13 Chapter 13-Power Up

After Alice left, Callum struggled to get used to his newly enhanced perception.

Because his mind was faster, his biological clock was screwed up, his walking felt slow, and conversations with people were excruciating.

Despite the crazy clairvoyant saying it was a small upgrade, it felt massive to Callum.

The only things Callum could think that this enhanced perception could help with was sports, and his ability to pull souls out of thin air.

....

Coming home from work the next day, he was lost in thought, contemplating the significance behind the cracks in the air that moved with living people.

He was considering just trapping a person and pulling their soul to see how they'd react, when someone made that easier.

On the building next to him, he noticed a flash of red. Tracing it back to its source, he saw someone with a Remington sniper rifle pointing it at him.

'Did they figure out my ability?' He wondered.

Before the sniper successfully lined up his shot, Stardust darted into an alley as he was pulled in by Alice.

"Thanks." Callum said, looking for another way out of the alley, finding none.

"Here." Alice said, handing him the most badass cyberpunk scythe he had ever seen.

Its blade was double-edged, and dual-ended. It was unadorned and steel grey, but that did little to remove from its appeal to Callum.

Spinning the scythe, he marveled at how satisfying jt was to spin and swing.

"Where did you get this?" He asked, wanting another one.

"It's an ancient European scythe." She said, killing his hopes of another scythe. "It's one-of-a-kind and was owned by the famous executioner Thanatos."

"So I can't get a second one?" Callum asked.

"No." She said, frowning. "What could you do with a second scythe?"

He smiled but didn't reply.

"You should find someone to enchant it after you go home." Alice said.

Callum ignored her and proceeded to climb onto the rooftop, using his scythe to help find purchase.

Before he climbed all the way onto the rooftop, he poked his head out and checked the last known location of the sniper.

"He's moved to a building on your two o'clock." Alice called from beneath him.

"Thanks." He grunted, checking the spot that she had described.

The sniper lay exactly where Alice had said he would be. The sniper looked like Arnold Schwarzenegger but hopped up on every single steroid in existence.

"I wonder why they're targeting me." Callum said to himself, sliding down the shingles and out of sight of the sniper. "It can't be because of my powers, right?"