Clock City

by Rebekah Dodson

  Oh, God, what’s happened!

  To my horror, tendrils of blackened canvas showered down on us, followed by piles of red-hot embers, and the screams of the Zespar filled the air.

  Sebastian startled awake with a gasp and jerked away from me when I shrieked. He searched the room at first, found me, and grabbed me by the shoulders.

  “Alayna!”

  I was shaking so hard it was difficult to stand and I was still screaming.

  He pulled me to my feet. “Alayna, belay that awful noise! We have to get out of here!” He snatched up my hand and yanked him after me right into the commotion.

  We ducked under the tent flap, just as the entire thing went up in flames. A few feet away, younglings stood grouped together near the now extinguished fire. The sitting logs had been kicked, lying haphazardly in perpendicular piles. The throne of sticks where Elinar had wrapped our wrists the night before was broiling with black smoke and orange fire.

  Zespar scattered everywhere, some whimpering, some tottering on wooden canes, other snatching children from the ground and scurrying in every direction.

  At first, I thought it was marlita, the mysterious, explosive stones the Zespar guarded, causing this, but then Sebastian nudged my arm. “Look,” he said and nodded upwards.

  The sky was a dark purple, touched by the edges of the pink sunrise. But the dawn was blacked out against the myriad of creatures that flew above us. Crimson light reflected off bronze exteriors of flying snakes, with long tails and a wing span several feet long. Their tails ended in a massive spiked wheel, the silver points deadly and vicious.

  One swooped low and a metallic crank clicked loudly back and forth. Its mouth opened slowly as if by some unforeseen force and fire erupted onto another nearby tent.

  Not snakes.

  Dragons.

  Metal dragons.

  Someone was screaming.

  A piercing, shrill scream that tinned in my ears and chilled my blood.

  Sebastian’s hand clapped over my mouth and I realized it was me.

  “The Keeper’s army,” he hissed in my ear. “We have to get out of here.”

  “Mistress!” It was Dinga, with a trail of four females and probably a dozen youngling Zespars in tow.

  I had to stoop to make sure they didn’t collide with us. “Mistress,” he was shouting and hopping on one leg. “Please help us!”

  I gathered as many tiny Zespars into my arms as I could, and Sebastian did the same.

  “Woods!” he yelled, and we set off.

  The baby demons, some of them no bigger than my hand, were squealing and thrashing.

  I tried my best to shush them.

  We reached the edge of the woods as the sunrise fractured the horizon, spilling red light everywhere. The acrid smoke was so heavy in the air I had to fight the coughs brewing in my lungs.

  The dragons circled overhead, their fire breathing finally ceasing.

  We watched as the last few Zespar dashed into the forest, while the village crackled and popped, engulfed in flames.

  “Mistress, look!” Dinga pointed as the dragons began an ascent into the sky.

  Uniformly, they flew in a figure eight, before one by one, taking off in the direction of Clock City.

  One of them had something small in its claw. A Zespar. It was still, and I couldn’t imagine it was alive.

  Hovering, a loud buzz emanating from the golden wings, it opened its jaws wide once more.

  I hugged the younglings to me, their cries finally quieted. I shut my eyes tight. We wouldn’t have a chance against another fiery assault.

  “I know you are here, Queen Imposter,” The voice of the Keeper’s piercing cry spouted through this terrifying dragon.

  I opened my eyes.

  Sebastian was spinning a ball of light ready to protect us. Before the voice could continue, he spun in the circle, the light spreading around us, tiny prisms sprinkling through the air like an electric mist.

  “Why can’t he see us?” I whispered to Sebastian.

  “They don’t call it light spinning for nothing,” he whispered back. “I can refract the light to hide a small area.”

  “Dude, that’s pretty cool. So, we’re invisible?”

  “Temperature has nothing to do with it, as I recall.”

  I frowned at him. “So why didn’t you do this when we were running from the guards yesterday?”

  Sebastian eyed me, his eyebrows furrowed together. “It didn’t really occur to me to—”

  “Let’s just cut to the fish,” the voice interrupted before Sebastian could respond. “The marlita. I want it. Bring it all to me and we will discuss the release of your fish.”

  Sebastian glanced at me. I shrugged and mouthed, that dude is crazy!

  “The Zespar leader,” the voice corrected as if he really could see us. “I’ll have fun killing him if you don’t make it snappy, m’dear. Fish!” The dragon flapped its wings with loud clanks then flew into the distance.

  I shook my head. The Keeper was one thing for sure: not all there upstairs. That scared me. I said at much and Sebastian nodded. I looked from Sebastian to Dinga. “Mistress? What will we do?”

  Sebastian dropped his hands to his side and the light prisms faded around us, blinking out of existence. “I don’t know, Dinga. I don’t know.”

  Chapter Eight: The Night

  I WATCHED AS SEBASTIAN took the two leather pouches from Dinga and tied them around his waist. “How much marlita is this, Dinga?”

  “As much as the tribe had on hand.” He hopped from one leg to the other, grasping his mate’s hand, and turning to look at her.

  “Dinga, you can stay here. They need you.”

  Dinga looked at me, shaking his head to and fro, the sparse hair on his head flying out to the side. “No, I go with you, mistress. To rescue the Anual.”

  “Must you go, Poota?” The female Zespar stared into his eyes.

  Six younglings scrambled in a circle around her ankles.

  “I will follow my queen, Eudia.” He blew a kiss at her, and she returned it. “My favorite of my mates.”

  I felt such sorrow to separate them, but Dinga would not be persuaded to stay. I watched his mate smile and look down, tossing the claw of a foot around in the dirt.

  She picked up one of the younglings, who threw his short arms around her neck.

  “Hurry back,” she told him, “in one piece.”

  He grasped her claw in his, “This I promise you.” His other mates stood close by, and he waved his other hand. They stepped forward, and he made the same pledge among them as well.

  One of his mates spoke up, then. “What will we do until your return?”

  Dinga glanced up at me, but I looked toward Sebastian. “You know this land better than me, I guess.”

  Sebastian nodded and turned to Dinga. “Travel to the sacred pond, and setup camp in the forest. Stay out of sight and stay together in groups.”

  They nodded.

  “I will accompany our queen to save the Anual! I will return soon!” Dinga called out to them as we turned into the woods.

  A chorus of small voices cheered. Sloppy tongues lolled out of gangly mouths. It would have been terrifying if I didn’t know they were pretty much harmless. How could I ever have thought they were cannibal?

  In a way, there were a little cute.

  Sebastian hoisted Dinga on his shoulders, and we started back through the forest.

  It was hard to believe just yesterday we ran for our lives, to the safety of the Zespar village. Now we were going forth to save the village, and the rest of Elestra.

  I only hoped I was brave enough to do it.

  I felt Sebastian squeeze my hand. I looked up at him, and he smiled.

  As if he read my mind, he tried reassuring me, “We can do this.”

  “I hope so.”

  “Hey, I’m part of the resistance. What can go wrong?”

  “There’s a resistance?”

  Sebastian ignored me. “H
urry along, Alayna.”

  I followed him. Kind of missed him calling me regent.

  “THE PRAIRIE SEEMED so much smaller the last time we were here.”

  Sebastian looked up at me. He was crouching under the same tree from when we escaped the prison. He idly tore some grass from the ground and shredded it in his hands. “We weren’t taking pleasure in the sights before, Alayna.”

  I nodded and crouched down beside him.

  We could see Clock City spread across the horizon; clangs of clocks and the whoosh of the piston echoing across the empty fields. The piston was nothing but a black smear on the sky, but we all knew the enormity of it.

  “Mistress, how can we get back in?” Dinga stood next to me. The red sun was setting on the other side of the city, throwing eerie crimson shadows over us. Dinga’s blue skin glowed purple in the sunset. He adjusted the little canvas pack over his shoulder, and sat down cross-legged next to me.

  “Obviously, it’s better to get in when it’s dark,” Sebastian mentioned.

  “I hope you have a plan once we get there.”

  “We have to find Victor, obviously.” The ball of light sparked to life in his palm and he tossed it around.

  “Do you have to say that word so much?” I smiled.

  He threw a sideways smile at me. “Obviously.”

  I punched him lightly in the arm. The light ball fizzled and disappeared into thin air, and he fell over in a flourish of a dramatic pose. “You slay me, queen.”

  “Stop calling me that.”

  “You have to start believing you are her, mistress,” Dinga stood and hopped on my back. “Onwards Biggies, or we shall never make it in time.”

  We stood and began our trek toward the city. I didn’t know what we would find when we got there. Somehow, we had to get to the Keeper, and find the real Queen. After that I didn’t know what we’d do. The Anual had given us a task, but I didn’t have a single clue how to execute it. I really, really hoped Sebastian at least knew what we were doing.

  I couldn’t believe it took us nearly all day to trek back to the city. And honestly, we were really crazy for doing so. If it hadn’t been for Sebastian’s shield during the daylight, they would have spotted us. The sun disappeared quickly, casting the purple darkness over us. I could barely see in front of me, but at least the silver moon cast light over the city. I looked up at the bright body, to see the moon wasn’t a sliver like at home, instead it was the shape of a star, with five points.

  No wonder we could still see. How hadn’t I noticed when we were running for the forest? Oh, that’s right, I’d been scared for my life. I thought about the man who had been following us. Was it a man? Where had he gone?

  Sebastian interrupted my thoughts. “We’ll head southwest.” He explained the West Gate was narrow and less guarded, making it an easier entrance.

  “If we’re lucky, I’ll know the guard,” Sebastian explained.

  “If we’re lucky, we’ll make it in alive,” I mumbled. I wondered how he would know the guards.

  “Mistress,” Dinga whispered in my ear, “have faith. Dinga can also use marlita to distract them.”

  I thought about the small black pebbles in Dinga’s pack. The Zespar’s mysterious explosives which came from the foot of the mountain. The Keeper wanted them in exchange for the life of the Zespar tribal leader. “No, Dinga, we can’t. We have to save those to buy Elinar’s freedom.”

  “I know, Mistress, but surely he won’t miss just one.”

  “We’ll figure it out when we get there.”

  The city grew closer. The sky darkened, and as clouds passed over the moon, we found ourselves struggling to see the gates in the dim light, despite the bright bronze clocks covering the jewel-studded walls.

  “Why don’t you give us some light?” I turned to Sebastian.

  “Oh, splendid query!” His voice dripped with sarcasm. “Let’s advertise ‘We’re right here!’ to the guards! Shambolic, indeed.”

  “Shut up. I didn’t think about that. Okay, that’s a ‘no’ on the light. Do you think you know where you’re going?”

  “Of course, I do, I—”

  Before he could finish, he tripped and fell face-first. Dust from the leeched, dying ground erupted around him and he cried out.

  I covered my mouth to suppress a giggle. “Sebastian, you clumsy—"

  “Mistress!” Dinga was hushed but urgent. “Mistress, I see something.”

  I turned, in time to see a shadowy figure duck from behind Sebastian.

  Dinga jumped off my back, his dagger gripped in his claw. “Dinga will protect you!” he proclaimed.

  “Oi, Alayna, behind you!” Sebastian yelled from the ground.

  I didn’t have time to turn before I felt something heavy hit the back of my head, and stars exploded across my vision. Dizzy, I fell backwards and landed next to Sebastian.

  Not two feet from me, Dinga was slicing at the ankles of a hooded figure, garbed in black from head to toe, except his boots, which were tipped in a shiny gold substance, ending in two long spikes on each one. He danced nimbly out of the way of each slash and started to laugh. It was a youthful laugh, not like the knights, who were al older.

  Who was this assassin?

  Shaking my head, I stood and pulled the jeweled dagger out and brandished it in front of me. Sebastian was on his feet in a flash.

  A small ball of light burst into Sebastian’s hands and he spun it quickly, the crackling electricity filling the air. He shoved outward and it landed in the middle of the hooded figure’s chest. With an “Oof!” he went down, landing on his backside and skidding a few feet backward.

  Dinga jumped on him, pushing him to his back, and held the dagger to his throat. “Move if you dare, Biggie,” he snarled, baring all his pointed teeth. His pointed tongue licked out his mouth and his beady eyes fastened to our attacker.

  Sebastian turned to me. “Put that thing away, do you even know how to use it?”

  I scoffed at him. “I could if I needed to.”

  “You’ll just hurt yourself. Are you injured?”

  Instead of arguing, I sheathed the dagger and shook my head. The world was still spinning. “I’ll have one helluva headache in the morning but I’ll live. But what about him?”

  “He’ll live, the ball wasn’t big enough to harm, only stun.”

  We walked over to our would-be assassin.

  Dinga hopped off as we approached. Sebastian grabbed the man by his collar and got him to his feet. His snapped his fingers and another ball of light burst into his other hand. “Who are you, and why did you attack us?” His voice was stern, that of a knight’s son. He threw back the figure’s hood.

  “I meant you no harm, brother, believe me,” the figure mumbled.

  Our almost-assassin, just as young as us, sported wavy, close cropped brown hair, the same shade as Sebastian’s, and boasted dark eyes, darker than even Sebastian’s. This boy was like the dressed up version of Sebastian in a way: just as tall and lithe, but his hair was cut recently, his chin smooth shaved—unlike Sebastaian’s stubbled chin—and instead of the casual vest, shirt, and slacks Sebastian wore, this boy was dressed in black metal breastplate, clean pants, and a black silky trench coat that swirled around him in the slight breeze of the evening.

  Next to each other they were close enough to be twins, except for his nose. I’d always had this weird thing about noses. In middle school I broke up with my boyfriend because his nose was pointy and it freaked me out. The boy’s nose was slightly upturned, almost regal, but disgusting. I should know. It was the one feature I hated the most on, well, myself.

  “Edwin!” Sebastian’s light fizzled and they embraced, patting each other on the back. “Bloody hell, I’ve never been so cheery to see your face!”

  Sebastian gasped.

  “Yours as well, mate!”

  I could see Edwin smile, even in the low light.

  “Last I heard you were on the run from the guards!” Edwin added. “When th
ey sent me after prisoners, I never imagined it would be you. I chased...”

  “It was you, yesterday! The figure following us!” I blurted, looking between them. Dinga gripped my leg and hit behind me, his sudden bravery apparently evaporated, his claws digging into my jeans.

  Edwin nodded. “What are you doing with her, the imposter?” He motioned to me.

  “I’m out here rescuing queens and befriending demons, of course.” Sebastian grimed and clapped him on the back and stepped to the side. “Edwin Cross, may I present Alayna—”

  Edwin gaped at me, eyes wide. Immediately, he dropped to one knee. “They said you were an imposter, but they never told me you would actually be her. My queen.”

  “Get up.” I was so sick of this groveling. “I’m not the queen.”

  He reluctantly stood; his head bowed. He threw a glance at Sebastian, then back to me. “But your resemblance is remarkable. You even have her hair.”

  “I know. I get that a lot.” I cringed even as I said it. I remember my mother’s funeral. Poor Alayna, looks so much like her mother. I often wondered if that’s why my father hated me so.

  “She may not be the queen,” Dinga interrupted, “but she’s close enough to demand your respect, scum Biggie.”

  “Naff, Dinga,” Sebastian laughed. “This is Edwin, my kin.”

  I offered my hand and Edwin took it and kissed it. “Brother?” I peered at Sebastian. They resembled each other but up close they were all wrong. The same height, same build, same hair. But their faces, their features? No. It was so different.

  “Or cousin, we can’t be sure.” Edwin peered at Sebastian briefly as if I confirm it was somehow still true. He turned back to me. “We met in the mines and looked enough alike we were able to fool the bots many a time.”

  “Uncle Victor rescued Edwin shortly after Father took me away from the mines,” Sebastian added. “We were raised together for a short time.”

  “After you got back from those grand adventures with Uncle Matthias,” Edwin supplied.

  “Aye.” Sebastian smiled, and clapped Edwin on the back once more. “Say, what brings you here, chap? Be you running details outside the gates for Victor?”