Death Weavers

by Brandon Mull

“Jenna!” Cole repeated more loudly.

  She turned away from Thunder toward Cole, wide eyes looking beyond where he stood. “Who said that?”

  “Me. You know, Cole Randolph? From class?”

  She did not appear to hear or see him. “I’m in no mood for sneaky echoes tonight,” Jenna said. She waved the hand without the lamp. “Show yourself.”

  Cole felt a tingling, and her eyes met his.

  Jenna gasped. “Cole?” she asked uncertainly.

  “You see me?” Cole checked, excited and relieved.

  She stared for a long, silent moment. “Yes.” She reached out a tentative hand, and her fingers sank through his chest. “Are you . . . ?”

  “I’m a bright echo,” Cole said.

  Jenna smiled widely. “Really? It’s really you?” She bit her lip, and her eyes welled up. “I didn’t think I’d ever see anyone from home again! Especially, well, you. But you’re here! Cole Randolph. Alive! Well . . . sort of.” She stopped and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, it’s been so long. I’m glad you’re bright.”

  “My body is far away,” Cole said. “This horse brought me to you.”

  Jenna scrunched her brow. “But I could touch it.” She patted the horse again to demonstrate. “How can an echo ride an actual horse?”

  “Do you know about the Mare?” Cole asked.

  “What mare? This one?”

  “It’s a long story,” Cole said. “This horse can appear in Necronum and the echolands.”

  “Wow,” Jenna said. “I’ve never heard of anything like that. Although . . . I guess after everything I’ve seen here, nothing should really surprise me anymore.”

  “We’re partners for now,” Cole said.

  “It’s so good to see you,” Jenna said. “Even if . . .” Her fingers passed through his shoulder.

  “I’ve been looking for you since we got separated,” Cole said. “I found Dalton.”

  “Really?” Jenna asked.

  “If you haven’t seen anyone else from home, then you haven’t seen Dalton? What about a kid named Hunter?”

  She shook her head. “I haven’t seen any of the others since I came here, and no one named Hunter, either.”

  “We’re at the Temple of the Still Water?”

  “Right,” she said. “Don’t you know where you are?”

  “We came here really fast across the echolands,” Cole said.

  “What were you doing in the echolands?”

  “That’s an even longer story,” Cole said. “One I probably shouldn’t tell for now. It could get you into trouble. Do you like it here?”

  “At the temple?”

  “Yeah,” Cole said. “Do they treat you all right?”

  “Not too bad,” Jenna said. “I’m a slave, but I’m good at weaving. I have my duties. It could be far worse.”

  “You’d rather be home?” Cole asked.

  “What do you think?” Jenna said, then noticed she had spoken too loudly and lowered her voice. “But there’s no way home, Cole. We’re stuck here. Even if we get home, we can’t stay there. And nobody would remember us.”

  “There might be a way around all that,” Cole said. “Have you heard of shapecraft?”

  “No.”

  “That’s probably a good thing. But it can shape the shaping power. It can mess with the rules. I’m working on finding a way to get us home for good.”

  A light came into Jenna’s eyes. “For good? You really think you can do it?”

  Cole’s cheeks flushed. He’d always wanted to be her hero, even before they came to the Outskirts. After all he had experienced in the months since slavers took his friends, Cole still found the prospect exciting. “I’m not sure,” he admitted. “But I believe there’s a way. And I’m not going to quit until I find it.”

  “In the echolands?” she asked. “Are you a weaver too?”

  “No, but I have some shaping power,” Cole said. “Keep an eye out for Dalton. When I went to the echolands, he was planning to come find you.”

  “I haven’t seen him since Junction,” Jenna said. “Where did he end up?”

  “I found him in Elloweer,” Cole said.

  “You get around!” Jenna said. “How do you manage it as a slave?”

  “I escaped the Sky Raiders,” Cole said. “Afterward I found a shaper who changed my bondmark to a freemark.” He stared at her. He knew he shouldn’t mention the princesses or Nazeem or anything that could turn her into a target. “I promised I’d come find you.”

  “I remember,” she said. “You were very brave back at the wagons. Brave trying to free us and brave when they took you away. I was really worried about you. The Sky Raiders sounded like dangerous people. I worried you might be dead.”

  “And now I kind of am,” Cole said with a grin.

  “Lots of people cross over to the echolands,” Jenna said. “You left your body in a safe place?”

  “I think so,” Cole said. “It was well guarded.”

  “Do you need my help?” Jenna asked.

  Cole glanced at the horse. “I don’t know. What can you do?”

  “Normal weaving,” Jenna said. “I can summon an echo, bind an echo, all that. Have you lost where you crossed over? I can point you in the right direction.”

  “I’m not going back to my body yet,” Cole said. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

  “I can always use help from a friendly echo,” Jenna said. “How much time do you have?”

  Cole glanced at Thunder. The Mare shook her head and stamped a hoof.

  “Is the horse in charge?” Jenna asked.

  “Kind of,” Cole said. “It’s a really smart horse. I don’t think I get to hang out. I think Thunder just knew I wanted to make sure you were all right.” Should he offer to have her cross over? Come with him? Wouldn’t that just lead her into horrible danger?

  Thunder shook her head and stamped again.

  “If you find a way home . . . ,” Jenna said.

  “I’ll be back,” Cole promised. “I’m trying to get all of us out of here. I’ll come find you if I make it through this. Do you know about the Other?”

  “Yes,” she said. “Be careful, Cole.”

  “I can’t make any promises about careful,” Cole said. “But I’ll try not to die. I mean, you know, permanently.”

  She looked distressed. “Can’t you stay awhile? I haven’t seen anybody from home for so long.”

  Thunder shook her head and stamped twice.

  “We’re kind of on a mission,” Cole said. The look of desperation in Jenna’s eyes caused a wave of guilt to roll through him. He didn’t want to leave her here alone. It was so tempting to invite her to join him, but he knew that would only put her in more danger, and he couldn’t sacrifice all his other friends for her right now. Not when they were captured in the afterlife and she was relatively safe. Life in the Outskirts seemed to mean making one impossible decision after another!

  “The horse seems anxious,” Jenna said, looking down at the ground.

  Cole faced Thunder. “I’m almost ready. I’m just saying good-bye.”

  Thunder snorted.

  “Dalton will come for you,” Cole said. “He and Hunter can probably help you escape.”

  “Who is Hunter? Someone from the Outskirts?”

  “My big brother. He came here before us, so none of us remember him. Think about whether you want to risk running away.”

  “All right,” Jenna said.

  Thunder crouched down.

  “I better go,” Cole said, climbing onto the horse. He didn’t want to leave. He had waited so long, and this was so brief. But Thunder was clearly ready to go, and lots of people were counting on him. “Sorry it’s such a short visit.”

  “Me too. But I’m so happy to see you. Good luck! I hope you’re back soon. Really soon.”

  Thunder stood up.

  “Bye, Jenna.”

  The stars were replaced by the uniform light of a duskday, and they were back in t
he echolands. Thunder broke into a run, once again clomping through covered walkways and across courtyards until they galloped out of the gate.

  The Temple of the Still Water receded quickly. At least he knew Jenna was all right. At least he got to see her one last time.

  “Thanks, Thunder,” Cole said.

  The Mare whinnied in reply.

  If anything, Thunder seemed faster than ever. They zoomed through a rolling paradise of trees, shrubs, and flower beds. The pleasant music lulled Cole, who was growing accustomed to the thrill of the intense speed.

  Distant hills came near and fell away behind them. Cole occasionally heard villages or other variations in the typical music of the landscape, but he saw no echoes. They rocketed across an abandoned universe of vibrant gardens.

  At length, they entered a fairly large village. Thunder came to a halt in front of a cottage. Several echoes watched them curiously, paying special attention to the horse. Cole kept his lantern shuttered and tried to hold it inconspicuously.

  Thunder crouched down, and Cole got off. “Here?” he asked, jerking a thumb at the cottage.

  The Mare bobbed her head once.

  “This isn’t You Know Where. So where are we?”

  Thunder offered no explanation.

  Cole approached the cottage door and knocked. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed several echoes still paying attention to him.

  A fairly tall woman opened the door. She was wrinkly and old, with bulging eyes. “Yes?” she asked.

  “Hi,” Cole said. “I’m not sure why I’m here.”

  “I know the feeling,” the woman said wryly, glancing past Cole to the horse. “Is she yours?”

  “Not really,” Cole said. “I’ve just been riding her.”

  “Who is it?” called a female voice from out of sight.

  “A boy,” the woman replied. “Who are you?”

  “Bryant Randolph.”

  The woman repeated his name loudly, then moved aside as a second woman bustled to the door. She was of medium height with a bony build and wild blue hair. Her face looked much younger than her hands. “Cole?”

  “Callista!” Cole exclaimed. He hadn’t seen the former Grand Shaper of Elloweer since she perished in the fight against Morgassa. “I was using my middle name.”

  “Cole, my boy,” Callista said. “How refreshing to greet a familiar face. And a bright one at that.” She glanced over her shoulder. “I’m staying with my sister, Enid. The accommodations aren’t ideal to host company.”

  Cole looked at Thunder. The horse nodded and stamped.

  “You arrived by horseback?” Callista inquired.

  Cole unshuttered the Weaver’s Beacon to disguise their conversation.

  “Quite a light,” Callista said.

  “I’m trying to rescue Destiny Pemberton,” Cole said. “I found her, but she was taken by servants of Nazeem.”

  “I’ve heard that name too much lately,” Callista said. “I wish I could be of service, but I lost my power when I arrived here. After cultivating my gift for my entire life, I can no longer muster a simple seeming, let alone a major enchantment like a changing.”

  “I may be able to help,” Cole said, remembering what Dandalus had told him.

  “How?” Callista asked.

  “I finally found my power,” Cole said. “Give me your hand.”

  She reached out, and Cole took it. Her skin felt loose, the finger bones slender underneath.

  Cole pushed his power into her.

  Callista’s expression brightened. She let out a giggle, followed by a cackle.

  “How did you do that?” she asked. “I feel my gift as clear as day.”

  “It’s part of what I can do,” Cole said.

  Callista gazed at him. “Yes, I can sense your power now. It’s native to the echolands, isn’t it?”

  “Raw shaping,” Cole said.

  “Interesting,” Callista said. She released his hand. “Where are we going?”

  “Three of the princesses are being held here in the echolands,” Cole said. “Tessa, Mira, and Honor. Tessa and Mira are at the Fallen Temple. I think we’re going there to save them.”

  “You think?” Callista asked.

  “I go where the horse takes me,” Cole said. “This is Thunder.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “Destiny’s power.”

  Callista hooted a laugh. “I see. So the horse found me?”

  “She’s in charge,” Cole said.

  Thunder whinnied and stamped.

  “She wants to get going,” Cole said.

  “All right,” Callista said. “Life had become wearying without my power. I felt so limited. I was hoping to find a way to be of service here. Guess I should be more careful what I wish for.”

  Enid reappeared in the doorway. “You’re not really going?”

  Callista hooted merrily. “I have my power back, my dear. You know I’ve wanted to help the resistance.”

  “I so enjoyed your company,” Enid lamented.

  “I’ll be back this way if I can,” Callista said. “If not, we’ll meet again in the next realm.” She turned to Cole. “Should I transform, or is there room on the horse for two?”

  Thunder bobbed her head and crouched down.

  “We should both ride,” Cole said. “Thunder is really fast.”

  Callista hugged her sister, then joined Cole beside the Mare.

  “Can you still feel your power?” Cole asked, wondering if she would need a constant influx of power to use her abilities.

  “Oh, yes,” Callista said. “I’m no novice. I just needed to find it again. My power had gone dormant. I feel good as new. I should be fine now.”

  Shuttering his lantern, Cole climbed onto Thunder. Callista scooted into position behind him. The Mare stood, and the village became a blur. Soon groves and gardens streaked by.

  Callista cackled. “Now this is a horse!”

  Cole and Callista rode in silence. Cole wondered what their next stop would be. Another old friend? A stranger who could help them? Would they visit Necronum again?

  Or could they be on their way to the Fallen Temple?

  Cole had no way of knowing. The geography of the echolands remained a complete mystery to him. They might have been going north, south, east, or west. Or in circles.

  The terrain varied between flat and hilly, always adorned with thriving vegetation. They crossed channels, using bridges on the broad ones but simply jumping some of the narrower slipstreams.

  Cole tried to calm his mind. He might be about to fight Nazeem, but at least with Callista, he had a strong ally. She had put up a serious fight against Morgassa. Hopefully, Thunder would help as well.

  After a long ride sinister music began to build directly in front of them. The harsh strains tempted Cole to try to steer Thunder in a different direction. Knowing what might be coming was different from hearing the actual music. It was not a happy tune. His mouth felt dry.

  A huge, blocky structure loomed up ahead, composed of black stone and flanked by squat, square towers. A colossal iron gate appeared to be the only entrance. It was shut tight. With small windows and little decoration, the solid building looked more like a fortress than a temple.

  Thunder pounded up to the gate and stopped.

  “Who goes there?” called a male voice from within.

  “We’re lost,” Cole answered. “Where are we?”

  “Don’t play dumb,” the voice replied.

  “I really don’t know,” Cole said honestly.

  “You’re at Gamat Rue,” the voice replied. “And we invite you to move along. We’ve seen that horse before.”

  CHAPTER

  34

  RESCUE

  Thunder whinnied an unmistakable challenge.

  “Try again, if you must,” the voice replied. “We deny access. Nobody enters Gamat Rue uninvited.”

  “You tried to get in before?” Cole asked Thunder.

  The horse bobbed her head.

  �
�The legendary prison,” Callista said. “I thought we were going to the Fallen Temple.”

  “Me too,” Cole said. “I guess this comes first. I have friends inside. Including Honor.”

  Callista leaped down from Thunder.

  Cole winced. It seemed like a long drop for an older woman, but by the time Callista hit the ground, she was a sleek, black jungle cat, not much smaller than the Mare.

  “Open it up,” Callista said.

  “Me?” Cole asked.

  “That gate is reinforced with a host of enchantments,” Callista said. “We won’t enter by force. Use your power, Cole. Let’s see that raw shaping in action.”

  Thunder neighed.

  Cole swallowed.

  The iron gate looked a lot more formidable than a rock in a field of clover. The violent music of Gamat Rue belonged to something that attacked you, not something you attacked.

  Cole moved to slide off Thunder, but the horse sidestepped and shook her head. Apparently he was meant to stay aboard.

  “Concentrate, Cole,” Callista said. It was odd to hear her voice coming from a big panther. “You can do this. They have your friends.”

  That got his attention.

  Cole stared hard at the gate. He could feel his power inside, some of it still flowing into Thunder. Jace was in there. Harvan as well, according to Dandalus. And Joe. Desmond. Ferrin. Drake. Honor.

  An echomancer named Nandavi ruled this place. She had helped Sando abduct Mira. Cole would be breaking into her territory, giving her and her guards an extra advantage. But Dandalus thought Cole had a chance against Nazeem. So he should be able to handle this.

  Maybe his raw shaping would help cancel out Nandavi’s home-field advantage. He had Callista and Thunder with him. And his friends needed him.

  Cole focused on the gate until he felt connected to it. The sheer bulk of it was intimidating. He could feel slippery tendrils of power coursing through it.

  “Send out all your prisoners, and we’ll pass you by,” Cole called.

  The voice laughed. “Move along. If you’re not careful, we might just open the gate, boy.”

  “Don’t bother,” Cole said.

  It was the final motivation he needed. That sneering voice represented people who had hunted him. People who had captured his friends. People who were willing to unleash evil forces that they had no power to control. People who had driven Winston to the Other.