Forgotten

by Sarah J. Pepper

  “Which is why you’ve spent the last countless centuries wallowing in grief, Jace,” Analee said. “Was that divine?”

  “Sorrow amplifies bliss,” he responded to Analee, but never looked away from me. “You can’t truly experience one to its fullest potential without surviving the other. You can’t experience love without understanding hate.”

  Looking down at Zalen, Analee asked, “Why would you betray me?”

  “The Butcher is a visionary. I welcome death in serving him,” Zalen muttered. “Whether I sacrifice my own life to extend his, or the scavengers take it from me today - Either way, my master wins. He wanted to know if Gwyneth was truly the Chronicler and if she still possessed enough power to grant what he most desires. You all played right into his plan.”

  “Gwyneth is pathetic and weak,” Analee said.

  “You said the Chronicler was pathetic and weak centuries ago.” Zalen started to laugh, but the blood pooling in his throat stifled his laugh. “There are times when she smells like us; we’ve all caught our scent on her. But more importantly, there are times when she smells like her sisters; it’s undeniable.”

  I felt everyone’s eyes on me, seeking an explanation. “My visions,” I said, thinking out loud. “You sense them?”

  “Visions?” Jace questioned.

  “Of the future,” I said, and then immediately knew I’d said too much. Marco pointed out the Prophet saw the future; it wasn’t a talent of mine. It didn’t make sense. They said the Chronicler saw the past.

  “She’s weak without the Cutter and Prophet, but Gwyneth truly is the unseeing Fate,” Zalen said. “No deity has been born in centuries. She finally fulfilled the Healer’s request to be reborn.”

  I wanted to ask about Lily – how the Butcher grew young after killing her, if I’d been the only deity to be born in years, but the ground began to tremble.

  It shook more ferociously, with each weakening breath Zalen took. It opened up upon the Rippler’s last breath, as if the Earth itself meant to swallow the deity. Marco shifted behind Analee and mumbled that he didn’t want the dirt crawler to take the wrong shifter.

  A starved, mouthless corpse crawled from the ground. Even though my world was still blurred, I could see every detail of the Scavenger. Bruises and cut marks littered its body as it crawled on top of the soil. The Scavenger screamed soundlessly at Analee when it finally surfaced.

  Smoke filled the room. I coughed. I was the only one who made a noise even though I could feel vibrations roll across the floor. I felt it ripple through the air but only saw the shimmer of the blade before I was pushed aside. A young man with dark brown hair grunted as if he was startled. A silver spear stuck out of the charred leg. Smoke blocked out everything else in sight.

  The man gripped the spear to pull it out, when it disappeared. He applied pressure over the wound on his leg with his hand. A scar on his thumb danced like a thread the moment my pinky brushed against it.

  “Next time, I go alone,” he groaned. “The Rippler is guarding them, making sure you don’t find them.”

  “They’re still a part of me,” I said. “I need to know her plan for them. The Prophet said our younger sister is going to be busy cutting as soon as Analee figures out how to command the Scavengers.”

  My skin was smooth and youthful, just like his, as I cupped his face in my hands. I brushed back his dark brown hair that fell over his chocolate-brown eyes. Flecks of gold shimmered in them even though dirt clung to his hair, like he took a shower in mud. Smoke filled the edges of my sight as dawn broke. I thanked my sister for not cutting his thread when he searched the Master’s cave looking for the lost parts of my soul – my Scavengers. I didn’t fight his touch as he traced his dirty finger over my hand. I craved it.

  “Did you uncover their orders?” I asked.

  “Anyone who utters their name will greet death.”

  “They rise as death’s henchmen, disregarding forgotten memories only to collect the dead,” I recited the last part of the vision, as it faded away.

  The Scavenger glanced at the dying man before turning its attention back to me. It took my hand and brought it up to where its mouth would be, and spoke in my mind. It recited a phrase over and over in my mind, begging me to remember it. I nodded, hoping one day I could not only understand but fulfill its request, whatever it was. Once my pinky finger rubbed against its coarse skin, a part of the Scavenger’s soul, connected to mine.

  Its starved body was bruised and beaten as it crawled out of the dried ground. Every vein, blood vessel, and artery pulsating deep purple, showed on its hairless head. Its translucent skin was pulled tight, especially over the joints. It smelled clean and crisp like the sea, even though the few shreds of clothing covering it were stained. The sewn marks kept him from whispering of the unspeakable past. Empty hollowed holes were where the eyes should have been.

  It walked to me. Instead of running, I opened my arms to embrace it. Its ghostly skin was razor sharp but never cut me. It brought my hand to its mouthless face. When my smallest finger brushed against its coarse lips, I felt at home again. The walking corpse wiped a fleeting tear from my eye. In my mind, I heard it speak in a mysterious language. Even though I didn’t understand it, a sense of immense sorrow washed over me when it released my hand and turned its back to me. I trembled as I watched it sink into the dirt.

  It’d been stolen from me, by the fallen angel.

  The Scavenger covered my eyes with its fingers. When it removed its hand, my world was no longer a blur of gray. I couldn’t speak, move, or even blink as I marveled at the splendor around me. Dimension. Depth. Color. I could see every line, wrinkle, nail, and every strand of hair. I saw absolutely everything.

  Standing next to two beautiful, icy young girls, was a gorgeous woman, a fallen angel. She was the same beautiful blond woman with the golden eyes, who held me captive in a coffin, stood next to her young slaves. Analee.

  The giant red-headed man stood behind her. The intelligence shining through his green eyes contradicted the stereotype that he was just another hunk of muscle and no brains. Marco.

  Standing alone was a guilt-ridden man on fire. Taking a deep breath, I blinked and suddenly found myself gazing into the chocolate-brown eyes that held a sense of exquisiteness I couldn’t describe. His jaw was as I pictured, ridged from not recently shaving. His eyelashes extended long and full, framing his perfect dark eyes. Gold was woven through his dark hair. It flung haphazardly over his face, hiding the markings of a jagged scar trailing across his cheek bone. I saw every vein, every muscle in the arms that I’d let myself melt into. I saw the lips that made mine swollen. Blue flames whirled from his shoulders, like they had when he promised to heal my mortal wounds since I was no longer ageless.

  “Consequences will be paid if we continue this path, Healer. My sister has seen it,” I said.

  I expected hesitation; however, I wasn’t given any. Jace immediately pulled me against him and led me into the ocean. He acted like I was the breathtaking one, not him. He muttered that even the ocean couldn’t compare to the beauty in my eyes. I didn’t believe him, but I didn’t care.

  “Your adoration is worth centuries of torment,” he promised.

  “It’s not the future I see when I get visions, is it? It’s of the past?” I asked.

  I couldn’t tear my gaze away from Jace. His eyes widened in realizing that I recognized him. He stepped forward like he’d give anything to hold me. The Scavenger tightened its grip around me. Jace stopped.

  “Forgive me of my past,” Jace begged. “I saw no other choice than to drive the blade into your chest.”

  “These visions are of a life I’ve forgotten,” I said, turning back to the Scavenger. “They’re memories of a life that’s no longer mine to claim.”

  I wanted to give up – so much was lost. So many years I’d never know again, so much awaited me. The Scavenger brought my hand up to where its lips should have been. It pressed my pinky finger on its temples, triggeri
ng another vision.

  The sun shined through a charred knot hole, no bigger than my slender finger. It was the only light in the enclosed, narrow box holding me captive. My hands were smooth and polished, not gnarled or wrinkled; I had years of life ahead of me, so why was I buried alive in a coffin. Sweat formed beads on my brow. They dripped down my face. A pungent stench choked my lungs as the heat rose inside my coffin.

  Death and decay grew stronger as a set of shuffling feet skimmed the top of the wood. A spicy aroma, his fragrance, intertwined with the rot, took over my senses. I heard two feminine screams. One echoed in my mind while the other cursed out loud. I peered out the tiny hole and caught a glimpse of my captor in her white dress – the girl who looked like a fallen angel. Her unforgettable golden eyes flickered black as she smiled down at me. Her beautiful voice beckoned, enticing me out of my personal cell if I’d only swear to bow down to her.

  “You’ll regret this, Chronicler. This is positively unnecessary. You’ll give me my wish if I have to kill you for it to be granted, and you know I will.” Analee said, and brushed back her silky blond hair.

  “My death is insignificant compared to what you’re asking.” My voice was innocent as hers.

  A massive man with deep red hair appeared behind her when nothing but empty space was there a second before. He kissed her lightly-tanned cheek before paying any attention to me. His green eyes deepened in color until they were just as black as the woman’s eyes. While his eyes shifted colors, his rotting stench grew stronger. He smelled like death.

  “If you don’t, I’ll kill your sisters,” Analee said. “Or do you so easily forget their humanity grows when you are separated? You’re not just putting your life on the line. You’ll sacrifice your sisters as well by denying my request.”

  “Only when I can’t hear their screams, will they be far enough away to die a human’s death,” I said. “It’ll take days to accomplish.”

  She laughed. “Oh, but you haven’t met my latest consort, Chronicler. Show her your talent.”

  The massive man disappeared from behind her. A moment later the girls’ screams were silent. Frantically, I searched out my peep hole to look for them when his face instantly appeared. His blackened eyes sent chills down my spine. His head jerked slightly as his smirk grew.

  “Reaper,” I stated. “We’ve met.”

  “Your Healer will never get here in time. I’ll kill them before he can get here to save you all. If you don’t give the Master what she wants, I’ll see to it that your Scavengers will die with you.”

  “She only pays attention to you because you have something she wants right now, Reaper.”

  “Lies,” Marco said and spat in my face. The putrid acid burned my face. I wanted to cry out, but refused to give them the satisfaction. “Do it now, or you’ll bathe in their blood.”

  “Remember what happened last time you played with fate?” I called out to the fallen angel. “My sisters and I foresee humanity’s fate as well as deities’. The string of our life is tied to theirs, thus, when they started to age, so did the Fates. When my sisters and I parted ways, our bodies aged. Together we became immortal again and stopped aging. But it had a nasty little side-effect to the rest of the deities, didn’t it? It made immortals killable, even if you didn’t start to age like my sisters and I.”

  “Your point?” she asked, trying to sound bored.

  “My point is, when the Hunters found out they could live longer if they killed a deity, they would grow young. Thus, it made you not only killable, but your wish gave our half-breed offspring a reason to hunt us down,” I said.

  “The past is the past. There’s nothing I can do to change it. Break the bond completely with the humans or break the bond with the Scavengers,” she demanded. “It’s up to you.”

  “You seek humanity’s chaos, destruction, and fatality if that bond is broken. Without purpose they will become no better than animals.”

  “Your choice, Chronicler,” Analee hissed. “Humans or Scavengers.”

  I chose. A tear trickled down my cheek. She laughed; to weep was a sign of weakness, while I saw it as a beautiful truth… no matter how agonizing. A moment later, my soul unraveled. While I beat against the burnt wood, the essence composing my very being separated itself. The coffin’s top popped off. I rolled out of the wooden box and onto the ground. I scratched at the soil, needing to apologize for not being strong. A white, transparent hand scratched at the earth below me as if it was furiously trying to come to my aid. I gripped his hand, wishing for the strength to hold onto her soul. She embodied the other part of my soul. She gripped my soft hands in her hard, calloused ones. There wasn’t enough time – I felt myself tearing in half. The two parts of my soul, the creation of life and death, which were never meant to divide, did. Images of hundreds of mouthless corpses were torn from my heart; they no longer answered to me, in a matter of seconds. My Scavengers, howled out with hopelessness.

  Not a squeal left my mouth as the dirt engulfed her, locking it away from me. My torn soul silenced me. Tears bled from my eyes as I gave the Master my Scavengers – the world’s unspeakable past, or death as humans perceived it. Analee’s muffled laugh ripped through my damaged soul when I felt them bow to her.

  After the vision faded into nothingness, the Scavenger repeated the same phrase it had spoken before. I couldn’t make sense of what it wanted, but I heard its agony loud and clear. I had to listen closely to hear what else reverberated in its cries – hope. It let go of my hand. Once again my world became shades of gray. After walking up to Zalen, the Scavenger took the deity in its arms. They sank into the ground. I fell to my knees. My heart ached.

  “It was a part of me,” I said in disbelief, clutching my chest. “A part of my soul.”

  “You weren’t very fond of giving them up,” Analee said stiffly. “But you know the rules, if willing to kill you for the hearts uttermost desires, it will be granted. And I’ve been waiting years for another wish.”

  She wanted another wish from me, which meant she was prepared to kill me, and I wasn’t strong enough, or knowledgeable to grant what anyone wanted yet. That’s why she swore the Oath to find my sisters! Who else had intentions of threatening my life! If I’d ever been sure of anything, it was that I needed a protector–I needed Jace.

  “You took the Scavengers from me! You stole years from the humans, didn’t you? That’s what the vision in the meadow meant – when your slave girl sliced the palm of my hand using a knife. You wished for human’s immortality to end,” I screamed. “I warned you that playing with fate has consequences not even my sister can always foresee.”

  “How was I to know your connection to every human’s fate would eat away at your immortality?” Analee yelled. “Besides, you never uttered a word about us dying too! You could have warned me that we would become killable!”

  “The Hunters rose to power because of your request,” Jace said, stepping in. “You wanted supremacy over humans, but you got what you most feared – vulnerability. Our offspring had reason to hunt us down when you stole humanity’s immortality, making us killable because the Fate’s connection was weakened. Hunters have murdered countless deities because they seek the Elysian in our blood. There would be no reason for the Hunters to murder us all if you would have simply accepted the Chronicler’s as sovereign!”

  Enmity eclipsed every other feeling I’d ever had. The Scavengers were once a part of my soul, and Analee took them and used them as death’s bellmen. She used that part of my essence to do her bidding; thus, making her stronger. To be embraced by death was not to be feared; it was to be welcomed. Analee manipulated their purpose. She forced me to expunge mankind’s immortality, and to give up my horde of Scavengers. She deserved a fate worse than death, and I wanted to be the one to give it to her.

  Concentrating on the phrase the Scavenger had spoken, I repeated it over and over in my mind. Jace, Marco, Analee and her slaves shied away from me, as if the phrase stung their souls. I twirl
ed around, repeating the phrase and demanding that they listen, no matter how much it hurt. Along the cliff’s edge, I saw two figures hiding from the others. If I didn’t see the world in black and white, I wouldn’t have seen them. They were camouflaged exceptionally well, but I didn’t care who was spying on me. The reason my soul was cut in half was more important than anything else in my life.

  “Stop!” Marco yelled. “Your emotion connects when you speak wordlessly, not just your words. We feel your misery, too!”

  “What does the phrase mean?” I screamed, demanding someone answer me. “What was the Scavenger trying to tell me?”

  “The phrase was a plea for you to save them,” Jace said. “Remember us. Save us.”

  The moment the words left his tongue, I sprang from the ground and grabbed Analee. She laughed as I attacked her until I clamped down on the small dainty scar I saw trailing down her neck. I couldn’t feel it but knew it was there. Analee screamed like I was ripping her soul from her body. I felt her try to command my body. I fought for control of my body so it wouldn’t do whatever she commanded. Instead of backing away like she wanted, I sank my fingers into her neck. An invisible grip clasped around my throat, cutting off my airway. A copper taste filled my mouth.