THE REAPER'S SCYTHE: THE LOCI CHRONICLES BOOK 1

by L P PATERSON

  "You again." he stated. He quickly scanned the room and then looked back at me. "No angels at the moment." he said without a hint of a smile. The woman was looking at the both of us with interest. She seemed amused at my presence. I didn't have time to prepare a long drawn out request so I got straight to it.

  "I need access to the time sphere again." I said. The woman drew in a sharp breath as I said this and my head turned towards her. She was looking at me with raised eyebrows and was slowly shaking her head. I didn't need her approval or understanding so I turned back to Rogier. "It's important Rogier. Please."

  "You know the rules. You need coin and I know you don't have any." said Rogier with a deep sigh. He looked at me and in an almost gentle tone he repeated "You need coin Loci. I'm sorry."

  "What if I have something else?" I asked.

  "Coin Loci. That's what it takes."

  "I have a message for you. Will that do?"

  "A message from who?" he asked with a laugh and shake of his head. He bent to retrieve a glass from the shelf beneath the counter and then placed it on the bar in front the woman. He bent and picked up another.

  "The message is from the Horseman War." I replied. The woman's eyes bulged as I said this and she shifted slightly on the bar stool which she was perched on.

  "You spoke with a Horseman?" she blurted. I ignored her.

  "The Horseman War gave me a message for you Rogier." I said.

  "What’s the message Loci?" he asked. He was more serious now but I could still see that glint of doubt in his eyes, and the slight curve of his mouth told me that the coin was what he was really after.

  "No. You have to give me access for you to have the message." I stated.

  "Don't worry Loci. If the message is good, you will have access."

  "Okay." I said. "But don't blame me if you don't like it. I'm just the messenger."

  Rogier looked at me and with a heavy sigh repeated "I already said, if the message is good you will have access to the sphere."

  "Yeah." I was getting nervous now. What if Rogier didn't like the message? I didn't know what the message meant to him. "But what if it's not good? Not for you anyway."

  "Just tell me the message Loci!" he barked.

  "Oshun is back." I blurted out. "That's what War said to tell you. That Oshun is back and War knows where she is."

  A deafening hush fell across the bar. Every single pair of eyes in the room was on me. I saw hands holding drinks halfway to mouths, conversations abruptly stopped. A giant sized pin could have fallen in the centre of the room and still no one would have moved. My eyes swivelled back to Rogier. He stood watching me. Steel blue eyes bored into mine. His mouth was now a thin line. I stared back at him. I had delivered the message in exchange for access to the time sphere. But it appeared that the message was not one that Rogier wanted to hear. His hand was still closed around the glass. The vein in his temple was throbbing and his jaw was set tight. I heard a slight crack just before the glass in Rogier's hand exploded into several pieces. The woman jumped back and gave a slight scream.

  "You can access the sphere." he stated quietly. His face was like stone. There was no change whatsoever as he continued to watch me.

  "Who is Oshun?" I asked. The woman seemed to have the same question as she too turned to Rogier and waited for an answer.

  "Use the sphere." he said "And then get out."

  CHAPTER 20

  The time sphere was empty. I waited. Quietly. I didn't know which manifestation of the Time Master would appear to me on this occasion. I prayed that it would be the little kid. He was the most pleasant. Better than the sickly and miserable old man and much better than the sour faced young man who thought that cracking a smile would break his face. I looked around impatiently. My sole purpose here was to gain more time for Cymon and Time himself was holding me up.

  I heard a quiet shuffle to my left and my heart immediately sank. It had to be the old man. I didn't turn but instead waited for the coughing to start. "You again. What do you need this time?" I was asked. I spun and saw the young man staring at me. Well it wasn't the kid as I had hoped but he would have to do.

  "I need your help." I said. "Well. Cymon needs your help. He's been hurt." The Time Masters lips parted in a smirk that was almost a sneer as he looked me up and down. This hierarchy thing really needed to stop.

  "A reaper has been hurt? How did that manage to happen?" he asked.

  "It just happened okay. He was trying to protect me."

  "Really." he stated. Hard grey eyes bored into mine. He walked towards me coming to a stop just an arm’s length away. "Reapers do not get hurt. How did it happen?"

  "Nero." An eyebrow lifted as I said the necromancers’ name and the Time Masters mouth flattened into a thin line. "We think that Nero may be working with whoever stole Cymon's scythe."

  "Indeed. It is rare that children of Death rise against each other. But it is known that Nero has gone rogue." The Time Master said. "How was the Reaper hurt?"

  "Nero shot him with an arrow." I blurted. "He is in the court of the River Lord. The healers are trying to help him but the arrow must be poisoned, and it's spreading." I wailed. "They say they can help him but they need time, and I don't have time. Me and Cymon only have three hours left but War said that Death already knows that Cymon's scythe is missing so I don't even know how much time is really left, and we still have to get back to the River Lord’s court so that you can help Cymon." I screeched to a stop and immediately felt disgust at how closely my chatter mimicked that of a river maiden.

  I looked at the time master and saw his eyes narrow slightly as his hand gently rubbed at his chin. "We?" he asked slowly.

  Oh, please give me a break I begged whatever positive entity was listening. After all that explanation was that the only thing that he had heard. "Yes. We." I stated. "You have to help me. Help us. Cymon. Needs. Your. Help." I thought that I would break it down for him.

  His mouth spread into a grin and this was followed by a slow shake of the head. "No no no Loci. Why would you think that I would help the Reaper?" he asked. "I am not part of whatever mess you are in, and I am not about to willingly put myself into it either."

  "But War said to ask for your help!"

  "And now you have asked. And the answer is no." he stated bluntly.

  "You can't say no to a Horseman!" I said, my eyes opening in shock. I didn't really know where the Time Master was on the hierarchy but if the Horsemen were at the top, then I figured that he had to be somewhere below. It just seemed logical.

  His grey eyes darkened as I said this. "Do you think that the Horsemen control me? I am outside of time as this plane knows it. I step in and step out of time as I please. Past, Present and Future, I see them all and I step into them all. My choices are mine Loci. And I am not leaving this sphere to help the Reaper."

  Tears gathered in my eyes and spilled over to roll down my cheek. The Time Master’s face bunched into a disgusted grimace as he was faced with my uncontrolled emotions. "Tears will not help you Loci."

  "I'm not crying for you!" I shouted at him. I dragged my sleeve across my face, desperately trying to regain some self - respect. How had I got this so wrong? War had clearly shown me the Time Master. Maybe she hadn't exactly told me that he would definitely help but the implication was there. So what the hell was I supposed to do now? How was I going to help Cymon? As good looking as this version of the Time Master was, he was an ass, and I was tempted to tell him that. Something told me that if it had been the little kid, the Future Time Master, I would already have been making my way back to Cymon.

  "She said you would help." I said again as I chewed on my lip. "How can you not? Things can get really bad if a reaper's scythe is missing."

  "Oh, I know that. But it won't get really bad for me. Like I said, I step in and out as I please." he said.

  "But War said--"

  "War said what?" he cut me off. "Please forgive me if I am not as petrified of the Horsemen as you are Loc
i. They are only-" The Time Master abruptly stopped speaking. He looked down wide eyed and placed a hand on his stomach. "What the h-

  I looked at him wondering what was wrong. Was he about to pass out? I wasn't quite sure what was going on. I then felt a churning in my stomach. Almost as if I was about to vomit and pass out at the same time. Then I felt a slight tugging. As if someone had placed a hook behind my belly button and was now pulling on it. Hard.

  Like the Time Master, my hand landed on my stomach as I looked down. I looked up in time to see the Time Master rise into the air as if an invisible rope pulled on him and he disappeared.

  Oh shit! I closed my eyes and braced myself. In that final blink I saw the face of Clarice grinning at me as she entered the time sphere.

  I landed hard. Yet again my backside was suffering. I looked up and saw a soft mist swirling around me. There was no sign of the Time Master. I didn't know where I was but the tightness in my gut told me that I wasn't where I was supposed to be. I should be with the Time Master and I knew War would have sent him to Cymon. I should be in the court of the River Lord.

  "What is it?" I heard a soft whispering voice ask.

  "I don't know. Is it food?" I glanced down trying to see through the mist and hoping to catch a glimpse of whoever was talking. My thoughts went back to Sue and I wondered if there really were creatures in this world that ate humans. Something brushed against my leg and I skipped back.

  "Who's there?" I shouted.

  "Oooh. It speaks." said a voice.

  "Not food then." replied the other.

  "Well it could be food. We don't have to listen to what it says do we?"

  " I am not your food!" I shouted. What the hell was going on? Where was this place and why was I even here?

  "Oh alright, alright. No need to shout about it."

  The mist swirled and gathered and now I could feel droplets of water gathering on my face as it became heavier. But I still could not see anything. "Where am I?" I asked. I prayed that whoever these people or things were that they could help me find my way back to Cymon.

  "Where are you?" one of them asked. This was followed by a crack of cackling laughter.

  "Oh. It doesn't know where it is." stated the other.

  "Maybe we can eat it. It doesn't sound well." replied the first. I felt my jaw clench as my face tightened. I couldn't take another round of irritation like the river maidens had given me earlier.

  The voices seemed to be at hip level and although I couldn't see anything, I didn't feel scared or threatened. I flung my hand out and grabbed. And I caught... something.

  "Let me go! Let me go!" it squealed.

  "Tell me where I am and I will let you go." I replied.

  "You are inside the Gates. The Gates."

  "How have you got to somewhere you don't know you're going to?” the other voice asked. I couldn't answer that one. I let it go.

  "I think we should eat it. It sounds stupid." said the first voice.

  Suddenly the mist began to darken and I heard a low moaning sound. It sent shivers through me and my teeth ached. "Got to go." they both said in unison and the mist suddenly began to clear.

  I saw two small figures running away from where I was standing. The moaning sounded again and the ache in my teeth increased. Through the clearing mist I could see that I was standing on a cobbled street. It appeared to be early night, what some people would call dusk. The sun had already set and dark shadows were creeping in. Shadows which seemed to be vaguely human shaped. Shadow wraiths!

  I turned; small shops lined the street but they looked as if they had been placed there several hundred years ago. I saw a tall building. The steep angle of the roof making it impossible to see beyond. The windows were thick glass and the wooden frames were painted a bright white. There was no light inside. The red brick building beside it was narrow and the roof was flat. Windows lined the whole frontage and the small door in the middle seemed barely large enough for a child to pass through. Again, there was no light.

  At the end of the street was a large arched gate. The turreted walls grew tall into the night sky and the metal gate gleamed a shimmering blue just like the Knights Bridge. Standing atop the gate with a foot planted on each turret was a huge statue of a Roman soldier. At least I think it was Roman. He held a shield and a large short sword in his hands. The sign just above the metal bars announced it as the Cripple Gate. Another wail and moan lanced through my ears. I had briefly heard about the gates but I did not know how to use them.

  A scraping sound travelled down the street and I felt my stomach clench. My lips began to tremble and I quickly clamped my hand over my mouth to seal in the scream that I knew was bubbling inside my throat eager to come out. There were no lights in any of the buildings and all the doors were closed tight. I was trapped and alone.

  "Get off the streets. Are you mad?"

  I looked up to see a young woman looking down from one of the windows. Her small face seemed familiar and her deep red hair and green eyes were so like mine... "Agatha!"

  She squinted at me. Her own face bunched up as she tried to figure me out.

  "No. I'm not Agatha." she said. Then looking at me through slitted eyes she asked. "How do you know my mother?"

  Before I could open my mouth to respond I felt something cold grab onto my ankle and I was pulled backwards. I landed hard and my face connected sharply with the cobbled walkway. Shafts of pain shot through my head as for the third time that day I was under attack. Something was pulling at me. My hands reached out and I tried to grab onto the stones, but they were slick with the moisture of the strange mist which seemed to be reforming just to torment me.

  My fingers searched for any tiny crack that may give me some grip to hold on to. Nothing. The cold was working its way up my leg and was almost at my knee. I could not turn or twist as I was dragged away at speed and then I heard the moaning. The shadow wraiths were gathering. I wondered if it was one of them that had me hooked but I dared not look round. If I saw what had me, I might just faint with fright and then I would be totally lost.

  My elbows scraped on the ground and the stinging sensation of damaged skin gave me the motivation I needed. I slammed my toes down and in the tiny second of time that my capture slowed ever so slightly I quickly flipped over. It was a shadow wraith. The long cold tentacles of black mist swirled around me and a darker deeper length of shadow was coiled around my leg just above my knee. This one was almost solid and it was clamped tight. I felt my breath coming quick and sharp and my head started spinning. I recognised the panic attack that was coming and knew that if I succumbed to it, I would be lost. I slowed my breathing and blinked several times, trying my best to figure a way out of this. There was no one to help me this time and I couldn't afford to die either. I had to get back to Cymon.

  The wraith pulled again and I looked up to see the darkness which formed its head. Dark, red eyes looked down at me and a wide mouth which seemed to hold burning embers gaped open. As it leaned closer, I backed away but it kept coming towards me. It now seemed more intent on placing its face on top of mine than in dragging me away. Panic fell on me again and my feet took over as they started to move to try and stand up. But the wraith was fast. It pulled at my feet and I went down again. I rolled this time and again tried to stand and I instantly felt a hard knock to the centre of my back and as I fell forward, again I was pulled back. I flung my arms out to try and break my fall and rolled onto my back. I felt the heat building up in my shoulders and arms before it coursed down to my hands and I prayed that whatever was coming was going to disintegrate the shadow wraith that had me. As I stretched my palms open to release the energy a blinding streak of light rushed past me and landed square in the wraith's chest creating a gaping hole. It looked at the hole then looked at me and then looked beyond me before collapsing in on itself. It was gone.

  I turned to see the young woman from the window standing a few paces behind me, her hands lowering. She still looked at me with her face
scrunched up. She walked towards me and bending slightly grabbed my collar and yanked me up.

  "We have to get off the streets." she said. "More will come. What do they want with you?"

  "They want to kill me. They have tried before." I answered.

  A slight smile pulled at her mouth. "They don't want to kill you." she said. "Whoever is controlling them does." She turned and started to walk back towards the building in which I had first seen her. "Wraith's are dumb creatures, often controlled by others. It's sad really. They can appear anywhere at any time as long as there is a little light and a little darkness. Their strength and their ability to affect the physical even though they are nothing more than mist is what makes them ideal.” she glanced back at me before continuing. “No good being would take advantage of them but the evil ones are not so concerned." I walked behind her steadily, listening to what she was saying while at the same time praying that we would reach the building, which had not seemed so far away when I first saw her, before another attack.

  We reached the door to the building and she stopped. Her hand was placed on the large brass knob. She turned to look back at me. Her head was tilted slightly to the side and her nose was scrunched and wrinkled as she leaned forward towards me. "Who are you?" she asked as her eyebrows drew together.

  Seriously!! Was that really important? That was a question that could be asked and answered when we got inside. She must have read my thoughts because she leaned back slightly and crossed her arms while still looking at me. Okay I got it. No answer. No entry.

  "I am Audrey." I said. As if that explained everything. She lifted an eyebrow. Before I could explain further, I heard a scraping sound followed by the familiar wail. "Audrey Jones!" I almost screamed.

  "How do you know my mother?" The scraping grew louder.

  "I don't know your mother. Really I don't." The wailing sounded closer and my belly clenched tight.