Inception (The Reaping Chronicles, 1)

by Haviland, Teal

  She watched Lucas and her friends looking through racks of Halloween costumes, kidding with each other about the four of them going to the school’s annual costume party as Lucy, Ricky, Fred, and Ethel from I Love Lucy. Gabrielle was amazed how they acted as if they’d never learned of her being an angel or of any of the other fantastical creatures they found out were more than imagined.

  Nonie and Nate did have plenty of questions when they all got together for pizza the night after they found out. As expected, they wanted to learn more about Yahuwah, angels, and fantastical beings. But they seemed most fascinated by Gabrielle’s powers and abilities and wanted to know what Heaven was like.

  Nothing strange or dangerous had happened since she and Lucas returned from their trip to see the Elders—not even a mosquito bite. It bothered Gabrielle, but Lucas seemed to be at ease, which was both good and bad. Good because he was able to relax and return, as much as he could, to being a regular seventeen-year-old. Bad because Gabrielle didn’t want him to let his guard down—big problems still loomed.

  Gabrielle hadn’t been able to bring herself to tell him about the decision he faced, and she felt she was betraying Lucas with every second that passed. She wasn’t sure if it was better if he knew or if he remained oblivious until the decision had to be made.

  There was no way for her to tell if knowing would have a positive or negative impact on him. He could use the information to make decisions that would keep him on the path of Light, or that same information could lead him to become angry and bitter, which could cause him to make decisions that would turn him toward Darkness.

  Gabrielle let her thoughts divert to Nonie and Nate, still kidding around with the costumes. When an employee brought more options to consider, Lucas turned his attention to Gabrielle. His face shifted from ease to concern when he saw how far off she was in thought.

  “Love, what’s on your mind?”

  Gabrielle tried to lighten her expression as Nonie and Nate cast their attention toward her and Lucas, walking over to where they were.

  “I was just thinking how this is the first Halloween I’ll be spending as a human. It’s all sort of silly, the way you all celebrate it.”

  “What do you mean?” Lucas asked as the twins reached them.

  “Halloween is the most dangerous time of the year for a human.”

  “How is it dangerous? I mean, other than razors in candy and pedophiles, what’s so risky?”

  “It’s when the veil between this world, the Shadow World, and the Underworld is thinnest. Those who live in either of the other realms have far more power that night than at any other time of the year.” Gabrielle looked at the three staring at her with matching puzzlement. “Just because you don’t see the danger, doesn’t mean it isn’t there.”

  “What is the Shadow World and Underworld? What’s the difference, and what lives in them?” Nate asked in a tone dipped in exasperation.

  “The spirits of those who can’t, or won’t, move on to the next stop of their journey—meaning Heaven or Hell—exist in the Shadow World. Their unrest can make them malevolent and troublesome. The Gentry, some of the darker elemental spirits, and other fantastical beings also live in what we call the Shadow World. But there are far too many to go into—definitely more than you’ll want to know about. The only residents of the Underworld are the Fallen, though any who live in Shadows can cross to that realm if they desire.

  “One of the bigger dangers of Halloween is that it’s easiest to see the Gentry in their true form then. It’s common for humans to be taken back to their world if they see one, and the Gentry know it.”

  “Why’s it bad to be taken back to their world?” Nonie asked.

  “The only way you’ll ever make it back is if they decide to bring you back. That’s a fifty-fifty chance. Even if you are returned, time in their world moves differently than your own, just as time in Heaven moves at a different pace. You could come back decades later, maybe longer. You wouldn’t have aged as though that time had passed, but everyone you knew might either be much older or dead.

  “On top of that, if you did come back and anyone you knew was still alive, you may find they never even knew you were gone because they’d seen you the entire time. At least, who they thought was you.”

  Nate shifted his weight. He still seemed uncomfortable with anything that had to do with angels, demons, or fantastical beings. She realized that just because the three of them acted as though they’d put what they’d learned out of their mind, they were really just covering for the worries they had.

  “How could they still see someone if they weren’t there?” Nate asked.

  “The Gentry are talented at becoming a doppelganger, or they can produce a changeling. They can recreate any appearance they want including animals.”

  “So why don’t we know about all of this?” Nonie asked as she sat next to Gabrielle.

  “It isn’t something that’s kept from you. The information is there, but most of modern society doesn’t believe in the fantastical world. They believe what science says is real; the rest are myths or fairytales. Humanity’s lack of belief in that world, of Heaven and Hell, Yahuwah and Ramai, have left all of you vulnerable—easy targets. That’s part of the reason I’m here … to figure out how to make you all believe once more.”

  “Well, you have three believers here,” Nate said as he shifted his weight again and dropped his eyes.

  “That may be true, Nate, but that’s only because you’ve been made privy to information most humans never are. If you didn’t know me, would you have been convinced so easily?”

  Nate shook his head. “No offense, Gabrielle,” he said without looking up, “but you kinda know how to take the fun out of things sometimes.”

  Gabrielle chuckled humorlessly. “I’m just telling you the facts. You can carry on with your normal Halloween festivities. It’s not likely you would ever have any encounters.”

  “Then, why tell us at all?” Nonie asked.

  “Because Lucas asked, and you walked up when I was talking to him,” Gabrielle snapped back. Three sets of eyes widened in surprise at her tone. The effects of her lot from the night before were showing up, filtering into her tone and patience. It hadn’t been a good night for the side of Light. She was particularly irritable today and having a difficult time masking it. “It wasn’t my intent to spoil anything for any of you, Nonie. I’m sorry I messed up your holiday.” Gabrielle turned to Lucas. “I think I better go. Why don’t you catch a ride home with them? I’ll see you later tonight.”

  Nonie put her hand on Gabrielle’s shoulder. “Hey, Gabrielle … I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m sorry.”

  “Yeah,” Nate chimed in, “me either. Don’t leave. It’s just a lot to hear.”

  Gabrielle tried smiling to put them at ease, but she knew it wasn’t convincing. She looked back at Lucas who had taken her hand in his.

  “I wish you’d stay.” He asked with his eyes as much as his words.

  “I need to go. The more I think about it, the less I want to participate. Maybe it’d be best if you go as The Three Musketeers or Three Blind Mice … or something.”

  “Why? It will be fun.”

  “I don’t feel comfortable celebrating a holiday steeped in Dark undertones.”

  Under different circumstances, she might have attended, but she didn’t want to prove Nate right about spoiling their fun by being too informative or concerned about the evening’s dangers. She didn’t want to tell them that because of all the spiritual and fantastical attention surrounding them, Lucas in particular, there would be considerable curiosity. And that the added curiosity would, most likely, bring a lot more Shadow World and Underworld activity to the area.

  “Really, Lucas, I don’t mind just doing some work and keeping an eye on things. I think it’s best. That way, you
all will know I’m watching without any distractions, and you’ll be safer because of it.”

  Lucas waited for several moments before he responded, and Gabrielle could see him considering every angle of what she’d just said.

  “If that’s what you really want to do, and if you think it’s the best thing. I won’t lie, Gabby, I want you with me, but I’m not going to guilt you into something you don’t feel comfortable taking part in.” He smiled a little crooked smile at her and then added, “Don’t hold it against me if I try to change your mind, though.”

  Gabrielle smiled back and put her arms around him for a long embrace, then kissed him. She said bye to Nonie and Nate as she made her way to the front of the store.

  As she passed people looking at costumes, makeup, and masks of all kinds, she was too caught up in her own thoughts and too in tune with her human senses to notice two things she normally would have never missed: the black-haired, yellow-eyed beauty she knew as Mara, acting like she was looking at a wall of masks, and the now completely black eyes of the employee who’d been helping them with their costume selection intently watching her as she walked out the front door.

  Chapter Sixty-nine

  Javan ~ An Opportunity

  Several weeks earlier Javan had woken up just as he had when he fell asleep—thinking about Gabrielle. He was confident that day that Gabrielle would return to him once she had freedom from Yahuwah. He was also confident his plans to get the Book would work. He allowed himself to let his guard down—to rest. But by the time he’d opened his eyes from that nap, his certainty about both outcomes had waned—considerably.

  He hadn’t rested since.

  Now, as Javan continued to busy himself laying the groundwork for his plans, he tried to remember what it was he’d dreamt about that day that so radically altered his outlook. He was unable to bring the reason back from the sleeping world and was still unable to revive the memory now. Whatever was in his dreams that day caused him to immediately doubt his intended outcome.

  In the days since, agitation and a sense of urgency replaced any light mood his nap began with, relentlessly becoming a part of his demeanor. Whatever he couldn’t bring forth in his mind was still spurring him on subconsciously, making sure he was doing everything he could to ensure success.

  At one time, when he was still in Yahuwah’s fold, he had the same Knowings all angels possessed. Since falling, the Knowings disappeared, semi-prophetic dreams taking their place. But they were rarely lucid or easy to recall, always just out of memory’s reach. He could barely remember even the smallest detail.

  Quite a bit of time had passed since he had begun putting his plans in place to get Lucas to New Orleans, more than he’d realized. He was so busy setting everything up and trying to guarantee no holes were left that he hadn’t realized it was the end of October—three days before Halloween.

  Mara and Cecily had been in and out of his loft for weeks, sometimes at the same time, but there never seemed to be any tension between them. It still bothered Javan but not enough to be distracted. He wouldn’t let his ego get in the way of his purpose.

  All the effort he and others had been putting into finding an opportunity to get Lucas away from Gabrielle had been for nothing, and it was beginning to infuriate him. He might need to take the risk of creating a reason that would make Gabrielle leave Lucas alone. Putting something like that in place was risky, though. She wasn’t stupid, and it wouldn’t take much to tip her off. If that happened, he’d lose his chance.

  Javan considered using a different person to retrieve the Book, and though he could force someone to do it, he wouldn’t get the same satisfaction. He wasn’t ready to give up on having Lucas carry out his plan.

  As he looked out the window of his great room onto another morning, he felt the chilly northern wind push through the open door to his balcony. It pulled at branches, attempting to pluck more leaves off limbs that had succumbed to autumn’s possession. Javan imagined that the wind wanted to bring the leaves to their end, hurrying up the process of being returned to the earth through their decay. He couldn’t help but feel as if the same wind was pulling at him, encouraging him to accompany it on its plunge deeper south, toward what he wanted most—toward bringing his search for the Book and Lucas’s life to an end.

  It was too soon, though. Javan closed the door, ending the goading wind’s intrusion on his day. As he turned toward his room and the awaiting hot shower, he was interrupted by a knock at the door.

  He opened it, expecting either Mara or Cecily, but saw no one. He stepped into the hallway and looked, listening to try and catch even the most subtle sound, but there was nothing to hear. He wondered if he’d imagined it as he turned to re-enter his loft. Instead of an open doorway, he ran into a dwarf.

  “Damn it, Som! What the hell are you doing here?” Javan peered to one end of the hallway, then the other. Satisfied no one had seen him, he closed the door.

  Som looked amused—as much as a mature, large dwarf was capable of looking.

  Javan had called on Som to help him with his endeavors since before he’d fallen, and he was who had first confirmed the existence of the Book.

  He always wore the same clothes: a long, faded black robe tattered and torn from many years of use loosely tied with a thick, brown, frayed rope, and well-worn black leather boots intended for battle. Javan was surprised he had missed the presence of his musky smell that now wafted around him.

  The battles of his long life were declared by scars on his face, neck, hands, and arms. Dwarves were notorious fighters and looked for any opportunity to wield their axes and daggers.

  Necklaces of heavy chains or leather cording hung from his muscular neck, each adorned with at least one pendent. Some were announcements of heritage or tribe; others were trophies from battles won; the rest were a mystery to Javan. As he looked into the unsettling red glow of Som’s eyes, Som spoke. Javan was struck, as usual, by his deep, gruff voice. On its own, it would make a human shudder with fear.

  “Stop wasting time seeing if I was noticed. If I hadn’t used a Glamour, how could I have gotten past you at your own front door? I know what I’m doing, demon. Why don’t you concern yourself with something that needs it, like how things are going in New Orleans?”

  Javan smirked. Som certainly didn’t make up for his appearance with a pleasant personality.

  “Tell me,” Javan said as he walked past him toward the kitchen. Som would want the strongest drink he could pour, so he opened a bottle of whiskey. “How are things going in New Orleans? On schedule, I suspect.”

  Som looked around at the seating options as he always did. He would complain, sometimes verbally and sometimes, like now, with his expression and body language that said everything Javan had to sit on was too soft.

  ‘Made for humans and their frailty,’ he would say in a caustic tone.

  It’s something a dwarf never wanted to be anything like—a human. Som preferred a hard rock or trunk of a fallen tree to sit on, if he even acted as if he was in need of rest at all since dwarves also never wanted anyone to think they were tired.

  As was also customary for Som when he visited, he chose to stand.

  Javan gave Som his drink. He downed it in one large swallow and indicated he wanted another. As Javan started to pour, Som answered his question.

  “Would you have asked me to help you if you thought I wouldn’t have everything ready? All we need is for you to tell us you’re on your way.”

  Som always answered a question with one of his own first. A way to make you stroke his ego. Then, he would give a direct answer to what you’d asked.

  “You’re right. I wouldn’t have if I didn’t have faith in your ability to get the job done,” Javan answered, playing along. “I’m glad to hear something’s going according to plan.”

  “What do you mean?” Som
asked and tossed back his second drink. He made himself at home and poured himself another shot.

  “Putting my plan into action isn’t happening as quickly as I’d hoped.”

  Som looked at Javan with squinted eyes, the red glow seeming even more targeted, and then he huffed disapprovingly.

  “Why don’t you just make things happen then? If I had your abilities, I wouldn’t wait. I’d move things along on my schedule.”

  “I don’t think you understand my situation. If you think my powers are something to be appreciated, then you would be quite impressed with Gabrielle. She can put a stop to everything I’m trying to accomplish, and I’m too close to screw it up by being impatient.”

  “Gabrielle … as in your Gabrielle? Isn’t she all cozy and comfy up there?” Som gestured to Heaven with a dismissive wave.

  “Yes, my Gabrielle. And no, Gabrielle isn’t up there. She’s down here. And she’s involved—closely—with the human I have to get to New Orleans.”

  Som scrutinized Javan as if trying to look deep inside him to gain more information that he knew Javan wouldn’t divulge.

  “I see,” Som responded, discontinuing his attempt to gain more insight.

  He walked over to where Javan stood—bottle in hand. After pouring Javan another drink, he added more to his own.

  A dwarf’s thirst for alcohol was as unquenchable as their thirst for battle.

  It wasn’t so much the sudden realization of dwarf tendencies that captured Javan’s attention, but his desire not to have Gabrielle, or at least Gabrielle being close to Lucas, in his mind. He let his thoughts drift further into the ways of dwarves as he walked over to the terrace windows and peered out into the bright, chilly morning.