Eryn Cutler: The Life Taker

Chapter 10- The Purging

"I was made to rule the darkness" -Rae Hacton, Evermore.

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"Who-Who are you?", I stammered as I pointed my knife towards the white-masked man. 

"Don't you know me? I am Death, your ever loyal friend", he said, emotionless. That was odd. Normally, I'd warm up to him immediately. Death always gave an atmosphere of withered roses and dry, fallen leaves. Prrobably morbid scents such as blood and ocassionally metal would be part of his eau de cologne. He'd always ask me about my football cards and athlete gear before saying a decent "hello" to me.

Now, this man, who introduces himself to me as the New Death, seems very agitated. He is not sure of himself. Despite the cool aura he possesses, I could still feel his voice shaking with anxiety. The Death I know does not wear gloves. He despises them. This man in front of me could only be one thing: an impostor.

"Spare me your lame acting skills. I've no time for you", I scoffed as I turned away from him. 

He grabbed my arm and wrenched me away from the cobblestone path I was about to trudge. My iron grip around my concealed knife reminded me that I could use it against this man. But instinct told me to save my gory thoughts for later. I clenched my teeth as I tried to pull my arm away from his vice grip. It was no use. Before I was able to react, he locked both of my arms with metal circles that came out of nowhere. Both of my hands were chained. Pity. I should've used the knife to end it once and for all.

"Eryn Cutler", he relished the words in his tongue. I tried to spit on his face. "To Hell with you and your filthy desires!", I yelled at him. The damned city looked deserted, as if it never cared for me at all after all the hardwork I've done to making it what it is right now. There was no one else to help me.

"It is time you knew about my true intentions", he calmly said as he glanced at the metal chains binding my wrists together. In a flash, I felt a stinging pain as the metal chains wrapped around my wrists. I felt my blood drain from that area. 

"You aren't Death", I panted.

"Of course I am not", he smiled as he took off his white mask. UGHHHH!!! Blinding white light! I hate it! It was burning every inch of darkness inside of me! Ever since I loaned my soul to Death, my life was to be lived in the shadows. I was forbidden to dabble in Good Things. I, once a believer of goodwill and karma, turned to the dark side, so I could gain solitary and unsoliciited protection from Death.

The face of my captor was so radiant. I thought that he was Life, Himself. His chiselled features and mischievous grin made him look even more handsome. I looked away to shield my eyes from the sudden burst of light, highlighting his shining face. 

I felt a hot fever coming in. I was burning up to 40 degrees Celsius. Usually, I'd be stable at the body temperature of 28 degrees celsius. 30 or more would make me queasy.

"Gahhhh! The Light! Stop it ...PLEASE!", I pleaded as I knelt down to him. I saw through the harsh light penetrating my vision, creating a distorted kaleidoscope of fractured colors around me. My tears turned to shards of glass piercing my eyes. I howled in pain as the metal circles tightened. The pain worked its way through my body until I felt numb.

"It's for your own good, Eryn. You know I've always set my sights on you. For so long, I've followed and watched you, thinking that you'd be okay if I left you like this. But god forbid it now that I am interfering to protect you from all this sorcery. I am now cleansing you of all the darkness you've imbibed. To live in the shadows is truly not your nature. You only force it down your throat, making you swallow all your guilt. Truth is you long tto see the Light again. But after selling your soul to Death, you've lost a part of yourself"