The Book of Kindly Deaths

by Eldritch Black

  The roof was empty.

  “Where’s it gone?” Eliza’s heart thumped wildly as she glanced up at the twinkling stars and moon. It was so much closer now. Just like in her dream.

  The wind battered her clothes and whistled in her ears as Shard shouted, “I don’t know.” Eliza followed him across the roof, searching for the creature as, far below, the sea glimmered like a sheet of black metal.

  And then the shapecaster appeared, vaulting into the night sky and pirouetting through the air. It landed before them, smashing into the stone roof, sending Shard and Eliza staggering apart with the force of the impact. Before Eliza could rejoin Shard, the shapecaster unfurled its wings, forcing her backwards.

  One foot remained on the roof, the other found thin air. “No!” Eliza fell and threw out her hands. She grabbed the roof's edge and clung tight, her arms aching with white-hot agony. Her legs swung below her and the wind screamed in her ears. She forced herself to gaze ahead to the wall, anything but looking down.

  “Eliza!” Shard sounded so far away. There was a roar, a cry, and a din of wailing.

  Eliza tried to pull herself up and find purchase with her toes on the tower’s wall. Her foot slipped, and for a moment she almost let go.

  Another pain-wracked bellow filled the air. Her fingers began to slip. “No!” She shook her head, tears rolling down her cheeks from the smarting, keening wind. “I can do it!” She put every scrap of strength she had into pulling herself up, even as the burning pain shooting down her arms intensified. As she brought herself up over the edge, she saw Shard running toward her.

  The roof behind him was empty.

  He sunk to his knees and helped drag her back from the roof’s edge. “Where is it?” Eliza asked as she nursed her arms and caught her breath.

  “I don’t know.” Shard cast a gaze around as they stood. “I injured it badly, and it flew away.” He looked to the clouds sailing across the moon.

  And then Eliza glanced up and screamed.

  Too late.

  The creature smashed into Shard, slamming him down. It raised its claws, drops of liquid falling from their tips, smoke rising from the stone where they fell.

  Eliza hefted up Shard’s sword and swung as hard as she could.

  The blade lopped off the monster’s hand. It yelped, leaping off Shard, leaving him lying lifeless and still as it stalked towards Eliza, cradling its bleeding stump. Eliza backed away, the sword limp in her hand as she was hypnotized by the sight of it bearing down upon her.

  She was alone now. Utterly alone.

  Just her and the beast.

  “Cut, slash, tear the drearspawn,” the shapecaster hissed as it threw back its head. “And when I’m done I’ll cast your remains to the wind.”

  Eliza held out the sword. “Get back.”

  The shapecaster laughed and licked its lips. “My, your terror looks exquisite. You won’t touch me, drearspawn. No, you’ll drop the sword and fall weeping to your knees as you beg for mercy.”

  Eliza shook her head. “I won’t beg you for anything.” She fixed the vile creature with an even stare. “I’ve already taken a life tonight.”

  “It wasn’t you who used the darkling blade. The blade used you. You’re a weak, pathetic child, grown soft and useless in your sheltered world. Oh, but to pile up all you little writers on a great pyre.”

  “Why?” Eliza asked. “What have we done to you?”

  “Interfered with my kind. Dared to tell us where we can and cannot go. But that’s going to change. I said a storm is coming, and it is. And when it hits, the Grimwytch will overrun your realm.” The shapecaster grinned. “And the best part is your kind assisted me in sowing the seeds of their own destruction”

  “I don’t believe you. Why would anyone help a monster like you?”

  “Greed. Lust for power. The only true desires your kind know. Both will be sated, but at a price. We’re growing tired of our kingdom, girl. It’s time to find another. Yours.”

  “And you think my kind will just stand around and let you? You think they won’t notice you clomping around?” Eliza laughed, her voice shaking. “You’ll be shot dead before you know what’s hit you.”

  The shapecaster nodded. “Maybe. But I’m but one head on a beast of such magnitude you couldn’t even fathom its immensity. But none of this concerns you, little writer, for you’re not going to live long enough to see your revolting kind wiped away. You’re not going to live to see anything. Take a last breath, little girl, and savor it.”

  The shapecaster loped towards her, arms outstretched, claws flexed, beads of venom dripping as it came.

  Eliza gripped the sword with both hands and swallowed, taking a step towards it.

  It matched her, stepping closer still.

  I can’t do this, she thought, her hands trembling as she looked at the sword in her hand, remembering the nightblind’s hideous howl of agony.

  “You have no appetite for murder,” the shapecaster said. “It’s not in your blood.” It inched toward her and as she met its malevolent, hate-filled gaze she stepped away. “That’s right,” it said, “you see your demise, you know it’s inevitable.”

  Eliza took another step back, hypnotized by its stare. Her heart raced, the wind screamed and suddenly she felt the gulf behind her.

  “That’s right, walk back, girl.” The shapecaster loomed toward her.

  Eliza forced herself to tear her gaze from its eyes. She glanced to Shard’s lifeless body and back to the monster's mocking, vicious grin. “I told you to leave me alone!” She swung the sword in a circle of steel. As it wheeled towards the shapecaster she lunged forward, thrusting it into the beast’s chest, closing her eyes against the sight of its agony.

  It screamed. Eliza held still, her eyes clamped shut. The sword jolted in her hand as the beast slumped against the roof. Only when the scream became a gurgle and then a dying gasp, did Eliza look down.

  The shapecaster stared blankly, eyes wide, its head lolling as its blood, black as night and thick as oil, poured from its chest.

  Eliza glanced away to the pommel of the sword—Shard’s family crest. She wrenched the blade free and ran to where he lay.

  Voices rang from behind as Mrs. Sallow and a handful of guards landed their aranachiros on the rooftop. Eliza turned away, placing a hand over Shard’s mouth, desperate to feel his breath and know he was alive.

  But if he still drew breath, it was snatched by the howling wind.

  31

  The Deal

  The moment her aranachiros landed on the ground before the Midnight Court, Eliza ran to the winged beast that carried Shard’s slumped body. Mrs. Sallow ordered the guards to take him to the hall.

  “Will he be alright?” Eliza demanded.

  “The shapecaster has a venom in its claws that renders its victims unconscious. It’s the same venom used to create sleep dust,” Mrs. Sallow said.

  “The same sleep dust your ghoul used on my parents?”

  “Grim Shivers is very much his own ghoul, Miss Winter,” Mrs. Sallow said as they walked to the hall. “Now, did the shapecaster tell you anything?”

  “Yes,” Eliza began to reply and then stopped. “I want to see my grandfather first, before I tell you anything.”

  Mrs. Sallow sighed. “Very well.”

  Tom sat in the chamber beside Augustus, the guards and Grim Shivers mercifully gone. As soon as Tom saw Eliza, he jumped up. “Are you hurt?”

  Eliza shook her head. “I killed it.” She swallowed. “That’s the second thing I’ve killed tonight. Two things that were alive before I came to this horrible place.”

  Tom gave her a sad smile. “It’s what we do, Eliza, if we must. But you didn’t invite that. You defended yourself. Do you understand?”

  Eliza understood. But it didn’t make her feel any better.

  “Is your friend okay?” Tom asked.

  Eliza watched as the guards laid Shard out on a bench. “Mrs. Sallow said the shapecaster’s venom put him t
o sleep. That it’s the same stuff Grim Shivers used on my parents.”

  Tom nodded. “It is. And they will wake. All of them. It’s over, Eliza. We can go home.”

  Someone coughed behind them.

  Eliza glanced past her grandfather to Mr. Bumbleton. As he watched them, he offered a faultlessly hollow smile. “I hear you’ve slain the beast.” He extended his hand.

  Eliza thrust her hands into her pockets. “You were going to let the beast slay us, Mr. Bumbleton. Weren’t you?”

  A flush of red colored Mr. Bumbleton’s pale face as he stuttered. “And what would you have had me do, girl? Why would I endanger myself to save a…”

  “Human? Was that what you were going to say?” Eliza asked. “Or were you going to call me a drearspawn?”

  “Listen to me,” Mr. Bumbleton said. “Slaying those who have wronged our worlds is your job. Not mine.”

  “It’s not my job,” Eliza replied. “I don’t have a job. I’m twelve years old.”

  Eliza flinched as a hand rested on her shoulder. Shard gazed at her. He looked ill, his green eyes dim now. “I owe you my life, Eliza. Once again.”

  “No, you don’t. But if you’re keeping a tally, I think we’re about even. Are you okay?”

  “I feel as if someone’s filled my blood with liquid fire. But aside from that, I’m fine.” He gave a weak smile. “So, you killed it?”

  “I used your sword. So, in a sense, you killed it,” Eliza replied.

  Shard smiled. “Thank you, Eliza Winter.”

  “All very touching,” Mrs. Sallow said as she joined them. “But now we need to know what the shapecaster told you before it was slain.”

  “What will happen to us?” Eliza asked. “Me, Tom, and Shard?”

  “You’ve been pardoned. Shard, as he has chosen to call himself, will be sentenced at a later date.”

  “For what?” Eliza demanded.

  Mrs. Sallow gestured to the roof. “He’s defiled the Midnight Court. Do you know how old that window…”

  “What would you have had me do?” Shard asked. “Knock on the door and ask your guards to let me in? Styxsturm was going to kill all of you—you do realize that, don’t you? He might have started with Eliza and her grandfather and me, but you would have been next.”

  “Pardon Shard, and I’ll tell you what he said,” Eliza replied. “And while you’re at it, pardon Augustus as well. He was only trying to help my grandfather.”

  “I should never have been locked up in the first place,” added Augustus.

  “You stole a Book of Kindly Deaths, Master Pinch. And never was a name more fitting!” piped Mr. Bumbleton.

  “If I’d known what the book was and where it would take me,” Augustus said, “I’d have left it well alone.”

  “If you return to your world, you’ll die,” Mr. Bumbleton said. “While you haven’t aged in our realm, you will in the other. Is that how you would go?”

  Augustus shook his head. “No. But if I have to stay here, then I want to be free. No hassles from Shivers, either. Free to come and go as I please.”

  “You’re asking me to allow this miscreant to wander our streets?” Mrs. Sallow asked Eliza.

  “Yes, I am. Let’s face it,” Eliza said, “there’s a lot worse than him out here.”

  Mrs. Sallow nodded briskly. “Agreed. Just tell me what the shapecaster said.”

  Eliza sighed. “It said my kind have sown the seeds of our own destruction. That there are people in my world who have helped it. And that it didn’t matter if it died as it was just a single head on a giant beast. It said it regretted that I wouldn’t live to see the coming storm.”

  “Working with your kind?” Mrs. Sallow said. “Then there are people in your realm conspiring against us.”

  “That’s always been the case,” Tom replied. “There have always been those who have sought to bring the denizens of Grimwytch over as slaves.”

  “But this sounds bigger than a single event,” Mrs. Sallow said. “It sounds…bad.”

  “It does,” Tom agreed.

  “You’re not getting any younger,” Mrs. Sallow told Tom. “And you’ve made some abysmal decisions of late.” She looked at Eliza. “We need young blood.”

  “Not Eliza,” Tom said, shaking his head. “She’s just…”

  But Eliza held out her hand. “I’ve killed two monsters tonight, Granddad. And I’ll kill more if I have to. If they’re coming into our world, then we have to stop them. How can I sleep at night knowing what’s out there?”

  “And you’re not alone,” Shard added. “I’ll help you.”

  “He can’t go to your realm!” Mr. Bumbleton’s face turned bright purple. “The very idea!”

  “He can if you let him,” Eliza said. “And he knows his prey better than I do.”

  “It’s ridiculous,” Mr. Bumbleton said, shaking his head as he repeated, “The very idea!”

  “It’s not ridiculous,” Mrs. Sallow said. “It makes sense. And given how grave this news is, we shall need every resource we can find. Very well. The boy travels to and fro unhindered.”

  Shard nodded. “I will do all I can to right this. The shapecaster murdered my family for a reason, and helping Eliza and her grandfather may help me find out why.”

  “So, now that’s settled,” Eliza said, “how do we get back and wake my parents up?”

  32

  Through the Window

  Mr. Bumbleton handed Eliza a vial filled with smoke. “Hold this under your parents’ noses. It’s concentrated essence of cheesedung fly, easily one of the most revolting scents in the Grimwytch. It could wake a corpse.”

  “You can use the window to return to your world, Miss Winter,” Mrs. Sallow said. “But out of interest, where did you cross into the Grimwytch?”

  Tom smiled. “We all need a secret or two, Mrs. Sallow.”

  Mrs. Sallow gave him a withering look. “You need to report to me daily. We can use the window for that purpose. Now, how are do you intend to find out who’s behind this coming storm?”

  “I shall use the map to find breaches, as usual,” Tom said. “But this time I’ll look for patterns.”

  “Higher incidents of breaches?” Mr. Bumbleton asked.

  “No. Quite the opposite,” Tom said. “Whoever’s working with my kind is likely to be acting alone, or at least in a small group. They won’t want attention, but I’ll find them. It’s going to mean a lot of travel so I can’t update you daily, but I’ll keep you posted as often as I can. You have my word.”

  “And the girl and her friend will assist you,” Mrs. Sallow added.

  Tom shrugged. “We’ll see. First we have to speak with Eliza’s mother, and if you think the shapecaster was a menace…”

  “She’ll listen to me this time,” Eliza said. “I’m going to make sure of it.”

  Mrs. Sallow nodded briskly and escorted them to the courtyard.

  Five aranachiros awaited them, each mounted by a guard.

  One by one they climbed upon the saddles, Eliza wrapping her arms around the guard’s chest as their aranachiros took off, sweeping into the air.

  As they soared over the Midnight City, Eliza peered down at the higgledy-piggledy buildings, crooked houses, pale white palaces, and the great black towers dividing them. It was a terrifying place, for sure, but one she felt curiously attached to.

  And then the aranachiros landed before a lavish white building that Eliza recognized from her dream.

  The Midnight Guild.

  They hurried past the guards, Mrs. Sallow leading.

  As they entered the small room with the slug and the stained glass window, they found Mr. Bumbleton standing before it, inscribing patterns in the air. A guard brought a small ladder into the room, setting it before the window, which opened as Mr. Bumbleton lowered his hand.

  “What’s it like?” Shard asked with a hint of nervousness. “In your world?”

  Eliza thought for a moment. “It’s different. Very different. There’s a su
n, which lights everything each day, and a moon at night. You’re probably going to find that strange. And people don’t dress in cloaks. Or carry swords, or bows and arrows. So we’re going to have to sort that out.”

  Shard nodded, feigning nonchalance as Eliza hid her smile.

  They climbed the ladder, Tom leading. As he clambered through the window, he offered Eliza his hand. She took it and climbed back into her world and onto the desk, leaving space for Shard.

  It seemed strange to be in the house again. To look back at a room she’d once seen in a dream.

  Eliza took a deep breath, recoiling. The air seemed heavy, dirty, and laced with the scent of chemicals. It smelt old, stale, and almost heavy, as if weighted down with pollutants.

  Shard wrinkled his nose, coughing as he gazed at the light on the ceiling. “This is the sun?”

  Eliza laughed. “No, it’s a light. There’s loads of things I’m going to have to explain to you. Maybe electricity should be a priority.” She leaped from the desk, clutching the vial Mr. Bumbleton had given her.

  The door to the hidden room was ajar, no doubt left open by Grim Shivers. She hurried through, Shard and Tom close behind.

  The study was a mess, books strewn across the floor. Eliza stepped over them and out into the hall. She ran down the stairs and into the kitchen, where she found her parents still slumped across the table. Tom looked down at them with a wistful expression. “It’s the first time I’ve seen your mother in six years. And your dad. They look well. Older, and maybe your father’s a little pudgier…” He stopped, wiping away a tear from his cheek.

  Shard looked around the kitchen, clearly uncomfortable as he held a hand over his eyes. “It’s so bright,” he mumbled.

  Eliza uncapped the vial, recoiling from the stench of overripe cheese, rotting fish, and cow dung. She held the vial beneath her mother’s nose first, watching as its black vapors snaked through the air.