Reaper Read online

  “Dude, what the f—”

  “What?” Reaper shouted.

  “Why did you punch me?”

  “I watched my family die. For days, the only thing on my mind has been the memories of their deaths. Tell me why this pain is worth it. Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you,” Reaper said with enmity.

  “Stay calm, Reaper,” Blink said. “Look man, bad things happen all the time. To achieve the great things you have to go through some intensely bad stuff.”

  “Why am I here?” the Reaper asked.

  “There’s a creature in this forest that I think can really help you out, he’ll be your companion. He’s pretty young, but that shouldn’t matter. Someday, you’re both gonna be really old,” Blink said. “To be honest, you’re already really old to me. Like, what are you, in your seventies or something?” Reaper starred blankly into Blink.

  “Where is this beast?” the Reaper called back to Blink.

  “Yeah, okay, but the forest is big. I don’t know how long it will take to find,” Blink said. “I might have to leave at some point while we’re looking.”

  “You will abandon the hunt?” the Reaper asked.

  “It’s not exactly a hunt. We don’t want to kill the creature,” Blink said. “We are here to find you a pet.”

  The Reaper stopped in his tracks, then turned and put his hand on Blink’s chest, stopping him. “You brought me here to find a pet?” Blink saw a raging fire in the Reaper’s eyes.

  “I can explain,” Blink said. “You want to control Death and get him out of your head. For now, the best I can do is get you a pal to hang out with, so that Death doesn’t gain a foothold on your mind.”

  “You think a pet will help?” the Reaper asked.

  “Oh, yeah. Trust me, heroes in the future do pets all the time,” Blink said. “Some heroes in the future even are animals.”

  The Reaper winced. “Animals?”

  “It’ll make more sense as time goes on.”

  The two of them made their way into the forest. By nightfall, Blink had left. It seemed like he had only been gone for a short amount of time, as the Reaper woke up the next morning to Blink shaking him. Again, there was something about Blink that looked different. He was clean-shaven, and his hair was longer and in a short ponytail. He was still in his green and brown clothes. After the Reaper wiped the sleep away from his eyes, he and Blink set out deep into the forest. At this time in Blink’s life, he had never tracked an animal, or a person for that matter. The Reaper had gotten impatient. That changed to annoyance when he realized that they had passed the same location for a second, possibly even a third time.

  “Boy, do you know where you are taking us?” Reaper asked.

  “Yeah,” Blink answered. “I’m pretty sure. It should be around here—I’m having some trouble with the tracks.”

  “I’ll track the creature,” Reaper said. “Do you know which tracks they are?”

  “Those.” Blink pointed at a set of very small wolf prints.

  “The pet is tiny?” Reaper asked.

  “Well, yeah, but he’d only be like… I don’t know. He should be in infancy right now.”

  The Reaper followed the tracks, while Blink followed close behind.

  “It is difficult to tell some of this,” Reaper said.

  “How’s that?”

  “Our tracks have covered quite a bit,” Reaper said. “It also looks like this creature runs a lot. There are many tracks here, all the same size, and most of them recent.”

  “He’s been here recently?” Blink asked fearfully.

  “Is that bad? We are looking for this thing, are we not?” Reaper asked.

  “Yes, but I don’t want him to get a drop on us. I’d feel much better if we found him first.”

  The Reaper moved forward, but stopped when he found an irregularity in the tracks. He looked back the way he’d come, then at the tracks in front of him, then ahead. He repeated this several times. “What’s up over there?” called Blink from behind him.

  “It looks like the creature has been going over its own foot prints,” Reaper said. “Right here, the one trail splits into three. What kind of creature is smart enough to do that?” Blink had his back against a tree and looked down briefly while the Reaper was speaking.

  “Reaper?”

  “I am following the tracks,” Reaper called back to him.

  “I think you should see this.”

  The Reaper stomped over, not even trying to hide his frustration.

  “What could you have found that is more important?” Reaper asked. Blink pointed at another set of tracks in the soft ground.

  “What do you make of those?” Blink asked. The Reaper got down in the dirt and looked closely at these tracks.

  “They look the size of a babe’s foot,” Reaper said. “But this is clearly not human.” The Reaper looked up at Blink. “Where have you taken us? What sort of creatures dwell in these woods?” The Reaper stood and got close to Blink.

  “In my time, we call him Cerberus,” Blink said.

  “Hound of Hades. I guess not really Hades though. Phantasm’s Plane. He’s a creation of Specter’s” Blink said. The Reaper did not hesitate to take the scythe out.

  “Why have you not mentioned this?” Reaper asked.

  “Chill man, I didn’t think it mattered,” Blink thrust his hands up. “Honestly what difference does it make?” The Reaper turned to Blink and grabbed his shirt.

  “The difference is that I want distance from that monster.” Reaper snarled.

  “Think of it as a means to an end.” Blink suggested. “You can use Specter’s creation to keep Death from controlling your body.” A dead silence lingered on them.

  “I may kill you myself if you live through this,” Reaper threatened.

  Then it happened. The creature emerged from distant bushes. “This is the beast?” Reaper thought. It was surprisingly adorable. The animal had light brown fluff, and his ears were back as he cautiously shifted toward them. Really, there was only one thing about this charming stray that was offbeat: this pup had three heads, each with vibrant red-orange eyes and noses that wrinkled while they growled.

  Blink went into his satchel and pulled out three red dog collars connected to short leashes that merged into one. He held it up to the Reaper. “If you can hold him down, I can strap these on him.”

  Reaper took down his hood, crouched, and slowly moved toward the three-headed wolf with one hand stretched out. The heads went down, and he backed away, waiting for the animal to get curious enough to come back to him. It took some time, but all three heads stopped growling, and the dog came closer to the mysterious hand, inspecting and sniffing it with all three noses. The dog put one of its wet, black little noses to Reaper’s skin, then jerked back with a sneeze. Three sets of wide, wary eyes blinked at the Reaper, until finally, the center head leaned forward and licked Reaper’s hand. It seemed to examine it like it was a foreign object for a moment, while Reaper held still, cautious of what the heads would do if he made any sudden movements, but then it looked down at its own furry paw.

  Then the paw began to transform.

  Reaper fell back onto the ground and began to scramble backward even as the paw reverted to its original form, but he couldn’t shake what he’d seen—for just a moment, the dog’s leg had ended in a small, childlike human hand.

  “He’s confused,” Blink said.

  “As am I,” Reaper said. “What was that?”

  “Hold on, put this on him first,” Blink said, holding the leash out to the Reaper. The Reaper slapped his knee twice. The three-headed wolf pup came close to the Reaper and sat beside him, letting him attach the leash. “How did… He is a child, yes?”

  “Yes,” Blink answered.

  “He needs order.”

  “I assume this means you’ll take care of him?”

  Reaper petted the animal’s head. “I will,” he said. “But first—” He picked the three-headed wolf up. “—you need a name.”<
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  “His name is Cerberus, though,” Blink said. “That’s what he’ll be known as in the future.”

  “He needs a better name,” Reaper said. “Perseus—that is what I will call him.”

  Blink chuckled at this.

  “What?”

  “Nothing, just that someday that will seem hilarious,” Blink said. “It’s from a really old movie.”

  “Movie?”

  “Never mind,” Blink said. “Now listen, I want the two of you to become the best of friends. Teach him, train him, and give him a bath. He stinks, although that stink could be you.”

  The Reaper scowled up at him.

  “It’s not personal. Pretty much everything in this time stinks. I think I’ll be on my way.”

  The Reaper stood and extended his right hand. Blink smiled and shook it.

  “When will I see you next?” the Reaper asked.

  “I’ll come and visit you once in a while. I’ll be around, man. The next mission I have for you will be in the year 79 A.D.”

  “What is A.D.?”

  “It really doesn’t matter.”

  “Farewell, Blink,” Reaper said.

  “See ya later, Reaper.” Once more, the stranger from the future was gone, back in his own time.

  The Reaper took his newfound companion, and they went to make a life for themselves, traveling south to the northern border of present-day Italy. It took much time, but Reaper made a single-room wooden house. The house was rectangular, and surprisingly poor in how it was made The house was made primarily of wood, with rock at its foundation. Every year, he had to rebuild it—if you could call piling more rotten wood on top of the existing layers “rebuilding.”

  Life went on for them, and for over a hundred years, life was good. One day, Reaper was out in the woods. While he was away, Perseus slept curled up on the floor in their would-be cabin. His tail came up and tickled the nose on the center head. The center head sniffled and sneezed. The sneeze woke all three of the heads. They looked around for a moment, and then he stood up. His body shifted, and he stood on his hind legs. Perseus walked to the door and pushed it open with his now human-like hand. He took a few steps out of the house and sniffed around a little.

  “Reaper!” Perseus called out. “Reaper, where are you?” *134 He considered going out to find Reaper but he knew full well that Reaper could take care of himself. For his own sake He returned inside.

  Reaper had encountered an unusual person on his walk. As he walked, he felt a strange presence.

  “You have upset the balance of destiny,” the voices of Past, Present, and Future Fates said.

  “Who speaks to me? Show yourselves,” Reaper said.

  “We are the Fates,” the echo of three overlapping disembodied voices called softly.

  “What do you want with me?” Reaper asked.

  “You have upset the balance of time,” the Fates said.

  “Not me,” Reaper said.

  “Your friend!” the Fates shouted. “He has disrupted time itself.”

  “How can I fix it?” Reaper asked.

  “Let Death out.”

  “I will not,” Reaper stated. “I have him locked away.”

  “He is the only one who can reline time,” the Fates said. “Know this: all the good you and your friend do, all the crises that you end—they will all be replaced by something worse in time. You’ve already brought about the end of the Olympians.”

  “Do your worst, villains. I will always fight,” Reaper said.

  “Let us see what we can do with this deviant,” the voice of Future said.

  “We will return, Reaper,” the Fates said. Reaper felt a brush of wind past him. A shiver ran through his spine. When Reaper returned to his home, Blink was there with Perseus.

  “Reaper, where were you?” Blink asked.

  “We need to talk,” Reaper said.

  “Yeah, I should say so,” Blink said. “I couldn’t find you, and that’s not normal for me. My power usually can find just about anyone if I’m focusing on them. Where were you?”

  “I went out for a walk and was visited by what sounded like three women. I could not see them. I could only hear them. They called themselves the Fates,” Reaper said.

  “You met the Fates?” Blink asked.

  “Who are they?”

  “Collectively, some very powerful beings.” Blink said.

  “You sound afraid,” Reaper said.

  “I am, and you should be too,” Blink said. Reaper and Perseus looked at each other, then back at Blink.

  “I threatened them,” Reaper said. Blink’s jaw dropped.

  “That is the actual dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,” Blink said. “Certainly explains why I couldn’t find you.”

  “What was I supposed to do?” Reaper asked defensively. “I get stopped on my walk, then am threatened by unseen foes; of course I would threaten them in reply.”

  “I understand why you did it. I just really wish you hadn’t,” Blink said. Reaper tilted his head down and shook it.

  *138 [“Why did you come back?” Reaper asked.

  “I want you to go south into Italy,” Blink said. “I want you to lead some bandits and eventually get caught. When they ask for your name, tell them your name is Spartacus from Thrace.”

  “What will this achieve?” Reaper asked.

  “You need to act like a man,” Blink said. “Look challenged, but win. Only after you’ve been taken into Roman custody.”

  “Why?” Reaper asked.

  “It’s gonna be important one day,” Blink said.

  “I do not understand,” Reaper said.

  “What have I done for you not to trust me?” Blink asked.

  “Fine,” Reaper said. “Perseus, come.”

  “Whoa, yeah. About that…” Blink said. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.”

  “Why?” Perseus asked.

  “Well, don’t take it the wrong way, but you look like a monster,” Blink said. “It’s gonna be a while, and if you’re seen, it could change things. History is delicate.”

  “What happens to history whenever you come back here?” Reaper asked.

  “It changes things,” Blink said. “That’s the mission: change the past, save the future. This is done through controlled changes in time. Anything that happens that shouldn’t have happened, we need to fix. It would take another calculated controlled change to reline all of time, though. For example, if you with your three heads were to be seen in a public area, it would take a lot to undo that.”

  “What do I do for years while Reaper is out protecting time?” Perseus asked. “When do I start helping?”

  “You’ll get your shot someday,” Blink said. “You’ll live for a very long time; I’m certain that you’ll have your chance to be a hero too.” Perseus growled and walked away, morphing back into his more wolf-like form. Blink turned to Reaper. “Listen, man, you gotta change your look.”

  “My look?” Reaper asked.

  “Yeah, and I don’t mean your clothes. The bronze and crimson is legit. I’m glad I’ve only had to buy a few for you. I mean your face and hair; it’s just awful.”

  “You do not like my face?” Reaper asked.

  “Not what I said,” Blink said. “Well, you’re also not wrong. It’s just that you look so old and it’s weird.”

  “What would you suggest then?” Reaper asked mockingly. “Some kind of future wash?”

  “No,” Blink said. “You can do it yourself. With your ability, you can change yourself to look like anyone who has died. Last I checked, you’re already dead. You should be able to change your body to look like a younger you.”

  “I’ll think about it,” Reaper said.

  “Good, that should be how it would work,” Blink said.

  “How soon do I need to be leading these bandits?” Reaper asked.

  “ASAP,” Blink said. Reaper looked at Blink with a blank expression. “Oh. It means as soon as possible. Leaving as soon as I leave
wouldn’t be a bad idea.”

  “I will go, then.” There was a hint of hostility in Reaper’s voice. The young time-traveler felt that he was not wanted there any longer.

  “I’ll see ya around, Reaper,” Blink said and disappeared. Reaper turned and went off in the direction that Perseus had gone.

  “Perseus!” Reaper called. “Perseus!” The massive three-headed wolf came walking slowly forward from behind some bushes.

  “Yes?” Perseus asked. “You should be leaving.”

  “Not without you,” Reaper said.

  “Blink told you that I should not come. It is dangerous for me to be seen,” Perseus said, each head avoiding eye contact.

  “I know what he said, but this is what I say,” Reaper said. “This is you and I.”

  “Climb on, then. We need to get you down there,” Perseus said with a smile on each face and his tail wagging.

  Reaper mounted himself on Perseus’s back, and the beast was gone. He ran fast, and Reaper could barely hold on at first. Several times, his hands slipped and he nearly fell off. For almost two years, Reaper led a band of thieves, always being careful and stressing that no one was to die unless there was no other option. Living in the distance for all this time Perseus would split into three smaller, but still large wolves. As often as possible, Reaper would break away from his thieves to see Perseus. It was a difficult arrangement, but it was still better than what would come next. One day, Reaper and his thieves went to rob three boxed wagons. Inside each were not riches or goods, but Roman soldiers. The thieves fought hard for their lives. Most of them died, but those who remained turned on the Reaper. They were led to believe that cooperation would mean freedom. To the Roman soldiers, it meant they would receive a lighter punishment. The remaining thieves were put to death on the spot, and their corpses were left to wrought in the sun. Perseus saw this and was about to intervene, but he caught a subtle hand gesture from the Reaper. It was then clear to Perseus that he would be on his own for a while. He noticed something strange: Reaper’s scythe was left behind. Feeling that someday they would be reunited, Perseus took the scythe and kept it for the day when he and the Reaper would meet again.