Fablehaven2-Rise of the Evening Star

by Brandon Mull

warm, predawn glow. A sizable raised platform of reddish

  stone dominated the area, looking almost like an outdoor

  stage. Stone stairs on one side of the platform granted easy

  access.

  Up the steps Warren charged, with Kendra at his heels.

  Despite the ubiquitous wildflowers and weeds in the clearing,

  the stone platform was untouched by vegetation. The smooth

  surface was flecked with black and gold. At the center of the

  spacious platform was a round socket, surrounded by multiple

  circular grooves that radiated out concentrically to the

  edge of the platform. About four feet separated each of the

  dark, narrow grooves. From above, the grooves would look

  like a target, with the socket at the center of the bull's-eye.

  Warren placed the complicated end of the key into the

  round socket. He had to twist the key back and forth, lining

  up various protuberances with notches in the socket to gradually

  work it in deeper. Once the tall key was approximately

  a foot into the hole, it clicked home.

  You sure you're up for this? Warren asked. There will

  be no turning back once we go inside.

  What do you mean? Kendra asked.

  These sorts of places are designed so that unless you

  make it to the end and claim your prize, you do not make it

  out alive. The designers don't want explorers solving the

  puzzle piece by piece. The traps guarding the way back will

  be much less forgiving than the traps protecting the way forward.

  Until we reach the artifact.

  I'm coming, Kendra said.

  Face reddening with exertion, Warren gripped the

  handle of the key tightly and began turning it. The key

  rotated 180 degrees and stopped.

  The platform shuddered. It became apparent that the

  circular grooves marked divisions between concentric rings

  of stone when the outer ring fell away into darkness,

  followed by the next, and the next, and the next. The massive

  rings thundered as they struck the ground.

  Warren pulled Kendra near him, standing atop the

  innermost circle with the key. Though the other rings all

  fell, the innermost never dropped. Peering down, Kendra

  saw that the outermost ring had fallen the farthest, with

  each ring thereafter plummeting a shorter distance, so that

  all together they formed a conical stairway. From the outside

  of the platform, it was at least a thirty-foot drop to the floor

  of the chamber. From the center where Kendra and Warren

  stood, the next ring was only four feet lower, the next four

  feet lower again, and so forth down to the floor.

  They just don't build entrances like they used to,

  Warren said. He tugged on the key, and, with a musical ring

  of steel, the portion of the key in the socket separated from

  the rest of it. Now instead of ending in a complicated series

  of protuberances and notches, the key ended in a slender,

  double-edged spearhead. Would you look at that?

  Can't be good, Kendra said.

  Yeah, it probably turns into a weapon for a reason,

  Warren said, looking down into the chamber. I don't see

  any trouble yet.

  I'm putting on the glove, Kendra said. She vanished.

  Not bad, Warren said.

  Kendra waved at him, reappearing as she moved. It

  only works when I hold still.

  Do you know what any of the potions do? Warren

  asked.

  I know a couple that would make us about eight or nine

  inches tall, she said. And I know some are bottled-up emotions,

  although I'm not sure which is which. Seth might

  know a few others. We should have asked him.

  Warren began climbing down from ring to ring. As a

  last resort, you can always try a random potion, he said.

  Hopefully it won't come to that.

  The chamber was not much larger than the widest ring

  of stone. The floor appeared to be a single slab of bedrock.

  There was nothing in the chamber except a pair of doors at

  opposite ends. One wall was covered in writings in various

  languages, including a few repeated messages in English.

  This accursed sanctum lies

  outside the domain of Fablehaven.

  Do not proceed.

  Go in peace.

  Kendra assumed the other messages restated the same thing

  in their respective languages.

  Why did they write it in English so many times?

  Kendra asked.

  I only see it in English once, Warren said.

  Oh, fairy languages, she said.

  They reached the bottom ring. Stay near me, Warren

  instructed. Step only where I step. Be ready for anything.

  He tapped the ground with the handle of the key before

  stepping down. Kendra followed him.

  Which door should we try? Kendra asked.

  You pick, he said. It's a toss-up.

  Kendra pointed at one of the doors. Warren led the way,

  prodding the floor with the key like a blind man. The door

  was of plain, heavy wood bound in iron, and appeared to be

  in good repair. Warren probed the ground off to one side and

  had Kendra stand there holding the ax. Standing still, she

  disappeared. Holding the key like a spear, he pulled the door

  open.

  Nothing waited behind the door except a stairway curling

  downward. Warren got out the dying flashlight. He tried

  to tap the top stair with the handle of the key, but the

  handle went right through it.

  Kendra, look, Warren said. The handle of the key disappeared

  through the first few steps. False stairs. Probably

  masking a drop of hundreds of feet.

  They crossed the room and repeated their cautious

  actions at the other door. Again the door opened to a

  stairway, and again the stairs were only an illusion. Warren

  leaned out far, testing with the key, to check if perhaps only

  the first few stairs were counterfeit, but nothing within reach

  proved to be tangible.

  Warren led the way around the perimeter of the room,

  tapping the floor and the walls. They reached a place where

  the key passed through the wall. Warren leaned through the

  illusion, and Kendra heard him tapping with the key.

  Here is the genuine stairway, he said. Kendra passed

  through the insubstantial wall and saw a stone stairway

  winding downward. White stones set in the walls emitted a

  soft light.

  You never know what might be a mirage in places like

  this, Warren said. He poked one of the glowing stones with

  the key. Ever seen a sunstone?

  No, Kendra said.

  So long as one stone sits under the sun, all the sister

  stones share the light, he said. It's probably atop one of the

  nearby hills.

  As they descended the stairs, they found a few places

  where illusionary steps disguised gaps in the stairway. Warren

  helped Kendra leap across the empty places. Finally they

  reached the bottom of the stairs and another door.

  Again Warren had Kendra move over to one side as he

  opened the door. Strange, he murmured, testing the

  ground. Warren stepped through the doorway. Come on,

&nb
sp; Kendra.

  She peeked through the doorway. The room was large

  and circular, with a domed ceiling. White stones set in the

  ceiling illuminated the scene. Deep, golden sand covered the

  floor. On the far side of the room a door was painted on the

  wall. On the left side of the room murals of three monsters

  decorated the wall, with another three on the right side.

  Kendra saw a blue woman with six arms and the body of a

  serpent, a Minotaur, a huge Cyclops, a dark man who from

  waist up looked human and from waist down had the body

  and legs of a spider, an armored snakelike man wearing an

  elaborate headdress, and a dwarf in a hooded cloak. All the

  images, though a tad faded, had been rendered with supreme

  skill.

  Warren raised a hand for Kendra to halt. The key sank

  into the sand in front of him. There are places where the

  sand becomes treacherous, he said. Watch your step.

  In order to avoid sinking in quicksand, they took a circuitous

  path to the painted door on the far side of the room.

  The painting depicted a door of solid iron with a keyhole

  below the handle. Hesitantly, Warren touched the painting.

  The image of the door rippled for an instant, and suddenly

  the door became real, a mural no longer.

  Warren whirled, key held high, and eyed the other

  murals in the room. Nothing happened. Finally he turned

  back to the door and tried the handle. The door was locked.

  Notice anything all the creatures on the wall have in common?

  Warren asked.

  Kendra focused on comparing them. A key around their

  necks, she said. The keys were not obvious. They were

  small, and subtly drawn, but each painted being had one.

  Any theories on how we get through the door? Warren

  asked, obviously with an answer in mind.

  You've got to be kidding, Kendra said.

  Don't we both wish, he said. The old guys who

  designed this place sure knew how to throw a party. He led

  Kendra around the perimeter of the room, avoiding quicksand,

  and scrutinized the depiction of each individual

  creature.

  The keys appear identical to me, he said after studying

  the dwarf. I think the game is selecting which foe we

  believe we can overcome.

  I hate to be cruel, Kendra said, but I'm thinking the

  dwarf.

  I would choose him last of all, Warren said. He carries

  no weapon, which leads me to believe he must be strong

  in magic. And he looks the easiest at first glance, which

  almost certainly means he is the most deadly.

  Then who? Kendra asked. The Minotaur carried a

  heavy mace. The Cyclops wielded a cudgel. The blue

  woman held a sword in each hand. The hobgoblin, as

  Warren had named the snakelike man, clutched a pair of

  axes. And the half-spider man bore a javelin and a whip.

  I suspect the Minotaur may be the lesser of these evils,

  Warren said at length. I would no sooner choose the

  woman than the dwarf, and a Cyclops is nearly as adroit as

  he is strong. Of the others, the Minotaur carries the most

  cumbersome weapon. His mace will limit his reach and

  hamper his ability to avoid the tip of my spear.

  You mean your key, Kendra said.

  We'll use one key to get another.

  Kendra regarded the Minotaur. Black fur, wide horns,

  bulky musculature. He stood a full head taller than Warren.

  You think you can take him? Kendra asked.

  Warren was testing the sand and outlining the sinkholes.

  I'll want you to stand still, he said. The Minotaur may

  catch your scent-I want to keep him in doubt as to your

  location. You'll keep the ax, and if I should lose the key, you

  may be able to toss it to me. If I should fall, the Minotaur

  will roam the room searching for you. If you keep still, you

  may have one free swing at him.

  But you think you can take him? Kendra repeated.

  Warren looked at the image of the Minotaur and hefted

  the key. Why not? I've made it through some tight scrapes

  before. I would give a lot for a few of my regular weapons.

  Maybe you could use the ax to help me mark all the quicksand?

  They spent much longer than Kendra liked delineating

  the areas of treacherous sand. She knew Vanessa and Errol

  were on their trail. Once the sand had been marked, Warren

  positioned Kendra so that the largest region of quicksand

  was between her and the Minotaur. He approached the

  mural.

  You ready? Warren asked.

  I guess, Kendra answered, squeezing the handle of her

  invisible ax, her heart pounding.

  Maybe I can get in a cheap shot right at the start, he

  said, touching the image of the Minotaur and raising the

  key, holding it ready to strike. The mural wavered for a

  moment and then vanished. The sharp tip of the key clinked

  against the wall, and the Minotaur appeared behind Warren.

  Behind you! Kendra screamed.

  Warren ducked and lunged to the side, narrowly avoiding

  a blow that would have brained him. The Minotaur

  swung the mace briskly. The weapon was big and heavy, but

  the Minotaur was strong enough that it did not look very

  cumbersome.

  Warren faced the Minotaur, staying a few paces away,

  key held ready. Why not just hand over the key? Warren

  asked. The Minotaur snorted. From across the room, Kendra

  could smell the beast, an odor like livestock.

  The Minotaur charged, and Warren nimbly danced

  away. Warren pulled back his arm as if to throw the key, and

  the Minotaur raised his mace protectively. Feinting like he

  was hurling the key, Warren leapt closer and used the long

  reach of the key to scratch the Minotaur on the snout.

  The Minotaur roared, chasing Warren around the room.

  Warren ran from his pursuer, trying his best to lead the

  Minotaur toward quicksand while keeping the beast away

  from Kendra. Either the Minotaur understood what the lines

  in the sand meant, or he instinctively knew where not to

  step, because he skirted the quicksand just as effectively as

  Warren.

  Sniffing the air, the Minotaur turned toward Kendra.

  Over here, you coward! Warren shouted, moving in closer

  and brandishing the key. The Minotaur strode boldly toward

  Warren, holding the mace off to one side, tempting Warren

  by leaving his chest exposed.

  After a few feints, Warren took the bait, driving the tip

  of the key toward the Minotaur's chest. The Minotaur

  grabbed the key just below the slender spearhead with his

  free hand and wrenched it from Warren's grasp, yanking him

  closer in the process, and swung the mace.

  Warren saved himself by diving backwards and managing

  to keep his feet. The blow had missed by inches. The

  Minotaur quickly reversed his grip on the key and hurled it

  like a javelin, burying the head in Warren's abdomen despite

  his attempt to dodge it.

  Roaring triumphantly, the Minotaur rushed at Warren,

  who pulled out the key and stumbled away, the spearhead

 
; red with his own blood. Scrambling, spraying sand, Warren

  managed to get a small area of quicksand between the

  Minotaur and himself.

  Kendra flung the flashlight and struck the Minotaur in

  the back. The brute turned, but she was invisible again. The

  Minotaur picked up the flashlight, sniffed it, and then

  sniffed the air, moving toward Kendra.

  Using the key like a crutch, Warren came around the

  quicksand, approaching the Minotaur from behind. The

  Minotaur whirled and gave chase. Warren skipped away,

  ending up with his back to a broad expanse of quicksand.

  Warren, quicksand! Kendra cried.

  Too late, he stepped beyond the line in the sand, one leg

  sinking to his thigh, the rest of him collapsing forward onto

  the sturdier sand. The Minotaur dashed forward, mace held

  high to issue the killing stroke. Quick as a mousetrap,

  Warren thrust upward with the key, the razor tip of the

  spearhead entering the Minotaur just below the sternum,

  angled up to pierce his heart. The Minotaur stood still,

  impaled, and snorted. The mace fell from his hairy hands,

  landing heavily on the sand. Warren twisted the key and

  shoved it in deeper, toppling the Minotaur backwards.

  Panting, Warren withdrew his leg from the mushy sand.

  Kendra ran to him. That was an amazing trick! she

  shouted.

  A desperate one, he said. All or nothing. His hand

  covered the wound on his abdomen. He swatted at the damp

  sand coating his leg. Probably wouldn't have worked,

  except the Minotaur thought I was mortally wounded.

  Course, he might have been right.

  Is it bad? she asked.

  It pierced me deep, but clean, he said. In straight, out

  straight. Belly wounds are hard to read. Depends what got

  punctured. Go fetch the key.

  Kendra crouched beside the supine Minotaur, enjoying

  the livestock smell even less up close. The key hung on a

  fine gold chain. She pulled hard, and the chain snapped. I

  have it, Kendra said.

  Get the big one too, Warren said. The big key was still

  lodged in the Minotaur's chest. Kendra had to brace a foot

  against the beast to tug it free. Warren had taken off his

  shirt. The blood stood out sharply against his white skin.

  Kendra averted her eyes. He wadded up his shirt and pressed

  it against the wound, which was a couple of inches to one

  side of his belly button. Let's hope this stanches the bleeding,

  he said. Can you cut me a length of rope?

  Using the sharp spearhead of the bloody key, Kendra did