Chapter 13. A Sixth Trap
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.
Jacob shrugged, even though he knew Gallus wouldn’t see. “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, but it’s going to take a while for me to adjust. 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. Suddenly 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. 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 barely-visible emotion floating in the air. It was so small! “Thanks, Early.” He resumed walking. “Twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three—”
He paused when the emotions of the Shiengols suddenly 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 all of a sudden, 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.
Aloren sniffed. “At least we won’t feel pain when we die.”
“Hey!” Jacob said. “No one’s going to die!”
“And 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 rolled his eyes. “One, two, three . . .”
The others chanted with him. Then, when he reached fourteen, they stopped counting. The sudden 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. A sudden 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 hundr
ed five.”
Jacob paused when he sensed something he hadn’t felt in a long time—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.
Suddenly, 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.
Jacob felt himself slide backward and couldn’t tell what had caused it. The Cerpire? Akeno?
There was a flicker of movement in front of him, and he blinked. It was almost as if something had pierced his blindness, returning his sight for just a moment. But only in fragments. He squinted, trying to see.
Another flicker.
A third flicker and the entire Cerpire shifted into view, though very hazy. Jacob could see it! He froze, completely unable to believe his luck. Was this like in the cave, when he’d fought the Molg? Akeno and Aloren hadn’t been able to see it until Jacob touched it. The Molg’s features had been easier to see, but at least Jacob wouldn’t lose track of the Cerpire.
Faint—very faint—details appeared. It had scales, as Jacob had expected, but fur as well. That was weird. The image flickered, and Jacob caught the color of the scales—bright blue-green.
Jacob stared up at the beast, at its emotion, its indistinct shape, wishing he could see the dinosaur’s face.
It didn’t move. Had it lost sight of Jacob and the others? He itched to turn to see the emotions of the rest of his group, but he knew that doing so would be disastrous.
He waited longer. The Cerpire still didn’t do anything. It could probably smell its visitors, though, right? If it was hungry, why didn’t it attack? Or . . . maybe its only job was to keep people from going to the fortress. Did that mean if they turned around now, they would be safe?
Jacob pushed that idea away and frowned, concentrating. He needed to come up with a plan, and fast. His first priority was to live—for all of them to make it. And he wasn’t completely helpless like he’d thought he’d be. He was able to sense the magic of the dinosaur. He could see its outline. He could see its emotions. And Early would help wherever possible—he knew it.
Turning back was pointless. They’d just have to make the entire trip again. No, he had to get them all to the fortress. In addition to being safe, they’d also have their senses returned and would be able to fight with him against the Cerpire. They only had twenty-five feet to go, and the traps ended before the fortress started.
But how to do it safely?
Jacob watched the dinosaur, sifting through his memory of every movie and book he’d read, trying to think of something that would help. He wished Aldo and Early could communicate with him.
Then he remembered another ability he’d recently discovered—the ability to mold air, like he’d done in the tunnel with the Ember Gods. Would that work now? Could he do that and create a shield to protect himself and his friends long enough to get to the fortress?
Moving slowly, keeping his eyes on the beast and hoping the others wouldn’t do something stupid, he faced his hands forward, raised them a few inches, and concentrated on molding the air in front of him. He nearly jumped in surprise when he felt his palms heat up. Of course he’d feel it! It was magical warmth, after all.
But nothing else happened. At least, he didn’t think so.
Suddenly, a spot on his back heated up. Early and Aldo must have figured out what he was doing! He sensed Early’s energy rush through his hands and felt the heat bursting from his fingertips.
A sheen appeared in front of him—sparkly and milky white. He could see it! He couldn’t help but smile in excitement. This would work!
Jacob concentrated all his energy into the thing, watching it start to grow, turning into a shield that stretched farther and farther.
When it was tall enough to protect him if the Cerpire attacked, he glanced back to judge how far it would need to go to cover the rest of the group. Only a few feet longer. He exerted as much energetic pressure as he could until the sheen had grown to completely cover everyone’s emotions.
Okay. Ready.
Trusting Early, his instincts, and his abilities, he raised the shield higher, careful to keep the others and the Cerpire in sight. He stepped to the right.
Nothing happened.
Then the dinosaur attacked fast and hard, knocking Jacob to the ground, momentarily exposing the rest of the group. Jacob jumped up, putting the sheen over his friends again. Had they been injured? No way to know. He continued walking, bracing himself for the next attack.
It came swiftly, followed by several shorter, smaller attacks. Jacob fell to the ground again, doing his best to keep the sheen in place as the dinosaur repeatedly hit the shield, biting, then swiping it with what appeared to be its forearms.
Jacob shook his head. The slow-and-sure method wasn’t working. He needed to get himself and the others to the fortress as quickly as possible.
He sprang to his feet, then lurched hard toward the fortress, straining against what he assumed was the rope, holding the shield between his group and the dinosaur. He kept his legs bent and crouched over so that when the next burst of attacks came, he would be ready.
The attack didn’t come, though, and like a pop of electricity, Jacob burst through the end of the trap, his body flooded with sensation—light, sound, touch. The sun burned his eyes, and he instinctively raised his hand to block the brightness. His shield disappeared with his concentration.
Remembering the group, he whirled in time to see Gallus fall. The Cerpire was no longer in view. Had it left? Putting aside his surprise that he could see into the traps, Jacob pulled hard on the rope, yanking Akeno forward.
The Makalo gasped as he came through the end of the traps, then turned to help Jacob pull the rest of the group through. The others stumbled out, crying with surprise when the sunlight hit them. Gallus was the hardest to pull, and Jacob felt bad about dragging the man on his knees—his poor knees.
The group took stock of themselves. Miraculously, only Gallus had been injured. Akeno and Aloren jumped to help him.
Jacob hesitated, though. Where had the dinosaur gone? He couldn’t even see its emotions anymore. Then a slight movement to the right alerted him to a creature there, stepping out of the trap. Jacob shook his head. How could this be the Cerpire? It was much, much smaller than he’d seen in the traps—barely five feet tall. It looked like a miniature Allosaurus—one of Jacob’s favorite dinosaurs—only, its forearms were much longer and were lined with spikes. Like the Allosaurus, it stood on its hind legs. Fur and scales covered its body in randomly placed patches.
The creature didn’t let its size deter it. It burst forward, incredibly fast, roaring the roar of a huge monster, knocking Jacob back. He stared at it in shock. It sounded like something forty feet tall. But it wasn’t.
“That’s the Cerpire?” Sweet Pea said. “I could crush that tiny thing with just my beard!”
The creature jumped forward to attack Gallus, Aloren, and Akeno. Sweet Pea lunged at it, sword in hand, shrieking.
Momentarily distracted, the dinosaur turned to Sweet Pea, who danced away, dodging attacks, leading the creature to the side of the fortress.
Jacob dropped his bag near Gallus. “How’s he doing?” he asked Aloren. He jumped in surprise when Sweet Pea screamed.
?
??Something’s wrong! I stab it and it keeps going!”
“We’re coming!” Matt yelled. He, Jacob, and Akeno pulled their swords out and dashed to join the fight.
The Sweet Pea fell silently to the ground, even though the dinosaur hadn’t made a visible movement.
Lure it back into the traps.
Jacob stopped, almost dropping his sword, confused by the sensation of foreign thoughts invading his mind. The last time this had happened was in the Lorkon castle, when he hadn’t known where to go to find the Key.
Shaking his head to clear his thinking, he jumped forward, swinging his sword at the dinosaur. Just like Sweet Pea said, though, it didn’t feel right when his weapon connected with the dinosaur’s side. It felt off, but he couldn’t figure out why.
Lure it back into the traps!
The idea hit him so strongly, he was absolutely positive it hadn’t come from himself. But no way was he going to obey the thought! He’d stay out here where he could see, thank you very much. He kept fighting and cried out when Akeno fell to the ground. He and Matt jumped together, ready to defend each other to the death, if need be.
Trust your abilities.
Who was talking to him? He looked up at the fortress. The emotions were so close, he felt he could reach up and touch them. The Shiengols had to be just on the other side of the wall.
Go.
Were the thoughts coming from the Shiengols? Were they somehow able to communicate with him? Should he obey?
Jacob parried with the beast, frustrated when it didn’t seem to get hurt. The creature roared again, and he had to resist the urge to cover his ears. He should obey the thoughts—he hadn’t been led astray before.
Trust.
So he did. “Matt, help Gallus—I have to fight this thing by myself!”
“No! I’m with you!”
Scanning the air, Jacob searched for Early as he dodged the Cerpire, running around it in circles, trying to avoid being struck himself. “Early! Come to me now!”
She flitted to his side, her colors showing she was both hysterical and excited.
“Help me like last time—give me power!”
She disappeared, and he felt the familiar sense of warmth spread through him from behind.
“No, Jacob! You can’t!”
Jacob ignored his older brother and jumped away from the dinosaur, entering the traps.
His world fell down around him. The feeling of numbness was just as powerful as the return of sensation, if not more so. His body now sluggish, he almost froze in a stupor of thought. Another burst of warmth flooded over him—Early must have given him extra juice—and his thoughts became crisp again.
The outline of the dinosaur reappeared—much, much larger than what he and his friends had been fighting. Jacob looked up. The bright red emotion was twenty feet, at least, in the air. Why had it looked so short and weak before?
Then it dawned on him—there were six traps, not five, and the very last trap wasn’t the loss of hearing. It was an optical illusion of sorts. Yes, their senses were returned, but the Cerpire’s true form had been distorted, giving Jacob and his friends a false sense of superiority and in turn, making them much more vulnerable.
The dinosaur advanced on him and he backed up quickly. The sensation of falling hit him—he must have walked into a pit of some sort. He felt it when he landed—he was no longer standing. Jumping to his feet again, he hefted his arms—his right was heavier than the left. Good. He still had his sword. He drew a little power from Early—not too much—and molded the air around him with his left hand, creating another shield.
The dinosaur pounced at him, pushing him to the ground with the force of the strike.
“How do I defeat it?” he yelled, getting to his feet and dodging the next attack.
The emotions of the Shiengols in the fortress didn’t change, and there was no response.
Jacob swung his sword at the Cerpire’s leg. As expected, it didn’t do anything to the beast. “Come on, Shiengols! I know it was you!”
One of the colors burned redder.
“Oh, sure! You can get angry about this? How ridiculous is that!”
Several of the other emotions changed to a bright red.
He backed away from the Cerpire, holding the shield in place, repairing the damage the beast had done to it. He was careful with the amount of power he pulled from Early. He couldn’t have her go unconscious—that would be really bad.
The dinosaur lunged, and Jacob barely got out of the way. It was so tall, it hurt his neck to look up at it, and he had to keep an eye on the long forearms as well as the huge jaws.
The Cerpire bit at the shield again. Jacob repaired it. He couldn’t do this forever. He ran between the creature’s legs, banged into something hard—probably a wall—and fell to the ground, then rolled to avoid being hit by the long tail he could barely see.
Jacob jumped up, whirling to face the Cerpire.
He decided to try a different tactic with the Shiengols.
“You obviously want out of the fortress—otherwise, you wouldn’t have helped me earlier. I’m the only one who can get you out. So, I ask again. How do I defeat the Cerpire?”
No response, then finally, The side, below the arm, is the soft place.
Relief—along with some irritation at how petty the Shiengols were—flooded over Jacob. “Thank you!”
He realized this would probably be the only help he’d receive from the temperamental creatures, so he put them out of his mind and concentrated on the task at hand. The spot they’d mentioned was fifteen feet high. How would he get up there, especially without his vision and the sense of touch?
The Cerpire batted him with its long arms, and Jacob again dodged the attacks.
He raised his sword and charged the dinosaur, running between its legs at the last minute. Knowing it wouldn’t work again if he failed this time, he let the shield flick away and grabbed the creature’s tail, then pulled himself up. He hung on as the beast whipped around, trying to find him. He couldn’t feel his sword in his hand, but knew it was still there by the weight on his arm.
Jacob climbed, making sure he kept the fingers of his right hand tight, hopefully around the sword’s handle.
The Cerpire figured out where he’d gone and flipped its tail back and forth, but by then, Jacob had already reached the beast’s mid-section. He held on as tightly as possible, inching farther whenever he could.
Finally, he made it high enough. His first attempt to stab the Cerpire failed, and he nearly dropped the sword. The creature tried to knock him away, but he held on. The dinosaur’s emotions were so bright, Jacob would have shut his eyes if he’d had his normal vision. The red swirled around, confusing him.
A spot on his shoulder heated up—Early! Yes! He didn’t even realize she’d released her magic from earlier.
A violent tremor passed through the creature. Had it just roared? Jacob didn’t know, but he was glad he couldn’t hear.
He told his left fingers to hold on to whatever they could find. It was impossible to know if they’d grabbed anything, but he didn’t fall, so they probably had. He swung the sword as hard as he could with his other arm. It met some resistance at first, then a sucking sensation reverberated through the handle to Jacob’s arm, and the sword drove faster for a moment before abruptly stopping. Jacob knew he’d reached his mark, and he cringed at the idea.
Nothing happened.
Then suddenly, Jacob felt himself falling. The Cerpire flickered in and out of view below him. An immense jolt shocked him through—they’d hit the ground. He tried to move, but didn’t feel his limbs obey. Had he been trapped?
Panic flooded through his mind—he’d be stuck there forever! No one would be able to find him! He pushed the hysteria away when he noticed something about the Cerpire below. With fascination, he watched as its emotions faded slowly. The creature’s outline dissolved along with the bright red, then both disappeared completely. It was dead! It w
as dead! Yes!
He struggled even harder to move, but something about his position wouldn’t allow him to do so. Suddenly, all of his sensations were returned with a rush—sight, sound, smell, touch.
Jacob screamed when the pain hit him. It flooded over his whole body, enveloping him like scalding bath water.
He looked down—he’d been slashed across the stomach. And his leg. It was broken. No wonder he couldn’t move! There were gashes on his arms, too. He watched the blood seeping through the fabric of his clothes. He was losing too much blood. He needed help now!
“Hello!” he cried out. “Early? Someone! Help me! I can’t move—I’m hurt! Bad!”
He stopped when Early appeared with a flash next to him. “They’re coming!”
A dizzy spell hit him and everything turned black.
Jacob woke up, surrounded completely by darkness. Not again. He groaned in frustration, realizing the traps must have been sprung once more. But did that mean the dinosaur was alive? Looking for any visible emotion, he sat up in terror and cracked his head against something solid above him. He fell back. That hurt.
But wait. It shouldn’t have—not if the traps were in place.
Hesitantly, he reached out. His hands met a hard, smooth surface above him, and below was a soft, cushy fabric. He could feel!
Then it dawned on him—he was in a Minya box! He must have been saved!
Preparing for the rush of light, he reached up to push the top open, squinting against the brightness.
“Jacob!” Aloren said, her head—much larger than normal—appearing next to him. “You’re awake!”
Jacob laughed. “Yeah, and please stop yelling! It hurts.”
“Oh, oops. Sorry.” She jumped to her feet. “He’s up!”
Jacob heard a chorus of exclamations of joy, and was suddenly surrounded by giants. He could only see their knees.
“Akeno? Are you there? Can you enlarge me?”
“Sure!”
One of the giants—Akeno—reached over and picked up Jacob, held him out, and dropped him at least fifty feet away.
Relief rushed over him when he saw that his hands and arms were back to normal. He stretched, enjoying the pops in his joints, breathing deeply, the smell of the nearby forest rushing through his nostrils. The clouds above were fluffy, partially covering the sun. Rays of light streamed across the sky, and a slight breeze lifted the hair off his forehead. He’d never, ever take these things for granted again.
Before returning to the others, he took stock of the area around the group. August Fortress was to his left, with the emotions of the Shiengols showing impatience, happiness, and of course, annoyance. He smiled, shaking his head. Thank goodness they’d helped him.
Only a part of August Township was close to the fortress. Huge, towering walls and volcanic rock marked the boundaries between most of the city and the Shiengol stronghold.
Early flitted to his side, tumbling and doing somersaults in the air. “You’re alive, Jacob! You’re alive!”
He laughed with her. “Yes, I am!”
They headed back to the group, more relief washing over him when he saw that everyone looked healthy, safe, and happy.
Gallus stepped forward and shook Jacob’s hand. “Well done, Your Highness. Well done.” He grinned broadly. “Thanks to you, and of course, Aloren, we all made it out okay.”
“What happened?”
Gallus motioned to a bunch of logs set up around a campfire. The tent was situated a few feet away. “Let’s have a seat.” He nodded to Akeno and Sweet Pea. “Would you grab us something to eat? I’m sure Jacob is starving.” Then he pointed to Aloren. “She can tell you everything that happened—she’s the only one who didn’t get injured.”
Guilt crossed Aloren’s face. “I’m really sorry about that. I—”
Jacob shook his head. “Someone had to stay in charge of the situation.”
She thought about that for a moment, then nodded. “You’re right.” She sat down.
Jacob summoned the courage to take the seat nearest her. It felt good to be that close.
Aloren took a deep breath. “While you and the others attacked the Cerpire, I worked on Gallus. He was really badly injured, but Akeno helped me fix him up after you went back into the traps.” She frowned at Jacob. “Which was absolutely insane, by the way!”
“Yeah, I know. Sorry.” He grinned at her, glad they could joke around.
She continued. “Anyway. Akeno had a concussion and a cut on his head. He worked through it all, helping me keep Sweet Pea alive while you were fighting. Sweet Pea ended up getting shrunk too, and put in a box like you.”
Akeno gave everyone bottled water while Sweet Pea handed out apples, bananas, and beef jerky. He grinned at Jacob. “I spent at least a day or two in that thing. Don’t remember it, but I’m sure it was awesome.”
Jacob chuckled, taking a huge bite of his apple. Of course Sweet Pea would think that way.
Aloren rolled her eyes. “I left Sweet Pea in Akeno’s care so Matt and I could find you.”
Jacob held up his hand, swallowed, then asked, “How were you, Matt?” He couldn’t imagine what life would be like if Matt had been killed.
Matt shrugged. “All of my sores were superficial and easily treated. They could’ve been much worse.”
Aloren nodded. “Yeah. And Jacob, when we found you, we weren’t even sure you were still alive. It was insane! You’d fallen down into a big tunnel-type thing—Matt said it probably used to be a main line for sewage—and the Cerpire was dead underneath you. At first, it looked like you’d stabbed yourself with your sword.” She pointed at Matt. “He sprained his ankle jumping down to get you.”
“It’s still sprained, actually,” Matt said, holding up his wrapped ankle. “We ran out of Kaede Sap trying to keep you and Sweet Pea alive.”
Aloren gave Matt a glance of pity. “I do feel bad about that, you know.”
Matt snorted. “Whatever. You’re just glad Jacob didn’t die.”
Aloren flushed slightly, and Jacob didn’t need to see the colors around her to tell him she was embarrassed. She apparently chose to ignore Matt’s comment, but Jacob really had to concentrate hard on what she was saying—he wanted to hear more about what Aloren had felt.
“I hated leaving you there on top of that disgusting thing, but we worried it would kill you to be moved, even just to put you in a Minya container. So, I cleaned you up there, and Jacob, it was awful. Absolutely awful.”
Jacob finished his apple and peeled the banana. “I can imagine. I must’ve lost a ton of blood.”
“You did. Aldo helped a lot.”
Jacob perked up. “Aldo? He’s here?”
He looked around, then jumped to his feet when the old man stepped out from the tent, a big grin on his face.
“Surprise!”
Jacob quickly reached Aldo and they embraced.
Aldo grabbed Jacob’s cheeks with both hands. “You scared me, boy.”
Gallus chuckled. “Apparently, when you went back into the traps, Aldo figured you’d lost your mind. He deserted his post and charged down the hill, deciding he was willing to risk the tarri, blindness, and loss of sensation and hearing to help.”
Aldo turned to Gallus and pushed a bit of wild gray hair away. “Yes, but by the time I got off the hill and into the forest, you must’ve killed the Cerpire because the tarri were running around, trying to get away. Sick of being stuck there, I’m sure.”
Jacob raised his eyebrows, munching on his banana. “So it’s true—all the traps are undone?”
“We think so,” Gallus said. “You probably noticed that your senses returned when you killed the Cerpire.”
Jacob nodded.
“We’re thinking it was the magical source for everything. Once it died, everything else did too.”
“That makes sense, actually,” Jacob said. “‘Cause I could feel its magic, and it felt spent. Tired. Like it had been used too much.”
Aloren cleared her throat. “I’m not done telling what happened.”
Everyone turned back to her, amused, and Matt snorted, muttering something about her being a drama queen who wanted all the attention.
She playfully narrowed her eyes at him, then continued. “Luckily, Aldo had no problem crossing the board and getting down the wall. Early helped him. He arrived while we were cleaning you up. He had you drink an entire package of Kaede Sap. Said it would completely burn your mouth up, but it was the only way to keep you from dying. He was right. It worked on you from the inside while we focused on your external wounds.”
Jacob’s mouth had a slightly rubbery taste and was a little numb, but other than that, it was fine. He ate the last of his banana, and started on the beef jerky next.
“We decided it was safe to shrink you and put you in a Minya container. And then we hung out, waiting for you to get better.”
Jacob looked at Matt. “Did you let Mom and Dad know what happened?”
“Yeah. Early sent messages all over for us. She’s really been great.”
Early hovered down and stood on Jacob’s knee. “Your family was worried, but they’re fine now that you’re awake and okay.”
Jacob felt a sudden urge to pet her in appreciation, like he would Tito, his dog. He refrained, figuring she wouldn’t respond well to it. But she’d definitely earned his respect all over again with everything she’d done over the past few days. He looked back at Aldo. “I’m assuming it was your idea to have Early help me form the shield when we first got to the Cerpire?”
Aldo laughed. “Was that what you were doing? I couldn’t tell. I saw you hold your hands out and concentrate really hard. I figured it would only make things easier if Early pitched in.”
“Yeah, it did. The shield didn’t come until I drew on her magic.” He took a drink of water. “What did it look like from far away?”
“What?”
“The shield.”
Aldo shook his head. “Couldn’t see it.”
“Really? I could.”
“You weren’t using your normal vision—you were seeing it in a magical sense.”
Jacob nodded. “I guess so.” He turned to Aloren. “How did you know the traps had been sprung?”
Aloren’s face lit up. “It was really awesome! All of a sudden, everything went up in flames. Not real flames, I don’t think, but bright blue and green ones, with a whooshing sound. Matt figured something had happened and went to find you.”
Matt raised his chin and thrust his shoulders back. “What can I say? It pretty much made me the hero of the day.” He laughed, dodging Aloren’s hand as she tried to slap him. “After Aloren, of course.”
Aloren leaned back in her chair, and Jacob felt her eyes on him. He glanced her way and she smiled. “It’s great to have everyone healthy again,” she said. She bent forward, scrutinizing Jacob. “Hey. Has anyone told you that you have very pretty eyes? I’ve never seen eyes that light blue before.”
He blushed, looking away. Yes, many people had said so. He didn’t understand what the big deal was.
Gallus chuckled, shaking his head. “Aloren, how many pairs of eyes, other than brown, have you seen in your life?”
She knitted her eyebrows, tapping her cheek. “One or two.” Her face lit up. “But Jacob’s mom has blue eyes too—not as light as his, though.”
“Amberly’s got them too,” Jacob said.
Matt groaned in exasperation. “No offense, but things have been seriously boring over the last couple of days. And now that Jacob is better, can we do something exciting? Like get the Shiengols out of the fortress?”
Gallus stood. “Yes, it’s time to work, and quickly. You kids missed school today.”
Jacob did the math in his head. He’d fought the dinosaur on Friday, so it was now Monday afternoon. He’d been unconscious for three days. Not as long as last time, but Matt and Gallus were right. The group couldn’t afford to hang around anymore.
He looked up at the wall above him, sending another mental thanks and a sorry-for-the-wait to the Shiengols. He half expected a response, and a small twinge of disappointment hit him when he didn’t receive one. Oh, well.
“But before we leave,” Gallus said, “It wouldn’t be fair to our families if we didn’t allow them to talk to us in person. They’ve been begging to see for themselves that we’re all safe.” Gallus nodded at Jacob. “We’ll make it fast. You’ve got the Key still?”
Jacob nodded. “Where’s the door?” He spotted it, leaning up against the wall of the fortress. “Let’s set it up. I’ll go right now.”
Gallus and Matt propped the door between two large rocks and Jacob pulled the Key out, noticing with dismay that the chain had been broken sometime earlier, possibly while he’d fought the dinosaur. He’d have to get that fixed when they returned.
As soon as he created the link to Ebony’s door, Mom and Ebony rushed through.
Mom flung her arms around Jacob, holding him tight. “Oh, my son, my son.”
“I’m fine, Mom.”
She reached out for Matt, grabbed his shirt, and pulled him into the hug as well, then buried her face into Jacob’s neck. He patted her shoulder, feeling the blush cross his face when he realized Aloren watched him with a smile.
Finally, Mom released them. Ebony had just finished fawning over Akeno, and an older woman Jacob hadn’t noticed let go of Sweet Pea.
Ebony restocked their Kaede Sap supplies, then the mothers left, and Jacob shut the door behind them. He created a link to Gallus’s house, and after Gallus had hugged his wife and kids, Jacob looked at Aloren. “Want to see Kevin?”
She held her hands loosely behind her back. “It doesn’t matter. We’ve been talking through Hazel nearly non-stop for the past three days.”
Jacob nodded, pushing his feelings of disappointment away. What did he expect? That she’d ditch Kevin that quickly?
He squared his shoulders and looked up at the fortress. “All right, everyone.” He glanced at the group. “Are we ready?”
“Definitely,” Gallus said.