The Shadow Thief

by K.L. Bauman

Chapter 24

  A Crash Course in Tree Hopping

  Unlike their much smaller, desert cousins, the white scorpions were the size of a grown man; the tips of their tails didn’t carry poison, but the three razor-sharp daggers that protruded from them could slice through solid stone. And though their mouths were small compared their bodies, Echo knew that if they were to sink their teeth into any part of her skin, she would slowly and torturously form into a human icicle.

  The four creatures clicked to each other and advanced. Echo readied her daggers, wishing desperately that she could call Shimmer for help. The scorpions formed a semi-circle and came closer, their deadly tails raised and pointed at her. She longed to be a woodland fae, so she could meld with the trees, or to be an elf and have magical abilities that could assist her. But she was neither fairy nor elf; she would have to work with what she was.

  One scorpion jumped toward her, causing her to scream. It was an intimidation move, and it had worked. The other three remained where they were, watching their leader. Echo and the scorpion circled each other. She kept her eyes on its shuffling legs, but was very aware of the other scorpions as she turned her back to them momentarily. Every sound was once again amplified; every click of the creatures’ throats, every footfall--if they could be called feet--was crisp and clear. Echo took several slow, deliberate breaths and focused.

  The scorpion attacked, jumping again. This time, however, its tail shot forward, catching Echo off guard. The razor tip sliced through the underneath of her left arm as she lowered her dagger a fraction of a second too late. She had no time to scream or even acknowledge her pain as the lightning fast scorpion struck again. This time, it caught Echo’s cloak, tearing through delicate outer fabric like a spider’s web. Goose down flew everywhere, distracting the scorpion.

  Echo took advantage of the brief moment and advanced swiftly. Crossing her daggers, she yelled, lurched forward, and slashed the scorpion’s tail. The tip flew through the air as the creature released an eardrum-shattering screech. Echo put her arms against her ears, attempting to block the sound. But she could still hear it and she had to lower her arms as the other scorpions charged.

  Everything from that point on happened so fast that Echo barely knew what her own limbs were doing. She sliced the head off of the screeching scorpion to end its noise. Her arms and blades blurred with the striking tails as she fought desperately for her life against the remaining scorpions. The beasts’ tails made several more connections, slicing through her clothes and skin. Spatters of her bright red blood made gruesome, contrasting designs against the snowy ground.

  The battle raged for several minutes. In a whirr of steel, Echo managed to remove another scorpion’s tail, then its head before it could scream. Another bit at her leg, but her boot protected her skin from its teeth. Echo thrust one of her daggers through the top of its skull, killing it instantly.

  One scorpion remained. Echo was exhausted, and the loss of blood was taking its toll. She felt dizzy and had to concentrate to keep from passing out. Her slower reflexes put her at a disadvantage; she feared this was the end. Then, a crazy thought brushed against her mind. What if the crystal could give me strength? Could she chance dropping a dagger to pull the crystal from her pocket? Was it even still in her pocket after all the battling?

  Echo slowly backed away from the scorpion. If she was going to do this, she would have to do it fast. With a breath, she threw her right dagger at the scorpion. The blunt edge of the blade bounced off of its body, distracting it just long enough for Echo to reach in her pocket and grab the crystal. Faint warmth trickled from it as she pulled it into the open and held it in her palm. The small amount of energy wasn’t enough to help her, however, and the scorpion advanced again.

  As the beast rushed Echo, her mind trailed to Brecker; her eyes welled with tears. I’m sorry, Brecker. I’ve failed you again. A ray of sun sliced through the chilled air, striking the crystal; the jagged edges of the stone reflected the light, dazzling the scorpion. It released a strange noise as the light blinded it.

  The burst of light snapped Echo out of her stunned state. She made her final attack. With dagger and crystal held together between both of her hands, she swiftly approached the scorpion and lopped off its head with a furious cry. The beam of sun vanished as Echo fell to her knees. The lonely sound of her breath filled the emptiness that followed.

  Although she was on the verge of fainting, Echo forced herself to turn away from the revolting scene of the dismembered scorpions. She rose shakily to her feet, returned the crystal to her pocket, and retrieved her fallen dagger. Wiping their blades in the snow, Echo cleaned her weapons and then placed them in their case. She shuffled through the snow, approaching again the two trees at the end of the row. Raising a hand, she felt for the barrier. It was still there.

  Echo fell again to her knees and sobbed. After all that, I’m still going to die in here! Her wounds were bleeding profusely, and the chilled air crept into her core. The scorpions may as well have bitten her--she was going to freeze to death inside this giant snow globe anyway. Her body shook uncontrollably, attempting to warm itself. Echo crossed her arms tightly against her chest, careful to tuck her fingers under her armpits. The image of her dad’s stubby fingers touched her mind, the ones the frost wraiths had taken, gnawing them till they’d turned black with death.

  The loss of blood and hope forced Echo to collapse to the earth. Her blood melted the snow next to her body; in her frayed state of mind, she imagined it forming the shape of a winged horse. She lowered her head to a pillow of snow, allowing her eyes to roll back as she dreamed of the horse carrying her away to somewhere warm and safe.

  Echo lost track of time. Occasionally, she would come to consciousness. Although she couldn’t see them, the frost wraiths’ stinging bites penetrated the skin on her fingers and toes. She didn’t have the strength to fight them off.

  Snow began to fall. Huge, fluffy flakes flew around her like little fairies. She dreamed about snow fairies landing on her body, dancing and laughing. The touch of their tiny feet chilled her.

  She opened her eyes again. The snow had left a filmy blanket over her body. She studied the flakes that were close to her. They were like tiny stars, their points frozen into delicate designs. So simple. So beautiful.

  A large flake landed on her ear with a faint whisper. She imagined that it had whispered her name. She felt nothing now. Her body was frozen. Her heart had slowed and would soon join the rest of her.

  The snowflake whispered again. “Don’t close your eyes, Echo. Don’t sleep. I’m coming.”

  Though her eyelids were as heavy as a pair of boulders, Echo forced them to stay open. She strained her ears. Only the softly falling snow filled the silence. She’d been hallucinating. No one was coming.

  But the voice sounded again, and through her blurred vision Echo saw the barrier shatter and a figure appeared in front of the nearest tree. A voice accompanied the figure. A clear, real voice. “Echo! Don’t close your eyes! Stay awake, I’m here!”

  The figure dove on its knees beside her. A pair of sumptuously warm hands pressed against her face. She attempted a smile as Keebo’s worried features came into focus. She wanted to cry with joy, but every ounce of water in her body was either spilled on the ground or frozen.

  Keebo’s hands worked furiously over Echo’s body. He found every cut and, tearing away some of his own clothing, bound the wounds as best he could. His face remained concerned and, every now and again, he’d press his warm hands frantically on Echo’s face, look her in the eyes and remind her, “Stay awake, Echo. Don’t you dare leave me!” She heard him cursing himself for not bringing curatree sap.

  When he finished binding her wounds, Keebo took a handful of snow, melted and heated it, using only his palm. He gently lifted Echo’s head and pressed the warm liquid to her lips. She could barely take it in, her mouth was so stiff. The warm wat
er felt like fire as it flowed down her throat and hit her empty stomach with a splash. She coughed uncontrollably for a minute.

  Keebo pressed the top half of her body to him as her coughing subsided. She gratefully rested her head against his warm chest. His hands glowed orange as he rubbed Echo’s arms, chest, and belly. A wonderful, soothing heat settled inside of her, staving the chill that had nearly consumed her.

  She thought she felt him gently kiss the top of her head.

  Echo tilted her head back and looked bleary-eyed at Keebo. The snowflakes clung to his hair, forming a white halo. She smiled at him in a drunk-like way and whispered, “You’re my angel.”

  A spark warmed Keebo’s eyes as he looked at her tenderly. “I think you have that backwards.” He gave her a crooked smile before his face became serious again. “I have to get you out of here.”

  With great effort, Keebo helped Echo to stand. What parts of her body she could feel screamed with protest. “I have to get Shimmer,” she said faintly.

  “Shimmer’s fine. She helped me find you, and she’s already on her way home. We’ll meet her there,” Keebo explained as he led Echo to the tree where she’d first seen him appear. Her arm was over his shoulders, and his arm was wrapped around her waist to keep her from toppling over. He looked out of the corner of his eye at her. “You’re going to have to trust me now. I’m going to take you to Thildin Valley in a way you’ve never traveled before. You have to hold onto me and don’t let go. No matter what, you cannot let go. Do you understand?”

  Echo nodded vaguely. Keebo’s words were fuzzy, but she understood that she had to hold on to him. She thought that sounded nice. Echo felt Keebo take a deep breath and exhale sharply. “I hope this works. Okay, here we go,” he said and then removed one of his hands from her waist and placed it against the tree. The trunk rippled and Keebo’s hand sank into the bark. He stepped forward, pulling Echo along. She would’ve been fascinated, and maybe a little scared, had she any sense at all. But she was convinced it was all a dream, and she stepped easily into the tree with Keebo.

  Echo felt like she was suddenly vaulted into the sky as a rush of wind pushed the two of them upwards. Her body was suddenly as light as a feather--no, a leaf! The tree they’d entered fell away from them and Echo grasped Keebo tighter, suddenly conscious enough to be afraid. The ground below them whizzed by, making her dizzy again. She gasped as she put one of her hands in front of her face and saw--nothing. They were invisible!

  “Hold on, Echo! You have to hold on or I’ll lose you,” Keebo’s voice rushed in her ear like wind. She tried to focus, but the speed made her light-headed. Trees and rock flashed by. The ground turned from snow, to stone, to trees, to clay in a matter of minutes. They were over the badlands already!

  “We’re almost there!” Keebo shouted. Then, a sudden shock wave, filled with a terrible energy, struck them with unbearable force. Echo screamed as she lost her hold on Keebo. She heard him yelling her name as she spun out of control toward the earth. She gasped for breath and watched the ground rushing toward her.

  Somehow, her body absorbed into a tree, but not gently. She slammed against the inside of the trunk, brutally bouncing back and forth several times before the tree spat her out. She landed on her back with a jarring thud and lay motionless. She weakly raised her hand. She was solid again.

  Echo let her arm flop back to the ground as her eyes looked from side to side. She was next to a sandstone formation, its surface hardened and polished from years of weather and sun. A crack several inches thick snaked along the face of the wall-like formation. Echo was reminded of how she and Song had broken the stone on the mountain to reveal the crystal. She wondered if something hid behind the huge crack in the sandstone wall. Strange what goes through my head when I’m nearly dead. She tried to giggle at her weird mind, but the action was too painful.

  Keebo’s voice broke through her reverie. “Echo! Echo, are you okay?” Once again he dove on his knees next to her. His worried face warmed her. Everything looked blurry. She was slipping away again.

  “Don’t do it, Echo! Keep those pretty eyes open. We’re almost--” Keebo’s sentence was interrupted by a sudden and violent earthquake. The world shook as if to free itself from something terrible. Echo’s weak heart attempted to beat furiously; her last conscious visual was of Keebo covering her body with his as chunks of rock crumbled toward them from the sandstone wall.