Conor turned various strategies over in his mind, but none of them held much hope. There was one option left, though clearly no one wanted to say it. Conor hated even the thought of it, but at the same time it seemed the only way forward. He cleared his throat, and the others looked at him. Laying a hand atop Briggan’s furry head, Conor scratched between the wolf’s ears. Briggan’s back leg twitched in pleasure, just like Conor’s old sheepdog’s would have done. He and Briggan had been parted once before, to save Rollan’s life in Pharsit Nang. It had been nearly unbearable. Conor wondered if it was more than his heart could take to do it again. But they had no other choice.
“So that’s it, then,” Conor said. “We send our spirit animals on. Alone.”
ROLLAN WATCHED CONOR EXPLAIN THE PLAN TO Briggan. The wolf sat at strict attention, his blue eyes never wavering from Conor’s. His head would tilt once in a while when he wasn’t sure about something, but otherwise the former Great Beast stared deep into Conor’s eyes, soaking in every signal he could get off his companion.
Essix, meanwhile, wouldn’t be staring dutifully into Rollan’s eyes any time soon. No human boy was going to be the boss where a falcon was concerned, and Rollan was just fine with that. She was high in the sky, searching for prey. Irtike carried Snake Eyes close to her, giving the falcon a worried look. He was a perfect Essix-snack size.
Tarik, meanwhile, couldn’t stop pacing. Clearly he was no great fan of their plan. It was risky and unusual, and if there was something Rollan had learned about Tarik by now, it was that he liked to do things by the book.
Leaving Essix to her hunting, Rollan went to Tarik’s side. “You’re not feeling good about this, huh?” he asked.
Tarik crossed his heavy arms. Under the intense Niloan sun, Rollan could see the deep lines around the man’s mouth. “Not at all,” Tarik sighed. “Cabaro is the most powerful foe we’ve faced yet. You saw that scraggly lion in Pojalo’s hut, and how much trouble it gave us. A full-grown lion might have bested us, and Cabaro is far bigger than a usual lion. Only Suka could rival him for strength, and Cabaro is many times more agile. Briggan might stand a chance in combat if Conor used the Slate Elephant, but even then, wolves must usually work together to bring down larger prey. He’ll be outmanned. And Essix …”
“She’s made for smaller prey too,” Rollan said defensively. “It’s not her fault. And none of the Four Fallen are as large as the rest of the Great Beasts. But what else can we do? They’re the only ones who can approach him without getting kicked in the heads by crazy attack chickens.”
“I agree with you,” Tarik said wearily. “Which is why I’m allowing this. But all the same, I don’t like it.”
“Well, we can never know what they’re going to find out there. Who knows how Cabaro will react to seeing Briggan and Essix again after all these years?”
Tarik stared out at the desert laid out before them, then unexpectedly laid his hands on Rollan’s shoulders. “Rollan. You haven’t mentioned Meilin since we left Oceanus.”
Rollan’s jaw clenched on its own. “Meilin? Why are you bringing her up?”
Tarik ruffled his hair. “You’ve been distracted the whole time we’ve been in Nilo. Just a suspicion that she might be on your mind. I know she and Abeke are on mine.”
Of course Meilin was on his mind. All the time. But that didn’t mean he wanted to talk about it.
“We’ll find her,” Tarik said. “And Abeke.”
Rollan doubted it. And even if they did find Meilin, what would they do with her? At any moment Gerathon could take her over and have her beat them to the ground with her hands tied behind her. It all made the prospect getting his friend back pretty bleak. He bit back a caustic reply.
Tarik sighed. “I’m going to tell you something that very few people know. I had a sister once, named Reima. She was three years younger than me, but we were inseparable. Reima was mature, and whip-smart. My parents scrimped and saved just to send her to school. Of the two of us, it seemed she had the brighter future.”
Tarik steeled his gaze toward the horizon as he continued. “As you’ve seen, not all families are happy when a child calls a spirit animal. For most, having a child join the Greencloaks means losing him or her. My parents operated a carpet shop and had counted on me to run it so that they could retire — they were quite old by then. But Lumeo came to me in my Nectar Ceremony, and that changed everything.”
At the mention of his name, Lumeo popped his head out of Tarik’s bag, peering curiously with his bright eyes. Rollan stroked Lumeo under his chin, and the otter closed his eyes as he basked in the pleasure of it.
“Reima was delighted,” Tarik continued. “She loved Lumeo as much as I did. Secretly I wanted to join the Greencloaks, to use my new link with Lumeo to do good in the world. But I was also ashamed of that dream. Leaving would mean letting my family down. I never shared my hopes with Reima, but she knew. Without my knowledge, she told our parents she wanted to quit her schooling and work in the shop instead. They believed her — and when she took over the family business, I was free to join the Greencloaks.”
“She sacrificed her future,” Rollan said. “For you.”
Tarik nodded and lifted the hem of his cloak into the sunlight. “She gave up much so that I could wear the green. Perhaps too much. Every morning, I silently thank her. Every evening too, before I sleep. She’s always on my mind, even though, as I’m sure you’ve noticed, I don’t speak of her. What she means to me, the importance of what she did, is a weight that I keep private. It is mine to bear, and sometimes that makes it seem more pure, more sacred.”
Rollan nodded, thoughtful.
“But that’s not the only way,” Tarik said. “If your burdens become too heavy, you should also know when to share your pain or worries.” Tarik placed a hand gently on Rollan’s shoulder, smiling softly. “As I’ve just done with you. You have that option too.”
“Okay, old man,” Rollan said, ducking from under Tarik’s arm. “Keep talking like that and maybe someday I’ll become a Greencloak after all.”
“Oh, didn’t I tell you?” Tarik said. “Those offers expire. Limited time only. Maybe you could try to join next year.”
“Right,” Rollan said, cuffing him on the shoulder. Then he paused. “You said you had a sister. What happened to her?”
Tarik’s smile flickered for a moment. “That’s a burden I’m not quite ready to part with,” he said. “Another time, perhaps.”
Rollan nodded.
“Hey, guys!” Conor shouted. “We’re ready.”
“Essix,” Rollan called sharply. “Make room in your head. I’m coming in!” The falcon, busy trying to cave in a particularly promising rodent mound, gave a frustrated cry and then flew to Rollan’s shoulder.
“Okay,” Rollan said to Tarik, clasping his arm warmly. “Are you sure no Lumeo?”
“There’s a broad desert on the other side of the pass,” Tarik said. “Lumeo is a water animal. I can’t imagine him enjoying that crossing one bit.”
“Well, I still think we should send the mole rat,” Rollan said dryly. “Every adventuring party needs a mole rat.”
“Hey!” Irtike said. “Snake Eyes is too small for this fight. He stays here.” From somewhere deep in her bag, Snake Eyes squeaked defiantly.
“Fine, then. Get ready, everyone. I’m going in,” Rollan said. He stared deep into Essix’s eyes, and felt himself grow lighter. As his sight merged with the gyrfalcon’s, there was a curious, tense feeling in his belly. He watched through Essix’s precise vision as Tarik took Rollan’s own limp body and lay it flat on the ground, placing a bag under his head as a pillow.
Essix took flight, and Rollan’s mind was fully in her light, strong body. His pulse thrummed with joy when they hit the air currents over the canyon.
Rollan’s link with the falcon was stronger than ever, but it still only went in one direction. He could see everything the bird saw, and even shared some of her falcon-y instincts, including an innate sens
e of up- and downdrafts. There was something relaxing to having no control. The only job Rollan had in the world was to experience the thrill of soaring hundreds of feet over the earth.
Essix found a warm updraft and used it to rise higher in the column of air. She was able to control her altitude by easing in and out of the current while she flew. The tight circle of her vision danced around, soon focusing in on Briggan. The wolf loped down the scrubby hill and to the entrance of the narrow passage. He paused, bobbing his head — Rollan could only imagine how strong the carnage below would smell to a wolf — and then Briggan continued forward, not flagging even when the ostriches came out of their hiding places to face him down.
Undeterred, Briggan strode forward. Rollan could sense Essix’s shoulder muscles tense as she prepared to dive at the ostriches if they attacked.
The ostriches turned, staring backward, their powerful back legs at the ready. If they struck out, nothing Essix could do would save Briggan — the first foot that connected with the wolf would likely shatter his ribs.
The birds tensed as Briggan loped nearer and nearer, their wings rising as they prepared to take to the air for extra power, their lethal legs cocked and at the ready.
Bird and wolf came closer and closer … and then Briggan was in among them.
He went right through. They’d let him pass.
Distantly, from the ears of his own body, Rollan could hear the muffled cheers of Tarik and Conor and Irtike. But Essix wasn’t wasting any time celebrating. She left the column of air and glided across the hot desert, keeping Briggan squarely in view below.
Soon after they’d left the cliff passage behind, the desert widened to the horizon. The sky was a brilliant, hot blue. Rollan could feel the heat on Essix’s feathers, warming their dark centers and radiating out to the white tips. The nibs retracted into the bird’s skin with a prickling sensation, as Essix flattened them so they’d trap less heat.
When Essix peered down at the wolf, Rollan could see that Briggan was having a hard time. The falcon’s keen vision caught the dry patches on Briggan’s tongue where it lolled heavily from one side of his mouth. He panted as he loped forward, his chest rapidly rising and falling as he shifted his gait into a sort of leaping walk. Rollan could only imagine how hot the sand was under his paws, which were adapted to the dark cool forests of central Eura.
The unending desert was beautiful, but that was a cruel consolation to its true nature. The place was a graveyard. The sand was dotted by the brilliant white skulls and rib cages of the many beasts that hadn’t survived their brutal journey south. In the distance Rollan could see what looked like giants’ bones, but when Essix focused in, Rollan realized they were strange columns of white minerals. Rollan wouldn’t have recognized the material if they hadn’t just come from Oceanus — it was coral.
Once, this must have been an ocean. They were the same distance from the pole as Oceanus; maybe Mulop had once swum around here. But now it was desert, and it was the lair of Cabaro.
It was hard to imagine why the Great Lion would want to live out here. It was a barren wasteland, without even scraps of vegetation for shade. Hidden away from the human world, yes, but hardly a suitable stronghold for a Great Beast.
Essix’s attention went more and more frequently to Briggan. Rollan could see why the falcon was worried. The wolf was slowing. Not too noticeably, not yet, but if stalwart Briggan was dragging, he must be suffering indeed. Surrounded by the skeletal reminders of the animals that hadn’t survived the journey, Rollan wondered if perhaps they should cancel their plan and bring Briggan back.
But then, right in front of Rollan, Briggan doubled in size. The wolf seemed as surprised as he was, skidding in the sand and nearly falling flat on his face. Then Briggan stood, shook his fur free of dust, and started forward again, this time at twice the speed.
Of course, Rollan thought, Conor just realized he should put on the Slate Elephant. Why didn’t we come up with that before? Maybe Tarik had been right that Rollan was distracted by thoughts of Meilin these days.
In his new giant form, Briggan actually seemed to enjoy the journey. He quickened his strides, leaping between dunes. Clearly no longer as worried, Essix’s gaze flicked over the many skeletons they passed, maybe looking for stray bits of sun-dried meat.
As Essix soared over the unchanging desert, riding waves of dry heat, Rollan lost track of time. He only snapped out of his dreamy state when a speck of green appeared on the southern horizon. It grew larger and larger, until Essix’s keen vision was able to make out dense clumps of bright green palms, surrounded by thickets of vines and rubbery bushes, birds and monkeys scampering between the fronds. Many tracks circled the ring of precious greenery.
An oasis.
It was large, hundreds of yards across. There must have been some sort of spring in the middle to provide so much lushness in the middle of the desert. A semicircle of sandstone cliffs curled around the back of the oasis, rising high above it. The beautiful ring of green was probably easy to defend, since intruders could approach from only one direction.
Essix descended, coming in to glide onto Briggan’s back. The falcon cried out, and the wolf shifted his ears affirmatively. It seemed Briggan already knew what Essix was telling him. He had probably scented the oasis and figured out precisely what they were heading for.
This lush stand of greenery below the cliffs, so highly defensible, was where Cabaro had secreted himself away.
At first Rollan couldn’t understand why Essix didn’t rise back into the air, but as the trees rose into view, he realized how dense the foliage was. If the falcon had gone back to flying, she would have lost sight of Briggan the moment he stepped into the oasis.
It was a frustrating way to travel. Essix bobbed with each step Briggan took, sending the falcon’s already jerky vision bouncing. Rollan started feeling sick to his stomach.
As they neared the oasis, Rollan recognized an elderly baboon with raggedy ears hanging in the trees, one of the same baboons that had swarmed them outside Okaihee. Once Briggan was near, the chattering creatures in the trees fell silent, and Rollan became intensely aware of their stares. Other heads emerged from between the thickets — wild dogs. The monkeys and birds fled in unison, deeper into the oasis. The dogs remained, watching the wolf nervously. Still enlarged by the Slate Elephant, Briggan was many times their size, and it seemed to have them spooked.
Briggan arrived at the oasis line, and the landscape went from empty to overfull. Water-greedy plants clogged the ground so thickly that there was no clear path for him to follow. Rollan debated returning to his own body to tell the others that Briggan was too big to enter, but decided against it. Better to give Briggan a chance to figure out a way to enter without shrinking him back to his normal size. He’d need every advantage he could get to stand a chance against Cabaro.
Sure enough, Briggan figured out a way in. The giant wolf reared on his back legs and came down on the nearest palm. Essix shrieked and took to the air as, with a great crash, the tree plummeted into the foliage, flattening the surrounding palms. Briggan picked his way along the fallen trunk and then downed another palm, Essix flapping above him the whole time. After a noise like that, every animal in the oasis had to know exactly where they were. Though he’d given up the element of surprise, Briggan had found an effective way of traveling through the oasis.
Essix nipped Briggan’s ear in warning. The wolf turned, and Rollan could see that the dogs at the oasis’s edge had assembled and were tailing him, crying nervously and sniffing the ground. They were small and mangy, with numerous scabby hairless spots, but there were plenty of them — at least a dozen, maybe as many as twenty. Rollan knew why Essix was concerned, but couldn’t see what was to be done about the persistent dogs. At least they weren’t attacking — yet.
As Briggan continued his passage, the oasis was eerily still. The advantage of Essix’s vision was gone in the thick greenery — all Rollan could see were clustered leaves and the blurred
legs of scurrying creatures. Beneath it all he heard Briggan’s exhausted panting and the soft howls of the tailing dogs.
Finally Briggan crashed a tree that didn’t lead to more greenery. The wolf stepped cautiously into a clearing.
After all that sand and heat, the oasis’s center was impossibly beautiful. Water burbled and spilled from the ground in the middle of the clearing, forming a radiant pool. Around it grew bright green mosses and ferns, overhung by desert willows. At the lagoon’s edge were peacocks, tail feathers in such striking reds and greens that they seemed bejeweled.
The plump peacocks were of no interest to Essix, though. After the long trip through the desert, Rollan could sense the sole desire burning in her: to drink from the pool. He could only imagine how much furry and panting Briggan wanted to lap up some of that lagoon water too.
They would have gone right for it, if only they’d been alone.
When Essix and Briggan stepped into the clearing, sleek yellow forms picked their way out of the greenery at the far side. Powerful and sinewy, they stalked forward, eyes trained on the wolf, long front teeth displayed in warning. Lionesses, four of them. They came to a stop, a loose clump of fierce cats between Briggan and the lagoon.
Rollan could sense Briggan’s indecision. There was no need to attack the lionesses when they weren’t attacking him — but the cats were blocking access to the water. Rollan remembered Lenori mentioning something else about lions. Where there was a group of lionesses, there was usually a male.
The surface of the lagoon water began to tremble and shake. Moving sinuously, Cabaro emerged from the foliage at the far side.
He was lean, and long — almost half again as long as Briggan, even with the Slate Elephant. Each step Cabaro took around the edge of the lagoon brought him a shocking distance. If this lion went at full speed, there was no land creature on Erdas that could escape him. No wonder he’d been able to keep his Golden Lion talisman safe for so long.
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