Chapter 47: Chapter. 48: Old man

Monster hunting became part of my life. At first it was because I wanted Ash to be able to rely on me, but it also became about trying to help the world.

The monsters would attack people after all.

Monster after monster was slain, or rather slain by Ash and I, felled under different things. Sometimes there would be hounds, other times there would be more complex things such as composite beings, beings of flesh and spikes; flames, water, demons alike.

An endangerment to society. Or so they were called. With the help of Ash and technology teleporting to places I had never been to became possible; sometimes it was an impossibility, but the odd times it worked it saved time, and saved many lives.

Danger lurked, a shadow of the Underworld was ever present. It felt like so ⁠— monsters and demons lurking in the shadows of the world, sometimes killing and endangering the denizens of the realm. I never encountered the Grim reaper again, never had to send more souls to Elysium, whether it was from luck or not, I did not know.

But even though there were no casualties, danger still seemed to be there. The shadow of my home never to vanish; part of me begun to resent it. Why can’t they leave this place alone? I would ask myself but arrive at no answer. The Underworld was chaotic, a chaotic mess of a chaotic place.

An amalgamation.

A place whose natives were relatively normal, but the inhabitants that resided in it were not. I was naive to it, oblivious even. Talking with Ash, and simply thinking about a lot of the oddities made it sensical, to me at least; I still had to see it for myself. I didn’t hate the Underworld itself, I didn’t hate my father, the Grim reapers, the Lords or all of the Royals.

I just hated the hostility. The despair, the blood, the gore⁠⁠— the fact that it was chaotic. The fact that it was a law of the strong simply due to the ecosystem; things were chaotic, and it was a simple fact. A fact that I hated but had to come to terms with.

Sometimes there would be dry periods, sometimes the monsters would simply stop showing up. Those times were great. Slaying monsters, hacking them left and right, purging them⁠— it was bound to get tiring, but during those tiring times i could at least find solace in the fact that I was in fact helping.

I enjoyed helping.

Whether helping made me happy due to the fact it made others happy never crossed my mind, or rather, I simply chose to do it because I wanted to, because I knew it would allow people to be happy. Whether at its core was selfishness fueling me or not, I stopped caring about it. Perhaps if I didn’t have the ability to sense emotions I would’ve been a different person.

Perhaps I would’ve been more apathetic, perhaps I would’ve been closer to the other Grim reapers; talking about the inconsequentiality of life, or simply detached from all things of the world. But all of that, it didn’t matter, I was who I was.

A Grim reaper who liked seeing people happy. That was who I was.

I never wanted to be like the Grim reaper who said my scythe was going to be my only companion; sure it was my companion, it was my friend. I liked my scythe, it was cheery and easy to please, but moreover it liked to help just like I did.

An extension of myself? I did not know, never did I mind it. It was another living thing, perhaps odd but living. Just like Ash and the Old man, my scythe too, was my friend.

Friends.

Things had changed for me and others, gone were the days of prowling around waiting for the opportunity to talk to people, gone were the days of trying to make people happy in the name of happiness. Everything had become a lot nicer, a lot easier, and a lot… simpler.

Simplicity it was, everything was so simple. After culling the monsters I would call the Old man and tell him about them, of course, he’d chuckle and simply smile through the phone. Smiles could be heard and felt, just like happiness. Sentiments. I was unsure if the Old man believed in the things I said, of the fantastical things I spoke; nonetheless he listened with attention.

The status quo had changed, things had changed, the monotony of certain days was gone, or rather it had changed too. It had changed to something that was great, something that I looked forward to, something… special.

When phone calls were not sufficient we would have food together, Ash would always tag alone, more than happy to. The Old man always seemed so concerned for her, for her eating habits and sometimes unexpected apathy, but he’d always chuckle at her jokes and teases.

It almost felt like a family, something tight-knit where we could rely on one another. I still had dad, I loved dad, but he was mostly unavailable, missing from my life; I did not blame him, I never did. Mother was… I never met my mother, but I knew about the concept of family and how it should be, I just never cared for it.

But now? I felt as if I understood the feeling of family. Part of me felt silly, silly about the fact that Ash was my friend, and too was the Old man. It simply felt silly to consider the both of them my family, but I did anyway. It was only natural, or at least I thought so.

We would talk and chat, laugh and brag to each other about inconsequential things, things that were silly at best, and idiotic at worst. When they weren’t phone calls we would eat together, when we would get tired of restaurants we would camp. Of course, not without difficulty. The Old man sometimes seemed too prideful.

Too prideful of the fact that two girls helped him around or bought things for him, but Ash always made it a point to do so. At first she never cared, but nowadays she always did. Our jobs apparently paid well, and the Old man while in the dark knew of that fact. Nevertheless the Old man was stubborn, and prideful.

He would speak of him being the older person and to let him buy things, but it was something that we never relinquished. Most of the times he would huff, other times he would sigh in defeat and rarely sulk, but he would always end up chuckling and cackling at the end of the day.

When vacations would come around things would take a different turn, after a lot of convincing we managed to fly, fly to other countries and places. Places that none of us had seen or experienced, places to discover and have fun in.

Wilderness, architectural sites, or abandoned relics of the past. All of them just as interesting as the last. It was a rare activity, but an activity we loved to indulge in. Everytime it happened I always had fun, it was my favorite activity out of all of them.

Months passed of the same monotony, though it was anything but monotone. Even though it was the same kind of thing repeated over and over again it was always fun. Whether it was killing monsters, helping people, talking with Ash or the Old man, I liked it all.

The consistency did not last, sometimes Ash seemed a bit busy and distant, other times the Old man was unavailable. What was an everyday thing became an every-week thing, then every-month. The reunions, while short, were always fun and special.

And today was one of those reunions.

A special day.

I awoke to Ash smiling at me, she had a small grin of mischievousness. Though I had no idea what she had found funny, every time she looked at me she would chuckle at herself.

“We’re gonna be late if you don’t hurry up,” she said with a grin.

“I know!”

In nothing but minutes I finished changing, though it didn’t change Ash’s impression of me. Apparently I looked funny to her even after tying my hair and putting on some clothes. She did stop me from going to the bathroom due to the fact that we were running late. She even stopped me from calling a taxi, forcing me to use my scythe instead.

As always it hummed, Ash didn’t speak of it being now used to it. In a short second a portal was opened and my scythe vanished with a farewell. The park was quiet during the morning of the weekdays, though I couldn’t remember if it was monday or tuesday, or whatever day it was.

Ash waited with anticipation as we got near the line of sight of the bench, but the Old man wasn’t there; sometimes he would run late. People passed and looked at me weird much to Ash’s amusement, though her face remained stone-cold her emotions were another story.

Minutes passed, and eventually hours passed.

“Kaiti, I’ll go home, want to come?”

I shook my head to Ash. “I'll wait for him here.”

After that short exchange Ash left home, even though she had largely changed she still remained Ash. The goblin that munched on sweets and sat on her computer all day for the most part, sometimes she’d leave to go somewhere but never spoke of it. I would do the same sometimes; sneaking out to revisit the places we had been to in a way to reminisce about our memories together, or get me excited for the next place to visit; either worked.

Eventually the sun went down, setting over the horizon. Perhaps the Old man had forgotten? I sighed and stood up, at that moment I heard my phone ring. Or not. I mused with a smile, he was just going to reschedule, with that in mind I answered.

“Old man!” I called with happiness.

“Hello, is this er… Katy?” An unfamiliar voice spoke.

I paused, maybe I didn’t look at the caller? “Yes, this is Kaiti speaking.”

“We are calling from the retirement home. Jackson doesn’t have much longer. If you could⁠—

I froze. Jackson was the Old man’s name. Against our insistence he never bulged on being called by his name instead of Old man.

“If you could come for his final moments.”

I drew a sharp breath. “I’m on my way.” With that said I hung up the phone and looked around the park.

There were no people; in an instant my scythe hummed and a portal to the outside of the retirement home was opened. It disappeared and the scenery changed. I stood before the familiar building, akin to daybreak, everywhere was orange and the sun was still over the horizon. Wasting no time I rushed in only to see the receptionist from half a year ago.

“What brings you⁠—

“I am Kaiti, take me to see Jackson.”

The receptionist seemed to check something before nodding and gesturing me into the halls.

“Were you at some type of party?”

My heart pounded in my ears, to the point I almost missed his question. “No.”

He nodded and kept his whatever doubts to himself, I could tell he was curious about something but I did not care. Eventually we arrived at a door, there was someone inside who seemed hopeful, slightly happy even. Was the Old man behind it?

“I shall leave you two alone.” The receptionist walked away.

I nodded and hesitated for a brief second before swinging the door open and walking in, the door closed behind me as I did so. Amidst the square room laid a bed with curtains to the side, I could only see an already familiar shadow.

“Kaiti?” He called with a slight cough as medical equipment whirred.

“I… I am here…” My mind didn’t quite process what was happening yet, last month I had seen him, he seemed fine.

“Come here for a moment.” His words gave me a terrible feeling.

“W-Wait,” I said with nervousness. “I can bring Ash too! She’ll be here in an instant!”

“No need,” The Old man chuckled. “This is between you and me.”

I hesitated feeling his emotions. The Old man seemed happy, but I could clearly feel something else, as if he was just fulfilled. Eventually I conceded and walked past the curtain.

The Old man began to chuckle, he had a tube on his arm and a transparent mask with a tube. “What’s with your get-up?”

“My get-up?” I asked with confusion, not really following.

The Old man reached to his bedside where a nightstand was, opened a gabinet and pulled a hand mirror which he promptly gave me. My red eyes stared forward, the tip of my nose was black and I had cat-whiskers drawn on my face as well as one eye completely black as if I was some sort of panda.

It clicked on my mind. Ash. Then I remembered the situation that I was in. The Old man was in bed, weak and frail.

“Ash did it… I suppose to surprise you…”

“Oh I am surprised,” he smiled. “I am glad to have met you after all.”

I nodded, biting my lip. “Don’t speak like that, you’re going to be⁠—

The Old man solemnly nodded. “Kaiti, I am dying.”

His statement filled me with indescribable dread, I struggled to not deny it, but failed anyway. Everything I had seen indicated his statement, the Old man was already happy⁠— he was simply waiting now.

“But⁠—

“Kaiti,” he said, giving me pause. “You already know I dislike when you ignore me.”

“Right…”

He beckoned with his hand. “Come.”

I gingerly approached the bed, but it didn’t seem enough as he kept gesturing until I was finally by his side. Light poured from the window behind me as I stood next to him. He extended his rough hand and patted me, but it didn’t serve for even the slightest bit of comfort.

“Hmhm, your face isn’t great.”

“And whose fault is it?” I asked.

He let out a chuckle. “You could say it’s partially my fault, but also Ash’s fault.”

I nodded and didn’t say anything, or rather I simply didn’t know what to say. What could I even say?

“Kaiti,” he called.

“Yes?”

“Why the long face?” The Old man smiled.

I had no energy to frown. “Isn’t it obvious?”

He chuckled. “I suppose so, but I never expected that from you. What happened to Elysium?”

Elysium. A place that could make others happy. A place for souls to go to…

“It exists, but…” I hesitated. “You’re still dying…”

“What about death being happiness, or what about calling you when I am dying?” The Old man smiled. “You shouldn’t be sad.”

I trembled. The Old man was dying⁠— aside from monsters, when was the last time i had seen someone die? The farmer? Even then I didn’t consider that to be happy, death was never happy. Perhaps Elyisum was happiness, but… would it be alright? Even then… I wasn’t going to see the Old man again.

“Elysium isn’t a place to be meddled with…” I said with hesitation. “Even if you go there and be happy I still won’t see you again.”

He pondered for a second. “I suppose so,” he coughed. “Kaiti, this will be the last time you see me.” He said, sadness in his voice. “Shouldn’t you try to make the best of it?”

I froze feeling nausea. “I…” This was going to be the last time I saw him? “B-but you’re not dying today?”

“I am not, unless of course you want me to?” He chuckled seeing me tense up. “So… if you’re dying, I can come take your soul and move it to Elysium, didn’t you say that?”

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Right… I was a Grim reaper. I stared at my hands. “I-Is that what you want?”

“It wouldn’t be a bad way to go,” a laugh escaped him. “Before meeting you my days were pretty mindless, sometimes I considered jumping off a bridge.”

“That’s not funny.” I frowned.

“Right, I can’t help but wonder if everything you two told me is real, about monsters and the Underworld, everything. It’s quite colorful.”

I took a deep breath. “It is real…”

He looked at the window past me. “I see. Then, if it’s truly real I think… you should take my life Kaiti, as a Grim reaper…” he closed his eyes and my heart threatened to stop. “Meeting the both of you must have been fate, or maybe my luck. I do not know. If it’s all real, if you’re a Grim reaper then I’d much rather have you take my life than some stupid hospital bed. But even if you aren’t that’s fine. Even if the both of you are just making all of this up to make me happier, it doesn’t matter. I am glad I met you Kaiti, and I am glad I met Ash as well.”

“Then…” I took a deep breath. “Why didn’t you call Ash?”

He shook his head. “Ash and I had an agreement, we only initially clicked because of you. And while I am sure she will hate me, I want the end to be just like how it started. Between you and me.”

“Still…”

“I think your visit is running short,” The Old man sighed. “We can be together for another thirty minutes or so, but… well… I don’t know Kaiti.” He removed the mask and touched his eyes, wiping them. “I think I’ll miss you a lot, and Ash too. Tell her I said hello.”

His emotions went into total sadness, even if he tried to appear happy. Another thirty minutes till I never saw the Old man again? I felt nervous, my heart beat faster and faster as if I were about to die. My mind raced for answers, something that I could do. Something⁠— anything.

You should take my life as a Grim reaper.

“I’ll do it!” I squeaked. “I’ll take your life!”

His eyes widened. “Kaiti, it was just… a joke, you know?” He awkwardly said but I shook my head.

“If it was all real, would you be saddened to know there was another way to die? One that wasn’t a hospital bed, one that would at least make you happy in some way?” I walked away and back to the door before locking it.

The Old man pondered from behind as I turned.

“I would, I think so.”

I crossed the curtain. “Then, I’ll do it…” I hesitated and extended my hand to my side. “I’ll take your life as a Grim reaper, I’ll guide you to Elysium…”

“Kaiti, I already told you… I know it’s hard…” he hesitated. “But you should just⁠—”

“I will do it.” I said after a deep breath.

“Kaiti!” The Old man bellowed. “Don’t make this harder for me as well.”

My heart jumped as I saw his anger, but then I shook my head processing his words. Harder for him?

“It’s hard for me too!” I shouted back before extending my hand to my side. “I said I will do it, if that’s what you want!” The shadows gathered and my scythe emerged, it hummed along with the air.

The Old man froze, he processed for a few seconds as his mind went through a myriad of emotions before he finally began to cackle.

“So you would do it?” He finally asked.

I hesitated. “I would if it’s what you want…”

He nodded and minutes passed as he pondered, until he finally took a deep breath. “Kaiti come closer.” I hesitated but stood next to him once more. “Lean.”

I leaned, listening to his command and he whispered to me.

“Kaiti, you should surround yourself with lots of friends, okay?” He took a pause. “Don’t be me, I thought I would die alone, but I have you. You were a great friend, Kaiti… The best I could wish for. I wish we could’ve continued traveling…”

My body suddenly felt light as I almost tripped on top of him, my legs collapsed and I leaned onto him as I sniffled. Despair. It was all I felt in my mind as I knew I would see him for the last time today. I could see him in Elysium, but it wasn’t the same⁠— he would never see me, souls never see Grim reapers…

The Old man hugged me, my scythe laid on his lap. “Don’t cry, don’t cry, I am just a decrepit old man Kaiti.” He tried to soothe me but I simply kept crying.

“You’re not a decrepit old man, or any type of old man…” I choked. “I considered you my family…”

The Old man closed his eyes as tears flowed out. “I see… I see… Me too Kaiti, me too…”

The door handle rattled. “Your time is up!” The receptionist called from behind, giving us pause.

“Kaiti, this is the end…” He said as he separated himself from me.

I sniffled hesitating. “Can’t we just…”

“No,” he shook his head as he tried to wipe his face. “If you can truly give me a peaceful end, please do so…”

I took a deep breath. “I will…” My hands trembled.

“Kaiti, you look quite scared…”

I bit my lip. “I don’t want you to die…”

“It’s inevitable,” he said with defeat. The door rattled some more and the receptionist began to threaten us. “You should hurry up before it gets messy…”

I nodded feeling tears stream down my face. I extended my aura, the gray mist of death that I never liked, sensing the Old man’s soul thread. It was weak and feeble, and it seemed to be constantly being tugged at⁠. He was going to die soon with or without me…

“Quite magical,” he grinned. “Kaiti I don’t know if you’ve heard this pathetic phrase before, but you should smile because it happened, not cry because it ended.”

“I…”

“You should remember me Kaiti, as they say people don’t die till they are forgotten,” he coughed “Well I hate that phrase, but I dislike seeing you sad.”

“But⁠—

The door banged.

The Old man looked at the door before turning to me with a plea. “Please Kaiti, guide my soul.”

I felt my heart tighten as I gripped my scythe, ever so slowly inching it towards the top of his head where his soul thread was. Eventually it hovered over his head.

“I will guide your soul to Elysium.”

The Old man nodded. “Kaiti, thank you for everything.”

I hesitated hearing his words. “I should be the one thanking you.”

“Perhaps,” he mused. “I am just happy I met you.”

My head throbbed. “I am also happy I met you,” I gritted my teeth. “Thanks to you I know what a friend is, thanks to you I know familiar love… I don’t want you to die.” My voice broke.

“Death is the path of all things,” he chuckled. “Just remember me, and remember. You should make lots of friends, okay?”

I bit my lip as I saw the Old man smile at me with all his wrinkles, and aged face.

“I will…” I answered in a barely audible whisper. My scythe approached the thread and got ready to pull.

The door rattled like never before.

“Farewell Kaiti,” he smiled one last time, closing his eyes on the bedrest.

“Farewell.”

I pulled the string and in an instant it snapped, my heart along with it as I struggled to not scream in pain. The Old man drew his last breath with a smile. I hurriedly grabbed his soul with shakiness, as I struggled to not break down. The door banged, and then⁠ stopped.

Mist covered the room, and a skeletal rattle resounded. From the shadows, he stepped, it was the reaper. I drew a sharp breath feeling like screaming as I held onto the Old man’s soul for my dear life.

“Did you come to stop me?” I asked with hesitation.

“Not at all, I’ve come to help you with other things.” He shook his head. “You’ve heard my warning, be my guest. I hope you’re prepared.”

I nodded and swung my scythe to open a portal to Elysium.

“I think it’s best if you step in.”

My mind hesitated, but then I looked at the situation and decided to listen. I stepped onto a grey land as I let the soul go, and at that moment I felt something resonate with me. It was akin to a droplet of water. Memories came.

Jackson, Jackson, check this out! It was a kid doing a backflip.

Jackson, look! Some middle aged man pointed at the horizon. I felt sudden happiness as the memories got clearer like a movie.

I saw the Old man, I saw his childhood, I saw him fall in love with a beautiful red-haired woman, I saw them have a child that carried her mother’s beauty. His life?

The memories continued, they got married, bought a house, then things changed and became more bleak. The war arrived, and I felt every second of the Old man’s despair as he put his first shot into a human being. I felt when he got shot in the arm, I felt when his best friend died.

I forgot about my feelings as I experienced more things.

He returned home and his wife had cheated on him and gone with another man, he was left with his daughter. She had a pure smile as she grew up, even though she was abused and mistreated by her mother who saw her as a thing to resent. She resented the Old man too for going to the war, for everything.

Years passed as his daughter grew up, but one day she didn’t come home from school. The Old man rushed to look for her and eventually the police showed at his door with papers and photos.

His daughter died. A drunk driver had killed her.

He spent his years drinking away, eventually moving on and feeling apathetic about life. He spent so long pondering and meditating, introspecting about himself. One of those days a girl passed, she was different and cheery but it reminded him of his daughter. She said silly funny things, and even got slapped.

Eventually he talked to her.

It was me.

He kept seeing her, it was as if he had a daughter again, it was as if he had his daughter again. The memories blurred as he realized that she wasn’t her daughter, but a different person. Nonetheless he enjoyed her company, she pushed him to try new things and sometimes even had him concerned about the things she spoke about.

But in spite of everything, he felt happy meeting her.

Time passed, and he was in a hospital bed crying, as he wondered how to tell her the news. Eventually after a lot of thinking he finally resolved himself. But even then, he never wanted to admit it, he never wanted to admit that he saw her as his daughter at the start. He didn’t want to admit that even though he began to see her as family, it wasn’t the case at the start.

He felt ashamed.

Eventually he saw her with scribbles on her face, and the conversation was heavy as more things were revealed. But eventually he rejoiced as they gave their farewell.

Ah, so I had a second daughter too.

He thought as he died. The memories faded.

I screamed guttural sounds into the void, as I curled into a ball seeing it all from his perspective, experiencing his entire life. I didn’t know how long had passed, but eventually it all ended. Vanished. I stood up and opened a portal home, my job was done.

The house was bright and Ash sat there on her computer as she turned to me.

“What happened?” She asked. “You’ve been gone for like, a few days now.” Her voice was full of concern.

My eyes widened as all the memories I had suppressed came rushing to me. My heart rushed as I started to choke before jumping towards Ash and hugging her with all the strength I could.

“The Old man died…”

Ash paused. “He what?”

“He died!” I screamed at Ash between my wails.

“So he died…” She muttered before hugging me back with inaudible sobs.

I cried. Old man, I… we… miss you.

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