Jacob stopped. He couldn’t feel the ground beneath his feet. He couldn’t feel himself swallowing. He couldn’t feel the rope around him any longer, and it was almost as if he were naked because he couldn’t feel his clothes. It was like he’d spent the day at the dentist’s, and that numb sensation had enveloped him completely.
He could, however, sense his movement. He lifted his hand, and knew his arm was rising. He could tell which way was up, and that he was standing. His body still knew its directions.
“Just entered the next trap,” he said.
“How is it?” Gallus asked.
“I can’t feel anything. But I know I’m standing, and I know when I’m moving.”
“Excellent.” There was a pause. “Can you sense the rope?”
“No. Or my clothes.”
Matt snickered.
“Wait until you’re here,” Jacob said. “You won’t be laughing anymore.”
“Yeah, I’m sure. But it’s funny. What if you aren’t dressed anymore?”
Jacob snorted in response, but an insane desire to back up and check nearly overwhelmed him. He didn’t want to lose his place, though. “Going forward. Each of you say something when you enter the trap.”
Jacob continued, counting out loud. His legs knew how far to go—at least, he trusted they did. “Six. Seven. Eight.”
After Akeno had gone through the trap, Jacob asked him to check again if there was anything living around them.
Akeno didn’t respond for a moment, then he said, “Oh, weird. It’s hard to find the plant when I can’t feel it. I know I’m touching it by the visions that enter my mind. And no—there’s still nothing.”
Jacob breathed in relief. “Good.” He continued walking forward.
One at a time, the rest of the group announced when they’d entered the trap. By the sound of the others’ voices, they were keeping up with Jacob just fine.
“Coming to the first turn,” he said. “We’re going right. The rest of you count your steps so you know when to turn.”
Jacob didn’t pause, trusting the others to follow his instructions. He kept an eye on the Shiengols’ emotions, making sure they were in sight as much as possible. They helped him know where he was in relation to the fortress. He announced the next turn, then followed it.
So far, so good.
Forward fifteen feet. Jacob wasn’t able to move any longer. He turned, putting a mental bookmark in his place in the footstep sequence. “I’ve stopped.”
“Me too,” Matt responded.
“Is it because of me?” Gallus asked, his voice sounding muffled. “It feels like it might be me.”
“Aldo says Gallus is stuck behind a broken door,” Early said, her green emotions floating near Jacob’s head.
Jacob nodded. “Gallus? Did you hear that?”
“Yes. Early, can you guide me?”
“Yep!” Early said. “Step to the right. One more step. There.”
Jacob noticed that Gallus’s colors got brighter, probably because the door had partially blocked them from view.
“Everyone ready?” he asked. “Gallus, you should be able to continue.” Jacob faced forward again, glad when he felt himself moving. “Okay, we’re turning left now. Follow me, same as before. One, two . . .”
He kept track of the numbers as closely as he could, concentrating on their shapes in his mind—picturing them—and giving them colors just to help make them different from each other.
“Wait,” Early said. “Gallus—you’re off track again.”
“Oops. I apologize.”
Early guided the man back in line with the rest, and Jacob smiled at her emotion. “Thanks, Early.” He resumed walking. “Twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three—”
He paused when the emotions of the Shiengols appeared to his left, much brighter than before. His heartbeat doubled before he remembered it was them. He hadn’t noticed their colors disappear. It must have been very gradual, because their abrupt reappearance freaked him out.
He took a deep breath. “We’re coming up to our last turn. And the path leads directly to the fortress—the emotions of the Shiengols are especially strong right now.”
“That’s excellent,” Gallus said.
Jacob got to the corner, then paused. “Early, does Aldo have any last-minute advice? Pretty soon, we won’t be able to hear anything, so he should give it now.”
No response. Then, “He says you’re doing fine and that he’ll have me help you with a boost of magic if you need one. Your families all send their love.”
Jacob nodded. “Thanks. Akeno, would you check the area?”
“Yes.” The Makalo didn’t say anything for a moment. Then, “Jacob? I can sense the Cerpire. Not to scare you or anything, but it’s . . .” His voice cracked. “It’s really, really, really big.”
The others in the group moaned in dismay, and Jacob looked back. He wasn’t surprised at the fear and panic flowing in the air behind him. He nearly gave in to the panic himself, but he felt the weight of the responsibility he held. It was up to him to make sure they made it out safely. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself before addressing the others.
“Guys, we’ll be fine.”
“You don’t know that,” Sweet Pea said.
“At least we won’t feel pain when we die,” Matt said, his voice strong.
“Hey!” Jacob said. “No one’s going to die!”
“Again, you don’t know that,” Sweet Pea said, his negativity surprising Jacob. “And you can’t say anything to make us feel better. Either we’ll make it or we won’t.”
Gallus sighed loudly. “Sweet Pea is right. Honestly, we just have to keep going.”
Jacob nodded, taking a deep breath. “I’m going to need everyone’s help to remember what number I’m on—one hundred and thirty is too large to track, especially if anything distracts me. If you count with me, that would be great.”
“Do we know when the Cerpire will attack?” Akeno asked.
“No, we don’t,” Gallus said. “But the fortress is one hundred and thirty feet in front of us now, so we can assume it will come sometime before then.”
Jacob checked that everyone was still in line. “I can see your emotions—I’ll make sure you’re not going off to the side. And it’s a pretty straight shot—the Shiengols are directly in front of me. As long as I can see them, we should be okay.”
“Let’s go, then,” Matt said. “Take us to safety, fearless leader!”
Aloren giggled and Jacob shook his head, smiling. “One, two, three . . .”
The others chanted with him. Then, when he reached fourteen, they stopped counting. The silence was very unnerving. “Uh . . . guys, are—” He slammed his mouth shut. He couldn’t hear himself! He might not even have said anything, since he couldn’t tell what his mouth was doing. He still felt like he’d spent the day at the dentist’s, and not being able to hear himself made it worse.
He took a breath. “Okay,” he said, hoping his mouth was obeying his brain, “I’ve entered the last trap. Um . . . I’m just going to keep walking. I’ll keep track of the numbers in my head. Do the same, so you know where we are.”
The strong sensation that he was going mad filled his chest. He was talking to himself, but couldn’t hear it; walking forward, but couldn’t feel it, and leading people he couldn’t see. An appreciation for what Kelson and the others had gone through flooded over him, along with the need to say thanks to Aldo for the information he’d given Jacob and the others before they left.
There wasn’t a pause behind him, so he continued forward, counting out loud even though he couldn’t hear himself.
“One hundred one. One hundred two. One hundred three.” Almost there! Where was the Cerpire? “One hundred four. One hundred five.”
Jacob paused when he sensed something he hadn’t felt in weeks—the ability to discern others’ magical powers. He hadn’t even realized this gift disappeared after he fought the Ember Gods a few weeks ago.
But now he felt it. And something was nearby. Something with a very strong, very large, very old magical pulse. He hesitated. The magic felt . . . distracted. Like it was being used up. Worn out. Exhausted.
Jacob realized what this meant. The Cerpire was nearby. And it was tired. Could that help him win the fight? It felt like the hair on the back of his neck rose, but he couldn’t be sure.
The emotions of the Shiengols disappeared. Jacob stopped in surprise, unsure what to think. Had they turned their feelings off? If so, how? He blinked several times, trying to clear his eyes, then looked up and nearly fell backward in shock.
The brightest red he’d ever seen hovered about twenty feet in the air above him.
The Cerpire had made its presence known. And it was very angry.