“But Raziel knew what was in the book. Can’t he just write everything down in a new book?” X wondered aloud.
“No, supposedly his memories regarding most of the information was taken from him.”
“Well, God has to know where the book is,” Pax said. “Why can’t he just let the angels know?”
“Sure, and while God is at it, why can’t he just stop wars? Or for that matter, every single bad thing that happens?” Ada asked.
Vero reflected for a moment. “Because he won’t interfere with free will.”
“Exactly,” Ada replied. “Just like people, angels make decisions, and their actions have consequences. It’s prophesied that the book will be found again, but nobody knows by whom. And I’m sure Raziel is worried about it because if that book lands in the wrong hands — as in, the hands of the Fallen — then Lucifer’s power will increase tenfold.”
Vero hoped the book had been destroyed in the fire. That was far better than the alternative.
The fledglings walked along the open plains. They had come a great distance from the swamp, but it felt as if they were walking to nowhere — almost like they were on a treadmill. The angels were searching for a way out, but to where?
“I think we passed that tree three times already,” Pax informed the group.
“No, they’re just all starting to look the same,” X said.
“Does anyone know what we should be doing?” Ada asked. “Greer, what’s your inner voice telling you?”
“Sorry, I got nothing,” Greer answered.
“What about you, Vero?” Ada asked.
But Vero didn’t answer her. While he was physically walking alongside the others, mentally he was somewhere else.
“I think Vero’s got something,” Greer said.
“Vero! Vero!” Greer smacked the back of his head to bring him out of his stupor.
Vero snapped out of it and turned to Greer. “Kane’s in trouble.”
18
THE PIT OF ACID
I could see him.” Vero said. “He’s scared. Really scared.”
“Where is he?” X asked.
“I’m not sure, but it’s dark. It looked like he’s underground.”
“That narrows it down,” Greer said.
“I’m sorry, did you take a class in interpreting visions?” Vero asked sarcastically.
Greer looked away.
“Didn’t think so,” Vero said.
“Look over here!” Pax yelled.
Vero, Greer, Ada, and X turned their heads toward Pax. He was on his knees looking at a sandy indentation within an otherwise grassy field.
As they approached, Pax extended his arm like a school crossing guard, stopping them from coming any closer.
“Watch this.”
Pax picked up a stick and threw it into the hole. Instantly it disappeared into the sandy pit.
“It’s a sinkhole,” Pax told them. “They form when an underground cavern collapses. We have one near our house. People go there all the time to dump their old appliances and stuff, and the earth gulps ’em up. I’ve never heard of one forming in dry sand before.”
“That’s gotta be where Kane is!” Vero said.
“Great! Let’s all jump right in!” Greer said.
Vero looked at Greer for a moment. In spite of her sarcasm, Vero knew Greer had taught them an important lesson with that last jump — don’t hesitate. So almost together, the others all leapt into the sinkhole.
“Wait!” Greer shouted. “I didn’t mean it!”
But it was too late.
This jump was completely different than the last one. Vero felt perfectly relaxed, and when he opened his eyes, he found himself inside an illuminated underground cavern with Ada, Pax, and X. A moment later, a hole appeared in the ceiling of the cavern, Greer fell through, and then the hole closed up again. Greer landed on her feet and stumbled to one knee, but she quickly stood up again and brushed the sand out of her hair. The rings on her ears caught the strange light and made sparkling reflections along the cavern walls.
“Okay, hotshot, now what?” she asked.
“We find Kane,” Vero said. “Is anyone feeling anything?” he asked the group.
“Nope. This one is all you,” Greer answered.
“Fine. Then we’ll go this way,” Vero said.
“You mean right through that giant spiderweb you just walked into?” Greer asked.
“Ahh!” Vero swatted the air wildly. “Where’s the spider? Is it on me? Help!”
As he continued to jump around like a crazy man, he noticed a playful smile on Greer’s face.
“What?”
“There’s no spiderweb,” X said, chuckling.
Vero stopped hopping around. At this moment he had two choices. He could either get mad at them, or he could laugh at himself. He chose the latter. A smile formed at the corners of his mouth.
“Now can we go find Kane?” X asked.
The group walked along an underground trail. The dull light that surrounded them seemed to emanate from the floor, casting odd, eerie shadows on the walls. Greer’s hand shot up, indicating that everyone should stop walking. She’d heard something. It was a rustling sound like the flutter of wings. She turned to look behind the group and screamed, “BATS!”
Hundreds, maybe even thousands of bats swarmed overhead, and they were headed their way. Greer took off running. And X, Pax, and Ada followed on her heels. Only Vero continued walking at his leisurely pace.
“Nice try, guys. I’m not falling for that again,” he said.
Suddenly, a cluster of the black-winged mammals swooped down onto Vero’s head. Vero screamed and ran, but he lost his footing on the slippery ground and slid a few feet on his back. The bats descended upon him, and Vero curled into a ball, covered his head with his arms, and closed his eyes.
Vero braced for an attack, but several seconds passed and nothing happened. When Vero dared to open one eye, the cluster of bats were hovering a few feet above him, swarming like a hive of angry bees. Something was preventing them from flying any closer to him. Vero opened his other eye. A jagged object that looked like an upside down-icicle had grown up out of the ground next to his foot. Vero jerked his foot back. The giant icicle was red and shiny like a crystal with razor-sharp edges.
Without any warning, thousands of the daggerlike icicles sprouted from the ground. And when Vero turned his gaze upward, he saw more growing down from the cavern’s ceiling, hanging like jewel-covered sword blades. They weren’t just red, either, but a vivid array of colors, bursting with light like the wildflowers of the Ether.
“Stalactites,” X said, coming up behind Vero. He stared open-mouthed at the cave’s roof. “I studied them in my science class. They usually take thousands of years to form. Here . . . ” X looked at his watch, “it took about ten seconds.”
Greer, Pax, and Ada stood among the massive formations.
“It’s too bright in here with all of these colors, so the bats won’t come any closer,” X said. “The ones jutting up from the ground are stalagmites. They’re usually made up of mineral deposits, though I’m not sure what these are made of.”
The stalactites hung so far down from the ceiling that they nearly touched the stalagmites that shot up from the cavern floor. So it appeared as if they were in the mouth of some hideous beast with really nasty teeth. A pathway through the formations looked nearly impossible to navigate.
The walls also glistened with countless formations. Helictites had grown horizontally from the walls at all different angles, though none vertical. The formations seemed to defy gravity. They shot out from the walls in strange configurations resembling curly fries or clumps of worms. Yet the ends of the helictites were pointed like sharp needles. Brushing up against them, Vero knew, would not be wise.
“It doesn’t look like we can go that way,” Ada announced.
“Yes, but the bats are saying that’s the only way,” X said, his eyes fixed on the horde of nocturnal creatures
who were madly teeming on the other side of the stalactites.
Pax thought he heard something. He held his index finger to his mouth to shush the others.
“What is it?” Ada whispered.
“I think I hear Kane.”
The others strained their ears to listen as well. After a few seconds, a boy’s voice drifted through the cavern.
“It is Kane!” Pax shouted.
“Shhh . . . ” Vero said. He craned his neck in the direction of the voice. He was able to make out the distant sound, and then the word help floated in the air. “He’s in trouble!” Vero said.
Kane’s pleas were coming from deeper inside the cavern.
“How can we get to him?” Ada asked.
“Fly,” X said. “We can get airborne in here.”
“But it’s really narrow,” Pax said. “Our wingspans are too wide.”
“And besides, where are you gonna land? Right on some spiky stalagmite?” Greer asked.
“Maybe they’re not as sharp as we think,” X said. He tentatively ran his index finger over the tip of the nearest one, then quickly jerked it back. A bright red trickle of blood ran down his finger.
“Never mind.”
“Somehow we have to navigate our way through this cave,” Vero said.
No one looked too excited.
“You know what?” Vero said. “We slogged through the world’s grossest swamp and outmaneuvered a herd of behemoths. So how much harder could this be?”
“I have a feeling those words are going to come back and bite you in the butt,” Greer said.
“Keep your head down so you don’t trip,” Vero said. Slowly they weaved their way, single file, through the maze of razor-sharp stalactites and stalagmites, with Vero in the lead.
Each step needed to be deliberate and cautious. As they wove their way deeper into the cavern, Kane’s cries for help became progressively clearer, guiding them like a compass.
“We’re getting closer,” Vero said. “Stay focused.”
Pax had a definite advantage, being smaller than the others. But it was a much more difficult journey for X who was nearly six feet tall and had to manipulate the formations while hunching over awkwardly.
“I can’t take this much longer,” X said. “My back’s killing me.”
“And it’s cold,” Ada complained. By now they could all see their breath.
“We’re getting closer,” Vero said. “Just keep going.”
“You don’t get it! I’m in agony!” X snapped, and then he abruptly stopped walking.
Greer plowed into him, causing both of them to lose their balance and fall.
Vero whipped around and saw X’s face land just millimeters away from a stalagmite.
“Watch out! I almost got shish kebabbed!” Greer protested. Then she got back on her feet while being careful to keep her head tucked low.
“Sorry,” X said. “My back is killing me.”
“When someone’s on your tail, you can’t stop like that. We’re all tired and hurting. But we can’t stop now. Kane needs our help.” She offered a hand to help X up, and her gesture seemed to be just enough to keep X moving forward.
As they continued through the cavern, Vero noticed it was becoming more difficult to breathe. He felt his thighs burn with each step. The ground must be sloping upward.
Finally they reached a break in the rock formations, a small clearing where no more sharp formations pushed out from the cave’s walls, ceiling, or floor. But best of all, the ceiling in this small chamber was tall enough for them all to stand fully upright.
“Oh man, I never thought standing up straight would feel so good!” X stretched as tall as he could.
Pax laid flat on his back on the cold ground, trying to catch his breath. Vero and Greer stood next to X and stretched.
“I can’t hear Kane anymore,” Vero said.
Pax rolled onto his stomach and looked toward the back of the chamber. “Uh, guys,” he said. “Better take a look at this.”
“What now?” Ada asked.
As they walked over, they all saw what Pax was pointing to. Right where the back wall of the cave hit the floor was a dark hole . . . a hole just big enough for a fledgling to crawl through. It reminded Vero of a mousehole, only bigger.
Still lying on his stomach, Pax stuck his head through the opening and began crawling through it.
“Hold on!” Vero called, but Pax had already disappeared into the darkness.
Vero dropped to his hands and knees to follow him, but at that moment Pax called back, “It’s Kane! I can see him!”
The others crowded around the hole as Vero disappeared into it, quick as a mouse.
Once through the hole, Vero noticed immediately that the floor and the walls of the narrow passage were very smooth and tilted downward at a steep slant. He felt like he was crawling down the tunnel in a waterslide, and he had to push his hands and feet against the walls to avoid sliding all the way. He carefully crawled forward and wedged himself tightly next to Pax who was looking over a ledge.
Swirling below them was a steaming pit of bubbling water. A number of rocks and eddies were peppered throughout the pit, and the churning liquid sloshed against them, making a gurgling sound. And there was Kane, sitting forlornly on the largest rock right in the middle of the pit. Vero yelled to him, and Kane looked up, his eyes squinting.
“I’m stuck! I can’t get out! There’s nowhere to fly!” Kane shouted over the loud bubbling noises of the water. “No way out!”
Vero could see a smooth, solid rock wall surrounding the pit. So there was no way for Kane to get out that way.
“What’s beneath me? I can’t tell! What kind of wall is it?” Vero called to Kane.
“You’re on top of a sheer wall! There’s no footing beneath you at all!”
“Can’t you fly up here?” Vero asked.
“No. That hole is how I got into this stinkin’ angel trap in the first place! I slid through it and now I can’t get back to it. The entrance is too close to the ceiling! I’ve already tried a hundred times to fly back up there . . . but I can’t get close enough while my wings are out, and there’s no foothold on the wall for me to land on.”
“Too bad there aren’t any stalactites around here,” Vero told Pax. Vero felt something tug on his legs, and then Greer yanked him back from the edge. She was lying on her belly in the narrow tunnel.
“Move it, angel. I’ll handle this,” Greer said, and then she combat crawled right over Vero and landed on top of Pax who grimaced under her weight. She stuck her head out over the ledge and saw Kane sitting on the rock. “Kane, this is Greer! You need to just suck it up and swim over to us!”
“Can’t!” Kane shouted.
“Don’t tell me you can’t swim!”
“No . . . that’s not it,” Kane said.
“Look,” Pax said, “the walls and rocks in here are limestone. That means that liquid in the pit is highly acidic. Watch . . . ” Pax reached around to his back and winced as he pulled out a small feather without extending his wings.
“Impressive trick,” Greer said.
“Inch out a little more,” Pax instructed.
Greer army crawled a little farther while bracing herself against the walls with both hands. She looked at the water below.
“Now watch.” Pax held the feather over the slogging liquid and let go. Greer watched as it floated gently downward. The lone feather hit the surface — and disintegrated into a puff of smoke upon impact.
“Okay, so swimming is out,” Greer said. “I officially have no plan.”
“Everyone, get out of the passage, now!” X boomed from behind them.
Vero, Greer, and then Pax all had to inch out of the tunnel backward and single file, using their hands to push them back up the narrow tunnel and into the chamber.
“We need a plan here!” X said, as he paced the small cavern. “What are we going to do?”
“The only way to get Kane out of there is to drag him bac
k through that claustrophobic tunnel,” Vero said.
“And he’s going to have to fly up to the tunnel,” Greer agreed. “Swimming is definitely out.”
“But he can’t get close enough to the entrance with his wings extended,” Pax said.
“And if he tries to retract his wings, the pit of acid is right there, and he’ll fall into it. He needs time to be able to pull in his wings,” Ada said.
“I’ve got it!” shouted X. “We’ll form a human chain through the tunnel. Whoever’s at the front will have to dangle out over the edge and grab hold of him. That’ll buy him the time he needs to withdraw his wings, and then we can all pull him back through the hole.”
“That’s a great plan,” Ada said excitedly.
“Yeah, if you’re looking for a one-way ticket to choir practice,” Greer said. “We’ll be burnt to a crisp in that drink!”
“X is right, though,” Vero said. “It’s the only way.”
They looked at each other, silently weighing their options. Kane’s faint cry for help drifted through the mouse hole.
X sighed heavily. “Okay, I have the best upper body strength from spending my life in a wheelchair, so I’ll be the one to catch Kane.”
“No,” Vero said. “We need your strength to anchor the chain. I’ll grab Kane.”
“No arguments from me,” Greer said.
The others solemnly nodded. Vero laid down on his belly and squirmed his way back down the steep tunnel. Pax went next and grabbed Vero’s ankles. The others completed the remainder of the human chain with X holding Greer’s feet as they stuck out through the mousehole.
When Vero’s head reappeared over the edge, he shouted instructions to Kane. “You’re going to have to fly over to me and grab my hands. Then — and do this as quick as you can — retract your wings, and we’ll all pull you back through the tunnel!”
Kane looked uncertain. It was definitely a risky plan, but Kane stood on the tiny rock island and nodded.
The Ether Page 15