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After healing my charge I returned to Resurrector facilities to find that most everyone had reverted to the miserable dreary moods they had been in before the Angel of Death had stopped getting in our way. Those who weren't out with a charge were sitting around in the lounge areas, talking, crying, and comforting one another. Most everyone was returning to their dark clothes, placing themselves in mourning once more. This needed to end now.
I wasted no time at all as I moved through the hallways, heading towards the Leaders' quarters. Once there I knocked on the door, not wanting to hesitate in the slightest. I let out a deep breath and looked down at myself. There were some remnants of the scene of my last save on my clothes, a few glass shards clinging to my sleeves and what looked like butterscotch pudding or maybe soup. I hadn't wanted to waste the time it would take to grab my robes so I could only hope that they would allow me to speak to them anyway. Most of the time they were rather strict about us following their rules, meaning any time we wanted to speak with them we would have to wear our formal Resurrector robes. With everything going on, the formality seemed out of place.
"Who is it?" Even through the door I recognized that it was Samuel speaking to me.
"It's Tamesis, sir. I was hoping I could speak to you for a minute."
There was a pause. I knew they were looking at each other in order to make a decision. Most everything with them was decided by a majority vote. I stood there shifting my weight from one leg to the other, hoping they wouldn't say no. Why was it taking so long to answer, especially to such a simple request? Clearly whatever was going on was affecting the Leaders more than they let on.
"Come in."
I opened the door and walked into their quarters. They were all sitting at the long table they used as a desk and there were a great number of papers scattered over the surface. Though we Resurrectors were all exhausted, the Leaders just looked frustrated. It was written over all of their faces, as if they had been debating something for weeks now with no apparent solution. That was definitely something that would drain a person, but so did the exertion of healing all the time. The longer it took to find a solution, the worse it would be for both Resurrectors and our charges. I walked into the room and stood before them, looking at each of the five Leaders one by one.
I knew all of them; we all did as they were the ones who taught our classes at Resurrector school. The Leaders consisted of three men and two women as they tried to keep it as balanced as possible. However they would not allow themselves an equal number because that meant there could be a tie when they voted on various issues.
Samuel was the one in charge of all Resurrectors and as such sat at the center of the table. Everyone respected him as he had been the youngest Resurrector to ever be promoted to Leader. It was something that didn't happen very often; Leaders kept their positions for long periods of time, sometimes even a couple centuries. Like Samuel, Josiah was old, but the breadth of knowledge he possessed, all the things he had seen and experienced made him invaluable to all Resurrectors. He sat at Samuel’s right hand side—so it was actually to the left from my perspective—which was almost universally seen as a place of importance. At one point Josiah had been the Leader but he had stepped down nearly a century ago. He still looked maybe early 40s, but he was the oldest of all of us.
We often liked to think on who would be chosen to replace him. Before this craziness with the Angel of Death we had mostly assumed that it would have been Alena, even though that would have changed the dynamics to three women and two men. On the far end of the table seated to Danica’s left was Umi, the newest Leader, though he had still been in his position for thirty years.
"What is it that we can do for you today Tamesis?" Annelise sat at the other end of the table, beside Josiah, and she at least sounded polite, especially compared to Samuel. Considering all they were probably dealing with, her tone was a little unexpected. I had never really considered that they had kept away from us because they were trying to find a solution. The distance they kept was frankly annoying. I had heard stories that a very long time ago, perhaps even in the beginning, the Leaders too had charges and did more than this bureaucratic nonsense.
I sighed. So much for wanting to ease into this; they were clearly all about business, as usual. "I overheard the conversation you had with Thanos yesterday. It was wrong of me to listen in, I know that, but I was coming to see you anyway. We need to do something now if we wish to keep the number of Resurrectors from becoming any smaller. With all respect, I don't think it would be a good idea to deny his request. Wouldn't it be in our best interest to allow him one Resurrector rather than losing many more."
"You do not know what you are saying, nor do you know what Thanos is after," Samuel answered. His answer seemed too brief. There was a lot he wasn't saying, which seemed to be the norm for him, and even the other Leaders.
"Then explain it to me! Help me to understand why you will not come to an agreement with him." It was obvious that Thanos was not a Resurrector, that he was working as an ally of Death. That meant that he was probably responsible for the deaths of so many of my co-workers. Thankfully, so far my friends had been spared such a fate.
Samuel glared at me, actually glared. I had never seen him look so furious. For a moment I wondered if he would lose his composure and leap over the table at me. This was obviously a lot worse than anyone wanted to admit. Who was Thanos? It seemed like he had some power over them if they were so against him being around.
"The Angel of Death has moved on and it is time to find someone to take that position. The new Angel of Death could be anyone, but there is only one person at a time that is even eligible for the job. Thanos came here because he believes that the next Angel of Death is here at this Resurrector facility."
I couldn't move and I had no idea what to say to the statement Samuel had just given. The new Angel of Death was a Resurrector? How could that happen? That went against everything the Resurrectors believed in and what we worked so hard to preserve. But this was also a matter of life and death for all of us, and that made the choice obvious to me.
"Now you see why we have not allowed Thanos to see our Resurrectors. The job would destroy whichever Resurrector was chosen." The comment came from Danica, a Leader I didn't ever recall having real conversations with because she always seemed to be focused on work. I saw the signs of that now because she looked even more stressed than the other Leaders. Her golden blond hair was a frazzled mess and she merely had it pulled back into a messy bun. It was like her physical appearance took a back seat to her work. Perhaps that was why, even though I hadn't spoken much with her, I felt a connection between us. I definitely admired her work ethic and hoped to someday have as high a reputation as she did.
I stared at them a few moments longer before shaking my head. "No, I don't see why. You only said that it may be one of us, not that it is. What harm can there be in just letting him come in and see? We could find that his suspicion is wrong and none of us is to become the next Angel of Death."
Samuel shook his head. "No, we will not risk that."
"So you'll risk the lives of all the remaining Resurrectors?" I asked angrily. I understood that this was a horrible situation but I knew the Leaders were making a mistake here. It was as if none of us mattered to them. The Leaders appeared to have no problem with this, even though they were basically giving us a death sentence. "How can you just throw our lives away like that? You have the opportunity to save a great number of us. All you have to do is let Thanos in."
"Forget all about this, Tamesis. It isn't any of your concern," Samuel said. "We will deal with Thanos in our own way."
There it was; I was being dismissed and they hadn't really even considered that they should go along with Thanos. Would they be more open to the idea when more Resurrectors died? It was like they were so stuck in the ways they've known for years and years that they wouldn't even think that another way would work.
In that moment I wan
ted to yell in retaliation, to scream that they were making a huge mistake and that when more Resurrector deaths rolled in, I would be certain to blame them. My anger boiled up, fiercer than any of my previous mood swings. Part of me wanted to overturn their table and throw the decor across the room. I wanted to rain destruction down upon them. The other part of me knew what such actions would mean. They would pull me from active duty. If I was lucky then I would have a suspension period complete with evaluations and more training seminars. The worst case scenario was that they would retire me early, though what that meant I didn’t know. I had never heard of anyone being retired while so young.
I turned and walked out of their quarters. The door closed behind me but I didn't walk away. Instead I just stared at the closed door. I lost track of how long I stood there. It was almost as if I thought that they would reconsider and come out to tell me that they would speak with Thanos, that they would allow him to see the Resurrectors.
That didn't happen. The Leaders remained holed up in their quarters. This wasn't going well at all and I felt that there was nothing else I could do in order to change their minds. I could only hope that things would get better all by itself, and until then I would continue to do my job to the best of my ability.
Slowly I headed back down the hall, walking somewhere, though I didn't know exactly where. I could go to our little café, but since I wasn't hungry it would just be a waste of time. When was the last time I had gotten a decent meal? It had been weeks, at least. Usually I grabbed something small, something I could eat on the run. My work had become my absolute priority, above everything else.
The only sustenance I had was just what I needed in order to keep going. I didn't indulge in anything extra. The satisfaction in performing my job well was all I needed. If the Leaders weren't going to worry about what Thanos was up to, then I was just going to have to make sure I was ready for another increase in charges. Soon I was sure we wouldn't be able to rest at all. It would only be one charge after another.
I let out a deep breath as I kept walking down the hall. The café wasn't an option and I was tired of spending time in one of the lounges. Besides, I was so wound up right now that sitting down anywhere wasn’t an option. There was an obvious location to visit, and that was the courtyard but I wasn't in the mood for the peace it would bring me. I wanted to get away from all of this, from all the other Resurrectors, even if just for a little while.
That sounded like a good idea, get away from the facilities, at least until another charge needed me. Of course, under the current circumstances I would probably have a charge calling in just a short few minutes. But I would gladly welcome a few minutes away from here.
It was the Leaders, I told myself. They were the reason why I was in this mood. I was aggravated and stressed out. It was something I never really admitted to anyone, especially when we had a growing number of charges. We needed to replenish our numbers or else we wouldn't last much longer.
I saw the signs of exhaustion in the other Resurrectors around me and I could only imagine what I looked like because of how much more work I took upon myself. In fact, as I walked into the mall and looked into one of the mirrors, I saw my reflection. It was the first time I had actually looked at myself in a long time.
My black streaked blond hair was pulled up into a ponytail and it looked like it could use a nice long wash and brush. There were dark circles forming beneath my eyes, which already had an almost wild look to them. Even my clothes were wrinkled, probably since I'd worn them for a couple days. Luckily they were not streaked with dirt or blood or soot. That happened sometimes when dealing with a fire.
As my gaze drifted around the mall’s main entryway, I paused, looking across the mall's fountain. I had to blink a few times, thinking that perhaps I was seeing things. No, it was Thanos all right. I would recognize his pale skin and dark spiky hair anywhere. Of course he was also dressed in his normal all-black attire. It would have stood out in a smaller city but here, at this huge shopping center, there were all sorts of people so he almost blended in. What was he doing here? I glanced around, trying to see if there were any other Resurrectors around. No, they wouldn't be here, not unless they had a charge calling for help, and then it was likely that my presence would mean that the call would be canceled anyway. But I saw nothing out of the ordinary and there certainly wasn’t a feeling that someone was in danger.
My pulse was racing and I began to fight for my breath. I couldn't move, even though I knew it would be best to get away from here and from him. Then again…no, I wasn't going to run from this. If he was coming here for me then I would fight to keep going, to keep saving lives. I had healing skills the others could not even imagine and though I was not well rested or well fed, I knew that I was still strong enough. To think about it, I had even defeated the Angel of Death once. Another of Death’s minions should be easy…right? I was going to hope for the best, that I would get out of this. Hopefully my extra training would be useful in this situation.
Then again, what if he wasn't here for me? It was a possibility; he could be here on a free day or something. We had once had that opportunity so it only sounded logical that the other side would as well. Besides, even though I was staring at him, he hadn't even noticed me, or if he had, he wasn't showing any signs of it.
I continued to watch him, frozen to where I stood as I gazed across the large fountain. He started to turn, almost as if he was looking for something or someone. Right then I should have ducked or turned away but it was like I was unable to keep my gaze from him. Our eyes met, his intense dark blue ones piercing completely through me. It felt like I couldn't even blink; I was compelled to just look at him, meet his gaze. I felt lost in the depths of those eyes. There was no chance I could look away.
Thanos then began to walk over towards me. If it was even possible then my heart rate sped up even more. Why was I reacting this way? Only a fool would admit to not being afraid, and I was a little scared, but not enough to keep me from action. I tried to force myself to take slow deep breaths, to calm myself down. At least I was thinking clearly, or mostly clear anyway. As long as I kept my wits about me then there was a chance I would be able to leave this.
The time seemed to go by so slowly as he walked around the fountain up to me. When he stopped I just stood there, staring up at him. He was so tall, standing almost a foot above me. His face was clean shaven and revealed that he had a strong jaw. I imagined that if he smiled it would reduce most girls to a giggling fit.
I took a deep breath. "I know what you want and I'm not going to let you get it without a fight. I won't go easily." Unsure of how successful I was with my words, I tried to hold my head high, as if I was so certain of my skills that I knew he was in for a challenge. The slight hitch in my voice had probably given my guise up pretty easily.
He chuckled, an almost musical sound, and I had to force myself to stay alert. My body acted as if it wanted to relax completely. Then he took another step towards me making it so there was only a few inches of space between us. This was the closest I had been to someone who was not Kiran, Damir, or a charge, and it was unnerving. The energy between us felt palpable. "No, Resurrector. I do not think you have any idea what I am after." I saw the ripple of his shirt and then realized that he had moved his arm, holding his hand out towards me. "Take my hand."
"Why?" I asked. "What are you going to do if I do? Are you going to kill me like you did the others?"
"No," he said, his voice softer than before and so smooth that I almost fell under their spell. The words, combined with the gentle, almost anguished, look in his eyes was a hypnotic experience. "I give you my word that I will not kill you."
I shook my head, freeing myself from the tendrils keeping me connected to him. "I have no reason to trust your word. You have not done anything to show me that I can trust you."
At that Thanos took a step back; clearly my comment had wounded him. "Have I done anything to harm you, Resurrector? We have met several time
s already. Most are not that lucky. Is that not enough to warrant a little faith?"
I had to admit that he had me there. Not once had he harmed me. In fact he had told me that he wasn't after me. Slowly I placed my hand in his. It was then that I actually noted that he was wearing gloves, black like the rest of his attire. The sight was a strange one and I couldn’t help but wonder why he wore gloves. Even with those, the moment our hands touched I thought I felt a shock jolt through my body.
I was taking in rapid, shallow breaths as I looked up at him and then my eyes started to droop and close. Thanos had clearly done something to me, which made me realize how stupid I had been. Hadn’t I just trusted the enemy to keep his word? It was the worst mistake ever and I needed to fight against it. I forced them open again. "What…?"
"Shh," he murmured. "Until next time, Resurrector." He dropped my hand and backed away, though he continued to watch me from a distance. Thanos’s words had been like a soothing balm washing away any pain or panic I felt.
My eyes began to droop again and then they closed completely. I couldn't open them and I couldn't do anything as my knees buckled beneath me and I fell to the ground, losing myself in the darkness.
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Project Death: Resurrection Page 13