Hollows Eve

Chapter 4

.: HOLLOWS EVE CHAPTER 4 :.

A little girl lost within a dark place where the sun doesn't shine down and it is eternal night…. Caught in a nightmare that haunts her reality where the only way to escape is to accept fate….fate that has been thrusted upon her so quickly it makes her scared…. So scared of the unknown. So many questions to answer…. so little time to answer them all, and yet here I am.

That's me, a 16 year old school girl turned into the spawn of the embodiment of Death itself with no explanation, living out my real nightmares in front of my eyes as if they were meant to happen. Force to accept something that I don't understand…. Otherwise I might just end up dying before I get the chance to truly live. Not only that but I've already fought for my life with a pumpkin-headed creeper who once held the position that I now hold…. The Grim Reaper.

The one who is responsible for reaping the souls of the damned demons of hell, sending them back to where they came from so I can preserve balance in the afterlife on the fault line between heaven and hell itself…. Purgatory. Though something tells me this job is much more than just reaping the souls of demons…

I still have a lot of un-answered questions, such as why was I picked for this Job? Is Lord Death REALLY my father? How does he know me? And were those subliminal messages just a lie? What do I really have to fear? And….. why do I still feel so afraid? I'm sure more questions will continue to stack up against me as I continue this venture…. But at least I can feel safe in knowing that I'm not entirely defenseless….. Because my name is Kaila Amiyuki. I'm a 16 year-old girl in high school…. And I'm also the Grim Reaper.

Before we can truly go back into the nightmare, let's visit a new one. Remember how I said there was a commotion last time?... Well now we re-visit the town of Nightmare itself.

The Victorian London style town was awash with silent darkness, as creatures from all eras and angles swarmed the entire place. Some of them radiated very dark spiritual pressure, like the kind I gave off when I transformed for the first time back then…. It was strange. But for some strange reason when I was there the air felt a bit darker. As I walked through the town, the air was a bit thinner, and I could feel the malice & dread inside of it. As it felt nearly tainted.

Now if I were to see or feel the air around the town, it was a bit calmer and more relaxed. Almost like an actual town in the world of the living. The moon still shined it's luminous glow down on the kingdom, giving it light within the darkness so you could see all kinds of different creatures, but all of them still radiated this energy that felt dark….but not evil.

There were all kinds of creatures there too, there were black jesters with multi-colored costumes dressed in haunting attire that could blend in with the shadows, there were what looked like humans with colored marks on their pale skin, some of which had green or beige skin, that had special marks on several of their pressure points, where the spiritual energies inside of them were gauged.

There were also of course plenty of monsters…..Vampires, Werewolves, Zombies, you name it. It's like a horror fest that I wasn't invited too. But the strangest ones of them all….were these gothic looking creatures that wore only black attire. Most of them had black hair and on their clothing….there was this eye symbol.

I have no idea what it means exactly, but this is just the tip of the iceberg….there was another presence in the town of Nightmare. Another presence that was pure evil.

As the Jester like hollows proceeded to sell some seigan supplies to potential, auctioning them off like collectibles….

"Hey you want Death?! I got death right here in this Seigan! Seigans contain everything you could want in one little marble! Open it up and it's like a treasure! You could have all the riches, all the power, everything you could ever want! All I would need is 25 black souls! Come on I'll give two for one!"

The hollow creature that was selling the seigan was masked of course. And he had shadows radiating through him. He wore a black jester looking suit with a kimono on at the bottom that had black fire streaks on it, with a bandana flowing through the wind and a Top hat. The strangest combination of clothing if I ever saw it, seriously?

However the man walking past him seemed disinterested. He gave him a slight sneer and continued walking down the same path that Jack and I took to get too the castle of Nightmares.

"Oh…Ok. Well f**k YOU ANYWAYS! Hmph."

Seems the merchant didn't take that too well….

"Stupid Energy hollows. Don't they know how powerful these things are!? Hmph. What does a Shadow have to do in order to make a living in the great beyond?!"

He says that like it's supposed to matter. FYI, your dead. How can you make a LIVING when your dead? But wait…..

Something's crawling along the walls in an alleyway right next to the merchant…It slithered and snuck up on the merchant, while he continued to fuss over the Energy Hollow's decline toward his not buying the Seigan.

It was…in a nutshell… Hideous. It had….skinny, boney arms….white decaying flesh….and sharp black nails for claws….it had blank red eyes and decaying red hair, and it was tall too….taller than most of the dead beings that existed in the hollow realm!

It snuck up on the merchant slowly, and creepily, and then when the merchant wasn't looking…

"Huh? …Why do I hear something strange? Whos' that?! You want to buy my seigan? It's only 25 Black souls-"

He then turned around….And the next thing you hear….is the sound of his deafening screams, as the monster pounced on him and stained the walls with his blood. It gnawed at his skin as he screamed and yelled for help….but no one came to help him, as he suffered an unfortunate fate.

The monster not only tore open his guts and ate his flesh, but it took his soul and slurped it into his body like a drink. It was on the hunt…..looking for more souls to eat. And the more souls it ate….the stronger it got.

All over it continued to eat and destroy more hollow bodies and souls, staining the walls with their red blood. Sometimes it was green for monsters, other times it was black for shadow hollows…. But either way, blood stained the walls of every street corner, as by the minutes more and more hollows were being devoured by this creature…

Remember the man from before? The one that walked past the merchant? He continued walking and reached the outer gates of the town of Nightmare. And as he walked…..He suddenly stopped. He could feel the souls of several hollows leave this world all of a sudden.

This man had black hair, tan skin and blue eyes with a yellow extension on his head, with black, midnight blue & yellow attire on. He looked back and he saw the dark silhouette of the demon coming towards him…..creeping up on him slowly.

It's red eyes were glowing, staring him directly in the in the face, as his expression changed from concern….to terror.

"Stay back…..Stay back, you damn, dirty DEMON!" He said with a slight shake in his voice.

He then pulled out a long sword that radiated with blue energy, the same kind of energy I had earlier, but it didn't feel evil this time. He charged at the demon and swung it's sword at it, cutting it's left arm off.

The demon let out a loud screech that frightened the poor soul, and he left without a second thought, crossing over the gigantic moat that separated the outerlands of death and bones laid down from the dead corpses of those that lost their bodies in death from the town itself.

Then…it somehow managed to completely regenerate it's arm back. And just went back inside the town, back inside to collect more souls to feast upon. It seems like I might finally get the chance to test out these new abilities that I have… God….please help me.

****

Pretty soon after the "Sparring Match" that me & Jack had. We were back in the library I had met Amuki in before. The one with stacks and stacks, rows and rows, and shelves and shelves of books? We were underneath the crystal chandelier, sitting at the table after my gruesome fight with Jack, as he started to teach me the ways of this world. Lucky Amuki was sitting right next to me. I would be SO incredibly nervous if she left me alone with this psychopath….

"Ok ….." Jack said, as he plopped down a stack of books in front of me.

I already don't want to be in a spooky castle with a pumpkin-headed freak, a big-chested witch girl, as well as the literal embodiment of death claiming to be my dad. Now I have to work like I'm at school too? *groans* Whyyyyyyy?...

"If your goin' to be the grim reaper, you've got alotta learn about this world we "Live" in." Oh yeah. Emphasis on Live pal.

"Do I really have to learn all of this? I mean this seems like a bit much for just one jo-" Before I could finish my sentence….He gave me this haunting look that seemed like a glare with the intent to kill. It sent shivers up my spine like static.

"Are you back-sassing me Sheila?..." He asked in as deep of a low voice as he could.

Me being the paranoid little girl that I am, I quickly answered back saying "nosirnotatallwecantotallydowhateveryouwantpleasedontkillme!" And….cue sweatdrop.

"Oh calm down Jacky!" I suddenly hear an interjection from Amuki. Thank god for this girl right now.

"Ease up on her would you? She's probably a little overwhelmed. Especially after that crazy fight you put her through. All of this thrust upon her. It's crazy! She just got here, let's welcome her nicely ok?" Jack looked at her with a hint of annoyance.

"You know I don't do nice Love. Get out of here with that." He then suddenly let out a little yelp, as Amuki grabbed onto his….hat? Wait what?

"OW! Get off of me!" He said as she pulled on his hat? How was that hurting him?

"You need to learn to control yourself Jacky. Let's take this a little …SLOWER? Thank you?" She then let him go. I got to admit it was kind of funny seeing him be put in his place like that.

"Egh…Alright fine. Listen up Midnight, your job 'ere is to reap the souls of demon escapees from hell n' put 'em back where they belong. Six feet under us." That I already know.

"Then why're you making me read all this crap?" I ask him.

"I was getting' to that you bloke. Listen." He then slams his hands on the books, causing me to jump a bit.

"These books contain information and knowledge about the world around ya'. If you read them…you'll know who to kill and who to not kill. Cause if ya' end up killin' the wrong thing….." He got WAY too close for comfort.

"I've got a feelin' that Lord Death won't take too kindly to that…even if he is your father. Heheheheh…." There go the shivers again! But also….

"OW!" There goes Amuki's hand again. She had her hands on her hips this time while pulling on Jack's hat. Seriously how does that hurt him?

"Jacky? What did we talk about? Stop being creepy." Thank you! About time somebody finally got the message.

"Alright, Alright goddammit! A guy can't have fun for once?! Jesus!" And then she let him go. Looks like all the fun and games are over. Because Jack folded his arms and got serious.

"Alright enough funnin' around. Let's get serious. Open that first book and you'll see exactly what your dealin' with 'ere." He then pointed to the black book on top of the others with a pentagram star on it…..Pentagram stars are synonymous with the devil and his forces, so I knew this had to be the book containing information about demons and the world that they live in.

So I opened it to a specific page in the book. "Hmmm?..." I started to question the images and what it all meant. I mean there were images of skeleton heads with demon horns, ugly monstrous creatures, a triple pentagram star circle, magic seals, demented spells & incantations! It's all here.

"You see that?" Jack pointed to the demonic skeletal head with horns. "That's the head of a demon. Demons are a great n' powerful evil around 'ere. That much is obvious, but what makes them special…" He then pointed to another part of the page at the bottom. There was a paragraph written in some kind of language that I couldn't understand.

"Is this. Sanskrit language mixed in with the language of the oldest higher existence of Archangel turned demon. This is known as a curse. And they use these curses to weaken the barrier between the real world & the afterlife." He said.

"There's all kinds of Demons trying to escape hell." Amuki said with her arms folded. That raised a question.

"But why? Isn't hell the perfect place for Demons? From what I heard about it…Hell is a terrible place full of the most evil, disgusting, horrifying imagery imaginable." Jack started to laugh.

"Heheheh…Hahahaha! You must've read those corny stories from Virgil & Dante then? That only describes what hell is like…..and I've seen it for me' self . So I should know." That not only….put some puzzle pieces together. But it also raised a few questions.

"You…you've been to hell and back?!" I asked him, getting up from my seat.

"Yeah…." He said while looking at me, folding his arms.

"But…but how did you-" He cut me off before I could finish my sentence again.

"None of your business. What happened in hell is between me & the god that judges me. Now sit back down and continue learnin'." His smile changed to a frown. I guess he's not exactly one to spill secrets is he?

So I did as he asked me too…. I sat back down. But I had another question. "Ok….but if this is the case….why would they want to escape hell? What for?" I said while looking up at them both.

Amuki's tone changed from light-hearted to a bit more serious. "Demons are pure evil. They consist of the most terrifying evil imaginable. Heinous, terrorizing, plaguing evil that haunts the world of the living worse than any of us ever could. We exist as a middle ground, barely crossing the line between good and evil."

That kinda warranted a frightened look on my face. But then Amuki perked up in alarm." OH WAIT! I mean, WE'RE Obviously not evil! Hahaha! I don't know what ever gave you that Idea." A beat of sweat traveled down her forehead, as Jack put one hand in front of her to silence her.

"I'll do the talkin' from here on out love. Anyways, we exist as a mediator between good n' evil. The world of the hollows exists as a plane of death for all human beings who have yet to truly pass on in peace, or in damnation. But demons however….hmhmhmhm. They're a completely different story." He closed then opened his eyes when he said that, unfolded his arms too.

I began to imagine in my mind what demons look like, horrible, terrifying monsters that were even uglier by comparison to the hollows I saw in nightmare, standing in front of a blazing inferno surrounded by blood-thirsty, ravenous creatures that only looked at the screen with a big, red glare in their eyes.

"These creatures are pure evil. Ain't nothin' else to 'em. They exist to destroy the lives of humans, and take their souls with them. And they'll do any means necessary to defy death and take all that belongs to those who live. Even if it means escaping their so called "Home" in the afterlife." Jack said.

"Continue readin'." I looked back at the book and continued reading, and as I continued reading I noticed something strange about the book, it also had the same eye symbol inside of it and a picture of the woods that I had seen when I first arrived in Purgatory.

"What's this?" I asked and pointed to it. "Well now….That's the symbol of death itself." This….seriously puzzled me.

"Huh?" I asked in confusion. "An EYE is the symbol of death?" I continued to ask Jack.

"Yep." He answered abruptly. "An Eye?" I asked raising my eyebrow. "Uh-huh." …..Another beat of sweat dropped down my forehead….. Ugh…. Whatever.

"Never mind. What's it doing in this book?" I asked, generally wondering why it was in a book about DEMONS.

"Well, this 'ere world is the FAULTLINE between Heaven & Hell. It's technically Hell's outer circle." This surprised me, and even took me back a bit.

"Ya see….it's extremely easy for demons to get out of hell using the circle of Purgatory itself because we're technically close to Hell's REAL first circle. Where demons lurk through a mist of red smoke amidst a dead grassland. They get out here, they can break the barrier. And if they break the barrier, they can get into the real world. Where they can terrorize & take over human souls like kids rip open presents at a birthday party." Wow…..

"This job ain't no Joke ya bloke. So…you better not mess it up. Otherwise you'll be joinin' 'em in the afterlife. Got it?" Did he just….threaten me?!

I looked at him with my mouth slightly open in fear of him….he seemed so hostile and scary….but suddenly the weirdest thing just happened. His eyes widened.

"Hmmm?! ….Kozuto?...is that you?...What's goin' on?...There is, is there?...Hmhmhmhmhm…..perfect. We'll take care of it." I raised my eyebrow as Jack snickered….wondering what was going on.

"Well looks like it's showtime girls." What?

"What do you mean Jacky?" Amuki asked. Y'know….she shouldn't act so innocent like that. Especially around this freak.

"I heard that Midnight." ! What?! How did he hear my thought-

"AGH!" He grabbed me by the neck and picked me up, then set me down. "It's time to do your job. Get your weapon and let's go. We've got a demon to kill." With that being said…. Jack walked off….

I coughed a bit and looked at Amuki who grasped my shoulders wondering if I was okay.

"Is he always like this?!" I ask her.

"Well sort of. But he can be really sweet. I know it might seem like he's hostile and scary, but he's really a big softie deep down inside! And I'm not just saying that. It's the truth. I know him more than anyone. So trust me you'll grow to lov-" He cut her off AGAIN.

"Ey!...You two shelias comin' or what? Pick it up and let's go!" And he continued walking. Oh yeah….i'm sure….he's REAL soft on the inside. I repeat…..GOD HELP ME.

****

As we transition back to the kingdom of Nightmare, you can still see the dark, nighttime sky, as it never changes it's ominous, luminous glow that kisses the dark, blue-ish black ground of the Hollow world. However…what broke the haunting silence is the sounds of screams of innocent hollow beings, devoured by the demon from earlier.

In the midst of it all….A strange figure hidden in a large, red robe was examining the world around him….and how it was in such a state of chaos that it honestly forced a smile upon his face. He could also sense another presence nearby…..one that was different from the one attacking the innocent hollows in Nightmare.

"….So you've arrived?...Have you?..." The smile on his face just got even bigger.

The skinny demon continued it's bloody rampage, as it clawed through one Hollow holding an axe right above it's head. Before it could swing it down on the demon, it sank it's claws into the hollow's chest and burned it's insides alive. After which it tore the hollow in half, spilling a bunch of black blood on the ground.

However it's not like it had any guts however, as it was a hollow consisting of shadows again, making it fade away after dying.

After the other hollows took notice, they took straight to the hollow courtyard to combat the demon amidst a flowing fountain of black water right in the middle of a square cul-de-sac alley. Have I mentioned how weird it is that the afterlife's middle part literally looks like puritan London? That's just REALLY f*****g weird.

The demon was surrounded by tons of other hollow beings, as it looked sideways, back and forth at the surrounding hollows that stared at it, weapons drawn in full view, with looks that intend to murder.

One by one they ran at the demon, and one by one they all fell. As the demon continued to hack and s***h its way through the hollows that came from all sides, starting to ambush the demon.

In span around and summoned…a tornado of hell fire?! Oh my god this thin was stronger than they thought….as all of the hollows began to burn away into nothing, along with their souls.

Three more hollows with weapons of their own, one had another gothic looking axe with a lightning like edge, another had a giant ball n chain, and one more had a sword. The demon screeched at the top of its lungs, sending out loud shockwaves that pushed them all back. Sending them crashing into the buildings below them and causing mass destruction as the buildings started to topple over them.

The demon was very pleased with what it had done, as it began to walk towards the scene ready to devour the souls of all hollows present. But then…. A ball and chain came flying at it!

It quickly jumped into the air to dodge the ball & chain but one of the sword wielding hollows in samurai armor jumped into the air after it and brought it's sword down on it, cutting it in half.

The demon reformed itself, but the ball & chain grabbed it's leg and slammed it down. The ball & chain was wielded by a big hollow with a half mask on and black skin armor, as it pulled the demon toward itself and tried punching it.

Before it could get the hit in, the demon skewered the hollow's arm as it let out a loud, deep, scraggly scream before the Demon somehow stretched its arms and legs across the Hollow's big neck, snapping it in half and causing it to dissipate.

The last hollow with the axe brought down it's weapon on the hollow and sent out a giant wave of lightning, which the demon dodged and punctured it's left should by stretching it's arm and pinning it to the wall. It began to speak…..

"You hollow scum can't compare to us and you already know that….yet you still fight like you have a chance of existing in the afterlife….how crude and annoying. I cannot wait to feast upon your delectable souls and corpses. Each one tasting better than the last….." It had a distorted and evil sounding, scraggly like voice fitting of it's body type.

The hollow shook with fear and grimaced as it prepared to die. But luckily….

"Sword stream…." A powerful energy crescent was shot at it. And it quickly took notice by looking behind itself and dodging said attack, while the hollow also dodged said attack and ran off without a second thought.

"WHO DARES?! Who would be so careless as to strike a demon?!" It was Jack, and Amuki was with him too.

Jack had his sword raised as it shined a blue glow that matched the nighttime sky. "I would….ya' skinny ninny. What do ya' think your doin' 'ere? Hollows aren't your lunch demon scum. Why don't ya go find dinner down in the tar pits of hell where the dumb bloke with the blank eye can scratch ya' anus." Wow….talk about burn.

"*growls* You impudent FOOL! Do you really think that you can talk like that to us?! We will soon rise up and take over this world. No matter who is the grim reaper. The purveyors of death itself have nothing on the antithesis of all that is holy! Evil will always triumph over-" Amuki cut him off.

"YOU TALK TOO MUCH! I liked it better when you demons would just shut up and kill people." She roared at the skinny demon.

"Yo! Midnight…..come and cast judgement on this bloke already." Amuki's expression changed from annoyance, to a bit concerned. "Huh? Your sending her in now?" She asked.

Looks like Jack was right… It was showtime….And I started the show walking in with my Scythe in hand, with shadows over my eyes, and my body shaking from the fear that I had. Despite my fear, I stood before the demon, ….Kind of ready.

It just…laughed at me. "Hahahahahah! Is THIS your grim reaper? You've got to be kidding. She's just a girl….And…. –sniffs- WHAT? What's THIS?...She's….got….LIVING FLEEEESSSSHHH…..FRESH MEAT!" The demon then licked its lips, as its teeth dripped with blood from its victims.

I stood before the demon and said nothing, trying not to look at it and not show my fear. But Amuki chimed in saying, "Yeah she's a girl! And this girl, and her friends are gonna take you down! Let's go get 'em Jacky!" Amuki was about to lap into action, but Jack once again put one hand in front of her to stop her in her tracks.

"Don't butt in. Leave this up to 'er. " Amuki now was VERY concerned. "WHAT?! Jack! Are you crazy! She's not ready to fight a demon on her own! She's too in-experienced. What if she dies?!" That comment sent a massive beat of sweat down my forehead, caused me to grimace and grip my blade twice as hard all at the same time.

"Ey…have faith in the poor girl. If she can trade blows with me…..Then she can reap the soul of a damn Jikininki demon." He then looked down on me and saw the fear that my body language communicated and uttered a creepy laugh.

"Heheheheheheheheh….." He said as he smiled down on me malevolently.

"Listen Kaila! The demon in front of you is a Jikininki Demon! It's easy to defeat! But it can stretch it's body and is technically immortal! You have to strike swiftly and surely by using the Zetsu Arameshii's reaper claw technique! That way you can reap it's soul." She said to me as the demon stood in front of me….towering over me with it's gruesome visage.

"Hmhmhmhmhmahahaha! Please, do you really think that this tiny human can destroy me? HA! I'm going to enjoy tasting your flesh girl…I always wondered what human living flesh tasted like, the texture, the flavor! THE THICK MEAT OF IT ALL!" The demon laughed manically before raising its claws and striking down on me.

Before it struck down on me I looked up at it with my yellow eyes, and then released the reaper claw's first form, causing a spiritual burst of black & orange energy that shrouded me right before the demon struck down on me. The demon grinned, thinking that It had got to me…but then it's disgusting grin changed once it saw I had blocked it's attack.

"Right now…I'm scared….I'm scared for my life….but trust me….compared to what I've been through….this is nothing. What I've been through in the past hour or so….is a far cry from what You can do….so shut up AND DIE!" I threw it off with all of my might. Causing it to topple backwards.

"GGRRRH! You little….RRAGH!" It then threw its claws into the ground sending a giant earth wave flying at me that exploded with hellfire, I sank my scythe into it to break apart the wave and then it came flying at me, slashing the area where I was at with its giant black claws.

I jumped onto another roof nearby to avoid getting fried, but it sank into the ground using a curse seal that appeared as a large red circle and disappeared.

"Wh-where'd it go?..." Amuki said looking around. I also looked around for it in alarm, wondering where it went. I couldn't sense it anywhere. But I tried looking for it. Only to find that it started to rise behind me and raise its claw into the air.

Amuki gasped at the sight of it. "KAILA WATCH OUT!" She yelled as I quickly looked behind myself, only to be smacked by the demon into another building, which I crashed off the side of, hurting my arm.

The demon then lunged at me, and I quickly got up and back flipped away from it, trying my best to dodge it before it struck down and broke the ground apart.

I slid a bit on the ground but spun my scythe around and prepared for the demon's next attack, but my arm hurt so bad it caused me to wince and grunt in pain. The next thing I knew… the demon's arm stretched and grabbed me, slammed me down a bit from place to place causing my head to hurt and blood to come from the top of my hair line, and brought me right up to it's ugly, demented face…..

"What's this?...Your afraid?...HAAHAHHAHA I can tell….you humans are foolish to even but into affairs that don't matter to you." I didn't but into anything! I was brought here against my will!

"Before you die…I'm going to enjoy tenderizing the meat." It then slammed me down again and through me away into another building that I bounced off of, the stone walls almost broke my shoulders….ouch.

I landed on my knees and stopped myself from falling down completely with my hands. As the demon pounced onto my back and pulled on my pigtails. Causing me to scream out loud in pain as it's claws seeped into the back of my dress and skin.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHH!" I screamed out loud.

"KAILA!" Amuki said. Jack then pointed one of his guns at her, permitting her from leaving the spot she was in.

"Jack?! WHY?!" She said while looking at him.

"Like I said…have faith in the girl. She can do this. The only way she'll GET experience is if she does it first-hand. Besides…..i'm enjoyin' this. Hehehehe." She gave him a slightly frightened look. But then turned her attention back to me.

"Kaila get up! Use the power of the reaper claw!" She yelled at me, her encouraging words actually helped me get up.

"Awwwww….." The demon's head tilted. "The little Reaper girl thinks she can get up after an assault like that? Hmph…. The meat has been tenderized already….So it's FEEDING TIME!" It raised its claw again in order to strike me down, but….It's arm was hacked off instead.

"WHAT…HAAAARRRGGH!" Its arm quickly grew back however…. I stood there with the Reaper claw raised and my hand on the ground with one knee bent.

"I…..will not die here…..I have too much to live for back home. I'll say this….I might be scared of you now…but that doesn't mean I won't kill you! I hate having to fight for myself to stay alive in a place that I don't understand or care about….but there's questions to be answered….thing to be done….stuff that hasn't been said…and I won't fall into the darkness or fall into damnation! Especially from dying by the hand of an ugly freak like YOU!"

I then dropkicked the demon in its face, causing it to crash through another stone wall…Wow. I honestly had no idea that I had that in me.

After a few seconds the demon burst from the wall and jumped high into the air….

"Alright then, Reaper girl! If you're willing to throw away your life that you value so much, allow me to TAKE IT OFF YOUR HANDS! ALONG WITH YOUR SOUL!" It then stretched its arm and sent it flying at me, with me dodging narrowly to the left by flipping over.

I then somersaulted to the right and ran at the demon, gripping my blade with intense fear of what might happen. And then I began swinging at it, striking multiple parts of its body, but it began slashing at me as well and our blades collided back and forth. With the speed of each strike increasing.

The Jikininki demon then slashed me so hard that it sent me flying backwards, as I landed on the wall of a clock tower in the middle of the Nightmare kingdom. I jumped right off of it and raised my blade, letting out a big war cry.

"HAAAAAAAHHH!" I raised my blade and slashed at it…. But it put up its defenses and summoned a giant tornado of hellfire.

Unfortunately…. I was caught in the middle.

"AAAAAH! GGGH!" I took the brunt of the burns; somehow my soul wasn't really affected by its burns. But it was affected by the demon stretching it's leg and kicking me upwards.

I started to fly in the sky and floated there for a bit before descending back down, as I was floating there, I heard a voice speak to me.

Close your eyes….

My eyes did exactly the opposite once I heard the voice. "Huh?..."

Close your eyes and look using your reishi….you'll see what you need to do.

So…I did exactly as the voice told me. Weird though….it sounded like Jack's voice. But I didn't care who it was, I closed my eyes tightly….and when I opened them… I noticed my vision had turned completely red, and I saw where the demon was. It came flying right up to me as I descended into the town below.

"It's FEEDING TIME REAPER GIRL! PREPARE TO JOIN US IN THE AFTER LIFE! SO MUCH FOR THE NEW GRIM REAPER!" It raised its claws and prepare to go for the killing blow…

But I just grimaced angrily at it…. "No….By the power of Lord Death, I cast my judgement upon you. For your crimes against the afterlife that break the cycle of death itself and threaten to destroy the world of the living up above…I send you back where you came from demon! YOUR GOING STRAIGHT TO HELL!"

Then…black & orange reishi enveloped my blade and I raised it….slashing right through it while it slashed through me at the same time. But I was the real victor of the epic cross-s***h, as it began to split in half and evaporate with my energy radiating from its body. It then exploded as I landed on my feet with my head down, and blood rained from the sky as the demon's body parts landed on the ground behind me….and faded into nothingness. I had done it… I slayed my first demon!

Amuki happily clapped for me and jumped up and down. "YAY! YES! Way to go kaila! You did it! Ahahaha!" She was so happy she could barely contain herself.

Jack simply frowned a bit…but then smiled at me and closed his eyes. "Hmph." He said.

I had got up and looked at the blood that stained my hands ….. "I get it…..I get it now…..In order to really utilize the reaper claw's full power….In order to reap the souls of demons….one can't be afraid to die. I have to embrace it…..I have to embrace death for it to be on my side." I can't say I didn't completely NOT fear death….but I wasn't going to let it de-rail me either.

But then….All of the sudden… I heard the voice of a man behind me, along with distant clapping. The clapping grew louder and louder as he began to approach me. I turned around….. and it was the same man in the red robe you saw before.

"VERY Good….you've finally figured it out. You are definitely the one that I've been searching for. The one that mistress has truly spoken of. It's rather peculiar how you've never been here…How your still alive….."

.: TO BE CONTINUED :.