The Exodus

by Ali Winters

  As they walked toward the throne room, they saw three more Silencers waiting outside the doors. Everyone frowned at the unexpected summons from Caspian.

  “Thank you for coming,” Caspian spoke from behind, his voice echoing in the large space. They all turned to the bottom of the stairs where he waited, hands behind his back. Each reaper stood with their backs straight as he walked up to their group. “I know I’ve recently called you all in for a group assignment, but I am afraid that I need you all once more, this time it will be a mass reaping. You are the highest skilled of all Reapers and tonight, efficiency is key.”

  Nivian chanced a glance at the others who were all doing the same. Some had their jaws clenched; others were open mouthed.

  Caspian handed each of them two pieces of paper before addressing them again. “You each have two assignments.” At that proclamation, a low murmur erupted among them. “I understand that it is unconventional,” Caspian said louder than normal to capture their focus. “I will be honest and tell you that I had to debate on a third for each. It is needed, but two will suffice for the time being. This assignment’s details are also written on the paper along with the names of your marks. Due to the recent shifts in the balance, the earthquake scenario is off limits. You are to use fire.”

  Nivian nodded in understanding. She folded the slips and tucked them into her pocket before clenching her hands at her sides. Something about this situation felt off. In the past, Silas had always assigned mass reapings. It was only now that Caspian gave both this assignment and the last.

  “Go now. Time is of the essence.”

  The others filed past her. She moved to go with them, stopping when she reached Caspian’s side.

  “Caspian, where is Silas?” she asked timidly.

  “Nivian, I need you on this assignment. Go now.”

  She swallowed hard and moved toward the stairs knowing she’d over stepped for the second time that day.

  Reaching out, Caspian caught her hand. A familiar gesture of the way their friendship had been for some time now. The touch spoke volumes to her, whatever was happening, it was not her that was causing him to be sharp tongued, but something much beyond them all. “Come speak with me when this job is completed. There is much you need to know.”

  Nivian nodded then jogged to catch up with the others as they walked through the front gates.

  Together, the five Silencers appeared across the street from a factory. It was small for modern standards. It was run down from the passage of time and lack of upkeep over the years. From where she stood, Nivian did a quick assessment of the outer building. It would be easy to create the set up they needed to reap their marks within the less than six hours that Caspian had given them. She was willing to bet it would be finished within two hours, maybe even one.

  “All right, let’s do a quick parameter check, inside and out. Harben and Blythe, you check the outside, Siobhan and Evander, you’re with me inside. If you find gas mains, flammable materials, or anything useful, set it up as you go. I want this done as fast as possible.” Nivian instructed, taking charge.

  They all held their assignments in their hands and simultaneously transformed each slip of parchment into the watch that would hold the mark’s life energy, their movements in sync with each other. Then they faced the building and began their work.

  Nivian ran along the edges of the inside walls of the warehouse as Evander raced in the opposite direction, each circling to the far side. She grinned as they met up. The wiring had been exposed in many spots, creating a perfect opportunity.

  Human workers continued as if it was a day like any other, unaware of the shadows of death that stalked them.

  Siobhan jumped down, landing next to them with a graceful leap. “You wouldn’t believe how bad it is up there. Why these fragile humans wouldn’t be more careful with themselves is beyond me,” she said. “It is perfect up there. Clogged vents and dried wood support beams for days.”

  “Good, wait up there and guide the flames along the walls so they reach you within minutes,” Nivian said.

  “I’m on it!” Siobhan declared and leapt up, using the surrounding equipment to jump higher and waited on the rafters above.

  Nivian turned to Evander. “Are you ready?”

  He nodded.

  “I see exposed wiring over there, next to some old stacks of paper. It can serve as the starting point. Then you will run that way, and I’ll run this way.” Nivian pointed the directions out with her hands to demonstrate. “Once we have the outer walls progressing, we will lead the fire inward.”

  “I’m ready whenever you are.”

  “Good. I’ll be right back to start. I need to check on Harben and Blythe first.” With that, Nivian transported to the outside of the building where the final two were awaiting instructions. “What did you find?” she asked.

  “Dried bush surrounding the windows,” offered Harben.

  Blythe joined them, adding, “The outer building isn’t the optimum set up for a fire scenario.”

  “That’s fine, we will work with what we have. We are all set to begin inside, make sure you draw the flames to all the metal doors and windows. Don’t forget to guide the majority of the smoke toward wherever any of them flock to. We want this done as fast as possible. Needless suffering is not an option.”

  Harben and Blythe glanced at each other. Perhaps it had been a strange addendum and she wasn’t sure where it came from, but it felt necessary. Without waiting to see if they accepted her directions, Nivian turned and headed back inside.

  Without ceremony, she walked to the exposed wires that would be the origin of the reaping. She snapped her fingers. A surged of power flicked through them, setting several sparks flying in the direction of the paper stacks. Immediately they caught. Nivian coaxed the flames, beckoning them to spread and consume everything in their wake. Giving them a fast and hungry life.

  The fire spread, burning through the papers and causing the wooden beams of the walls to catch. Nivian gave a nod to Evander and he walked along, manipulating the path of the fire.

  It was well on its way before one of the humans screamed. Immediately, they scattered, attempting to smother the fire. But it was too fast and too hot to stop. Nivian signaled Siobhan above their heads as the flames reached higher. With increased speed, the fire burned causing the supports above to weaken.

  Flames licked at her face, the sweltering heat was a crushing weight. But she moved effortlessly through the fire. Her scythe swung severing the first life force, and again less than a minute later ending the other. She gathered the energies as they outshone the light of the fire with their power. Nivian felt a twinge of guilt at needing to sever the two lives well before they’d been scheduled to. But she couldn’t let the emotion take over, couldn’t stop her from doing what was needed to protect the balance.

  Within a few short minutes, Nivian stood in the thick of the inferno, her assignments already complete and waiting for the others to finish. The screams of their marks were drowned out by the roar of fire as it raced through the old factory.

  Evander passed as he moved on to collect his second life force, pausing when he reached her.

  “Are you okay?” he called over the roar of noise.

  “I’m fine, gather your mark!” she yelled back.

  He took two steps away, weighing his thoughts as if he wanted to say more but then thought better of it, turning to continue his assignment.

  Nivian reached up and brushed away a strand of hair that was slicked against her face. She pulled her hand back, looking at the sweat on her skin and frowned. The heat should not have affected her. It never had before but this time it did.

  Nivian had collected the watches from the others and dismissed them, offering to turn them all in at the same time. The stairwell up to the top floor was unusually quiet. She found Caspian’s door wide open when she reached his office. He stood looking out the large windows with his hands clasped and resting against his lower back. The
curve of his shoulders showed the weight of stress he carried. She knocked, drawing his attention to her.

  “Come in, and close the door behind you,” he spoke with little feeling as he waved her in.

  “Caspian? Is something going on?” she asked. “A few Reapers were acting strange earlier, and now there’s almost no one in the halls.” Nivian passed her usual chair and walked up to the large desk that separated them.

  Caspian sighed and rubbed his jaw. He looked tired. The ever-present confidence he always wore was overshadowed by worry.

  “Yes,” he said after a long moment of silence. His eyes flicked to the bag that held the ten reaping watches her team had brought back. “There is a lot to cover. Please, have a seat and I will begin.”

  It took her a moment to react. Turning in assignments never required covering much of anything. It was a simple process, fast when it needed to be. And until now, never covered more than a few words.

  She gulped and quickly placed the watches on the desk in front of him. Her nerves on edge sang as they vibrated with energy. He ignored the bag and considered her, the tension threatened to strangle her.

  Her tentative steps along the floor were silent as she walked backward to the chair.

  “Thank you for expediting your assignment. It is of great benefit to the balance.” He started once she sat down.

  Nivian nodded once.

  “I will start with your most recent inquiry as it is the least complicated of things we must discuss.” He folded his hands on the desk as he leaned forward. “There is something going on, but I have not found the cause. Several Reapers have failed to report to their summons, a few have even failed to report back from assignments.”

  “You don’t think it’s the Hunters attacking, do you?” Nivian blurted out, quickly slapping a hand over her mouth.

  “If you had asked me a year ago, I would undoubtedly have said yes. Yet, I have not felt the loss of their energies as we do when it is by a Hunter’s hand. If they are being destroyed, then it is by a force I have never known before and cannot name. My best assumption is that something, or someone is detaining them. Though the only ones capable of that are Hunters.”

  “I don’t believe they would do that. Why go through the trouble of starting an alliance when it’s pointless if this is their goal. There has to be something else.”

  “Again, you are correct. No matter where a Hunter is, if a Reaper still exists within any realm, I would be able to pin point them within minutes. But when I search them out, there is nothing—not a trace—as if they never existed.”

  If this was the least complicated topic, then she dreaded what was to come next. “What can I do?”

  “Nothing until I have more information on the matter. In the meantime, you must be careful with who you allow to come near you. Whatever has happened to the missing Reapers cannot happen to you.” Caspian paused, looking uncertain. “Even if it means allowing it to happen to another.”

  “What?” The word barely a sound upon her lips. “What’s so special about me? You can’t expect me to let anything happen to someone else if there’s a chance I can stop—”

  “You will allow it,” Caspian interrupted.

  “You can’t let our friendship get in the way of doing what’s right,” she objected.

  “This has nothing to do with anything I feel for you. This is necessary!” he snapped.

  She was taken aback. “I don’t understand.”

  “You will. There is more I must tell you.”

  Nivian frowned. How could he just leave it at that? Her stomach churned.

  “You are different because the balance needs you. And you are the only one capable of possessing the power needed.”

  “Caspian, you’re not making sense.” Nivian shook her head in denial. What he was talking about was impossible. It was… her mind refused to absorb his words fully.

  He looked at her with hardened, tired eyes. “You will begin your training to take Silas’s place, and you will be the new Fate Keeper.”

  SEVENTEEN

  NIVIAN

  “THE KNEW FATE Keeper? What? No—I can’t…” Nivian stumbled over her words, unable to comprehend what he was saying.

  Take Silas’s place? I couldn’t.

  “Nivian, you must listen closely.”

  “I…” She stared blindly at her hands folded in her lap. “This can’t be happening. It’s impossible…”

  “Nivian!”

  Her head snapped up.

  Caspian opened and closed his mouth, then let out a heavy sigh. “It is only a precaution—for now. But in the case the worst has happened, you need to be ready.”

  “Where is Silas? Why would I have to take his place? I can’t—I don’t have the power.”

  “I don’t know,” he said honestly.

  “You don’t… know?” she echoed. Silas’s power. Silas was missing. She’d take his place. No. Her mind refused to make sense of what Caspian was saying. A fog descended upon her mind, making her thoughts sluggish and jumbled.

  “Silas has been missing for weeks. Like the other Reapers who have gone missing, I have not been able to sense his energy at all. Not so much as a trace, except…” Caspian stopped speaking in mid-sentence. His head dropped and he massaged both temples with his fingers. “Except, once. There was a faint hint, but it vanished before I could track it down.”

  Nivian’s mouth went dry, seeming to fill with sand. Missing… Silas is missing!

  They sat in silence. There was more, she knew there was more.

  “What’s been happening to the life forces?” she whispered, unable to keep the question in any longer.

  “I have been taking care of them, but I am afraid I will not be able to continue to do so. Not at the normal rate and not at the increased rate that reapings have been performed lately. I’d slow it down if I could. But the veil is weak and it is all I can do to keep it in check as it is.” Caspian dropped his gaze. “The truth is that it is destroying me,” he murmured the last part, and at his confession he looked up, meeting her gaze.

  Suddenly, the exhaustion that had been building within him was evident in his dark eyes that no longer seemed to shine, and in the way that his cheeks were just ever so slightly more hollow. He was a shell of his former self, worn down and eaten away, drained of his essence.

  “Nivian, I need you to find Silas by any means possible. Find him now before it’s too late.”

  “How? If you don’t know where he is, how can I find him?”

  “For the briefest of moments, I felt his energy and I have not felt it since. The closest I was able to pinpoint was somewhere in the vicinity of the Isola Di Vita.”

  “Where?” Nivian cocked her head to the side.

  “Isola Di Vita, the island of life. It is the name of Yeva’s island where we fought the Hunters.”

  “If you knew where he was, why haven’t you brought him back?”

  “I cannot leave G.R.I.M. Headquarters. The reapings must not stop. If I take the time needed to find him, there is no telling what would happen to the veil, or how long it would hold before it crumbled. I only have enough in me to barely keep up with taking care of the life forces before they are extinguished.”

  “All right. I will do what is needed.” Nivian stood, her fists clenched at her sides as if she were calling strength into herself with that movement alone. The balance needed to be kept and she was the one called to do so. It was what she was created for, and she wouldn’t shy away now. And if nothing else, she would do it for the friend who had always been there for her. Who had risked things she didn’t know about to always tell her the truth, to prove that she could trust and depend on him. Now, she would prove to him that he could depend on her.

  “In the meantime, we will prepare you. You must learn what to do, then we will begin the transfer of power. It will take time, but between sessions you will be able to search for him.” Caspian stood and walked to the bookshelf. As he spoke, he scanned the titles before
plucking one from the shelf. He turned to Nivian and said, “You must read this. It will explain the duties of the Fate Keeper.” Caspian handed her a small, red leather bound book with golden foil flourishes on the cover.

  “Thank you.” She took the book with trembling fingers.

  “Come back tomorrow when you are finished and meet me in Silas’s throne room. We will start then.”

  “Yes, my Lord,” Nivian said, falling back into old habits. It felt strange to be formal with him after everything that had happened, but the gravity of the situation pushed her to remember her place. And if she were to gain this new position, she wanted to show him the honor he deserved as the mentor, and friend, who had watched over her for so long before she became the one he would answer to.

  With a slight bend at the waist, she bowed before turning to leave, pausing when she reached the door. Nivian turned to look back over her shoulder to see Caspian already seated at his desk. His eyes were locked on the bag she’d set there with a dread that made her cringe.

  “May I ask Kain for his help?”

  “I am not so sure that is a good idea. This is not a matter that concerns the Hunters.”

  “With all due respect, Caspian. I think it does. We are all in charge of keeping the balance, and his absence is a risk to it. Besides, you said I needed to be safe, that I’m the only one who can take Silas’s place if he can’t be found. Kain will help protect me, you know he would.”

  Caspian frowned. “I don’t like it… but, very well. Find Silas and bring him back, Nivian, by any means possible.”

  She turned the handle on the door and spoke without turning. “Caspian?”

  “Yes?”

  “It will be okay. I will fix this.”

  She stepped out, leaving him to the duties she knew this meeting had taken him away from. It had cost him time that he couldn’t afford.

  “Is something wrong?” Kain asked.