28

Ash

He kissed me! I close my eyes to relive it, the strength of his arms around me as the ship lurched. The gentleness of his lips as they slowly moved closer to mine. How all the racing thoughts in my head vanished, leaving me only aware of our thrumming hearts and the exquisiteness of his touch. What a kiss…

It was so much more than the peck I gave him when we fled the shore at the Suni River mouth. Though that was good! Then I felt weightless, lighthearted, buoyed up by unseen currents and also a little embarrassed that everyone saw. But this kiss? It was like our first, back on the beach of Aku. It started with curiosity, a tenderness that quickly turned into a blazing fire. What a kiss!

“You mentioned,” my inner voice says dryly. “And the protocols? You remember those, don’t you?”

I do, and like that I come down from the clouds with a bump.

The protocols. They are in place for this very reason. I’m supposed to be focused on Bakton and the whistle bone I insisted is there. And what about poor Marcus? He’s had the shock of his father’s death, not to mention our journey nearly being cut off at the knees, or rather at the neck. My neck! He doesn’t need to see me frolicking with Kaylin at every turn. It’s completely inappropriate! This quest is deadly serious. I understand that better than anyone.

“Aren’t you wise.” My inner voice is snide. “So far along the path.”

Wise? Really, if I have something to say to myself, I should just say it. What are you insinuating?

“Simply that you are sage beyond your years if you know what others need, or do not need, along their path.”

I blow out my breath. There’s truth there but I hate admitting it. Point taken, I mumble through tight lips. But I don’t regret the kiss if that’s what you’re thinking.

My mind goes back to Kaylin, my lips still tingling. But as Bakton looms nearer, I know I have to stay focused. I remind myself, as we lower a rowboat and climb in, that going there was my idea. An idea I had to fight for.

“Actually, it was Talus’s idea.”

True, but if things go wrong it won’t be her they’ll blame.

The closer we get, the more the isle looks like a dragon poised next to a blue lagoon. Waves crash around its crouching legs and above, high into the clouds, his head tips back, mouth open in a mighty roar. Smoke rises from the hollow throat. “Stunning,” I say. “So powerful.”

“I don’t like it.” Tyche turns away.

Piper wraps an arm around the girl. “We won’t stay long,” the healer says, her voice light, maybe for all our sakes. We stare at the obsidian land, each stroke of the oars bringing us closer to its chilly shadow.

The sun is lower on the horizon than I’d thought, the frozen claws of lava turning gold in the late afternoon light. I lick salt from my lips. The sea is as calm as a mirror, save near the shore. That’s one good thing.

“Keep her pointed at the beach,” Kaylin says as he rows harder. “And stick together when we land.”

“Afraid of the monster?” Marcus chides him.

Kaylin doesn’t respond. We’ve all seen him in battle. Fearless doesn’t begin to describe him. I don’t like speculating on what would make Kaylin uneasy, but this island seems to.

“You aren’t worried, are you?” I ask.

“Never.” He winks. “But still, let’s all stay together.”

“No argument here.”

“Right oars, straighten her up,” Kaylin calls out as the swell latches onto the bottom of our boat and rushes us forward. Soon the black sand beach is beneath us, and we jump out, the water up to my knees. Marcus and Belair haul the rope while the rest of us push the small vessel above the tide line. It lists to the side, stuck deep in the dry sand between two long arms of lava. We’re in the shadow of the dragon’s belly. I find it a relief not to see the smoking head anymore.

“The temple ruins are that way, according to the map.” I point left around the dragon’s arm. “I think there’s a path.” My hands and feet tingle. “What’s that noise?” I ask.

“Kelp Gulls.” Kaylin indicates the birds circling in the distance.

“They sound different.”

“Aye. It’s rare to see them nesting this far north.” He shoulders his pack and leads the way. “Unless the southern waters have frozen.”

“Ha!” That’s not possible…is it?

We look to the sky. Only a single sun is visible on the western horizon, but it feels ominous just the same. “Let’s move.”

“Are you ready to call the whistle bone?” I offer Tyche my hand.

She nods and then says, “Everything here is dead.”

“Not those noisy birds.” I try to laugh. “And not us.” I stumble as I say it and fall to my knees.

Kaylin turns but I’m up and dusting myself off before he can speak. I push on the side of my temple. For a moment, my thoughts jumble and I am on the trail behind the training field in the Sanctuary of Baiseen. I’m racing Marcus to the lake and am sadly falling behind. I stumble again, and this time Kaylin pulls me up.

“Are you all right, lass?”

Everyone has stopped to press in toward me. Piper has her hand on my wrist, Marcus is firing questions. Kaylin’s in my head.

“Enough!” I reclaim my hand. “I stumbled, is all. Let’s go find this bone before the sun sets.”

No one speaks as we continue down the path.

I follow behind, noting that this was once a great road that hugged the shore. It’s now overgrown with wispy dead grass that fringes the giant arms of cooled lava flow. In places the road is underwater and we scramble over black rocks to stay dry. The desolate landscape reminds me of a cake pan, the contents burnt black and warped out of shape.

I trot to catch up when Kaylin leads us over a rise and comes to a halt.

“Great goddess of the Drop,” I whisper. From the knoll, we have a full view of the Sanctuary below us, what is left of it, at least. It takes me a moment to catch my breath. Even after studying the mural, I wasn’t expecting this. Despite being in ruins, the Bakton Sanctuary emanates magnificence.

The freestanding columns tower high, jutting out of the sea in the north aspect like a giant phantom’s fingers turned to stone. “Is it marble?” I ask.

“Can’t see how,” Belair answers. “White granite?”

“Master sculptors created this,” Piper says. “But look how much the sea has risen. Those distant columns are almost completely underwater.”

“A warning to build on higher ground as our ancestors did in Baiseen.” Marcus shakes his head.

“I don’t think it was so close to the sea when it was built.” It didn’t seem that way in the tapestry.

Long shadows splash across the beach, giving the site an eerie feel. The ruins speak of wealth and grandeur; the relentless sea slowly swallow it whole. The water’s edge is littered with fallen slabs of rock encrusted with barnacles and reclining statues that once stood upright, as proud winged guardians. It makes me think of the palace garden chessboard at Baiseen, with its life-size, finely carved pieces all toppled over. Only these are so much larger.

Opposite the statues, in the distance, is an elegant, curved structure— the remains of an amphitheater. The columns still form a perfect semicircle, a half-moon sinking into the sea, save for a few pillars broken off at the base but above the tideline. As the sun drops even closer to the horizon, the inland lava hills darken, and the ruined Sanctuary turns from gold to vermillion.

“Ready to have a go, little lass?” Kaylin says to Tyche. “Best be quick, so we aren’t rowing back under the stars.”

“I need to be closer,” she says. “And higher,” she adds. “We don’t know where it’ll be coming from.”

“Here,” Marcus calls out. He’s climbed up a mound of lava.

Tyche doesn’t move.

Kaylin draws his sword and walks ahead of her to the claw. “Come on, bring your phantom up and call the whistle bone. Marcus and I will stand guard.”

Marcus takes the cue and draws his sword as well. “That we will.”

Piper joins her as she finds a spot between the two young men. “You know we’re after the Tree of Eternity, the whistle bone that represents—”

“The second step on the path to An’awntia,” Tyche answers. “Awareness of Physicality. I studied it. I’m ready.” She motions the rest of us to step back. As we do, she drops to her knees and instantly her phantom erupts from the black sand. The long-necked, elegant impala, one of the most powerful callers of Aku, looks calm. It shakes its coat and gazes at Tyche. If the creature is upset to find itself at the edge of the sea, on a lava black island at sunset, it doesn’t show it.

Tyche’s eyes go soft, focused on nothing. Marcus helps her climb higher along the rocks for even more elevation, and the impala springs after her, bounding like a kid goat up the side of a cliff. It flaps its ears and turns to face west. As the sun melts into the horizon and the sky explodes with pink and orange streaks, the phantom and savant begin their chant.

I watch from my perch at the edge of the obsidian. A beautiful melody mingles with the sounds of the sea, and I find every bone in my body tingling. After a few moments, the sun dims behind clouds and a wispy fog rolls in. “Should have brought my coat.”

“Should have brought more than that,” my inner voice replies.

Pardon?

“Stay aware.”

But time passes, and nothing happens, so I’m not sure what I’m meant to be aware of. Tyche stops for a moment to shift her focus to another part of the ruins and calls again. Nothing.

“Over here.”

I clutch the medallion through my coat. “Who spoke?”

“Look at the runes on the columns. They will point to the great hall, where the bone used to hang. That’s where the girl needs to be…come closer.”

“Talus?” I check over my shoulder but no one else seems to have heard her words. Am I imagining things? But the advice is good. I slip off the rock and walk down to the nearest column. It’s cold to the touch and half buried in the sand. Even with the tide out, my boots make shallow prints that quickly fill with water. I run my hand along the smooth column and sure enough, I come to a row of glyphs carved into the stone.

“What have you found?” Kaylin asks, heading toward me.

“Do you recognize these?”

Kaylin studies them. “I’m not sure.”

“I think we need to look for the main hall, or where it once stood.”

“Good idea.”

“Not mine. I…”

Kaylin straightens with a question on his face.

“I think I heard Talus suggest it. That sounds crazy, doesn’t it.” As soon as I speak the name aloud, a shape appears on the other side of the columns. “Who’s that,” I whisper, heading toward it.

“Wait up,” Kaylin trots behind me.

“Look to the runes, Ash. The one with the Eternity Tree.”

“Right!” I stop so quickly Kaylin nearly plows into me from behind. “We’re looking for the Eternity symbol. That’s what would be carved into the hall pillars.” I wave to the others. “Help search, everyone.”

“Ash, who are you talking to?” Kaylin asks.

“You, of course. Come on. You love the water. Check those pillars over there in the depths.” I point toward the ones half submerged in the turning tide. The others join in, and we comb the ruins until I find it. “Here!” I call Tyche over. “I think it’s here.”

Marcus and Piper flank Tyche as they escort her and her phantom to the edge of the sea.

“This might have been the main hall.” I spin around, arms wide, indicating the expanse.

“They look like old teeth.” Tyche clasps her hands as she stares at the ruins.

“It’s just stone, little lass,” Kaylin says, kicking the nearest pillar for emphasis.

“All right.” Tyche squares her shoulders and again the melodic tones rise like mist from the sea, this time dampened by the thickening fog and the sea rushing in.

“She’s got something,” Piper whispers.

The water bubbles and churns until it bursts like a geyser. From its midst, a whistle bone flies with such a force it leaves a spray of sand and seawater trailing through the darkening sky. Tyche turns and touches her phantom. It slows the tempo of its call and the object arcs gracefully forward and lands at her feet. Everyone exclaims, then breaks into applause.

“Are you sure that’s it? The Tree of Eternity?” Marcus asks.

Tyche picks it up and studies it closely. “I’m sure.”

Kaylin pats her gently on the back while everyone presses in to see. She takes the bone to the edge of the tide to rinse it clean. Indeed, it is the Tree of Eternity, the etching still vibrant black lines in the buttery colored bone. Tyche removes a tag of kelp that caught on the “wings” of the vertebrae and hands it to Marcus.

“The second one, Bone Gatherer,” she says with a little bow.

As she hands it over, the nesting gulls go silent and then all take flight at once, black silhouettes in the sky.

“We need to go,” Kaylin says without explaining.

Marcus tucks the whistle bone into the small bag tied to his belt and the ground begins to tremble. Twilight sucks the color from the sky and shadows fall hard across the landscape. The smooth black lava fields disappear in the fog. Marcus slips the bag into his robe pocket, but as he looks my way, his eyes go wild. He pulls Tyche behind him and raises his sword. “Look out!’

“Shades,” Tyche screams. Her impala melts into the ground.

The sound of thunder explodes above us. “The mountain’s blowing!” Marcus shouts.

The taste of sulfur and ash fills the air as smokey figures appear from around the columns. The ethereal forms waft in and out of view, obscured by the fog and each other’s transparent shadows. They float over the ruins, slowly but unquestionably advancing toward us. My throat is so dry I can’t speak.

“Back to the boat!” Kaylin commands, jolting us to respond.

“Run, all of you!” Marcus seconds it, his voice a good octave deeper than usual. His shoulders seem to ripple beneath his robe.

“De’ral?”

“Run, Ash,” his phantom booms in my head. “Run!” I can hear him pounding back toward me.

I bunch my legs and launch forward, willing my body to sprint through the wet, gyrating sand as the ground continues to shake. I pick up momentum in a few strides, lift my head and slam straight into a form more tree than person. The arms are long limbs, the body a trunk, twisted knots for eyes. I’ve seen this kind of phantom before, on Aku. “An agapha,” I gasp, my hands flying up to ward off twig fingers.

“Hello, there, Ash.” It is oblivious of the turmoil around us. “Lost your way?”

The knot-like swirl in the middle of the woody face doesn’t move, its thoughts sounding in my head. “No time to stop,” I say, pretending I’m not terrified out of my mind as I try to run around it.

Let’s make time, shall we? It moves so fast, I run into it again.

More ghostly phantoms float toward me like mist over the water. They are still rising from behind the columns and crevices in the lava fields. In moments I’m surrounded.

“I have to go,” I say again, my heart pounding like a wild beast’s as I search for Kaylin and the others. I can see nothing in the fog.

“There’s no rush, child.” They advance even closer.

“These phantoms have no manners whatsoever,” my inner voice offers.

That’s all you can say? I open my mouth to scream for help, but no sound comes out.

“Best not let it get too close.”

You think?

The shades take more solid form as their faces turn toward the erupting mountain. They sway, their expressions warping as if tormented. Booms crack the sky and the sound of spewing lava belches from the dragon’s mouth. It makes the shades retreat, thinning into wisps and disappearing back into the fog.

But not the agapha. It remains. With a long, slender twig hand it reaches out and catches me in a chokehold. “You’re coming with me.”

Its grip clamps around my throat, making it impossible to breathe. This can’t be happening. As I think it, I bring up my right hand and slam it into the branchy arm, but it’s like hitting solid iron. Pain blooms from my wrist and my thoughts scatter like frightened birds.

The agapha roils and blurs, transforming in front of me as legs shorten into animal haunches that scrabble and gain purchase on my thighs. The spine contorts into a hunched creature, twiggy hands turning into claws that move up my chest and toward my face. It’s an alter. It’s… “You!” I shriek mind-to-mind. My heart beats a hundred times too fast as I recognize the paralyzing creature of my dreams—the nightmares that tormented me on Aku. How did it get here?

“Don’t panic, Ash.”

My inner voice has no idea. It is. Time. To. Panic!

I open my mouth to scream but the creature only laughs as if it’s found a secret door.

I fight back, pummeling at the snarling fangs and ripping claws. I smash its jaw with an uppercut and knock it to the ground, but before I can turn to run, it leaps onto my chest again. The creature rakes my face and I yell at the top of my lungs. “Help!”

I slam my mouth shut, but the monster has a paw halfway down my throat.

“Let it in.” My inner voice is calm as the Sargasso.

That’s insane advice. I gag and choke as it tries to force its way inside.

“Trust me. Let it in.”

I won’t, but try as I do, I can’t stop it. The creature dives down my throat.

And then, somewhere in the depths of my core, pressure rises. A twist and turbulence races under my skin while my inner voice gives a thunderous laugh. “Now, you are mine.”

For an instant, everything goes still. My breath calms. My arms stop thrashing. Even the tide seems to pause until air rushes from my lungs and my vision blurs. All sounds are sucked away, and I’m caught in a swirling vortex, falling endlessly down, or up. There’s no telling. From a deep place, so hidden it feels like the center of infinity, I hear a CRACK. It’s followed by a resounding shatter that fractures the boundaries of my soul, sending jagged lines racing up a once high and dividing wall. In that moment, the path stands still, and I inhale deeper the sea air, the fog and the shade, one and all.