CHAPTER 29 - "AN EXCEPTION TO EVERY RULE"
At this very moment, Ronald Knox wished had had spent more time lifting weights than he did partying with girls as he held the edges of his Deathscythe at bay from ripping his face apart.
He felt the air breezing from the blades as they mashed together like the jaws of vicious animal. The very sharp blades buzzed with a deafening sound on their highest power level, which he now regretted setting, as Decco slowly forced it towards him.
If his own Deathscythe touched him, he knew he'd never be able to look in a mirror again!
No one could help him, no one would help him.
Thann was a ghost, Decco would prevent Spencer from helping…and the others, well, they seemed indifferent to his situation. But before this all happened, not only had be felt Decco's power, but there was something very strange about that young boy. There was a hidden darkness in the boy.
But he felt no power from the old man, in fact, he felt nothing at all from him, as if he were a shadow of his former self, even a shell.
But that was something for later.
Right now he had a more pressing matter to contend with. Namely keeping his own Reaper tool from carving his face up like a Hallows Eve pumpkin. And if he couldn't stop it, no girls would ever want to look at him, little less date him or invite him to any of their parties, and he'd have to wear a robe and a mask for the rest of his existence, and he would be most likely transferred to the Robed Division, where disfigured Reapers resided.
"No! No! No! I'm a sexy Reaper and I want to stay as one!" he shouted over the noise.
His Deathscythe got closer and closer, until all he could see were the blades that were about to rip his face to pieces, and if that happened, he couldn't watch and closed his eyes…
And suddenly the OFF button was pressed and the blades rotated down and stopped, the buzzing ceased, although he heard a ringing his ears. And his Deathscythe dropped to the ground, like a dead toy.
William T. Spears stood two feet away with his pincher Deathscythe in hand; he adjusted his spectacles. Had he saved him?
"A sexy Reaper, indeed," William said condescendingly.
"My savior!" Knox said merrily and then dropped to his knees and hugged William's legs. He was never so happy to see his boss.
"Compose yourself, Reaper Knox. Get up!"
Knox did, but he still smiled. "Thank you sir, I really appreciate you coming - "
"One of my employees was in trouble. I was watching everything. I can not allow this to continue." He turned to Decco, then to Spencer Von Strauss.
Knox frowned, snorted annoyed. William thought little of him, but his boss was always like that with everyone. He was the epitome of unyielding seriousness and order.
"And you, I take it, are the creator or this monstrosity?" William referring to Epimetheus.
"I am," Spencer said regretfully.
"With the power of creation comes great responsibility and you failed to heed to this crucial fact," William said orderly. "It is an abomination - against the natural order of things. Destroy it!"
But before Spencer could respond, Decco interceded, "Now hold on, sir. Who the hell are you?"
"William T. Spears, Head of Reaper Affairs. Your monster attacked one of my employees, and then you proceeded to harm again with his own Deathscythe…"
Knox met a sideways glance from William, and then looked away abashed.
To have your own Deathscythe used against you was not only an insult, but also an embarrassment. He retrieved flak from his fellow Reapers when Mathu Kelvin destroyed his previous Deathscythe before he rebuilt it, but as long as William kept his mouth shut there wouldn't be a repeat occurrence of that. However, with William, he was always a stickler for details in reports, and he'd more than likely include this "detail" in the report that brought him down here to save Knox. All that praise and boasting over the last couple of months after capturing Ironstadt just dropped out the window.
"He was about to attack my monster," Decco retorted.
"You monster attacked him first," William replied calmly.
"Are you here to stop my plans?"
"Your 'plans' are insignificant to me, but they are hindering my employee from completing his mission."
"Then have your employee take his escapee soul and go home. I won't stop him."
"Not without my brother!" Thann demanded.
"You are like a parrot, Thann Von Strauss," Decco said. "Shut up!"
William adjusted his spectacles once more. "Indeed. Here lies the dilemma. Thann Von Strauss will be difficult if this issue is not resolved, so resolved it will be."
"Is that a threat, Mr. Head of Reaper Affairs, William T. Spears?"
"I don't make threats, Mr. Decco. I adhere to facts. You will reverse what you have done to Young Mr. Spencer Von Strauss and set him free of the covenant you have over him, and then we, with his older brother, will leave without further incident."
"Or else…what?"
"Don't make this any more difficult than it needs to be, demon. It is a simple, but strong request."
"And if I refuse your strong request?" Decco folded his arms across his chest.
"Then you will force my hand."
William raised his pinscher Deathscythe and the rod extended with lightning speed up and into Epimetheus's chest, directly through the middle of the large covenant acting like the heart of the monster.
Decco looked up. "Really now. You can't kill him like that."
"On the contrary, demon," William said. "The gravity of the situation is as simple as that."
SNIP!
William retracted his Deathscythe and it returned to its normal size.
Epimetheus didn't roar, he didn't even make a sound. But suddenly the great monster dropped to its knees with a crash and then fell over in a heap with a thunderous boom. And it lain dead.
Decco's mouth dropped open wide.
"I cut its spiritual lifeline; everyone has one," William said. "Rather simplistic. We Reapers can kill if it is deemed necessary, and as a demonstration was in order, I used your monster to fervor it. I am sure the Reaperdem High Council will agree with my assessment of the situation and approve it after the fact."
"Good one!" Knox praised with a thumbs up.
William took out a small medicine bottle from a pocket and opened the top, pointing it at the monster. The souls of both McDermott and Thibeau were sucked inside. He sealed the top again, putting it back in his pocket. "I'll file a report about these souls when we return to the Reaperdem," he said.
The body of Epimetheus then began to dissolve and sizzle, evaporating into steam, and eventually bubbled to hunks of wasteful tissue extracts.
Decco no longer had a shocked, dumbfounded look on his face. "Interesting. You wield such great power. Care to join me? Together we'll burn down the gates of hypocrisy and give true order to the cosmos."
"Your offer is both insulting and offensive. Reapers are beneath such megalomaniacal ideals, we have evolved to a higher state of being and consciousness."
"Now you insult me, Reaper. My ideals, as you put them, are much more than the frivolant domination of the universe, they are to bring order to chaos to a plane of existence that needs true leadership."
William seemed to examine him for a moment, Knox observed. From Decco's statement, it wasn't difficult to figure out a civil war was about to erupt in the fiery depths of Hell and this demon was preparing a coup to be its catalyst. It was then safe to believe that these minions he had collected were not the only ones if he planned to battle against Lucifer. Did Decco truly plan to overthrow the King of Demons?
"My only reason for coming here was because Mr. Knox was in danger from your tyranny," William said.
"That's too bad," Decco said. Not even a hint of disappointment of Epimetheus's demise in his voice. "We could have struck up a powerful coalition. You, myself, and others I know - we'd set the world aflame!"
"That would be unadvisable," William saying straightly. "That would constitute more work for my staff and they already busy at it is. They have no time to pick up the remnants of your wave of chaos."
Decco shrugged his shoulders. "Wave of chaos, indeed. But I know when I'm beaten…" He snapped two fingers. "Spencer, what I took from you is now yours once more." Spencer looked down his trousers and beamed with glee. "You are also free to leave my service."
"Seriously?" Spencer's eyes widened. "What's the catch?"
"I suggest you accept the demon's more than generous offer and not question it, Spencer Von Strauss," William said. "The covenant on your forehead is always gone."
Spencer involuntarily put a hand his forehead, but as there were no reflective surface he couldn't see it, he obviously had to take William's word. Thann nodded, smiled at him, and that told him it was gone.
But Knox knew Spencer was right. There was always a catch. Decco would not just release a minion from his army of collective souls if it didn't benefit him in some fashion. But he didn't say anything. And yet, by this, Thann would agree to leave if Spencer came with them. Knox noticed something else, something was different with Thann Von Strauss now, too. He went over to him and patted him over.
"Hey, you're solid." He put an ear to his chest and heard a heartbeat. Knox looked into the man's eyes, and then snapped a look at Decco. "He's alive?"
Thann patted himself down and was equally shocked, but smiled ecstatic, then looked down his trousers. "And fully intact," he said, referring to his own genitalia. His clothes were no longer bloody either.
Spencer ran to Thann and they hugged in an embrace, crying. They murmured apologizes, and vowed they would start living good lives, but the emotion by both brothers was lost on the cause of Decco's sudden relevance and generosity in restoring both Von Strauss brother's lives.
"Why?" Knox finally said curious.
Even William was astounded. "This is unprecedented," he said. "A soul restored back to the living? You do not have permission to do that! Paper work must be filed to explain this."
William sounded a little flustered, Knox observed. William was always cool and collected. And a demon restoring a life went against policy and William hated it when others disobeyed the rules.
"Just accept it and move on," Decco said, waving a hand as if it meant nothing. "Now that I have freed Spencer and restored Thann Von Strauss back to their respected lives, you can leave us."
William quickly composed himself. Yes, this is what William wanted, so to speak. Now that Thann was alive again, despite the reversal paperwork involved, they could now leave.
"Wait!" Thann spoke up. "What about Wilhelm and Johnny? They're innocent in all this, too."
Decco chuckled. "I would hardly call them innocent," he said.
Wilhelm Lazarus stepped forward. "All I wanted was for my little boy to live again," he said, "killed by that butler demon that now resides with Ciel Phantomhive. I have no qualms with Ciel's brother Lukas, but I will have revenge on Sebastian Michaelis and Ciel Phantomhive for that fated night when he ordered that demon to murder the entire Inner Circle and all the children slated for sacrifice to mask his own escape. And nothing is going to stop me. I willfully give myself to Decco."
"And I am staying with my father," Johnny spoke up. "Nothing will separate me and my Dad again!"
"And the Illuminati is nothing to me now, you can tell them such if you go back to them."
"You see, there is nothing left for you here anymore," Decco declared.
"But…" Thann started to say.
"Sorry Thann, it's not your fight," Knox said. "You have been given a second chance at life, not many humans get this; leave this to someone else." And besides, Knox knew the pair were too far gone. They were hollow inside, especially that boy. No human can be restored to life without their souls returning to them, and that boy did not have a soul. Decco was playing even Lazarus. "And that's not his son, Johnny," he said quietly to Thann. Knox put up a hand before Thann could speak. "I'll tell you later."
"I would advise you to leave now, Von Strauss and company," Decco said. "My patience is running thin and I have a timetable to keep."
"Timetable?"
Knox frowned. "I knew this was too easy," he said. "You demons are notorious tricksters and diversionary tacticians. This was all pyrite play."
"I have not tricked anyone, Reaper Knox. Indeed, nothing here has meant anything to me. It was merely to add a means to an end. You all mean nothing to me. My quarrel is with Sebastian Michaelis. After I have dealt with him, I will implement my plans to wage war with Morning Star."
William adjusted his spectacles for the third time since he arrived. Knox observed whenever William was intrigued with something, he's used the subterfuge of adjusting his spectacles before speaking, to ask for details of something. In card play, it was known as a 'tell' to tell others that you were interested.
"Your quarrel with Sebastian Michaelis, explain it to me," William said. "Do you see him as a rival? One whom, if able to, could, ultimately stop you in your plans to wage a civil war with your demonic lord?"
"I thought we weren't going to get involved?" Knox protested.
"An inquiry into why certain events are unfolding is not getting involved, Reaper Knox. Inquiring minds wish to know, so I can file a more detailed report. Then, if something needs to be done, Reaper X will be assigned to it."
"Fair enough," Decco said. "If it will extradite your leaving sooner…"
After Decco explained everything he had planned and wanted to do, William stood musing for a moment with fingers cupped around his chin. "I see, then you have no conflict with Reaperdem," he said. "While your plans are destructive in nature, we Reapers cannot get involved in your personal qualms, as per stated. And I have no reason to stop you…"
"Great!" Knox threw up his arms in protest. "More overtime!"
He knew if William would not do anything to stop this demon, his destructive rampage will eventually cause a lot more work for his employees. The Reapers not only dealt with the human world, but with other dimensional worlds, as well. Knox knew Decco would not stop in his plight until he was master of the universe. It was the same with all psychopaths, they always wanted more. They were never ever satisfied.
William eyed him, but said to Decco, "Your scheme is overdone and frugal. Would you care for a revisal that will cost less loss of life and less work for my employees?" He looked at Decco.
"Huh?" Knox expressed.
"You wish to help me?" Decco said surprised.
"What I wish is less work for my employees," William corrected. "Therefore, if defeating Sebastian Michealis will save time and effort, perhaps a temporary accord can be reached. Once the demon is defeated, you can take you fight to your dimension and leave us."
"I don't believe this!" Knox said in total shock. "Sebastian Michaelis helped the Reaperdem defeat the Fallen Reapers, who threatened to tear down the very fabric of our society and now you want to help this maniac kill him? Forgive me for saying, sir, but don't you have any gratitude?"
"Your tone borders on insubordination, Reaper Knox, and you misunderstand my intentions."
"No, I think I understand them quite clearly. It's all about numbers for you and paperwork."
"This is no way to speak to a superior. This will go in your file."
"Fine. Put it in my file, and I'll write in my report about this mission that you allied yourself with a demon for clerical reasons. An exception to every rule, huh."
"Whom do you think reads all the files before they are inserted into the Library of Information?"
"You have an answer for everything," Knox snorted angrily. "Thann, Spencer, I'm taking you some place safe. I'll deal with this traitor later."
William eyed Knox with contempt. "That will quite enough, Reaper Knox! Consider yourself suspended and when I return to the Reaperdem, a full inquiry will be brought to the High Council of your actions."
Knox didn't reply, instead he 'winked out' with Thann and Spencer.
When Knox 'winked in' again, they were in the front courtyard of the Phantomhive estate. As per William, he was suspended, so he no longer had to abide by Reaper policy, and most likely, he would be fired, but he had to warn Sebastian Michaelis of the coalition formed between William and the demon Decco. It was only fair, as Sebastian helped the Reaperdem with the Fallen Reapers.
"You brought us here?" Thann inquired.
"With Sebastian Michaelis, you'll be safe, I think," Knox said.
Spencer's foot hit something and a metallic clang was heard. As it was a full moon and the entire courtyard was lit up with a light blue hue, at least a kilometer in every direction could be seen, but something was scattered across the front courtyard of the Phantomhive estate.
"What is it?" Knox asked.
Spencer picked up the metallic piece and examined it. "I don't know, but pieces like this are scattered everywhere." He then pointed to a blackened area, supposedly ground zero, where what looked like an explosion had erupted. "Oh no…"
Spencer ran to it.
"Be careful," Thann warned following.
They all went to the spot of the explosion where a hole was carved, not dug, out of the ground caused by what appeared to be a large explosion, something like what nitro would do to further advance a mining operation into a cave. Metallic pieces were more accumulated here, along with human remains. An disembodied arm was found, then part of a torso, and then other charred parts.
Thann examined the scene with Knox as Spencer followed on, and then suddenly Spencer dropped to his knees. Thann and Knox saw him drop and went over to him, as Spencer picked something up off the ground. It was the melted remains of a gold chain with a crucifix still attached.
Spencer held it to his heart, his head lowered, and tears suddenly began to fall from his eyes, down his cheeks.
"Spencer, what is it?" Thann asked.
"I gave this necklace to Trent as a symbol of our…love."
Spencer was no longer reluctant to admit to his homosexuality, at least in present company who knew.
Thann's jaw dropped in shock, as he looked around, seemingly now relevant of what the debris really was. "Is this the machine you and Trent built? The boxcar 'roadstir'?"
Spencer nodded. "But why did he come here? And how did this happen?"
Thann sighed. "Probably because of me. When Trent and Abberline fled from his home, I knew that they would travel to one of your safe houses, places you thought I didn't know about. I sent men to every house and burned them down. Seeing that they didn't have any other place to go, I wager that it was Abberline who warranted that they come here believing they would be granted sanctuary by the Phantomhive's from me and the Illuminati. So Trent's death is on my head. I'm sorry, Spencer."
Spencer turned to him, but with a smile. "I don't hate you, Thann. You could not have known…this would happen. Perhaps Trent mixed the fuel incorrectly and it caused a backfire that ignited something. It was a prototype, and we did know there were a few things that needed constant caretaking."
Knox examined a larger piece of the debris. "I don't think so," he said. "This was done by a great force of power, not by human error. I can feel a supernatural residue on the larger of these pieces."
"A supernatural residue?" Thann said. "What do you mean?"
"There is also a static electricity charge left here." Knox closed his eyes and shook his head. "Oh great, it better not be who I think it is…he was dragged to…"
"Who are you referring to?" Thann asked; Spencer stood on his feet, turned to them.
And Knox told them the story of Mathu Kelvin.
To be continued…
