Cat and Mouse

You can’t hear anything here.

Well, not in the traditional sense, anyway. You can feel the shivery, slightly cold whispers of the souls in the plains of the underworld, feel the ghost-like cries of those newly arrived, but you don’t hear them, not really.

Those souls are the ones Tru had to deal with. The cloaks of their past lives billowed around them still, covering the softly glowing soul with a hazy curtain.

There were others of his kind, too, moving noiselessly throughout the crowd and absorbing the rot, the memories. Soon they’d head noiselessly off to recover from the inevitable emotional strain of absorption, and others would take their place.

Tru nodded to another as he drifted off the arrival dock of the river Acheron, then glided over to a soul stepping off the boat. She was unusually bright, a golden glow instead of the regular icy blue.

He stretched his hand out to touch her, but she shied away. Then something happened, a strange, strange sensation Tru wasn’t used to.

I don’t want to die . Her mouth moved as she spoke to him, and he could hear her, too.

I don’t want to die . The words came again, and Tru turned to face her. She shook her head, hair shaking around her face in the sticky slow motion that memories cause in the underworld.

You have to, he told her, reaching out. You have to. 

She shrank back, but she was still slow, and Tru’s hand brushed against her cheek. A soft sigh esaped her, and she stopped resisting, instead slowly leaning into his touch.

“Feels good to lose all those painful memories, doesn’t it,” Tru whispered to her, his hands gently absorbing all of the hazy memory spots on her, each touch shooting powerful emotions into his mind.

It felt good for the souls, but it hurt him. Tru clenched his teeth slightly, ignoring the lifetime’s flood of feelings and pain that shot through his hands and up into his arms, focusing on the soul herself instead. He was almost done, only a few patches of memory remaining, when she pulled away, faster without her memories to slow her down.

“Come here,” he told her gently, looking up into her eyes. “It’ll feel nice, I promise. Nothing to be scared of.”

“Give me back my memories,” she rasped, voice hoarse as she stumbled back, clutching her arm, feebly feeling for the memory cloak that had been around her moments before. Tru felt a stab of pity.

“It’s my job,” he told her, fumbling to remember her name. “Karinina, I have to. You can’t have memories out there, it’s dangerous.”

“Then send me home,” she whimpered, eyes flicking around defeatedly. “Just give me my memories back and get me up to Earth.”

“You know I can’t do that,” Tru said sternly, opening his arms as if to give her a hug. “Now, come here and let me finish, and then we’ll send you along. I promise you’ll be fine.”

Karinina glanced at his open embrace, as if conttemplating it, then sprinted off into the crowd.

Tru stood, confused, for a split second before darting off after her. This didn’t usually happen.

“Soul!” He called out to the others. “There’s a half-cleansed soul, she’s escaping! Someone get her!”

Pandemonium erupted, each newly-arrived soul striving to see what was going on for themselves. Cleansers hurriedly finished up the job they’d been doing, as it couldn’t be left half-finished, and hurried after the escaped soul. A few others, sensing opportunity, made a break for it and had to be restrained. By the time everyone was free, Karenina had slipped off into the Underworld.

Tru watched, frozen in disbelief.

“She’ll die quick enough,” another grumbled. “With memories like that attached, who knows what sort of monsters she’ll attract? We don’t have to worry about her.”

Tru nodded, still somewhat in shock, turning back to the souls at the dock, the words echoing in his head.

We don’t have to worry about her anymore; she’ll die quick enough. 

They were wrong.

Karenina had somehow managed to survive, and not only survive, but she’d found a weapon: a Darksteel blade, strong enough to kill demons and Underworld monsters.

There had been a few raids on the docks; Karenina swooping in and snatching souls before they could have their memories cleansed and then rushing off in the chaos. Her forces had grown larger and larger, and they’d become a threat, killing the demons that tried to stop them. Now each demon was armed as they cleansed their souls, living under the constant threat of attack.

The others worried enough about the attacks, but Tru wondered about their purpose. When he was off duty once, hiding in his small, concrete room, he brought out her memories and analyzed them. Surprisingly, there was nothing that would explain such erratic behavior.

The reason must still be attached to her, he realized. It was one of the memories I didn’t take. 

But why does she need an army if she only wants to survive? 

No, he realized, his horror mounting as the pieces clicked together. She wants her memories back, and to return to Earth- and I have those memories.

If her forces grow strong enough, she’ll attack us until they hand me over or give her what she wants.

I can’t let that attack happen, even if they hand me over immediately. 

Tru stood up, stretched, and strode purposefully out to the courtyard, where the chief demon was assigning shifts to the cleansers.

Tru paused briefly, wondering if he should get permission first. He decided against it; they wouldn’t believe him. Giving a hasty excuse, he hurried off into the Underworld, searching for Karenina. His weapons were more advanced than their blades, and all he had to do was touch the last of Karenina’s memory spots. Then she’d be gone, and her followers would be easier to pick off, and this whole thing would be over.

“Karenina,” he called out into the wilderness, his hand slipping to his sword. “I’m the one with your memories, and I’m right here.”

He repeated the call as he walked through the gray, barren land, the fog rolling around his ankles, until he was grabbed from behind. He swiftly used his sword and slashed through a few of the souls, wincing as he heard them cry out.

“I only need one of you alive and with your memories intact to lead me to Karenina,” he told them, whipping around to face the small group of three. “You can fight, but I’m faster and stronger, and my blade’s better against your kind, so I’ll win. Then I’d have to kill you. Surrender now, and I’ll cleanse your souls- it won’t hurt a bit, it’ll feel lovely, actually, and you can wander off peacefully and live as the cleansed human souls usually do.”

The group hesitated, unsure what to do. One, eyes shifting hurriedly from Tru to her colleagues, stepped forward and dropped her sword.

Tru nodded to her and gently absorbed the memories, freeing her from the earthly cloak that tied her down and letting her drift off with a pleasant sigh.

Another gradually came, letting Tru cleanse him off, until only one was left.

“Lovely,” Tru said, flashing a smile. “You can take me to Karenina.”

“And what if I don’t?” He said, meeting Tru’s eyes defiantly. “I’m not taking you to her.”

“Not even if I kill you?” Tru asked nonchalently, drawing his sword and tilting it so it reflected the weak light. “I could always find another group of Karenina’s little human warriors.”

“I have a sword, too,” the soul contested, drawing it.

Tru snorted. “You’ve barely had that a few months, maximum. I’ve had an eternity to practice.”

“We practice a lot, too,” the soul protested, lifting the sword.

“Then why are you holding it wrong?” Tru purred, walking over and grabbing the swordsman’s wrist before he could react.

He let out a shuddering gasp as Tru absorbed a few memories, his heartbeat slowing down, sword dropping as he relaxed.

Tru sighed and lifted a hand to cleanse the weakened soldier, when a shout rang out.

“Don’t touch him,” Karenina growled from the top of a nearby hill, warriors surrounding her, “or I will order my archers to shoot you.”

Tru raised his hands in surrender, a little bemused. “Alright,” he said, nodding to the soldier. “Go join your friends.”

The soldier stumbled off, absorbed into the rankings as Karenina’s soldiers helped him back.

The force gradually surrounded Tru, who, completely unbothered, dropped his weapon and asked politely to see Karenina.

“You can’t kill me,” he reminded her. “I have your memories. You were looking for me to get those back, isn’t that right?”

Karenina’s jaw clenched. Tru could see the muscles working as she watched him, trying to decide what was going on.

“I have to touch you to give them back,” he added, examining his hands, glowing softly even as they stood there.

“How do I know you won’t just steal my last memories and send me off to wander?” Karenina asked, hugging herself, a hint of fear in her voice.

“You don’t,” Tru said, barking out a laugh. “That’s the beauty of it.”

Karenina stood there, seething, unsure what to do for a minute, as Tru smiled up at her.

Finally, she began to descend from the hill, a line of followers behind her. “If he absorbs a memory, pass me down the line until I’m safe,” she ordered, marching down until she was right in front of Tru.

“Give me my memories back,” she said, glancing up at him. He recognized the look in her eyes, desperate, pleading, just like they’d been back at the docks that first day.

He almost wished he could give them back to her.

“Here you go,” he whispered to her, reaching out to place a hand on her arm.

“If you trick me, I’ll have them cut your hands off,” Karenina hissed to him, shying away from his touch, and he winced.

“You need those hands,” He pointed out, noticing the familiar bright spots of memory on her shoulder, side, and neck. “Besides, isn’t that a little cruel?”

“No,” Karenina said flatly, “it isn’t.”

Tru shrugged. “Have it your way,” he said, then reached up and sucked out the memories on her neck. She cried out, and he reached for her shoulder, but they were already hauling her away before he could touch either of the other memories.

He drew his sword and sprinted away, running in a zigzag pattern as the arrows hissed around him. Suddenly, a wing of Karenina’s forces that he hadn’t noticed before rose up, cornering him. One shot him with a tranquilizer dart of some sort, and he dropped to the ground, spots filling his vision. Then everything went black.