When Kai stepped out of the other end of the earthen tunnel, she noticed the ground went down a hillside and ended at the bank of a waterway.
Lily was standing off by herself. There were two donkeys lying next to each other on the ground by her feet.
Kai had no idea what to say to Lily. This had to be the next plague where all the land’s livestock were affected. First the horses back by the palace had been struck down, and now the donkeys.
“I’m sorry. I’m sure they didn’t feel a thing.”
Kai tried guiding the young girl away from the fallen animals. “We need to hurry, Lily.”
They all started running toward the valley where Lily and the other Israelite children lived. That’s when Kai saw a group of Egyptian soldiers guarding the path that led to the tent city. Two of the soldiers began running up the hill toward the girls.
“Come on,” Kai said. “Let’s head down toward the river.”
All along the hillside, cows and sheep were lying, on their sides, dead.
God, help us!
Kai and the other children navigated a course through the animals and made it to the water.
The river was wide but not deep. Kai went first to make sure the others could cross. The soldiers were halfway down the hill.
Kai waded back through the rushing water to help get all the children to the other side.
The soldiers were closing in fast.
A wind came out of nowhere, making it hard to see as water blew around in swirls of whitecaps and sprays of mist.
Tiny black flakes floated over the hillside, pouring down from the direction of the palace. It looked like a rain of dark dust falling on the kids, the animals, and the soldiers. As soon as the soldiers reached the water, they stopped.
Kai looked back and cringed. As the black flakes touched the soldiers’ skin, their skin turned to splotchy red bumps. The grown men cried out in pain. Catching the kids was now the least of their worries.
Even though the same dark dust flakes rained over Kai and the children, they weren’t bothered by it.
“Come on!”
Kai led the children toward the valley, hoping the soldiers wouldn’t follow.
Thunder rocked the world and everything in it.
Kai and the children kept running.
Lightning flashed.
Toward the valley…
Cold air ripped across the plain pushing trees back and forth.
The single soldier still behind them, making his way closer…
Wind gusts began to rage, a sure sign that something much fiercer was on its way.
The falcon…
Water fell in heavy drops splattering across the earth.
The drops turned to ice.
The land was beaten under the icy force.
Every tree was stripped bare.
The seventh plague.
Kai and the children ran on.
Winged insects followed the chilly tempest, devouring everything left in the fields. Nothing green remained.
Toward the valley…
Strong winds came from the east, blowing locusts in all day and all night until the earth was black. The insects devoured all the fruit that hung from battered tree branches.
It was hard to run against the force of the wind, but Kai and the children didn’t quit. The locusts didn’t bother them.
Please, God, help us!
A west wind came and blew the locusts into the Red Sea—a watery grave for the eighth plague.
Kai and the children ran on…
…toward the valley.
The Egyptian sky looked like it was being controlled by a dimmer switch, as if some invisible hand was sliding it down to make the heavens go dim.
Kai and the children moved quickly through the empty trees that had been torn apart by the hail. Experiencing these plagues made the Vivian Gold event a big joke. It was nothing compared to what Kai was going through here in this ancient place.
The darkness grew stronger, falling like blankets from the sky to smother those bound by gravity.
Would Kai ever see her family again? Was she ever going to leave this place? The barren landscape reflected her weary spirit. This other place—other time—had finally depleted her hope.
In a great moment of despair, Kai saw a pinprick of light in the distance—out over the valley. A beautiful light in the darkness.
Kai and Lily held hands as they continued on with the others.
It became harder and harder to see.
No moon or stars guided their way.
A sound of footsteps came from behind. The loose outline of a person stood out from the shadows.
The uniform. The soldier had finally caught up to them.
Kai told Lily to keep running with the other children.
“Don’t stop until you make it to the camp.”
Lily gave Kai a thumbs-up sign.
“Go!”
On her left, the children took off into the darkness. On her right, a nameless soldier came closer, ready to take care of Kai once and for all. Kai couldn’t tell if there was just one soldier or many. It didn’t matter.
As long as the children made it back to the valley.