by Paul Simpson
Chapter 8
Up against the odds
For that moment Ffion was seven years old again. The pair hugged tightly, both with tears of love and joy running down their faces. It had been over 300 years since she lost him on that fateful day and she wasn’t about to let go now; neither was he.
“I’ve missed you so much!” she sobbed. “Each day all I’ve ever wished was to have everything back to the way we were, together.”
John held Ffion tight, his little girl safe in his protective arms. “I’m so sorry I couldn't help you through all the years, but I’ve been with you, seen all the highs and lows you’ve been through. It was only this twist of fate that now allows me to hold you again.”
Ffion wiped back her tears. “How could you have known?”
John began to explain. “Ever since I was lost to you both I have wandered the forests nearby, watching you survive as a wild cat, dealing with the loss of not just me but your mother also. I was unable to help or even communicate. You were just a little girl, it wasn't fair what life threw at you.
Every now and then a Reaper would appear. Sensing my departed soul they would come looking for me and I learnt how to hide from them, to draw them away from the stones where you mother is. If not the Reapers, then the Feeders would search me out the creatures you call Imps but I grew too smart for any of them and all that time my one goal was to watch over you until such a time that I could find a way to return. I knew the time was close when you first heard me, even saw me in a glance of the reflection, back at the cabin when you were dealing with Jack on that past Halloween.”
“So I did see you that day! I saw the light flying away back to the woods as I turned.” Ffion smiled, then quizzed another incident. “In the library with the Imps, when they took my necklace?”
“Yes, I was there too, unfortunately. With Jack’s portal open there were a higher number of Imps being drawn into the area. They found me and gave chase. It was bad luck that I passed by the library at that time as the only thing Imps like more than to devour a soul is pure magic, like the kind you wore around your neck. The Imps left me alone once they sensed you and stole the pendant from you there was nothing I could do to warn you.”
Ffion stopped John from talking. “The necklace reminds me, MOTHER, she’s here, come quick!” She took her father’s hand and dragged him up the hillside to the standing stones where Jodie had been watching. Jodie’s face beamed with happiness at the sight of her beloved husband, hand in hand with her daughter, together again.
John approached the stones and reached out his hand to Jodie. There was a crackle and a fizz as he came into contact with the magical wall that separated them. Jodie stood close on the other side as they stared into each other's eyes, not blinking, hardly breathing, just looking at each other as if they had met for the first time and fallen in love all over again.
Jodie placed her hand against John's on the invisible wall that contained her. “I’ve missed you so much, every day I’ve hoped in my heart that we would be together again and here you are, at last. If I were more than a spirit I would be crying, holding on to you, both of you and I’d never let go again.”
John smiled as he replied, “I am here, my love, and I promise never to leave you in this world by yourself again.”
Ffion came closer as the three stood together, almost a family again, her heart lifted at gaining back all she had ever wanted only to be interrupted by a small, white cat.
“Hi again. Mum, dad, nice to finally meet you, hate to break up the party, as much as I love a party, but this isn’t the time, so maybe after, get together, ball of string, maybe a fish etc…” George looked up at the three puzzled faces looking down at him. “Sorry," he coughed, "but we really need to get back on the job. In case we’d forgotten, mum’s soul's at risk an all, just sayin', don’t meant to kill the mood even though one of you is technically dead and the other is now a Grim Reaper, which is messed up if you think about it, but…”
“GEORGE, you’re babbling, we got the message, back on track, reunion later,” smiled Ffion at her best friend. "Father, is there anything you can tell us about the Reapers and the Feeders?"
John nodded. “Over the years I picked up a few tricks about hiding, which allowed me to observe the Reapers and the Feeders. I’ve almost studied them, you could say. The Reapers come when they sense a soul needs to pass over.”
Ffion sniggered out loud, as did George. John looked confused at them both. “Sorry father, it just sounded like you said 'As..…' sorry never mind, please carry on.” Jodie rolled her eyes at them both but secretly found it funny too.
John continued, “The one thing people have never realised is that they come to protect us not to reap us. The scythe they carry is their weapon of choice to protect us from the Feeders. The Reapers can see what I call a Dark Light, like a beacon stretching up to the sky from those about to pass over. Imagine looking at a dark stormcloud with a silver lining, except it’s shape is a pillar of light. They home in on this light and stand guard over the person about to die until they are ready and a shaft of light calls to them to move on. The Reapers as you may have noticed travel upon the same shaft of light, a Jacob's ladder as they are known.”
Ffion spoke up “If your’re a Reaper now, why do you have an axe and not a scythe?”
“Reapers are part of the lower angelic casts but in my case I’m a human soul. Maybe it adjusted to suit my needs. I always was better with my axe and a bow for that matter so maybe my unique status allows my will to channel itself through the weapon, just as you control your powers.”
Ffion nodded. It was a reasonable explanation given all the power she and Jodie controlled. “So what are these Feeders?”
“The Feeders are pack hunters and even though they are small creatures, in large numbers they are even dangerous to the Reapers. They feed off the souls that wander the earth, which choose not to enter the ladders. I made a conscious choice to not go and kept my wits about me. Others cannot come to terms with dying and wander in a daze, easy prey for a visious creature.
As long as these Imps do not devour a large number of souls, they can be kept in check. I’ve never seen what would occur otherwise but I’ve heard Reapers speak of these incidents and I know enough to realise it's bad, especially for the living.”
Jodie began to grow concerned. “What do they want with me? They seem desperate to break the seal.”
John paused, shaking his head. “I don’t know. My guess would be that the Feeders are after you because you’re a soul with magic energy. If that’s the case, you’d be considered the jackpot for them. The Reapers will be trying to get you first so that doesn’t happen.”
“Then break the seal and let the Reapers take me, avoid all this fighting, it's enough for me to have you all back for this moment,” pleaded Jodie.
“NO, NEVER!” shouted Ffion, “I'm going to find those other witches and break you out before anyone gets close to you. Not now, not ever, after everything I’ve been though these last few years, is anything destroying my family again.
"Father, I need you to stay here and protect mother until I can return with the items I need to undo all this once and for all. I have an idea. Pass me your axe, I want to try something.”
John passed the handle over and Ffion began to press her right hand over the axe. Slowly she worked her way down the handle as if charging up the power of the new weapon. As she finished, there was a blue spark of power feeding back from the axe into her. She shook her right hand as if she’d received static shock and watched as a strange blue energy glowed on her skin before being absorbed. Thinking nothing of it she passed the axe back as John inspected her handy work. The handle was charged with energy, he could feel the power upon his skin as he held it in his hands.
Ffion smiled. “Do you like it? I super charged it to give you more of an edge should you need to defend yourself, and also just something personal in a family way. I did the same to mother’s gun when we last met.�
�
John looked at the axe; which was now carved from the handle to the head. As he held it, Ffion explained the carving to the others.
Down the left side at the top was the pumpkin heart from Jodie’s necklace that Ffion now wore, on the right was the carving of a cat's head for Ffion. Under these images were vines with leaves and flower patterns twisted all around, just as she had done before to the gun handle. To the lower half at the front was a Reaper's skull and ribs, with an angel wing coming from the left shoulder and a demon wing from the right.
At the back was a second Reaper's skull and ribs to complete the design.
“The pattern is also a seal spell,” explained Ffion. “It helps contain the energy boost I just put into it.”
John smiled “It’s beautiful, Ffion, thank you. I remember that gun. Your mother had it with her back in my time. It saved the day a few times as I remember, not sure what happened to it though. Who would have thought that my daughter was partly responsible for that?” He looked over at Jodie, who just shook her head in denial.
"Ok George, your turn!” Ffion turned her gaze to him. “I’m going to give you a boost so you can help out here.”
George backed away. "Well, you know…” he meowed, “size isn’t everything. Can’t I just observe from a really far distance, shout if I see something, meow a little like cats do, you remember, eh?” Ffion was already concentrating on her power and she cast it toward George. He began to screech and hiss as his body grew to the size of a snow leopard.
George checked himself out "Bigger, stronger, faster, leaner!”
Ffion giggled. "Yeah and even more full of yourself, you even bigger furball!”
George looked proud of the comment. "Yeah well, you’re the one who turned me into the heavy weight!”
Ffion laughed again. "You always were a heavyweight, and I’m not talking muscle!”
George shrugged off the reply. "You know, this is why we cats became small over the centuries, so people would accept us. Can you imagine anyone having a cat in their house my new size….? NO! As long as we're small, cute and cuddly we're no threat. Dogs are just stupid. As big as they are, they just bite, but a cat has the added claw bonus!”
George began to strut as he looked around the hillside, shouting, "Yeah doggies, who’s bad now? Let me do all the chasing now!”
Ffion shook her head. "I cant believe it.”
"What? That I’m so much better now?” he grinned.
"No, that you think of yourself as small AND cute,” came Ffion's humoured reply.
She turned her sights on the mansion grounds again. "Time for round two, hopefully with the last location now of no use I should zip to another site of Jack's making, at least that’s the theory.” She set off, leaving her father and George protecting the stones.
"FFION!” called John, who was slightly confused. “Before you go can you please explain why I can understand a cat?”
"Because you've passed over and you now also control some kind of magic power of your own as a Reaper. There are no language barriers in magic or the afterlife father,” came her reply, and she continued off toward the second phase of her mission.
George grinned. "Guess you’re one of those dads who can’t even use a DVD player eh?”
John’s expression was blank, if not a little confused. "What’s a DVD? Is it something I should be looking out for?"