But I wasn’t hopeless. At least we had a better understanding of the trouble ahead. We knew more about what it was that we were about to walk into.
Taeral
“I will grant you some authority to use Thieron beyond the parlor tricks you’ve already learned,” Death said, settling on the edge of the ice hole again. She looked awfully lonely like this. I almost felt sorry for her. “Bring Thieron over here.”
I gave her the scythe, and she lovingly gazed at it for a few moments, admiring its sculpted handle, its curved blade, and the slowly rotating Phyla. There was a bond between Death and her weapon. Thieron was, after all, an extension of her power. No matter who held this scythe, it would always belong to her. It would always respond to her with its full might and potential.
She pressed her lips against Zetos, the blade, and whispered something. After having learned so much about death magic and Word magic, I was inclined to assume she was using some of the basic words to make Thieron obey me for stronger spells. Ironically, she didn’t have the precise recipe of words and sub-words to break her own seals, but she could still program Thieron to work for me. The entire weapon lit up for a moment, and she gave it back to me.
“There are still limits on it,” she said. “I cannot remove those until I am free. But I gave you everything I could under the circumstances. Time will teach you some spells, should you need them. Only use it if you have no other option. Please, Taeral, I cannot stress this enough—”
“Be careful.” I cut her off. “I get it. Like Time said, I don’t even have to reveal myself. I’ll only use Thieron in the absence of any other option. Believe me when I say that I really don’t want to risk losing this weapon. Not after what we went through.”
“Go to Unending.” Death looked at Time, Dream, and Nightmare. “She needs you. All of you. You are of better use there helping her to freedom than you are here, struggling with each of these damned runes.”
“And the Darklings? What protocols shall we follow?” Time asked.
She released a deep breath, biting her lower lip. “I’m not sure. It would be unpleasant for you not to work with the rest of your brothers and sisters in arms. Follow their lead. See what they tell you. I trust Seeley’s judgment, despite his emotional attachment to Nethissis.”
“Whoa, the Lamia witch? Where’d you get that from?” Nightmare chuckled.
“I know everything about you,” Death reminded him with a dry smile. “Even the things you think you’re keeping from me. Therefore, I know what’s in Seeley’s undead heart.”
“A feeling our kind seldom experiences,” Dream murmured. “I’m impressed.”
“A Reaper fell in love with a living creature who then became a ghost,” Nightmare replied. “That’s not impressive. That’s just weird.”
“Don’t be cruel,” Dream hissed. “It’s romantic. Star-crossed lovers, so to speak.”
“And you’re all digressing,” Time said. “We’ll follow the current protocols. Seeley is more or less in charge, and our First Tenner siblings will fill us in on all the details once we get there.”
Death lay on her back with her calves submerged in the ice water. A snowstorm was coming, painting the distant forests white until they vanished from sight. The temperature continued its drop, my inner fire dimming as I began to feel the cold. It seeped into my bones, stiffening my muscles.
“I don’t know how this will all work out,” Death said. “In the end, one way or another, sooner or later, I shall be free. I only wish to see you all still living when that happens. Be wary of the Darklings. My instinct tells me they have death magic they haven’t used before, words and sub-words mingled into proprietary spells left behind by the Spirit Bender. Even in the nothingness, he continues to haunt me.”
“What’s the nothingness, exactly?” I asked, as I’d heard this term before—not only from Death, but also from Tristan’s account of his trances with Valaine during their memory recovery sessions.
“I think the word is pretty self-explanatory,” Death replied dryly. “It’s the lack of life. The absence of light. The void, the true void where nothing exists. That is where Spirit is now. That is where Thieron sent him.”
“So he didn’t move beyond, into the world of the dead,” I concluded.
“No,” Time replied. “That would’ve been a gift to the Spirit Bender, since he would’ve taken his powers with him into that realm. Not a good idea, and Thieron knew it.”
The scythe carried Death’s reasoning and intelligence, too, I realized. “What’s the beyond like?” I asked. I’d wondered about it frequently after I’d been introduced to this new and fascinating facet of the universe, but I’d never dared voice such a question. With Death still trapped, I figured it was worth a shot, at least. She’d already told me so much, it would be a pity not to ask.
“You’ll find out when your time comes,” Death said, her tone clipped. “It’s not for you or anyone else to know.”
“Technically speaking, I won’t, because I’m destined to be a Reaper, remember?”
My response caught her off guard. She paused, blinking rapidly in a bid to get her bearings. “It’s not for you to know, Taeral. The afterlife belongs to those who cross beyond. Period.”
I didn’t like the answer, but I doubted I’d get more out of her. Time didn’t seem satisfied, either. Dream and Nightmare were too creepy and nonchalant to even care, judging by the absent looks on their faces. They were probably dying to get to Visio.
“We don’t know, either.” Time glanced my way. “We only usher the spirits beyond. But we never get to peek behind the curtain.” His brow furrowed briefly, and I took it as a sign to stop pushing the boundaries here. In Death’s presence, the Reapers couldn’t tell me much. I had plenty of follow-up questions. Maybe Time would answer once we got away from Death.
“Is there anything else you need to tell us before we leave?” I asked Death.
She raised an eyebrow at me. “I’ve bared my soul to you already.”
“You don’t have a soul,” I replied. “But I get your point.”
“Stay in touch,” Death said to Time. “I will be here, waiting.”
“Should we send you some Reapers to at least keep you company while we’re gone?” Nightmare asked, but Death waved him away.
“Don’t worry about me. I’m fine here in the company of snow, silence, and ice. Perhaps I’ll lure a wandering soul, if I get bored. I’ll listen to their life story, should I find myself in need of entertainment.”
Time took my hand while Dream and Nightmare placed theirs on his shoulders. Electricity crackled around us. Flashes of light danced at the corner of my eye. My skin tickled and pricked here and there, my throat burning as though I’d swallowed lightning. My heart raced, my pulse throbbing as I tried to understand what was happening.
Dream giggled when she noticed the terrified look on my face. “Oh, you’ve never traveled with Time like this before, huh?”
“Explain what this is,” I managed, my throat closing up.
“Transmutation,” Time replied. “We’re going to ride as pure energy.”
“Whoa. Okay. What’ll it do to me?” I asked, feeling myself torn apart, limb by limb. He gripped me tightly and held me up, offering a faint but reassuring smile.
“We’re all pure energy, deep down. I’m merely reverting us back to it,” he said. “It will only hurt for a second.”
“Define hurt!” I shouted as the pain became unbearable.
Every atom in my body suffered. Every cell burned. My skin was torn clean off the muscles. The muscles were stripped from the bones. The bones were pulverized… and I was suddenly nothing and everything at once. Death’s beautiful and timeless face dissolved into a black sea filled with twinkling stars.
The universe itself warped around me. I heard the low hum of nearby interstellar explosions. Of plasma bubbling along the edge of galaxies. I felt the rush of the void against my whole being as we shot through space at an incredible
speed.
Panic would’ve taken over had it not been for the temporary absence of a body. I’d been reduced to a darting mass of electrons, racing against the light of the suns themselves as the Time Master took us to Visio. In the midst of this cosmic insanity, I would’ve imagined myself smiling.
I was on the wildest ride of my life.
Esme
For a while, I was convinced I was running pretty fast, despite the weight of Kalon on my shoulder. Desperation had pumped me full of adrenaline, and my legs seemed to be moving just fine. It was only an illusion, I soon realized. I was slowing down.
Seeley, Nethissis, Rudolph—they were farther ahead, getting smaller in the dimly lit distance. Sofia and the others were mere figures moving against the narrow amber backdrop as the tunnel continued to forge its way through to the west coast.
Behind me, the darkness swelled, rife with pain and misery. I could feel it licking at my nape, eager to devour me. As much as I tried, we were falling behind. The Black Fever symptoms were amplified, the fever boiling through my veins, setting my skin on fire. I coughed dark blood. Kalon was unconscious. I wasn’t sure we’d make it. My knees were weak once more.
“We have to…” I whispered. “We can’t let it take us.”
Time stood still. Everything paused along with my breath as a powerful white light exploded behind me. It made no sound, but rather silenced everything as it expanded, and I came to a sudden halt. I looked over my shoulder to see the brightness filling the tunnel. There was nothing behind us other than the pure white glow. Nothing and no one. I exhaled sharply.
For a couple of moments, I faltered, wondering whether I should run. The Black Fever was fading inside me. My body was recovering. The fever subsided, and my heart rate slowed down. I took a deep breath, smiling, as I no longer felt any pain in my ribcage.
“What is that?” I wondered aloud, watching the light begin its lazy, gradual retreat—revealing the stones used to hold the tunnel up, the blackened tree roots, the reddish dirt and multicolored pebbles that littered the walls and the hard ground.
Setting Kalon down as gently as I could, I gave him a quick once-over. He was still pale, a sheen of sweat covering his face, but the black veins were disappearing. His breathing was shallow but even. He was definitely better than when I’d first picked him up.
“I’ll be back in a jiff, I promise,” I told him, hoping he might hear me.
My mind was set on Tristan. Worry burrowed a sickening hole in my gut. I wasn’t even sure he’d survived this round, since it was obviously much more intense and dangerous than anything else he’d described, but I had to find out. I ran back toward the shrinking white light, until familiar figures emerged about a mile down. I’d thought we’d run farther than this, but then again, both Kalon and I had been crippled by the Black Fever. It must’ve significantly slowed us down.
Tristan was on his knees, eyes wide open. “Thank the stars!” I blurted, relief washing over me in a soothing wave.
Valaine was on the ground, seemingly unconscious. A few too many Reapers had their hands on her, each of them whispering something as the black veins around her eyes faded. I saw Soul, Phantom, and Widow. Kelara, too, along with Sidyan, Night, and Morning. But there were three others I had yet to meet, and their presence startled me. Morning and Phantom must’ve summoned their siblings through their telepathic connection.
By the time I reached them, I was breathless and thrilled. I wrapped my arms around my brother and held him tight for the longest minute. He shuddered in my embrace as he hugged me back, hiding his face in my hair. His dark and curly hair tickled my face, and I felt his tears on my cheek as I moved my head to shower him with sisterly kisses.
“You scared me!” I managed, cupping his face.
“I’m sorry,” he replied. “I couldn’t leave her…”
“What’s going on? Was that Valaine’s darkness?” I asked, looking first at Tristan, then at the Reapers. One of them took out a pocket watch, briefly flipping it open. He frowned and put it away. Behind him, the last tendrils of smoky darkness got sucked into what looked like an arched blade of pure light. It, too, vanished shortly afterward, and I had a ton of questions. I took a few slow breaths, trying to steady my ragged breathing.
“Guys? Gals? Anybody want to clear things up here?” I asked, making no attempt at hiding my frustration.
Tristan couldn’t take his eyes off Valaine as the rest of the Reapers pulled back. She seemed to be sound asleep and not suffering. It was an eerie sight, but one I imagined I’d eventually get used to—at least until we figured out a way to set the Unending free.
“Death sent us,” the timepiece Reaper said. “This is Dream, and this is Nightmare,” he added, introducing the twins. I remembered their names from Taeral’s adventures, but looking at them now, I could certainly see why their names fit so well. Dream looked like someone I would’ve liked to embrace upon falling asleep so I could take her sweetness with me—despite knowing how deceptive that sweetness was. And Nightmare… well, Nightmare looked like the epitome of the emo current. I had no trouble imagining him doing his worst to my dreams.
But the timepiece fella, he was the one who commanded my attention the most. By process of elimination and guided only by the weight of his presence among us, I understood who he was.
“You’re the Time Master,” I said, and he nodded.
“I’m sorry it took us a while to get here,” he said with a sigh. “Things have been complicated on Aledras.”
“When is she going to wake up?” Tristan asked, staring at Valaine. He reached out a trembling hand to touch her face, but Dream clicked her teeth, making him pause.
“You don’t want to do that. Let her come back on her own,” she said. “It’s been a tough ride for her Aeternae vessel.”
I got up, giving Soul a wondering look and hoping he might have more details to share. He grunted softly, hands on his narrow hips. “It was her worst episode yet,” he said after a moment. “It’s not going to get better, either.”
“The deeper she digs into her memories, the harder it’ll be,” Phantom added.
“I found her, you know,” Tristan muttered, glancing up at me. “The Unending. She’s in there, deep inside Valaine’s subconscious. I can get to her again, but we need a more controlled environment. What happened here was insane. None of us saw it coming. Not even Valaine.”
“I know,” I said. “She would never have unleashed such horror in the tunnel on purpose.”
“We need to keep moving,” Time replied. “Going forward, we have a way of absorbing the Unending’s bouts of darkness, but we can’t stay here another minute.”
“Hold on, what way?” I asked.
Time frowned. “I got a few tips from Death. I promise I will explain everything once we reach your destination. Right now, time is of the essence. Valaine left a trail of death in her wake, and the Darklings will spot the signs aboveground. We cannot let them get to her ever again.”
My questions would have to wait. Shifting my attention back to Valaine, I noticed her eyes peeling open ever so slowly. “She’s awake.” I gasped.
Tristan helped her up. “Are you okay?”
Valaine moaned softly, pressing her fingers against her temples. “My head hurts. What happened?”
“Well, apparently we’ve got three more First Tenners on our side, and they’ll fill us in once we reach the west coast,” I said, quickly summarizing the whole encounter as best as I could. “For now, let’s be thankful we’re still here and get moving.”
“How much farther do we have to go?” Valaine asked as Tristan pulled her arm over his shoulders, helping her walk. We made our way back, my heart jumping as I peered ahead, looking for Kalon. Now that the darkness had dissipated, he’d be okay. I was feeling better already—proof that the Unending’s episodes of Black Fever weren’t permanent when they happened like this. It was a strange and inexplicable phenomenon, but I was never the type to look a gift horse in the
mouth.
“About two hundred miles,” Sidyan said. “But we can teleport everybody directly to the coast. We’re outside the Darklings’ magical range.”
Kelara nudged him and Soul. “Let’s go ahead and start zapping people out of the tunnel.”
“By all means. After you,” Soul replied. A second later, he was gone, along with Kelara, Sidyan, and Widow. They were able to transport hundreds of Orvisians and Seniors almost effortlessly. The worst had passed.
We walked quickly through the tunnel, as Valaine gradually regained her full range of motion. The color returned to her cheeks, her hand tucked inside Tristan’s. Heat spread through me as my body began to relax. I’d be shaky for a little while longer, since the adrenaline was never quick to go away, but at least I could breathe again.
“You three have a lot of explaining to do,” I said to Time, Dream, and Nightmare. “Especially where your maker is concerned. Why is she so hard to work with?”
Dream giggled. “Ah, that’s an even longer story than the one about us coming here. Trust me, darling—”
“Esme, please,” I said, cutting her off.
“Trust me, Esme. You don’t want to know,” Dream continued.
Ahead, I could see Kalon with his back against the curved wall. He was awake, but he didn’t look well. Something tightened in my chest. The closer we got, the worse he looked. “This isn’t right,” I mumbled.
“Is that Kalon?” Valaine asked, her eyes widening at the sight of him slumping like that.
I bolted away from the group and slid to my knees when I reached Kalon. Placing my palm on his forehead, I felt a burst of nausea shoot through me. “Oh no. His fever is still up!” I shouted. In an instant, Valaine and Tristan were beside me, teleported by the Reapers and carefully checking Kalon’s vitals.
His eyes opened, but they looked empty as they found mine. “Esme,” he managed.
“Oh, babe, no… what’s wrong?” I murmured, resting my hands on his chest.
“He still has the Black Fever,” Valaine said, her voice trembling as she got up and stepped back. Tears rolled freely down her cheeks as the reality set in. “I did this. It’s not subsiding like it did with you and Tristan…”
A Shade of Vampire 84: A Memory of Time Page 8