School of Deaths (22 page)

“A lot’s missing from that,” said Frank. “Like what it has to do with you, or your visions. Was the ’Mental revolt a coincidence, or is it related? Don't forget that Sindril was in this house, apparently talking to someone. I still say we need to get in that office.”

“Maybe he was talking about the Key,” said Suzie. “Maybe some ’Mentals found out and he punished them. Or maybe it had nothing to do with all this, though it happened at the same time. I’m not sure, but I agree with Frank.”

“You what?” Billy stared at her. “You honestly expect us to march into East Tower, find Sindril’s office, and search…for what exactly?”

“I’ll know when I see it,” said Suzie. “And I’m the one who has to go.”

“Why you?” asked Jason.

“Because he invited me.”

“He what?”

“The first day of school, when I was upset, he told me to come to him any time I needed help. I’m going to do just that.”

“And then what?” asked Billy. “You ask him if you can search his office? Please, Headmaster Sindril, I suspect you of plotting something awful. I’d like to search around a bit?”

Suzie took a deep breath.

“I had an idea,” she said. “It’s honestly a long shot, but still might work. What’s the one thing that would force Sindril out of his office?”

“The end of the world?” asked Billy.

“Close,” she said. “The only thing that would get him out is another attack. Like the attack in the Hall.”

“But the ’Mentals aren’t even allowed to be servants now,” said Jason. “You heard the announcement today. Besides, how would we get them to attack?”

“You remember how angry Sindril got,” said Suzie. “When they attacked he went berserk. His scythe probably opened up Billy’s face. We need to replicate that, and make sure it starts right when I’m in his office. I’ll pretend to be afraid. I’ll ask to stay, and remind him how I was…” She paused for a moment, trying not to picture Athanasius’s blood. “How I was kidnapped, and he saved me.”

“That’s crazy,” said Billy.

“Absolutely insane,” added Jason.

“But it also might work,” said Frank. “One group could attack,
if
we could find a way to get them on campus.”

“Don’t tell me you’re friends with any ’Mentals,” asked Billy.

“The ’Mentals who attacked were all men,” said Frank. “And a lot of them were killed, and maybe even imprisoned. But they have to have families. Wives and relatives.”

“You want to start a revolt with women?” asked Jason.

“Not any women,” said Frank. “Female Elementals. Remember Cibran Alfar?”

“Your ’Mental friend,” said Suzie, “the one who mentioned the Dragon Key.”

“Before they stole his mind, Cibran told me a few things about the Elementals. He said women in his home were even more powerful than men. Suzie’s plan might work, since we don’t need a revolt to succeed.”

“What we need is a distraction,” said Billy.

“And while he’s out of the office—” started Jason.

“It still sounds too risky,” said Billy.

“Let’s take one step at a time,” said Frank. “If we do this plan, we need something big before we can even dream about starting. Hell, it might take us until the end of term.”

“What do we need?” asked Jason.

“To find the ’Mentals,” said Suzie.

The Reaping

Suzie’s excitement lasted for three months before it started to fade. The school was apprehensive, and she hadn’t found a single opportunity to sneak away and look for the ’Mentals. They’d had meetings in the library twice more, but had only affirmed the plan. Even Jason and Billy wanted to help find the ’Mentals. Frank and Billy knew the general direction, but they weren’t sure how far away they’d have to travel. If they left the College for more than a day, they’d be noticed. It was already March. They didn’t have much time left.

Suzie suspected they’d be noticed whatever they did. She couldn’t tell if Deaths were following her, but she did notice people watching her more than usual. Sindril wasn’t letting down his guard. Every time she went to the library, she expected an encounter. Frank had suggested a new meeting place, but she refused to give in to fear.

The guard over the College was even worse. ’Mentals had been banished from campus, which meant no more servants at all. Everything took longer, as Deaths got their own food, did their own cleaning, and had to find their own supplies. Anxiety hung over the school. No one was sure who had died in the revolt, but some students whispered that as many as a dozen Deaths had been killed. No one asked how many ’Mentals had died.

“I understand your nerves,” said Hann, “but this Reaping will be crucial.”

Suzie tried to focus on the teacher, but kept drifting into fears about their plan. How would they find the ’Mentals? How could they convince them to help? She
had
to get into Sindril’s office. Yet even if she did, what was she looking for?

“Suzie,” said Hann. “Are you listening?”

“Yes, sir,” she lied.

“You gonna let a girl like her Reap a soul?” said Luc. “She’ll probably break down crying.”

“I’m sure Suzie will be fine,” said Hann.

“Hell, the poor soul will take one look at Billy’s face and get freaked out. They’ll tear themselves right off their corpse. Suzie won’t even need a scythe.”

Suzie was used to mockery and hated watching Billy suffer it. He looked at his feet while a few Deaths chuckled.

“That’s enough, Luc,” warned Hann.

Frenchie put a hand on his brother’s shoulder and shook his head. He glanced at her, but she looked away.

“The Reaping begins tomorrow,” said Hann. “Same groups, but the first years will do the actual act. This will be your only Reaping for this year. Make it count. Should any of you pass your Final Test, you will never have to Reap again. A year of your life traded for a single reaped soul. Of course, none of you will pass.”

I
will
.
And
I’ll
bring
down
Sindril
before
I
go.

* * * *

“You ready?” asked Billy. He wore a mask over his face, showing only his eyes. He had insisted on covering his face to help the soul feel at ease. If they were transporters, they didn’t want to frighten their passenger.

“You can do this,” said Frank. His calm manner reassured her. He looked at her with his deep brown eyes and freckled face. She nodded and straightened the sleeves of her black robe.

She walked to Hann who stood in the center of the class. He handed her a long scythe, even taller than she was. It was light in her hand; the handle danced with energy. The blade slid through the air like sunlight through water. Life flowed down from the blade, coursing through the handle, sending tingles into her arm. Sweat beaded in her palms and trickled from her forehead.

“Let the scythe do the work,” reminded Hann, “and you’ll be fine.”

She nodded and walked back to her group. She tied herself to Frank and Billy using a tether. Then she held the scythe in her hands and paused.

This was ridiculous. She was a thirteen-year-old girl, a kid from Maryland, holding a scythe. Not some costume piece, but an actual,
working
scythe. Now she, Suzie, was supposed to Reap a soul. Even her mysteries with Sindril and the Dragon Key suddenly seemed trivial.

“Good luck,” said Frank.

She adjusted her grip and adjusted again. The tingles in the scythe grew stronger, itching her hands and arms.
It’s
ready
.
It
wants
to
swing
;
to
do
its
job
. She moved her hands a third time and Frank glanced at Billy. Billy adjusted his mask.

“What’s the matter,” taunted Luc behind her. “Is the little girl scared?”

She clutched the handle and let the blade fall. She hardly moved, but the blade shot downward, slicing air, light, heat, even thought. For an instant, her arm was on fire and the world vanished into darkness.

The smell of strawberries exploded around her as color, form, and details blurred into a single, unending stream of confusion. She heard the sound of screams in the distance, and tears. The scythe pulled her down, down, down between the worlds. She slipped past the twin suns of the In-Between and watched the Mortal World approaching. On the edge of her vision, she glimpsed two bright pools of green fire.

“You grow stronger every day,” said the eyes. “But the greatest challenge is yet to come.”

She tried to turn, but the scythe pulled her onward. She coursed through stars and space, beyond time and emotion. Lighter than a daydream, she slipped through a crevice: the gap between light and shadow. The blade twisted, finding its way.

A face appeared before her: an elderly man she didn’t recognize. Somehow, she sensed a name: Elias Stoneridge.

She landed hard, stumbling as her feet hit a tiled floor. Beads of white light trickled off the blade.

For a moment, she couldn’t tell where she was. She heard beeps and the slow intake of air.

Frank patted her on the shoulder. “You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

“Remember, don’t let anyone else see us,” said Frank, looking around the hospital room.

Certified Deaths received special robes to help avoid mortal eyes. Ironically, the Deaths who’d inspired tales of the Grim Reaper throughout the ages had been students like her. Students
and
ones
who
didn’t
make
it
back
. She shuddered, remembering her skeletal appearance. It seemed long ago.

A man lay in a bed, connected to an array of tubes and machines. Suzie walked to the foot of his bed and read the name on his chart. “Elias Stoneridge.” The scythe quivered in her hand. The handle pulsed like a beating heart, or was that only her own heartbeat? No, the blade felt the soul, it was
hungry
.

“It’s his time,” said Frank, patting her on the shoulder. “Quickly, before someone comes.”

Elias’s eyes stared at her, but he seemed to look through her. He gasped for air and the machines behind the bed beeped.

“A nurse is coming,” said Billy, glancing into the hallway. “She’s only a few doors down.”

Suzie didn’t have time to think, but in a way, she didn’t have to. She didn’t even swing; she relaxed her muscles and stopped fighting the scythe. The blade leapt downward, straight through Elias Stoneridge. As it struck the weak stranger, she felt a strange sensation as the blade swam through the soul. For an instant, she swore she heard
chewing
, not from Elias, but from the blade itself. The scythe continued down through the floor, before swinging around. It pulled on her, jerking her into a stumble.

Elias sat up, his eyes wide with fear. His body lay on the bed and the machine let out a long, droll beep. The scythe tingled again.

“About time,” said the soul of Elias Stoneridge. “Past few days have been awful. What kept you?”

“Sorry?” said Suzie.

“Quick, quick,” said Billy.

The beeping and hiss of tubes grated on her. The blade at the end of her scythe turned slightly. Had she turned? No, the scythe was ready to go on. The tingling in the handle started to itch. Billy tugged on one of the tethers and waved his hands, telling her to hurry.

“Take my hand, please,” said Suzie.

“You lot are dressed a bit dark for angels. And where’re your wings?”

“Please, Mr. Stoneridge,” said Suzie. “We have to go.” She felt her strength failing her. She could barely stand. She was Reaping a soul. An old man she’d never heard of. A man she was taking from his family. She was taking him away to never come back.

Elias turned and peered at himself. “I am dead, right?”

“We are Deaths,” said Frank. “And we’re here to take you onward.”

“Deaths?” Elias laughed. “You mean like the skeletal guy on the lunchboxes? You bunch of kids? Don’t they teach angels better’n to lie?”

“Now, Suzie,” said Billy.

The door to the room opened and a nurse entered. She screamed and collapsed on the floor. Frank pushed Suzie’s hand into Stoneridge’s. The soul felt warm, but at least she could hold it. She let the scythe drop and the hospital vanished.

The ride back was agonizing.

Colors tore through her like swords, tearing through her, clawing the ghostly soul from her fingers. She clenched her hand, but felt Elias slipping away. No, she couldn’t lose him yet. No. Smells, sights, sounds, and sensations bombarded her in a whirlwind of confusion.

Two suns became two eyes of green flame, but they said nothing. Darkness clashed with light in a roar, and the student Deaths slipped between the lines of dreams. Suzie plummeted upward and downward, trying to break free. She held on as the manic scythe blade tore through time and space.

A
whirlwind
of
confusion.

A
world
of
lies
.

Cool grass slid beneath her shoes, and beads of light dripped from the blade again.

“That was fun,” said Elias Stoneridge. “But let’s not do it again.”

Behind her, the cliff soared impossibly high, cutting off half the world. The ocean stretched in front of her, flowing away toward the upward-flowing waterfall. The great iron doors in the center were closed, yet she knew Elias would be able to enter.

She’d only been here once before, but the place was unforgettable. The end of all things: the door to the Hereafter.

“Well if it isn’t the bitch and her pups,” shouted a voice. She spun around and Luc came toward her. He led a soul of his own, a middle-aged woman with blonde hair.

“Not now,” she heard Frenchie say.

“I’ll bet you botched it up already, didn’t you Suzie?” taunted Luc. She didn’t answer, though in truth he was right, they’d been seen.

“Finish the Reaping,” said Frank softly. “Ignore them.”

“How many Deaths we got here?” asked Elias. “Way I figure, you only need one.”