Page 82 of Grave Humor

“There used to be a swing here, so yeah. I did. I’d stand here and jump onto the swing.”

“That’s the node,” the archangel informed me in a whisper.

I frowned, shifting on the rock so I could stare at its dark surface. “Really? This is it? It’s a rock.”

“Correct. It’s a rock. It’s a boring although rather large piece of quartz. And it is the power that human desires—and it cannot even do what he wishes. Mortals can be such troublesome creatures. You should return to your companion before he gets angsty, as he knows that human comes, and he does not want you far from him. He will be even more anxious because he does not wish for his burdens to be yours. He forgets the role of your aspect.”

“What is my role, if I am as you believe?”

“New beginnings—the life that comes after death. You are also the mercy of death. You represent everything beyond death’s doors. Azrael shepherds the good. Eoghan is the facet of death who welcomes all. But you? You’re the one who guides souls from death back to life. Until now, your role has been handled by the universe itself, until mortals broke the chain. The devil’s daughter brought much death through her choices, but because of her, you could reach your potential now, and thus, the chain is restored. Without her, the node would not have sparked your awakening into your profile—and those who had tried to circumvent death would have caused the universe itself to turn its back on this Earth, beginning the End of Days. Because of you, the circle of life continues. Eoghan and Azrael both merely need to exist for their power to manifest all over the mortal coil. The same applies with you and your power. But, you pay a dear price for that. For you, and for them, there is no end. You, like the universe, are eternal. And that is why Eoghan often sleeps. He will sleep less with you at his side—and he will find the screaming to be lessened with your presence.”

It took me a few minutes to think through the ramifications of the archangel’s statement. I would worry about the rest of my life and the lack of its end later. “But how could the devil’s daughter have done such a thing? Did she come here?”

“She didn’t have to. She just had to be at the right place at the right time. That’s all. Because she was at the right place at the right time, other events were put into motion that led to that Hammel human attempting to circumvent death, which woke your potential. The universe no longer needs to replant the seeds of life. You do that just by existing. But that’s also a price you’ll ultimately pay, the same price Azrael and Eoghan pay. The End of Days will come and go, and you three will persist. After the End of Days, Azrael will sleep while waiting for the rebirth of the angelic host. He will no longer be an angel then, but rather an essence. You will likely shed your mortal form as well. Like Eoghan, I think you’ll find the form of a black canine pleasing, although you may go the feline route simply to annoy him.”

I laughed at the thought of being a cat just to annoy Eoghan. “Do I have a choice?”

“Of course, although you will find the black dog’s shape easier for you to master due to the number of myths surrounding the form. It is a symbol, and such symbols have power.”

“Can we make it work for so long?”

“Until death do you part does take on an entirely new meaning when you will never cease to exist—and never is a long time. I suspect you will both sleep between the more boring eras, as that’s what the true immortals tend to do. And when the End of Days comes to its ultimate conclusion, you will be the light in the dark. The universe will provide the new world, but it is your hands that will replant the first seeds of life in the next existence. But yes, with enough courage and strength, you could make your eternity a glorious thing. You two fit together. He will find comfort in your presence, for you will make the passage from life to death an easier burden. The dying find peace when their souls recognize there is life beyond. You will find peace and comfort in his presence, as you know there are none Eoghan rejects. I pity the souls of those who stir your ire.”

“That sounds a little farfetched to me,” I confessed.

“You will understand soon, although you’ve scratched at the surface of it.”

I could think of one thing that might fit a scratched surface involving death. “The boundary. When Gordon bit me. Is that what you’re talking about?”

“Yes, that was the moment where you touched your true potential. Gordon has become special because of what you are.”

“How so?”

Gabriel rolled his shoulders and leaned against my dark rock. “What do you know about vampires?”

“Well, according to the CDC, when a vampire dies and is brought back, someone else’s soul takes the body. They keep the body’s original name, but the person the vampire was is gone. True resurrection is an impossibility. Some speculate the new soul is often like the old person, but the truth remains: the original soul is gone.”

“In reality, the original soul is bound to the comatose body and is considered lost until the vampire is destroyed. That soul slumbers, dormant. Some misguided fools, the ones’ my brother’s daughter stopped, were circumventing the universe’s price for that sort of immortality and knocked everything out of balance. The vampires they created were using imprisoned souls stolen from the vampires to fuel other undead. They were creating a situation where multiple awake souls occupied one body. Not all vampires have a dormant and a conscious soul. The original vampires swapped souls with each other, as their creation was an act of pure love and tragedy. There are no imprisoned souls with them. They are different because of that. Their offspring are also different.” Something akin to regret laced the archangel’s voice.

“What’s wrong? Why do you sound so regretful?”

“The day the first vampires were created was the true beginning of this Earth’s end. They bent the universe’s sacred rules about death. He finds them sad, but they are also His beloved. They were a mistake, but they were—and still are—a beloved mistake. If all vampires were like them, many things would be different. But all vampires are not like them, until now. Until Gordon.”

Crap. I’d done more than just meddle. “I made a mess of things again, didn’t I?”

“No, but you may have inadvertently undone the damage done so long ago. I will not look into the future of the next risen vampire to discern the nature of that soul, but it would be a good thing for this world should only one soul be bound to one body. It is a damnation, Anwen. The soul that becomes the vampire leads a cursed life in many ways—and the captive soul is damned to limbo until the vampire is destroyed. While the original vampires broke the laws of the universe in a fashion, they also followed the laws as well. One body, one soul.”

Ugh. “But I thought only one soul can occupy one body. Vampires have two souls?”

“That is correct. When Gordon was made during the emergence, his true soul was trapped, dormant and held hostage in limbo while the damned vampiric soul controlled his body. The soul is bound to the body but drifts in the eternal void that makes up the universe itself. It is neither here nor there. It is part of that body yet separate. There are two souls, one that is ultimately lost in slumber, and the vampiric soul, which is yet another tragedy in the tragedy that is a vampire’s existence. You untangled the pair of souls bound to Gordon’s body, allowed the vampiric soul to return to its rest while waking Gordon’s true soul and returning it from limbo. He remains a vampire, but he is not like the others of this age. You may be able to restore other vampires to their true souls, too. If the original soul has not been destroyed, you can unite them and set the vampiric soul free.”

I narrowed my eyes. “You keep saying freeing the vampiric soul. Why?”

“Unlife is as much of a blessing as it is a curse. The vampire’s active soul is usually suffering through damnation of some sort, enduring punishment for their sins. You have given Gordon a great gift, and you did so for no other reason than desiring what was best for him and his soul—and returning his true soul was what was best for him. Eoghan hates hearing the screams because he hears the broken hopes of the dead. You are his mirror, and you bring hope wherever you go. There is a reason the dead rose and sought you out here. You care, even for the lowest of them.”

I grimaced. “Like Old Man McGregor.”

“He is an excellent example.”