by Beth Wangler
“Okay,” Forziel says. He stands as far from the edge as the rope will reach. “Here we go.” With that, Forziel takes off running. Just as he leaps, he whoops. The sound echoes off the rock walls.
Forziel stumbles onto the far side and falls but manages to keep ahold of the rope. “That was amazing! You’ve got to try this!”
“That’s kind of the idea,” Drigo drawls.
Savi edges up to the chasm. “Tie a rock to the end and swing it back over.”
Forziel does, and Savi catches the rope. He turns to look at me. “There should be a Champion on both sides, just in case they come back while we’re getting across.”
I bite my lip. “That’s a good idea. Will you…?”
He nods. “I’ll go now, you protect everyone here.”
Savi backs up. Just before he starts to run, I grab his sleeve. Panic squeezes my chest. “Be careful?”
Savi smiles and kisses my forehead. “Of course. You, too.”
Then he’s running, leaping, swinging.
Forziel grabs him on the far side, and they swing the rope back. One by one, everyone swings across. Yorchan laughs, Laen squeaks, Drigo says, “Man, I hope we don’t have to do that again.”
“We wouldn’t be able to, anyways,” Hoenna points out, landing with a thud next to him. “This is our only rope.”
Nihae is the last before me, then it’s my turn. I fumble to catch the rock at the end of the rope and frown at Luemikaroeth. What am I going to do with the sword?
I tuck it into my belt. As soon as I let go, the light dims. I snatch ahold of the handle, and the light returns.
Aia, what am I going to do?
I wiggle my hand through the hilt as much as possible and hold the rope and sword at the same time.
“Rai, will you be able to hold on like that?” Savi asks. His eyebrows push together, and he leans forward.
My palms are sweating. When I try to answer, no sound comes out. I force a smile and nod.
That’s when I notice a strange noise vibrating the air.
The aivenkaites are coming back! I have to get to the others before the aivenkaites reach us. That thought gives me courage. I take a deep breath and run.
When I’m two steps from the edge of the chasm, a black shape darts through the archway, followed by dozens more. I leap over the edge and recognize the shapes for what they are: Bats.
Bats pour into the room, hundreds pitching through the air. They flood between me and the others. Their wings brush my arms. They flap in my eyes, blinding.
I feel the rope soar up then start to swing down again.
I missed the far side of the room.
Chapter 30
My heels bang against the cliff. I blindly scramble back onto the ground. Bats screech; my people shout.
“Rai!” Savi yells. “Where are you?”
I hack at the air with Luemikaroeth. It vibrates when it hits the flying creatures, and bats thump to the ground around me.
“Aivenkaites again!” Laen shrieks.
Forziel yells, loud and long.
“Rai!” Panic sharpens Savi’s voice. “Rai, are you okay?”
“I’m here,” I call back. I shudder, but only because of the unpleasant flop of leathery wings against my bare arms. “They’re not aivenkaites, just bats.”
I see Luemikaroeth again, white-blue blade shining between the bats. The bats thin, just enough that I catch a glimpse of the other side of the room. I have to get across.
Once more, I scoot back as far as the rope will reach. Then I start screaming. I sprint for the edge, leap, and fly back over the gaping ground.
Bats blind me still. Savi shouts my name again.
The rope reaches its zenith. I let go and throw myself forward.
My knees slam into the ground. I remember what the kaites taught me long ago and roll. My good shoulder scrapes over sharp rocks.
Then I’m standing, panting hard.
Savi crushes me in a hug, but scarcely has it begun than Forziel shouts, “Follow the bats! They’ll lead us out.”
The bats are winging out of the room, back the way they came. Savi snatches up my hand. We all sprint after Forziel, chasing the webbed wings through the bends and turns of narrow halls.
“Faster,” Forziel says. “They’re getting away.”
He’s right. When we left the room, we ran in the midst of the creatures. Now, they flap ahead of us.
Now only the stragglers linger as we round each new corner.
Now we follow their screeches.
We come to a branch in the hall, and Forziel slows to a stop. He tilts an ear toward first one path, then the other.
We draw up behind him. I breathe hard and touch my stinging scraped shoulder. “Which way?” I ask.
Forziel pushes his lips to the side and looks at me. “I don’t know. We lost ‘em.”
There’s silence.
“Well,” Savi says slowly, “which way do you think leads out?”
Forziel bounces on his toes, then drops back to his heels. “I don’t know. I’m all turned around. Did anyone keep track of which way we were heading?”
No one did.
“Well, this is just fantastic,” Drigo says.
“We’re going to die,” Laen moans.
I let out a deep breath and ignore the unease gnawing at my insides. “We’ve come this far, at least. We’ll choose one way and make marks as we go. That way, we’ll always be able to find our way back. One way or another, we know there must be another way out. A city in the canyonside can’t have only one entrance.”
That spurs a debate about which path to try first. “We go right. The first hall led up the canyon, in the direction we wanted to go,” Hoenna says. “Chances are, this one will keep going in that direction.”
“I’m sure we turned left at least twice as much as we turned right when we were chasing those things,” Drigo argues. “We’re heading back the way we came, toward the west. If we wanna get out of here, we should turn left again. That way’ll lead us out.”
Laen’s face is pale in the sword’s light. “We’re going to be trapped down here forever.” She hugs herself.
In the end, Savi flips his sandal to decide the direction. It lands pointing right. He scratches an arrow in the rock with his sword’s point, then we follow that hall with as much haste as is safe.
Our path takes us past hollow doors into rooms whitened by cobwebs. Our breaths echo off dust-cloaked columns. Whenever the hall branches, Savi marks the ground and we take the right turn. Whenever the right turn ends in a flat wall or room with a single exit, we retrace our steps and try again.
After hours of wandering, something throws Luemikaroeth’s light back at us from a nondescript doorway. “What’s that?” Forziel asks.
We file in, and my eyes widen. The room, almost as big as Tatanda’s house, overflows with piles and piles of gold, silver, and fordue. Rubies, amethysts, emeralds, and more gems whose names I don’t know throw glittering color over the cold metal.
I never dreamed this much wealth existed.
Hoenna whistles.
“The insurgent sultan’s stolen treasure,” Forziel breathes.
Drigo laughs, a giddy sound unlike his usual scoffing. “Now this is a good break.”
I stare at the glistening, shining horde and swallow to wet my mouth, which has gone dry. Why, with this wealth we could probably buy freedom for all of Maraiah!
Then reality sets in. We have no way to transport the treasure, and Izyphor would confiscate it as soon as they saw it. Besides, we’re running out of time. “It’s a good break we can’t really take.”
Hoenna clears his throat. “We, uh…”
“Grab only what you can carry without weighing yourself down. We need to keep going,” Savi finishes, with more resolve than I feel.
We scramble at the treasure. I find a bracelet that fits snug around my upper arm, a gold necklace with deep violet stones, and a bowl small enough to tuck into my belt.
“
Okay, let’s keep going,” Savi says. He takes Nihae’s arm and nudges Drigo. “Rai, after you.”
“Right.” I pull myself away from the glittering pile. Our hope doesn’t lie in wealth but in Aia.
But leaving that room is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.
Onward we trudge. After what feels like a full day, we reach a last dead end in the right branch.
“Well, I guess it’s time to go back and try the left path,” Forziel says, more cheerful than the rest of us.
“What if we missed something?” Laen says. “Maybe there’s a hidden exit that we overlooked, and if we go left we’ll be trapped down here forever.”
“That’s crazy talk.” Forziel grins. “Would you build a city under the ground that only had two ways in and out? There’s gotta be tons of exits. We just haven’t found ‘em yet.”
I don’t like the idea of leaving any path unchecked or of being trapped under the canyon for longer than we need to be.
I hope Forziel knows what he’s talking about.
“Fine. Lead on.” I step aside and gesture for Forziel to walk ahead of me.
The way back to the first fork in the road goes much quicker, thanks to Savi’s marks. Then we start the whole process again.
At first, this hall is indistinguishable from the other. Then the path takes a few sharp turns right and runs up a flight of stairs. The air, still dry, loses its musty smell and fills with the aroma of dew on sage. Here and there, cracks appear in the wall to the right. The indree shine and clean air flows through the gaps. I drag in deep breaths every time we pass a window into the night. I don’t smell that invisible charge of nearby aivenkaites, but I check every time.
When the hall branches into stairs up or down, Forziel leads us straight on.
“Some of those might lead to an exit,” I say.
“Maybe. But Champion Saviayr’s still marking our path, so we may as well try the direct route first this time.”
Dawn is hiding the indree again by the time we find a door to the outside. Laen sighs deep and collapses on the floor. “Hae-Aia, we made it.”
“Let’s stay in here until evening,” I decide. We’re all exhausted. The aivenkaites probably think we’re still trapped by the chasm. Better to hide here in the ruins of Tivanik than rest out in the open where evil eyes can more easily discover us.
We make camp with ease. It’s not hard, with our meager supplies. We each get a barley cake and a few sips from the water skins. Nihae and the bandits get our few blankets.
That’s when I realize Luemikaroeth’s light has gone out. When did that happen? Why? I pick the sword up, will it to shine.
Nothing happens.
I try to feel angry again, like I was when it first started glowing.
Nothing.
Hoenna volunteers for first watch. He perches on a fallen wall and pulls his knitting from his pack.
I barely notice, experimenting with Luemikaroeth. No matter what I try, it won’t start shining, not even the faintest glimmer.
“What are you doing?” Savi asks, coming to my side.
I hold Luemikaroeth up so he can inspect it. “The sword stopped shining. I don’t know why.”
Savi is quiet for a moment. “Huh. Well, at least we don’t need its light now.”
“I just wish I understood why it happened in the first place.”
“Maybe you can figure it out in the morning—I mean, after some sleep.”
A yawn forces itself out in answer to his suggestion. I chuckle. “Yeah, sleep would be nice. It’s been a long night.”
We find a level piece of ground and settle in for the day. With one sleep mat for the two of us, I curl into Savi’s side. He tucks an arm under my head and draws me closer.
The wind blows a haunting melody through the abandoned city remains. Its song and the steady rise and fall of Savi’s chest lull me to sleep.
Angry voices wake me. There’s as much light as when I fell asleep, but the air is hot—evening.
Hoenna tugs at his braids. Unintelligible words, probably spoken in Rhilissi, stream from his mouth.
“What?” Savi asks, voice slurred. He rises up on one elbow. “What’s wrong?”
“That two-timing, double-crossing, low-life spawn of an Izyphorn!” Hoenna roars.
“That’s rude,” Forziel says.
“He offered to take second watch, said he was having nightmares. Never trust a Kedi, I should have known the⎼” and he drops back into Rhilissi.
I’m fully awake now and am fairly certain Hoenna is cursing more than anyone I’ve ever heard. Yori’s cheeks turn red, even though I don’t think she can understand him.
“Hoenna, what did Drigo do?” I ask.
He flings his arms away from his head and scowls into the dark corridor. “He ran away and took all our supplies with him.”
Chapter 31
We stand around our meager supplies scattered on the ground: Three blankets, two half-sipped water skins, and a crumbly waycake wafer.
“I can’t do this.” Laen waves at the pile.
Forziel rubs the back of his neck. “I mean, we’re gonna have to. We have no other choice.”
Liquid gathers in the edges of Laen’s eyes. “No, I mean I can’t. I expected challenges following the Champions, but I didn’t expect it to be this challenging. Aivenkaites, floods, traps, bats—and now we’re out of supplies, thanks to Drigo. It’s too much.”
“Laen…” What do I say? Yes, it’s been difficult, but no one has died since she joined us. How can Laen give in so easily?
Saviayr pats her shoulder. “We understand.”
But I don’t understand.
“We won’t hold it against you if you go another way,” Savi adds.
“Where will you go, though?” Hoenna asks. “Onili won’t take you back.”
Laen looks down. “I thought I’d look for Altik, try to join his crew.”
No one seems to know what to say. Nihae—whom I’m not sure understands what is happening—gives Laen a hug. “We wish you well.”
I barely knew Laen. Still, watching her walk away feels like a blow. She seemed most supportive out of all the bandits. She was Maraian, too. What will I do if the rest of my people react like Laen?
Now we are only six strong: Nihae, Savi, Yorchan, Forziel, Hoenna, and me.
“So, what are we going to do about supplies?” Hoenna asks, once Laen leaves the shelter of Tivanik’s ruins. “Are there any villages nearby?”
Forziel tilts his head. “There’s an Umwian slave village just a little ways from here, and a royal’s city not much farther. Why? We have nothing to trade for supplies.”
Hoenna raises his eyebrow and points at his chest. “Bandit, remember?”
Yori snorts. “It’s not exactly like we could forget.”
I connect what he’s implying before she does. “We can’t. Absolutely not.”
“It’s easy.” Hoenna shrugs. “We can sneak in and out, quick as a crocodile.”
“Crocodiles don’t sneak,” Nihae says.
“That’s not what I meant,” I say. “I’m sure it would be easy for you, but we have to think of the consequences for the slaves.”
Hoenna waves a hand. “Oh, they’ll be fine. We don’t even need that much. We can leave some of the treasure we found.”
Forziel scowls. Ever since we woke up to find Drigo missing, Forziel’s been hostile towards Hoenna. I wish I knew why. “Yeah? And who do you think’ll be blamed for not spotting thieves? Do you think Izyphor’ll replace the missing rations?” Forziel crosses his arms. “Maybe you’ve forgotten, living without laws, preying on the weak, but I know what it’s like to starve and suffer for it. We will not steal from slaves.”
“Let’s just take a deep breath,” Savi says calmly. He steps in front of Forziel.
“Forziel, if you have a problem with me, just say what it is,” Hoenna says.
Forziel takes a threatening step toward Hoenna, who touches the dagger at his side
. Nihae clasps Savi’s arm. “Savi, why are these people angry? Are they going to fight?” she asks.
That deflates Forziel and Hoenna. Forziel turns around and kicks a rock. Hoenna smiles sheepishly at Nihae. “We were just disagreeing about something, Nihae,” Hoenna says. He throws a confused frown at Forziel, then kneels to bundle up our things.
Forziel’s right about not stealing from other slaves. That still leaves us with the problem of how to find food and water to survive. “How far are we from the capital?” I ask.
He rambles about maps and the perils of desert travel, but finally says, “About two more days, if we go hard and don’t get lost in any more ruined cities.”
Hoenna says what we’re all thinking: “We’re gonna be late.”
Forziel glares at him. “Sorry, but I did the best I could.”
I rest a hand on Forziel’s shoulder. “Relax. We know that. Now, are there any wells or streams between us and the capital?”
Forziel is quiet a moment, then his shoulders droop. “Not that I know of.”
I let out a deep breath. “Okay. Then we’re going, as fast and as long as we can. Savi will carry one water skin, Forziel the other, and Hoenna the food. Do we need the blankets?”
Savi decides for us. “No, we can sleep without them. The less weight we bring, the better.”
“Okay. Then, Forziel, lead the way.”
During all this talking, the sun still hasn’t sunk. Forziel leads us down the staircase carved from the canyon, with clear sky overhead. I search the blue expanse relentlessly. Do the aivenkaites know we survived?
O! for a day when I won’t have to dread storms! How desperately we need rain—pure, clean water.
If I thought climbing over loose gravel for hours was difficult, it was nothing compared to the sticky business of slurping along on the muddy canyon floor. Slimy mud squelches across the soles of our sandals. My feet slip with every step. If not for the sharp gravel inside the mud, I would walk barefoot instead.
“Hey.” Forziel’s eyes are fixed on the canyon’s top. “Did you see something?”
We slow. “See what?” Savi asks.
I touch Luemikaroeth’s grip.
“There was something in the corner of my eye,” Forziel says. He holds his arms wide. “It was huge! Too big to be a bird.”