The Reaper Saga [Book 1-3]

FOOL'S PARADISE

DARKNESS

There were bodies everywhere.

Some recognizable, some not.

Some didn't even have bodies to mourn.

Cries filled the air everywhere I looked. I didn't know how I reached the Coven amid that. I only remembered staring at Zed as his body was taken away by the Moon clan. Even now, I couldn't believe what just happened. How did I never saw it coming? How was it possible that my friend, my master was now six feet under without me?

"You ok?" Rose asked timidly, wavering between staying beside me or leaving. When she didn't get an answer, she nodded. "I understand, Alexei, it's must be hard on you-"

"You know nothing." I couldn't feel anything but anger. Even my shadows refused to come forward to take my pain away. And right at that moment I never felt this alone. "You didn't know him hence you don't deserve to feel grief for him. You were gone, he was all I had since then and I lost him."

"Alexei, listen to me-"

"Leave." I spat out, unable to meet my mother's knowing eyes. "I'm not in the mood to rekindle today. I want to be left alone if you please."

"No! I'm not leaving you alone. You need someone with you after everything that happened today." Did I really need someone? I couldn't even be there for my beloved, so why did I deserved to be consoled? No, Rose was wrong, I didn't need anyone. I needed to feel the guilt, the things I did that brought us here today. I needed to remember what I was.

Darkness.

And a creature like me could never bring anything but pain and chaos.

"I was such a fool." Laughter trickled through my mouth, bitter and careless. "I did this, I couldn't shut my stupid mouth and it led to his death."

"No son, never say that! You are not the reason for anyone's death. You didn't know. It's their fault, not yours."

I gritted out, hating how small I sounded. "Then why do I feel like it?"

Like empty.

Detached.

And so lost.

"Because that's how fate works. You never know who you are going to lose."

Rose might be talking about Zed but the fact that my child was also one of the people I lost had me undone. I breathed in and out before my fists raised to hit the wall repeatedly. Rose yelped, clearly shocked at the furious way each hit brought out my pain. Before she could say something though, we both heard a small voice.

"Can I come in?"

Emie looked way worse than me. Bruises marred her skin, her eyes delivering just what she wanted to say. It's not just me who was hurt, she lost someone too. So, I silently tucked my bloody hands inside my pocket and nodded. She didn't need to see just how I was handling my loss.

In a minute, she was near me. But unlike every time, her steps were almost wary as if she didn't know how she ended up there. Rose only glanced at us once before she was leaving us to our own world.

For a second, there was nothing to talk about.

We stared at each other with everything we couldn't say aloud.

Only when I couldn't take it anymore that I opened my mouth. "How are you?"

"We only have twenty clans at most. The others...they are gone. Children, babies, all dead. How will we ever get over that, Alexei?" Her voice broke. "This isn't what we envisioned. This isn't how it was supposed to end. Death is everywhere, even now I can hear him breathing down our neck."