THE REAPER'S SCYTHE: THE LOCI CHRONICLES BOOK 1

by L P PATERSON

  I looked across at Cymon, who looked back at me while raising his shoulders in a slight shrug. "Do I?" I asked.

  "Oh yes." he replied. “You have something very valuable and it will gain you access to the Gates."

  "Well you can have it whatever it is." I said.

  As the last few words left my mouth I saw Cymon's eyes grow wide and I saw his mouth moving but his voice sounded muffled and coming from far away "Audrey no!"

  Too late. I remembered waiting to eat in Bertran’s bar, I remembered talk of debt and the River Lord's threat. What had I done? The Gatekeeper smiled even wider and this time his eyes lit up. At the same time the red band on my wrist began to itch and burn and move!

  The Gatekeeper was looking at my wrist with rapt attention. He wanted the hair. An angel's hair. He clapped his hands together and smiled, and his eyes never left my wrist.

  The Gatekeeper pulled the wooden doors open wide and stepped back.

  "Welcome to the Gates of London."

  Cymon glared at me as he walked past. His face was so pale and transparent now that I was not sure if he was furious or if he pitied me. We walked slowly behind the Gatekeeper for a short way until we came to a slight bend in the tunnel and emerged into a large space. The same space in which I had landed on my backside a few hours earlier.

  It was empty now. Through the blue haze of the tunnel walls I could see people moving and making their way to their gate.

  "Where is it you want to go?" asked the Gatekeeper. He smiled widely and tilted his head back. His hands were clasped behind his back and the keys on his waist jingled as he rocked back and forth on his toes. He was full of confidence now and eager to help. He had me in his debt.

  I turned to look at Cymon. He was leaning against the tunnel wall. The shadowy black cloak surrounding him was even darker than before. It seemed to be getting larger as Cymon was getting smaller.

  "We need to know if a necromancer passed through the Gates. And where he went." I said.

  The Gatekeeper looked at me and squinted and then he turned to look at Cymon. Turning back to me he said, "necromancers pass through the Gates all the time." He eyed us both again. "Of course a necromancer passed through the Gates, and any one of them could have exited anywhere."

  "The necromancer Nero." I said.

  The Gatekeeper lowered his head and I heard him mumble something under his breath but I could not make out what it was he said. "The necromancer Nero last entered through the Aeld gate to the east-"

  "You mean Aldgate?" I asked.

  "Is that not what I said young lady?" replied the Gatekeeper as he looked at me and clenched his jaw. I remained quiet. "His last exit was at the High gate to the north."

  I turned to Cymon. "The cemetery." he said. "There is an old and ancient cemetery at the High gate. He must be taking the scythe there."

  "But why?" I asked.

  "He is returning it to a place of Death."

  "I don't understand. Why take your scythe only to return it to Death?" I asked. "I thought that someone was trying to kill us all?"

  "I don't understand it either. But maybe we should head for the High gate." He turned and almost stumbled. I dared not touch him.

  "Be careful Reaper." said the Gatekeeper. "Your Loci owes me a debt."

  We headed down the tunnel. I had no idea what the High gate looked like in this world. But everyone knew Highgate Cemetery. It was at the top of Highgate Hill and a lot of famous people were buried there. But I had never been there and I didn't know of a gate. To me Highgate was the name of the area, not an actual gate.

  "Do you know what the gate looks like?" I asked Cymon. "I mean, is there an actual gate at Highgate?"

  "It's a cemetery, of course I know what it looks like." he said. His voice was low and there was a slight wheeze to it. He was weakening. "And yes. There is an actual gate. It forms the entrance to the cemetery."

  "Okay then. Well I don't know what it looks like and I don't want to get trapped in here."

  "Just focus on me and we'll get there." he said.

  I fell in line behind him and made sure to keep my eyes focused on his back. As he turned my body turned with him. I did not have to consciously make alterations to my movements. It was like before when I entered through the Cripple gate, as if my body knew where it was going and what the gate on the other end looked like. We continued walking.

  In a very short amount of time I saw the blue outline of a gate come into view. This gate was nothing like the Buttolph gate. This gate was beautiful.

  The gate had a steepled arched entrance which was flanked by double pillars on each side. The pillars had been chiselled to perfection with decorative carvings and within these were shimmering blue marks and writings. A raised ledge ran along the top of the arch and I wondered if this was used for funeral viewings. To the side of the ledge was a large platform on which stood a large stone statue of a Reaper holding a scythe. This Reaper was traditional. He had the skeletal face which was shadowed by the overhanging hood of his cape and his bone hands held onto a large stone scythe. My blood chilled to see him. He stood as if guarding the entrance of the cemetery.

  We walked through the gate and entered the cemetery. Night had fallen and the darkness fell like a blanket onto everything. Trees and shrubs concealed shadows of pure blackness and the gravestones stood like soldiers guarding some hidden horror. It was creepy. I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end and my gut tensed up. The whole place felt wrong. We were walking through what seemed to be a circular path which had stone doorways along its side. The frames and arches were covered in shimmery blue writing. The darkness grew deeper and the letters and some numbers as well glowed brightly. Cymon was ahead and seemed to be floating rather than walking.

  "What's happening Cymon?" I whispered.

  "I feel stronger Audrey. I am among the dead. It helps."

  I curled my lips. I did not want to be among the dead. And it felt as if there were other things here than just the dead. Things that were worse. I heard a slithering sound near me and I picked up my pace and quickly caught up with Cymon. I could hear my blood rushing through my veins as my heartbeat picked up speed. My chest suddenly tightened up as I struggled to breathe. There was something else here.

  I looked back hoping to see nothing more than the stone gate, but instead I saw red slits watching me.

  "Cymon!" I screamed. "Shadow wraiths. There are shadow wraiths here." But Cymon was not interested. He had stopped suddenly beside a grave. A statue of an angelic cherub stood over the grave holding something in its hand.

  "My scythe." whispered Cymon.

  Then light flooded the cemetery.

  CHAPTER 27

  Cymon grasped the scythe and he pulled. In one sweep he turned and swept his scythe through the two shadow wraiths that were coming towards him. They disintegrated into black smoke. But there were more. Many more. The scythe was big, and the wooden handle seemed to glow with a yellowish tinge. The blade was a reddish bronze metal and it shined as it sliced through the air. I saw Cymon's eyes narrow slightly and his face creased into a frown as he looked down at the scythe in his hands, and for a brief moment he hesitated. But there were more wraiths coming and he didn't have time to think about anything other than surviving.

  I took a step back. And then another. My head started to swing from side to side as the events of the day came crashing down on me and I tried to convince myself that this was not real. I was not in a cemetery, at night, being attacked by entities made of shadow. This was not real. It couldn’t be.

  I could see the bright blade of the scythe swinging through the air and slicing through the wraiths. These were different than the others we had encountered that day. They seemed solid and as the scythe sliced through them, they would collapse in on themselves. But more kept coming.

  I felt sweat forming on my palms and forehead but suddenly I was freezing cold. My legs felt tight as if waiting to run and yet I was rooted to the spot. I could not move
forward or backward. I was terrified.

  "Audrey hide." It was Cymon. I heard the words, but where was I going to hide? There were shadow wraiths everywhere now and they were all focused on Cymon. I should help him but I didn't know how. I didn't know what to do.

  "Well well Loci. We meet again." My blood chilled as I heard the soft rasping of Nero's voice behind me. I squeezed my eyes shut tight and tried to stay calm but I was breathing too fast and I could feel the panic rising in me. "Aren't you going to turn and face me? After all I don't want to kill you from behind."

  That bastard! I opened my eyes and spun round. "Why not?" I spat out. "You shot Cymon in the back"

  His top lip curled and I saw the edges of long sharp teeth. His pale face glowed in the darkness and he moved towards me. I stepped back and lifted my hands. He stopped. I didn't know what I was going to do. I felt no heat and I saw no numbers. But I heard something. A rumbling. Nero did not have his bow with him but I knew that he did not need it.

  And as quickly as I thought it, I saw his hand lift and aim for me. Just as quickly I spread my own hands and I saw in my mind’s eye a stream of numbers float in front of me to form equations and symbols that danced in the air. The bolt that Nero had sent towards me was absorbed by the shield of numbers. My mouth fell open as I stared at the space in front of me. I laughed out loud in shock as I realised what I had done. Then the heat came and I focused everything on returning that bolt to Nero. He ducked and the tree behind him gaped open as the energy tore through it. Another bolt flew past me and I danced to the side. More numbers swam in my head and I pushed the energy out. But Nero was quick and he anticipated everything that I did.

  Then a bolt of energy lifted me from my feet and I spun through the air. I crashed into a gravestone that was behind me and gasped as all the air flew from my lungs. And Nero was on me in a flash.

  "Did you think you would win?" he asked.

  "Why are you doing this?" I asked. "I don't even know you." I could see Cymon in the distance still fighting the wraiths. He would lose. There were too many. And one of them, bigger and more solid than the rest was moving purposefully towards him, and it held a large sword in its hand. I wanted to scream out to Cymon. Warn him of what was coming. But the wraiths were everywhere. A large horde had formed and Cymon would soon be overcome.

  And Nero had me pinned down.

  He moved his face in close and I shrank back. "I do it because it is what is commanded of me." he said.

  "It doesn't matter anymore. We found the scythe." I stated.

  His expression did not change. Instead he looked towards Cymon and then back to me. "You have to die Loci." Nero lifted his hand and I saw a small ball of light form. It spun and grew and became bright. I tried to drag myself back, but I felt broken, my whole body ached and it was as if something heavy was draped on top of me. I couldn't move.

  The ball of light floated from Nero's hand and hovered in the air. Then it flew towards me. I screamed. It stopped suddenly mere inches from my face. My scream died slowly. Nero turned to see what had stopped his weapon. I turned also. A red knife sliced through the air and Nero pulled back just in time to save his head from being stabbed. War ran and leapt. Feet high, she flew towards Nero and both feet landed on his chest. He crashed into the tree which had exploded. He didn't move.

  War turned towards me "Get up Loci." she said. Then she was gone. Back to the fight. The shadow wraiths were now just one dark smoky mass, and within it I could see the red flashes of War. But I could also see the bluey black of Famine and another form, this one in colours of the palest yellowy green. I blinked. Hard. Cymon would die. There were too many. I wondered why the Horsemen did not do some type of Horseman thing and just destroy the shadow wraiths with a thought. But then I remembered what Agatha had said. A powerful being was controlling the wraiths.

  There were too many. I pulled myself up. I would get to Cymon. The Horsemen would fight the horde, but that big one was still walking towards him. If I could get to him, I might be able to shield him. Pull some numbers from my head like I had done with Nero, and protect him. I just had to get there. But he was so far away, and my body ached. The wraith kept walking. Moving closer all the time. I felt my chin trembling as I struggled to drag myself towards Cymon. The wraith took another step, and another and I felt myself swallow several times as a sour taste gathered in my mouth. I wouldn't reach him in time.

  The wraith took another step and stood over Cymon. I screamed but no one heard. The Horsemen were busy trying to control the horde. I screamed out again as I saw Cymon's pale face frown with disbelief as he saw the wraith above him. He turned and I saw his mouth open as he cried out “Help me!” The wraith raised the sword and I closed my eyes as it sliced the sword down.

  A deafening clang rang through my head and my eyes flew open. Cymon lay on the ground. Alive. The wraith that had a second before been about to slice him in two pieces now stood staring down at where his own sword had been blocked by another.

  The shining metal of a sword so large it seemed to dwarf Cymon gleamed in the moonlight. As I watched, the wraith disintegrated into dust and its sword dropped to the ground. All around me the wraiths were crumbling. War was laughing. I felt my eyebrows scrunch together and then relax as my back straightened slightly and my body leaned forward. My eyes followed the sword from the point, which was still looming over Cymon, along the long blade and up to the hilt. A slender white hand was holding firmly onto the grip.

  My eyes followed the hand until I saw the face of a tall thin woman. Her face was narrow and her almond shaped eyes were fixed on Cymon. I could not quite believe what I was seeing. There was no colour to her. Her skin and hair and clothing were all white. Her clothes and hair floated around her in a slow and constant waving dance. I was intrigued.

  "You have nothing and none Reaper." she stated. Her voice was calm and soft and ominous, and I saw anger in her eyes. Her jaw was stiff with tension and her lips were drawn so tight that they almost seemed pasted onto her face. I understood instantly. We had run out of time and assistance. Our fifteen hours were up and no more help would be available to us. She had saved Cymon from the wraith and that was the last help that we would be getting. This was Death. I was staring at her trying to take in everything that I was seeing and hearing and then suddenly before I could even blink, she was staring at me.

  I tried to look away but couldn't and then just as suddenly, as if time and space had no meaning to her, Death was standing in front of me. Stooping slightly to bring her face mere inches from mine. But a few metres away, Death was still standing over Cymon. A faded and slightly transparent version, but she was in two places.

  Death leaned in closer and I drew back as her grey eyes bore into mine. She was going to kill Cymon. Without any doubt I knew it. The other version still stood over him, sword in hand, and she turned her head slowly to look at herself. She, They, were contemplating.

  I couldn't let Cymon die. I had fought so hard to get us this far. He had survived the arrow of the Necromancer and we had found the scythe. I had to do something. I could feel the breath of the Horseman on my face. It was warm and smelled of mint. Her grey eyes were still watching me, and then just like War her grey iris's expanded and then darkened until I was looking into blackness.

  I cringed and pulled into myself as I felt beads of sweat gather on my forehead. My hands began to shake and I bit down on my lip hard as I waited for the noise and smells to attack me. But nothing came. Instead I saw shadows taking shape within Death's eyes. Deep within the darkness I saw Death. She stood with the other Horsemen, all four of them in a huddle, but Death said nothing. She did not engage in the conversation. Something was different about her, her face seemed haunted and vacant, and in that instant I knew. Death had a secret. Something that she kept hidden from the other Horsemen. I was a Loci. I could find things, and if I could find out what that secret was then I could bargain for Cymon's life.

  Before the thought settled in my head, I saw
Death's eyes close to slits and a cold smile slowly took form on her lips, and instantly I knew my mistake. As her eyes faded back to grey, a dark cloud dropped over mine.

  CHAPTER 28

  I was in a black tunnel going forward but my feet were not moving. My head was throbbing and it felt as if it would split. The darkness was intense. It felt heavy and dry and at the same time warm and claustrophobic. Sweat gathered on my palms and I dragged my hands on my jeans to dry them. I noticed a slight tremor in my hands as I did so. I swallowed again as terror gripped me. I was moving uncontrollably towards something and I dreaded what it might be.

  Then I saw a faint light ahead of me which steadily grew brighter. I continued moving towards it. I could not stop. But my dread grew and my stomach began to twist and churn as I got closer to whatever awaited me. Then suddenly I was standing still in the centre of a huge courtroom, and in front of me, Death lounged on her throne.

  The room was huge. Shadows clung to the stone walls, only the small areas surrounding the open flame torches escaped them. The stone floor tiles were large and small puddles of water sat in the indents as if the floor had just been washed. It looked cold but the room felt warm. I dared not look up. My eyes were glued to the floor but I heard whisperings around me, as if a gathering was taking place. I looked up to see black smoke gathering and swirling in all the corners and empty spaces of the room. This was quickly followed by white silvery smoke and then a deep green one till the whole room was filled with smoke and only a narrow path remained through which Death still watched me.

  And as I looked on, the smoke took shape and formed bodies. Hundreds of people now filled the room, and they all stood quietly watching. The whispering stopped as they focused their attention on me, and they waited.

  I gazed back at them all, my eyes wide with wonder. Some of those who were dressed in black also carried scythes by their side. I looked closer and noticed the jewellery adorning necks, ears and wrist and I quickly realised that they were reapers. There were so many. From my experience in Rogier's car park and at the river I knew that those in the silvery white were necromancers. They carried no identifying weapon or adornment but they all had long feral looking faces just like Nero. And then those in green I did not know. They were all female, pale skinned with night black hair. Their green dresses flowed around them regally and I could almost believe that they were ladies of class and wealth, but this was the courtroom of Death and I knew that they were beautiful but deadly. They seemed to be the source of my pounding head. Whenever I glanced at one of them the pain intensified and I heard a shrieking wail course though my head. But their mouths did not move.