The Last Great Reaper

by Billi Bell

  “They either think you abandoned the church or your dead.”

  “Wait...why would anyone think I’m dead? How long have I been here?” He asked.

  “Why does it matter? You’re not going back there for a long time.”

  Rising from the chair, he went over to the two large windows and tried again to peer out, but found even more ivy covering them both. She watches him with slight amusement.

  Dominic frantically walked over to a large desk sitting in the middle of the room. It was cluttered with scrolls and letters, and he desperately attempted to find a calendar underneath the mess. His frustration grew larger as she began to laugh.

  “You’re not going to find what you’re looking for. I don’t keep a schedule, it’s all up here,” she said pointing to her head. “Besides, you’re immortal, and you have all the time in the world. Why do you care how long you’ve been here?”

  “How long?” He screamed furiously as he dashed to her chair. He grasped the arms of her chair, stood over her, and lined his face within inches of hers. “Tell me!”

  Before Dominic could blink Death was out of her chair, and her hand was around his throat. He looked down and saw they were both hovering mid-air. The skull returned to her face, and she whispered, “Don’t ever raise your voice to me again. You may be immortal, but I am eternal. I could torture you until the end of fucking time. I will have you screaming until your vocal chords are shredded and when I’m done, I’ll bury your ass in a fucking coffin in the middle of the fucking ocean. Now, sit down.”

  She released him from her hold, and he promptly sat.

  “Please, it’s important,” he said. “I have somewhere to be on Christmas Eve.”

  She let out a small sigh. “You’ve only been here for a day. I brought you here because you’re in danger and your God wants you protected. I will not keep you against your will. You can leave any time you want. However, I need you to understand I feel you are here for an important reason, especially if I’ve been asked to get involved.”

  Dominic writhed uncomfortably in his seat, knowing that he was under divine protection unnerved him. He tightly closed his eyes and wondered how the hell he got here. When he opened them, she was seated again and staring straight at him.

  “I am now formally asking you to stay, and as a show of gratitude, I will introduce you to other immortals. If you say no, the front door is down the hallway and to the right. I’ll give you directions to the nearest cluster, but you’ll have to get in with them on your own. I need to emphasize that you may not last long out there with whatever has a target on your back. No one on Earth can protect you like I can, unfortunately.”

  Dominic realized that Death was also in a situation she didn’t want to be in. For her to ask him to stay, put her in a very vulnerable position. He nodded his head, agreeing to visit and she visibly relaxed. “I will stay, but I get to come and go whenever I want. I have somewhere important to be around Christmas, but I must confess I’d like to know why I’m so special as well. Oh and please, no more levitation, it makes me nauseous, and it’s kind of painful.”

  “Fine, as long as you come back, I have no problem with those terms and as for the pain, well…I apologize. The last person to keep a secret from me was a close friend, and my patience is almost non-existent when I’m in a situation I have little control over. There is a darkness inside me that I fight, and sometimes I break.”

  Dominic could tell she had just let a wall down as an olive branch to him.

  “I can empathize with that, betrayal is never an easy pill to swallow, and it has taken me many years to subside the anger from it,” he said. Death was intrigued but decided not to ask. She’d have another look at his memories when he slept again.

  A knock at the door broke the silence between them. With a wave of her hand, the door opened, and a man entered the room. Dominic guessed him to be another reaper. A scythe with a handle the length of a cane hung from the holster in his belt. His tall frame was clothed in a black suit. He stood much taller than Dominic, and although he was older, around fifty, he appeared to have been in great shape at the time of his death. His body language practically screamed a lifelong soldier. He entered the room and looked over to Dominic. A brief look of confusion and he quickly recovered.

  “Captain Adofo, it has been too long. What brings you here?”

  “Persephone, may we speak, alone,” he said in a West African accent. Dominic looked over at her in surprise, she had a name. Death returned a look that almost dared him to say it.

  “We can talk in front of him, he’s learned to keep his mouth shut,” she assured him. She then noticed the anxiety across Adofo’s face and quickly stood. “Captain, what’s wrong? What’s happened?”

  The look of concern on his face worried her. Adofo had been one of her most durable, most loyal confidants and she knew he didn’t worry easily.

  His life began in the mid-1600s in West Africa. The son of his tribes’ leader, he eventually took the throne himself and often participated in battles. Combat left him with many scars over his body, including a long-jagged mark that ran from his left eye to his neck. He ruled until slavers captured his village. They were separated and loaded onto ships set for the west.

  Below the ship, he watched as others who became ill were led to the deck, never returning. It wasn’t long before he contracted the illness and was thrown overboard. Alive when he was thrown into the water, he quickly perished. He would awaken to a reaper before him, informing him that he was chosen to “stay on.”

  Over the years he managed to gain Death’s confidence and although she would never say it, friendship. She gave him the moniker of Captain due to his soldier-like disposition, and he soon took it as a formal title. He would insist on being addressed by it from that point on.

  He was now the lead reaper of deaths that occurred in the Atlantic Ocean and had thousands of reapers, referred to as Paladins, under his command. Any death that occurred in its waters he made sure the soul found its way to the afterlife. Anyone of those souls chosen to be a reaper remained under his supervision.

  “A Paladin has gone rogue, and she has taken her living son with her. A son that was supposed to die three days ago in a fire.”

  Her body tensed, and she reached over to the small table between the armchairs. She manifested a steaming cup of tea, turned back to Adofo and said, “Dominic...leave.”

  CHAPTER 5

  1757: Atlantic Ocean, Midnight

  The Duchess prepared to set sail for England after being stocked with sugar and various items not recorded on the official inventory. The crewmen spent time on land enjoying the women, drink, and warm weather. Their furlough had now come to an end. Inside the ship Audrey sat in a locked room below deck, chained to a bed with her belly swollen. Captain John Barrows stood before her, glaring, as she avoided eye contact with him.

  “How are you feeling?” he asked but she didn’t answer. “Don’t make me ask again.”

  “Fine.”

  “Do you know why your still alive?”

  “God is cruel,” she said.

  He only laughed at her words. “There is no God. If there were, you wouldn’t be here. That runt will catch a pretty price, especially if it’s a boy. If it can pass for white, I might actually take it home to my wife and let her raise it. Can’t hold a baby for more than a month, my goddamn luck.”

  He exited the room, still complaining about his marriage on the way out the door. Sitting in the darkness, she fought back the tears. She knew the baby was coming soon and her time was short, possibly the baby too.

  A short knock at the door and a young crewman entered.

  Henry Allen had only been on the ship for less than two months. He became employed as the cook after the previous one succumbed to fever. When he was brought aboard, delivering food to her became a part of his duties. His fondness for her became clear to Audrey right away.

  “Are you feeling well?” he asked while placing a bowl of soup next
to her. Taking the keys off the wall, he unchained her hands. She gently rubbed the red marks around her wrists.

  “I’m okay, not long until he is born.”

  He smiled. “How can you be so sure it’s a boy?”

  “I feel it in my heart. I only pray he is strong, so the captain will let him live after I’m dead.”

  “Don’t you dare speak those words, you are strong. I know you will survive this. You’ve endured so much,” he spoke with fierceness in his eyes. “Let me take you away. When the baby is born, I can get the two of you far away from him. I love you, Audrey.”

  She wanted to say the words back, but she knew her fate. Her meeting with Death replayed every day in her head.

  Audrey reached for the soup and began eating. Henry took the message and left the room. “I will return soon to take your bowl.”

  She looked at the ceiling and like every night since she saw her, prayed to Death to come just a day sooner.

  Seven weeks later

  Captain Barrows stood at the edge of Audrey’s bed. The Duchess had been docked on a small island in the Caribbean. He’d brought her to a small plantation where he made arrangements to sell the baby. She had been in labor for nearly 12 hours, and the baby was finally crowning. Marie, a slave who assisted with births on the plantation, had been brought in to care for her. She screamed for Audrey to push and with her last ounce of strength, the baby was born.

  The infants’ screams filled the room. Audrey looked down at her son, and if his cries were a sign of health, he would live a long life. Barrows ordered the baby be taken from Audrey as she lifted her arms out to hold him. She begged Barrows, but he denied her and left to finalize the sale. Her tears flowed from her face and down her cheeks. In the corner of her eye, she noticed a figure, Death had returned for her.

  Audrey looked over at Death, she was getting weaker by the minute. “He will live, won’t he? His cries were so strong.”

  “Before we talk, I need your answer, please,” Death asked. “Will you allow me to take your body as my vessel?”

  “Yes, take me and please watch over my son.” Audrey’s eyes grew heavy and closed for the last time. Death watched as she slowly stopped breathing.

  “I suppose I’ll tell you now. He will live many years,” Death spoke to Audrey’s unconscious mind. “Henry will take care of him, I promise.”

  Marie returned to the room to check on Audrey, placing a hand on her head. The fever was obvious, and her questions went unanswered. After a short prayer, she turned to leave when the door opened. Captain Barrows entered and asked about Audrey’s condition.

  “She is gone,” Marie answered. Death watched the encounter from the corner of the room.

  “Then what the hell are you still doing here, that thing is still screaming. Put your damn tit in its mouth and shut it up.” Marie gave one last compassionate look to Audrey and left the room.

  Barrows observed Audrey’s body with contempt. “Barely got my investment out of you.”

  Death continued watching and with great control fought back the urge to rip his throat out. It had been a while since she’d lost her composure and she felt herself on the brim.

  “In time.”

  He called a few slaves to the small shack. “Take care of this.”

  She watched as three men wrapped Audrey in a blanket and carried her out the door towards a small cemetery. The night sky was full of stars and the full moon shined bright. The men placed her body on the ground and began digging. Henry found them just as they put her body inside the grave. He said a small prayer before they started to cover her body with dirt.

  “Dear Lord, take this precious soul into your arms. Amen.”

  After the burial was complete, the men left to resume, and Death approached the grave. Henry had watched as long as he could before walking a mile to the nearest beach. As he walked away, he swore he’d seen a light shine from her grave. He hoped his prayer worked and she was at peace. He plopped down on the sand and watched the waves. Death uncloaked herself and placed a hand on his shoulder.

  She reached into a concealed pocket in her cape and handed him a bag of gold coins.

  “Take the baby to the port and disappear. This is more than enough money to make your way to somewhere safe. Do you understand me?”

  Henry stood and took the bag of coins, eyeing it suspiciously. “Are you an angel?”

  “I am today, or at least at this moment. Take that little boy and raise him as your son. Tell him of his mother and what she sacrificed. He will be kept with the midwife so pay her enough to claim the baby died after birth and was buried with his mother. I’ll take care of getting a body. For a brief moment at the port, there should be just enough time to conceal him. Once you’re on a ship, you should be clear, but you must move fast.”

  She handed him a small vile of liquid. “Give him a tiny amount of this, and he’ll sleep through it all, but not too much. Understood? I would take you myself, but I have a limited amount of time to complete an important task.”

  Henry nodded and took the vial from Death. “Why are you doing this? God only sends angels to Earth for important reasons.”

  “God has nothing to do with it, and this is important. In fact, He would probably prefer I don’t interfere at all. I’ll have to face the consequences as I did a long time ago. So do as I say, or I’ll be back for you.”

  “Milk, the baby will need it. What should I do?”

  “I’ll take care of it. Go!”

  In the blink of an eye, she was gone, and Henry found himself alone on the beach, planning the rescue of Audrey’s baby.

  ***

  Inside the shack that Audrey had been held, Death stood over her remains. “Take your time,” she spoke to the trembling woman who stood at her side.

  Audrey couldn’t place a name to the feeling of seeing her own body. A connection was broken, and she could feel it all over. She walked over and sat on the bed, brushing the wet hair from her corpses’ face and smoothing out the wrinkles in her dress.

  She turned to Death, “I heard you earlier, talking to me about my son. Thank you.”

  “I have no idea what you're talking about,” she said smiling and holding her hand out for Audrey. “Now, it’s time to go,”

  Audrey rose from the bed and held onto Death’s hands tightly. A light encircled her body and tears of bliss erupted from her eyes.

  “Thank you,” she said, her last words to Death before she was fully enveloped by the light.

  Death had built a wall up over the years but watching a vessel die was hard. From the moment they’re born until the day they died, she watched over them. She was not without enemies who’d love to see her fall and attacking a potential vessel was not beneath them. She had been searching for an eternal vessel and hoped Audrey would be the one.

  She took off her cloak and sat it on the edge of the bed. Looking over Audrey’s body recalling the years she watched her grow. In all of her years, Audrey was the first vessel to die while giving life, something Death would never be able to do. Not that she was interested anyway. She had a slight fascination with children and their unique ability. Young humans were always susceptible to reapers and unknowingly carried on their images into adulthood, thus creating the myth of the grim reaper, the boogeyman, and ghosts.

  As she stood, a tattooed skeleton arm slowly formed down her right arm, eventually leading to a hand. In her palm, her treasured scythe began to form. The six-foot weapon of death stretched down to the floor, and the broad blade began to extend outward. The scythe was more precious than any relic in her possession. It was an acquired tool that had quite literally become a part of her. Standing beside the bed, she spoke words she hoped to never have to again.

  “Take my soul as your spirit rests peacefully, for I am Death and eternal.”

  A blinding light enveloped the shack that could be seen for miles. Henry ran into the room and arrived just as Death lifted from the bed in Audrey’s body. He looked over to see the
woman he met outside earlier lying on the floor dead.

  “You’re not Audrey, are you?” he asked.

  “No, she’s gone.”

  CHAPTER 6

  Death waited for Dominic to leave the room as she drank the hot tea. The second the door shut she motioned for Adofo to sit. She took several sips from her cup before acknowledging him again.

  Although he had never had a reaper to abandon their duties, Adofo tried to appear as if the problem could be quickly resolved. Although they had built a friendship, he couldn’t rely on it to save him from her wrath. “Explain to me what happened and do not leave anything out.”

  He took a deep breath and began to explain the events the led to a dead man currently walking around England.

  “One of my subordinates, a young Paladin named Clara Lewis, had requested to reap her son Percival after learning he was to die in a fire. Of course, I said no, and told her it was against the rules for her to even know of his impending death. She went behind my back and contacted her son. How I do not know, but someone had to have helped her. When the reaper who was supposed to handle Percival’s transition realized he was not there, he notified me immediately. I have since found that both Clara and Percival are missing.”

  “How long has she been dead?”

  “She died 20 years ago after drowning in the Atlantic, the boy was nearly ten,” he said. “He lived in London, so I searched the entire city for days. I tracked them by the small patterns of sudden violence before I lost him. Fortunately, there have been no human deaths so far.”

  “I’ll find them,” she said. Death, being the Great Reaper, could find any reaper in the world, at any time. She could even see the dead if they weren’t where they should be.

  She took one last sip from her tea and stood. Adofo involuntarily braced the arms of the chair as he watched the scythe form in her hand. The room grew cold, and Death leaned her head back to the ceiling, her eyes glowing white as she began her search for Clara.