Chapter 2

2

For most people, traversing a portal lasted less than a second.

I wasn't most people. For me, it resembled more entering a vacuum of space. Nothing to see, just endless dark. Not a hint of light. Nor sound. Just extreme cold.

And the voice.

It didn't so much speak aloud as make itself heard.

Hello, Sadie.

Don't you "hello" me. You killed another reaper! Being confrontational might not have been my best choice, however, the pressure coming at me, not to mention the guilt, had me irate.

I killed no one.

Then where are the reapers? Three of them entered but haven't been seen since.

Our talismans worked by either bringing us to the anchor it had been paired with—for example the dais in the woods near the castle—or to a location we visualized. Reapers had been using them for centuries to get around the world.

I took the travelers to where they wanted to be.

No, you didn't, because they're missing.

Not missing. Simply not where you expected.

Don't play games with me. Where the fuck are they?

The one named Tom wished to see the home where he'd been born.

That didn't sound too bad, but it didn't explain why Tom hadn't contacted the guild. Given the voice didn't elaborate, I asked, Was there something wrong with Tom's home?

The place he visualized last existed thirty-four years ago.

Wait, are you saying you sent him back in time?

It was what he wished for.

And what, he stayed there?

I know not what he did after his arrival.

A non-answer which led to me demanding, What about the other two?

Lou wondered if it was possible to visit Mars and Marcus kept thinking about a sunken city recently discovered and wondering how it appeared when freshly constructed.

It took me a second to reply. You sent someone to Mars?

Yes. It was his desire.

Humans can't survive on Mars.

He knows that now.

Oh fuck. While I didn't get a hint of maliciousness in the reply, I couldn't help but rebuke. That wasn't very nice of you. You know full well those weren't the places they meant to visit, not to mention they would be deadly.

Then it shouldn't have been their most prevalent thought. I simply gave them what they desired. Unlike you, who made a promise and hasn't kept it.

Don't you get snotty with me, I mentally huffed. I've brought you several suitable bodies. Bodies, not people, because I didn't like to think of the fact I'd condemned them.

None of which proved suitable.

Maybe you should be more specific about what you need then because I don't want to sacrifice anyone else for nothing.

They must have some magic.

So a witch? The very thought repugned. I knew them all personally as witches didn't number many in the world given when their magic awoke they attracted demons. Most didn't survive that encounter.

Not just any witch. It would have to be a powerful one.

What about a reaper?

Same.

If magic is a prerequisite, then why not use the demon I brought?

Bringing me the lowest of the minions from Inferis? That was insulting. I could practically feel the disdain.

What if I captured a demon wizard?

I would prefer a form more suited for blending in with the human populace as I've chosen your world as the one most likely to please me.

The thought of a powerful entity roaming Earth didn't sit well with me, but I knew better than to say anything about my trepidation. Instead, I poked for different info.

Why won't you tell me your name?

Because it isn't important. I haven't been that person in a long time.

How did you get trapped in here?

I trusted poorly.

Betrayed. That sucked, but I had to wonder if the person doing the betraying had their reasons. I'm going to try and find you a suitable body, but in the meantime, no more disappearing reapers!

I don't understand your anger. I simply gave them what they wished for.

What they wished for wasn't to be taken from their life in this time to another or to a place that would kill them on arrival.

Very well. I shall ignore their desires. Apparently, a disembodied voice could sound salty.

Any way of returning them?

They would have to enter a portal for me to do so.

Wait, you mean none of them have tried to come back?

If they had, I would have delivered them. That is the only thing I have to do in here.

It led to me asking one more question. If you're the one directing folks who use the talismans, then how did the whole portal thing work before you were trapped?

Not very well. Only the most savvy and powerful could find their way.

How come you keep letting demons through doorways from Inferis to Earth?

Those are not magical openings such as your kind use, but rather rips between the dimensions.

What causes the rips?

The connection that exists between your world and theirs.

Can we sever that connection?

Not without much death.

It occurred to me it had yet to answer my initial question. Are you holding out for my body?

While yours would be ideal, it is understandable you wouldn't want me to use it. Although, I should mention, your spirit wouldn't be lost, merely enhanced by my own.

No thanks.

Then you need to find me someone suitable.

Working on it. It would help if I understood you better. It might give me some ideas on suitability. Like guy or gal? Any specific age?

When I lived, I wore a female form not much younger than you.

Were you human?

In appearance, yes, but I wasn't from Earth.

Where are you from originally?

So many questions about things long past. Things no longer important.

If you say so. I should return to the castle now. But before I go, another reminder: no more sending reapers to the wrong place.

Then tell them to be clearer about their intentions, came the huffy reply before I found myself thrust back into the world.

I blinked at the twilight, a surprising thing to see given I'd entered early afternoon in full sunshine. A grim-looking Cain stood with his arms crossed, waiting.

"Have you been standing here this entire time?" I asked as I headed for the house.

"Yes, although, I didn't expect you to be gone for hours," he growled.

"Neither did I. It only felt like minutes to me." I never knew the portal could play with time. I wondered if Nova was aware.

"Did you find the missing reapers?"

His question brought a grimace that twisted my lips. "I'm afraid I don't have good news on that front. Apparently, the reapers entered and rather than focus on their destinations, started thinking of other locations. The portal brought them to those places instead."

"So they're alive." He sounded so relieved, I hated to break the bad news.

"No, one of them is dead. The other two…" I paused before saying, "Back in time."

He stared at me. "Time travel isn't possible."

"Apparently, it is." I rubbed my forehead. "Where's Asher? He and Nova need to hear about this."

"Head to her office and I'll have someone fetch them."

I entered the castle but first diverted to the kitchen where the brownies scampered around, cleaning the dishes while chirping to each other. They could speak English, but they also had their own language.

Upon seeing me, Isadora, a petite brownie with her hair in braids, paused in her refilling of a saltshaker. "Messovenata, what can I fetch for you?" No matter how many times I told her to call me Sadie she insisted on using the honorific.

"Something to drink and a snack. I kind of missed dinner." My stomach grumbled about it.

"A moment, please." Isadora stuck two tiny fingers in her mouth and blew. The piercing noise cut through the din and as she chattered, a few other brownies leaped into action. In short order, I had a plate piled with leftover meat from dinner, cheese, and fresh-cut fruit. To drink, an insulated bottle filled with watermelon-infused water.

"Thank you." I pulled a Tootsie Roll from my pocket and held it out. "Bought you a treat." The castle didn't keep junk food stocked as Nova and Asher believed in feeding the witches and reapers wholesome meals, meaning nothing prepackaged. But the brownies loved their sweets so I kept a stash to give them.

Isadora beamed. "The messovenata is generous."

"More like you're awesome and deserve it. Thanks, Isa."

I left with my drink and plate of food, heading for Nova's office. The door was flanked by a scowling Cain and a slightly amused Vance.

"I told you to wait in her office," Cain grumbled.

I held up my plate. "I was hungry. Are they inside?"

In response, Cain flung open the door. Nova and Asher both eyed me the moment I entered. Asher looked hopeful. I hated to dash it.

"So I spoke to the voice in the portal," I said as I took a seat and balanced my plate on my knees.

"And, what happened to Tom?" growled Asher.

"Tom might still be alive, but about thirty-some years older."

My statement had them both blinking.

I took a bite of cheese and explained. "It would appear the reapers are giving out conflicting destinations when they're travelling. Tom, for example, wanted to see his childhood home, and so the voice took him to it." I paused. "In the past."

"Impossible," Asher barked, however, Nova looked more pensive.

"I assume the voice told you this," she said.

"Yes. It also said that Marcus wanted some ancient city before it got submerged placing him centuries in the past. As for Lou, he was thinking of Mars." I didn't add the obvious outcome.

Nova winced as Asher exploded. "It fucking killed them!"

"Yes." No sugar coating it. I did however add, "It claims it did as the reapers wanted."

"They wanted to live," Asher growled.

"Obviously. But at the same time, the portal works by depositing travelers to the destination they're picturing. If they're visualizing the wrong place?—"

"Then the attendant of the void that we didn't know about until you came along is simply obeying their wish," Nova murmured, taking over my statement.

"It is, but at the same time, it knew that wasn't where they meant to go. So I gave it shit and told it to knock it off."

My claim led to Asher snorting. "And if it doesn't? This thing obviously doesn't give a shit it killed my men."

"No, it doesn't, but it does care about the fact I've yet to keep my bargain with it."

"So, what? It's punishing my reapers because you haven't given it a body?"

"It didn't come out and say so, but given its actions…" I shrugged. "Seems likely."

"Has it given you any kind of direction as to what it wants in a physical form?" Nova queried.

"Yeah. It requested someone with magic. But not a demon."

"It wants a witch," she murmured.

"Or a reaper."

"Like fuck," Asher exclaimed. "I am not handing over any more of my men to this fucking voice."

Nova didn't have the same reaction. "I have to wonder why it doesn't just take a suitable body when we pass through."

I frowned. "That's a good question. I don't know why. I mean, we're at her mercy in there."

"Her?" Nova caught my word usage.

"I did manage to get the voice to tell me it used to be female, human in shape but not from Earth."

"Really?" Nova's brows rose with interest. "Anything else it admitted? You were gone a long while."

"Nothing else of interest. While I might have been gone hours, the conversation itself only lasted a few minutes."

"Don't care." Asher slashed a hand. "The portal is no longer safe. We need to find another way to move reapers around."

"The portal should be safe to use, but you need to hammer into their heads the fact they have to think—and I mean really fixate—about where they actually want to go. No wondering about the high school they used to attend or reflecting on other planets or places that no longer exist," I stated.

"Are you blaming my men for their demise?" Asher looked ready to throttle me, which said a lot given he usually had a calm demeanor.

"No. We both know the voice took liberties with their final destinations. But, knowing that, we can educate the reapers so that we hopefully avoid more incidents."

"This is bullshit," snarled Asher as he left the office.

Nova sighed as the door slammed shut. "He'd hoped for better news."

"So did I." Despite the tense conversation, I couldn't help but nibble on my food. "The voice did say something interesting. It claims that before it lived inside the cold place that travelling via portals used to be fraught with danger. That only the most focused made it from point A to B."

"That would match up with some of the older texts that cautioned their use."

"I also asked it why it kept letting the demons into our world and it claimed that they were using rips between our dimensions. And that to get rid of those tears would decimate a whole bunch of people."

Nova's brow knit as she pondered. "I wonder what it meant by that."

My shoulders rolled. "No idea. Getting clear answers from the voice isn't easy."

"Thank you for trying, though."

"Don't thank me. I'm the reason the voice is getting pissy. What am I supposed to do? I can't just hand over a witch." My lips turned down.

"We'll find a solution."

Nova sounded confident. If only it would rub off on me.