by Kate O'Hearn
19
THE FIRST THING ASTRAEA BECAME aware of was the intense pounding in her head. It felt like someone was locked inside and trying to get out. There was the sound of moaning that was making her head throb even more. She wished whoever was doing it would stop.
“It’s all right,” Zephyr said softly. “You’re safe.”
“Zeph,” Astraea said, “whoever’s whining, it’s too loud. Please tell them to stop.”
“I can’t,” Zephyr said softly. “Because it’s you.”
“Wha—what?”
“How is she?” The sound of Pegasus’s voice hit like an explosion in her brain.
“Please stop shouting,” she begged.
“I think Astraea has a bit of a headache,” Zephyr whispered.
“I am sorry, Astraea,” Pegasus said softly.
Astraea felt a warm muzzle and soft whiskers press against her cheek. She couldn’t open her eyes to see who it was, but then Pegasus whispered, “Thank you, Astraea. Thank you for giving me back my Emily. Sleep and heal, my dear friend.”
Astraea wanted to ask more about what had happened. How was Emily? Where were they? But the pounding was getting worse. She felt dizzy and sick, and then she felt nothing.
* * *
When Astraea awoke again, it was to pressure on her lips. She tasted sweet nectar and drank gratefully.
“That’s it, keep drinking,” Triana said softly. “This will help you get better.”
Astraea opened her eyes and saw the concerned face of Triana leaning over her and pulling back the cup. Behind her were Zephyr and the three centaurs.
“Finally,” Cylus said, but not too loudly. “We didn’t think you were ever going to wake up again.”
Her head was still pounding, but it was much easier than before. She could barely remember waking and the explosion of pain. “How is Emily?”
“Not great,” Render said softly. “We can’t get her to wake up. Pegasus is frantic.”
Astraea closed her eyes again. “That queen only touched me for a moment, and it knocked me down. But there were two lying on top of her.…”
“Tryn told us,” Render said.
Astraea opened her eyes and frowned. “Where is Tryn?”
Zephyr snorted. “The idiot’s gone to find Jake. We told him to wait, but he said after what he saw in the cavern, he just couldn’t wait if it was happening to Jake, too. We tried to stop him.…”
“You can’t stop Tryn,” Triana said. “Not when he sets his mind on something.”
Astraea started to sit up but felt weaker than she ever had in her life. Even weaker than when they’d gone ages without ambrosia on Zomos. “I can’t remember anything after the queen touched me. What happened?”
Zephyr looked over at the others, then back at Astraea. “Well, now, there’s quite a story.…”
Cylus chuckled. “I wish I could have seen it.”
“Seen what?” Astraea said.
“When Tryn carried you and Emily away from the queens, the moment Pegasus saw what they’d done to her and you, he became enraged. Who would have thought he had such a ferocious temper?” Zephyr said.
“And?” Astraea coaxed.
“Then more Mimics came—” Zephyr started.
“What?” Astraea cried. She winced at the pain it caused.
“Yep,” Zephyr said. “They kinda had us surrounded and blocked the stairs leading out. So, you know how Pegasus has this power to draw water out of the ground? Well, he was so angry, he slammed his hooves down and the floor cracked. Then he showed me how to do it. It was amazing, the place practically exploded with water. We all got soaked!”
Cylus started to smile. “Guess what? Mimics hate water!”
“They sure do,” Zephyr said. “The moment they were touched by the water, they became paralyzed and started to float on the surface like leaves on a river. They couldn’t even shoot their tendrils. We had to race out of there because the water was coming in so fast.”
“And,” Cylus said excitedly, “they flooded the whole area. The water is still rising over there right now.”
“At least it washed the goo off Emily and the smell off Pegasus,” Darek said.
Astraea could hardly believe what she was hearing. She remembered the pond Pegasus had created on Xanadu after his fight with Jupiter, but this sounded much bigger.
“So can you do it now?” she asked Zephyr.
If Zephyr could have grinned, she would have. “Oh yeah…”
Astraea frowned again. “But—what about Riza? Was she in there?”
“No,” Render said. “Tryn used his skateboard in the nursery, and she wasn’t there. After they brought you back, he tried again. The skateboard was taking him in the same direction as Jake, so he left. We’d hoped he’d be back by now.”
Astraea looked at the bright sunshine pouring through the bedroom window. “It hasn’t been that long. Maybe he’s waiting until tonight.”
Zephyr shook her head. “You’ve been asleep since the first night we arrived here, and that was two nights ago—believe me, these days and nights are really long.”
“Two nights?” Astraea cried, then winced at the pain. “Tryn should have waited for me. I could have helped.”
“Tryn promised to just look,” Triana said. “He’s not going to do anything stupid. Once he finds Jake and Riza, he’ll come back for us and we’ll all go to free them.”
“Even so,” Astraea mused. “He should have waited.”
“Astraea, you can’t even hold a cup right now, let alone take on more queens,” Zephyr said. “So just lie back and rest. We can’t do anything while it’s light.”
Astraea lay back but didn’t think she could sleep anymore. The centaurs and Triana left the room. Alone with Zephyr, Astraea looked around. “This isn’t too different from my bedroom,” she observed. “The bed’s a lot longer, but it’s still a normal bed.”
“This whole place is a lot like Titus. Or, Titus mixed with Earth,” Zephyr said. “Tryn and Triana explored the building and found more pictures of the people who once lived here. They really aren’t that different from Titans, apart from the three eyes. But then again, we have Cyclopes, and they only have one eye. Pegasus thinks the Mimics might have killed the original people.”
“A whole planet of people?”
Zephyr nodded.
Astraea felt bad for those who used to live there. “I wonder how long the Mimics have been here.”
“A long time, by the age of everything,” Zephyr said. “The covers on your bed are clean but rotten with age. Everything is rotting.”
Astraea looked over to the window. “Have you seen any signs of Mimics out there?”
Zephyr nodded. “They are looking for us. Patrols have been checking the area. They came up our street, but before they reached our building, Lergo came through and got them all. I think that snake likes the taste of Mimics. It’s hunting them more than we expected.”
“Lergo is on this side of town?”
“Lergo is everywhere,” Zephyr said. “Pegasus and I go out at night and check. That snake is really wrecking the place. It’s permanently black now, and it is eating anything. I’ve seen it devour a whole bunch of Shadow Titans in one gulp.”
“I wonder if it’s starving,” Astraea said. “The Mimics are just goo—there won’t be any substance to them.”
“I thought that too,” Zephyr said. “But at least it’s doing what we hoped and keeping them distracted.”
They spent the better part of the day just being friends and talking about the things they were going to do once this was over.
“First thing for me is a long soak in a lake,” Zephyr offered. “I stink, my legs ache from carrying Cylus, and I’m always looking out for Mimics. Just to stop and relax would be wonderful.”
Astraea nodded. “For me, the first thing will be going back to Arcadia.…”
Zephyr whinnied, “What? You want to go back to school?”
Astraea started to
laugh. “No, silly. I just want a big family dinner with all of us together. We could invite Jake, Tryn, Triana, and their family, and the centaurs. It will be a big celebration.”
“Yes, that would be nice. But I’m not so sure about Jake. You really don’t want a human in your house; you’d never get the smell out again.…” Zephyr stopped and winked at Astraea.
They laughed and talked like they used to, and for a short while forgot where they were and what they were up against. Finally Astraea threw back the covers.
“I need to stretch my legs. Would you help me? I’d like to see Emily.”
With Astraea holding on to Zephyr’s wing, they left the bedroom and walked down the hall to the main lounge. A bed had been carried out of one of the other bedrooms and was now set up in the center of the room.
Pegasus stood beside the bed like a statue. The three centaurs were lounging on the floor not far away and nodded at Astraea as she approached.
“How is she?” Astraea asked softly.
“She sleeps,” Pegasus said. “Much like you, but deeper. I try not to let myself fear that she will not awaken.”
Astraea looked at the pale girl with the dark hair, lying motionless in the bed. Her chest rose and fell evenly, but she was so thin, and the dark rings around her eyes told of the ordeal she’d been through. Her arms were burned and blistered from where the queens had lain.
Approaching the bed, Astraea reached out and stroked Emily’s forehead. “Come back to us, Emily,” she said softly. “We’re all waiting for you.”
Stealing a look at the stallion beside her, she could see tears sparkling in his eyes and trailing down his face. Pegasus was crying.
20
ASTRAEA DIDN’T RETURN TO HER room. She settled down in the lounge with everyone else, watching and waiting for Emily to awaken. As she lay in the bed, Emily looked like an ordinary girl and not the great and powerful Xan she had turned into. How long would it take for her to regain her strength? What might Riza look like once they found her?
Several times throughout the day, Triana poured tiny amounts of nectar into Emily’s mouth, but Emily didn’t move or react. As time passed, Pegasus’s despair grew.
“He’s really scared,” Zephyr whispered to Astraea. “I hate to see him like this.”
Astraea was stunned by Zephyr’s comment. For so long Zephyr had hated the stallion and the constant comparisons to him that she went through. Now, after working and fighting together, they were becoming close. She now considered the comparisons a compliment. So to see him so frightened for Emily, she was really feeling for him.
“I know,” Astraea agreed. “I wish there were more we could do.”
As they sat in the bright room, Astraea understood what the others meant about the days and nights being long. She was sure the sun should have set before now, but peering out the window, it was barely overhead. There was a long way to go before dark.
Her bracelet was open, and she was stroking the two snakes. Feeling their cool, smooth scales helped to calm her unsettled mind. She fed them tiny pieces of ambrosia and smiled at the comments Zephyr made about them.
When the sun did move to the horizon and start to set, the pain in Astraea’s head finally faded and she was almost back to herself. Though, she did notice the new scar on her arm from the Mimic queen’s tendril. The surface was bumpy, red, and raised. Something told her it would be permanent.
Throughout the long day, they heard Lergo tearing through the city. This was often followed by crashing and the sounds of collapse. The immense snake was still on the rampage.
When the sun was down, Cylus, Darek, and Render drew out their bows and moved for the door.
“What are you doing?” Astraea asked.
“We’re going to start searching the city for more Titans,” Cylus said. “There were a lot taken; they’ve got to be here somewhere.”
“You can’t go out; you’ll disturb the dust at the front door, and if the Mimics come, they’ll notice.”
Cylus shook his head. “They haven’t been back here since that snake got the last group. Astraea, we didn’t come all this way just to sit here. We need to find our people and free them, then find the queen and kill her before she spawns any more!”
Pegasus looked up from his vigil beside Emily. “Cylus, I appreciate your feelings. You are anxious. So am I—our people, our family, are here somewhere—but sometimes, the best action is no action, just for a while.”
“What are we waiting for?” Cylus demanded. “We’re warriors; we should be fighting, not hiding.”
“True, but you will risk your lives searching. Lergo is out there. As you must stay on the ground, you could not outrun it if it tracks you. It is unfortunate that Tryn chose not to remain. But he is not foolish. I have every confidence he will return, and when he does, that precious flying board of his will lead us to the others.”
“So we just sit here and wait for Tryn?” Cylus cried. “What if he doesn’t come back? What if he’s been killed or something?”
Triana gasped. “No…”
“Cylus, stop!” Astraea said. “You’re upsetting Triana. We don’t know that anything has happened to Tryn. Maybe he found Jake and they’re together. He’ll be back. I know he will. Until then, we must wait.”
Astraea said words she had no faith in. Since waking, she’d had the same fear. What if Tryn had been captured by the Mimics, or worse, hunted and killed by Lergo? She felt just as helpless and frustrated at the centaurs. She wanted to go out and tear this city apart looking for the others. They were in a war, and sitting and waiting wasn’t what she’d expected to do.
“I can’t do it,” Cylus said. “I can’t just sit here.”
“I understand,” Astraea agreed. “How about this? You all stay here and protect Emily. Zephyr and I will go out. We’ll stay up high and we will fly around looking for any signs of our people.”
“Astraea,” Pegasus warned.
“She’s right, Pegasus,” Zephyr said. “We’ll fly higher than Lergo can reach, and we’ll look for any signs of Titans or Tryn.”
“I will not try to stop you,” Pegasus said. “I owe you more than I could ever repay.…” He looked down on Emily. “But I will ask you this. If you insist on going out, and should you find our people, come back here and get us. We will go and free them together.”
Astraea nodded. “Agreed.” She turned to Cylus. “Is that all right with you? If we find anything, we’ll come back and get you.”
Cylus didn’t look happy, but he nodded. “Is that a promise?”
“Absolutely,” Zephyr said. “Believe me, I don’t want to play hero alone.”
* * *
When the sun was fully set, Astraea and Zephyr prepared to go out on a search mission. Astraea packed up her slingshot and accepted extra pebbles from Triana and the centaurs.
Cylus walked with them up to the roof, complaining all the way. “We should be going with you. You need us.”
“I know,” Astraea said. “But we don’t need you being hurt, maybe even killed, because you had to stay on the ground. You know we’ll come right back if we find anyone. For now, please take care of the others. You can see how distracted Pegasus is; it’s up to you to keep everyone safe.”
Cylus nodded. “You’re right,” he said seriously. “I’ll watch over them.” He helped Astraea up onto Zephyr.
“Thank you, Cylus,” Astraea said. “We’ll be back soon.”
“See you later,” Zephyr called as she opened her wings, trotted to the edge of the roof, and then jumped into the air.
Zephyr circled back over the apartment to make sure they knew where they were, then started to fly in ever-increasing circles over the city.
“Wow,” Zephyr said as they glided over fresh ruins. “That is one angry snake.”
There were whole areas that had been reduced to rubble. Mixed among the ruins were pieces of Shadow Titans.
“There’s nothing here that we can see,” Zephyr said. “Let’s t
ry even farther out.”
They both kept watchful eyes as they passed over the sprawling city. After a time, they started to see greenery at the edge.
“At least this world isn’t all built over,” Zephyr said.
“Let’s try that way,” Astraea advised. “Toward the trees.”
Zephyr flew out over the woods, and the fragrance of sweet pine filled the air. “This is much better.”
“Let’s look for some water,” Astraea suggested. “We can’t keep drinking nectar; we have to save it.”
They continued far out over the trees, but saw no signs of rivers, lakes, or ponds.
“How is this possible?” Astraea asked. “There are so many trees. Where are they getting their water from?”
“It’s probably underground,” Zephyr said. “I have an idea.” She turned back and headed toward the city again.
Astraea frowned. “What are you planning?”
Zephyr landed on a street. There were lights on in the buildings, but no activity on the ground.
“Zeph, we can’t stay here. It’s too dangerous; there are Mimics here.”
“Yes, there are,” Zephyr said. “But look around. Wouldn’t this be the perfect spot for a nice large pond?”
Astraea gasped. “What? You’re not thinking what I think you’re thinking.”
“Oh yeah,” Zephyr said. “We need water, and Pegasus showed me how to get some.”
“Yeah, but I don’t want to drink water that has Mimics floating in it!”
“Then I’ll just have to do it again. Hold on!”
Astraea gripped Zephyr’s mane and tightened her legs against her. She could feel a kind of vibration emanating from her best friend.
“Zeph, what’s happening?”
“Watch and be amazed!”
Just as Pegasus had done, Zephyr reared up high and then came crashing back down to the ground with ferocious pressure.
After three strikes, the ground started to rumble. Astraea looked down and saw a large crack forming in the pavement. Then a trickle of water started to swell in the area near Zephyr’s hooves.
Two strikes later, and the water was coming faster. With a final strike, water shot high in the air like a fountain with too much pressure. “That should do it!” Zephyr whinnied over the sounds of roaring water.