Angel of Death: (Reaper Series, Book 1)

  FIGHT OR FLIGHT?

  Peyton stood at the edge of the island, staring out at the endless nothing, resting against one of the giant stone pillars. Darius, remaining by the pool with Fate, his arms crossed over his chest, wanted to go see if she was okay, but knew that she needed time alone. She needed to process. She had been through more than most in the course of a day, only to discover that the fate of the universe rested on her shoulders. One thing Darius was certain of, though, was that Peyton would not have to lose her soul to Azrael. He would find a way. There had to be another choice. No matter what Fate said.

  Darius tore his gaze from Peyton and looked back at the pool. Fate scurried around him, seemingly oblivious to the despondency of Darius and, especially, Peyton. Fate continued her task of testing humanity, giving them choices to make that would ultimately lead to their deaths and their fates. Whatever Fate could see in the pool, Darius was blind to it. He frowned at the calm water, seeing nothing but the ethereal light shining up into the sepulchral cave. He continued to stare into the water, thinking hard, trying to figure out if there was anything else he could do, if there was any way around the destiny that Fate had foreseen for Peyton. The pool’s light shimmered on his face as he frowned down at it, the blue light shifting the shadows of his features on his face, reflecting in his dark eyes.

  “What are you doing?” Fate said. Darius started to respond, but then Fate kept talking and he realized that she was talking to herself again. “That’s too easy, they know better than that. Ah, but they haven’t been tempted like this before, this could test them well. I for one feel certain they will give in to temptation if it presents itself. No, he’ll be fine. Let’s see what he does.”

  Then Fate fell silent and began shuffling around the pool once more. Darius tried to think of how he could help Peyton now. Fate had obviously gone off the deep end long ago, maybe she could be wrong about Peyton and her choices. But who was left to help? Eve couldn’t stop Azrael. Charon refused to get involved. And where was Heaven in this? If the fate of everyone on Earth and in Heaven depended entirely on Peyton, then why wasn’t anyone getting involved?

  “Darius?”

  Darius looked up from the pool and saw Peyton walking slowly towards him, her hands shoved into her jeans pockets. Darius walked around the pool to meet her. She looked dejected, beaten. She didn’t seem to stand as tall as she did before. Darius looked into her eyes and suddenly realized that the blue in her irises was also flecked with green. The green that all Angels seemed to have in their eyes.

  “Darius, I think…” Peyton began, but seemed to falter. She took a quick breath and started over. “I know what I need to do.”

  Darius knew what she was trying to say before she could say it. He was already shaking his head, denying her decision. “No. No, Peyton, no, you can’t give Azrael your soul. If you give him what he wants, he’ll have the power to annihilate Earth and Heaven. Your soul inside him is a conduit for all the souls on Earth, he can’t be allowed to have it. He can’t be allowed to wield that power.”

  “But you heard what Fate said,” Peyton argued. “If he takes my soul by force, then he’ll be that much more powerful. But if I give it to him, then the rest of the world has a chance. You might be able to beat him. You and Eve and everyone else, you could all overpower him.”

  “He’d still have your soul, Peyton,” Darius said sadly. “Do you understand what that means? It’s not like you would just fall asleep and not know what’s going on around you. You would be trapped in a dark place deep inside Azrael’s own soul, where he would keep you locked away, able to see, to think, to feel, but unable to do anything. You would experience first hand everything Azrael does with that power, as though it was you personally committing each act of destruction. How can you think to do that to yourself?”

  “Because I have to, Darius,” Peyton snapped, suddenly angry. “How can I keep fighting when I know that resisting will only kill everyone else? But if giving my soul willingly means that I can save even a few people, Angels or mortals, then I have to do it. Can’t you understand that?”

  Darius, overcome with a sad desperation he had never known, found himself lost for words. He knew Peyton was right, but he didn’t want her to be. He glanced wildly around the cave again, looking from Peyton to the pool to Fate herself, who was still shuffling around the pool in a ceaseless frenzy, completely ignoring the two of them.

  “Please, Peyton,” Darius begged. “Please. Don’t do this. Just… just give me one last chance. We can… We can go to Heaven. We can speak to Shekinah. She must be able to help. She has to! How can Heaven just stand by and let this happen?”

  “This is Peyton’s test, Peyton’s choice,” Fate sang from the pool. “Heaven will not interfere with the choices of mortals. Free will and all that.”

  “Damn free will!” Darius shouted. “Heaven faces extermination as much as Earth does and they won’t do anything? This isn’t just about allowing mortals to make their own decisions, this is about the entire universe! Humans, Angels, everyone will be destroyed if something isn’t done! It can’t be like this! It can’t! It…”

  Darius trailed off, suddenly exhausted. He seemed to deflate, his shoulders slumping and his head hanging down. He lifted his hands and ran them over his short hair, groaning in frustration and desperation. Peyton stepped closer and gently held his arm, squeezing encouragingly. Darius slowly looked up at her. For the first time in over two-hundred years, he could feel tears welling up in his eyes. Peyton smiled kindly, offering Darius support and her eyes expressing more comfort and gratitude than any amount of words ever could.

  “If you are planning on allowing Azrael to take your soul,” Fate chimed, “then I suggest you leave this island as quickly as you can.”

  “Why?” Peyton asked. “Azrael is probably coming to us, right? Why not just wait for him?”

  “Because, deary,” Fate snapped, the angry side of her personality suddenly at the surface, “if a soul is free of its mortal shell anywhere near Tartarus for even an instant, then he might think that it has escaped from his depths and drag it back under. Tartarus runs all around, under and through this island, his power reaches far and wide. Mortals do not come here. Tartarus is unfamiliar with them. But a soul, he can recognize. And all the souls he knows are trapped inside of him. Is that what you want, mortal?”

  “Maybe we better leave, then,” Peyton said, looking back to Darius, thinking of the silently screaming face she had seen during their crossing to the island.

  “But Azrael is likely to be back the way we came,” Darius said. “We can’t possibly get back to the boat without running into him.”

  “There is another way,” Fate sang. “One needs only to ask Fate to show the way.”

  “You can get us out of here?” Peyton asked.

  “Of course-of course-of course!” Fate cackled. “This way, this way!”

  She gestured for them both to come closer. They walked over to her side at the pool and she grinned a toothy grin at them both. Then she turned to the pool and, taking a deep breath, blew one fast exhalation of breath at the water. The surface rippled like she had thrown a large stone into it and the glowing blue water suddenly swirled and swirled and became a small whirlpool, with no bottom in sight.

  “Jump in, jump in, jump in!” she cried.

  “Where does it go?” Darius asked.

  “Back to Earth, fool, now go!”

  Looking at Darius, Peyton shrugged. Then she stepped off the edge of the pool and jumped feet-first into the swirling vortex. There was a flash of light and she was gone. Darius moved to follow her, but suddenly felt a tight grip on his arm. He turned and saw Fate, the frail old woman who had lost her mind, holding him with surprising strength.

  “Remember, Reaper,” Fate began, sounding stern. “Remember what we told you. It is the choices made that determine one’s fate. Everyone’s choices will be respected and the outcome unchangeable. Remember.”

  Then she
let go, stepping backwards, still staring at Darius with fierce eyes. Darius turned back to the pool and jumped in. A few moments passed where his entire field of vision was taken up by a bright blue light, spinning around and around. Then, suddenly, the light blinked out and he found himself a few feet above the ground, falling. He landed on his feet and looked around. Peyton stood nearby, leaning against a tree to regain her balance, the trip apparently having made her dizzy. Darius looked around at their surroundings.

  “Where are we?” he asked aloud.

  Peyton stood up straight and looked around as well. Then she turned to Darius. “Central Park, I think,” she said.

  They were standing in New York City’s Central Park. From where they stood, Darius could see the lights of New York City at night, lighting up the otherwise dark sky. It must have been very late at night, given the fact that it was extremely dark and there was no one around.

  “So, what now?” Peyton asked. “Should we just… wait here for Azrael?”

  She looked pale and Darius could see her hands were shaking. As though she realized he had noticed, Peyton folded her arms and hid her hands from view.

  “Peyton,” Darius began.

  “Darius,” Peyton snapped back. Then she sighed, realizing that she had sounded harsh. “Look. I know this isn’t ideal. But like Fate said. It’s my choice. I have to do this. But… Can I ask you to do a couple of things for me?”

  “Yes, Peyton. Anything.”

  “Could you find my mom?” Peyton asked, sounding like she was close to crying. “I don’t talk to her much anymore, being so busy at the hospital and everything. I just wanted… to let her know that I love her. And that I’m sorry I didn’t visit or call more. She always felt guilty about not being able to afford Harvard for me, but I never blamed her. Could you let her know that? And no matter what happens after tonight, could you… Do you think you could…”

  “I’ll look out for her,” Darius said softly. “To the best of my ability, I’ll make sure she is safe. And that she knows what you did for the world.”

  Peyton nodded. It seemed the tears were finally beginning to become too much for her and she turned away from Darius to wipe them away. She took a shaky breath, trying to regain control of herself. “There’s one last thing.”

  “Whatever I can do, Peyton.” Darius felt as though he might have been about to cry as well. He felt a burning lump in his throat and a prickling sensation behind his eyes.

  Peyton turned back to face him, her eyes brimming with tears she could barely contain. “Could you stay with me? Until the end?”

  Finally, it was too much for Darius. A single tear began to roll down his cheek as he replied, his voice thick with emotion. “Until the end.”

  Peyton moved closer to him then and wrapped her arms around him. He embraced her in a firm, but gentle, hug and held her, waiting for the end to come.