The Shifter

by Janice Hardy

  “How much are you carrying?” I asked softly.

  He grinned. “As long as we don’t have to run, I’ll be fine.”

  “I think running will definitely be needed.”

  “Do you think you could…” He tipped his head at the unconscious guard.

  My skin went cold. “No!”

  “But you gave him your pain—why not mine?”

  Because it was wrong, even if it was the only way out. But how could I say that while he limped and I was fine? I glanced at Lanelle and the guard. They both deserved it, but hurting them now when we didn’t have to felt worse. Like stabbing them when their backs were turned.

  “Give me your hand.” I took it and felt my way in. He carried pain, but it was dim. I’d never seen half-healed pain before. I drew, taking some away. Aches seeped into my body, feeling a lot like the muscle soreness I’d woken up with at Danello’s.

  The tightness in his eyes eased. “Thanks,” he said. “But it would have been better for us if you’d given it to them.”

  “Easier, maybe, but not better. Come on.”

  We slipped out and headed down the stairs. A few strides later, I froze. We wouldn’t make it down the stairs, let alone through the hall. At least one Elder who’d recognize me was working in the treatment ward. If by Saea’s luck we made it as far as the main antechamber, dozens of League guards and Elders and who knew who else were waiting to nab us like chickens.

  There had to be another way out.

  “What’s the fastest way down from here that doesn’t go through the main halls?” I whispered to Soek.

  “I don’t know. I only worked here a few days before they…put me up there.”

  I searched my memories from when Tali and I had followed Mama around. What about the rooms higher up? Didn’t one of the halls cross over to another set of stairs? Voices drifted up from below.

  “…her to the Luminary for further questioning.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Footsteps next, lots of them, echoing off the marble stairs and coming in our direction. We hurried back up, my sandals thankfully quieter than the guards’ boots, though my heartbeat sure sounded louder than both. Soek’s bare feet made no sound at all. We passed the open door to the apprentices’ room, and I risked a pause. The guard was still balled up on the floor, but Lanelle was moving, sluggish and groggy. She lifted her head and our eyes met.

  Not good.

  “Hurry.” I raced up the stairs with Soek close behind as Lanelle started hollering. Raspy, but the guards would hear her soon. Stairs, there had to be more stairs up here somewhere. I was almost sure the first floor had another staircase on the far side of the main hall. It had to connect up here. Oh, please let it connect up here.

  Shouts came from behind as we reached a landing. How many guards were after us? Maybe they’d called in the soldiers from outside. I ran faster, the heavy sack clinking in my arms. The hall sloped gently upward, but it was enough to make my thighs burn and slow me down. Soek wasn’t faring much better. Tall windows lined the outside wall, and Geveg sprawled out before me, a tiny island on a vast lake. I tried not to think it might be the last time I saw either.

  Another curve. More windows, then…

  No!

  My feet, heart, and breath all stopped at once. The hall ended in a circular sunroom with windows on all sides; one of the top spires. I skidded to a stop in the center of the room.

  We had nowhere else to go.

  FOURTEEN

  “What do we do now?” Soek whispered, his gaze darting around the room.

  Boot stomps echoed off the marbled halls, getting louder as the guards came closer. I studied the windows. Outside on the ledge, statues of Saints had their backs to me, as if disapproving of what I’d done. I hefted the pynvium sack. Even if it wouldn’t flash, it was heavy enough to smash a window and let me get out onto the ledge and down the roof and—Wait, was that a latch?

  “Over here.” I darted closer to the window and unlocked it. The window swung smoothly outward.

  The stomps were louder now, pounding up the last set of stairs to this part of the spire. Any second the guards would round the corner and find us. Tali would never forgive me if I got myself killed.

  I climbed through the window to the ledge surrounding the dome. Soek followed and pulled the window shut. Wind slapped me, burning my eyes and flinging my beaded braids against my cheeks.

  Don’t fall, and for the love of Saint Saea, don’t look down.

  I kept my back pressed against the glass and inched along the ledge until I reached the statue of Saint Saea, looking down at Geveg with her outstretched hands full of bird crap. I crouched behind her skirts, afraid to breathe. Soek wedged in beside me, his face pale. He kept glancing at the sloped roof and the ground so very far below.

  Shadows played across the roof, dodging shafts of light from the midmorning sun behind us. Light, dark, light, dark, alternating like the columns hiding me from the men who were now filling the room. More shadows danced as the guards moved between the light and dark areas.

  Muffled anger sounded through the glass, but no windows opened. I smiled, imagining them standing there, scratching their heads and wondering where we’d gone. Down another hall perhaps? How? They couldn’t have doubled back. Maybe they vanished!

  A creak on my left turned my grin to a grimace. Was that the window? More shadows danced around the roof tiles like hands groping to snag me. Then they vanished, and the window thumped shut.

  I exhaled.

  Until another window creaked on my right.

  “Found them!”

  A guard leaned out, but he kept glancing nervously from the ledge below the window to me, then back. Guess he didn’t like heights any more than Soek did.

  “Go get them” came from inside. Soek grabbed my arm. I patted his fingers reassuringly, though I doubted how much comfort I could give.

  “I’m not climbing out there.”

  “Go! That’s an order.”

  The guard scoffed. “I was hired to watch doors, not run out on rooftops.”

  I grinned. You got what you paid for, and nobody paid well for labor these days.

  Another guard stuck his head out the window, but this one didn’t look afraid of heights. I reached into the sack and grabbed a pynvium chunk. If it had any pain in it, I couldn’t tell. I angled for a clear toss. I gathered my anger and tried to duplicate how I’d felt and what I’d done when I’d flashed a chunk at the guard.

  I threw.

  No flash.

  It did hit him smack in the center of the forehead though. He yelped and yanked his head back inside.

  Somewhat effective, but good aim and a sack of rocks wouldn’t get us out of this. The League had more money than Geveg had beggars, and someone was sure as spit going to show up with a real pynvium weapon, one with a strong-enough flash to knock us right off the roof.

  Another creak and the window swung open again. The same guard glared at me, a red welt on his forehead. Letting him catch me was a bad idea. I leaned forward a little and looked down the side. The roof sloped to the next set of domes, maybe forty feet below.

  “Follow me,” I whispered. I inched forward, holding my skirt tight under my knees. I had to angle it perfectly or I’d go sliding past and splatter what little brains I had all over the courtyard.

  “Down there?” Soek asked

  “Come on.” My butt slid off the ledge, and gravity took over.

  “She’s getting away!”

  And gaining speed. I slid along the tiles, knees close to my chin, feet grating against the slate in a long hiss. The lower dome and all its windows raced toward me, then not-so-toward me.

  I was sliding off center!

  I grabbed at the tiles with one hand. My direction didn’t change. I tipped sideways, and a few pynvium chunks slipped out of the sack and clanked down the roof.

  No! Without those chunks I’d never figure out how to make them flash again. I lunged for the sack, scra
ping my knuckles as I caught and closed the top. The escaped pieces rolled faster along the roof. They passed the dome and dropped off the edge.

  So would I if I didn’t stop my slide.

  Soek cursed behind me. I continued sliding on my side, my shoulder and hipbones knocking painfully against the tiles. I cried out as I hit a bump in the roof, but it shifted me left, back toward the dome’s tall windows. Soek cried out a second later, and we both picked up speed.

  Bad plan, this was a bad plan. Grannyma was right. Fools act first and think later.

  Smack!

  I cringed as I crumpled against the dome’s window. The pynvium chunks trapped under my arms pierced my skin like snakebites. My sore muscles flared hot. Soek slammed into me from behind and the glass cracked. I sucked in a breath, but the window held.

  “You’re nuttier than pecan pudding,” Soek wheezed into my ear.

  The guards above yelled, but the wind tore the words away before I could make them out. I struggled to my knees. A good kick would be enough to break the window.

  Guards ran into the sunroom on the other side of the glass. They gaped as if surprised to find us there. I certainly hadn’t expected them to find us so quickly.

  We needed a new plan. A real one this time, not the first thing that popped into my head. So far, none of the guards had wanted to chase us onto the roof. Staying out here might be dangerous, but it was probably a lot safer than trying to fight past the guards.

  Below the sunroom, maybe eight feet down, was a half-circle ledge about two feet wide, with columns at both ends. Past that, the roof flattened out, but it was a much larger drop, a good fifteen feet at least. Two very risky drops, and a bad fall if we missed landing on the ledge.

  Soek followed my gaze over the edge. “You can’t be serious.”

  “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.”

  Small pebbles skittered past me and I jerked my head up. I couldn’t see over the roof’s curve, but the guards from up top must be getting closer.

  I inched along the edge. “Just don’t look down.”

  “How am I supposed to land on the ledge if I don’t?”

  “Fine, then don’t look all the way down.”

  I stopped at a spot with a good handhold, tied a knot in the sack, and tossed it down. Glass suddenly shattered on my left. I dropped flat on my stomach and scooted my legs around until they hung off the edge. I kept scooting until I dangled by my hands. Soek watched me, his hands clenching and unclenching at his sides. Despite my warning, he kept looking down.

  “Come on, Soek.”

  “Stop right there,” a guard yelled. Another dove forward as if trying to grab Soek.

  With a quick prayer, I let go.

  My sandals hit the window ledge, and I teetered backward over the drop.

  No-no-no-no-no! Hug-the-wall-hug-the-wall!

  I threw my weight forward—anything to force myself flat against the glass. My fingers hooked around the edges of the windows.

  “Aahh!” Soek dropped next to me, his eyes wide as moons. He gripped the windows and didn’t look down this time.

  “Hurry, bring the rope!”

  Rope! Now that was a good plan. Right now, I’d settle for a pair of wings. I clung to the grimy glass, trying to catch my breath. The wind threatened to sweep us off the building with the rest of the leaves.

  Memories of Tali and me in our tree house hit me. Her on the roof, laughing while I climbed. The river delta and the ferryboats. All the fishermen hauling in their nets on the lake. Tali would cheer when I made it to the top. I could never be that brave, she’d say.

  Down was never as easy as up. I swallowed. We could do this. Fifteen feet wasn’t so far.

  I took one last deep breath…wait, not my last breath, don’t think that….

  A rope dropped down and thunked against the glass to my right.

  “Nya, wait!” Soek called, reaching out and grabbing the rope. He yanked hard, and a startled cry came from above. The loose end of the rope rolled down, and Soek caught it.

  “You’re a genius,” I said.

  He grinned and tied the rope around one of the columns, then lowered himself over. Feet flat against the wall, he made walking down look easy.

  “Your turn,” he called when he reached the roof below.

  I gulped but grabbed the rope, wrapping it around my arm as he had done. I crawled over the side and braced my feet. My right sandal slipped and I fell sideways. The other foot dropped, dragging my knees painfully across the wall. I clung to the rope, toes scrabbling at the wall. My hands started to slip, burning as the rope slid through them. I struggled to get my feet back on the wall.

  Halfway down, my arms gave out and I fell. My feet hit the roof first, jarring my bones all the way up to my neck. Bright stars of pain twinkled around me. Above, the guards rappelled down another rope like pynvium scouters searching the cliffs for new veins.

  Soek was at my side in a heartbeat. “You okay?”

  “Yeah, I’m okay.”

  He helped me up. Fresh stings burned my raw knees where I’d ripped through Tali’s underdress and scraped off quite a lot of skin underneath. If I made it off this vile roof alive, I’d spend a whole oppa on new clothes for both of us. Swear to the Saints I would.

  Time to move. The long expanse of tile below had to be the general treatment ward. The roof peaked, but the downward slopes weren’t too bad, and the edges looked good for hanging on to for the last drop we’d have to make to the ground. After that, it was just one long run to Tali and Danello.

  “There they are!”

  Still more guards appeared, tossing out an emergency ladder from the windows in the dome above me. Did they have the entire League after us?

  I grabbed the sack of pynvium and walk-slid down to the roof edge. The gardens were on this side of the League, and landing in soft grass sounded a lot better than smacking onto cobblestones. Voices drifted up from below and I froze, holding out one hand to stop Soek.

  I couldn’t catch the words, but it didn’t sound like idle conversation. I crouched low and peeked over. Two guards stood below. Young ones, around Soek’s age.

  Turning to Soek, I pointed at the guards below, then brought one hand down on top of the other. He stared for a second, then nodded.

  The drop wasn’t far, maybe seven or eight feet. I might not weigh a lot, but things dropped from above packed quite the wallop. Soek positioned himself next to me, right over the larger guard.

  I gripped the sack of pynvium tight and jumped.

  FIFTEEN

  We hit the guards. I landed dead center on one while Soek smashed into the other. We collapsed in a heap of swears and screams; then both guards went quiet, knocked unconscious on the hard ground. Winded and bruised, I scrambled up and ran behind the bushes aesthetically arranged around the gardens. They might look pretty, but they didn’t offer squat for cover if any more guards arrived. Soek settled in behind me, an odd combination of fear and excitement on his face.

  “We got out! I can’t believe we got out!”

  “Shh—we’re not off League property yet.” No other guards had shown up, but with my luck, they’d catch us before we made it off the grounds. “This way, and stay low.”

  “There they are! Behind the hibiscus!” a man cried from the roof’s edge as we skirted the courtyard.

  My muscles protested, but I pushed them harder, running toward the open gates and the safety of the crowd beyond. For once, the Saints were on my side and the usual bridge soldiers were gone, no doubt called inside to help search. We hit the streets as fast as our strained legs would carry us, Soek careening off a heavyset dockworker while I nearly slammed into a pair of girls carrying a basket of fruit.

  “Hey! Watch it!”

  I glanced back over my shoulder. The guards had slowed at the street, their heads swiveling back and forth. We kept running, threading between refugees, soldiers, and farmers until I no longer heard stomping boots or clanking swords behind me. A woman
exited a shop ahead, and I dragged Soek inside before the door swung shut, hiding behind a rack of stone-inlaid boxes. The shopkeep glared at our torn and bloody uniforms and frowned.

  “It’s been a really bad day,” I said.

  “Get out or I’ll make it worse.”

  Anger filled me like an overboiling pot. I reached into my pocket and grabbed some coins. “I have money,” I said, waving the oppas in his face. “And I’ll spend them somewhere else since you’re so rude.”

  “You do that, ’Veg!”

  I stormed out, resisting the urge to slam the door. Loud noises might draw attention, and the shocked expression on the shopkeep’s face was hardly worth getting caught over.

  Soek chuckled and ran a hair through his disheveled curls. “Remind me never to get on your bad side.”

  “I’m not so terrible,” I mumbled, my cheeks hot.

  “Terrible? You’re amazing. You just saved my life.” He smiled at me, and I felt another blush coming.

  “We need to get off the street until the guards go back inside.”

  We stayed in crowds best we could for a few blocks until I found a clump of bushes large enough for us to hide in. The soldiers couldn’t have been told yet to watch for us, but who knew how fast that would change.

  “Do you think your sister got out?” Soek whispered. Now that the excitement was wearing off, he looked as tired as I felt.

  “I hope so.” If we’d made it out with half the League guards on our butts, Tali must have made it as well. But surely there’d be more League guards searching for her if she had gotten away.

  I swallowed, my throat parched. There was never a bucket of water around when you needed one. Not that we’d get served anywhere. The rude shopkeep had reason to glare—not a good reason, but still legitimate. My borrowed apprentice uniform was speckled in grime, gravel, blood, and bird crap. All the ugliness you didn’t notice about the League until you got real close.

  “What should we—”

  “Hang on,” I shushed him as a familiar face appeared for a moment in the crowd. Danello? It looked like him, but he was wearing a long fisherman’s overcoat. Buttoned too, even in this heat. I slipped out of the bushes for a better look, and Aylin and Tali popped into view.