Memories of the Reaper

Chapter Twenty-Six

Derek Grey felt himself being pulled to the forest like a sleepwalker who had half-way awakened from his slumber. His feet were lethargic yet silent as he traveled through the grass, and Alpha followed him begrudgingly into the gnarled bark and twisting roots. The drumming beat in his ears was more deafening than any army of crickets, and his mouth was so dry that his tongue had become sandpaper in his own mouth. His eyes were frantic, glancing in every direction. Each branch was a sword lashing out at him, each thorn vine was a lupine, and each bush hid a killer.

Derek shook his head, feeling foolish. "I must just be imagining things. James couldn't be here. It's just not—" As he walked farther down the path, he could see the old man standing by the creek with a small smile on his face. "Possible," Derek breathed.

The middling approached cautiously—each inch of skin slick with sweat and each hair raised in apprehension. He stopped when he reached the edge of the trees. The creek was too far out in the open for him to be comfortable with. Alpha remained beside him, her eyes locked on the provost with a low growl in her throat.

Something's wrong here. Very wrong.

"Derek. I'm so glad to see you healthy and alive." James Cordoven whispered. His face was clean shaven and younger than Derek had remembered it. The provost looked him up and down with a twinkling eye. "You've gotten a lot bigger. Stronger, too. I'm so proud of you, my boy."

My boy... He's never called me that before. Derek thought.

"James..." Derek breathed. "How the hell did you get here?"

"I came back for you." The old man took a step forward toward the middling, his hands outstretched for an embrace. Alpha's growl turn into a piercing shriek as she gripped the dirt in her talons. James put his arms down, looking at the gryphon with an intense anger that Derek had never seen before.

"Easy, Alpha." Derek said, glancing around as he felt eyes watch him. Every instinct told him to run. Victor's advice rang in his mind: If something feels like a trap, it is. If it feels like somebody is watching you, then someone is. Be on the lookout for anything threatening. "Don't attack him. Be on guard, but don't attack. Not yet."

"Be on guard?" James asked, turning his attention back to the middling and laughing. "I'm here to protect you, Derek. I'm here to keep you safe."

"Keep me safe?" Derek scoffed, looking around again but seeing nothing but trees and grass. "From who?"

James jerked his head past him back toward camp. His eyes narrowed in disgust. "The reapers," he spat.

"Wait... you know about them?" Derek asked. "How the hell do you know about the reapers?"

James shook his head, his eyes filled with guilt. "They've been lying to you, Derek. They aren't who they say they are... They've enslaved the realms, bent us to their rule, but now... now, we can finally finish the war that began so long ago."

Us? Derek thought. He knows so much about the reapers and the seven realms, but he's never told me. He never even hinted at it... How could he know so much?

Derek felt his gut sink into his testicles. "James. What are you talking about? You're not... you're not making any sense!"

James Cordoven sighed. "I can only imagine what lies those demons have put into your head, but you have to believe me, Derek... I only want the best for you—that's all I've ever wanted for you."

"James—"

"There isn't much time, my boy. But come with me. I will show you the truth... the truth about everything. I just need you to trust me. Walk with me, Derek, and you will see the realms for what they really are." James pointed to a cave in the side of a hill across from the creek. It was a cave he had been in before—it only ended in a rock wall, there was no way through. "There. That is where we make our escape. I assure you, your cruel captors will not be able to follow us."