Behind the Black Curtain: Voidwalker

I arrived at the only visible entrance to the castle in short order. The entrance in question consisted of ornate double doors that, like everything else I had seen, were massive; easily three times my height. Even in the low light, I could see the doors were intricately engraved from top to bottom. The engravings appeared to depict massive battles with varying levels of technology; quite a few of the combatants appeared to be inhuman. I wasn’t certain. I’d have to be sure to come back during the day. Bisecting the scenes of battle was a singular figure dressed in a flowing robe.

I took a step back to get a better look. The robed figure held an hourglass hanging from a chain in one hand and a scythe in the other. I did a double take and looked a little closer. The hands were skeletal. I turned my gaze upward. The robed being was also hooded…beneath the hood was the morbid unending smile of a skull. I guess this was the Reaper of Reaper hall.

How? How is there a class here? What the hell is going on? I reluctantly started back toward the doors then stopped as something else caught my eye. Engraved directly into the stone around the doors were roses and skulls…life and death. But what really interested me were the runes. I don't know how I spotted them…they were above the doors. They were glowing slightly. I took my phone out, zoomed in on them and snapped a picture. Then I noticed the time on my phone; I only had a few minutes to get to class. I slipped my back phone into my pocket and proceeded to seek entry into the building.

There was no visible way to open the doors. I ran my hand along the surface of the door, looking for…I don’t know, a hidden button or recessed doorknob…I felt ridiculous. The door felt hot, almost as if a fire burned on the other side. “Maybe I should just go home…” I muttered to myself. I continued running my hand across the heavily engraved door, “Oh well, I tri- ow!” I exclaimed in pain as something sharp cut my hand. I snatched my hand back and looked at it, a large gash spanned my palm. My blood ran down the door and my hand, of course.

Then, before my eyes, the blood faded as if absorbed by the door. I heard a clanking noise and the doors swung open. “Umm…okay…that's weird. Instead of going into the castle with blood powered doors, I should probably get this wound-“ I looked down at my hand,“…taken…care…of...” I trailed off. Like the blood on the door, the slash on my palm had faded away.

“Oh…well…that's nice.” I exclaimed feebly. “You don't have to go in.” I told myself, “You can just go home and forget any of this ever happened. You've watched enough movies, you know where this is going.” For a moment, I considered walking away. I probably should have, but I didn’t. Of course, if I had, there wouldn’t have been a story.

I felt hot breath on the back of my neck, followed by a low, deep growl. I quickly turned around. Nothing. My breath quickened. This is not the time, I need to get to class. I sighed, shrugging it off; this phenomenon had been happening with increasing frequency. Then I heard something that froze me in place, turning my blood to ice.

“Look at me…” came a disembodied whisper. My attitude went from irritation and apathy to terror in an instant. The darkness had never spoken to me before. While the ability to speak doesn’t necessarily denote intelligence, it does imply a greater intelligence than just basic animalistic growling.

I blinked and noticed in my peripheral a shrouded, humanoid silhouette standing some distance from me. I blinked again and it was gone. I closed my eyes and slowly opened them. It returned, 'standing’ significantly closer this time. I flinched.

“Look at me…” the apparition whispered, louder this time.

“Umm…I’d rather n-not.” I replied nervously. There was an audible sigh and the apparition dissipated like smoke in the wind. Trying not to waste any more time, I hurried toward the open doors. The last thing I heard before I crossed the threshold was another whisper, “Death awaits.”

The clanking resumed as the massive double doors closed behind me. I didn’t get the chance to look around, as I stepped forward, there was a bright flash of light and everything went dark.

I squinted in the sunlight as I was suddenly standing in sprawling grasslands. Battle raged all around me. Creatures that I didn't recognize, (and some that I did,) fought alongside humans against an unseen foe shrouded in an inky black swirling mass of dark clouds. Four-armed, bipedal reptilian creatures somewhat larger than the surrounding humans, attacked the darkness with a wide array of melee weapons and ranged weapons including laser rifles, some even using their powerful claws.

Beings that looked suspiciously like a pack of armor clad werewolves charged forward en masse, tearing their way into the as of yet unseen enemy. Humanoid beings, easily thirty to forty feet tall swung equally massive tools of war. The ground shook with every step they took. Some stood back launching massive boulders. I'm pretty sure I saw dragons darkening the sky unleashing torrents of fire into the mass of darkness.

With the madness going on around me, I realized I was apart from it, completely ignored. I was an unseen spectator, bearing witness to a war that couldn't possibly be. I heard nothing, and what I saw was blurry and wavering as if peering through water. As the scene progressed before me, the distorted images began to become clearer much like the rippling surface of a pond growing calmer.

The multi species army put forth a powerful, valiant effort, driving back the darkness. In the turbulent and hazy commotion, something caught my eye. Motionless, ignored, in the middle of the battle, stood a black robe clad figure. The Reaper. His empty eye sockets were locked onto me. I could feel my pulse quicken, my breathing became rapid and shallow as my heart tried to beat it’s way out of my chest. My blood turned cold.

Slowly, he cast his gaze toward the front lines, I looked as well, dreading what ghastly vision was in store for me. What met my eyes confused and disturbed me more then anything else that had been displayed thus far.

It was me. Granted it appeared to be an older more grizzled version of me. Whereas I would normally be clean shaven with short hair, this older version of myself had hair past his (my?) shoulders, and a thick beard upon the face. It also appeared that I (he?) sported three glaringly white scars diagonally across my face.

That which appeared to be me had developed muscularly, and had donned what appeared to be some form of advanced red and black armor. Having noted all of this, though, what held my attention was what he was doing. He knelt on the battlefield, his face was contorted with sadness, tears streaming from his eyes as he frantically spoke words I couldn’t hear to the prone individual he held cradled in his arms. I could tell that the fallen individual was a woman, I couldn’t see her face. The woman weakly reached her hand up and caressed his face. He turned his head ever so slightly to kiss her hand.

Suddenly, her arm dropped limply to the ground. He pulled her to him silently screaming wordlessly to the heavens. Her helm slipped off revealing a familiar shock of red hair.

I started to panic, watching this unfold. The ground started to shake as the earth ripped open swallowing a massive swathe of the mixed species army. More darkness erupted forth from the gaping maw of the rended, broken earth spreading amongst the ground forces and filling the sky. The defenders line broke and the darkness surged forth consuming all.

I stood, singular and transfixed, surrounded by absolute blackness. There was no movement. I waved my hand in front of my face…nothing. Am I dead? Is this eternity? I could feel myself starting to hyperventilate, my pulse pounding, a rushing sound in my ears. Probably not dead, I doubt I’d still be able to have panic attacks if I were deceased. Not that I would know, having not been dead before.

Gradually, my surroundings lightened to the equivalent of dusk, or perhaps right before dusk. There was enough light to see, just not well. The area immediately around me appeared to be desolate. No plant life, no structures, nothing remarkable save for the bleakness of emptiness. I could barely make out a faint glow in the distance.

In stark contrast to the absolute silence of the massive battle of which I had borne witness, standing here in this dark and desolate place, I heard something. It started off quiet. A singular scream in the distance, the longer I listened the louder it became. Soon after came another scream, and then another, and another. The number of screaming voices grew exponentially; screams of anger, screams of pain, screams of terror…death screams. The cacophony was so loud it was all I could hear, all I could think about. I fell to my knees, overwhelmed, my hands clamped over my ears trying to keep the screaming out.

To no avail, it was in my head. I realized I too had joined in the screaming. Yet mine was not the loudest voice in my head. I fell on the ground, writhing in agony. I thought the screams would never end, then suddenly, they stopped. Absolute silence fell, not even an echo. I opened my eyes; standing silently a short distance from me was the grim spectre of the Reaper. It stood facing away from me.

I struggled to my knees, erupting into a coughing fit. I wiped my mouth and looked at my hand. Even in the weak light, I could tell there was blood on them. I had screamed so loud and long that my throat had started to bleed. I fought my way to my feet, a monumental effort.

“What is this? Why are you showing me this?” I rasped hoarsely through ragged breaths. The Reaper did not reply, instead pointing into the distance.

My eyes followed where the robed figure pointed. I saw nothing. I squinted peering into the darkness, trying to see what this ethereal being wanted me to see. Just as I was about to give up and ask what it was trying to show me, I spotted something. Movement. At first nothing more than a pair of tiny red pinpricks of light on the horizon.

However, they were growing brighter and closer with each passing second. I was able to see a dark silhouette around them; the realization dawned on me that the twin red orbs approaching me were eyes…the eyes of something large and fast. The creature was charging at me upon two legs but I watched in horror as it dropped down on all fours and raced toward me even faster. It moved in complete silence, no heavy breathing, no growling, even it's foot falls produced no sound. I tried to back away, to turn and flee but couldn't. I was rooted to the spot unable to move, my body ignoring the commands of my brain telling it to run.

The shadow creature was almost upon me. It stood back upon it's legs drawing itself to a height of well over nine feet. It stretched it's arms out toward me, opening and closing it's clawed hands as it anticipated shredding me to pieces.

Is this why the Reaper had revealed itself to me? Was this my fate? Was the Reaper here to claim my soul as I get eviscerated by some massive shadow monster in an unknown perpetually dusk plane of existence? I closed my eyes waiting for the pain to come. I hoped that if death were here to claim me, that it would do so quickly.

I heard a noise that I couldn’t quite explain…the whisper of metal, the sound of an impact, and a rapid series of sickening cracking and squelching noise. It was followed by a gurgling noise and then a massive thud around me, the thudding was accompanied by the ground shaking beneath my feet. My front was drenched in a hot foul smelling liquid. I wiped the upper part of my face and then opened my eyes.

The creature that had sought to end my life no longer stood before me. I looked down. It had been split in twain, perfectly down the middle from groin to dome. Each half lay to either side of me…it had come really close to getting me. Blood and viscera, black as oil, covered the ground before me. I looked down at myself and grimaced as I realized I too was covered with the foul substance. I gagged, fighting the urge to vomit.

The Reaper stood directly in front of me, a massive ornate scythe in his right hand; black blood coated the blade. A blue pinpoint of light appeared in each of his eye sockets, I could only assume they were his eyes, or at least a representation of them. They were focused directly on me.

“What do you want?” I asked hoarsely. “Why are you showing me this?” The Reaper remained silent and turned away from me to look in the direction the creature had come from. (The first time I had actually seen him physically move.) He turned back to me, peering directly at me. He held up his left hand, a chain was wrapped around it. Hanging from the chain was an hourglass.

I wanted to look closer at it, but I didn't get the chance. My attention was drawn to the direction that the Reaper had looked previously when a loud chorus of roars broke the silence. A sea of red dotted the horizon, more eyes…more creatures drawing closer, likely alerted to the death of this one…the smell was strong enough.

My heart leapt into my throat. I looked back at my spectral host, frantic. He raised the hourglass higher, I watched as it turned over. I heard a snapping noise, and an acrid smell filled my nostrils. The sights and sounds started to slowly distort and dissolve around me.

“Awaken.” Commanded a voice in my head. Somehow, I knew it was the Reaper finally communicating with me with a method other than looking or pointing. The Reaper gazed at me a moment longer before turning to face the oncoming horde of shadow beasts which had by now almost reached us. Everything faded to black, silence fell…all that remained was the simple but powerful command, “Awaken.”

This is not the end.