A Shade of Vampire 84 A Memory of Time - Bella Forrest Page 0,29
light exploded behind me. It made no sound, but rather silenced everything as it expanded, and I came to a sudden halt. I looked over my shoulder to see the brightness filling the tunnel. There was nothing behind us other than the pure white glow. Nothing and no one. I exhaled sharply.
For a couple of moments, I faltered, wondering whether I should run. The Black Fever was fading inside me. My body was recovering. The fever subsided, and my heart rate slowed down. I took a deep breath, smiling, as I no longer felt any pain in my ribcage.
“What is that?” I wondered aloud, watching the light begin its lazy, gradual retreat—revealing the stones used to hold the tunnel up, the blackened tree roots, the reddish dirt and multicolored pebbles that littered the walls and the hard ground.
Setting Kalon down as gently as I could, I gave him a quick once-over. He was still pale, a sheen of sweat covering his face, but the black veins were disappearing. His breathing was shallow but even. He was definitely better than when I’d first picked him up.
“I’ll be back in a jiff, I promise,” I told him, hoping he might hear me.
My mind was set on Tristan. Worry burrowed a sickening hole in my gut. I wasn’t even sure he’d survived this round, since it was obviously much more intense and dangerous than anything else he’d described, but I had to find out. I ran back toward the shrinking white light, until familiar figures emerged about a mile down. I’d thought we’d run farther than this, but then again, both Kalon and I had been crippled by the Black Fever. It must’ve significantly slowed us down.
Tristan was on his knees, eyes wide open. “Thank the stars!” I blurted, relief washing over me in a soothing wave.
Valaine was on the ground, seemingly unconscious. A few too many Reapers had their hands on her, each of them whispering something as the black veins around her eyes faded. I saw Soul, Phantom, and Widow. Kelara, too, along with Sidyan, Night, and Morning. But there were three others I had yet to meet, and their presence startled me. Morning and Phantom must’ve summoned their siblings through their telepathic connection.
By the time I reached them, I was breathless and thrilled. I wrapped my arms around my brother and held him tight for the longest minute. He shuddered in my embrace as he hugged me back, hiding his face in my hair. His dark and curly hair tickled my face, and I felt his tears on my cheek as I moved my head to shower him with sisterly kisses.
“You scared me!” I managed, cupping his face.
“I’m sorry,” he replied. “I couldn’t leave her…”
“What’s going on? Was that Valaine’s darkness?” I asked, looking first at Tristan, then at the Reapers. One of them took out a pocket watch, briefly flipping it open. He frowned and put it away. Behind him, the last tendrils of smoky darkness got sucked into what looked like an arched blade of pure light. It, too, vanished shortly afterward, and I had a ton of questions. I took a few slow breaths, trying to steady my ragged breathing.
“Guys? Gals? Anybody want to clear things up here?” I asked, making no attempt at hiding my frustration.
Tristan couldn’t take his eyes off Valaine as the rest of the Reapers pulled back. She seemed to be sound asleep and not suffering. It was an eerie sight, but one I imagined I’d eventually get used to—at least until we figured out a way to set the Unending free.
“Death sent us,” the timepiece Reaper said. “This is Dream, and this is Nightmare,” he added, introducing the twins. I remembered their names from Taeral’s adventures, but looking at them now, I could certainly see why their names fit so well. Dream looked like someone I would’ve liked to embrace upon falling asleep so I could take her sweetness with me—despite knowing how deceptive that sweetness was. And Nightmare… well, Nightmare looked like the epitome of the emo current. I had no trouble imagining him doing his worst to my dreams.
But the timepiece fella, he was the one who commanded my attention the most. By process of elimination and guided only by the weight of his presence among us, I understood who he was.
“You’re the Time Master,” I said, and he nodded.
“I’m sorry it took us a while to get here,” he said with a sigh. “Things have been complicated on Aledras.”