The Winter War, epub

by Priscilla Shirer

  CHAPTER 25

  Common Ground

  Xavier thought at first that the floor under his feet had disappeared.

  He was falling, the world around him going by so fast he could see only swirls of color and then nothing but darkness. He clung to the stick with both hands as if it alone could stop his rapid descent.

  Gradually, the falling sensation slowed until he felt as though he were just floating gently, like taking a ride on a Ferris wheel. By the time he touched the ground, he was barely moving at all.

  He could see the ground around his feet. He couldn’t see anything else. It was completely dark.

  Got to find the Water, he thought. But he couldn’t see a thing. He took a tentative step in one direction, sliding his foot along to make sure there were no pitfalls. Then he slid the other foot. He realized then that his bad leg wasn’t hurting at all. It was holding his weight. Of course, he thought. In Ahoratos, he wasn’t injured.

  But that didn’t mean he was out of danger. This was the In-Between, and he didn’t have his armor. The darkness was so complete that he began to feel disoriented. He had no idea which way to go. Panic rose up in his chest. He fought to push it back down.

  Then he noticed that the stick had started to glow very faintly. He held it up, hoping it would illuminate the space around him. But all he saw was more darkness.

  He wondered if there was some other way to make the stick “work.”

  “Show me the way,” he said to the stick. He felt a little foolish, talking to a stick.

  The stick did not respond to the request.

  Xavier sighed. “A lot of help you are.” He tried to use the stick like a flashlight, pointing it in various ways to see if it would illuminate any obstacles or pitfalls around him. Still, he couldn’t see anything.

  “This is so weird,” he said aloud. “It’s never been like this before.”

  Ahoratos was always showing him something new, something more challenging than the last time.

  Suddenly a speck of light appeared before his eyes, growing brighter, turning into a shape.

  A bird.

  A large regal bird, pure white, like snow.

  It was sitting on something, but Xavier couldn’t tell what. And then it suddenly spread its wings and flew at Xavier’s face.

  Xavier swung the stick at the bird, covering his face with his other hand. His heart raced, but the swinging stick didn’t hit anything. It felt different, however—softer and slippery . . . and it was moving!

  Xavier uncovered his eyes and gasped, dropping the stick, which writhed around on the ground like a snake.

  It was a snake! Xavier struggled to make sense of this. A bird had flown at him. He’d swung the stick, and it had turned into a snake. And now the bird was gone, and the glowing snake was slithering away from him.

  He couldn’t lose that stick. He charged after it as it veered left and right, always just out of reach. Then, without warning, the snake disappeared. First the head, then all the way to the tail. It was gone.

  It couldn’t just disappear, Xavier thought. It must have gone somewhere. He slid one foot forward, in the direction of where he had last seen the snake. He felt something wet soaking into his sneaker.

  Then the Crest appeared before him, lying flat and rippling, as if it were resting on the surface of a moving object. The Water. This must have been where the snake went. Without further hesitation, Xavier stepped forward, putting both feet into the Water. He kept going until it was completely over his head.

  The next thing he knew, he was in the Cave, wearing his armor. His clothes, instead of the usual gray, were snow white. The stick was lying on the ground. It was no longer a snake, but an ordinary stick again. He reached down to pick it up.

  He looked around and saw the Sparks floating around him, the bluish rock formations of the Cave pulsing with inner light. The last time he had been here, the Cave had been chock-full of Warriors. Now, he was alone.

  “Xavier.”

  He whirled to see Levi coming toward him, all in white as he was. He felt a stab of nervousness.

  “Hey,” Xavier said, trying his best to make his voice sound casual.

  “Hey.” Levi gave him a curt nod.

  “Are the others here too?”

  “I don’t think so.” Levi looked around. “Just us.”

  “Oh.”

  They stood awkwardly, in silence. Xavier wanted to say something, to apologize for what he’d done at the battle, even to say how sorry he was that Mr. J. Ar was so sick. But the words stuck in his throat. He stole a glance at Levi, who avoided his gaze, apparently absorbed in watching the Sparks flicker around their heads.

  “Warriors.”

  They both turned to see Ruwach standing before them, his hands hidden inside his purple sleeves. Xavier was thankful he was there, breaking the awful silence.

  “Ru,” he said, “what’s going on? Where is everyone?”

  “You are enough,” Ruwach replied. “But you must work together.”

  Xavier glanced at Levi, who frowned and looked at the ground.

  “Can you do that?” Ruwach asked.

  “Sure,” said Xavier.

  “Yeah,” said Levi.

  “This mission will be difficult,” Ruwach went on. “Do you have the Glass, Levi?”

  “Yeah.” Levi dug into his pocket and produced the Glimmer Glass. Xavier peered at it, wondering what it was.

  “And you have the Staff, I see,” said Ruwach, turning to Xavier.

  “Staff?” Xavier said. “I thought it was a crutch.”

  “What is the difference? It has helped you move forward.”

  “Yeah I guess . . . but you could have warned me about the snake thing.”

  “The what?” said Levi.

  Ruwach interrupted. “Then you are ready.”

  “For what?” asked Xavier.

  “To go up the mountain.”

  Both boys looked at Ruwach as if they hadn’t heard him right.

  “Excuse me?” said Levi. “Up the mountain?”

  “By ourselves?” said Xavier. “We can’t attack the fortress by ourselves.”

  “I did not say you should attack,” said Ruwach. “Just go to the top and see what you can see.”

  “How do we get up there?” asked Levi. “Will Tannyn take us?”

  “You will know,” said Ruwach.

  “How will we know?” asked Xavier.

  “As you always do. Fear not, Warriors. I am always with you.”

  Before either of them could ask another question, Ruwach took his hands from his sleeves; they glowed a brilliant white. He raised them to the boys, covering them in his light, so they thought they were staring into the sun.

  CHAPTER 26

  The Right Track

  When the light subsided, Levi and Xavier found themselves covered by a thick cloud. The air was cold. Their boots were sunk in deep snow. Wind whipped against their faces.

  “I can’t see a thing,” said Xavier.

  Their breastplates began to blink rapidly. Both boys turned until the light beamed steadily.

  “Guess we need to go that way,” Xavier said. Levi nodded.

  The two trudged in the direction the breastplates pointed. They still had no idea where they were because of the heavy cloud that seemed to rest upon them.

  “Must be Ru,” Xavier said.

  “What?”

  “The cloud. He said he would be with us.”

  “Oh. Yeah.”

  The cloud suddenly disappeared just before the boys collided with two boulders sticking out of the snow. The rocks were tall and narrow, shaped like triangles that came to sharp points at the top.

  “That’s weird,” said Xavier. They went up to the rocks to investigate and found a narrow openin
g between them, a path that cut deep into the snowy mountainside.

  Levi checked his breastplate. It was beaming steadily when he faced up the hill. “I guess that’s the path we’re looking for,” he said.

  They gazed at the steep path with consternation. Ice and snow covered the slope, which rose up to a thick, dark cloud that encircled the peak. There was one skypod visible from where they stood. But they knew there were Bone Breakers up there with very keen eyesight.

  “Our cloud is gone,” Xavier said. “What if those birds see us?”

  “Let’s hope they aren’t looking this way.” Levi was glad their clothing and armor were all white, so they would blend in with the snow.

  Xavier was about to start up the path when he stopped and turned to Levi. “Sorry. You can go first,” he said. “If you want.”

  Levi shook his head. “That’s okay.”

  Xavier nodded, planted his stick in the snow, and took a step onto the path. His boot instantly sprouted sharp cleats that dug into the ice, giving him secure footing. The same thing happened for Levi. They began their trek up the steep path, neither of them speaking, concentrating on their footsteps. The path twisted and turned and sometimes required them to use their hands to climb from ledge to ledge, but they made steady progress upward. Occasionally Xavier would stop to look up to the skypod, watching for movement, any sign they had been spotted. But all remained quiet.

  They reached a wider ledge, and Xavier stopped. “Let’s take a break,” he said.

  “I don’t need a break,” said Levi.

  “Well . . . I do.” Xavier sat down on the ledge, setting his stick aside. Levi sighed and sat down beside him.

  “I’d love a bacon burger about now,” Xavier said.

  Levi knew he was trying to get him to say something like, “I could go for two bacon burgers and cheese fries and a chocolate shake.” But he didn’t say anything. He heard Xavier sigh.

  “Look, I know you’re mad at me. And I just wanted to say . . . I’m sorry.”

  Levi glanced at Xavier, surprised. “It’s okay.”

  “No, it’s not okay. I let you down. I thought I was . . . well, I guess I was just showing off, maybe. It was wrong.”

  Levi felt something hard inside of him get a little bit softer. “I wasn’t much help,” he said. “I was too busy thinking about my dad.”

  “I get that. We’re all thinking about him.”

  Another silence. Then Xavier looked up toward the dark cloud that ringed the top of the mountain, which was much closer now.

  “I guess we can go as far as that cloud,” he said. “The crater can’t be too much farther beyond that.”

  “Yeah,” Levi said. “The cloud will give us some cover, and maybe we’ll be able to see what’s up there.”

  They started up the mountain again. Levi felt lighter, as if a weight had been taken off his shoulders. Maybe it was Xavier’s apology, or his own admission that he might have contributed to the problem. Maybe it was that the heavy silence between them didn’t feel quite as heavy anymore.

  In a few minutes they reached the edge of the dark cloud that rimmed the crater. The noxious fumes of the cloud made their throats burn. They held their breath as they continued up, gasping for air once their heads cleared the cloud layer.

  To their surprise, brilliant sunshine greeted them. They could see to the rim of the crater, where lava flowed down the side of the mountain, turning to steam when it hit the snow and ice.

  But it was what they saw above the crater that shocked them to stillness. The tip of a mammoth pyramid rose from the top of the mountain. It looked like it was made of some very smooth black stone that shone in the sunlight. A column of thick smoke rose from the very tip of the pyramid, forming a dark cloud overhead.

  “Is that the fortress?” asked Xavier, shocked at what he saw. “That pyramid?”

  “Must be,” said Levi. He didn’t want to say out loud what they both were thinking: that this fortress looked indestructible. He pulled the Glimmer Glass from his pocket.

  “So that’s your gift?” Xavier asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “What’s it do?”

  “It helps me see things.” Levi held it up to his eye and stared up at the fortress.

  “Could I try it?” Xavier asked, as he watched Levi studying the fortress through the Glass. Levi glanced at him, uncertain.

  “I’m not sure. . . .”

  “Never mind. Ruwach gave it to you. Not me.”

  Levi nodded and turned back to the Glass. “I see Forgers. But not regular Forgers. They look as though they are made of rock. There’s hundreds. Maybe a thousand. They’re building catapults, I think. Maybe to hurl lava fireballs down the mountain.”

  “What about the Askalons? Do you see them?” Xavier asked.

  Levi shook his head.

  “They must be somewhere,” Xavier said. “Maybe they’re inside.”

  “No, they aren’t.”

  Xavier looked at Levi. “You can see inside?”

  “Yeah. But only partially. I need to get up higher. I think there’s something going on in there.”

  “That’s not a good idea,” said Xavier. “It’s too dangerous. You might be seen if you go any farther up.” Xavier glanced nervously at the skypod directly across from the fortress. The Bone Breakers would have them in their direct line of sight.

  “I’m going,” said Levi. “Stay here and warn me if you see the birds coming.”

  “I think I should come with you.”

  “No.” Levi glared at Xavier, who backed down.

  “Okay,” he said. “Just . . . hurry.”

  Levi tucked the Glass back in his pocket and started to climb farther up, above the cloud that ringed the mountain. He climbed all the way to the edge of the ice. Beyond that was crusty black lava, all the way up to the crater. He lay on his belly and held the Glass to his eye once more.

  “See anything?” Xavier called up.

  Levi didn’t answer. He strained to make out the shapes that were moving about inside the pyramid. The vast space was mostly empty except for a huge, roiling pit of lava in the middle. A set of stairs led to a throne where Thayne himself was sitting. Three creepy-looking figures were stirring the lava with long sticks . . . or were they bones? Suddenly something started to emerge from the lava—a giant figure that seemed to harden into rock. It looked like the creatures on the ramparts. So that was where they came from.

  “He’s making new soldiers from the lava,” Levi called down to Xavier. “They’re coming out of a pit.”

  “Lava Forgers,” said Xavier.

  “Yeah.” Levi was about to lower the Glass when something moved at the corner of his vision. He noticed then a figure at the foot of the stairs, like a person. But he was half-metal. Levi gasped. It was a prisoner. Not fully metallized yet. Something like what Rook had looked like when they had seen him in Ponéros’s prison the first time.

  The prisoner was on his knees. Levi couldn’t hear his words but had the impression that the prisoner was begging for his life. Then Thayne raised his huge hammer and pointed the glowing end at him. It looked like a pronouncement of judgment. The prisoner threw himself to the floor as a Forger that was standing guard went over and touched him, just a small touch. The prisoner screamed in terror as the metal parts of him began to melt, his flesh burning, turning to ash.

  Levi jerked backward in horror, the arm holding the Glass flying up so that it glinted in the sunlight.

  “Levi! What’s wrong?” Xavier called from below.

  “Nothing,” Levi said, recovering his shock. “I’m fine. I’m coming down—”

  “Bone Breakers!”

  A second later, Levi heard an ear-shattering screech.

  “Levi! Come down! Now!”

  Levi looked up to see two Bone Breakers hurtlin
g toward him. His heart hammering, he started to scramble down the slope, still clutching the Glass. But he missed his footing and began to slide, trying to grasp something solid with his free hand to stop his momentum. The screeching of the birds grew louder. He yelled out a strangled “Help!”

  He slammed hard into something solid that stopped his sliding. Xavier stood over him, his staff firmly planted in his path. Levi grabbed hold of the staff just as one of the birds snatched at him, its powerful talons gripping his arm. He saw the bird’s beak opening, lunging for the Glass in his hand.

  Xavier swung his sword at the bird, knocking it off Levi’s arm. The other Bone Breaker flew in to attack. Levi shoved the Glass in his pocket and grabbed his Krÿs. He swiped at the bird just as the blade extended, catching it by surprise. The bird flew off with a scream while Xavier swung his sword down on the first bird, silencing it for good. It instantly turned to ash that blew away on the wind.

  Once free of the birds, the two boys wasted no time scrambling down to the dark cloud, where they would be out of sight in case other Bone Breakers were on their way. They took cover and lay still, gasping for breath.

  “That was . . . close,” Levi said after a long moment.

  “Yeah.” Xavier paused. “The Glass was shining. That’s how they saw you.”

  Levi pulled the Glass from his pocket and looked at it. “I wondered. Thanks. For . . . helping me.”

  “Sure. Did you see anything up there?”

  Levi took a deep breath and told Xavier about the prisoner burned up by the touch of a Lava Forger. “Ruwach said I would see things . . . that I didn’t want to see.” He glanced at Xavier, who was staring at him wide-eyed with shock. “You’re lucky you got a stick.” He smirked.

  “I’m not so sure. This thing turns into a snake when you least expect it.”

  “Seriously? That’s kind of—cool.”

  Xavier grinned. Then he sat up and glanced down the mountain. “It’s going to be as hard going down as it was going up,” he said.

  “Then we should get started,” Levi said. “I think we’ve seen enough for one day.”

  “You can say that again.”