Soul Reaper (3.5e Prestige Class)
Soul Reaper[edit]
| “ | Elspeth Johannan, you insult the dead with your magic, and you defy the gods. I now fulfill my duty by allowing you to rest with the very dead you seek to raise. | ” |
| —Marius Rox, Elf Soul Reaper | ||
Soul Reapers, or Reapers, are the protectors of the wandering souls of the deceased, and their ultimate guides to the next world. They work for the Reaper Council, a group of four Reapers that have chosen to become conduits for the will of a prime deity of death. They commune with Nerull, Wee Jas, Taiia, and the Raven Queen respectively, in order to gain the most influence that a non-deity can over the domain of Death for the purpose of maintaining balance in the universe.
Reapers operate on every plane of existence striving to bring down those who would seek to cast away their mortality and join the forces of imbalance. They use tools known as Shihona, or Blades of Death. Shihona are the weapons used to fight their enemies and channel their energy. They may take the form of any bladed weapon, and are magically enhanced with various effects. The only requirement for a weapon to become a Reaper's weapon is that it be a bladed weapon, so that it can be used to cut a soul's ties to its physical body. (See: The Reaper's Weapon)
Becoming a Soul Reaper[edit]
Reapers are versatile fighters who take the initiative in battle and use their abilities to influence the outcome of a given situation. They shape the battlefield by trimming the numbers of their opponents and using their environment to their advantage. They are skilled infiltrators, able to make their way to the epicenter of most fortifications through use of their various abilities and function very well as blitz-attackers. Their unique "persistence" makes them especially suited to such a task. They should never be taken lightly.
| Alignment: | Any non-chaotic non-evil [SPECIAL: Even though Soul Reapers use several death effects, they are all used for the greater good or to pass spirits on to the next world. If a Soul Reaper ever uses her abilities for truly evil deeds, the Reaper Lords may strip her of her powers] |
|---|---|
| Base Attack Bonus: | +5. |
| Skills: | Knowledge (Religion) 5 ranks OR Knowledge (The Planes) 5 ranks. |
| Special: | Mark of the Reaper: The character must have studied the lore of the Reaper Lords and marked himself as a candidate to the Reaper Lords (This may be a mental mark or a physical mark, at the DM’s discretion). |
| Special: | Death: The character must be dead (after receiving the Mark of the Reaper). |
| Level | Base Attack Bonus |
Saving Throws | Special | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort | Ref | Will | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1st | +1 | +2 | +0 | +2 | Immortality, Gateway, Trap Soul, The Reaper's Weapon, Spirit Talk | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2nd | +2 | +3 | +0 | +3 | Cheat Death, Spirit Touch (1d8) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3rd | +3 | +3 | +1 | +3 | Ethereal Grace, Soul Reap, Soul Armor | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4th | +4 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Spirit Walk | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5th | +7/+2 | +5 | +2 | +5 | Avatar Powers, Improved Reaper Weapon, Soul Survivor, Spirit Touch (2d8), Jury of the Reaper Lords | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 6th | +6/+1 | +5 | +2 | +5 | Reaper Avatar, Resurrect Soul, Shape of the Omen: Cat, | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 8th | +8/+3 | +6 | +2 | +6 | Avatar Powers, Shape of the Omen: Owl, Spirit Touch (3d8) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 9th | +9/+4 | +6 | +3 | +6 | Avatar Powers, What You Truly Fear | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10th | +10/+5 | +7 | +3 | +7 | Avatar Powers, Grim Reaper, Shape of the Omen: Raven | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Class Skills (2 + Int modifier per level) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Level | Special |
|---|---|
| 11th | Spirit Touch (4d8) |
| 12th | <-any improvements to class features gained at this level, including any bonus feats-> |
| 13th | <-any improvements to class features gained at this level, including any bonus feats-> |
| 14th | Spirit Touch (5d8) |
| 15th | <-any improvements to class features gained at this level, including any bonus feats-> |
| 16th | <-any improvements to class features gained at this level, including any bonus feats-> |
| 17th | Spirit Touch (6d8) |
| 18th | <-any improvements to class features gained at this level, including any bonus feats-> |
| 19th | <-any improvements to class features gained at this level, including any bonus feats-> |
| 20th | Spirit Touch (7d8) |
Class Features[edit]
Reapers use many supernatural abilities in order to achieve their goals of maintaining order and balance amongst the Planes.
Ability to become "Death" (Su): If you are the strongest (or only) Soul Reaper in your group, and you kill death, you will take his place and become "the god of death" plus Death himself.
Immortality (Su): When becoming a Soul Reaper, the person has to have died. She is resurrected as a Soul Reaper, but she is not quite alive, nor is she undead; but somewhere in between. Because she is not completely "living", a Soul Reaper no longer takes any penalties from aging (any penalties that already have occurred are removed as the Reaper is returned to her prime physical age). She can no longer die from old age. Also, all Soul Reapers no longer require sleep. Instead, they require a 4 hour meditation period in which they contact the spirit realm. This contact with the spirit realm is how the Soul Reapers send to the Reaper Lords the souls they’ve taken, as well as how the Reaper Lords contact a reaper if they must.
Gateway (Su): The Reaper Lords inhabit a city-plane called The Coalescence. By taking 15 minutes to meditate, a Soul Reaper can open up a gateway to this plane in order to meet with her masters, or to visit the large market there. This gateway functions as a Gate spell, except that it can only create a portal to the Coalescence, and the portal can only be seen by/entered by the Soul Reaper and those persons the Reaper specifically designates at the time of creation. Anyone able to cross the portal can only use it twice (once to the Coalescence, once back); the gateway remains active for as long as at least one designated person can still use it. After everyone has traveled back through the gate, the link is broken and the gateway disappears.
Trap Soul (Su): Whenever a Soul Reaper strikes the killing blow against a creature with her Reaper Weapon or with one of her class abilities, she can remove the soul from the deceased body and store its energy within herself. These souls give her energy for some other abilities.
A Soul Reaper can only hold a maximum of 3 souls at a time, plus 2 per Soul Reaper level after first (5 at 2nd level, 7 at 3rd level, to a maximum of 21 souls at 10th level).
Every night, as she meditates, a Soul Reaper must give half the souls she has collected (rounded up) to the spirit world, allowing them to move on. If she does not do this any given night, the Reaper Lords will typically curse her with bad luck (-1 Luck penalty to all rolls, increasing by 1 for every following night) until she sends them. Any penalties incurred as a result of this inefficiency are removed upon this transaction (This includes both negligence and the physical inability to complete them).
The Reaper's Weapon: A Reaper is always connected with a weapon that will aid her in collecting souls. When a reaper is first reborn, the very first bladed object she touches that she intends to use as a weapon becomes her Shihona. This weapon becomes a +1 magic weapon (regardless if the weapon was masterwork, or even makeshift).
A reaper can change her Shihona by taking 24 hours to concentrate on bonding with a weapon. At the end of this meditation, she must sacrifice a number of experience points, essentially shifting some of her life force into her desired weapon. The weapon then becomes a magic weapon (if it wasn’t already) and gains an enhancement bonus and/or special abilities. A Reaper cannot create a new Shihona if doing so would cost enough experience points to reduce her character level.
In order to make a non-magical weapon into a Shihona, the reaper must pay 50 experience to give it a +1 enhancement bonus. If the weapon already is magical (or is becoming magical by the use of this ability) the reaper can pay an additional 450 experience points to give the weapon the Ghost Touch ability (PH). A Soul Reaper does not need to pay this experience cost if: she still has her previous weapon; she is removing the magic from the old weapon to give it to the new weapon; AND she is not adding any extra magic (i.e. If the old weapon was simply +1, and she's adding Ghost Touch; OR switching from a single weapon to a double weapon or two weapons)
If the ritual is interrupted, it can be begun again at any time, but it must run for a full 24 hours for the weapon to become a Shihona. The reaper pays the XP cost as soon as the ritual has been completed. A reaper can use this ability to make a reaper weapon using a double weapon, two weapons, or natural weapons. When creating a double weapon or two weapons, or enhancing natural weapons, she must pay the experience for each side of the double weapon, or each weapon, plus 10% of the entire cost (if making two ghost touch weapons, she must pay 1100 experience: 500 for each weapon, plus an extra 100 XP for the dual weapon cost). If a reaper lets go of her reaper weapon, it loses all abilities until she has hold of it again. If she loses her Shihona, she can simply create a new one, and the old one loses all abilities.
Whenever using her Shihona, a Soul Reaper gains a Divine bonus on attack rolls equal to +1 for every 3 souls she has currently stored (to a maximum of a +7 bonus at 10th level, if all 21 souls are collected).
Spirit Talk (Su): Whenever a Soul Reaper meditates, she may speak to any soul that she currently possesses. The soul remembers everything it knew at the time of its death. This soul will not necessarily be helpful, and will often be hostile, if the Soul Reaper was the one that killed it.
Cheat Death (Su): At 2nd level, the reaper lords have given the training reaper a greater form of immortality. Any time the reaper dies from any cause she has a 60% chance to return to life in 2d4 minutes. This chance increases by 10% every level after 2nd (70% at 3rd, 80% at 4th, to a maximum of 90% at 5th level).
If the reaper returns to life and her body still exists mostly intact, she returns to life in that body, which heals to her maximum HP. If the reaper returns to life and her body still exists, but not intact (the body parts are separated), all the body parts teleport to the single largest part, and they regenerate together, healing the reaper to half her maximum HP. If the reaper returns to life and her body no longer exists in the material realm, a new body is created for her and she returns to life in that body at her maximum HP (the new body may or may not look like the previous body, at the DM’s discretion).
Spirit Touch (Su): At 2nd level, the reaper learns to slightly manipulate life energy. By making a melee touch attack, she can drain a target’s life energy, dealing 1d8 damage and healing herself by the amount dealt. Also, she can reverse this effect: by making a melee touch attack, she can give up any amount of hit points to heal a person she’s touching by the same amount. This ability can be used at will. This damage increases to 2d8 at level 5, and again to 3d8 at level 8.
If both the Reaper and the touched person are willing, they can choose how much health will be exchanged. Whichever person is losing hit points simply designates how many hit points he wants to give, and the person receiving hit points gains that much life. (By the use of this ability, a person cannot lose more hit points than the amount that would kill them).
This ability does not utilize positive or negative energy, it simply manipulates life energy. Because of this, the ability affects living beings, as well as undead, but not constructs.
Ethereal Grace (Su): At 3rd level, a reaper’s agility is enhanced to aid her in her fight to restore balance. She gains a +4 divine bonus to her dexterity score, and her movement speeds increase by +5 feet. This bonus is permanent.
Soul Reap (Su): A 3rd level Soul Reaper possesses the ability to simply remove the soul from a living creature, killing it instantly and collecting the soul. Once per day, the Soul Reaper can make a melee touch attack with her Shihona against a single living creature, declaring the use of this ability. If it successfully strikes, the creature must make a fortitude save (DC 10 + class level + Intelligence Modifier) or die.
Soul Armor (Su): Starting at 3rd level, a Soul Reaper becomes guarded by the soul energy she collects. A Soul Reaper gains a Deflection bonus to AC equal to +1 for every 3 souls she has currently stored (to a maximum of a +7 bonus at 10th level, if all 21 souls are collected).
Spirit Walk (Su): As a swift action, a 4th level Soul Reaper can instantly walk through the spirit world and appear anywhere within 30 feet of where she was standing. She can use this ability to walk a total of 30 feet per day times her intelligence modifier, but she may split this total distance up into smaller distances (i.e. She can walk 30 feet twice, or she can walk 20 feet three times). These distances must all be in 5-foot increments.
Soul Survivor (Su): Starting at 5th level, a Soul Reaper gains even more power from the souls she has collected. A Soul Reaper gains a Divine bonus to all her saving throws equal to +1 for every 3 souls she has currently stored (to a maximum of a +7 bonus at 10th level, if all 21 souls are collected).
Jury of the Reaper Lords: In order to advance to the 6th level of this class (becoming a Reaper Avatar), a Soul Reaper must stand jury before the Reaper Lords and be judged as to whether or not she is qualified to be a Reaper Avatar. Things that would disqualify a Soul Reaper from advancement include, but are not limited to:
- -Alignment Issues (having performed some acts of evil, or ignoring the Reaper code of returning souls each night)
- -Not collecting enough souls to be of worthwhile to the Reapers, or not completing missions
- -Preventing the predestined death of a person
These disqualifications do not include anything that would cause a Soul Reaper to be completely stripped of their powers (i.e. Truly becoming Chaotic or Evil in alignment, or so many small penalties that it is too much hassle to deal with the Reaper)
Avatar of Death (Su): At 6th level, a Soul Reaper has achieved the rank of a Reaper Avatar, and she can take a full-round action to enter Avatar Form (she can exit Avatar Form as a free action). A Reaper Avatar looks like the original Reaper in shape, but her color becomes darkened and an aura of what looks to be black fire becomes visible. While in Avatar Form, the Soul Reaper heals from negative energy and is harmed by positive energy. Also, nonmagical physical objects pass through the Avatar's body as though she were ethereal. Magical items function normally. The Soul Reaper can remain in Avatar Form a number of rounds per day equal to twice her Reaper class level.
Also, every level after 6th, a Soul Reaper can choose an ability from the list below to learn. These abilities can only be used while in Avatar Form.
-Wings of Shadow (Su): The Avatar Reaper gains black wings that look like fire. She gains a fly speed of 80 feet (Poor).
-Spectre Sight (Su): The Avatar Reaper's eyes become windows to the spirit world. Any time she looks at a person, she is able to see how much health they have, relative to their maximum (i.e. A person is at 75% health, or 50% health).
-Greater Spirit Walk (Su): The Avatar Reaper can use the Spirit Walk ability to much greater effect. As a swift action, she can move up to 50 feet at once. Also, as long as she is in Avatar form, the use of this ability does not subtract from her total distance per day with Spirit Walk.
-Horrid Vision (Su): The Avatar Reaper has a terrifying appearance. In addition to appearing as a darkened version of herself, the Reaper can add any other features to her appearance to allow her to inflict terror. Anyone viewing her must make a Will save (DC 10 + class level + Intelligence Modifier) or be panicked for 1d4 rounds, and then frightened for 1d6 rounds following. Anyone succeeding the save is shaken for 1 round. A person who has succeeded this save is immune to the effects of this ability for 24 hours.
-Dark Stalking (Su): The Avatar Reaper can become invisible (as Greater Invisibility) for a number of rounds per day equal to 3 + her Intelligence modifier.
Resurrect Soul (Su): Some souls are unwilling to pass on simply because they have unfinished business in the material plane. Beginning at 5th level, a Soul Reaper can resurrect one of these souls in order to give it some extra time. A body is created for the soul (which can take either the person's original appearance or the appearance of a new person), and the person is treated as though he is fully resurrected. The person is then allowed to complete his final act, after which his new body will disappear and his soul will return to the Reaper for passing.
Because the Reaper still has ownership of the soul, she is always aware of what the resurrected person is doing, and she can choose to reclaim the soul (causing the body to disappear) any time she chooses (i.e. If the person is taking too long, if the person is trying to betray his agreement with the Reaper, etc.). A Soul Reaper can only have one soul resurrected at a time.
Improved Reaper Weapon (Su): At 5th level, a Soul Reaper gains a greater bond with her weapon. She may now, with the same ritual used before, gain up to a +5 enhancement bonus to the weapon, as well as Ghost Touch.
Shape of the Omen (Su): A 6th level Soul Reaper learns the mythical art of being an omen of death. By taking a standard action, the Reaper can shapeshift into a cat, an owl, or a raven, or she can shapeshift back into her normal body.
- Black Cat: The Reaper becomes a tiny animal with a base land speed of 30 feet. She also gains claws, giving her a +10 bonus on climb checks when attempting to climb trees or other surfaces that claws could pierce.
- Dark Owl: The Reaper becomes a tiny animal with a land speed of 10 feet and a fly speed of 40 feet and good maneuverability. She gains a +2 bonus to spot checks while in this form.
- Raven: The Reaper becomes a tiny animal with a land speed of 10 feet and a fly speed of 40 feet and [[SRD:Fly|good] maneuverability. She gains the ability to screech at will, causing everyone hearing it to become frightened for 1d4 rounds. This effect is negated by a DC 20 Will save, or if a person has heard the screech in the past 24 hours.
What You Truly Fear (Su): At 9th level, the Soul Reaper can take the form to all who see her of what they fear most, causing them to make a will save (DC 20 + Intelligence Modifier) or instantly become frightened for 1d4 rounds and shaken for 1d6 rounds thereafter. If a person fails this save by more than 5, they also drop anything they are holding. This ability can be used at will, and remains active until the Reaper chooses to turn it off. A person is immune to this effect if they have succeeded the will save within the last 24 hours.
Grim Reaper (Su): At 10th level, a Soul Reaper is considered to be a true Grim Reaper. This final-level Soul Reaper can enter Avatar Form at will, and may remain in Avatar form for an unlimited amount of time.
The epic Reaper gains a bonus feat (selected from the list of epic Reaper feats) every <-# of levels-> levels after <-usually the last non epic level->.
Epic Reaper Bonus Feat List: <-list of bonus epic feats->
Ex-Reapers[edit]
Should a Reaper violate the most sacred laws of the Reaper Code of Conduct, such as wrongfully resurrecting the deceased, etc.; the Reaper shall be immediately transported to the Coalescence and be tried for their crimes. Should she be found guilty, the Reaper in question will be stripped of all of her powers, save Immortality and Cheat Death, and is condemned to walk the boundless desert of the Coalescence for all eternity. This is effectively the death of the player character without the possibility of resurrection. A wish or miracle may save the player at the cost of returning at the state she was in at the time of her death plus ten years of age, she will be considered a resurrected mortal, and consequently be hunted down by the other Reapers with extreme prejudice.
Those wishing to legally abandon the ways of the Reaper may do so with little penalty. A Reaper wishing to return to her life and no longer carry out the Reaper Lords' wishes must simply discuss this with the Lords. She will be stripped of her powers (though she will retain her attack bonus, saves, skills, etc.) and be thanked by the Reapers with some reward (often a gift, or with honor, the value of which will depend on how long she spent serving the Reapers).
A high-level Reaper (level 11 and higher) may choose to return to their former lives with an eternal lifespan as their gift. These ex-Reapers
cannot[edit]
cannot age, and have NO limit to how long they can live. This does not prevent them from dying by other means, however.
Campaign Information[edit]
Playing a Reaper[edit]
Religion: Soul Reapers may follow their choice of personal deities or choose not to follow one at all. So long as the service to one's deity does not come before service to protect the balance, they may follow whomever they wish. It is most common for them to follow deities of death.
Other Classes: Soul Reapers are very versatile, and may come from any class. Their abilities stack very well with many other types of classes' abilities.
Combat: Soul Reapers typically fight in melee with their Shihona, using the soul energy they've collected to improve their fighting. They will often use Spirit Walk and other related abilities to aid in disorienting an opponent.
Advancement: <-Unknown at this time.->
Reapers in the World[edit]
| “ | Do not be so distraught, beggar, for I knock at your door with equal force as I do the king. Speaking of whom... | ” |
| —Misertus, Human Soul Reaper | ||
Reapers are typically difficult to locate, as they are constantly on the move to a new assignment. Often, a Reaper will pass through a town and cause a death while no one around knows the true nature of the Reaper. Most Reapers will not outright speak of their position so as to not bring attention to themselves; however, they will often reveal themselves if asked directly. Reapers generally have similar physical characteristics, including rather discolored hair, skin, and eyes (all being of the same basic color as when they were alive, but more grey and colorless). Stronger Reapers may choose to appear ghastly, corpse-like, or very healthy as they please.
NPC Reactions: Reapers are acquainted with death, so naturally they are feared in the eyes of mortals, and even some immortals who have attained their status through unnatural means. However, because most Reapers do not draw attention to themselves, most people are left unaware that a Reaper is even near them until the Reaper decides to reveal herself.
Reaper Lore[edit]
Characters with ranks in Knowledge: Religion and Knowledge: The Planes can research Reapers to learn more about them. When a character makes a skill check, read or paraphrase the following, including information from lower DCs.
| DC | Result |
|---|---|
| 11 | Reapers are the knights of death, and they are sent to hunt down those who have become unnaturally immortal or that have been resurrected without consent of the gods of death. |
| 16 | Reapers use their Shihona, magical weapons of death, to collect the souls of those they kill. |
| 21 | The Reaper Lords have a plane of existence all to themselves that they live and thrive in. This plane is called "The Coalescence". |
| 26 | Name and information of a specific Soul Reaper. |
Reapers in the Game[edit]
Reapers work well with temporary parties, and best with people they've never met. The less connection they have to their party the better, for it makes them much less likely to become distracted should they fall. Should a Reaper give in to his emotions his fellow Reapers will become wary of him the closer he gets to his party. Those seeking to attach themselves purposefully work best with similar-aligned characters (non-chaotic, non-evil) that still have their mortality. An experienced Reaper is generally indifferent to most things, as he's seen it all before.
Adaptation: Reapers are the protectors of the circle of Life, Death, and Rebirth, and as such it is their duty to enforce specific laws to ensure balance. Those who fall during their adventures have many means with which they may return to life, but at the cost of being hunted by Reapers for the remainder of their days. Creatures born with "natural" immortality, such as Werepyres, Phoenixborn, pure-blood Vampires, etc. are not considered lawbreakers because they were born with the inability to age. These individuals have their own set of rules to follow, and are warned to not pass their immortality to others, lest they suffer the same fate as those they changed.
Should anyone in your party seek immortality, finding a Reaper would be the way to go, as they are of the most knowledgeable in that subject. A Reaper will typically not hesitate once asked to release information regarding immortality, though they tend to protest becoming immortal to great lengths. Many Reapers would also choose to aid someone in their quest to destroy such a method, or they might track down individuals who wished for immortality through rumors (as the positions they tend to hold in cities give them access to the latest gossip) and attempt to dissuade them of that path. The mentality behind such trickery is the destruction of such an unnatural form of existence and the eradication of those who do not wish to follow the rules which maintain the balance between life and death.
The Reaper adapts well to any fighting situation and helps make the cleanup a breeze. Be warned, however, as the Reaper's duties must come before her duties as a party member.
Sample Encounter: As the party walks into the clearing, they see a bland-looking man leaning against a tree eating an apple.
"My," he says, "It sure took you awhile to get here. Unfortunately for you, your friend there is coming with me." As he says this, he stands and raises a scythe in his hands.
| LN Medium Humanoid | |
| Init/Senses | +7/Listen +5, Spot +6 |
| AC | 23, touch 19, flat-footed 20 |
| hp | 111 (10d10+20 plus 5d8+10 plus 3 HD) |
| Fort/Ref/Will | +20/+14/+15 |
| Speed | 25 ft. |
| Melee | +3 ghost touch scythe+27/+22/+17 (2d4+11, 19-20/x4) or |
| Melee | Spirit Touch +22 melee touch (2d8 + Healing) |
| Base Atk/Grp | +15/{{{grp}}} |
| Atk Options | Power Attack |
| Special Actions | Spirit Walk (120 ft/day), Spirit Touch (2d8) |
| Combat Gear | Helmet of true seeing, +3 ghost touch scythe, ring of protection +3, cloak of resistance +2 |
| Abilities | Str 18, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 18, Wis 12, Cha 12 |
| SQ | Trap Soul (9 souls trapped; +3 to Attack, AC, and Saves), Cheat Death (90%), |
| Feats | Improved Initiative, Weapon Focus (scythe), Toughness, Power Attack, Weapon Specialization (scythe), Cleave, Quick Draw, Improved Critical (scythe), Greater Weapon Focus (scythe), Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Great Fortitude |
| Skills | Climb +19, Intimidate +16, Jump +19, Listen +8, Move Silently +8, Spot +8, Swim +11. |
| Advancement | — |
| Possessions | combat gear plus 1 Ruby worth 500 gold. |
EL: 15
Sample Story: The party of five stepped down into the tomb of an ancient vampire. A long battle took place, one that did not cease until dawn. Two were slain in the beginning, cut down like cattle by the vampire's thralls. As all seemed lost, the eldest son brought the souls of his mother and sister into himself, and found more strength, enough to aid his brothers in clearing the chamber. Seemingly unaffected by their losses Alphonse led the way into the final chamber, in which a menacing sarcophagus lay, holding the elder vampire asleep inside. A guardian thrall had stepped from the shadows with a great axe to defend its master despite previous orders to remain hidden until the final fight. He rushed the youngest brother, and in a panic Al's green eyes flashed brilliantly. Alphonse was gone, and behind the thrall was a visage of death itself, clad in black and brandishing a scythe. A translucent chain flew through the air near them, and with a crash the figure brought down its massive weapon onto it, severing the man's connection to his body. The guardian collapsed, and the figure was gone. Beside the brothers appeared Alphonse once more.
"Let's get this thing open." He said walking toward the sarcophagus, his brothers were in shock.
They opened it. The beast flew out in a bloodthirsty rage! Alphonse was disarmed instantly. Calling his sword, his Shihona to him was useless as the beast now possessed it. Al drew a crossbow and fired a bolt into its knee as his elder brother ran to cleave its head off. The vampire shot his hypnotic gaze at his would-be attacker who then turned on Alphonse. His brother drew his bow and stepped back, knocking two arrows. Alphonse stepped forward into nothingness and appeared in front of his brother. Al grabbed the bow and hit him in the head. Taking advantage of two stunned opponents Al grabbed six throwing knives from his brother's vest and threw them in unison at the elder vampire before it could recover. One hit its left eye, another its dominant hand, and three found the beasts heart. With a sigh of relief Alphonse's brothers drank the blood of the creature knowing that death was on their side, or so they thought...
"Quickly! Let's get mother and-" The brother's plan was silenced as Alphonse's sickening blade found his eldest brother's throat.
"You drank it... You told me you were coming here to kill the damn thing, not take its place!" Al screamed.
His youngest brother collapsed to his knees in shock at what Alphonse did. "A-Alphonse! Why!?" He shrieked.
"I'm sorry, brother, but you broke the rules. You've relinquished your mortality against my protests. I warned you this would happen."
"But you... But I... You could... You don't have to obey them anymore! We came here so that we could escape death!"
"I told you what I would have to do if you drank its blood! I told you the position I now keep!" Alphonse was furious at his family for taking no heed to his words.
Al's brother laughed, "They changed you. They made you into a killer."
"And my new power has made you arrogant." Al retorted. "You have to pay for throwing away your mortality."
"I know full well that you can't age either! Where's your mortality, brother?
"They are watching me, little brother. I'm sorry, but it's time." Al walked slowly toward his terrified brother with a regretful shamble.
His brother chuckled, "You didn't answer my question!" he shouted as he rushed Alphonse with a scimitar, but as his blade reached Al's bare throat, sparks flew. Al's neck, where there would be a gash, was a bright green aura. A single tear fell onto the sword at Al's throat. Pulling back he decided to run as fast as he could from the tomb. He made it up the stairs easily enough, but a throwing knife had landed in his back, crippling him and throwing him down the stairs. Barely conscious after the fall, Alphonse approached him. "Father? What are you..."
"No, brother, it is still me. You should have counted the knives I took from Scott."
"Alphonse, you aren't really..." A drop of water landed on his brother's forehead. "Alphonse?" Al's eyes shone their brightest that day as he brought up his scythe for one final blow. "Alphonse!" The name echoed through the dungeon, and all was silent.
"My name... My name is Shinrai. Trust. For that is what killed you..." He took his youngest brother's soul into himself, "...Daniel."
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