The Void Hunters (Realmwalker Book 2)

by Jonathan Franks

  A shrill squeal echoed throughout the Chamber. The Void roaches were making a hideous noise. They streamed en masse into the crevices as the room began to shake. Gen felt the tremors through her feet. She flinched as something else hit her back, but it was only dirt from the ceiling. The last of the roaches swept through the cracks in the stone in a rolling wave and the squealing faded as they vacated the Chamber.

  A loud grating sound took its place. More clumps of dirt and small stones fell from the ceiling of the Chamber and the tremors got stronger.

  “Oh, god! Look!” Gen cried, pointing at the walls.

  The cracks were closing.

  When the stony scraping, grating noise stopped, all of the rends and cracks and holes in the walls and floor and sealed closed. She turned back to the diamond and saw that it had now turned the same rich emerald as the aura that glowed around it. It hung in the air and spun gently.

  Gen's entire body felt itchy and her skin crawled. She shook herself and patted herself down and reached under her clothes and into her hair but no bugs remained. Still, she couldn't shake off the feeling of them crawling all over her body. Her stomach was still turning over, but she was no longer gagging.

  “That's it?” she asked.

  “I guess so. It was your tears.”

  “There has to be a less terrible way to do this,” Gen said. She shuddered again.

  “They're carrion bugs,” Herron said. “I don't think they'll hurt you. They only eat things that are already dead.”

  “They're still gross!” Gen shouted.

  Herron looked at her, bemused.

  “Oh, wipe that grin off your face,” Gen said. “You didn't get any in your mouth, did you?”

  Herron smiled and shook his head. “No.”

  “Then shut up.”

  Herron nodded toward the new Heart, then nudged the bowl directly underneath it with his foot. A soft golden dust slowly fell from the Heart into the bowl.

  Gen shuddered again and gagged. “I might throw up,” she said.

  Herron pulled out a water bottle, then swiped his finger through the thin film of dust in the bowl. He dipped his finger into the water and shook it slightly. “Drink this.”

  Gen took the bottle and drank. A wave of relief spread from her mouth, down her throat, and into her stomach. She drank and drank and emptied the bottle. When she finished, her body felt cool and relaxed. No nausea remained.

  “Wow,” she said. “How did you do that?”

  “It's the dust. That's part of what we use it for - healing solutions. That's why the Walkers come to the Chambers and tap the Hearts every month.”

  “Wow,” Gen said again.

  She turned around and looked at the Chamber. Its walls were smooth, shiny stone, unbroken and unblemished.

  “I guess we did it.”

  “You did it,” Herron said.

  “Thank you for coming with me. I would've definitely freaked out if you weren't here.”

  “You did great,” Herron told her. He put a hand on her shoulder. “You really did. Look at what you did. You healed it.”

  “Wow,” Gen said, shaking her head and looking at the new Heart.

  “Come on, let's get out of here,” Herron said. He offered his hand to Gen.

  She took Herron's hand and they flew out of the Chamber. They flew up the shaft and emerged into The Marsh. It was a cool, dark night. No moon was visible in the sky. Several of the fairies who waited outside the ring held lightstones. Some were crying, hugging one another.

  Gen and Herron touched down on the cap of one of the mushrooms. Hope wrapped her arms tightly around Gen and kissed her hard.

  “You did it,” Hope said, crying. “You restored the Realm. You brought back The Marsh!”

  “Listen,” Shae said. “The frogs are singing.” The loud and constant drone of croaking frogs rolled through The Marsh.

  Hope stepped back and Rommy landed in front of Gen. He held out a hand to her.

  “I'm sorry. I have only poor excuses for what I've done and I hope you can forgive me,” Rommy said.

  Gen shook his head and nodded. “I forgive you.”

  chapter 15

  After the tenth ring, George hung up the phone. Laura wouldn't be in class anymore, but he couldn't get ahold of her. Tanya wasn't answering the phone either. Where in the world would she be? He pushed the play button on the answering machine again.

  “Hey, it's Laura. I just wanted to see how you guys were doing. I'll try again later. Bye.”

  He rested his head against the wall and sighed.

  “You okay?” his dad asked.

  George shook his head.

  “Come on,” his dad said. They walked out the front door and sat on the front porch. The sun had already set and the sky was turning dark. “How are you doing?”

  “I don't know, dad. None of it really feels real, you know?”

  “Mm,” Geoff grunted.

  “If it were one thing or the other, maybe I'd know what I was supposed to feel. But Gen and Greg, both gone all at once. I'm still... I don't know. Maybe I'm a little bit in shock. I feel... Numb isn't the right word. It was so much all at once that I can't process it.”

  “We should have told you right away. It was a mistake to hold it back.”

  “Yeah,” George said.

  “Your mother and I both really thought she'd be back right away.”

  “Well,” George said, “you know, dad, she wasn't. And you sprung it on me when I walked in the door with my fiancée.”

  “I already apologized.”

  George sighed. “I know. I'm sorry. Like I said, I still haven't processed everything. What are the stages of grief, again?”

  “I don't know. But one of them for your mom seems to be ice cream.”

  “Oh, I forgot we had ice cream,” George said. “That makes me feel guilty, though. How can I dare to get excited about eating ice cream when my brother is dead and my sister is... Well, wherever she is.”

  “Because you're still here. We're still here and we have to keep going. Go get some ice cream, then. Bring me a spoon, too.”

  George got up and went inside. Geoff looked at the cloudy sky, wishing he could see more of the stars. George returned a minute or two later with two large soup spoons and a pint of Ben & Jerry's.

  “Chunky Monkey,” George said. He popped the lid off and dug out a big spoonful. Geoff took the carton and skimmed his spoon across the surface of the ice cream, spinning the pint container and filling his spoon with a thin, long ribbon of ice cream.

  Geoff and George sat on the porch and quietly ate their ice cream. They both looked up the street and saw Jim riding home on his bike. George put the container on the porch and stood up. Geoff stood, too, and followed his son down the driveway to meet Jim.

  “Hey George,” Jim said. “Mr. Summers.”

  “Hey, Jimmy,” George said. “Can we talk?”

  “Yeah, okay, sure,” Jim said. He set his bike down on the grass.

  George looked at his father. Geoff nodded and said, “I'll be inside if you need me. You know what?” He added, “I'll go get Jimmy a spoon.”

  George and Jim sat on the porch. George waited for his dad to come back, and a moment later, Geoff handed Jim a spoon and went inside. George offered Jim the ice cream. Jim smiled weakly and carved some out with his spoon.

  “I heard from my parents what happened. But you were there. I'd really like to hear it from you.”

  Jim gulped. “Are you... uh...”

  “No,” George said. “I'm not mad.”

  “Okay, because you usually get that quiet, soft, sort of enunciated voice when you're mad.”

  “No. I mean, yes. I don't know what I'm feeling. But I'm not mad at you.”

  Jim told him the whole story, from Mrs. Gates' funeral and meeting Ivy and Herron all the way to how he killed Pepper and helped Ivy sacrifice herself to save Gen's life.

  “She saw Herron was dying,” Jim said. “And she shrunk. She turned
into a fairy herself. Small,” he held one palm about five inches above the other, “the most beautiful butterfly wings you could imagine. She took Herron back to the Bridge so their healers could save him. She couldn't let him die. She just couldn't. You know how Gen is. She could never let anyone suffer. So she took him. She left with him.”

  “She left with him?”

  “Not like that. I don't think so, anyway. But she left me there. She left me. She left me to deal with the police and my father and everything all by myself. She left me.”

  George took the last spoonful of ice cream. He put the container down with his spoon inside it and it fell over. He stood it up and moved the spoon but it tipped over again. “God damn it!” George picked the container up, shook the spoon out, and threw the container into the yard.

  Round headlights shone up the street and approached them. A growly exhaust followed.

  “That's my dad,” Jim said. “I better go in.”

  George shook his head. “That's not Porsche noise. That's my car.” He looked at Jim. “Believe me, I can tell the difference.” He stood up and watched his two beloveds, Laura and his 240Z, pull into the driveway. He rushed to the car and opened the driver door.

  “What are you doing here?” George asked. He held a hand out to help Laura out of the low-slung sports car.

  She got out of the car. “Tomorrow's Greg's funeral,” she said. “No way I would leave you alone for that. I don't want to sound presumptuous, but, aren't I family now, too?”

  “Of course you are,” George said and hugged Laura tightly. He murmured into her ear, “Oh, baby, I'm so glad to see you.”

  “Me, too.” Laura hugged him tightly back. Then she opened her eyes and saw Jim standing awkwardly on the porch. She stepped back from George's arms.

  “This is Jim,” George said. “Gen's boyfriend.”

  “Yeah,” Laura said. “Gen talks about you all the time. She invited you when we grilled for Labor Day, right? But you were busy.”

  “Uh, yeah,” Jim said.

  “You must miss her,” Laura said. “But that boarding school sounds like a great opportunity for her. I hope you get to talk often, at least.”

  “Not that often,” Jim said.

  “Oh,” Laura said. “I'm sorry. I didn't...”

  “It's okay,” Jim said. “I better go before my dad gets home.”

  “Nice to meet you, Jim,” Laura said.

  “You, too.” Jim picked up his bike and walked it across the street. He went in through the garage.

  George saw the car in the garage cocooned in its dusty cover and called out from the driveway, “Hey, maybe over winter break, we'll get the Mustang running.”

  “Sure,” said Jim, then he closed the garage door.

  “He seems like a good kid,” Laura said.

  “He's been through a lot. His mom died when he was young and then his dad kind of disappeared on him. Gen's the only thing that got him out of his shell.” He kissed Laura's hand. “Come on, let's go inside.”

  “What's that?” Laura walked across the front yard and picked up the Ben & Jerry's carton. “You don't want litter in your yard!”

  George gave her a guilty half smile and shook his head. He snatched the spoons from the porch and led Laura inside.

  “Laura,” Geoff said. “What a nice surprise. Are you staying for the service tomorrow?”

  “Yes, if that's okay.”

  “Of course it is. Have you eaten?” Geoff asked.

  “I'm starving.”

  George and Laura sat at the kitchen table while Geoff made Laura a plate of leftovers from dinner. He put the plate in front of her, poured her a glass of lemonade from a large glass pitcher, and said, “I'll leave you two alone. It's good to see you.”

  “Thanks, Mr. Summers.”

  “Don't mention it.” George left the kitchen.

  “Where's your mom?” Laura asked.

  “Upstairs. She's all right. I'm sure she'll be down eventually to say hi.”

  About the time Laura finished dinner, Gabrielle did come downstairs.

  “Hi, Mrs. Summers,” Laura said. “If you need anything, any help or anything...”

  “Thank you, Laura. I'm fine.” She looked at Laura's now empty plate. “Are you still hungry, sweetheart?”

  “No, thank you. I'm done.”

  Laura got up with her plate and headed for the sink. Gabrielle intercepted her and took it.

  “Please, let me,” Gabby said.

  “Oh, Mrs. Summers, I can wash my own dish. It's okay.”

  “I'll take care of it, honey. Finding comfort in the mundane and all that. You and George deserve some time alone together.”

  “Thanks, mom,” George said.

  “Thank you, Mrs. Summers. If you do need anything...”

  “I'll let you know.” Gabrielle washed Laura's plate and silverware.

  George and Laura went upstairs to George's room.

  “How are you holding up?” Laura asked him.

  “As well as can be expected,” George said. “I talked to all of my professors. They all said to take my time and I can worry about catching up when I get back.”

  “When are you coming back?”

  “We'll go back down together tomorrow after the funeral.”

  “I hope it doesn't sound crass or unsympathetic, but... Thank god. I missed you so much. And you don't know how nerve-racking it is to drive your car.”

  George laughed and pushed Laura down on his bed. He kissed her, started to pull away, then kissed her again, more deeply. “Mmm,” he said. “You taste like lemonade.”

  It wasn't until he and Laura were driving home that the loss really hit him. They drove back to school, not saying much, simply being together in the long quiet of the road, Laura's fingers tracing circles on the back of his neck. She saw a sign for a rest stop a mile ahead and she asked George to pull over so she could use the bathroom

  She got back in the car. “Phew! Much better!” She laughed.

  He didn't feel the tears coming until they had already started. He leaned across the car and buried his face in Laura's shoulder and cried while she pet the back of his head and told him it was going to be okay.

  chapter 16

  Jeegan ran out of dishes to throw at the wall and resorted to shouting.

  “Did you know this could happen?” he screamed at Sage.

  Sage simply shook his head and remained silent.

  Jeegan planted his booted foot into the heap of shards against the wall. The pieces of the shattered dishes ground and broke with satisfying snapping sounds. He kicked at the pile and sent fragments flying.

  “We've never lost a part of The Void back to the Realms!” Jeegan yelled.

  “Realms don't enter The Void very often,” Sage said. “And the last known immortal...” Sage shook his head. “I can't even think of a tale of another one. The Bridges have been closed for over a century, as well you know.”

  Jeegan reared back his fist and punched the stone wall with all his might. He grunted through his clenched teeth, then flexed his shattered hand and savored the pain of the broken bones grating against one another. With an effort, he straightened his twisted and broken fingers and watched his hand straighten into his normal shape. The bones tingled as they knit themselves together again. Jeegan considered slamming his fist into the wall again, but instead, he spun away from the wall and left the dining hall.

  Sage knew better than to follow him.

  -

  The celebration in The Marsh was still going strong at dawn.

  When the sky began to lighten, Herron flew back to the fairy circle to watch the sun come up. He sat on top of one of the taller mushrooms in the circle and watched the sky.

  “Mind if I join you?”

  Herron shook his head and Gen sat next to him on the mushroom. She handed him a goblet.

  “It's some kind of spirit. I don't know. Whatever it is that they make here,” she said.

  “Rum,” Herron said.
“Made from sugarmoss. Not many Realms can grow sugarmoss.”

  “Sugarmoss? What's that?”

  “It's a light, fluffy moss that tastes sweet. The fairies here in The Marsh use it for all sorts of things, rum being one of them,” Herron said.

  “Wow. I'd like to try some of that.”

  “Ordinarily, they'd have plenty of it in the village,” Herron said. “But I'm sure they went through most of what they had surviving in The Void.”

  Gen made a concerned, sympathetic sound. “Hmm.”

  “Here it comes,” Herron said.

  A bright sliver of orange-yellow sun lifted above the horizon. A cheer rose from the village, audible from the circle. Gen smiled. Slowly, the sun rose from a sliver to a half-circle, and finally to its full, round shape. The Marsh received the first morning sunlight it had seen in a month.

  “Wow,” Gen said. “It's beautiful.” She looked down into the fairy ring. “The tunnel! It's gone!”

  “The Chamber only opens during the night of the new moon. That night is over. So now it's closed.” Herron paused. “You would have been well within your rights to kill Rommy. Or at least to punish him.”

  “That wouldn't have solved anything. They were trapped here. Alone and hopeless. This place was making me a little crazy and I was only here for one day.”

  “All good points. You made a good decision.”

  “Yeah?” Gen asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Come on, we'd better get back to the others.”

  She flew to her feet and offered Herron her hand. He took it and stood up, then turned to look at the sun again.

  “They probably thought they'd never see it again,” Gen said. “The sun, I mean.”

  “But here they are.”

  “Here they are,” Gen echoed. “Shall we?”

  They flew back to the village.

  -

  Hope watched Gen fly after Herron, then turned back to her cup. She took a long swallow of rum.