Suddenly, it was like the heavens had been cut by some gargantuan, supernatural blade. The sky began to bleed black. Dark bands spread out in all directions until all the world was dim.
In addition to the near darkness, the tower became enshrouded in an eerie, misty fog.
Bella sensed a change in the air. Colder.
“I feel like we’re in a horror movie.” She shivered from the quick drop in temperature.
Zion kept moving forward up the path. “A what?”
“You know, like a really freaky show that scares everybody.”
Zion didn’t respond.
Bella sighed. “Never mind. It’s just getting scary up here on the tower. The sky looks like it’s dying.”
The pair kept heading up the winding path.
Bella couldn’t help but wonder what Gol’s next move would be. She had so little faith in her ability to stop the evil man. She was just a kid, who hadn’t accomplished much in her short life.
“Bella, you are strong. Don’t stop now.”
Zion’s voice was smooth and reassuring. The spoken tones resonated in her ears, bringing a calmness over her whole body. She couldn’t imagine being here without him.
“Zion, it’s getting harder to focus up here.”
The words had just left her mouth when Bella was brought up short by a burning spear that whizzed by her face and impaled the path in front of her. She looked up and saw a gaunt shape hanging out of a window several stories above them. Mere seconds passed before a handful of flaming spears rained down around her.
She jumped back and forth, dodging the falling spears.
The burning weapons drove into the dirt path, sending up chunks of dirt in Bella’s face.
Zion jumped forward. “Come on, Bella! We’ve got to go!”
The fire kept coming from somewhere above them. So this was Gol’s next move. Commanding his men to throw flaming spears. Was everyone on the tower under Gol’s authority? Didn’t any of them see that this was a useless endeavor?
One of the spears scraped Bella’s arm as she flew down the path. The searing pain caused her to stumble.
“Zion, help!”
“What is it?” He looked over and saw that Bella was holding her arm. He moved close and took hold of her hand. “Come on. We’ve got this!”
More fiery spears poured down. By mere inches, Bella was spared a very painful experience. One of the spears just missed her head and chest.
The two ran faster up the spiral path, dodging the spears as they went. Zion led Bella to another ceramic vessel that rested against the tower wall. This one was bigger than the both of them. He reached in and pulled out an object that looked like a thin, translucent bath towel. It sparkled with yellow bursts of energy all over its surface.
Zion snapped the thing away from his body and Bella watched it stiffen into a shield.
“Use this and follow me!”
Bella grabbed it and held it over her head. As soon as she did, the spears crashed into the shield and fell, harmless, to the ground. She raced behind Zion, keeping the shield up the whole time.
Zion put on the brakes as they rounded the path. Their way was blocked by more hungry wolves.
Suddenly there were men dropping down onto the path in front and behind Bella and Zion. Every one of them held a flaming shaft of wood in each hand.
One of the men inched forward a few steps. His eyes were black like the sky over them. He held the burning spears up in front of her, and the spears stopped raining down from above.
“Gol, the powerful one, told us to offer you one last chance to join him. If you refuse, we’ve been commanded to show you no mercy.”
Bella’s heart skipped a beat. The man’s voice was deep and robotic. The fire on the tips of his spears gave off enough heat to sear her face.
Jesus, please help me! I can’t do this without You!
Instinctively, she put the shield in front of her. The energy from it coursed through her hands and up her arms. It gave her strength. Courage. Boldness to stand up for what was right.
“I am here to make the people understand that they are not obeying God.”
The man thrust one of his spears at Bella’s legs. She jumped back.
“Are you ready to join Gol? Yes or no.”
Zion pointed up. Bella looked and saw an open window in the tower wall. It was too high for her to reach. What was Zion thinking?
“Yes or no?”
Zion then pointed at his feet.
Feet and the window?
“YES OR NO?”
Her stalling tactic was finished.
Feet and the window. Feet and the window. The cleats!
It all came together in her mind.
“NO!” Bella screamed as she jumped up on the side of the tower wall. She slipped back down to the ground. It was impossible to climb with the shield. Just as she thought that, it went limp—back into the form of a towel. Bella tossed it over her shoulder and jumped back onto the wall. She was able to climb up several feet by grabbing onto bricks like she was at The Wall back home in San Diego, climbing up the man-made rock walls.
Wolves jumped up underneath her, snapping with razor-sharp teeth. Groaning howls let Bella know that they were waiting for her to lose her grip and fall.
Zion had already made it to the window opening.
Just a few more feet and Bella would be there too.
“Use the shield! Open it back up and push it to me.”
Bella pulled the towel from around her neck and snapped it out.
She held the shield above her head. She stood up on her toes and stretched…
Zion grabbed the shield and pulled Bella through the window just as the wild man’s spears slammed into the wall.