A Chilly Night and a Strange Encounter - Story of Indra, The Reaper
April 2022. It was ten o'clock at night in a small town nestled on the border between Central and East Java.
"Haciiih... sniff."
A young man, just finishing his night shift at the convenience store, sneezed from the chilly air as he walked home. The streets were still somewhat busy, with public transport cars and motorcycles zipping by. The young man spotted a roadside stall and decided to stop for a cup of coffee and some fried snacks. Stepping inside,
"Ma'am, one black coffee, please," the young man said.
"Oh, Indra, just getting off work?" asked the woman who owned the stall.
"Yeah, Ma'am, just finished," Indra replied.
"Sometimes I look at you, Indra, and I'm confused. You're handsome, mixed-race too, why don't you just go to Jakarta, study there, and become a movie star? Instead, you're a cashier at Al**—what a waste, Indra," the woman lamented.
"Nah, no way, Ma'am, I'm not into that kind of stuff, hahaha," Indra responded.
"Well, it's good, then, at least there's a nice view here. Here's your coffee," the woman said.
"Thanks, Ma'am," Indra replied.
Indra began to sip his coffee when suddenly someone tapped his shoulder. Indra turned to see Ningsih, his coworker. Ningsih immediately sat down next to Indra.
"Ma'am, I'm eating!" Ningsih declared.
"Oh... with what, Ningsih?" the woman asked.
"Tempeh stir-fry, jackfruit vegetables, and fish, Ma'am, don't forget lots of chili, and a double portion, hehe," Ningsih replied.
After the woman served her food and gave her a plate, Ningsih stood up, took her plate, and grabbed some crackers next to her, plus two fried tempeh.
"Holy cow, you're tiny, but you eat like a construction worker! That's wild, that's wild..." Indra teased.
"Let me be, you're annoying! I won't get fat eating just that much," Ningsih retorted.
"Hey, it's rare to see you walking back alone, sis. Where's your man?" Indra asked.
"Still working at his office. He's probably pulling another overtime shift," Ningsih replied.
"Poor you, all alone at night," Indra teased.
"Ah, whatever, he'll pick me up here anyway. Hey, you go home through the rice fields, right?" Ningsih asked.
"Yeah, why, sis?" Indra asked.
"Be careful. Someone who was shopping earlier said they saw a skeleton there... shivers... I'm getting goosebumps," Ningsih said.
"Are you serious, sis? Don't scare me like that, I'm going that way," Indra said.
"I'm serious, the high school kids were talking about it when they were shopping," Ningsih replied.
"Indeed, I also heard rumors lately that there's something there, but Indra doesn't need to worry, your uncle is powerful, right?" the stall owner said.
"Yeah, but still, Ma'am, if I get grazed, I'm dead," Indra said.
"Pray then, you're hopeless..." Ningsih replied, her mouth full.
"Enough, let's not talk about it anymore," Indra interjected.
Finally, the topic changed. Accompanied by the stall owner, they chatted until Ningsih's husband picked her up. After saying goodbye, Indra left the stall. He walked towards the rice fields, which were a bit dark because the streetlights were far apart, to take a shortcut home. Indra was used to walking home between 10 PM and 11 PM through that path. However, as he walked, his smartphone suddenly rang. Indra pulled it out of his pocket, saw who was calling, and immediately answered.
"Hello?" Indra asked.
"Indra, where are you?" a man's voice asked.
"I'm already on my way back. What's up, bro?" Indra asked.
"Hey, can you cover my shift? I have to leave tonight, please, bro," said Hadi, Indra's schoolmate and coworker.
"Oh, come on, why didn't you say that earlier? I'm halfway home already..." Indra replied.
"Please, bro, I can't ask Ningsih or Rita, Ningsih's husband would kill me! Please, bro, I have a real emergency right now," Hadi pleaded.
"But have you told Mr. Joko yet?" Indra asked.
"Tell him for me, bro, I haven't had a chance to call him. Please, alright, bro?" Hadi replied.
"You're impossible. What kind of business do you have? Fine, whatever. I'm not doing anything at home anyway, probably just playing some MOBA," Indra replied.
"Thanks a ton, bro, I love you," Hadi said.
"You jerk, only when it's like this do you say 'I love you'," Indra teased.
"Alright, bye... thanks again, bro."
Beep... beep.
"Hmph... that kid, it's probably some girl trouble again... ridiculous," Indra grumbled.
He put his smartphone back in his pocket and turned around to go back to the convenience store where he worked. But as he turned and took his first step, "Clack... clack," a sound like bones rubbing together, as if walking, echoed. Indra immediately sped up his pace, trying his best not to look back. His face began to pale. "Clack... clack... clack," the sound of rubbing bones grew closer. Indra's head started to feel heavy, his entire body tingled, and the fine hairs on his skin stood on end.
Suddenly, the sound of rubbing bones, which had been close behind him, seemed to move far away. Indra slowed his pace and looked back. His heart calmed, seeing nothing behind him. He took a breath, then turned back around.
"Clack... clack... clack..." A human skeleton stood in front of him.
Its mouth moved, as if speaking, a sound like upper and lower teeth clashing. Its hand appeared to be holding an egg.
"Whoaaaa... a ghost!" Indra screamed.
Indra stumbled backward from shock, landing on the road. His head felt incredibly heavy; he couldn't move from fear. His hands came up, trying to shield himself from the skeleton walking towards him. The skeleton's hand reached out to grab Indra, but Indra swatted it away. The back of his hand made contact with the skeleton's hand, and immediately, the back of Indra's hand felt burning hot. He saw a scorched mark on the back of his hand, shaped like a skull, incredibly painful.
His fear had reached its peak, and the pain felt like his soul was being pulled out of the burnt mark on his hand. Indra finally lost consciousness, unaware of what his fate would be.
*****
A New Reality
"Ugh... my head..."
"Are you awake, Indra?" a middle-aged man asked.
Indra opened his eyes. He saw himself in the living room of his house. He turned and saw a short, white-haired, stout but muscular middle-aged man.
"Uncle? How am I home?" Indra asked.
"Well, yes, I found you passed out near the rice fields," his uncle replied.
"Huh? I passed out?" Indra asked.
"Yes, you passed out. Who did you meet?" his uncle asked.
Indra immediately recounted his entire experience: meeting a living skeleton carrying an egg, and accidentally touching its hand.
"Oh, well, thankfully you're still alive," his uncle said, smiling.
"Are you serious, Uncle? 'Thankfully'? I was scared half to death!" Indra exclaimed.
"Are you still scared now?" his uncle asked.
"Of course I am! I'm still getting goosebumps," Indra replied.
"Go look in the mirror," his uncle said.
Curious about what his uncle meant, Indra stood up and walked to a cupboard with an oval-shaped mirror. When he stood in front of it, Indra gasped in shock, stumbling backward as if about to faint again. He backed away from the mirror, sinking to the floor.
"Whoaaaa... what is this, Uncle...?" Indra cried, looking at his hands.
"Well, that's why I asked if you were still scared. You've become a skeleton now, you know," his uncle said calmly.
"Why did this happen...? Why am I a skeleton now...?" Indra muttered, examining his hands.
"Come here, sit with your uncle first," his uncle said calmly.
Indra, who was standing, walked and sat across from his uncle at a beautiful, antique round table. His uncle then explained that the skeleton was only trying to scare him because it had just come out of a chicken coop and had just taken an egg. Legend said that if you met a skeleton, you'd be unlucky for life, and if you touched it, that person would die with a burnt mark on the touched part. But cases like Indra's were rare because Indra had also turned into a skeleton.
"So, what's wrong with me then? Am I dead, Uncle?" Indra asked.
"Well, if you were dead, you wouldn't be able to talk, right? You say the funniest things," his uncle replied calmly.
"Then why...?" Indra retorted.
"Honestly, I don't know. How about this: I forbid you from going out for a week. I'll meditate and look for clues. For now, just calm down. Or do you want to join me in meditation?" his uncle asked.
"Uh, no thanks, Uncle," Indra said.
"How can I be calm? I'm a skeleton, and he tells me to be calm? He's lucky he's powerful," Indra grumbled.
His uncle immediately left the house for the hill where he usually meditated, while Indra could only sit silently at the table, lamenting his fate. He had long been without his mother, who died when he was 12, and his father was in England, as he was from there. Although his schooling was funded, when he turned 18—which was now—he heard that his father was seriously ill, and the funding stopped. He lived only with his uncle in his house and financed all his own needs because his uncle didn't work and was a hermit. Now, he was confused about his future, because his body had turned into a skeleton. Indra could only hold his head in his hands, resting on the table.