by Maya Grace
She looked up. “It’s just you, me, and this book, Jack. So we might need a little luck.” She winked at him, but Ella saw the worry in the librarian’s eyes.
Gran sighed. “What we need most of all is another horse—or at least another saddle, if we’re all going to ride home together.”
Mrs. Martin closed her book. “I can get you one of those,” she said. “At the blacksmith’s shop, if it hasn’t been destroyed.”
Gran nodded. “If I have a saddle, I can take two more on my horse, at least for a while. We won’t move very quickly, though.”
Rowan stood and brushed off her leggings. “So what are we waiting for?” she said. “Let’s get your saddle, Gran. And then together, we can find Ella her horse.” She grinned and started packing up her sack.
Ella stood, too. Be brave, she told herself. You just battled a village full of zombies, so I think you can find the courage to tame a horse.
But as she followed Rowan toward the door, her knees felt weak.
* * *
Rowan nibbled at a piece of bread, a faraway look in her eyes.
“Do you hear horses?” asked Ella.
They had stopped at high noon for a quick snack and to let the horses rest in the sunshine. Gran said it was hard for each horse to carry three riders, so they would need to take more breaks. Now Rowan seemed more intent than ever on finding Ella a horse of her own.
“I don’t hear horses,” said Rowan, her voice thick with disappointment. “I do hear creepers exploding—or maybe it’s thunder.”
Taiga lifted his head, sniffed at the air, and whined.
As the sun began to sink, Ella shivered. “It figures that a storm would roll in and ruin the only few minutes of sunshine we get.” She glanced over her shoulder, wondering which direction it would come from.
Suddenly Rowan sprang up, dumping her bread on the ground.
“What?” asked Ella.
“Shh! Look!” Rowan pointed toward a clump of trees.
Ella followed her gaze, but saw nothing.
“A white horse!” whispered Rowan. “I think it’s an Appaloosa. C’mon, Victory will help us catch it for you.”
Ella didn’t like the way Rowan said “catch it,” as if the horse were a hostile mob that needed to be trapped. Maybe it’ll be tame already, she thought, crossing her fingers.
As she climbed onto Victory behind Rowan, Jack hurried over. “Where are you going?”
“Shh!” said Rowan. “To tame a horse. Tell Gran we’ll be right back.”
Ella glanced at Gran, who was dishing up more mushroom stew for Sam and his mom. Part of her hoped Gran would look up now—right now—and stop them from going after the horse, or offer to come with and tame it herself. But she didn’t.
Jack held up his hand. “Wait!” He dug in his backpack and pulled something out, then jogged toward Ella and handed it to her. Green liquid sloshed in the glass bottle.
“Your potion of luck?” Ella asked. She shook her head. “No, Jack, you were saving this for when we really needed it.”
He shrugged. “You really need a horse.” He smiled and then took off, before she could hand back the potion.
“Drink up,” said Rowan with a grin. “Your horse awaits.”
Ella downed the tasteless liquid in a single gulp. Then she recorked the empty bottle and slipped it into her own sack. She took a deep breath, waiting for something to happen—for a burst of confidence, or for the sun to suddenly shine down from the darkened sky. But nothing happened.
She sighed as she wrapped her arms around Rowan’s waist. “Let’s go.”
They took off at a trot toward the trees. But as they got closer, Rowan swung her head left to right. “I don’t see the white horse. Where’d it go?” She led Victory around the trees.
“There!” Ella pointed. As the white horse stepped out from behind a bush, Ella gasped.
It wasn’t an Appaloosa. It wasn’t a normal horse at all. This horse was nothing but bones—no flesh, no fur. And its eyes burned red.
“A skeleton horse!” cried Rowan.
That’s when lightning struck—a jagged bolt that pierced the night sky. The skeleton horse lit up like a blaze in the Nether.
Victory reared with a terrified whinny. As Ella slid backward, she grabbed the edges of the saddle and hung on for dear life.
CHAPTER 13
Rowan pulled back on the reins, trying to get control of her horse. But Victory yanked his head away. As he reared again, Ella hung on tight.
Over Rowan’s shoulder, she saw the skeleton horse. No, this wasn’t the same skeleton horse—this one had a rider, a skeleton on its back! A skeleton with a bow.
Ella ducked, as if hiding behind her cousin’s shoulder would keep her safe. But another skeleton horseman appeared to her left. She whirled around—and came face to face with another on her right.
“We’re surrounded!” she cried to Rowan. “Go! Get us out of here!”
Rowan was already squeezing her legs and clucking her tongue. Victory took off like a shot, galloping across the field—straight toward Gran.
“No!” Rowan yanked her reins to the right, steering Victory away from Gran, who stood frozen like a statue. But the turn took Victory straight into the path of a skeleton horseman.
Victory stopped so suddenly, Rowan flew forward. As the horse bolted left, she slid sideways, right out of the saddle.
“Hang on!” Ella reached for her cousin’s hand—and felt it slip through her sweaty fingers.
Rowan toppled onto the ground with a shriek.
But Victory kept running.
As his reins flapped loose, Ella lunged for them. She slid forward on the saddle, keeping one hand on the saddle horn as she grasped the reins. “Whoa,” she cried, trying to remember everything Rowan had done to control the horse. “Whoa!” She pulled back on the reins.
Victory slowed, but as he tossed his head, Ella saw the whites of his eyes. He was terrified.
An arrow whizzed past Ella’s helmet, so close she could hear the whistle. Then a skeleton horseman galloped up beside her. Another flanked Victory’s left side. Ella didn’t dare turn around to look for the third.
For a moment, she squeezed her eyes shut—as if that would make the mobs go away. Think! cried a voice in her head. Fight back! Do something!
She heard a vicious bark and opened her eyes to see Taiga nipping at the hooves of the horse closest to her. She turned and saw the other wolves coming, too, streaming across the field behind the horsemen.
As the wolves grew closer, snarling and snapping, one of the horsemen reared and spun away. It disappeared into the night, as quickly as it had come.
Ella turned just in time to see the second horseman galloping toward the horizon, with a couple of wolves close behind. Yes!
But one skeleton horseman remained—keeping stride with Ella and VIctory. Victory veered sideways, as if trying to lose the enemy, and galloped back around toward Gran and Rowan.
When the horseman followed, quick as lightning, Taiga tried to cut it off at the pass. He leaped at the skeleton jockey and bounced off the horse’s bony side. As the wolf rolled across the ground, Ella’s heart stopped.
“Taiga, no!” She grabbed the trident from her side and launched it sideways at the horseman.
She watched with horror as it bounced off the skeleton’s helmet—and then noticed for the first time the purple glow surrounding it. The skeleton’s helmet was enchanted. Not even her trident could penetrate that!
The skeleton drew back the string of its bow and released another arrow.
Ella ducked, praying that the arrow wouldn’t strike her horse. But as she straightened back up, she watched an arrow strike the skeleton, knocking it right off the horse.
The skeleton fell to the ground with a grunt and shattered into a pile of bones.
“Who . . . ?” Ella swung her head and saw Rowan kneeling on the ground with her bow. As she tried to stand, her leg gave out. Rowan was hurt!
&
nbsp; But somehow, she still saved me, thought Ella.
She pulled on Victory’s reins to circle back toward her cousin. But now Rowan was hollering something. “Go back!” Rowan called, waving Ella away. “Get the horse!”
What horse? wondered Ella. She was already riding it!
Now Gran was running across the field too, calling to Ella. “Get the horse!” she hollered. “We need the horse!”
Gran wasn’t pointing toward Victory. She was pointing toward the white horse that was galloping away without a rider. The skeleton horse. And she wanted Ella to capture it.
“I don’t know how!” Ella cried.
Then she saw Taiga at the horse’s heels. Could he help her? She called to him—to the loyal wolf that was somehow always right there when she needed him.
“Trap the horse, Taiga! Slow him down! Help me!”
Taiga barked wildly and ran faster. He got ahead of the skeleton horse and darted in front of him. The horse stopped, confused, and reared up.
Now other wolves surrounded him, nipping at his hooves and herding him toward a clump of trees.
The horse whinnied and pranced sideways. He swung his bony head. Finally, he slowed down and spun in a slow wary circle.
By then, Ella was beside him.
Don’t think about it, she told herself. Just do it. Be brave, like Rowan. Or like Jack.
She suddenly remembered the potion of luck that Jack had given her. Was it working? She felt a jolt of confidence shoot through her body. It must be working. Jack was a master potion brewer.
And with luck on her side, she could tame this horse. She would.
Ella slid off Victory and tied his reins to a bush. Then she walked slowly toward the skeleton horse, holding out her hand.
Her entire body buzzed with fear, but she held her hand steady. She kept her voice calm and soothing. “It’s alright,” she said to the horse. “I won’t hurt you. It’s alright.”
Taiga growled at her feet, but she shushed him. “No, Taiga. Be still.”
As the wolf turned away with his tail between his legs, Ella took another step toward the skeleton horse. It stomped its foot, its bones rattling a warning.
It’s alright, Ella told herself this time. You drank a potion of luck. You can do this.
She took another step, and then another, until she was close enough to reach out and touch the bony horse. It flinched away from her hand, but she stepped closer.
This time, she reached up and grasped the horse’s bony back. She started pulling herself upward. As the horse jolted sideways, Ella hung on. She found a foothold on the horse’s side and pushed herself up onto his back.
The horse reared, but Ella held her grip. “It’s alright,” she said. “I won’t hurt you. Settle down.”
The horse tried to run—it stepped this way and that. But the wolves had formed a wall around the horse. It couldn’t run. It couldn’t escape.
All it could do was settle down and give in. And finally, it did.
As it lowered its head and sighed, Ella lowered her own head, resting her forehead against the horse’s bony neck. I did it, she thought, blowing out her breath. Thanks to Jack’s potion, I did it.
When the horse nickered, she felt a sudden wave of affection—which made her laugh out loud. Had she just bonded with a skeleton horse?
Taiga whined from the ground below.
“It’s alright, buddy,” she called to him. “You’re my best friend—my one and only.”
As she sat back up, the warmth in her chest was replaced by pride. I did it! she realized again. But there was no time to celebrate.
Ella heard hoofbeats and saw her family racing toward her on horseback. Now that they had three horses, it was time to go home.
It’s not over, Ella remembered. There are more mobs to fight, and a command block to build. There’s more work to do. Much more.
CHAPTER 14
“Does it hurt?” Ella asked Rowan.
Her cousin had twisted her ankle during the fall off Victory. Although Gran had wrapped it with a bandage, Rowan winced when she tried to stand. She plunked back down in the grass beside Jack and Ella.
“Maybe you need some of Jack’s potion of healing,” Ella suggested. “His potion of luck worked for me—I couldn’t have tamed that horse without it.” She paused, remembering the moment when she had found the courage to mount the skeleton horse.
Jack gave a sheepish laugh. “Actually, that wasn’t my potion,” he said.
“What do you mean?” asked Ella, narrowing her eyes. She had felt the power of the potion. She knew it had worked!
He shrugged. “My potion of luck only lasts a few minutes. I’m pretty sure it wore off by the time you tamed that skeleton horse.”
Ella’s body tingled from her head to her toes. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she cried. “I never would have . . .”
She faltered. I never would have even tried to tame the horse without that potion. That’s why he gave it to me—to give me confidence!
Ella smiled at her cousin. “Good job, Jack. You helped me, you know. You really did.”
“I know,” he said, puffing out his chest. “That’s what I do.” Then he dug in his bag for a potion of healing to help Rowan, too.
“What are you going to name your horse?” asked Sam. He leaned against a tree, studying the skeleton horse that grazed beside Gran’s chestnut mare. Along a sturdy branch above, Lucky the ocelot stretched out, licking her paws.
Ella chewed her lip. She’d been struggling to come up with a name for her horse. She closed her eyes, hoping a name would come. But nothing did. “I’m not sure,” she said.
Sam sighed. “I wish I had a horse to name.”
“A horse?” Mrs. Martin smiled sadly as she stepped up beside her son. “We don’t even have a home of our own right now. How would we care for a horse?”
He shrugged and kicked at the grass.
“You can help feed our horses,” said Ella. “I saw an apple tree over there.” She pointed. “If you pick some, you can feed the horses.”
That perked Sam right up. As he headed toward the apple tree, Ella hopped up to help Gran, who was brushing her mare.
“No name for your horse yet?” asked Gran.
Ella shook her head. “Maybe it’s because of this feeling I have—that the horse won’t be mine for very long.” As she stroked the horse’s bony side, she felt him relax beneath her touch.
Gran glanced over with wise gray eyes. “Sometimes it’s like that with horses.”
Ella looked up. “Is that why you haven’t named your mare?”
Gran nodded and gave her horse a pat. “But you never know, Ella,” she said with a smile. “The right names may still come along. Maybe on the journey home.”
She reached for her new saddle, but then hesitated. “I think you’re going to need this saddle more than I do.” She gestured toward the bony skeleton horse and chuckled. “It would be a rough ride without one.”
Ella laughed. “Thanks, Gran.”
Then Gran’s face grew serious. “Ella, I’m going to have Mrs. Martin ride with you. I’ll take Jack and his mother’s precious book with me. Jack and Mrs. Martin are the only two who may be able to fix that command block. We need to get at least one of them safely back to the mansion. So if we get separated . . .”
Ella froze. “We won’t get separated,” she said.
Gran tilted her head. “We might. Rowan will have Sam—she’ll keep him safe. I’ll look after Jack. And I need you to protect Mrs. Martin. You need to get her back to the mansion. Do you understand?”
A thousand thoughts ran through Ella’s mind. I only just tamed my horse. I’ve never even ridden it really. I’ve never had someone ride with me. The mansion is miles away. And if we get separated—if I have to fight without you and Rowan by my side . . . Her stomach clenched.
She wanted to look away, but she couldn’t break Gran’s steady gaze. Not until she answered, “Yes. I’ll keep Mrs. Martin safe.”
“Good girl,” said Gran, squeezing her shoulder.
But as Gran placed the saddle on the skeleton horse’s back, a wave of dread washed over Ella. They still had so far to go. And they were all out of Jack’s potion of luck.
* * *
The fence came from out of nowhere—a barrier of splintered wood, straight in Ella’s path.
“Hang on!” Ella called to Mrs. Martin, who sat in the saddle behind her. She felt the librarian’s grip tighten around her waist.
When the fence was mere feet in front of them, Ella squeezed her legs and urged her horse forward. “Jump!” The skeleton horse leaped the fence effortlessly, as if it were a pebble in its path. “Good boy!”
Ella turned to make sure the other horses cleared the fence, too. Rowan and Sam came first on strong Victory. And then Gran and Jack close behind, on the chestnut mare.
Both horses made the jump, but neither was as strong or as fast as the skeleton horse. Racing across the plains on that horse, Ella felt as if she were wearing Elytra wings. She felt as if she were flying.
Every time she turned around, her heart leaped, too. She was leading three horses that had once been wild, along with a hundred wolves streaming out behind them.
I’m a warrior, Ella realized. I’m leading an army of wolves, just like my mother.
The Totem of Undying was tucked safely in her pack, but right now, she felt as if she’d never need it—as if she were strong enough to take on anything that came her way. Faster and faster, she led her family through the dark night, on a horse that was quick as lightning.
“That’s it!” Ella cried out loud. “That’s your name. Lightning!”
As she reached down to pat her horse, he whinnied his approval. Lightning would get them safely home, Ella knew. But do we still have a home to go back to? she wondered. Is it still standing?
She clucked her tongue, urging Lightning onward.
CHAPTER 15
“Is it possible? Was no damage done?”
Gran’s words were barely more than a whisper. But on the hilltop, near their home, Ella heard her loud and clear.