Page 7 of Reaper Unhinged
“A remnant can be seen and heard but cannot see or hear you.”
I needed to know. I needed to see. I pushed open the door and stepped inside.
The room was a dark abyss of emptiness; the only light came from an orb floating in the center of the room. Thick silence pressed against my ears, and then whispers filled my head.
A voice I recognized.
Where is it? What is it? Can I go now? Will I be okay? Where am I? Where is this? What was I doing? There was something…something…A soft sob. I can’t remember. What was it? Why? Why?
Aunt Lara’s voice filled my head, the whispers growing louder until they were all I could hear. Her confusion and despair pierced me. Cassius had said the cores were safe, that they felt no pain, but he was wrong. This was emotional torment. Eternal confusion and loss.
No. This had to end.
Please show me…show me…where…something…someone…
This was the last part of her. The final essence of the only mother I’d known. She deserved peace. My chest ached with love for her. I’m sorry, Aunt Lara. I’ll make it stop.
My scythe appeared, glowing bright in the darkness. The orb pulsed.
What? Where?
I held the blade toward the orb. “It’s time to be free, Aunt Lara.”
The orb rushed toward me and then it was absorbed by my blade. I had her. I had my Aunt Lara, and now I needed the rest of these poor remnants.
I stepped back into the corridor. “Librarian, how do I free all the remnants?”
Silence greeted me. Crap, I needed the right words. Hmmmm. “Librarian. I wish to extract all remnants.”
“Do you wish to initiate extraction protocol?”
Bingo. “Yes.”
“Bio verification required.”
Oh, fuck.
The beam appeared and rushed toward me. There was no time to run before it was over me. The light pulsed, and I squeezed my eyes closed, knowing exactly what was about to happen.
The light went red.
“Access denied. Intruder detected. Ejection protocol initiated.”
Oh, shit.
The light went blue. The same color as the exit button. No.
I burst out from beneath the beam and broke into a sprint down the corridor.
“Extermination protocol activated.”
Wait, what? Fuck, I should have allowed it to eject me.
The air fizzed and a red beam shot out of the ceiling ahead, cutting me off. I skidded to a halt and looked over my shoulder to find the blue beam almost upon me.
Fee sandwich alert.
I shoved through the nearest door to get out of the corridor, and it was only when I was swallowed by darkness that it hit me…
