The Reaper In Black -- Chapter Three

To be a capable scientist in these times--especially a female scientist--one had to learn to several things. First, one needed to be cold, calculating, manipulative, deceitful, and make it a point to always be five steps ahead of everyone else. Second, scientists couldn't love; it got in the way of judgment and fogged up understanding. Third, scientists can never work for a singular person for any more than fifteen years. One could get too attached to a particular employer, which would violate the second rule.

Of course, scientists in her line of work weren't quite the same as normal scientists. Normal scientists studied flora and fauna to better human understanding, conducted minor tests on animals to try and find cures for illnesses, and worked to better humankind as a whole. Her type of scientist was slightly different.

Evora Traditoryn had carefully considered what she had wanted to be in life as a child. She recalled wanting to understand how everything worked; not just what plant was poisonous and what animal hunted another animal. She hadn't cared about water flow or city structures, either. Making weaponry was fun until your creativity and privacy were invaded by some royal turd wanting more Automatic Portable Projectile Machines and enhanced-strength swords. Inventing things to better human society... well, the very thought had made her sick. No, Evora had always been fascinated with them. Reapers, Morphers, Fallyn Anjils, Luminex--both Demonic and Celestial--Barons, Sarins, Aquilaires, Mistidels... their immortality, inhuman strength and mental power, amazing ability over the natural elements and human minds; even as a child, Evora had found herself entranced. She had searched for a line of science that would allow her to study these divine beings. It was this search that led her to Sanity Science.

While the field itself had a rather foolish name, the work Sanity scietists did was incredible and awful at the same time. When she was a little girl trying to find her way, unions between humans and nonhumans were forbidden. Of course, back then, these divine beings had barely begun to show themselves. Sanity scientists, despite the laws against it, decided to breed humans and nonhumans and record the results. What ended up happening was entirely new breeds--not the demigods from old legends they had expected, but pure mixtures between the two. Sometimes they weren't even mixtures; mix a human with a Reaper and you got an angel-winged child whose body never aged over five years, cursed to live in the body of a child for the rest of their lives. Mix a human and a Demonic Luminex and you'd get a child with white hair that could control all metals. The list went on and on, and so had the tests. Eventually Sanity members concluded that there was no definite way to determine what 'mixing breeds' would result in. A Reaper and a human one day might result in a winged child, but a human and a Reaper on another day might result in a Celestial Luminex. With that deduction made, Sanity scientists disbanded for the most part. What was the point in pursuing something that couldn't be controlled?

Evora was, alas, the last of her kind. The final Sanity scientist. Only, she wasn't interested in human-nonhuman mixtures and their results, as her predescesors had been. She wanted to know how they behaved under certain circumstanced. When their Master or Mistress was in danger, would they aid or flee? How close was their bond to their Master? How long did pacts between the two last? Could a human have more than one pact at a time, and could a nonhuman? What did the species as a whole call themselves? Where did they originate? Her list of questions was longer than the list of complaints the Queen got hourly, which was really saying something.

Evora was willing to go to great lengths to find answers; to further her understanding. The memory of her childhood... that last day of innocence before the incident... left her yearning to understand why. When those twin Reapers had attacked their small farming village; when they burned every building and person to the ground, including women and children; why had she lived? Why had those Reapers spared her? Where were they now? Too many questions. Not enough answers.

Yes, Evora had long ago decided she would back-stab, cheat, steal, and frame others to get her answers. She would spy, betray, observe, and cause havoc to turn a situation in her favor. So when she peered through her sight amplification goggles once more at the Queen sitting in the royal garden with her Reaper, Evora felt no remorse. Her interest had been captured, and what she saw here could better her standing later. As the Queen stood suddenly to stare into the eyes of her Reaper, EVora held her breath. When she slapped him, she released it. When she broke down crying, she inhaled once more. When the metal-supported bench she had been sitting on lit up with violet electricity and crunched up like a tin can; when the Queen's sobbing body lit up in the same-colored light; Evora exhaled.

The Queen gathered herself, allowed her Reaper to lead her back inside to her reading room, and left the bench demolished. What had just happened? Had the Queen... had the Queen just controlled metal? Had her anguish crushed the metal like a massive wave would crush a boat? Did that mean... did that mean her Queen was not entirely... human?

*****

Madam Viasra was the type of woman to suspect any and every nervous person. Even if they were naturally shy, she questioned them; why were they nervous? Did they have something to hide? Did it concern her or Her Majesty? What was the connection?

So many questions.

So when Dr. Akdel came into the castle dining hall for his breakfast, Madam Viasra was acutely aware of the fact his eyes were widened in an array of emotions. His lips were pressed tightly together, his shoulders were stiff, his stride was stiff and his usual care-free aurora was replaced by one of false happiness.

Dr. Akdel did not appear to notice the red-haired woman observe him from her seat in a dining chair. She wasn't surprised; the dining chair was one of two that sat around a tiny breakfast table. The table itself was mostly hidden by the shadow of the grand staircase that led up to the main hallways for the living quarters--both respected servants and otherwise--and the throne room. To the Madam's knowledge, the good Doctor hardly ever noticed her. She knew she was a strange and malicious character; it was a personality trait she had held onto for most of her life. A vicious bluntness and cold, calculating remarks were her trademark conversational replies. Someone would ask "How's the weather?", and she would simply bark out "Go look out a window". It made her undesirable to talk to, which is just how she liked it.

"Dr. Akdel, you're quite stiff this morning," the Madam cleared her throat, bringing an elegant teacup to her lips. The Doctor nearly jumped out of his skin, dropping both his plate of food and his cup of coffee.

"Sweet mercy, Madam, give a man some warning next time, why don't you?" Dr. Akdel exclaimed, bending over to pick up the glass shards. Madam Viasra snorted.

"I said something, didn't I? I could have just slipped up behind you and screamed my lungs dry."

Dr. Akdel only grunted at that.

"Well? What has you in a mess?" The Madam asked flatly, beginning to read the financial reports from last month's spending. The Queen appeared to have invested in several new ports to accept more trading vessels. Madam Viasra made a mental note to remind the Queen not to do anything else without first seeking out her advisors. If she was going to get paid, she was going to do her job. And letting the Queen buy whatever her heart desired was not her job.

"Her Majesty's Reaper has returned," the Doctor said forcibly.

"Ah. Well, it's a shame and all that Gladys had to die--I know you two were close and everything--but she disobeyed the Queen. And we all know what happens when you disobey the Queen; that woman has more panic-induced breakdowns than any other person I've seen in my life time. I mean, sure I understand why; she's not all that popular and could be cut down at any moment. But--"

"Gladys isn't dead!" He hissed, his eyes scanning all of the doors and the staircase in search of anyone listening in on their conversation. Madam Viasra choked on her tea and abruptly spat it out all over the floor, the table, and her financial report.

"What?!" She shouted, causing the Doctor to blanch. He abandoned any attempts on cleaning up his mess and walked swiftly closer to her.

"Mercy, woman, quiet down! With how loud you're being, a deaf man could hear you!"

"Firstly, that is preposterous, even for you. Secondly, how do you know Gladys is still alive, blast it!?"

"Look, I can sense them. You know, nonhuman beings. It's half the reason the Queen keeps me here under her employment as advisor. I can tell her when people are human, and when they are not. People like me are one of many results you can get from a union between a human and a nonhuman being; I know such unions are illegal in most places, but the Queen accepted the fact long before she hired me. When nonhumans--and even humans for that matter--stay near me too long, I... I suppose you could say I remember them. Sort of like elephants will always remember your scent; I always remember your energy aurora and can easily seek you out among the web of energies across dimensions. All energies are interconnected in some way, and they've always been there. I just happen to have the ability to find and locate specific energies. If a person dies, so does their energy; Gladys isn't dead!"

"Doctor, I must say I have never heard you talk so much in a single sitting before." Madam Viasra took a deep breath and held it for a few moments, her eyes squinted and studying him. "But... what does this mean? Did the Queen have a change of heart? That's the only reason the Reaper would return without killing Gladys, correct?"

"Unless the Reaper disobeyed the Queen," Dr. Akdel said, his expression wary but stern The Madam put her hand to her chest in shock, inhaling sharply.

"Akdel, please don't say that. The Reaper?! Have you lost your blasted mind, man?! He wouldn't betray her, not with how close he is to her. He would lose everything, including his life!"

"Forget the Reaper and his safety--We've left the Queen alone with that monstrosity! And..." Dr. Akdel trailed off and frowned, pulling a small notepad out of an inner coat pocket. He flipped through the pages, scanning the content as he went. "Isn't Her Majesty expecting a visitor? A candidate for another advisor since Gladys is now... let's just say 'absent' since we both know she isn't dead."

"Agreed. And, yes, she was expecting someone. They'll be here any moment. That creates the perfect excuse to go up and check on her..."

"...And get her away from the Reaper's company. Should we tell her?" Dr. Akdel looked unsure of himself, something the Madam didn't see often.

"No; she'd think we were both creating a plot against her and the Reaper. We can't risk it, Akdel."

"Alright. So... you get the Queen and I'll await the visitor's arrival."

Madam Viasra nodded, getting up from her chair and beginning her long walk up the stairs, down the many halls, and into the Queen's wing of the castle. As she approached the Queen's door, the Madam heard a woman scream some ways down the hallway to her left. Fear slammed into her gut like a block of lead, and her eyes widened. It couldn't be the Queen, could it?

Madam Viasra took off down the hallway towards the source of the noise, rounding the corner so fast she knocked an ornamental vase off of an end table. The sound of glass shattering hid the sound of Madam Viasra placing a hand over her mouth and shrieking louder than any banshee at what she saw.

*****

Dr. Akdel went to the castle's guest acceptance entrance and opened the door, intending to prop it open for the expected visitor. He nearly fainted from fear when he saw the tanned figure already standing outside the door.

"You scare easy," she purred, smiling. Dr. Akdel's eyes were immediately glued on her long canine teeth and animal-like aurora. He could almost feel the raw power oozing off of her like a sickness. A sleek black dress did nothing to hide the fact that she was dangerously muscular in a subtle way. At first, he thought she must be a Reaper. Then he became aware of the fact that she was covered in silver jewelry. Her long, pure-white hair cascaded down to just below her knees; silver chains and flexible silver bangles were woven into several thick locks of hair all the way down, each seeming as if it could slip out at any moment. Her slender fingers were covered in rings of varying sizes. Many of the rings supported different gemstones, but all were silver. Around her neck lay at least fifteen necklaces with different tightness; some were chokers where others were long. Her wrists were heavily decorated in silver bracelets and bangles. There was a reoccurring theme here: silver and jewelry.

"You're a Demonic Luminex," he whispered in awe. These were the rarest of their kind; a species driven nearly to extinction from lack of breeding and being hunted by humans and Celestial Luminex alike.

"It's a bit of a long name; we go mostly by DLs now, since it's shorter. Of course, 'DL' doesn't quite have the ring of Demonic Luminex, but one has to give a little to get a little. May I come in?"

"Umm... Yes. Yes, you may," Dr. Akdel stepped aside and let the woman pass, still staring at her in shock. How had the Queen managed to find a DL--let alone a DL that was willing to make a pact with her? At least, Dr. Akdel assumed there was a pact somewhere in the deal. A human couldn't boss around a DL without a pact, could they? "The Queen is upstairs, let me take you to he--"

A scream split the air like shattering glass. Dr. Akdel and the DL both froze, eyes wide and ears straining for any following sounds. Though it was instinct to wait and hear if there was a struggle going on, it was Dr. Akdel's concern for his Queen that drove him out of his trance and sent him running up the stairs. The DL followed on his heels, barely flinching when another scream erupted from someone else nearby. As he ran down the hall and rounded the corner, the Doctor prepared for the worst. The first scream for one's death, and a second scream for another's discovery. He begged whoever would listen for it not to be that...

"Madam?" He gasped breathlessly at the woman who stood motionless and pale in front of him, her eyes wide and filled with horror. She lifted a delicate gloved hand to point at the floor in front of her. Dr. Akdel looked at the place she had pointed to and held back a scream of his own.

The Reaper lay bleeding on the floor, his white hair stained red and his soul-stealing claws extended, with his Queen laying over him whimpering.

"A Reaper in black," the Queen cried, hiccupping from the tears. "A Reaper in black tried to kill me, and now my own Reaper is paying the price."