AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I could see Lucas calculating it in his head, and I did the same. We knew that my grandfather had the Mentalist Wand four decades ago. At that time, the demon, Professor Leto, took it and gave it to Chloe’s grandfather, Jebediah Olson, which resulted in the feud that got my grandfather killed. The demon had taken possession of the Mentalist Wand again before he was banished all those years ago. It remained in his possession until he returned to Octavia Falls last spring and posed as a professor to kill people for power. We battled him, and the Mentalist Wand fell into the pit to the Abyss.
As for the others, my grandfather had used the Curse Breaker Wand during the feud. Grammy had kept it for years after his death, until it was stolen from her. We didn’t know where it ended up. Before he died, my grandfather hid the Seer Wand in the vanishing stairwell, and he’d placed the Alchemy Wand in the Crock of Death. Now the priestesses had both of those Wands in their possession, along with the Crock. Which meant there was only one Wand my grandfather had never touched.
“The Mortana Wand,” I said. “If that Wand was never with the priestesses to begin with… where has it been all this time?”
Beau leaned forward and lowered his voice, even though we were alone. “My research indicates the Mortana Wand resides with the Reaper Order.”
Lucas’s jaw dropped, and my heart stalled. When Miles said this information could change everything, he wasn’t exaggerating. This information was enough to lead us straight to the Mortana Wand. I’d bet the priestesses didn’t even know where to start, or they’d have pursued it by now.
I grabbed Lucas’s shoulder, nearly bouncing out of my seat. “Lucas, you can get it! As the Reaper’s Apprentice, you can contact the reapers and get the Wand from them.”
Lucas stared straight forward, like he was still trying to process this information. Finally, he turned to look at me. “I’m not sure that I can, Nad. I can only summon them on the Reaper Moon, and our chance to do that has passed. There’s not going to be another Reaper Moon for a hundred years.”
“That can’t be our only option,” I insisted. “We hold séances and converse with the dead all the time. Reapers are just people. There must be another ritual we can use to summon them.”
“They aren’t just people, though,” Lucas said. “Reapers aren’t like any old spirit. They have power over the realms, to move between them at will. A normal ghost can’t do that. That’s why our people need reapers to lead them to the other side, or why other cultures have their ancestors to greet them at death. Not just anyone can hop realms at any time—not without a powerful portal.”
“If reapers can come here willingly, then we must be able to summon them,” I theorized.
Lucas shook his head. “Even though reapers are powerful, you know how touchy Mortana magic can be. Summoning a reaper before we’re ready to cross over could have deadly consequences. They could reap our soul unintentionally, and with our souls tethered to living bodies, the results could be worse than death. It could damage our souls permanently. I know we said we’re willing to risk death for these Wands, but what I’m talking about is far worse than that. The only reason summoning them on the Reaper Moon even works is because the magic of the stars is just right to allow it.”
“There is another way,” Beau said. “I researched much about the Reaper Order and what it takes to join them in my attempt to get my hands on the Mortana Wand, but I came to learn it is far out of my reach, as I don’t have the power to become a reaper. But it is possible for you. You are the Reaper’s Apprentice, which means that once you master your powers, you will join the Reaper Order.”
Lucas furrowed his brow. “I’ll join the Reaper Order when I die. That’s the only way I can get in.”
Beau’s shoulders fell. “My dear boy, where is your reaper master?”
Lucas chuckled nervously. “Well, I sort of shoved the last reaper I met into a portal to the Abyss. I suppose perhaps I was meant to learn something from him. There’s not much record for me to go off of, since there’s only one Reaper’s Apprentice per generation.”
Beau sighed, like he really felt for Lucas. “Then let me share with you what I know. A reaper does not gain the full height of his power upon a death. The apprentice must master his power to move beyond his apprenticeship and become a full member of the Reaper Order. This is something that can be done before or after death, once his training is complete.”
“I haven’t been trained, though,” Lucas said. “I’ve been learning on my own. I don’t even know what powers I need to master.”
“To master your powers, you must undergo the Warlock’s Trial,” Beau said.
Lucas and I both leaned forward, but it was Lucas who spoke. “What’s the Warlock’s Trial?”
“As I’m not a reaper myself, I can’t speak to all the details, but what I do know is that the trial is a demonstration of your reaper power,” Beau explained.
“So it’s a bit like an Evoking Ceremony?” I asked.
Beau tilted his head. “In a way, I suppose, but less on the ritual side and more on the practical application side. It is a trial of death.”
“So… that sounds like I need to die,” Lucas mused.
Beau sucked a breath, like he was struggling to explain. “It’s more about your magic—your comprehension of your power. Once you demonstrate that you’ve mastered your abilities, the reapers will appear to welcome you into the Reaper Order. It’s one of the few ways that they appear to the living.”
“So once they come to me, I can ask them about the Wand,” Lucas said.
Beau gave a cunning smile. “Better than that—they’ll give it to you. The Mortana Wand passes down between reapers, from the master to his successor. When you are ready, the Mortana Wand will be yours.”
“I’ll do whatever I need to do,” Lucas decided. “What steps do I have to take?”
“That information lies solely with the reapers,” Beau said regrettably. “I searched for many years for more information on this trial, but it’s like someone took all that information for themselves. I wasn’t able to learn more.”
I furrowed my brow. “Who could be hoarding all this reaper information, and why would they? Lucas is the only living reaper, and the Reaper Order hasn’t offered up any information to him. There must be someone alive who knows more.”
Lucas leaned his chin on his fist, looking thoughtful. “Or maybe there’s a ceremony I’m supposed to do that I’m unaware of. If the Reaper’s Apprentice is meant to have a master, there’s got to be another way to get in touch with the reapers. Maybe it’s not about summoning them fully, but communicating with them in another way. The reaper I fought the night of your Evoking Ceremony was the last one to live before me, which means Edgar Nowak must be my master. He’s gotta have the Mortana Wand.”
