“That was the curse’s undoing,” I replied, my soul riddled with shame and raw fury. They’d played me. They’d played me like a fiddle, and I’d danced to their secret tune without even knowing it. “I had to read the book she was locked in…”
“Exactly!” Filicore exclaimed, throwing his head back as he laughed.
The Temple of Roses was gone. A massive pile of white powdery dust and rubble remained, with the occasional glimmer of black or gold enamel that had decorated the World Crusher’s interior friezes. She emerged from the middle of that pile, clad in a dress made of flowing, white-diamond dust that was somehow held together in the form of fabric. It flowed off her like a dream. Her hair was liquid gold, her eyes held the stars, and she was free.
The World Crusher was free, and I’d been the fool to do it.
Unending
I had a hard time processing a single coherent thought.
The World Crusher stood before us and… oddly enough, the anger that had stabbed me this whole time was gone. Removed from the confines of that ancient seal, she was remarkably calm. Almost serene.
Her beauty was unparalleled. I’d always thought of Death as a wondrous vision—and I had often been compared to her—but the World Crusher was something else entirely. Her oval face was the epitome of delicacy. Her lips plump and pink. Her eyebrows the color of liquid gold like her hair, slim and elegantly arched over her galaxy eyes. Her skin carried the faint sheen of mother-of-pearl, and the diamond-fiber dress poured off her broad shoulders in mesmerizing waves that rippled over the ruins on which she stood.
A single black thread snaked its way down from one shoulder to the tip of her pinkie finger, where the sleeve ended in a glove. She brought that hand up and tucked a lock of liquid gold behind her ear, smiling at me. “I can breathe again. It’s been so long,” she said.
The World Crusher was free, and no matter how many times I settled on the concept, it refused to stick. The reality was right here in front of us, yet I barely registered the truth. The awful truth. I was responsible. Without any knowledge, of course, but I had done this.
“You played me,” I murmured, briefly looking at the Ghoul Reapers.
Eneas gave me a shrug. “I do what I can. No hard feelings, I hope. You’ve been wonderful company, but we just had to get out of here.”
“Do not fault them for this,” the World Crusher gently intervened. “I’m the one who told them how to break the seal. I took pity on their misery. Imagine being locked up for so long… Wait…” she paused as if to read my mind, and I could almost feel her wiggling through my head. “You know exactly what it’s like.”
“This isn’t right,” I said, my voice trembling. “None of this is right. Death locked you up for a good reason. You were—”
“Out of control? Unhinged?” she cut me off. “Obviously. I was young and foolish and tempestuous, I agree. But to keep me down here for millions and millions of years… No, Unending, that is a monstrous thing to do. I did not deserve it.”
“You killed living people to gain access into Purgatory,” Tristan replied, his brow furrowed as he stared at her. He was just as stunned, but somehow he mustered more strength than I had. I could barely string enough words into a coherent sentence. “How long do you think you deserved for the dozens of lives you snuffed out?”
“I’m not here to be judged by you, vampire,” the World Crusher shot back, the humor briefly fading from her beautiful face. I immediately feared for my husband’s safety. There was something about her voice that made every word sound like a threat. “I am free now. That’s all that matters. I need not explain myself to you. I need not win over any of you. I am free, and I shall go.”
“Wait, go where?” I managed, a sense of urgency coming over me.
The World Crusher gave me a sad smile. “I don’t want any of this. I just want to go back to who I used to be before my anger wiped out an entire realm. I want freedom and peace and quiet, that’s all.” She glided down the rubble pile, her diamond dress capturing the sunlight as she moved. “Don’t let her get away with any of this…”
She meant Death. And I didn’t have an answer.
“Don’t let her get away with it,” she insisted. “All this nonsense, it could have been avoided. Death must be held accountable, Unending. I don’t want to be the one to do it. You’ve seen it all. You’ve seen the truth. You know what she did. You understand how many terrible secrets she has kept…”
“What secrets?” I asked deliberately. “You’ve been locked in here for a long time. What secrets are you talking about?” It couldn’t be the soul fae or Thezin. The World Crusher had not been present for any of it. My undead synapses flared as certain connections were made, but the shock of this entire scene made it very difficult for me to put anything together.
“Just don’t let her get away with this,” the World Crusher repeated. A moment later, as the morning winds rose and the white dust settled, she was gone.
The Ghoul Reapers cheered and clapped, wishing her the best as the consequences of my actions began to scream in the back of my head. I was helpless. I had failed. Tristan held my hand, and I wanted nothing more than to lose myself in his embrace, maybe even pretend that none of this had happened. “We have to do something,” he whispered.
“You’re funny,” Eneas chuckled. “There is nothing you can do. The World Crusher is free, and so are we. I suggest you head out as well and find yourselves a place to hide. Death will be pissed!”
That wasn’t an option for me. Death would always find me if she wanted. This time, I’d kept her at bay with what I’d thought were white lies. But this whole affair had resulted in the release of the World Crusher. I’d have to tell Death about it eventually. “Good grief.” I shuddered and rubbed my face as if waking up from a nightmare. “I can’t believe this…”
“Believe it,” Eneas retorted, then waved us both goodbye.
He vanished, and so did the other Ghoul Reapers, Hadras included. They’d taken him with them, so he might heal elsewhere, a free being. Suddenly, Tristan and I were the only two souls left on Biriane. Silence weighed heavily on us both as we tried to come to terms with what had happened. Death had not been an idiot. She’d made me into a key for the seal because she’d thought I would never set foot in this place. Had it not been for Anunit, I probably would’ve never learned about Biriane or the World Crusher.
Death had thought this through carefully. However, she underestimated one very spiteful Reaper. I wondered what she would do once I told her the World Crusher was free again. Anunit was mediocre compared to me, but the World Crusher was a powder keg of atomic power. And she had one hell of a grudge against Death. Funny how a determined little Reaper could tip the balance of the universe itself.
“I take it you didn’t see this coming,” Anunit’s voice cut through the sky as she materialized beside me. Hot fury took over, and I brought my scythe up to her throat with enough speed to make her freeze.
“You knew,” I said, gritting my teeth.
Anunit was still, her hands up in a faint defensive gesture. Tristan moved around cautiously, measuring her from head to toe. “You look different,” he said, and he was absolutely right. Anunit had put on a new Reaper uniform, a catsuit that was half white and half black, the fabric so thin it seemed as though she had been glazed with it.
“I do look different,” the Reaper replied, long hair made of gold cascading down her back. “And no, I had no idea about any of it. I just… I knew the World Crusher could communicate through that book, and I figured she’d tell you how to break the seal.”
I pressed the blade of my scythe into her skin. Another millimeter, and I’d cut her. “That’s a load of crap.”
“No, it isn’t, I swear!” she replied, terrified. “She never talked to me directly! She only talked to the Ghoul Reapers, and they’re the ones who suggested I bring you over. I didn’t know how to break the seal!”
“Didn’t the Ghoul Reapers give you any reas
on why they wanted her here?” Tristan asked. He wasn’t ready to trust her, either. Not after what had just happened. We’d been blindsided, and this was a hard shame to come back from because we felt used. We felt like fools.
“I wanted the World Crusher free, don’t get me wrong,” Anunit said. “But I also wanted you to be the one to make that decision because, well, you always thought you were the first. This had to mean something to you.”
I moved closer, the blade demanding Reaper flesh. “Why did you want the World Crusher free, Anunit?”
“Because she deserved it. An eternity inside that stupid book? Come on. She never threatened anyone, she never torched an entire world… everything that happened here was because of Death’s stupid choices!” she said, raising her chin and straightening her back, galaxy eyes peering right into mine. “I wanted her to be free so that the whole world would know what a liar she really is. I wanted you to see for yourself. I did you a favor, Unending. It might not look like it now, but I did you a favor.”
I moved away from her, utterly disgusted. Every inch of me ached with humiliation and powerlessness. But I wasn’t sure what to believe. Anunit had not fooled me as badly as Death. Anunit had been pursuing her own agenda this entire time, and the more I learned about it, the clearer it became that she had a bone to pick with my maker. She claimed she wanted me to see Death for who she truly was, but she had accomplished that by revealing the existence of the true first Reaper. So what was her real reason for tricking me into releasing the World Crusher, too?
“What is it you really want? Chaos?” I asked, running a hand through my hair as I moved closer to Tristan. His close proximity helped me stay calm, and I needed myself wholly put together for whatever would follow.
Anunit shook her head. “No. I was going to forfeit the third trial if you told me you wouldn’t set the World Crusher free,” she said, and as much as I hated to admit it, she sounded genuine. Of course, I wasn’t a lie detector myself, but I’d learned enough about people and Reapers in particular to at least suspect deception when it was present. I was getting nothing from Anunit. Either she was honest, or she was the universe’s most accomplished liar. “Honestly. I just wanted you to read the World Crusher’s story. From the moment I learned about her, I knew Death had to be punished for this and her many other failings. When you came to me asking for a body… I thought the universe was basically telling me to have at it!”
I froze, picking up on something. “Wait. When did you learn about the World Crusher? And from whom?”
“It wasn’t the Spirit Bender, if that’s what you’re wondering,” she replied dryly. “He had heard faint rumors, but never any leads worth pursuing. I was the crazy one who followed up, chasing down even the quietest whispers. Lo and behold, I found Biriane, spoke to the Ghoul Reapers, yadda, yadda… The rest is history.” Anunit sighed. “Listen, I’m sorry it turned out this way. Like I said, the trials were a way for me to give you a truth I wasn’t sure you’d accept under different circumstances. I know Reapers worship Death. I used to think the world of her myself until I started pulling the shades back. The more light came through, the better I could see.”
None of us said anything for a while. I wasn’t sure what to believe anymore. I wanted to believe Anunit because it was easier than believing I’d been played for the universe’s utmost fool. I wanted to believe Anunit because it would mean I hadn’t made a colossal mistake. Death had made colossal mistakes, and she had absolutely failed at repairing them. This was a test of my character. How would I proceed, now that the crap had so viciously hit the fan?
“The World Crusher is free, though,” Anunit spoke up after a while. “Technically speaking, you did complete the trials, and I do owe you a living body. I’ve kept my end of the bargain. I have made you a living body, especially for you. It took some work, but the genetic material is strong enough to hold your Reaper spirit.”
“I can’t even talk about this right now,” I replied, waving her away. I kissed my husband’s cheek. “I need to be alone for a little while.”
Without sticking around to hear the reply, I walked away from the rubble and lost myself in the silence of this dead city. This was beyond my control now. There was nothing I could do to revert everything back to how I’d found it. She was gone. The ghouls were gone too. And Death… Crap, I had to tell Death.
Some minutes tumbled by like rolls of dust as the temperature rose toward noon. The city was a silent white splendor, and about fifty yards behind me, the Temple of Roses had been destroyed. After millions and millions of years, only a pile of stones and dirt and broken gemstones remained. I walked for a while longer, trying to get my thoughts together.
Yes, Death needed to know.
I’d lied to her, and it would likely cost me dearly, but if I were to be honest with myself, I did not regret coming here or learning the truth. I only wished I’d known about what it would take to break the seal. Sitting down, I crossed my legs and closed my mind off from everyone and everything to focus solely on Death. This would be an awkward conversation.
“Unending,” her voice came through like a pleasant melody in the back of my head. “How are things? Have you completed your task for Anunit?”
“I lied,” I said, cutting right to the chase. There was no point in stringing her along, anyway. Death had always detested being coddled. “I’m on Biriane.”
The silence that followed nearly broke me.
“I’m afraid I underestimated Anunit,” Death finally replied, her tone flat and devoid of emotion. I wasn’t sure what to make of it. “She led you to the World Crusher, didn’t she?”
“Yes. And I didn’t tell you because—”
“Because you were mad at me,” she sighed. Holy crap. She’d seen this coming somehow. Maybe not now, maybe a hundred years ago, but this was not the reaction of someone who’d been utterly blindsided. “It’s not hard to figure that one out. First, the soul fae, then Thezin. And now, this…”
“Yes. I needed to know the truth, and I couldn’t trust you to give me that. You’ve been lying your ass off this whole time.” That wasn’t what I had planned to say, but her calmness brought out the worst in me. I quickly shifted back to my truth, almost crying. “I released her. I didn’t realize it, I was just reading her pages…”
“Oh, Unending…”
“I set her free. I’m sorry.”
Silence again. I hated it. I would’ve preferred Death to be angry. I would’ve liked to see furious lightning fracture the skies. My skin freezing. My spirit quivering in fear. But nothing happened. I was still sitting in the white dust, waiting for my maker to say something after my monumental screw-up. My anger had dwindled into my own sense of failure, and I could no longer count on myself to hold Death accountable for the lies, considering what I’d just done.
“Had you told me the truth from the beginning, had you told me where you were, I would’ve been able to warn you about breaking the seal,” she said.
“Would you have warned me, though, or would you have simply summoned me back with no explanation?” I was shocked to have found the strength to confront her on this.
“Considering who was under that seal and that you weren’t there by some harmless coincidence? I would have warned you,” she replied, and I hated her for being right. “This only proves that I cannot fully trust you, Unending. You meant well. I know you did, but you let the World Crusher go.”
I would’ve liked a fiery comeback for this, but there wasn’t one. Only the awful truth and my desire to repair the damage I’d unwittingly inflicted upon the world. “I can fix it.”
“How? You don’t even know where she went or how to find her,” Death replied, slightly amused. “Anunit played you, my dear. I hope you understand now why she is so dangerous. It’s not just about the Reapers she’s resurrected. It’s that she’s resourceful and spiteful and reckless.”
I sighed. “Yeah, I see that. What about the World Crusher?” This wasn’t the time to argue
with Death, and I was perfectly capable of beating myself up over this without bringing Anunit into it. I figured I’d stick to the issues at hand. “She’s loose.”
“I’ll handle her,” Death said. “Do not trouble yourself over the World Crusher. She is my problem, and I will take care of it. I should have done this ages ago, but I prolonged her misery in a desperate and foolish bid to avoid dealing with mine, so… here we are. My first creation free and likely itching to avenge herself. My second creation embittered and disappointed. It’s my fault. No one else’s.”
I wasn’t sure what to make of her words. She sounded genuine, but maybe she was saying these things to soften me up a little. Or maybe now that the cat was out of the bag, Death was finally showing a hint of humility for all the wrongs she’d done. I wanted to stay angry, but the thought of the World Crusher out there sort of took the edge off. “How will you take care of the World Crusher? Do you know where to find her?”
“Did I not just tell you not to trouble yourself over this?” Death chuckled, but this was serious. I knew it. She just didn’t want me involved, and I had to wonder why. Was this her way of punishing me, perhaps? Or did she worry I might get cold feet and further impede any attempt to capture the World Crusher? Either option hurt me on a deeper level, but I couldn’t exactly blame her, either. “The World Crusher is my problem, Unending. Stay out of it. Now, back to Anunit, where do you stand with the trials? I presume it involved your presence on Biriane.”
I let out another heavy sigh. “Freeing the World Crusher was the third trial,” I said, then gave Death every detail of the operation, from the moment we arrived until I watched the true first Reaper disappear, followed by the Ghoul Reapers. I held back any reproach about them and the suffering they had endured. I wanted to look Death in the eyes for this particular conversation, and I’d made too big an error here to hold any moral high ground, at least for the time being.
A Shade of Vampire 90: A Ruler of Clones Page 20
