The Death Trials by Jonsie (rocket ebook reader txt) 📕

The right one was a dark brown, almost black. It freaked most of the people out, when I was looking at them, so I wore sunglasses, when I went out. Caden was the one person who could look me in the eyes without flinching- though it had cost him a surprisingly long time to get used to it.
“You are not going to call her, B. She is dangerous and her prices are getting higher every time!”
“So what? It’s not like I need what she wants.”
With that, I spun around and limped towards my room. As always, Caden followed but this time he didn’t break the silence between us.

8.57 pm

“Blood?”
“Check.”
“Bones?”
“Check.”
“Limbs?”
“… Urgh.”
“Check or no check?”
“Check.”
“Teeth?”
“All there.”
“Stop!”
“What?”
“Heart?”
“Mine or the unknown one? Because mine is beating so fast it could easily just run off.”
I scowled at Caden. Pussy.
“The unknown one, which is actually not so unknown. Should I tell you whose it is?”
“Ew, by heavens no! ... But yeah, it’s here.”
I clapped happily. It took a lot to summon my personal doctor but at least I could summon her. I would have been screwed otherwise. All the broken rips, legs, arms and noses would’ve lead otherwise to a significant horrible death.
The circle around me was cornered by four candles representing the four elements fire, water, earth, and air. I was standing in the middle, a bucket brought by Caden to me with all the objects I needed. Then he offered me the torch.
“Sure you want to do it?”
“I’m pretty sure I don’t want to walk around with a broken leg the rest of my life.”
“B- we have trained medicals around here. Your sight can’t be the only thing keeping you from asking them for help.”
No, it wasn’t. They also let my dearest brother die.
“Just give me the damn torch.”
My reaper companion sighed- like the this is a bad idea and it will haunt you kind of sigh. I ignored it. I ignored all of his sighs and until now I was successful doing so. But from Caden’s look I knew he wouldn’t let this topic slide away that easily. Hm, suit yourself.
I grabbed the torch and without big boho or some kind of ridiculous spell let it fall into the bucket. The moment the flames hit the contents they flared up, spitting out ashes and sparks. They illuminated my smiling face. I wrote her name all around the circle, so the devil knew which demon to sent up to me. Caden waited cautiously outside of it, tripping from one foot to another. He seemed nervous, especially when my demon doctor showed up there, where the bucket stood only seconds ago.
“Yessss?”
She was a beauty. A ballerina-like girl, graceful and elegant. Her eyes were of a bright gras-green, her skin as pale as the moon. Full lips were curved into a wicked smile and the blond hair pulled tightly into a ponytail. She always took that form, when I called her, as she reminded me of my rival in high school- before I died.
“Lavia, I need your help.”
I gestured to my hurt leg, which earned an honest snore from the snake demon.
“You know the price.”
Nodding, I held out my palm. Lavia was a demon who fed on blood and life time. As a reaper, you live, like, forever and being able to shorten my life and giving another being pleasure, well, it was better than just getting killed. I heard Caden growl, as the petit demon girl grabbed my hand and dug her pointy teeth into my flesh. I didn’t flinch, even though the pain shot through my body. Her venom spread all over my body, filling me up with a feeling of sickness. It seemed like forever before she let go of me, licking her lips.
“Perfect. Thank you, Blake Heart. Now, let me see that leg.”
She spoke with great effort and with an unusual accent- it sounded a bit like Spanish mixed with French, if that was even possible. Kneeling down, Lavia touched my broken leg. I thought I heard her curse at me under her breath but I couldn’t be sure.
“Mon amour! What did you do, stupid, little child! This leg is almost shattered.”
“Yeah, thanks to your fellow friend the maniac,” I mumbled back. Lavia didn’t hear me- or ignored me. We were both kind of experts on that. Her hands felt cool and smooth on my skin, as she caressed it. With every stroke the pain got less intense until it was fully healed. You always feel reborn after a demon healing- though the demons are sweating and panting. The blond ballerina pushed a few strands of hair out of her face, closing her eyes regretful. It sucked to help out your enemy and believe me- I knew. The flames of the candles dimmed down, my bedroom slowly got darker. Lavia was still illuminated, her skin glowing like the moon behind clouds. Caden was so still in the corner of the room, I was afraid he fainted. He wasn’t that good with demons.
“There you go. As good as new.”
“You can go, then.”
With shimmering eyes, the snake girl looked at me and I knew she wouldn’t go anywhere.
“I want you to pay the debt.”
“What debt?” Caden asked immediately. I could imagine how he narrowed his eyes, clenching his hands at his sides.
“I helped her a few years ago and didn’t collect my… price,” Lavia explained, still looking at me with a wicket grin, “And now she has to pay.”
Sighing, I held out my wrist.
“How much?”
The demon grinned slightly less, the eyes darting between Caden and myself back and forth.
“No life. No blood. I want your help.”
I stayed silent for a split second, before laughing my ass off. Even from the corner of the eye I could see Caden smirking. A demon wanted help from a reaper? Never ever. It wasn’t even possible, because it was in our DNA to hate each other. Asking for help? Reapers would rather go to hell and demons, without a doubt, would eat their own eyeballs before coming to a reaper for help. But as it seemed Lavia still had her eyes and they were filled with anger.
“Are you laughing at me, reaper scum?!”
“No. I’m laughing with you,” I beamed back, barley keeping myself from bursting into a laugh. Again.
The snake narrowed her green, piercing eyes again, chewing on her lip. Blood dripped down her chin and I had to back off by the sight. I hated demon blood. It stank and burned through everything that wasn’t made out of gold.
“Stop making fun of me, little chica. This is serious. Someone- or something is haunting demons in hell and we need the help of a reaper.”
“Who is we?”
“Luzifer and Belzeebub.”
Yeah, not so funny anymore. If the big guys of hell needed help then it was crucial. Caden still chuckled.
“Oh, please! You want to convince me, that the two most known demons of heaven and hell need a reaper’s help? You can’t actually mean it.”
“I do,” Lavia answered directly, now giving him the look. Caden shuddered and clapped his mouth shut. Nobody wants to get the look from a demon. Though Caden should know not to question demons- at least if his name wasn’t Blake Heart.
“So, you want my help. Great. And what do you think I can do?”
“You best discuss that with Luzifer and Belzebub. I’m no messenger.”
And with that, Lavia dissolved into thin air. The candles flared up again, making the contents of my room visible again: the huge bed, the big walk-in closet, the door to the bathroom and the desk with a plain chair in front of it. Oh, and Caden sitting on the floor next to my desk like a statue. I stepped out of the circle without making a sound. You had to wait a while until it was sealed, because if you didn’t really bad stuff happened. Like a nightmare haunting you in your sleep.
With as much tenderness I could bring up I laid my hand on my friends shoulder, squeezing it lightly.
“Hey- you okay?”
He didn’t answer for a whole minute.
“Scary.”
“What did she make you see?”
“My death? If I kept talking.”
“Ouch. She once made me feel like suffocating. That was awful.”
Caden turned his head towards me, as I sat down beside him, hands squeezed between my legs. We stayed silent for a while- he staring at me and me just doing everything but staring at him. He had this one particular gaze- if you looked him too long into his dazzling, beautiful eyes he could make you say whatever he wanted to hear. I always assumed it was another reaper ability but he swore it was just the way he made people feel. Especially girls. Or gays.
“So, you’re going to pay them a visit?”
“I guess.”
“You know,” turning my head towards him, he smiled sheepishly, “I’m not going to let you go down there alone.”
“You’re not my momma,” I scowled. Caden stroked my cheek, before pinching it.
“No- I’m your only friend.”
“I could ask Lyll, Ilana or Feliks.”
“Dead people don’t count, B.”
Too bad. I would totally kick his ass if it were so.
To die or not to die, that is the answer

Midnight was snack time.
Slowly I opened the door to the hall. I heard nothing but in an institution being overlooked by reapers, soul catchers and mist creatures it was fairly often the case that you didn’t. That sadly didn’t mean that we had better eyes. We were just as blind in the dark as a mole in daylight.
Tiptoeing over the cool, marble floor I made my way into the kitchen of this sector. At least the one on this hallway. Turning the lights on, I swayed to the refrigerator. It wasn’t the biggest kitchen we had, but I was plainly too lazy to go to the ground floor just to get myself some warm chocolate pudding. A cold one would do. God, chocolate was a sin. Chocolate pudding? To die for. Probably not only literately speaking from the way the fairy on the top shelf looked back at me. Her breath was blue against the cool fog coming out from the cold inside.
“Hey- didn’t mean to disturb you or anything. I only want to get my pudding.”
“No,” chimed the soft voice of the fragile girl, crossing her tooth-pick arms in front of her chest.
“What do you mean no? I want my pudding.”
“No! It’s bad to eat so late at night and I already ate it.”
“Wait one second…”
I started to massage my temples, hoping for the little fairy she didn’t really say what I think I heard.
“You are telling me, that I can’t eat