A Shade of Vampire 85: A Shard of Soul

by Bella Forrest

  “Perhaps. But what choice do we have? Corbin must be taken out.”

  “I agree, Kelara. How are we going to do that if he’s expecting us?”

  I hadn’t seen him like this in a while. Rarely had the Soul Crusher ever been so discerning, so concerned with our wellbeing. He’d made a name for himself as the slightly more psychotic among the First Tenners, and he wasn’t the type to take crap from anyone. Oddly enough, I respected and admired that about him. Hell, it was actually part of his overall appeal, but it had taken me a while to figure that out.

  Resting a hand on his shoulder, I gave him a half-smile. “We’ll figure something out. You’re a master of interdimensional pockets. One of the first Reapers ever created. That has got to count for something, right?”

  “Are you complimenting me?”

  I wasn’t sure what to make of his expression. Humor persisted at the corner of his mouth, tugging ever so slightly, but darkness dwelled in his eyes, as if all the stars had been shrouded in secrecy and hidden from my sight.

  “I’m simply telling you the truth. I know the Spirit Bender’s deeds on Visio have rattled you and your siblings. You’re all shaken and I get it. We’re all in the same boat here. But Spirit is dead, and we will keep the bastard dead, if we do our jobs right. Taking Corbin down is the task we’ve undertaken, and I just need you to know that I trust you to see this to the very end no matter what.”

  “One way or another, right?” he asked, and I nodded briefly, the tension between us rising. “Even if we don’t know what one way or another might entail, huh?”

  He made me chuckle. Unable to stop myself, I moved my hand from his shoulder and brought it up to cup his sharp cheek. His skin felt soft, like a layer of pure silk stretched across fine bone and muscle, tickling my fingertips in the sweetest way possible. He froze under my touch, and I took a moment to savor the sensation before reality came back to smack us both over the head.

  “I’m trying to figure out whether you’re incredibly bold or incredibly reckless with such statements,” he muttered, his head lowering slightly. The air thickened as our lips moved closer. I hadn’t felt like this in a long time, but the sensation was unforgettable. The Soul Crusher stirred me in ways I hadn’t thought possible anymore. Our unexpected partnership had made it possible. My only question was, where would we go from here?

  “I think we’ve both existed for long enough to accept that sometimes you mess up just for the sake of messing up. You take the wrong turn simply to see where the road leads you. You jump into the abyss to find out what’s at the bottom. Here, in our intermediary plane, we face certain dangers, but us Reapers, unlike the First Tenners, have already seen the end of the road as living creatures. What guarantee do we have that failing in this stage of our existence will be the end?”

  “Kelara, what are you trying to tell me?” Soul asked, his brows pulled into a delicate frown. I laughed again, because I relished seeing him like this—uncertain, maybe even a little lost. Vulnerable, and not at all the Soul Crusher I’d first met. I knew that part of this shift in his behavior had everything to do with our circumstances on Visio, but it didn’t explain everything about him. There was more, and I could feel it in the faint golden thread that had formed between our souls. Maybe he couldn’t see it yet, but I could, if only from the corner of my eye. Only when I wasn’t really looking. Something was shifting between us, and I had to take it to the next level. We had no idea what we were walking into, so why stretch things out any longer?

  “Will you take a leap of faith with me?” I ultimately replied, my hand still on his cheek. He brought his up to cover mine and closed his eyes for a second. “Yeah, we’re staring trouble in the face. But when has that ever stopped us?”

  “I don’t want anything to happen to you,” he said.

  “And I don’t want anything to happen to you. But we’re here, Soul. We’re doing this. No one else is going to do it for us.”

  He inched closer and brushed his lips over mine. It was such a fleeting gesture that I barely felt it, yet my soul expanded like a universe of its own. Holding my breath, I waited for something that never came, and I decided this wouldn’t be everything there was between us. Pushing my heels up, I kissed him. He felt cold and warm at the same time, but he didn’t reject me. No, he deepened the kiss, our souls finally bonding. A golden light glowed between us, and we both looked down.

  The thread had grown brighter, impossible to ignore. As we gradually relaxed and took it all in, the link shimmered away into its subtle form. “I’ve seen this before,” he said, giving me an alarmed look. “It’s… it’s love. What the hell did you do to me, Kelara?”

  Reapers weren’t the type to fall in love. We’d always assumed that our bodies had been the main drivers of emotions. Hormones, chemical reactions, physical attachments—all parts of the living world and not our own. I’d heard stories of Reapers falling in love, and I’d seen it with Seeley and Nethissis, too.

  We’d been through so much already, Soul and I. We’d prevailed in the face of grave dangers. Everything we’d experienced had served to bring us closer to one another. So, yeah, maybe love had found us, as well, despite the slim odds!

  “Seriously? I’m the one at fault?” I replied dryly, though deep down I understood why he was inclined to panic. Someone who’d existed for as long as the Soul Crusher must’ve abandoned all hope of feeling like this ever again.

  “What? You’re blaming me?”

  I stifled a chuckle and kissed him again, leaving him breathless. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close, reveling in our closeness. Despite his childish protests, Soul was enjoying this as much as I was. “Let’s just agree to disagree on this one and take it like it is,” I said and slowly pulled back in an effort to retain my senses.

  Remembering where we were standing, I knew our bliss would be short-lived. The shadow of a smile flickered across Soul’s face as he looked at me.

  “I admit, I’m a lot braver when you’re around,” he replied. “Maybe that will prevent my ultimate downfall.”

  “Come on. Let’s kill Corbin already. His mere existence feels like a stain in desperate need of cleaning,” I said, taking his hand.

  We drew closer to the center of the Nightmare Forest, and it became obvious that we were in Corbin’s vicinity. There were no ghosts left around, only a few ghouls sniffing the ground and moving outward. They’d eventually catch a scent and go after one of the remaining wandering souls. If only we’d had the time to reap them all—they were skittish and scared, and we were better off removing the threat against them before trying to reason with them.

  Out here, the forest seemed different. The trees were significantly taller and bigger, reminding me of The Shade’s redwoods. The bark darkened close to black, and the branches bowed toward the moist ground, loaded with obsidian leaves that shimmered in whatever temporary ray of moonlight managed to cut through the canopy. Mist covered the forest floor, still and milky white. There wasn’t a single animal around. No sabre tigers. No poisonous snakes. Not a deer or a bird. I couldn’t even hear the chirps of insects anymore. It was as if life had left the core of the Nightmare Forest, perhaps because every breathing creature knew better than to cross paths with the Darklings and their Knight Ghouls.

  In our subtle forms, we were able to move carefully between the trees, mindful of any enemies nearby. The ghouls were busy sniffing for ghost prints, while I cautiously avoided the direct angle of carved eye runes around us. Finally, Soul and I managed to get close enough to the center to spot some kind of gathering. Tents had been put up, with furs covering both sides. It had to get cold out here during the night. A fire burned in the middle of the camp, but there was no one there. It looked abandoned.

  “This doesn’t feel right,” I whispered.

  “Nothing ever is when it comes to the Darklings.” Soul clutched my hand tightly. I wanted this gesture to make me feel better, but it didn’t. We knew we were walking into trouble, but it wa
sn’t like we could run back without at least trying to accomplish our goal. No matter how we approached this, the Darklings were worthy adversaries. Our strength no longer depended on numbers, but rather on our ability to deal with situations like this.

  It wasn’t the unexpected peril that brought out the best in us. It was the certainty of danger that forged true character. This was the real challenge and walking away was not an option.

  “Stay here,” I murmured, moving away from Soul. He tried to pull me back, but I waved my hand for him to remain where he was by the gnarly tree.

  The silence was unbearable, and I knew something was about to happen. Taking advantage of my subtle form and light feet, I carefully stepped closer to the center of the camp. Mist surrounded my calves, but it didn’t react to my presence. The better I could see, the more I understood. Closing my eyes for a moment, I reached out to Soul through our telepathic connection.

  “It’s a trap,” I told him.

  “Then get back here!” he hissed, and I could feel his anger bubbling in my own throat.

  “No. Someone needs to trigger it. We have to see what they’ve got planned for us. You’re free. You can do something if the worst happens.”

  “Dammit, Kelara! Don’t do this!”

  “I have to. It’s the only way to get to Corbin,” I said. “He’ll see me coming, but he won’t see you.”

  A low rumble erupted ahead, and I froze. It was laughter. Coarse and heartless, aimed at me. Something moved between two of the tents. By the time I spotted Corbin, it was too late. A pulse burst from the tip of his scythe, and I was thrown backward. I heard Soul cussing in the back of my head, and I knew he’d be mad at me for going ahead without him.

  “Light them up!” Corbin shouted.

  In an instant, fires burst all around the campsite. They were strange, unnaturally bright with greenish flames. The moment they were all burning, I felt an energy field settle over me, and a heavy pressure kept me tethered to the cold, hard ground. I couldn’t move. I was fully restrained, and Corbin walked toward me with a satisfied smirk. He could see me.

  “Don’t tell me this comes as a surprise,” he said dryly. “Even the spirits warned you.”

  This was it. The confirmation I needed. The eye runes saw through our subtle forms. Corbin had definitely seen us coming. He’d been watching us the whole time. The pressure increased, pinning me with merciless strength, but I managed to at least tilt my head and look back to where I’d come from. Soul was nowhere to be seen, and that meant he was safe. I breathed a sigh of relief, knowing he would do what was needed to take Corbin down.

  One of us was bound to get trapped, and I wanted it to be me. Soul was the one with the real potential, while my newer powers were still developing after all the work I’d put into breaking some of Death’s many seals. If anyone could take down the Master of Darkness, it was Soul. Not me. I was the bait, and Soul would never have let me do this. I’d have to ask for his forgiveness later. I’d pushed him into an uncomfortable situation, but I hoped it would be worth it.

  Corbin reached me, scythe glinting in his hand. The blade looked… odd. Extremely old, but beautiful. Its handle was white, crafted with mother-of-pearl inlays and dark opals. It was truly a sight to behold. Corbin didn’t deserve to even touch such a precious and stunning weapon.

  “I’ve been looking forward to taming another ghoul,” he added.

  This wouldn’t end well for me, unless Soul found a way to kill Corbin. I had faith in him. I had all the faith in the world. If anyone could rescue me and take out the Master of Darkness, it was Soul. In that instant, as my options looked incredibly bleak, I found myself wondering whether my intervention here would be regarded as a much-needed sacrifice.

  Soul

  “Dammit!” I cursed under my breath, hidden inside an interdimensional pocket. As soon as the green fires had been lit, I’d slipped into my safe space and away from the realm of the living. In here, it was dark and quiet and protected.

  But it was also lonely, because I’d left Kelara out there. No. No, she’d left herself out there. She’d stepped up despite my ardent request for her not to. “What the hell was she thinking?”

  I knew exactly what she was thinking. There was no way I’d let her get trapped like that. I would’ve joined her under that blanket of pure energy and pressure. The spirits had all but guided us to this place. The eye runes had seen us even in our subtle forms. Corbin had been expecting us. We knew that. We’d known it before we’d even set foot in this place.

  “She sacrificed herself so I wouldn’t have to,” I muttered, pacing through the dark space.

  What good did that do? I couldn’t get the rest of my fellow Reapers involved because they all had important tasks of their own to deal with. Taeral was out of sight and off limits for now… The threat came on multiple fronts and from different angles and protecting Valaine superseded everything else. We were here on our own, and we’d accepted that going in.

  I felt like a coward hiding in here while Kelara was out there with Corbin’s boot basically pressed against her throat. Finally, after some more pacing, I found my resolve. Kelara had snuck into my soul somehow. The bond between us was alive and strong, and I had never felt like this before—or maybe I had prior to my Reaper days, eons ago. Now that we’d grown so close, I couldn’t bring myself to imagine losing her. Kelara meant something to me, and I needed time to figure it all out. But what time did I have if Corbin had trapped her?

  None whatsoever.

  Kelara had pushed me into this corner because she knew I’d fight back. She knew I wouldn’t let this stand. Perhaps that was why she’d even kissed me earlier. To drive her point home. To further strengthen our bond. To make it impossible for me to stay away from her. “Dammit!”

  I walked out of the interdimensional pocket. All it took was one step, and I was back in the world of the living, standing on the edge of the green fire circle. It was a powerful locking spell. It pinned Kelara down. It stopped her from casting her death magic and prevented telepathic communications, as well. Corbin stood right beside her, smiling, his eerie scythe shining with what I imagined to be excitement.

  Angry, I opened my mind to reach out to Taeral. I knew he’d hear me, whether he wanted to or not. “Get your scrawny ass out here, right now!” I hissed. As if summoned, he stepped out of the woods, invisible to the living. He was certainly getting the hang of Thieron’s minor magic spells, so he had that going for him.

  “I’m sorry this happened,” he said, stopping right beside me as he looked at Corbin and Kelara with a dark frown. “It’s a problem.”

  “You’re in touch with Death. What does she think of all this?” I asked, my tone clipped. The longer she held Taeral back, the more annoyed I became. Our world was falling apart, and Death was still calling the shots in a way that seemed woefully counter-productive.

  “She wants to see where Corbin is going with all of this,” Taeral replied.

  “Are you friggin’ kidding me? Is she friggin’ kidding me?”

  He sighed. “I know. And let me tell you the worst part… she wants me to allow the Spirit Bender’s return.” The look in his eyes broke me. His spirit was devastated and conflicted, while I felt a whole new level of rage coming to the surface of my consciousness.

  “Say what, now? I thought she wanted him down forever,” I managed.

  “Upon observing the Darklings and Corbin in particular, Death is convinced he will find a way to bring him back. So, I should stand back until he returns. I swear, Soul, I don’t know what the hell she’s thinking, but she is still holding key information from us,” Taeral said, shaking his head. “And it’s not like I can go against her. The last rune that Dream and Nightmare broke from the Thousand Seals has given Death a bit of extra reach. The kind of reach I wasn’t even aware of until earlier.”

  That got me to turn so I could face him properly, chills coursing through my very soul. “I’m lost here.”

  “She’s foun
d a way to control my usage of Thieron, even from afar. She put limits on it, to make sure I do as she commands. I tried helping out earlier, but Death insisted that I hold back.”

  I cursed under my breath. “What kind of game is she playing?”

  “I don’t know, but her latest orders are at odds with most of what she’s said and asked of me until now, including Kelara. Death used to say Kelara was different, special… but Corbin’s current control over her doesn’t seem to be a problem. She wants to see what will happen to Kelara.”

  “Oh, come on…”

  Taeral exhaled sharply. “Yeah. My hands are tied. I’m truly sorry. Whatever her endgame, Death wants me to hold back for now.”

  “Is this some kind of fun activity for her?” I asked, though I knew Taeral didn’t have an answer. “What the hell am I supposed to do in the meantime?”

  “First of all, tell no one about this conversation. Our people have enough on their plates. You’ll have to make do with what you’ve got until I figure out how to get Death to lift her restrictions on Thieron. I swear, she scares me sometimes.”

  Few creatures knew Death as well as me and the other First Tenners. There were times when I could see why Spirit had developed such a hatred of her. She had this way of doing things behind our backs, against our better advice—and her reasons were always a mystery. Until I got a chance to sit down with Death myself, I doubted I’d understand any more of this current decision.

  Taeral gave me a friendly elbow nudge. “She’s asking me to head back to Roano and stay close to Unending. She’s all that matters, Death says.”

  “Screw what Death says, I’m staying here,” I shot back, gritting my teeth. The Fire Star prince had good intentions, but he’d gotten himself tangled with Death directly, and that was a difficult trap to escape from. I still remembered the titanic relief I’d experienced upon my release from Zetos. It had meant the official end of my service to Death—I stuck around hoping she’d changed at least some of her ways. Clearly, she hadn’t.