Page 35 of The Unseen Hour (The Unseen Hour Duology #1)

W e’d been waiting for Death to reappear for weeks, but I had to force a glare off my face. Deities had no respect for privacy.

The lightning sizzled, and the hairs on my arms stood on end. I had the strangest urge to reach out and grab the light, even though I was quite certain it could spear me through as easily as regular lightning.

It certainly gave off enough heat.

Death stepped forward, and the stunning deity threw back her hood, silken hair falling over her shoulders. Once again, she wore a mask over the top portion of her face. This one was silver, made of metal.

“I did say I would return soon.” Death flashed her dazzling smile at us both.

I might have argued that weeks and weeks hardly counted as soon , but who was I to debate a god? In Emrys, letters could take over a week to reach someone in the wrong weather. I wasn’t about to question the timeline of a goddess.

She gasped as she turned toward Orion.

“You’ve hurt yourself. Not Charon’s work, I hope? ”

Orion shook his head.

“Bad interaction with some of the local wildlife. It’s healing nicely, though, and we’re ready for whatever you have planned next.”

For a moment, I wondered whether Death might be able to heal it the rest of the way. Exactly what powers did she possess? And was she limited by the Ether?

The deity turned her dazzling smile on me.

“Have you been thinking of what you want from me, young human?” She leaned in close, and I could feel the crackling and dancing static across my own skin.

I took a deep breath and forced steadiness into my voice.

“Could you heal Orion?”

“Celia!” Orion’s voice rose.

Death tilted her head to one side, then the other.

“Unexpected. I am very rarely surprised. I thought your request would have something to do with what brought you down here.”

I gasped, although I shouldn’t have been surprised that she knew. She was a goddess, after all.

She laughed.

“I do make it my business to know things about the other gods and their realms. It’s why I’m not taken unawares, as they risk being. We’re allies, yes? I can’t fix his leg for you, but I can give you a bit of advice connected to what I came to discuss, and that will help Orion.”

I breathed out a sigh of relief.

“Thank you.”

I sagged, and Orion put an arm around my shoulder, letting me lean against him. My one request, and I’d used it, but I couldn’t feel bad about it.

“Now then, what else?” Death prompted.

I snapped my head back toward her .

“But I just … you still want to offer me something else?”

Death clucked her tongue.

“Do not bore me, small humans. Please. The other gods are tedious enough, and none of us like to be repetitive. I need you both, and I need you in shape enough for a trek. Besides, I’m merely giving you a hint when it comes to Orion’s leg.

I shall ask once more: what is it you’d like in exchange for helping me end the hour? ”

The answer spilled out in a rush; I was worried she might just retract the offer if I delayed.

“I want help locating my father. We’ve been looking for him down here since my arrival. I believe he is a half-Shade, like Orion and myself.”

Death threw back her head and laughed.

“How quaint. Neither of you is a real Shade, I can assure you of that.”

I looked between Orion and the floating souls in the field. I couldn’t argue when it came to appearances, but there were other things that were undeniable.

“But Orion can sing just like the others, and Charon has him leading them, and I?—”

“I only mean that you do not face the limitations of a real Shade. You, unlike these Shades, can escape. Just as I promised before. If”—she raised a finger—“you do what I ask.”

I nodded.

“Of course. If you’ll help find my father, and we can destroy the Unseen Hour and go home, we’re more than happy to help.”

Even if we weren't, I couldn’t imagine how we were meant to refuse a god. But as long as Death was being generous, I felt no need to point that out.

Death nodded, her silvery mask shimmering with the movement .

“Good, good. Then I will locate your father. You believe him to be here?”

I sighed.

“I thought he was here, but we haven’t been able to find him. We’ve covered the Meadow and the area closest to where Orion lives, but we still need to check the remainder of the Ether’s woods.”

Death tapped a slender finger against her pale chin.

“And Charon’s lands?”

Orion frowned.

“Yes, and those. If we can’t find him elsewhere. That will be our final stop and last resort.”

“Very well. I will look at Emrys, and the other countries. If he is alive, I will locate him. I can also check my own realm. If he is dead …”

I gulped.

“I still want to know. I don’t believe him to be, but if he is, will you know what happened?”

“I will be able to give you insight into his death, yes, if he is in fact deceased.”

Orion kept his arms around me, giving me the strength to swallow down the urge to cry.

“You’ll search for him yourself? Can you do that and still monitor Charon?” I asked.

“That will be of no issue. I’ll monitor the investigation, but I’ll send my Reapers to find your father.”

“Reapers? What are those? How do they work?”

Death smiled again.

“I like you, little human. You don’t shy away from bold questions. I send my translucent horde to collect souls when they depart this life, but unlike the Shades, they do not alter the timing of when someone dies. They merely ferry the souls home when it is their time. ”

“To your realm? Or to Day’s?”

Death waved a finger at me.

“Now you’re trying to snoop. Bold is good, but there are some mysteries not everyone is meant to know. My Reapers are gentle shepherds. Charon has his Shades, and I have my Reapers, but they are very different.”

Churches in Emrys held portraits of Day and Death.

Day was often depicted in warm, light colors: yellows, pinks or orange.

Death was shrouded in blacks and blues. Day was shown sometimes as a tanned, muscular figure with dark hair and eyes.

Death was shrouded, a pale face visible within the hood, the body that of a broad-chested man.

Eyes that were grey, but dull, unlike Orion’s.

And skin just as pale as actual Death’s, but without any of the vibrance. There was no mention of lightning.

Day sometimes carried a sheaf of wheat and a scythe. Death was depicted with a sword or a vial with unknown contents.

“She’s told me a bit about them, but I didn’t think to mention it since it wasn’t relevant to our search.

Emrys got many things wrong,” Orion informed me.

“Reapers are the ones who carry a scythe. They use it to separate souls from their mortal bodies, but it doesn’t hurt.

Unlike the Shades, they don’t use an ability, but a weapon.

Without their scythe, they wouldn’t be able to help Death. ”

“No abilities? What about moving through the world unseen and transporting souls to Death’s realm?” I questioned.

“Those aren’t the abilities I mean. I’m talking about actually separating the soul from the body. That is something that only Death can do without a weapon. Her Reapers aren’t nearly so skilled. Shades don’t have to carry anything physical to do our jobs. Our song is always with us.”

Orion may have loathed what happened during the Unseen Hour, but he sounded certain when it came to the power the Shades possessed. Since my first day in the Ether, I hadn’t heard him sing. Hadn’t heard his voice take on that enticing quality, although I still found him just as tempting.

“Do Shades not carry anything at all, then?”

He pointed at his neck.

“Only our voices.”

I hadn’t yet attempted the Shade song. I hadn’t wanted to. In Emrys, I’d performed for my family and close friends. I’d been told my voice was lovely, but it didn’t seem the sort of hobby that one used to strike fear into the hearts of mortal men. Besides, I’d always been better at the piano.

Death gestured toward Orion.

“You should show her. I’ll actually need her to sing for my plan to be successful.”

I put a hand to my throat. Why should either of us need to sing, if breaking the Unseen Hour was the entire point?

Before I could protest, Orion nodded.

“It may be better for you to see it now and understand how it works. Then it won’t take you by surprise during the hour.”

Whether I wanted to hear the song or not, I did trust Orion.

“All right,” I agreed.

Orion let go of me, backing up several paces.

He cleared his throat, then opened his mouth, and as he did I lost all sight of blue in his eyes.

They were as deeply grey as the fog that covered Emrys during the hour.

A sound reverberated from somewhere deep within him, echoing with such force that he might as well have been yelling up from a well, or a long tunnel.

It was a single note at first, long and clear. Then, it changed into a beautiful melody. Haunting and mesmerizing. No words, but they were unnecessary.

I had always had a fondness for the theatre.

I cherished the times my brothers had accompanied me to the opera, or to see an orchestra.

I particularly liked stringed instruments.

There was something about them that carried me through an emotional journey along with the performers.

When they plucked and played the strings of the instrument it felt like they were pulling on my heart, tugging me toward feelings I’d not yet explored.

Some moments I’d spent with Orion were the closest I’d come to the same sensation. As if something was physically pulling my heart closer to him.

That was the sensation the Shade song caused.

I was drawn to it, focused solely on the music.

I envisioned rides on Pellix, soaring through the fields.

The smell of the gardens in spring. The feel of pages turning beneath my fingers as I sat uninterrupted in the library.

The sound of the piano keys under my fingers.

Orion’s voice cut off without warning, leaving me off-balance. I stumbled forward, shaking my head to clear it. I threw a hand out as I began to fall, and it landed on Orion’s chest. As I pushed against him to right myself, his hand came up, grabbing mine and holding it in place.

“You’re warm,” we said in unison.

I pulled my hand back.

No need to stumble about like a lovesick fool in front of an actual goddess.

Not that I thought Death shared the same morality as the people in Emrys. She’d made no commentary on the situation between the two of us. She focused only on the Unseen Hour and Charon, and I liked her all the more for it. But I wanted her to see us as capable, not distracted.

My feelings for Orion had been growing, and I enjoyed his company, but the song brought out something else entirely. It had pulled me toward Orion without thought or reason. I would have walked off a cliff if he’d been on the other side.

“The Shade song is dangerous,” I said .

With Death looking on, I tried to ignore the fact that I’d been close enough to catch the scent of crisp winter air and snow that clung to Orion in spite of his warmth.

“You smell like the cold. Normally you smell like fresh earth and rain,” I commented.

Death let out a trilling laugh.

“You two have become quite familiar, I see. It’s because he used the song.

He probably smells however he did on the night he ended up here.

You see what I mean now? The Shade song makes people lose their reason.

It’s why people go quietly to their doom instead of running, screaming through the streets and away from the Shades. You’d hear the victims otherwise.”

I winced.

“But why would we need to use it? I thought we wanted to end this entire abomination.”

“You will still need the song to accomplish that. Before I get to that part, though, let us start at the beginning.”

Orion reached for my hand.

“I’m sorry, Starlight. I didn’t want you to feel it or hear it for the first time during the hour. With thousands of Shades singing, it might have been overwhelming.”

I shook my head at him.

“Don’t worry. It was … beautiful, but disconcerting. I’m glad you showed me, though. You’re right. I’d rather know what I’m in for. Should I … do I need to attempt it now?”

Death was the one to step between us this time.

“No. Not now. The song will come naturally, and you won’t need it until the hour. Instead, I have a task for the two of you. It involves taking an item from Charon, and it’s the beginning of my plans to unravel his precious hour.”