We experience events of high-energy confluence regularly, yet we fail to see their utility unless directly affected. The aquatic superhighway – currents that funnel energy around the planet and drive our weather. Electrical storms, cyclones, tornados. Volcanic eruptions that dramatically expand the landscape. Things of beauty, and power.
Miranda Collins, Working Notes.
The ground under his feet swayed. Fletcher flailed to steady himself as the darkness resolved into blinding whiteness.
“You look like you’re wrestling an octopus.”
Fletcher blinked rapidly until his vision cleared. Ana stood there, wrapped in a fur cloak, her face tilted in amusement. He looked around. They were on top of a mountain, clouds buoying them upwards. A jet of steam forcefully displaced the cool air eddying around Fletcher’s body. The clouds parted and revealed that they were on the edge of a gaping crater. Deep below him, magma churned, slow and viscous.
“This is how you can talk with the earth spirit.” Fletcher’s foot slipped on ice-slick rock. He screamed, scrambling to keep his balance. Ana gripped his arm.
“It must be active,” she carried on, indicating the clouds of oppressive smoke. “I hope you are luckier than me.” A sad smile crossed her face and she flickered and began to fade. Fletcher reached for her, but he was already falling back into the blackness.
“Wake up. You’re daydreaming again.”
Startled, Fletcher dropped his protein bar into the snow. “I fell asleep? I didn’t mean to.” Fletcher retrieved the protein bar, trying to hold onto the threads of the dream-vision.
Bry zipped his rubbish inside his rucksack. “Time to get moving. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover today.” A burst of static punctuated his words. Frowning, Bry fished a bulky radio receiver from his pocket and studied the screen. “Another damn solar flare.”
Fletcher devoured the protein bar in two bites, shoving the wrapper in his coat pocket. “Ana showed me a volcano about to erupt.”
Bry looked up from the receiver. “If my calculations are correct, we’ve been retracing Ana’s journey almost exactly, but we need to hurry. We’re still two days’ hard hike from the next volcano, and it’s due any day now. If we miss this one, it might be months until you get another shot.”
“You knew?”
Bry stared out into the mist. He reminded Fletcher of an ancient Norse god surveying his dominion. “You, my daughter, young Eli. It’s astounding how the three of you can harness energy. I figured you would need a dramatic energy input to reach the earth spirit. And since Iceland is one of the most volcanically active places on the planet, here we are.” Bry threw Fletcher his pack. “So let’s stop wasting time, ay?”
It had taken a day and a half of hard walking through thick snow to bring them this far. The volcano remained in sight but the monolith never got any closer. Fletcher pulled down his scarf and flinched as the snow whipped his face. “How much longer?”
Bry’s voice floated back like a snatched whisper. “Another couple of hours.”
Fletcher groaned and pulled his scarf back up over his nose. He fell back into step behind the older man. As they trudged along the ridge, Fletcher’s thoughts returned to Ariana. What was she doing right now? Maybe more defence training or biology homework. He hoped she understood why he’d gone. Fletcher glanced up at the volcano and caught a glimmer of red. Ana had given him hope. Maybe he could still be useful. Maybe he’d find answers here.
Bry stopped abruptly and held up a hand. “Can you feel that?”
Fletcher closed his eyes and concentrated on the rock beneath his feet. There was something. A slight tremor then a rumble rippled through the ground.
“We have to hurry.” Bry tightened his rucksack and broke into a jog.
Fletcher followed, struggling to cut through the snow. The tremors increased in frequency, jolting his legs. Reaching the top of the mountain seemed an impossible task.
They crisscrossed the face of the volcano. Fletcher gasped in the thin air, his heart pounding loudly in his ears as they clambered up the steep slope. A plume of smoke erupted turning the sky blood-red. Fletcher could just make out the rim, spewing dark smoke. It seemed like madness that they were running toward the deadly explosions when every instinct told him to turn tail.
Bry stopped, hands on his knees as he caught his breath. Then he straightened. “Come on. We’re nearly there.”
At last they reached the top of the mountain. It was shrouded in a thick ash cloud. Bry wrapped his scarf tightly around his head, leaving only a slit for his eyes. Fletcher copied him. Intense heat emanated from the depths, getting hotter and hotter as they neared the rim.
Fletcher coughed. Acrid smoke filled his lungs, the hot air searing his skin. How the hell was he supposed to reach the earth spirit without killing himself?
Bry turned and indicated to Fletcher to hand him his rucksack. “When you’re done, we’ll need to hustle out.” He gave Fletcher’s shoulder a squeeze then walked away from the rim, away from Fletcher.
Fletcher felt like an idiot. Who stood on the rim of an erupting volcano and expected to live? But he hadn’t come all this way to fail.
He chose a spot a metre or so from the rim and sat down. Fletcher crossed his legs, like he’d done with Eli and Ariana countless times before, and closed his eyes. He focused on slowing his breath and shutting out the wracking tremors, the clouds of choking ash, and the fear. Eventually his mind entered a space devoid of sound, the chaos left behind. His stomach lurched and his arms prickled with energy. Opening his eyes, Fletcher saw green light encasing his arms and grinned. His aura thrummed, enclosing him in a sphere as he lifted off the ground and hovered over the gaping mouth of the volcano. Fletcher’s heart leapt. Maybe I can really do this.
Ana appeared through the billowing curtain of ash, shimmering in the heat haze, like a mirage. She grinned and took his hand in hers. “Ready?”
A jet of steam whooshed upwards. Sweat beaded on Fletcher’s forehead. “For what, exactly?”
“For this,” she said and dived into the fiery abyss.
They plunged into the heart of the volcano, Fletcher too terrified to even scream. Bubbling, roiling magma surrounded them, but his green aura deflected the intense heat. When he closed his eyes, the heat disappeared and when he opened them again, they were standing in a dense forest.
Ana smiled. “You made it.”
Fletcher stared at the greenery around them; the cool stream, the moss-covered rocks. “What happened to the molten cavern of lava?”
“The volcano simply provides the raw energy you need to cross over.” She indicated the lush greenery. “This is the in-between. The walker state.”
Hope filled Fletcher’s chest. Eli and Ariana moved in and out of the walker state at will, but he’d never been able to enter it. Until now. “How long do I have here?”
“Long enough.”
The trees parted and revealed a pair of dark-green eyes. Entranced, Fletcher watched an enormous stag step into the clearing. Its long antlers were covered in moss, trailing vines and brightly coloured brackets of fungi. It was as if the creature was part of the forest itself.
Fletcher bowed to the magnificent beast. Waves of energy emanated from the stag, pulsating against Fletcher’s ribcage. Its jade eyes examined him from head to toe. It is dangerous for you to be here. You are of the chosen three.
“I had to try,” he said, his voice catching.
Fletcher felt the ancient voice probe his mind. It crept through the recesses of his grief and despair. An image of Eva rose in his mind and tears sprang to his eyes.
You have lost much.
“I couldn’t save her.” His voice broke across the words, but he was beyond caring. There were no barriers, nothing separating him from the earth spirit. He felt the burden lift from his shoulders and the sweetness of relief.
The stag knelt before Fletcher and touched its antlers to his temples. Fletcher jolted as a kaleidoscope of images flashed before his eyes.
Three to save the world, to restore the long-forgotten balance.
Fletcher saw forests filled with humans and animals walking together. “I’ve seen this before,” he whispered. “When I first paired with Eva, I saw glimpses of the past, of how things used to be.”
When war began and the land was ravaged, I saw what would come, the stag told him.
More images flooded Fletcher’s mind. Converger against converger, bodies everywhere. The stag brought him back to the battle that had taken Eva. Mikey’s snarl as his lion pounced at Eva’s exposed throat. The blood, so much blood. Why?
I had not anticipated how humankind would separate from their partner animals. Nor what would happen when they did. Our two realms diverged and the other spirits and I closed the portal. We hoped that one day humankind would be able to bridge the two worlds and restore the natural balance. I still cling to that hope.
“Except things are worse than ever,” Fletcher said, the familiar hopelessness settling on his shoulders.
Yet the walkers persisted.
Fletcher met Ana’s teary eyes. She nodded, a thin smile on her lips.
Alone, they could only effect limited change. But I knew a time would come when the walkers would rise together and repair the rift between the worlds.
“How? How did you know?”
The stag tilted its head, its green eyes appraising him. Its antlers still rested against Fletcher’s temples, its breath a warm mist on his cheek. All of a sudden, it pulled away and stumbled backwards over the grass. The green light flickering along its flanks turned black. The stag pawed the ground, grunting and shaking its antlers, sending moss drifting to the ground like snow.
It is not safe. I cannot fight her for long. You must –
The stag stilled, its bare antlers glinting with menace. The spirit’s voice sliced through Fletcher’s mind. It was foolish of you to journey here, young one. I have slumbered beneath the earth for many millennia, waiting for the ones who would come to restore peace, with naught but a temporary jaunt above the surface in all that wretched time.
The temperature around Fletcher skyrocketed and with it his fear of the searing embrace of molten lava. The green light on his skin wavered as energy pooled behind his ribcage, immobilising him. Fletcher took a shuddery breath trying to fight Nyx’s grasp, his unease turning to sheer terror.
I have waited too long. Now you will help me open the portal between the worlds. The stag turned around, eyes dark as obsidian. With a resounding boom, the forest faded.
Fletcher stared down from the edge of the volcano. Magma ricocheted off its walls, sending blistering heat spiralling upwards. The deafening roar made his ears ring. He spun around, looking for Ana, for Bry, for anyone to save him. Fletcher screamed as a surge of energy burst through his skull. It rippled through his limbs, coaxing momentary flashes of darkness across his skin. A string of images skittered through his mind: a dark void slowly filling with green, blue and red light; an ocean of bright stars; thousands of faces. He pressed his nails into his palms to stop crying out in pain.
You are mine now. When you open the portal between this world and the spirit world, I will be with you.
“Nyx,” Fletcher grunted, straining against the force that kept him frozen, helpless.
I’ve festered on this planet for too long. No more.
Pain tore through his synapses, every nerve cell vibrating in rebellion against his own will. “I. Won’t. Let. You. Do. This.”
Yes, you will. When you enter the walker state, you will bring me to the air and sea spirits. Once I destroy them, I will be free of this meagre world.
Fletcher’s body jerked sideways and he hit the snow hard. Energy crawled through his system, sinking into every cell and clutching tight.
Blood spilled from his mouth. “Eva is gone and I can’t enter the spirit world, or the walker state.” For the first time ever, this fact made him glad. Maybe this was how he could fight Nyx, stop the spirit destroying Earth.
Energy, life, is all the same. Through me, you will enter the spirit world once more. I will be your Eva.
A dark mist rose from the volcano and sent ash billowing into the sky. Grit swirled around him. Fletcher watched in horror as the ash cloud coalesced into a sphere of rippling dark energy. The sphere blazed, illuminating a bulky figure within. Stabbing pains seared his brain as Nyx greedily ravaged memories of Eva. Her soft brown fur, her galaxy-green eyes, the way she nuzzled his side in greeting. “No,” he pleaded. “Those memories are mine.”
No. You are mine.
“I’ll never help you. Never!” Fletcher screamed.
Out of the vortex of ash, stepped Ana. Darkness rippled around her like a cloak, a cruel smile on her face. Nyx’s voice overlaid her own. “It’s too late. Luring you here was simple.”
The green light on Fletcher’s skin receded. Nyx’s crushing grip blurred his vision. The spirit squeezed out every memory, every thought. Ariana running through a field of wildflowers, smiling at him. Eli grinning at him during a training run. Tears streaked through the ash on Fletcher’s face. His world constricted, darkness rushing in from all sides.
Walkers, Nyx spat.
Fletcher wished for death, for oblivion, for an end to the torment.
No, walker. I need you a while longer.
Darkness surrounded him. No sight, no sound, nothing but pain.
Through the ash cloud, Bry saw the figure of a boy sprawled by the rim of the volcano. He ran to Fletcher and dropped to his knees. The boy’s cheek felt warm beneath Bry’s fingers. “Fletcher, wake up!” Bry said, pulling him upright.
With a gasp, Fletcher opened his eyes. He looked around. A fresh plume of smoke billowed around them. Ash-stained snow drifted from his jacket. He shook off Bry.
“The volcano is about to blow,” Bry said, grabbing Fletcher’s pack. Then he froze. Eyes wide, he stared past Fletcher. Out of the smoke and ash materialised a dark shape. “By all that’s holy, what is that?”
An enormous brown bear lumbered toward them. Eva sniffed Bry’s jacket and huffed in greeting before taking her place beside Fletcher. The boy placed a hand on her neck.
Bry stared at the bear in shock. “I guess you found what you were looking for.”
Bry thought he saw a shadow as dark as midnight pass over Fletcher. He blinked and the light was gone but he felt sluggish, as if he’d woken from a long slumber. Bry shook his head. The important thing was that Fletcher was all right. Their journey had been a success.
Taking his pack from Bry, Fletcher started down the mountain with a confident step. “Come on. We need to get back to the others. There’s no time to waste.”