The Daughter of Death

September 21, 1996

Helen was cleaning the house. The sun was beginning to set, and baby Lexie was asleep in the nursery. Adam just got home from the mechanic shop. It was a pretty uneventful day according to him, just 2-3 cars broke down that needed fixing. He kissed their baby on her forehead and headed to the kitchen.

The couple was enjoying the first few days of them being an actual normal family, no living on the road, renting motel rooms, bonfire at the beach, searching for a couple jobs here and there. This was their first apartment, they just paid the rent, they got clothes for Lexie, they even did a mini baby shower with all Adam’s friends back at the shop, and nearby neighbors.

Helen set up the dinner table and they had a normal dinner. The couple talked, laughed, and enjoyed the evening, looking intimately at each other’s eyes and satisfied at what they’ve accomplished.

A cry was heard in the nursery.

“I’ll get it” Helen said chuckling. She figured maybe Lexie woke up and needed a bottle of milk. She would never cry for no reason. Lexie was a good and peaceful baby daughter. She was all the peace that the couple needed to balance out their chaotic life.

Helen opened the door to the nursery. Her eyes quickly widened. Her voice was stuck, refusing to come out.

Adam stood up and followed Helen since Lexie was still crying.

“Is everything ok?” He asked smiling. Down the hallway, he saw his wife choking, pinned to the wall by black smoke.

“Lexie…” She mouthed in desperation before fainting. Adam sprinted towards her only to be pinned to the floor by this unseen enemy. The smoke suffocated him. Lexie’s cries were flooding the air until it was the only sound that mattered to him. His vision blurred and for a spit second, he thought he saw something. The most confusing blurry image that his mind could conjure up. He saw the silhouette of a group of children, varying in height and age, fighting off the smoke and screaming, getting ready for battle.

Rachel jolted up, she was drenched in cold sweat and it was still in the middle of the day! She was in the middle of the woods. There was no one in sight, no animal, no naiad, no demigod, no satyr, there was nothing.

“I do apologize I chose you.” A small sad voice whispered.

Rachel stood up. She had goosebumps in her arm. She grabbed a rock nearby for protection.
“I don’t mean any harm” the voice continued. A boy flew down from one of the tall trees. He had an old English cap that matched his clothes and his accent, his hair was a dirt color of white and he had freckles on his cheeks. He looked like a 9 year old boy, with innocent eyes and playful smile complete with the bucked tooth. However, all this odd features you would discover on a boy in the middle of the woods would appear all normal compare to what was behind him. As the boy descended gracefully from the treetops, Rachel could not avert her eyes from the pitch black pair of wings that lay behind him. Now he was in front of her, and his wings gently folded themselves and disappeared behind him.

“Do not be afraid.” He said gently. “I come in peace.” The boy chuckled, proud of the joke he just made, thought Rachel doesn’t get it.

The red head was just speechless, for a moment or two at least, since the boy just kept on talking.

“I am Sebastian,” He continued proudly. “And you are Rachel Elizabeth Dare. I commend you significantly, great oracle. If t’wasn’t for you I would be in utter distress.”

“Ok, what are you??” Rachel blurted out suddenly. “What’s happening? Why am I here? How’D you know me???” The young oracle was almost in the state of panic when the boy gently held her hand which made her jolt.

“Peace my young seeker.” Sebastian smiled. “You know my kind all too well, though, I should start by apologizing really.” He gently let go of Rachel’s hand. He turned his back on her and paced a few times scratching the back of his head. “You see, I didn’t know humans could be so difficult with this.”

“With what?” Rachel asked hesitantly.

“Well,” the boy continued. “I somehow, how do you put this, kidnapped you? But not from camp, no, we’re still in camp.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“Well, the problem is I didn’t consider that giving you a glimpse of the past would take 3 days to manifest”

“WHAT?? I HAVE BEEN MISSING FOR THREE DAYS!”

“I do apologize really!!” Sebastian knelt pleading. “I assumed that giving a glimpse of the past would prove an easy task for one that sees the future.” Sebastian gave a crooked smile, mostly because of his not so perfect teeth.

Rachel just dug her arms deep in her hair not knowing how to solve this problem.
“The others must be worried sick” she whispered.

“I express my deepest regrets Ms. Dare, but I have actually brought you here for urgent business.”

Rachel looked at Sebastian, his eyes were filled with seriousness.

“We lost our sister way back 1996, we know she’s alive but we can’t sense her anywhere.”
“I don’t follow” Rachel replied.

Sebastian sat up. “Ok, see, follow this trail of thought, when a person dies what happens to them?” He smiled devilishly.

“They go to the underworld.”

“Aaaaand who takes them there?”

“Thanatos?”

“That’s right!!” Sebastian screamed standing up. “Ok now picture this, 8 billion people, and each second there’s an exchange of life and death, how does death keep this up?”

Rachel though hard.

“Well, isn’t he a god”

“Oh please, even Hermes can’t deliver too many parcels at once. Guess again”

“He has help?”

“BINGO!” Sebastian started celebrating. He dug his feet firmly down the ground and clasped his arms together. There was tension in the air. A black smoky scythe materialized in his hands.

“Death m’lady,” he bowed. “At your service.”

Notes