy for a long time. You do realize that your soul would become a part of me if you lose?”

Rafael: “Yes, I am aware. Why are you doing this anyway?”

Death: “What do you mean? Isn’t it pretty obvious? Didn’t your master tell you? I am the big bad evil dude bent on destroying life as you know it, in the hungry quest of getting his powers back.”

Rafael: “Oh, that I know. What I meant was, I get why you are trying to kill all magical life forms, but why are you so bent on destroying everything in existence?”

Rafael was more surprised by this than Death. He wasn’t sure where he was getting enough courage from, but somehow, he knew. He knew that he would win this battle. When Death’s face became visible, it wasn’t as horrifying as it had been in his dreams, but it was the face of the dejected-looking figure that mourned over his demise in his previous life.

He remembered his first encounter with Death in his dreams, still tied to his prison, the hood covering his face, the searing chains wrapped around his entire skeletal body, a mind that turned insane from countless years of pain and torment. For some reason, Rafael couldn’t just believe in everyone’s story about Death. He felt there was something more to it; he didn’t feel like Death was as evil as he was portrayed.

Before answering Rafael’s question, Death tried to pull the rope towards his side. Rafael could feel himself being pulled; he could feel his consciousness standing at the edge of an eternal and infinite abyss. Rafael felt another tug, but he resisted. One wrong move, one lapse in concentration, one wrong decision, and this whole thing could go bad, very, very bad.

Death: “Think about being trapped in a cold and dark prison, for eons on end, all alone, constantly in unbearable pain, and your only fault? Your existence. When the one you call The Creator created Life, he deemed me and my three brothers too dangerous to be around Life, so he trapped us. But that wasn’t just enough for him. To make sure of our complete submission and utter humiliation, we were stripped of most of our power, and then it was divided amongst you puny creatures, the so-called magic-wielders of today.”

 

Rafael: “Ok”

Death: “DO YOU THINK YOU ARE WORTHY ENOUGH TO WIELD MY POWER? DO YOU THINK YOU CAN CONTAIN ME? You are wrong, human. I will walk out of this circle, and then I will kill your friends outside the room, and then I will use your very own body to murder each and every one of those people that you cared so much for. I will eradicate anyone who so much as shook a hand with you, and I will make you watch, the look of horror on their helpless faces as they see your face twisted in a bloodthirsty glee as I deliver the killing blow. Then, and only then, would I end this miserable life of yours and have that tiny fragment of my power back. After you, when I kill three hundred more of the so-called Death mages, my power will return in full, and I will blow apart this cage, and at last, I will be free.”

Having finished saying that, Death started pulling harder than ever. Slowly but surely, Rafael could feel himself edging towards the abyss. He wasn’t sure if he could carry this on for much longer.

Rafael: “So, what you are saying is that you aren’t evil, that ‘The Creator’ entrapped you when he created Life, but at the same time, you are saying that if you gain control over my body, you are going to cause such widespread destruction. When you have just admitted to intentions like that, how can you proclaim your innocence?”

Death: “I was innocent when I was trapped. If the same thing happened to you, wouldn’t you want to destroy, eradicate the reason for your imprisonment? I want to be free again, I want to be whole again, I want my power back, and then I’ll reap every soul in existence when and where their time will come.”

Rafael: “You will reap everyone?”

Death: “I AM THE GRIM REAPER. I am one of the oldest beings in creation, Rafael, and one thing that I learned in my very, very long life is that everyone dies. In the end, only I will remain, only me.”

Maybe the realization of it all had strengthened him or maybe it was the finality of things that ultimately will come to pass, but Death had started pulling with renewed strength, and this time Rafael couldn’t keep himself out of the abyss completely. He could see his hands turning to bone; he pulled back harder, but the rope wouldn’t even budge.

In his mind, Rafael could see grand cities bustling with traffic and enjoying their ordinary life, and then suddenly something fell out of the sky. He could see Death being in control of his body; Death stood amidst a busy road, then with his hands widespread, he released a wave of deadly energy, and the whole city was caught in a blazing inferno. Even though the room was silent, he could hear the screams of people burning alive; he could hear the helpless cries of mothers trying to shield their children with their bodies in a futile attempt to protect them. Even though the room was clear, he could feel his lungs choking up from the smoke that now filled the city’s atmosphere. Even though his face was dry, he could feel the blood on his face that had now started raining from the sky, as if the heavens themselves bled at the deeds unfolding underneath.

With the burning city now in the background and the shrieks of pain all but a distant murmur, Rafael could see clearly. He could see his face. Only his eyes remained, a little tiny window in those cold eyes of Death, as any hint that Rafael ever had been a human. He could hear only one sentence, in his own breaking voice:

Rafael: “Someone… someone… please… please… kill… me. Somebody please, please just, kill me.”