“Some lies are more necessary than oxygen.”
—Myriad
Ten
Time is running out. Energy, too. We’ve been following Killian’s trail, without a single break, only pausing to fight when challenged by a monster, plant or insect. We win. Every time, we win, but every battle takes something from us. A little hope. A little strength.
I’ve been counting the minutes inside my head, and we are a mere two hours away from the reset of the realm. Aka 120 minutes. Aka 7,200 seconds. That means he’s been with the birds for twenty-two hours. Aka 1,320 minutes. Aka 79,200 seconds. He could have been tortured and killed multiple times already.
If we fail to find him in time…
We can’t fail.
I’m tense as we stumble this way and that. Trees hiss, and leaves snap their razor sharp teeth, but nothing else challenges us. Maybe word has spread. Try to stop us, die.
Up ahead, a lavender leaf glows. The next beacon. One more step closer to Killian.
I’ve pocketed every leaf he’s dropped. When we find him, he’s going to need an infusion of strength.
Urgency burns inside me, and I quicken my pace. The others follow without objection. Finally we make it out of the forest, and enter a clearing without trees. Ahead looms a dry and barren landscape, mist, and—I gasp. Mist clears, revealing hills. So many hills.
We did it!
With a whoop, we rush forward…only to stop when we’re roughly five hundred yards from the first hill. What looks to be black tar is smeared over the ground. Thousands of… alligators? Kind of. There are differences. These creatures, whatever they are, form a circle around each of the leaves that lead to one particular hill.
“What are those things?” I ask, pointing to the creatures.
“Kayla and I used to call them land sharks,” Reed says. “At the first scent or sight of Lifeblood, they erupt into a frenzy.”
“Don’t worry.” Archer eyes the creatures as if he’s hungry and could use a snack. “I’ll distract them.”
He wants to avenge Dior’s death, and I understand. A good portion of his Light died with her. Now he hopes to join her, wherever she is. And she is somewhere. I will believe nothing less.
I reach out, take his hand, and squeeze. “You’ll get her back, Bow. We’ll find Killian, then we’ll find a way to free the spirits.”
“We can free the spirits if we figure out a way to do something no other ordinary citizen has done since the dawn of time,” he grates.
“We’ve already done something no other ordinary citizen has done,” I remind him. “We are Troikans, and we entered Many Ends. And did you ever think you’d see Killian Flynn happily married? Face it. I’m a miracle worker.”
One corner of his mouth twitches, some of his tension easing. “I never thought I’d see Killian Flynn married, period.”
“And don’t forget, Clay is in one of these hills, too. So is my mother. So is Killian’s mother. I’m not going to rest until everyone is free of Many Ends.”
“Don’t forget we’ve got to pass through the creatures first.” Raanan unstraps the two branches that are hanging against his back, places one end in the ground, then lets the other end fall toward our foes. “I think I have an idea about how we can do it—and survive.”
The creatures squeal as they scramble out of the way to avoid any kind of contact with the wood.
Smiling now, Reed nods. “I get it. We walk across the branches. As we move forward, we drop another branch, then pick up the one behind us.”
Giving him a pat on the shoulder, Raanan says, “Exactly, my friend. Exactly.”
It could get us killed, but it could also maybe hopefully probably work. Really, what other choice do we have?
Find the doorway, save the day. If the hills have eyes, everyone dies. To win the fight, you’ll need Light.
“So how do we blind these fiends?” I ask.
Raanan pops the bones in his neck. “Whatever the answer, I call first kill.”
“We’re running low on Light,” Reed says. “We’ve got to have more.”
Understatement of the year. The weaker you are, the harder it is to draw on love. We’ve been eating leaves from the Tree of Life, but we want to save as many as possible for any spirits we find.
“We’re going to have to risk it,” Archer says, his tone firm. “I’ll go first. Ten and Reed will take the middle. Raanan will take the rear.”
“Nope. No way.” I shake my head, tendrils of hair slapping my cheeks. “Think about it. Weight has to be evenly dispersed across the branch. The two lightest take the ends, and the two heaviest take the middle, becoming our center of gravity and preventing us from tilting one way or the other. That puts me in the front, you and Rannan in the middle and Reed in the rear.”
There’s no reason to waste time debating my plan, and every reason to hurry. As my heart thumps against my ribs and sweat runs down my spine, I clutch my spear to use it for balance, draw in a breath and onto the “plank.”
Every single creature eyes me like I’m some kind of tasty treat. Several even step closer while sharpening mental forks and knives.
My friends go still, and I know they’re debating the wisest course of action.
“Wait,” I say. If the hills have eyes, everyone dies.
Eyes…eyes…
Perhaps Aunt Lina meant…
Well, why not? Pushing my weight into my heels, I stab one of the creatures directly in the eyes. Jab, jab, destroying one peeper after the other.
The land shark squeals a high-pitched sound of pain as black goo sprays from the injured sockets. Other creatures leap onto its back, devouring every inch of it, even its bones.
Steady, steady. During the frenzied feeding, I stab three more land sharks in the eyes, causing another frenzy.
“Be ready. I’m stepping forward now,” I say, fighting tremors.
As Archer steps up behind me and stabs two more creatures, I take my next step. The feeding continues. More goo sprays in every direction. The fetid scent of rot saturates the air. And the sucking, slurping, chomping sounds… I shudder.
“On three,” I say. “One, two, three.” Archer and I step forward, allowing Raanan to move on to the branch without tipping us over.
He stabs four of the creatures, and we motor forward a third time, allowing Reed to claim the rear of the branch.
Jab, jab. I blind another creature—and wobble. My thudding heart almost stops as Reed wobbles, too. Archer plants a hand on my shoulder, steadying me. He also plants a hand on Raanan’s shoulder, and Raanan plants a hand on Reed’s shoulder. We’re a unit. A team. Balanced by each other. And surrounded by monsters.
Must stay calm.
“All right,” I say. “We step forward, stab a land shark, then step again. I hope everyone’s ready, because we’re doing this on my count.” No time to waste. “Three, two, one.”
We step forward, stab the land sharks, then step again, as planned. For over an hour we repeat the action again and again. The only problem? We’re at a point of total exhaustion, and we’re only halfway to Killian’s hill.
Reed wobbles, and though Raanan tries, he is unable to steady him. Features contorted with panic, Reed places one foot on the ground beside the branch. Just for a second, only a second. The land sharks rip into his ankle, removing his foot.
Falling, he screams. Raanan reaches for him while Archer reaches for Raanan, and I reach for Archer, but we’re too late. Reed topples, and the land sharks instantly pounce.
His screams end as quickly as they began, his voice box gone—just like the rest of him.
I suck in a breath, and fight a wave of tears. My chin trembles. My heart aches, and bile burns my throat. I don’t… I can’t even process what… Such brutal, savage violence, rendered so quickly.
“We’ll save him,” I say, my mouth dry. This can’t be the end for him. “We’ll add him to our to-do list, and we’ll save him.” We must.
Archer scrubs a hand down his face. “How is he going to revive from that, Ten? Tell me. Please.”
“He’s a spirit. Spirits never die, and his Lifeblood wets the ground, even now. Blood is life. He’ll regenerate.” He must. This can’t be the end of Reed. It just can’t. “We’ll save him,” I repeat.
“If a spirit never dies, where is Reed now?” Archer spreads his arms to indicate the entire sub-realm.
“I don’t know, okay? I don’t know. But I don’t have to know how manna works, either, and yet it still heals me. Every time. So zip your mouth and get your butt in gear.” I wobble, and my stomach seems to drop into my ankles. When I steady, I clear the lump from my throat, and, with a gentler tone, I say, “I don’t have all the answers. I never have. I only know I have to do this. I can’t stop. I have to believe good will come from this or…or…” Or I will have no reason to motor on.
I’ve lost too much already.
“We gonna stand here debating something we can prove with action, or what?” Raanan demands in typical Raanan fashion.
He’s right. I will prove the spirits in Many Ends can be saved, even spirits like Reed.
“Let’s move.” Only fifty-five minutes to go. Our destination is ahead, still so close, still so far.
Time continues to tick, and tick fast. We move forward together and stab the eyes of the land sharks in unison. Again. Then again and again.
Forty-one minutes. Symphony No. 41 is the last symphony created by Mozart.
Twenty-nine. The atomic number of copper, like Archer’s eyes.
Thirteen. Apollo 13. Known by some as a successful failure. The rocket failed to land on the moon but much was learned in the rescuing of the crew.
Our mission will be a successful success.
Eight. Seven. Six. Five.
“How much time before everything resets?” Archer asks. Sweat pours from him.
“Four minutes, thirteen seconds.” Will the hills switch places? Zero! What will we do then? We must be on Killian’s hill.
“I don’t care how tired you are, pick up the pace,” Raanan commands.
I obey. Drawing from my love for Killian and all my friends, I find a reservoir of strength. At last we reach the desired hill, bypassing the land sharks completely. I’m trembling as I pick up the final lavender leaf.
What if everything we’re doing is for nothing? What if we’re stuck here?
Ugh! Doubts suck. I can’t let them lead me—they’ll take me down a dark path. Without hope, there is no Light. That means hope is a necessary weapon right now.
“What’s next?” Raanan asks. “Are we supposed to go through or over the hill?”
“There are no caves that I can see.” Archer wipes sweat from his brow. “So, we go up.”
Great. “Makes sense, since we’re dealing with birds.” My muscles burn and strain, my entire body trembling as we trudge up, up. My lungs feel as if they’re melting.
Four words keep me motivated. Save Killian. Save everyone.
“If we have to fight anything, we’re going to lose,” I rasp. “I’m almost tapped out.”
Two minutes.
“Leaf,” Archer says.
Left with no other choice—if we want to win—we each consume a leaf. The last we’ll allow ourselves. Our supplies are running low, and what remains will be passed to Killian and the others.
“Wait. You know what I don’t hear? Squawking,” Raanan says. “Maybe the birds are gone. But why leave?”
With the new boost of strength, we increase our pace. But we aren’t yet all the way up when the entire world goes black. I gasp and stumble, rendered blind as another reset takes place. What will we find when—
The darkness flees, revealing an island littered with hills, surrounded by water rather than tar and alligators. Water as far as the eye can see, surrounding the hills.
If we’d been any lower, we would have drowned.
Dread. Dismay. This is the lake. The one with the portal into the Kennels.
Carnivorous mermaids swim beneath the surface. But okay. This isn’t a bad thing. Our portal home is a dive away.
Did Lina time my death, so that I’d be on the hills when the lake appeared around them?
I’m still on my knees, gripping hunks of grass and dirt. Realization. We’re still positioned on Killian’s hill!
“Come on.” Heart hammering, I right my position. “We need to reach the top before the birds come back.”