was extremely low, and every move that Herbert made caused puffs of white dust to swell around us before drifting aimlessly away.
From up close, the moon was even more beautiful. A sea of white, peppered with giant craters and the occasional mountainous chain. Nothing but dust and rocks, and not a single trace of water. Neraka rose to the east, huge and covered in its usual streaks of reddish brown and blue, with green patches and snowy poles and cloud blankets stretching for thousands of miles. Beyond it, the suns shone as one, almost blinding me.
The other two moons were barely visible to the west, two half-discs, one smaller than the other. But they didn’t have my full attention—the congregation of ghouls resting atop a cluster of jagged rocks did. They were about fifty yards away now, and they seemed quiet and sullen.
“It’s imperative that you keep quiet, going forward,” Herbert whispered as he cautiously approached them. Oh, that’s what you meant when you told me to keep my mouth shut earlier, no matter what, I thought.
The original ghouls were different than Herbert. From here, they seemed like enormous shadows, twice the size of a sentry—however, the closer we got, the better I could see. The shadows were mere illusions. These creatures were as tall as me, in fact, and they’d retained most of their humanoid features. It was stunning to witness. No one had ever been able to describe the original ghouls’ true appearance. The Nevertide original ghoul that my mom and her friends had dealt with had only been described as a shadow. He'd been powerful, downright monstrous, a sinister creature with terrifying abilities. Despite my initial annoyance regarding this detour, I had to admit, this was quite an opportunity.
I wondered if the reason why I could see them myself was because I was in my spirit form, seeing through Herbert’s eyes. I also wondered if these particular fiends were as powerful as the ones from Nevertide.
They were talking to one another, exchanging whispery words that didn’t make sense until Herbert got us even closer. They stilled and turned their heads to find Herbert standing still, his skinny arms in the air. He smiled at them—though I was pretty sure it looked grotesque from the outside.
Gee, thank you, darling, his voice echoed in me. I’d once again forgotten he could hear my thoughts.
The original ghouls were a wondrous and scary sight. They had the appearance of a sentry, or a human, but their skin was pale, almost translucent and smooth. Beneath it, I could see the myriad of bluish and black veins. Their eyes were sunken into their heads, big black beads that encompassed the night sky, much like Herbert’s, in that sense. They had long claws and fangs, too, and they still wore their Reaper garb. Black tunics with asymmetric white sleeves. I didn’t recognize the style.
“They used to be Reapers in the Witches’ Sanctuary,” Herbert whispered, then raised his voice. “Hello, brothers! Long time, no see!”
They eyed him suspiciously—all eight of them. Four had dark hair, two were gingers, and two were bald. Their cheeks were tall and sharp, causing shadows to be drawn down to their jawlines. Their fangs were longer than a vampire’s, visible and pressing against their lower lips. They were black, and I was willing to bet they could easily tear the flesh off a bone in seconds.
“Herbert?” one of them asked, narrowing his eyes at us. “Is that you?”
“Kill, you haven’t aged a day!” Herbert replied, recognizing the original ghoul. “I don’t know your friends, though. Your group had different members when I last saw you.”
Kill guffawed, throwing his head back. “That was back in the Witches’ Sanctuary, you knob!” He walked toward us, motioning to the others to stay where they were. I didn’t like how close he was getting. Herbert reacted to my fear and took a step back. Kill noticed and stopped, cocking his head to the side. “Don’t worry, man. I don’t bite.”
“I know, I know. You’ll have to forgive this old fool. My social skills are rusty,” Herbert replied. “So, what are you fellas doing here? Where are the others?”
Kill sighed. For a second, I wondered if Kill was his nickname or his real name.
Nickname. I never learned his real name, Herbert said, internally.
“They were caught by a black witch,” Kill said. “She caught our scent, started picking us off, one by one. I got lucky. But anyway, that’s ancient history. I’m here because I found