Death's Ledger

Chapter 9 - Mournful Rhythms

At the tender age of eighteen, this was a crazy afterlife to live in. I was surrounded by death, disaster and disorder, but being a soul collector hardened me quite quickly. Before I knew it, my normal human tendencies were being reduced so quickly I started to wonder, who was this person? Where did I go?

There was no time to focus on myself, it was all about Death's purpose. I disappeared into a world of emptiness with nothing but names on a piece of paper to fill the void.

But it all feels different now.

Hand-in-hand with Gabriel, I walked down streets I'd never visited before. By midday, the city was alive with raucous laughter, the roar of expectant chatter, and a little too much unrestrained drinking. Slowly, the hours ticked by, there was a more comfortable pace to our steps, we were ghosts gliding through the living, not seen or heard.

An unusual pair we were. We felt the mournful rhythm that accompanied "the end". But for the moment, the human part of me was reemerging, and not even Death's song could distract me from Gabriel. "You've met Death?"

He raked a hand through his hair. "Yeah, I knew her," he said.

"You did?" I asked, curiously.

"Yeah, but not too long," he said with a sigh. "In her time, she was radical and hounded down for it. Her earliest descendants thought she was dangerous. Too dangerous."

I squeezed his hand softly and looked up at him, meeting his brown eyes properly. He looked torn. "No one I've ever known has ever seen or heard Death's voice."

"Do you ever wonder why that is?" he said, a bit more forcefully. "Do you ever wonder where all the early descendants have gone?"

Gabriel words hung between us as I found myself drowning in his gaze. I'd never asked myself that question and I became shockingly aware of the fact that he knew more about our kind than I would ever know. He'd been forced through the door to our world by Death herself.

"Or do you believe it's all a coincidence, like everyone else does?" he asked, smiling. A little uneasy shadow creeping into his face as he watched my expression.

"It could be."

"Strange, you usually sound so sure about things," he said.

I shrugged. I had to sound sure, though I wasn't sure of anything just now.

"Then who still reconciles her ledger, I wonder?" he said, placing a finger to his chin and nodded, all the while, keeping his eyes on me.

"The ledger's never been seen," I said, stepping in front of him.

Gabriel shot me a puzzled look. He placed a hand on my cheek and stroked it gently. "We can't be seen, does that not make us real?" That stopped me. "Death is real and Death is quiet. Death doesn't even really need a reason to be seen, it's a constant."

Then the thought hit me. "Are you saying that there's still someone behind it all - a new captain of this ship of disparity?"

Gabriel shook his head and his brow furrowed. "I'm just saying that this thing we're a part of is bigger than anyone can imagine."

We walked for a while, not saying anything until we reached a park at the north edge of town. There was no sign of the soul of Daniel Rumsfield.

We each sat on a swing, swaying gently while we lifted our faces to the sky.

"We've been talking shop. Why not tell me more about you?" A smile hovered at the corner of Gabriel's mouth and then disappeared. His eyes were clear and his gaze alert. He studied me for a moment as if my life story were written on my forehead.

I wished that I had followed my instincts and changed the subject. "There isn't much to tell, really," I explained. "What you see is what you get."

Gabriel didn't look surprised. "I'm bad at this," he said with a laugh as he glanced down at his boots. "But I do know that people tend to like to talk about themselves."

"What do you want to know?" I asked hesitantly.

"Everything." His gaze slowly lifted to meet mine once again.

The hair rose on my arms.

He bit his lip to prevent a smile. "Listen, I'll tell you something about me, and maybe it'll be easier." He stuck out his hand, and I took it automatically.

"Hi, I'm Gabriel. I'm a misfit. Do you want to kiss me?"

I put my free hand to my mouth and hiccuped a laugh. "I'm sorry, it's not funny, but -"

Gabriel laughed with me for a moment, and then turned serious. The smile slid off his face and his eyes narrowed. He made a small noise, but remained still.

"Sage." He placed a finger on my lips to silence me. "I think it's time for you to get out of here."

I blinked up at him. "What?" I spoke with his finger on my lips.

"You need to go back to your tree."

Suddenly, I heard movement in the bushes. Shadows emerged, surrounding us. Voices rose, attracted by high peals of laughter and delight. Shadows were flitting from tree to tree. I could hear laughter, like the shadows were taunting us. I stood from my swing to get our bearings. I could see sunlight through the trees, but it was like we were looking out from behind a black fog.

"Sage, you have to go, now!" Gabriel pressed a hand to my shoulder. Everything turned dark and suddenly the world disappeared.