June 1998

Death

The cold breeze of the rainy weather attacked her skin. It was already the rainy season and though a god, Death could still feel a little cold but it never affected her body. The moist pavement of the concrete ground sparkled with the remnants of the rain that stopped pouring just minutes ago.

Death stayed, regardless of the cold weather, waiting for a soul that was about to be killed in a few minutes. In every human soul she collected, they would always try to bargain– to have one more chance in life. And like Death did to some humans, she would consider certain requests depending on the circumstances. It will always be depending on how they lived their life.

As she watched a man stabbed a lady in the gut and took her accessories, Death wondered how humans started becoming more and more violent as years went by. The woman fell on the ground, bleeding until she turned pale, nearing her death. The man turned to run away but bumped into the god. Death would have let him escape if he didn’t try to attack. But men, particularly the gender, have always been too greedy for their own good. Which was exactly why the thief was now screaming in pain. Death twisted his arm and broke his leg. She stared at his squirming body, mercy absent in her face. The man had been stealing and killing innocent people for years already and he had never shown any remorse for what he was doing. So why would Death be merciful to him now?

When the man died, Death took out his soul and sent it to the depths of Fantasia. He will be suffering there about his wrong doings. For years, he will be reminded of what he has done to his kind and he will be punished over and over again for the next thousand years.

The god walked to the dying woman, her hands covered with blood in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Tears were present in her eyes as well. Death knelt to take a look before she spoke, “Do you want to continue your life or do you want to go somewhere no one can hurt you again?” This was one of the considerations Death would give to humans who have lived an honest life, a less sinful one compared to the man who died earlier.

“I,” the woman coughed, blood coming out of as she did so. “I have a son,” she was nearing her death so the god took it as a response that she was not ready to die just yet. She swirled her fingers, making a dark mist appear, and directed it to the woman’s wound. In an instant, the stab wound healed instantly. The woman was unconscious so Death took her and teleported to her house. Using her power, she settled the woman on the bed and made sure that any bloodstain was removed. She touched the woman’s forehead and manipulated her memories of her supposed death. The god made it seem that it was just a dream. After making sure that everything was done, Death teleported back to their realm.

It was weird when Death was greeted by a nod from Life. Normally, her counterpart would be grinning and annoying her but lately, Life has been in deep thought for a reason Death has yet to find out. Most times, Life was always away, giving options and opening paths for humans. Deciding that it wasn’t her business to think about it further, Death sat on her throne and watched humans make their decisions. Some were giving birth while some were dying. A normal cycle of balance in the world.

If humans would ask, does Death collect every soul in the world? The answer would be no. Both Life and Death have servants. Those who have died unintentionally but refused to continue their lives have been granted a special place in Equilibrium (Life and Death’s realm). There, a soul is neither dead nor alive. They simply exist. The souls in their realm help the gods in their jobs to give and take human souls. The tough part was for both gods to create a list of souls they would collect or humans they would go to in order to place a new life on Earth. While Life handled the job of giving souls to humans and laying out options for them, it was Death’s job to make sure that no soul expired on Earth. The only times Life and Death would personally go to a human was when it was considered a special case, like a president getting assassinated or a nuclear bomb mishandled that can wipe out half of the world’s population. Or if the gods just feel like leaving their realm and roaming on Earth to do a job here and there. But having servants definitely made their jobs easier. Especially with the world’s population continuously growing.

Death was in deep thought when Life tapped her shoulder, “What?” Her sister pointed at the small projection at the eastern part of the globe, which was morning by now.

The projection showed Chorong, her other half, walking towards a store. Nothing special except for the two guys following her, one with a knife in his hand.

They'll kill her.

"Do something," Life said. She stood up and walked out of the throne room, leaving Death with a confused expression.

She didn’t waste time. Death teleported to an alley and saw two men grab Chorong. The girl, who was now seven years old, screamed in horror as one of the men placed his knife against Chorong’s neck. Death made herself invisible and approached them.

"Give me the money, kid!" the man with the knife ordered. Chorong cried, tears streamed down her face and it made Death want to lose her control. "Shut up or I'll kill you!" he threatened, only making the kid cry harder. Before he could stab the girl, Death grabbed his hand, making him wince in pain.

"Why don't you work so you don't have to kill innocent people?" she asked, holding his twisted arm and getting the knife from his hand.

"You go to hell!" he tried to attack with his free hand. Death snickered and stabbed his arm with his own knife. His friend was about to attack when Death took the knife again and threw it at him. The knife landed between the man’s eyebrows, instantly killing him. "Who the are you?" the man asked, arm still bleeding and fear evident in his eyes.

Death looked at him, her silver eyes slowly turning to red. A normal occurrence when she was about to collect an evil soul. “You wouldn’t want to know,” she said before she stabbed the man with her bare hand. It was the most painful death she could give to the man who just tried to kill her other half. He deserved more than a painful death. And although Life was cruel, Death was unforgiving.

She summoned two servants and ordered them to collect the souls. Death used her powers to remove the blood on her hand, arm, and clothing before she turned to Chorong.

She's terrified.

She knelt until they were on the same level. She gave a soft smile before reaching out, “I won’t hurt you, child.” Chorong closed her eyes and did not move even when Death’s hand touched her cheek, “Open your eyes, Chorong. It’s alright.”

The moment their eyes met, like the first time they met over a hundred years ago, Death felt her insides burn. The unexplainable pull was there again, along with the current that ran throughout her whole body. Only her other half’s soul could make her question herself. Chorong’s eyes, they never change. Over a hundred years have passed already and still, her eyes still hold the power over the god’s being. Chorong’s soul could make her submit to whatever she would desire.

Death smiled, “Do you want to spend time with me?” Chorong tilted her head before she nodded in a slow manner. She took a step closer, confused but also curious. It was her soul’s doing. Unconsciously, the child was drawn to the god. She could recognize Death even though she couldn’t remember anything about her past lives.

"Where?" she asked with a melodic voice. Death called out another servant and ordered it to pretend to be Chorong for the whole day.

I want to give this child happy memories. Even though it will come out as a dream.

Death took Chorong in her arms and teleported to the happiest place on Earth, as they say it. She squealed in delight as she saw the place. Her eyes widened in amazement and admiration, "It's Disney!" she said to the god in an excited tone. Death laughed and nodded.

"Where do you want to start, Chorong?" Death put the child down and held her hand as they walked around the amusement park. She hasn't really gone to that palace but it was the first thing that came into her mind when she wanted to give Chorong happy memories as a kid.i

"Can I eat cotton candy?" she pointed at the pink shaped fluff.

That's cotton candy?

The god nodded and walked towards the man who was making the so-called candy. "Human," she called him, when the man looked into her eyes, she continued her order. "Give me one." Hypnotized, he followed. Death took the rounded pink fluff and handed it to Chorong.

She smiled and pulled the god towards the bench where they sat as Chorong happily ate her cotton candy. “Thank you,” she chirped. Death just stared, amazed that even after a hundred years, she could still devote herself to one soul.

After eating, Chorong pointed at the carousel. Death nodded and went in line with the child. She wanted to cut the line but Chorong insisted on queuing, something the god did not understand. She chose to ride a horse when it was their turn a