She bared her teeth and he bared his back. Then she hissed, frustrated. “The sunsailer’s crew was starting to panic and Callumkal needed help. They had to see we weren’t afraid, they had to see—I slept for a little while.”
Moon hesitated. He was trying to think how long that meant Jade had been awake. They had all napped in the boat on the way back from searching for the Fell nest, but that hadn’t exactly been undisturbed rest. She said, “It was a mistake, I should have slept more. There’s nothing I can do about it now,” and pulled away from him.
They followed the passage back to where the others waited. Moon’s mind was racing for a solution, anything to make it easier for Jade. They just couldn’t afford to stop here longer, not so close to the waterlings. I should have made sure she had a chance to rest, he thought, furious at himself. The terrible thought of returning to the colony and his clutch without Jade stopped his breath for a moment. He couldn’t let that happen.
Stone had already told the others about the air shaft and what was in it. While Jade described the climb and the potential way out, Moon crouched down beside Bramble. “Do you still have some food? Jade hasn’t eaten.”
Bramble, far more expert than Moon at reading spines and expressions, went still for a moment, then pulled her pack around to dig through it. “There’s some of that dried seaweed, and Acama on the sunsailer said this bread stuff with the red flakes is supposed to be a stimulant but I don’t think it works on us.”
Jade was saying, “It’s not a long climb, but we’ll need to move fast.”
Rorra leaned forward. “You all can’t fly in that shaft, but I can. I can take you up one by one. It will perhaps be quieter.”
Jade tilted her head in acknowledgment. “We can start climbing, and you can come back for each of us in turn. That should cut down on the time, and the faster we get away from those waterlings, the better.”
Delin frowned in concern. “Will your pack last? The substance within will need to be renewed at some point.”
Rorra shifted around. “Check the levels for me. We weren’t long getting to the junction, so it should still be at least half full. It’s a good thing I didn’t try to use it in the endless corridor, or it would be empty.”
As Delin tugged at various things or peered into parts of the pack, Moon told Jade, “Eat something. Everyone else did.”
Jade grimaced but didn’t argue. She bit into the piece of dried seaweed Moon handed her and said to the others, “Just be quiet, and everything will be fine.”
While Jade was chewing, Bramble turned to the others and said, “Rorra, you’re going to have to take Stone.”
Stone growled in annoyance but didn’t protest. With the passages too small to accommodate his shifted form, it was the best solution. Rorra just nodded. Bramble added, “And I think Jade should go first.”
Thankfully, Jade let Bramble sort out the order everyone should go in. Moon figured as an Arbora she was the one in the group most likely to still be able to think straight. Arbora were stronger than groundlings or sealings and didn’t need nearly as much sleep as the Aeriat. At least, he hoped this was the case. It would be nice to have someone in the group who could still think straight.
Everyone put their lights away in their packs, and they moved quietly up the passage toward the opening. When Jade slipped out into the shaft, Moon felt every nerve in his body tense. Rorra tugged on her pack’s strap, lifted off the floor of the passage a little, and turned to Stone. His voice low, he said, “I’d rather you go out first and then I’ll jump to you.”
Rorra whispered, “Hah, no thank you.” They managed a very awkward embrace and Rorra ducked out into the shaft.
Chime pulled Moon back a little, and whispered, “Is something wrong with Jade?”
“Just tired,” Moon said, with a grim I’ll tell you later look.
Chime winced, said, “Oh,” and didn’t ask anything further.
Bramble, crouched at the opening, motioned for Root to go next, then for Chime to follow him. Moon let out the breath he had been holding when she signaled that Jade had reached the doorway successfully. Rorra came back for Delin, and Song and Briar moved forward for their turn. Below the waterlings murmured in their sleep, and Bramble turned around to Moon and mouthed the words, “This is terrifying.”
Moon nodded. His nerves were so tight he thought his spines were going to snap. Song went next. Rorra returned, and Moon pointed for her to take Bramble. Bramble glared, because her plan had included Moon going with Rorra, but Moon wasn’t going to leave an Arbora in this passage alone, even for a few moments.
Once Rorra and Bramble were moving upward through the shaft, Briar climbed out. Moon waited for her to get far enough away, then started his climb. The air in the shaft was heavy with the acrid scent of the waterlings, far more so than the passage. Moon realized it was their breath, rising in the cool unmoving air, and his spines twitched involuntarily. He concentrated on not letting his claws slip on the pitted rock.
Rorra and Bramble floated up to the opening and Stone reached out to take Bramble, then to pull Rorra inside. Then Song reached the doorway and climbed in. With some way still to go, Briar climbed silently, her pack slung back over her shoulder so it wouldn’t bump the wall. They made it around the curve of the shaft and Briar was almost within reach of the doorway. Moon was about ten paces behind her. Then from below, something groaned.
Moon flinched and froze. It was a low wail that rose in pitch as it rose in volume. It ended in a gasp, and Moon looked up at Briar. There was just enough light to see her wide-eyed expression. Our luck just ran out, Moon thought. He flicked his spines and tail, telling her to keep moving, and Briar resumed her climb, moving with less caution and more speed.
Below, bodies slid over each other as the waterlings stirred. Another groan split the air and it was answered by a chorus of breathy exhalations.
Moon climbed, glancing down. Light glinted on the scaled forms as they stretched and uncurled, their claws clicked on the rock. Above, Briar swung into the opening and then Rorra suddenly dove out. She maneuvered down level with Moon, and he flattened his spines so she could put an arm around his waist. Forcing himself to let go of the wall to grab onto her shoulders took an extra moment of effort he knew they couldn’t afford. His weight made her sink down for a breathless heartbeat, then her pack lifted them both up.
Something seized Moon’s lower leg, a weight dragged them down. Snarling, he looked down to see a waterling clung to the wall just below them. Rorra must be looking down too because the distance-light on her shoulder shone down on the creature. Its upper half was vaguely groundling-shaped, with a blue-scaled torso and an oval eyeless head. The two largest claws, one of which had closed around Moon’s leg, were where a groundling’s arms would be, but more limbs sprouted below them, and the lower body was much wider, extending out to accommodate six clawed segmented limbs. Moon raked the claws of his other foot across the creature’s claw, but they glanced off the hard surface. He growled, “Rorra, let go.”
Rorra, struggling to support his weight, gasped, “No.”
There was no time to argue. Moon grabbed her shoulders and shoved out of her grip. The waterling yanked him down straight toward its mouth, its distended jaw opening wide, fangs gleaming. Moon flung his weight sideways and grabbed the clawed limb at the joint, then twisted it down. He fell and hung upside down, supported only by the creature’s abused joint. The waterling screamed as its joint popped out and Moon slammed into the wall, dangerously close to the creature’s lower limbs. He jerked free of the slack claw and scrabbled away along the wall.
More waterlings scrambled up the wall toward him and he climbed rapidly up past the screaming injured one. It flailed at him with its remaining claw then abruptly fell backward and down the shaft. Moon looked up and saw Jade on the wall just above where the creature had been, snarling in fury.
“Go, I’m coming,” Moon yelled and climbed faster. Then Rorra dropped down and this time Moon
let her grab him. As they lifted up, Jade turned and climbed toward the opening.
Jade reached the edge and pulled herself inside. Rorra lifted up even with it, and Jade caught Moon’s arm and dragged him in. As Rorra caught the edge to pull herself after him, a waterling rose up behind her and claws snatched at her waist.
Moon and Jade were off-balance, in the wrong position, and even as Moon tried to lunge for Rorra, he knew neither of them would be able to reach her. Then Stone stepped on him, flattened him to the floor, and leaned out the opening. He reached past Rorra, seized the creature’s head, and twisted sharply. The audible snap echoed off the walls and the creature dropped, lifeless. Stone snatched Rorra out of its grip, Jade grabbed Stone around the waist, and they all tumbled forward into the passage on top of Moon.
Smushed on the bottom, Moon couldn’t do anything but hold his breath as the weight was lifted. When Jade climbed off him, he gasped to fill his empty lungs and staggered to his feet. Chime grabbed his arm and pulled him down the passage. Jade was hissing, “Go, go, move, hurry!”
Moon followed the others down the dark passage. Beside him, Rorra muttered, “I didn’t know Stone could do that. Not as he is, I mean. Not large.”
“That’s why we try not to argue with him,” Chime told her, breathless with nerves.
Behind them, Stone snorted derisively.
Moon said to Rorra, “He’s got really good hearing, too.”
Light bloomed ahead as Song and Briar dug their lights out of their packs again. They were in a passage larger than the one below, and the others made way for Jade as she moved forward to lead them. Root glanced back, whispering, “That wasn’t fair! We did everything right, nobody made any noise, and they know we’re here anyway.”
“This place is awful,” Bramble agreed.
“Keep moving,” Moon urged them. Behind them, he could hear a sliding, scraping movement growing louder, closer. They’re following us.
Something had woken the waterlings, but Moon would swear they hadn’t made enough noise to wake a sleeping fledgling. Maybe the waterlings had felt faint vibrations through the rock. Or maybe they were sensitive to Rorra’s distinctive scent and interpreted it as an attack.
Jade led them past several dark doorways, then the corridor suddenly opened up into a large chamber and the welcome sight of an open stairwell leading down. Jade said, “We need to keep going, I don’t want to risk this one.”
“You don’t think we came far enough from the trap in the hall below,” Delin clarified, breathing hard as he jogged after Bramble. “That we might enter it again if we go down now.”
Rorra directed her distance-light across the space and they saw it was only the first of several large chambers. “She’s right, we should keep going, there are more stairwells ahead.”
“Faster,” Stone said. “They’re not far behind us.” Then he shifted.
Rorra used her pack to lift up and shoot forward to scoop up Delin. The warriors and Bramble started to bound, covering ten to twelve paces in a single jump, and Stone was careful not to outpace them. The combination of stronger flying muscles and fear could have let Moon outpace all of them but he stayed in the rear, making sure the rest didn’t fall behind. He was sure Jade would have objected to this but fortunately she was a little too busy at the moment.
They crossed two large halls, their lights revealing half-seen carvings and shapes. In the second, Bramble yelped a warning and they slid to a halt. Rorra’s light swung around to catch a giant face looming from the end of the hall, but it was made of stone. “Statue,” Jade said. “Keep moving!”
They surged forward again and Moon was left with an impression of a smooth triangular head, no visible nose, with small eyes to either side. It might have been a sculpture of a builder, or maybe just something from a story. And now he could hear the rasp of claws on the stone floor, the swift slide of heavy bodies. “They’re in the first hall,” he said aloud. They could hide the lights, look for a doorway to another route, but the chances of being trapped in one of these dead-end passages or rooms was far too great.
Ahead, Jade reached the next stairwell. She called out, “Down, down this way! It’s got to be far enough.”
Moon threw a glance back and saw roiling movement in the shadows. It had to be far enough, because the waterlings moved too fast. With Delin still holding onto her, Rorra dropped down. Bramble, Chime, and Root dove after her. Jade motioned for Song and Briar to follow. From below, Bramble called, “Stone, the stairs turn down here and it’s too narrow for you!”
Stone snarled, and shifted to his groundling form, saying, “This shitting place!”
Jade caught Moon’s arm and half-shoved him down the stairs. She grabbed Stone and jumped after him.
Moon hit the first landing in a crouch, waited for Jade, then dove down the next set of stairs with her. The lights flashed sporadically as the Raksura jumped and dove and scrambled and jumped again. Rorra’s distance-light was mostly steady, Delin directing it toward the stairs so they at least had some idea where they were going. This would be a bad time for someone to run into a wall and stun themselves.
Moon heard the rush of movement above them, the scaled bodies slapping into the walls, claws scraping as the waterlings flowed down the stairwell like water. An acrid stench of rot and fish filled the air.
Below, Bramble took a tumble down the stairs but rolled to her feet at the bottom and kept going. The waterlings were gaining on them. We’re going to have to stop and fight to give the warriors a chance, Moon thought, then Rorra shouted, “Light ahead! Someone’s down there!”
I hope it’s someone we know. Moon hit two more landings, as ahead Song missed and catapulted herself shoulder-first into the stairs. Root stopped and half-started back. Briar yelled, “Keep going!” and scooped Song up and jumped down to the next landing.
Two more landings and there was just enough light for Moon to glimpse a familiar scaled face looking up at them from the bottom of the stairwell. That was Balm, he thought. He wondered if he was hallucinating. How did they find us? And it really didn’t matter, because even if River and Merit were with her, three more Raksura weren’t going to be much help against what was after them. Beside him, Jade gasped, “No, no, not them too—”
Rorra and Bramble yelled warnings, and Balm’s voice echoed up, “Come on, it’s all right, just hurry!”
Maybe they had a plan. Moon hit the next landing with Jade and said, “Just trust her!”
Stone gritted out, “Listen to him.”
Jade growled in despair and they jumped for the last landing. The others reached the bottom and bolted through a tall archway out into a hall. Moon spotted Balm, Merit, and—Kalam, braced just outside the door holding a Kishan fire weapon that was almost bigger than he was. River was braced behind him, ready to steady him when he fired the weapon.
Moon and Jade dove down the stairs together, Moon breaking left and Jade to the right. She let go of Stone as they rolled across the pavement of a broad hall, and Stone came to his feet, already shifting into his scaled form. Moon landed hard and rolled into a half-crouch. Still by the doorway, Balm looked up the stairwell. Merit stood a short distance away, doing a hasty headcount of warriors, Arbora, sealings, and groundlings. “They’re all here!” he called.
“Wait, wait,” Balm said, then, “now!” She leapt back from the doorway.
The waterlings flooded down the stairwell, claws hooked into the rock, their jaws open to reveal maws filled with spiny teeth. Kalam pulled the lever back on the weapon and released it. Little wooden disks shot out of the tubes below the big barrel and struck the stairwell and the first group of waterlings. As they surged forward, the weapon erupted in a bolt of fire.
It washed up the stairwell and waterlings shrieked in agony; the stench of burned fish filled the air. The force of it shoved Kalam backward and River caught him, keeping him on his feet.
Vendoin was suddenly standing over Moon, saying, “Quick, quick, this way!”
> Moon shoved to his feet, yelling, “Jade, this way!”
Jade started to drag warriors upright. “Come on, that way, follow Vendoin!”
Rorra, still floating on her pack with Delin, came toward them. “Where are we?”
“In that hall, where the trap was, but further on, a good distance past it,” Vendoin said. She started away, flashing her distance-light into the darkness ahead. “Merit had a vision—”
The warriors and Bramble staggered up and after Vendoin and Rorra, Merit urging them on. The waterlings retreated up the stairs, away from the bodies caught in the blast. The fire lit up the stairwell, the sticky substance of the bolt still burning in scattered clumps stuck to the walls. “Again?” Kalam asked over the screaming waterlings. “I have three more shots.”
“No, let’s go,” Balm said, waving him away. River helped Kalam lift the weapon and sling it over his shoulder. Then Kalam used his flying pack to lift off and head down the hall. Moon motioned for River to follow the others and fell into step with Balm and Jade as they started to run. Stone guarded their retreat, backing away from the stairwell and keeping his bulk between it and the Raksura.
They bounded down the hall, following the others’ lights, and Moon hoped it wasn’t far. Behind him, Stone growled, and he knew it meant the waterlings were still coming. Though hopefully far more slowly.
Ahead, lights swung around and started to disappear down another stairwell. Moon, Jade, and Balm reached it to find Kalam and River waiting. Kalam asked, “Should I shoot again from here?”
“No, the boat’s not far,” Balm said, with a glance at Jade. “We’d have to wait for those things to catch up.”
Jade’s spines signaled agreement. “Keep going, maybe they won’t follow us to the boat.”
Maybe, though Moon doubted it. But Balm was right that this wasn’t a good place to make another stand. The stairwell was much wider, and the waterlings could spread out across it and avoid Kalam’s weapon.