Authors: Kathy-Lynn Cross
With true reaper form returned, my corporeal being faded, leaving the ebony mist from my minion flowing over me. The haze of the cloak fanned out as it searched my surroundings for obstacles. Its wispy tentacles from under the hem scaled up the wall two feet behind me and stabilized us while I stepped left of the hilt. In one swift slide, I pulled the weapon free with my right hand. Razor still had his back to me, beginning the speech in his own tongue, reciting the Knell’s spell.
Claws raked against the inside of my chest from the beast losing its patience, reminding me of the daemon I hosted called a Smolder. All Ashens were possessed with one because the River believed an equal amount of power should always be divided. It was the River’s method to control us. As a whole, Ashens were worthy enough to handle reaping death and wielding creation’s weapon of choice. Our cloaks served us like a well-trained pet and aided us with reaper duties. The Smolder was designed as our dormant daemonic fighting form, unleashed only in dire situations. After a quick scan of the area, I decided the room would not withstand the Smolder’s power. That side of me must remain locked as I did not have time to unleash the transformation. This fight was mine alone to endure. Trying to control the daemon within caused a sick feeling of confusion, which made me hesitate. I had never experienced anything like it, forcing my reason to spin out of control.
In all his superior knowledge, the Fallen had forgotten one crucial detail—their kind had a common bond with humans. Both were molded from Light’s image, which meant he had a heart. I flexed the muscles in my right arm to jerk the handle free from the wall.
Now.
The weapon turned into a silver blur as I spun it high above my head, allowing me to flip it up and around my left arm. Then rushing in behind Razor, I dipped low to jump over him in a forward flip. The air swooshed, distracting the Bridge Crosser to face the sound while I landed in front of him. In one swift move, I whipped around and shouted, “Razor. Have a heart?” Then I pierced the curve of my scythe into his chest, thrusting it upwards to reach his pumping organ. His blood hissed and fizzled down the blade. I could not disguise the evil behind my smile anymore because it grew broader by the second. “Wish
I
did. What is it like?” I leaned into his trembling body, struggling to hold the scythe in place until the last gulp of air passed his lips.
Quivering and on the edge of dying, his own words seeped from his mouth. “You think you’ve saved her? You think you’ve won this? Demon of the Reapers, it has only just begun.” More blood sizzled and pooled around his mouth, dripping down the sides. His voice became a breathless rasp as he spoke. “You will… find more harm than truth. With no answers to satisfy… your need for veracity about her will devour you both. And you will run… but all will find her… daemons… angels… elementals. Even the humans will hunt her down if she lives long enough. You will never… be allowed back to your former existence. A demon fugitive on the run… forever wanting.”
I was done listening to him. My eyes burned from the untapped Smolder power within me, trying to release. The point of the blade had caught the Bridge Crosser’s chain as I ripped it from his chest. Razor’s body began to smoke before bursting into a mass of white and crystal blue flames. The fire licked and danced up his skin. Instantly, the Light within him imploded, causing me to release my weapon to shield myself with both hands.
After the spirit of Creation’s fire reclaimed Razor’s body, the heaviness dissipated and the room felt lighter. A small cough echoed in the room while I bent over to pick up my scythe. The Smolder’s curiosity stacked against my own, and I found myself inching to the child. I needed to find out for sure if she really could see me. Leaning over the bed rail, my cloak worked at making my shape more corporeal. Then, very timidly, I brushed the blood-caked hair from her face. She stirred and her eyes fluttered from the touch. I swallowed hard, keeping a chuckle at bay.
What if my battered appearance shocks her to death?
The Smolder’s daemonic chuckle within me bounced along my ribs at the attempted joke. Soon, everything I had fought for was worth the effort while I waited for her to focus on my eyes.
Her breathing became stronger, and she rocked her head slowly from side to side. A small moan escaped her lips, sending a shudder of sensations throughout my body. I licked my lips, tasting a familiar scent but could not place my bony finger on it. The combination drove me crazy while a nauseating mixture of anticipation and confusion swelled. What happened next might be perceived as either a miracle or a curse, and I was hard-pressed to determine which. In her unconscious state, the small one began to speak about me.
The need to help her was like a disease infecting my senses. Was this because of the small one’s soul? I knew deep down that something was not right with all this, but I had dropped all preconceived ideas concerning the Vessel. This needed to end, here and now.
“I’m hiding, come and find me. Tevin, you’re so cold. Why can’t I play in the shadows? Tevin…Tev…Te…”
I staggered back a few steps. Clearly, she was hallucinating or dreaming. But she spoke of being cold and playing in the shadows. Only in my world did one stay out of the unknown. Not all shadows were harmless. I was proof of that.
When had she ever been to the Unseen?
No human could cross into our realm alive. My gaze drifted to the tentacles tugging at the bottom of my cloak, shifting my attention. I needed to regain my thoughts.
She knows my name, but how? I do not remember her. How is this even possible?
***
The child’s protector leaned against the door jamb. The adult female sighed ever so slightly and clicked her tongue, then cleared her throat. It caused a gut-wrenching knot within my stomach, and I felt her presence tighten around me.
Was it possible she could answer my questions?
All the inquiries unearthed an unfamiliar female’s voice in my head that whispered, “Do you really want to find out?”
My head snapped in her direction.
Wait. She can see me too?
Disbelief filled my hollow chest and the reminder caused me to mindlessly scratch an itch… the area where Razor had impaled me. I spoke cautiously to the female who had addressed me. “You can see me? How do you know my name? And how come my minion will not go near you? Or much less, kill you?” The black tentacles were tinted purple from the cloak drifting to the darkest side of the room. Its demonstration of abnormal behavior made me severely skeptical about this particular Vessel.
She walked with an unearthly style of grace as she answered, “Because you and Alexcia are the same, and yet, you are not. She belongs to this world, for now, like you once did. You were given a choice and chose your path as a Grim Reaper, an Ashen.”
My eyes latched onto hers as she approached. The color of them was hidden by a mask of dark circles caused by the stress of crying. An underlying protectiveness for this child was palpable. The little one’s mother must have sensed the danger was gone and returned for her daughter. Then I looked down where she had fallen asleep and felt my lips press together. Since I had succumbed to my situation, I never noticed if she had left the room. The mother faced me as I stood over the little Vessel.
When she spoke, I was awestruck, frozen in place. I had never heard of such a thing, let alone witnessed it. “Well, there are many powers I once possessed. Ultimate clarity was one, which enabled me to see the overlapping planes between our world and this one. I was able to wield the purest form of Light. What I miss most is the ability to dance with the clouds.” She glanced down at the child and smoothed her hair. Staring past me, both of her eyes filled with memories she had purposely misplaced. Continuing with a sigh, she said, “Sadly, I have been recopied several times while trying to save her life. Each time I return with less power. For this reason alone, we need you… she needs you. Your role in her life holds special meaning since you were once like her. A time will come when she will make a similar choice.”
My mouth hung open. “Sorry, I am having a hard time with all of this. First off, no Vessel has ever spoken to me in over six hundred years. I have only dealt with the entities of the Unseen. Secondly, what are you, angel or daemon?” I backed away, uncertain who I was dealing with. “You are not an elemental.” I knew that because she did not have nature’s scent. She was not entirely human either, nor was it implied. But her aura was distorted somehow. “Yet, you claim… you have died… more than once?”
“Yes.”
“How many times have you been recopied?” I motioned with the scythe to the little one on the gurney. “And how did you become one of them?”
“I have died four times, and as you know, only a small portion of an entity dies each time. Unfortunately, you never realize what you’ve lost until the River brings you back.” The sadness in her voice reached out to the corners of the room. My shoulders hunched along with hers as she continued, “The last time the River recopied me, it stripped the ability to summon my wings.” Cocking her head to examine my reaction, she chose to go on. “Alexcia’s soul is special. The Bridge Crosser spoke the truth, but I’m unsure why they want her power. The Houses are not giving my daughter the chance to choose, and it’s such a life-altering decision. Spindled magic in our world smells tainted, Daemon. I believe the Houses have gone mad. Something is very wrong.” She inched closer, carefully sliding off the covers of the bed while bending down to gently brush the child’s cheek before placing a kiss on her forehead. No question, she cared for her child.
Why was I getting pulled into this mess?
I did not even know this child, or why the female was implying a connection between me and the small one. The Cauldron only gave me two names. I was still frustrated and without realizing it, I began pacing. To top it off, there was not enough power to recharge from the Vessel. My aggravation was almost at its boiling point. It was time to go, even if it meant leaving without the souls. I wanted to forget ever meeting these creatures. Maybe I could recruit one of my own to find this human to harvest her another time. Better late than never, right?
I slowly pulled my scythe out and crossed it in front, moving closer to the side windows in case the chance arose to make a quick getaway. Then, it occurred to me. No other humans had entered the room. What was going on?
Annoyance was a mask I wore well, “Can you finish with me soon? I am on a schedule and must get back to my clan,” I said, patience wearing thin.
“Of course, but you need to listen with a simple mind about what I’m about to explain. Otherwise, it will only confuse you further and I’m too tired to put up with that.” She propped herself up on the edge of the bed next to her child and waved a hand in the general direction of a chair across the room.
I guess I’m expected to stay a while.
Since she had used the proper pronunciation of
daemon
, out of respect, I agreed to give her five minutes. Coolly, I walked over to the bedside chair. Before I sat, she swiped a hand to her chest, and the chair turned to face her. I blinked and switched my gaze from the chair back to her. The sigh that slipped out was mixed with a confounded, “Really? Enough with the parlor tricks. I have had a really long night.” My eyes narrowed as something distracted me as I lifted my fingers to rub both temples. “After being around for hundreds of years, it astonishes me that a daemon can get a headache.” I finally dropped down on the chair in one motion. It issued a protesting creak. I fished around in the cloak for a cigarette. If any time was appropriate for a smoke, this was one of those times.
Alexcia stirred in her bed, showing signs of improving. Time, however briefly, was on her side. Her mother leaned back to check on the child, unaware I was about to become the fly stuck in their web. Right about then, I regretted taking this job, but according to the woman, this child was directly connected to me somehow. A thought confirmed the instant frown.
Great, another curse.
“My name is Rae-Lynn. You are correct that… I
was
part of the House of Light. My husband, who seems to be missing, is a full daemon.”
“You do not look like one of the Fallen,” I mentioned while patting down my cloak to keep it calm.
“I was once an angel who was removed from the House of Light, not by choice. Although I didn’t fall from grace for using free will… it was much worse.” The accompanying sigh added pause as she pulled her shirt down mere inches from her throat. A faded scar in the shape of Light’s symbol rested permanently just below her shirt collar. At least she did not have to deal with the chain’s weight, but it still was an everlasting reminder of the House she served. She continued, “I fell in love with a powerful daemon. We are the classic story of angel and daemon falling into eternal love, pledging our devotion only to each other. You can imagine how well that went over in Heaven, putting the River in second place. I was cast out to live life as a human, with benefits.”
As she spoke, I tried to sit still and save questions for later.
“Precisely seven years ago, a miracle happened, I became pregnant. We were so excited because we had never heard of a birth from a union like ours. Everything we’d been told was wrong. That’s when we found out that special children with certain abilities are only born from unwanted unions every three hundred and thirty-three years. They are rare, but it does happen. Alexcia was born in the sixth month of the millennium year, on the sixth day, at six o’clock in the morning. Because of her birth rite, and the time when she was born, her powers are tenfold to that of a normal Unseen. Alexcia isn’t from only one race but of all three: angel, daemon, and human. It’s what makes her soul unique. In the Unseen, she is known as a Child-of-Balance. It is written in the scrolls. If an entity can convince her to make a Bond-Rite to their House in exchange for her power, that contract will tip Creation’s control, and make their House stronger. Then they can guard the River Styx and oversee the rest of the Unseen. Do you understand so far?” She glanced at the child again, a worried expression on her face. “If she doesn’t pick a House to serve, she is as good as dead, permanently.”