“This is it,” Geth whispered.
The women began to push the wagons through the fields toward the large road that cut through Zendor. Their wagon rolled quickly, and Geth and Clover banged against the boards as it bounced. In less than half an hour they had reached the main road.
The wagons were shoved out of the fields and onto the dirt road. The women then continued to push the wagons, heading in the direction of the castle. Jill pretended to drive her wagon while she was pushed.
“This had better work,” Clover said nervously. “Don’t you think the boors will notice the wagons are being pushed and think something’s up?”
“I’m hoping they’re too dumb,” Geth said. “Their only orders are to bring back what they overtake. I don’t think they’ll even realize that these wagons have no horses.”
In less than ten minutes Geth and Clover heard screaming outside the wagon. Geth could see Jill dash away from the seat she had been sitting in.
“No more talking,” Geth urged.
“I’ll be perfectly quiet,” Clover promised. “Starting . . . now!”
The wagon they were in slowed and came to a stop as the women all ran from the scene and into fields to hide. The boors smothered the wagons, looking for any life. Geth could see them stepping on the board over them and searching the wagon for supplies. When they found nothing, they did the only thing their confused brains knew how to do. They followed the order they had been given and began to push the wagons to Pencilbottom Castle.
“I think it’s working,” Clover said.
Geth held his finger to his lips.
The three wagons moved on, heading toward the castle and mimicking the lesser known story from history, “Wooden Surprise.”
Chapter Twenty
Darkness Ascends
I don’t feel good about space. Sure I like outer space, but plain, common, nothing-happening space makes me uncomfortable. I get uneasy when I see blank pages full of space. Any empty space between two books on a bookshelf makes me sad. Tetris is a fine game until you end up with some open space you can’t fill. But perhaps the worst kind of space is the space between two people when they’re apart. Sure, it’s nice to have a good deal of space between you and that weird grocer who always stares at you. But it is horrible to have too much wide-open space between you and someone you love.
No space is lonelier, larger, or more of a vacuum.
Geth’s emotions were no longer his own. He felt the vastness of the space between him and those he loved. Being a lithen had always been a badge of honor, but at the moment he worried that it might be the problem that would ultimately create a kind of space between him and those he loved forever. There was almost no space between him and Clover as they lay hidden in the false compartment at the bottom of the wagon. But it wasn’t Clover that Geth was thinking of.
It was Phoebe.
The longing that Geth had left behind in Foo was weighing heavily on his heart and mind. He had loved her before he was taken to Zendor, but as his insides and emotions morphed and changed, he found himself aching for her in ways that were new and frightening. Now, as he lay in the dark, the heavy possibility that he might never see her again made him doubt almost everything he had ever known.
The boors had done just as Geth had hoped. They had brought the wagons through the gate, pushed them through the abandoned town of Finis, and deposited them behind Pencilbottom Castle next to other wagons and contraptions that had been brought in or created by Payt. The boors had then departed, and not a single sound other than birds and wind had been heard since.
It took everything Clover had in him to keep quiet. The compartment was warm, and the cramped quarters were giving Clover nervous legs and making his brain anxious. Clover tried to speak a couple of times, but Geth kept putting his hand over his mouth.
After many hours they could see through the thin crack that the purple sky was finally turning black.
“There’s no one out there,” Clover said under his breath. “It’s been silent since we got here. Plus, now that it’s dark, any boors will be frozen.”
“Still,” Geth insisted in a hushed voice, “it’s best to stay quiet.”
“Do you think Zale’s and Nick’s wagons are next to ours?” Clover asked.
“I have no way of knowing for sure,” Geth whispered. “But I would think so.”
“How will we know when it’s been an hour?” Clover asked in the lowest volume possible.
“You always say that you can feel if Lilly’s still alive,” Geth reminded him. “Just see if you can feel what time it is for her and tell me when it’s been an hour.”
“Okay,” Clover said happily, glad to have an assignment that involved thinking of Lilly.
The sky they could see through the thin crack became completely black; the night was out in full force.
“ . . . twenty-seven, twenty-eight. Wait,” Clover whispered. “How many seconds are in an hour?”
“Three thousand, six hundred,” Geth answered.
“No, not in a day,” Clover said. “An hour?”
“Three thousand, six hundred,” Geth repeated.
“Fine,” Clover complained. “I’ll figure it out myself.”
Geth could hear the sound of bats flying overhead and leaves blowing lightly in the trees to the north. The sounds were those of comfort and familiarity, but Geth’s heart beat like neither of those things were in play. Geth could feel the strength and confusion building in his soul. He wanted only to get out and finish Payt. He could see nothing else. No other solution. No answer that did not involve him destroying Payt so he could go home. Geth had wondered numerous times if he was forcing fate, but he didn’t care any longer. Payt’s death was the only solution he could see. The thought made him sick and a bit mad in the head.
“You were right,” Clover whispered. “I was dividing instead of subtracting. Math is just such a—”
Lights went on somewhere near the wagon. Through the crack, Geth could tell that there were two different light sources near each of the wagon’s front corners. The light flickered and moved, indicating that it was being produced by flames.
Both Geth’s and Clover’s hearts began to beat like kettledrums being played by a dozen people. Clover put his hand to his heart to try to quiet it a bit.
The wagon creaked and shook as someone climbed up on it. Geth could see two figures moving about. The movement was followed by the sound of something being hammered directly above them.
“Are they trying to bust us out?” Clover whispered nervously.
“No,” Geth said, suddenly realizing what was happening. “They’re trying to keep us in. They know we’re here.”
“I wasn’t that loud,” Clover said defensively.
Geth started to kick and push at the latches that he had closed. The latches popped, but the board would not slide open. There was more hammering above. Clover kicked at the lid and scurried around the space, pushing every inch. Geth shifted his arms and pushed with all of his might. His muscles strained and his body screamed as he fought to break out.
His arms collapsed and he stopped pushing. He took in a few deep breaths in preparation to push again. More torches were lit, and the space that Geth could see through the slit became brighter. He could see the backs of two boors as they nailed shut what might end up as his coffin.
“Stop,” Geth commanded. “Stop!”
The wagon rocked as someone new climbed up on it.
“Oh, they won’t listen to you,” Payt said, kneeling down and looking into the tiny crack at Geth. The red scratch marks Geth could see looked infected. “They have the worst manners. They refuse to listen to anyone else but me.”
“Payt,” Geth seethed.
Through the slit, Payt could see only a tiny line of Geth’s blue eyes. But the small line was all Geth needed to show off a h
uge amount of anger.
“My,” Payt said. “I would think you liked it in there. After all, it wasn’t me that put you in. You must have done that all by yourself.”
“Open this up,” Geth ordered.
“I wouldn’t do that,” a third voice said. “He’s got that rat in there. You open it once and you’ll have him to contend with.”
Zale’s face slipped into view above the crack.
Clover’s gasp bounced around the small compartment. All the anger and uncertainty that had been building in Geth died in an instant. His arms and legs and head seemed to pop and then deflate painfully under the realization of what was happening and who had betrayed him.
“I don’t believe it,” Geth said sadly.
Payt and Zale both leaned in so that all Geth could see were their two awful faces.
“What are you doing?” Geth asked in disbelief. “Where’s Nick?”
“He didn’t make it,” Zale said. “There was an accident.”
“This makes no sense,” Geth said kicking at the wall of his box.
“It’s pretty simple, actually,” Zale said. “My intention was always to get back. The moment our wagons were brought beyond the gate, I slipped out and pledged my allegiance. I know there’s no way out of this realm, and I know there’s no one with any real power besides Payt. So the act of betraying others to get something in return just came naturally.”
“Naturally?” Geth snapped.
“Don’t sound all righteous,” Zale insisted. “I told you to leave me. I got you out and set you free, but you refused to let me be.”
“Of course, all’s well that ends well,” Payt said. “For years I’ve been offering your brother a chance to join the ranks. But he refused. He just sat in that cell preferring ease over effort.”
“It requires so much less,” Zale said casually.
“But with you taking him out and forcing him to fight, he has seen the light,” Payt said. “To be more specific, he has seen the scorch stone. Discovered what I’ve been looking for for years. What a lucky find. What’s that called, Zale?”
“Fate,” Zale said in a sinister voice.
“Of course,” Payt smiled. “Fate. Now we can light those tunnels and caves bright enough to allow my boors to destroy things underground. Zale has also memorized the paths and knows just how we should tackle the task of destroying all Those Who Hide in the valley. The same valley I could never have gotten to without your help. They’ll be sitting ducks. Nobody will avoid my voice, and in the end the whole of Zendor will be mine.”
“Zale,” Geth pleaded. “You can’t want this.”
“What I want is luxury,” Zale said. “Luxury and quiet. Payt has promised me both.”
“The finest room,” Payt agreed. “The most attentive servants and any comfort he seeks. It’s the least I can do. Loyalty should be rewarded.”
“Luxury?” Geth spat. “In the end your loyalty brings you luxury?”
“Nobody lives forever, Geth,” Zale said urgently. “I prefer to live my days in comfort and with some meat on my bones.”
“We’re brothers,” Geth tried.
“I suppose in blood,” Zale mocked. “But you left me here too many years. It’s not my fault I forgot where I came from.”
“I think I’m going to be sick,” Geth moaned.
“I think you’re going to be dead,” Payt corrected him.
“Please,” Geth reasoned, the fight draining from his being. “Let us out. There are other ways.”
“That’s true,” Payt said snobbishly. “But here’s the way I see it. I’m building a new wall. So many boors these days—labor is dirt cheap and I’m in the mood to build things higher and wider. I’ve decided to give you the privilege of being a tiny part of what I’m creating. We’ve placed the wagon with you inside it right here on purpose. Now we just cover you with concrete and fill the forms built around you, and you will be a permanent part of the structure. Someday, when the world of Zendor looks back on the wealth and power I’ve amassed, I will be able to look at that section of wall and realize that even a lithen couldn’t stop me.”
“I told you it was foolish to fight,” Zale said. “I told you Payt would win.”
“Some people just won’t heed a warning,” Payt said, smiling wickedly.
“Zale,” Geth implored, “we’re brothers.”
“It’s just death,” Zale said defensively. “Remember what you said: ‘Everybody dies.’”
Payt and Zale stood up and climbed off the wagon.
“Begin,” Payt ordered someone.
Geth and Clover couldn’t see everything that was happening, but through the slit they could see a large metal chute swing over their wagon. Someone yelled something and a low rumbling sound began.
“This isn’t good,” Geth said.
“Wait,” Clover complained. “That’s my line.”
Wet concrete began to drop from the chute and cover the wagon. Big wads of the heavy mixture plopped down forcefully.
Geth felt as if everything he had ever believed was being tested in the extreme. The hope he had professed to live by suddenly seemed like a fable or a cruel joke.
A fistful of concrete landed on the open slit and completely blocked the little bit of light Geth and Clover did have.
“What do you know,” Clover said quietly. “Darkness does ascend.”
Geth was lost in thought.
“Hey,” Clover said, nudging Geth’s left shoulder. “I know I always say you talk too much, but you’re welcome to say something comforting now. You should know, also, that you’re nothing like your brother. There has never been a lithen like you.”
“Thanks, Clover,” Geth said solemnly. “And there’s never been a sycophant like you.”
The sound of more concrete flowing down upon them made it hard to hear.
“Um,” Clover asked anxiously, “is this where we’re supposed to end up? I mean, is this how it ends?”
Geth remained quiet as he tried to right his thoughts and feelings.
“I’m going to take that as a no,” Clover said, relieved. “Because there’s always hope, right?”
Geth was too heartbroken to reply.
“Well, I’ll answer that for you,” Clover said firmly. “Yes. And I can tell you right now there’s no way I’m not getting back to Lilly and Leven.”
Geth stared into the darkness as the concrete continued to pour. He gripped his hands together and closed his eyes as his soul experienced a large dose of despair for the first time in his life.
“Yep,” Clover said assuredly. “There’s always hope.”
Clover patted Geth on the head and then held onto his neck.
Fate was playing dirty.
Epilogue
Urgency
Winter marched into the stone hall with purpose. Her long blonde hair was straight and beautiful and her green eyes looked like dark bits of a mystery that no man could ever solve. She was thin and almost as fetching as Phoebe, who was walking next to her. Phoebe had the added advantage of being a longing, a breed that naturally made all those she came in contact with dazed and confused.
“We have something,” Winter said with conviction.
Leven turned and faced them. Having just returned from searching Cusp, he was tired and worried. It had been over a week since they had heard anything from Geth or Clover, and they were beginning to feel real concern. There had been much searching, but no sign of them anywhere. Lilly was sick, Phoebe was beside herself, and Winter was having a hard time acting confident about anything.
“What’d you find?” Leven asked hopefully.
“There was a dead onus found in the bottom of Stone Canyon,” Winter said, stepping close to Leven. “It’s been dead at least a week.”
Leven looked into her green eyes, and his eyes burn
ed gold.
“And we found this,” Winter said, holding up a muddy shirt. “It’s Geth’s.”
Leven smiled.
“This might be bad,” Winter said, surprised by Leven’s expression.
“Did you find anything else?” Leven said with excitement.
“No,” Phoebe answered sadly, her eyes tired from holding back her tears. “Just a dead onus and Geth’s shirt. There were some footprints leading off, but the ground has been washed over and it’s hard to tell.”
“That canyon runs next to the Hidden Border, right?” Leven asked.
“It does,” Winter answered, curious about Leven’s sudden excitement.
“That would explain the dreams I’ve been having,” Leven almost cheered. “We need to leave immediately.”
“You have millions of dreams,” Winter reminded him. “You’re the Want.”
“These dreams were different,” Leven said, taking Winter’s hand. “Let’s go.”
“We’ll need Lilly,” Winter insisted.
“Of course,” Leven agreed.
The three of them walked swiftly from the room and out into the air of Foo.
Obert Skye, Geth and the Deception of Dreams
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