Chapter 1 Shadows
I smelt the blood and smoke before I saw it. I heard the screams of my people before I saw them fall...I saw the life drain from my mother's eyes before I felt her death. I remember being frozen where I stood in the middle of my fallen village... surrounded by the mutilated, burnt bodies of my loyal people and...my family. I was only 5 when it happened. I had watched them all get slaughtered by only a single boy of age 14. He was ruthless and cold not like how I knew him to be, no. His name was Iandiego and he had always been a kind and playful boy. He'd always visit our village of the 'Hidden Flame' to spend as much time with my brothers and sister always bearing gifts of sweets from his village. I would never have thought he would be the same monster who would slaughter my entire village right before my eyes. He had spared no one...not even me. I remembered him tearing through my chest before feeling the cold metal of his dagger pierce through my heart. That was the last time I was ever human again. I remembered waking up in the dark of night only to have met eyes with my dying mother. She had my sleeping one-year-old sister, Venus in her arms. She had told me to take her and go as far from the village as possible. She had told me that she'd known all her children had special abilities as did all Pendragons had...but we were the first to have such powerful ones. Her last dying breath was that I had finally unlocked my power and that things would only become harder for me to handle. I didn't understand at first...not until the life was drained out from her and i...I felt her death. Because that is who I am. I am Andy Death Pendragon, next in line to be the leader of the Reapers.
"And yet you avoid accepting the title of King Death," came the unasked rough voice of one of the shadows who follow me."Don't you mean Queen?" asked another shadow who I recognized as Brigael. I could almost hear the smirk in his voice. Such a trouble maker that one is.
"I meant what I said Brigael," Randalf sneered.
"But she's a girl, "Brigael replied.
"Could've fooled me, "Randell said causing him and the several other shadows who follow me to laugh. I rolled my eyes ignoring their silly comments. I watched the unconscious man who sat tied up in a creaky chair before me. His head hung down and his messy blond hair acted as a makeshift veil over his face.
"So who is he?" Sariel, another one big my shadows asked.
"I don't know, yet," I murmured. Sariel was probably the only shadow I could stand and I could confidently call him a friend. Probably my only friend. He's the fallen soul of an angel kicked out of heaven. He had survived the fall but he had given his life for those he loved. An honorable death but not a forgiving one. He was not accepted back into heaven and he was definitely not welcomed into hell hence there was only one place for him...the shadow realm. That's how I met him. He was drawn to me and when a shadow is drawn to Death he never leaves your side which I didn't mind from Sariel however I did mind when it came to Randal and his mates. They were as annoying as ever. Randal was once a knight of the highest stature but he was power-hungry and he died for it. His soul was too dark to go to heaven but it was perfect for hell. They even made him a high-ranking demon but his lust for power overrode his judgment and he almost succeeded in taking the throne of hell...until the king of hell himself took a step forward. He played dirty and Randalf was cast outta hell. Then there's Brigael. I swear he's the most troublesome of the bunch. None of us really know what he was when he'd been alive but he probably died because he pissed off the wrong people. God knows I wanna kill him now. My last shadow is Gajeel. He was once an angel of death. He fell on purpose after falling in love with one of his reaps. Reaps are souls angels of death are meant to take. They're the really important souls that we are assigned to when they're born and well...he fell in love with her. He prolonged her death and eventually even showed himself to her. Then they physically showed their love for each other and then had his wings ripped from his back and cast out of heaven as punishment. That's all Sariel had told me.
I was suddenly pulled out of my trail of thought by a pain-filled groan coming from the waking blond before me
"Where the hell am I?" he groaned looking up at me.
"Good question, "Brigael smiled, "do you even know where we are?" he asked me with a knowing smirk.
"Of cause no!"Randalf snapped," she just breaks into wherever she feels like."
I sighed tiredly as I ignored their highly annoying comments. I focused on the blond. He studied me with calm blue eyes. It's either he didn't know me or he did know me. Since he had been following me I took it he did know me and I highly doubt he did so on his own terms which brought me to my next question...
"Who sent you?"I asked causing him to smirk up at me.
"Life's catching up to you mate," he responded with a smirk.
"I'm dead...I've no life, "I said confused.
"I'll give you a moment," he said, "it'll come to you soon," he added.
"No it won't," Randall said with a roll of his eyes.
"Life wants you Death...and she'll stop at nothing till she has you."
My eyes slightly widened as his words finally made sense to me.
"Too bad you won't be around to see that not happening, "I said calmly as I pulled out my syth before slicing his chest open causing him to scream a blood curling scream.
"Feed, "I growled as my shadows entered his wound feeding till his life force was gone. I felt his death so prideful as if he'd died a hero. Please...this was a mercy kill. I could have done so much worse but I wasn't in the mood. Trouble was on its way and I didn't want to stick around long enough to get caught.
