Dark Calling (The Demonata, Book 9) by Darren Shan

Author:Darren Shan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Juvenile Fiction, Horror, Fantasy & Magic, Monsters, Humorous Stories, Action & Adventure, General
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Published: 2011-03-21T04:42:06+00:00

THE REAPER UNLEASHED

WHAT are you talking about?” I mutter. “According to Art, death always existed, even in the original universe.”

“As a force,” Raz says. “Death was like time or gravity. It was simply a thing that happened. Bec changed that. First she stole a piece of the Kah-Gash from Lord Loss. Then—”

“From Lord Loss?” I interrupt, startled. “Art said the pieces never turned up in demons who were alive before the Big Bang.”

“They don’t,” Raz says.

“Then Lord Loss isn’t one of the major demons?” I whisper. The demon master is by far the most powerful foe I’ve ever faced. If there are others even stronger than he…

“There are many greater than he is,” Raz says gloomily, “but he has a unique power. The piece of the Kah-Gash nestled within him for thousands of years. That’s why he alone of the masters is able to cross freely between universes.

“When Bec unconsciously stole Lord Loss’s piece of the Kah-Gash, it was cause for wonder—that had never happened before. But then she did something even more incredible. When Lord Loss killed her, her soul remained.

“Death has always meant the end. When a body dies, the soul moves on, maybe to another realm, maybe to be reincarnated, maybe to nothingness—we can only guess. But no soul ever cheated death.”

“Bec was just a ghost,” I mutter. “Ghosts are nothing new.”

“Ghosts are shadows of the living,” Raz says. “They’re after-images of people, like the temporary glow a light leaves when it’s quenched. Bec was different. She was fully conscious, memories intact, a complete spirit.”

I shrug. “She’s part of the Kah-Gash. She used her power to stay, just as Lord Loss used it to cross universes. What’s the big deal?”

“Death was an absolute,” Raz snaps. “The Kah-Gash had no control over it. All beings had to answer death’s summons. Until Bec.”

The rocket we saw touch down rises with a roar that shakes the tombs around me. I think the structures are going to shatter, but as the rocket parts the clouds and powers away from the planet, they settle down again.

“We don’t know how Bec cheated death,” Raz says softly. “We’re not sure if she chose to remain, or if the Kah-Gash kept her, aware of the side effects.”

“What side effects?”

Raz is silent a moment. Then he moves away from the lodestone, through the tombs, back to the chamber. As I follow, he speaks.

“Death was a force, but when Bec defied it, that force developed a mind. It became aware of itself, the universes, its role. And unfortunately it reacted with anger.”

“This is madness,” I grumble. “Death’s not a person. It can’t react.”

“It can now,” Raz disagrees. “It constructed a body. Prior to Bec, beings died and souls passed on. But the new Death has the power to harness souls. It can deny them passage to whatever lies beyond. It built a huge, shadowy body out of—”

“The Shadow!” I cry, coming to a standstill, eyes widening with horror.

I’m trembling. It all makes horrible sense now. Beranabus was right—the Shadow is the greatest threat we’ve ever faced.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.