Chapter 48: Chapter 48
Ivy wandered through a dream full of creepy clowns, feeling her way through on residual emotion only. She knew a Reaper had gone this way, had sensed him, but she wasn’t exactly sure which way he’d gone. It was like stalking a wild animal, and while they could be unpredictable, one of her talents was tracking, and Ivy had a feeling she was closing in on this one.
As she neared the edge of reality, she made another leap, fairly certain this one would do the trick, and found herself standing in a bedroom. Across the room, near the door, a tall shadow filled the expanse, reaching almost to the ceiling fan. He was dressed all in black and carried his scythe, clearly here on a mission. A young man slept in the bed between them.
The second he realized she was there, his eyes grew large. Ivy recognized him even with his hood up, but when he pushed it back to gain a better look at her, she saw the jagged scar that marked his right cheek, one Cutter had left last year when they’d almost had this one. Zu.
“Why are you here?” he barked. “I’ve done nothing.”
Even while she spoke, Ivy sent out a message to Lyric, who was also on the prowl tonight, hoping she’d feel her energy and wind her way to this place. Zu was powerful, strong and fast, and even though Ivy was sure of her capabilities, she knew it wouldn’t hurt to have backup. Perhaps she could stall him a bit while they waited on the other Keeper.
“Why am I here?” she echoed. “Because this person is unmarked, and you have no business claiming him.”
“That’s not true,” Zu argued, his green eyes like a cat’s in the darkness. “If I do not claim him, another tragedy will occur, just like with the Jones woman.”
“I cannot speak to that,” Ivy admitted, brushing her long blonde braid over her shoulder, “but you are to be stopped. And captured. And sent to Hell.”
With her last word, Zu raised his hand and sent a black cloud of smoke in her direction. Ivy stepped aside, letting the pain seep into the wall and fall harmlessly away. She countered by calling upon her powers from the earth, and the floor around him began to turn to roots. Before he could move, his left leg was caught. Zu hopped on his right foot, attempting to free himself, but he couldn’t break away. As Ivy approached, ready to further ensnare him, he used his scythe to cut through the tentacles and took off, leaping into another dream realm just as Ivy was steps away from him.
A noise behind her caught her attention, and Ivy turned to see Lyric’s form stepping through a thin veil. The sleeper never stirred. “Come on!” she shouted and then turned back to leap before Zu got away.
With Lyric on her heels, Ivy shot into a realm full of people. He’d leapt into a dream involving a crowded cityscape. Despite the dozens, if not hundreds, of people, Ivy could still see Zu ahead of her, knocking dream people to and fro as he cut through the crowd. Ivy gave chase, but she couldn’t do much to stop him at this point as her powers were mitigated in such a dense gathering.
Lyric’s powers, on the other hand, were helpful, and as she came up behind Ivy, she felt her friend’s hand on her shoulder and let her go around. Calling upon the energy from the wind, Lyric parted the crowds, blowing them over like dandelion tops careening through the air. The girls began to close in on Zu, and before he could make another leap, Ivy shot forth vines, which wrapped around his legs and brought him to a screeching halt. The towering figure fell to the ground, still struggling to break free. His scythe stood sentient at his side, tangled in the same twisted vines that had him ensnared.
“Zu, I command you to stop in the name of the Archangel Uriah!” Ivy shouted as the Keepers came up beside him.
“NO!” Zu growled, his face contorting out of its human form to take the shape of a demon with black scaly skin, a horn protruding from the tip of his nose as his ears enlarged and became pointed. “I will not go back there.”
There was no use arguing as the Keepers placed their palms pointed in his direction and recited an incantation they had learned many years before when they were first trained to send Reapers to Hell by their parents and grandparents. “Mitto ego te ad vidisse igneos puteos horrendam daemonium de inferno!”
As a red light emanated from the two women’s palms, Zu scrunched his hideous face up in pain, and beneath him, the ground gave way. He began to fall down into a dark tavern, disappearing with a loud roar. In an instant, he was gone, the dream realm silent save the sound of the pedestrians picking themselves up off of the ground where Lyric had blown them.
The beams dissipated, and Ivy turned to Lyric, opening her arms. Lyric scooped her up, “Well done, friend!” Ivy said, squeezing the other Keeper tightly. “I’m so glad you found me.”
“I’m just glad we got him. He should have some valuable information about what’s going on with Nat. Perhaps he’ll be willing to talk once he’s spent a day or two in the depths,” Lyric replied, releasing her friend.
“I hope so,” Ivy agreed. Even though she’d only met the woman once, Ivy was nervous for Ru. She had a feeling things were more complicated than Cutter was telling them, and if it was true that Zu had been one of the Reapers stationed with Nat near Reaper’s Hollow, then he might be able to tell them about Nat’s plan. It would be difficult to get a Reaper as seasoned as Zu to talk, but they had experts on the inside who would help facilitate that.
“You tell Uriah, and I’ll let the guys know,” Lyric suggested as they prepared to reenter their bodies.
“Will do,” Ivy agreed, altering her state just slightly so she was out of the dream realm but would be able to maintain contact with the spirit world, including the Archangels. She was a direct descendent of Uriah, and he was almost always available to aid her as much as possible. He would be happy to hear of their successful mission. If only he could help them find Nat or the portals, but he simply could not. It was up to the Keepers to track the Reapers and close their portals, not the angels or Archangels. Ivy began to feel a tingling sensation and knew she would soon be in the presence of the Archangel. A smile spread across her face as she relished in the pure light of Heaven. This was her favorite part of her job.