days, you can bring them over. Keep it simple, though. No more than a hundred people. You’re all clearly skilled at this kind of work, and I trust you won’t need more than that to cover the necessary ground and eradicate this Darkling filth.”
I placed a hand on his shoulder in a bid to reassure him. I had momentarily forgotten about the customs here when engaging the Lord and Lady Supreme. Acheron, however, was most kind. The gesture surprised him, but he didn’t move away, nor did he appear to find it offensive.
“We’ll do everything we can to help. I know it cannot be easy for you to break your own rule with regards to outside interference. I understand you must be pretty desperate and worried to turn to us for help. Rest assured, you have our full support,” I said.
“Good. Thank you, Derek. It’s hard to live this way, which is why it must all be brought to an end. With another Black Fever outbreak looming, we’re already stretched thin,” he replied. “I can’t have the Darklings destroying more innocent lives. Especially Valaine’s. She doesn’t deserve any of this.”
That was the precise moment when I fully understood the depth of this Darkling conspiracy. They had the Lord Supreme of Visio nearly quaking in his boots and bejeweled tunic. He was so afraid of them that he’d had to turn to me, to us, for help. It was one thing to assist them in curing the Black Fever in exchange for the day-walking protein, and something else entirely to get involved in such delicate internal affairs.
I found it all quite concerning, but I knew we could handle it. I also wondered what all the implications for me and my people would be, but I trusted a conversation with Sofia would bring some clarity. The Darklings had already killed Nethissis. What would be next? Killing Valaine? Would they stop there? Their own history showed that they wouldn’t.
GASP could help, but we had to be really smart about all this. We had multiple projects open, some more difficult than others. We needed to pull through on every front and return to The Shade with the rest of our crew alive and in one piece. We’d lost enough. It was time for us to win.
Nethissis
Sidyan teleported us farther up the coastal road. Less than a hundred yards away, I could see the Darklings. They’d set up a temporary camp on the edge of the woods, ready to hide if anyone came upon them. Fortunately, they couldn’t see or sense us from this far.
“I can get closer,” I said, glancing at Seeley. “Without a scythe on me, I’m your best option for some undetected eavesdropping.”
“Getting a little ahead of yourself there,” Sidyan replied dryly. “Seeley and I are perfectly capable of spying on those bastards, especially since their ghouls seem to be out hunting with their handlers.”
I followed his gaze to spot movement between the trees—black guards running with ghouls on their iron chains, moving like shadows as they chased after deer and other considerably larger animals that grazed in these parts. It left Zoltan and Veliko essentially on their own, surrounded only by other Darklings and black guards, some of whom were still recovering from the ghouls’ mauling.
“Our job is to follow the Darklings and not intervene,” Lumi said. “But Reapers already have a piss-poor record where the Darklings are concerned. The abnormal number of ghouls in their possession is evidence enough. While the idea of Nethissis getting close to Zoltan again doesn’t give me much comfort, the thought of potentially losing both of you to those a-holes makes me agree with her.” She scowled at Sidyan and Seeley.
“Besides, Rudolph can stay closer to me,” I replied. “The other ghouls know him. I think they’ve got some sort of arrangement or something, because they stopped howling and snarling at me a long time ago.”
Since I seemed to have the ability to hide from wielders of Reaper scythes, I figured I could take advantage of it and gather good intel. We needed as much of that as we could get, given the circumstances. The sky above had darkened considerably, the wind blowing cold—so cold that even I could almost feel it. Sensations from my living days lingered, my spirit still yearning to experience things I no longer had a right to.
Seeley scoffed. “This is insane. I know what we’re dealing with now. I’m not going to get myself caught again.”
“The Darklings know you’re free,