Reapers

by Kim Richardson

  As Kara tried to retrieve her weapon, a chunk of concrete came crashing down on her. She stumbled backwards, but her legs were trapped under a mass of concrete.

  The imp-riders cheered as they steered their beast toward her. She pulled and pulled, but it was no use. It was like trying to move a bus. She was trapped.

  She looked up. The centipede-scorpion reared up on its back legs. Its gaping mouth revealed rows of teeth. It was so close that Kara could see right into its maw. Tiny fangs circled around its throat all the way down inside its cavity.

  Desperately, Kara searched the ground. She grabbed a brick the size of a shoebox and hurtled it straight into one of the beast’s eyes. Its eye exploded like a squashed tomato.

  It was livid. It struck out like a bullet.

  Kara rolled to the left just as its giant mandibles sliced her hair and part of her jacket. The beast’s hot breath burned the back of her neck like an acid shower. She turned her head. Yellow spit spilled onto the concrete that pinned her down, protecting her legs from the beast’s acid saliva.

  “The eighteens!” cheered the imp-riders.

  Kara pulled at her legs. She felt something tear, but she couldn’t break through.

  “Uh—guys—a little help here!” she yelled over her shoulder.

  But no one came.

  This couldn’t be happening. She couldn’t die in the jaws of a giant worm.

  “Tear her apart, Sentini,” said one of the imp-riders. “Eat her angel-flesh until there is nothing left. Destroy her!”

  The beast widened its jaw and lowered its head. Its red eyes gleamed with hunger as it was about to feast on her.

  Kara braced herself for impact—

  And then there was a flash of white light.

  The ground shook, and Kara blinked, half expecting to be ripped to shreds. But the creature lay on its side. It twitched as coils of white electricity sparked around its body.

  “Go back to the Netherworld, you devilings!” Mr. Patterson appeared on top a pile of rubble with a shimmering crystal ball in his right hand.

  “Get a taste of this!”

  He threw his crystal over Kara’s head, and it crashed into a mass of imps. There was another great white light, then nothing at all. No ashes. Nothing. Twenty imps just vanished into thin air.

  “Mr. Patterson,” said Kara as the old man came rushing over to her. “You shouldn’t be here.”

  “And you should take better care of yourself.”

  Mr. Patterson kicked an imp in the gut, and the creature keeled over.

  “Peter, help me lift this off her.”

  David and Peter appeared behind Mr. Patterson. They ran over to Kara and gripped the stone block. “On three. One. Two. Three.”

  Together, they raised the concrete slab. Kara slipped her legs from under it before it came crashing back down. Jenny helped her up.

  “Get her out of here!” said Mr. Patterson angrily as a new wave of imps appeared. The giant centipede stirred, like it was waking.

  “I can’t leave you here with them. They’re going to kill you,” said Kara. “They think you have the key. You have to come with us.”

  “No.” Mr. Patterson pushed her away. She could see that he had another crystal in his hand.

  He looked at Peter. “You must get the key to safety. That’s all that matters. You must not fail. Go!”

  Before Kara could protest, David grabbed her arm, and they broke into a wild run. Kara stole a look over her shoulder and saw her boss disappear under another wave of imps.

  She wanted to kill every last one of those filthy creatures.

  “Stop. Stop!” cried Jenny. She pointed behind them. “Look. They’re not following us.”

  It was true. The imps weren’t following them. They were tearing apart what was left of the bookstore. They thought the key was hidden there.

  “The key’s more important to them than we are,” said Kara. She felt as though she had abandoned her friend.

  “He’ll be fine, don’t worry,” said David, as though he read her mind.

  “Oracles are full of surprises. He’s probably got some backup plan. He’s probably leading them on some wild goose chase right now. I’m sure nothing will happen to him.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  Kara stared at her old place of employment. She could hear glass shattering and loud metal tearing as the centipede moved through the ruined building. It crawled out through the other side and then back through the opening that had once been the roof. It was searching for something.

  “Let’s get out of here before the imps change their minds, and figure out I’m the one with the key,” pointed Peter. “There are too many of them.”

  David patted him on the back.

  “I have to agree with you on that one, my friend. Come on, the legion’s got some serious answers to give us. I want to know what the heck is going on. And I need a pay raise!”

  They ran down the street together.

  But just when Kara thought they were home free, a burning ache exploded in her head. She staggered and fell to her knees. A ringing noise blasted in her ears like the howling of a home alarm system.

  She could see David standing above her. His lips were moving, but she couldn’t hear what he was saying. She tried to stand, but her knees shook, and she fell again.

  The pain on her back burned between her shoulder blades again. She was so hot. She yanked her jacket from her shoulders and tossed it to the ground.

  She could feel her skin starting to tear. As it ripped she could feel some kind of transformation. Something was growing out of her and swishing behind her like a cape.

  And when she stood she didn’t see the shocked impressions on her friends’ faces. She was too busy staring at the two great wings that sprouted from her back.

  Chapter 15

  Wings

  Jenny dropped her bow.

  “Oh. My. God. You’re a fairy!”

  She rushed over and inspected Kara’s new wings.

  Wings? Fairy? Kara could hardly believe what she saw. How could she have grown a pair of wings? Had this ever happened to another guardian before?

  It was difficult to see them clearly since she couldn’t turn her head around, but she could see well enough to see that she did, in fact, have wings. Large wings, almost as tall as she was and twice as wide, at least ten feet across. The wings were black, thin, and strong. They looked like a mix between the wings of a butterfly and a bat, or maybe even a dragon.

  Without knowing what she was doing, Kara flapped her wings. She flew three feet forward, staggered, and nearly fell. With some effort, she managed to stand still and counterbalance the weight of the wings on her back. They were heavy. It felt like she was carrying a fifty-pound backpack.

  She stood up on shaky legs, scared and excited at the same time. Steadying herself, she concentrated and realized that she could move the wings easily. With just the hint of a thought—they moved.

  She flapped them again and again, balancing herself, until she could stand normally and use her wings for balance. They were extremely strong. It would take some time to get used to them, but she could already feel the change in her. The wings just moved naturally, like they’d always been a part of her. The thought of sprouting wings made her queasy, but the sensation of actually having them was electric. She felt solid and strong.

  And then her memory began to trickle back, piece by piece, from some part of her mind she hadn’t been able to reach. She saw the yellow, cat-eyed creature that had injected her with a substance that would transform her when she came back from the dead. She knew that she would become something dark.

  She felt David’s eyes on her, and her chest tightened. What if he despised her again?

  She didn’t ask for this. Her new wings had somehow triggered her memories.

  A demon or creature had violated her. It had injected her with some substance that made her grow a pair of wings. At first she was afraid that she’d feel evil.
But how can you feel evil? Aren’t you just evil without knowing you are? She was confused.

  Kara was scared. So far she felt almost the same as before, which was a good thing. But what would happen later? Would she become a creature of darkness? Would she be some bringer of death and hurt her friends? How would they react when she told them the truth?

  “This is extraordinary!” Peter rubbed his glasses repeatedly like somehow they were making him see things that weren’t possible. He frowned and pushed his glasses back up his nose.

  “How is this even possible? Angels don’t have wings! Everyone knows that it was always a myth. It’s inconceivable. It’s crazy.”

  “Well, she just grew a pair.” Jenny looked enviously at Kara’s new wings. She made a face.

  “I wish I had wings. I’ve always wanted to fly, you know. I always wanted to be a fairy, too, like Tinkerbell, and sprinkle fairy dust.”

  “Can you fly? Please try to fly, Kara. Come on. Let’s see you try.”

  Kara didn’t want to test her wings right now. She wanted David to say something. She needed him to speak before she could do anything. Slowly, she turned and looked at him.

  His face was troubled. She could tell he was worried. He didn’t despise her, but she couldn’t read his face.

  “Kara,” said David finally, his voice grim and low. “What aren’t you telling us? I know you’re hiding something else, besides the wings. I can always tell. I can see it in your face.”

  He watched her and said, “You remember now, don’t you? You remember how you died.”

  Kara nodded solemnly. “I do. I remember everything.”

  Kara recounted the events of the night she died. She told them about the dead bat, about wandering into the forest after David, and finally about the mysterious man, and how he injected her with a substance.

  David frowned. “You know that wasn’t me, right? That night in the forest?”

  “I do now,” answered Kara, remembering the hateful remarks from the David-imposter.

  “And after he injected you, he said that you would transform into something else,” said David, observing her wings. “Into something strong, of unmatched power? What the heck does that even mean?”

  “He said he was giving me back what was mine,” said Kara. “Or something along those lines. I remember him saying that I would have darkness inside. I think that whatever he did is going to make me evil or something. I know it’s something dark. I can feel it. And then he said that I needed to die to make it happen. I needed to die and come back for the transformation to work.”

  She suddenly lost her excitement about growing a pair of wings.

  David moved around her slowly and inspected her wings more closely. He looked at an area below her waistline, and he smiled.

  “Why are you looking down there for?” Kara spun around, flustered and angry, and suddenly extremely self-conscious.

  David’s smile widened. “’Cause. I was just looking to see if you’d grow a tail—ouch.”

  Kara punched him in the chest.

  “Not funny,” she said grumpily, and her wings spread out automatically, as if they acted on her anger.

  She stood there, embarrassed, not knowing how to fold them back.

  “Well, to grow wings,” noted Peter, “it doesn’t seem too harmful or evil to me. I’m sure the legion won’t be too alarmed. They’re just wings, and you’re still you, Kara—”

  “No.” David lost his smile; his voice rose. “We’re not telling them.”

  Peter looked at David. “Why not? Maybe they could help?”

  “I said no.” David narrowed his eyes and watched Kara when he spoke.

  “We don’t know what this is yet, and until we do, we don’t tell anyone, especially the legion. Don’t you guys remember what happened when they found something different about her before? The Mark? Her elemental powers? Remember what they did?”

  “They locked her up in Tartarus,” said Jenny, looking gloomy.

  She gave Kara a small pout. “So not cool.”

  “Exactly.” David looked up and down the street. “We’re not taking that chance again. We’re not telling them about the key and we’re definitely not mentioning Kara’s new wings.”

  Peter raised his hand. “Just a second. Let’s think this through.”

  He scratched his head and then looked up, his eyes wide. “Raphael. I’m sure the archangel Raphael would help us. She can keep a secret, and she’s always had a soft spot for Kara. She’ll help us.”

  “Peter’s right,” said Kara, feeling a little less apprehensive. “I know I can trust Raphael. She’s like my second mother.”

  “It’s too risky,” said David, shaking his head. “Raphael’s my friend, too, and I know she’ll want to help us—but her loyalty is to the legion. If she feels, for just a moment, that Kara’s wings represent a threat, she’ll report her. They’ll lock her up again. And I don’t know how easy it’ll be to break you out this time around. They’ve tripled the guards at the prison.”

  Kara sighed heavily. She knew that David was right.

  “So, what do you suggest we do? It’s not like I can hide these things. They’re gigantic.”

  She fluttered her wings, staggered, and balanced herself again.

  “They’re huge, and I’m not even able to control them yet—not really.”

  “Be right back.” David took off down the street and headed for a building with the sign KNOBS & KNOCKERS, the local hardware store.

  Jenny frowned. “What’s he up to now?” She picked up her bow and slung it on her back again.

  “I don’t know.” Kara watched as David kicked open the front door and disappeared inside. “But he’s up to something.”

  “Well, he’d better hurry.” Peter looked toward the remains of Old Jim’s Bookstore.

  “The imps won’t stay there much longer. Sooner or later, they’ll figure out that Mr. Patterson doesn’t have the key anymore, or that it’s just not there. And they’ll be coming this way. I don’t want to be here when they realize I have it.”

  For the first time Peter looked miserable.

  “He shouldn’t have picked me,” he said softly. “I’m not strong and brave like you guys. David should have been the one, not me.”

  “Well, he’s not,” said Jenny. “Mr. P. picked you, Peter. Don’t second-guess him or yourself. Besides, the key accepted you, right? That means something.”

  Peter seemed a little more contented to know that Jenny believed in him.

  Kara covered her face with her hands and spoke through her fingers.

  “This is just the weirdest day I’ve ever had. I grew a freaking pair of wings. What’s next? A tail?”

  A sudden chill passed through her, and she shivered. It was like something shadowy had started to cloud her mind, but when David reappeared the sensation stopped.

  He held out his hands. “Bingo.”

  In his right hand was a roll of duct tape, and in his left a bundle of black cloth.

  David dropped the bundle of cloth, stripped a piece of tape, and held it between his hands. “We’re going to tape you down, baby.”

  “You’re going to what?” Kara’s voice rose, and she stood with her hands on her hips. “David McGowan, you’d better explain yourself. And don’t call me that.”

  David’s raised his brows. “What? Baby?” He laughed. “I’m going to tape down your wings.”

  Kara glowered. “With duct tape?”

  “Duct tape has a bad rap,” said David as he moved behind Kara.

  “It’s awesome. I duct taped the floor of one of my old cars once. Hard as metal. Impressive stuff. My grandfather used duct tape to fix a hole in his boat. It lasted a good year before it took on water, and he drowned. Never mind.”

  “Duct tape…” said Kara again.

  Jenny and Peter both took a step back.

  David reached out toward Kara’s wings and then hesitated.

  “Listen, you’ve got two options. I use the
duct tape on you and pin your wings back…or you show up back in Horizon all fairy-like, and then for sure they’ll throw you back in Tartarus. Your choice.”

  Kara made a face. He was right.

  “It’s not really my choice at all, is it?” she said after a moment. “I never asked for this,” she added softly to herself.

  David reached out and touched the top of her right wing.

  Kara cringed and felt a slight tingle at his touch.

  “Sorry,” he said, a little embarrassed. “Can you fold them back? It’ll be easier that way.” And then he added, “And lift your arms.”

  Kara managed to fold her wings on the second try. She stood still with her arms in the air and watched David’s face as he whirled around her with the duct tape until he had spun a sticky, tight web around her middle. She was glad she didn’t need to breathe, because this was tighter than a corset. It was more like armor.

  The tips of her black wings peeked from below her waist. She didn’t know how they would hide that without taping her legs. She’d really be like a mummy then.

  When he had finished she immediately regretted her decision to go along with him. She felt trapped, and she hated it.

  “Now for the grand finale.”

  David shook the black cloth open. It was long and waved in the light breeze.

  Kara dropped her arms to her sides when she realized what he was doing.

  “It’s a cape,” she said.

  David threw it over her shoulders and tied it at her throat.

  “I found it in last year’s Halloween section, part of Dracula’s outfit. There. It’s perfect. It covers all of you.”

  He stood back and admired his work.

  Jenny grinned. “Apart from the two lumps on your back, it does hide most of the wings. I think it’ll work.”

  Kara didn’t hide her disappointment. “I look like a witch.”

  “If witches looked like that,” said David, grinning sheepishly, “then I’d be in a whole lot of hexing trouble—”

  “Guys,” Peter held up his hand. “You hear that?”

  They all listened carefully.