Fablehaven: The Complete Series (225 page)

Bracken cocked his head as if weighing the odds. “So we hope the Fairy Queen can conjure a way out of here.”

“Seems like our best bet,” Warren said.

“What do you mean, the shrine is sealed?” Kendra wondered.

“The Sphinx didn’t want the Fairy Queen to be able to spy on him,” Bracken said. “He lacked the power to destroy her shrine here, so he sealed it off, covering it with an ensorcelled iron dome.”

“The dome has an access port,” Warren said. “And I now have a copy of the key.”

“Getting to the shrine will be no simple affair,” Bracken warned. “This is not a mild preserve.”

“Tell me about it,” Warren said. “When the Sphinx showed up with his wraith squad, he had to rescue me from a manticore.”

“Won’t the wraiths share what is happening with the demons?” Kendra asked.

“The Sphinx is a mighty shadow charmer,” Bracken said. “His wraiths and phantoms communicate only with him. They will not divulge his secrets, and he should be strong enough to shield his mind from Graulas and Nagi Luna.”

“Let’s hope so,” Warren muttered.

“The Sphinx gave you that amulet?” Bracken asked.

“He did. And he promised to help divert the search for me away from the path to the shrine.”

Bracken turned to Kendra. “What do you say? Your brother currently holds the record for quickest escape from the dungeons of the Great Ziggurat. You ready to dethrone him?”

“What about the others?” Kendra asked. “Can’t we take my grandparents?”

Warren winced. “The passage out of the dungeon is down very deep. The Sphinx warned we should keep the escape small. In fact, the only people he specified were you two. He promised to try to aid the others.”

Bracken patted Kendra’s arm consolingly. “If the passage out is down here in the depths, we can’t get to your parents or grandparents without passing numerous checkpoints. We might be able to collect Maddox and Mara. Of course, Mara is still recovering from injuries, Maddox has had trouble moving quickly ever since Rio Branco, and neither of them is nearby.”

“Up to you guys,” Warren said. “Speed will matter. As soon as Nagi Luna gets the Oculus, we won’t be able to shield ourselves from her view.”

“Then we should seize the moment and depart,” Bracken decided. “Kendra?”

“Seems like the only choice.”

“Either of you have a coin?” Bracken asked.

Warren dug in his pockets. “How about a quarter?”

“Perfect. I prefer coins to stones.” Bracken cupped the coin in one hand and covered it with the other. For a moment, his hands shed a pearly radiance. Then he placed the quarter under a rock in a corner of the room.

“Did you just turn that into a communicator?” Warren asked.

“Correct. If the Sphinx wants to feed us intelligence, he now has the means.” Bracken adjusted the position of the stone over the coin. “How did you get into my cell? There are three secret entrances.”

“I came through the front door. The Sphinx gave me a key. The passage out of the ziggurat begins just around the corner.”

Bracken smirked. “Right under my nose all these years. How could I have missed it?”

“It’s perfectly disguised and heavily enchanted,” Warren said. “Only opens for the password, which is in Akkadian. I had to memorize the syllables.”

“I’m usually able to detect such things,” Bracken said. “I suppose it didn’t help that I spend most of my time skulking along forgotten passageways. I’m seldom out in the main corridors.”

“We ready?” Warren asked.

“My possessions are few,” Bracken said. “Lead on.”

Warren opened the cell door. Kendra and Bracken shadowed him into the hallway and tiptoed around the corner.

Bracken nudged Kendra. “Nagi Luna resides around that next corner, at the end of the hall.”

“Tough neighborhood,” Warren whispered. He paused in front of a blank wall.

“Here?” Bracken asked, running a hand along the surface, eyes intent. “I must be losing my touch.”

Warren spoke strange words, and the wall became semitransparent. Warren stepped through it.

Bracken gave a low whistle. “I feel a little better. This was very well concealed, the work of a true master.”

He and Kendra walked through the wall and started up a long stairway.

Chapter 15

Message in a Bottle

His promise to Coulter helped pull Seth back from the brink of total emotional collapse. By degrees, he stopped looking inward at his guilt and became aware of the demolished room around him, of the golem waiting patiently at his side. He glanced at the steel safe crumpled in a corner like a crushed soda can. He heard timbers creak and crash as part of the burning barn collapsed outside. Outside. Did the house even have an inside or an outside anymore, now that so much of it had been torn down?

“I really blew it this time,” Seth said to Hugo.

“Bad demon,” the golem said.

“I just didn’t see this coming,” Seth moaned. “How could I be so blind?”

The golem said nothing. A big hand patted Seth on the shoulder consolingly.

Seth wiped his nose. He needed to get busy, to lose himself in a task. “I can’t undo what happened. But I can’t quit, either. Maybe Patton has an idea for a next move. We need to go to the old manor.”

“Danger,” Hugo warned.

“I know it isn’t safe,” Seth agreed. “With the treaty destroyed, we could run into bloodthirsty monsters anywhere. But that also means it isn’t any safer here. Not anymore.”

“Hugo keep safe,” the golem rumbled.

“I believe it,” Seth said.

“Hello?” called a timid voice. Seth whirled. It sounded like Kendra.

“Kendra?” he answered, confused.

“Sort of,” came the reply. After a moment, his sister limped into the room, favoring her right leg.

“You’re the stingbulb,” Seth said. They had placed an injured duplicate of Kendra in the Quiet Box after Tanu had done all he could to heal her. “How did you get out of the Quiet Box?”

“They put Vanessa inside when they left on their mission, which meant I had to come out. My time is running short. I won’t survive much beyond daybreak.”

“Do you know what happened here?” Seth asked.

“Not really. Nobody brought me up to speed. I’m still hurt, so I can’t help much. Being in the Quiet Box froze my healing. I’ll expire before I become whole again. I wanted to listen to music, so they placed me in Vanessa’s former cell. She has a terrific sound system.”

“Would you be willing to go back into the Quiet Box?”

“Sure, if you want,” she said. “It prolongs my existence. It isn’t much different from back when I was just a fruit. Minus the connection to the tree, of course.”

It was strange to be talking with his sister, knowing it was not his sister. “We got attacked by a demon.”

“Sounded bad,” the stingbulb said. “I was hesitant to come up, but curiosity got the better of me. You were captured, weren’t you? They were talking about it after they got me out.”

“They came to rescue me, and all of them got caught, but I got away. It’s a long story.”

She nodded, then glanced at the corpse on the floor. “The demon got Coulter?”

“Yeah,” Seth said, voice getting husky. Her expression didn’t change. “Does it make you sad?”

“Not in the same way it would make Kendra sad,” the stingbulb said frankly. “I have memories of her feelings for him. But I’m aware they aren’t my memories. Kendra gave me general instructions to help you guys, so I’m regretful that I couldn’t prevent the mishap.”

“Would you take orders from me?” Seth asked.

“Sure. The last standing orders I got from Kendra before entering the Quiet Box were to always help your family and never betray you. I could interpret that to mean I should follow your commands.”

He wondered how he might make use of the stingbulb. Nothing immediately came to mind. Her injured leg would limit his options. He could store her in the Quiet Box until a need arose, but that would mean freeing Vanessa. Did he want the narcoblix’s help or not? Hard to say. He should probably visit Patton first.

“Is the dungeon in good shape?” Seth asked.

“The ceiling collapsed in part of the stairway up to the house,” she replied. “A section of the ceiling in the first hall fell in as well. The main door in the hall was knocked askew, which let me get up here. The rest of the dungeon seems to be intact.”

That was a relief. The last thing he needed was all those dangerous prisoners going free. He wondered how much the destruction of the treaty would weaken the dungeon.

“I think we’ll leave Vanessa in the Quiet Box for now,” Seth decided. “I might want her help later. Can we keep Coulter in Vanessa’s cell with you?”

“Sure, I’ll watch over his body.”

“Hugo, would you mind?”

“Not mind,” Hugo said, picking up Coulter.

“I’ll wait here,” Seth said. “Hugo, you might want to carry the stingbulb back down, too. Her leg is hurt.”

Hugo picked up the stingbulb in his other hand and lumbered out of the room, rubble crunching underfoot. Seth plopped down on the remnants of a couch. Graulas must have used more than his physical strength to damage the house. He had destroyed too much too quickly. Magic must have been involved.

Seth considered his assets. The loyal golem topped the list. He also had an expiring stingbulb, a semi-trustworthy narcoblix, and hopefully a message from Patton. And what about his emergency kit? Might Kendra have replaced it in his room? Knowing her, it would be in its place under his bed. Unless she had taken it to Living Mirage in order to return it to him.

He took the coin from his pocket. He could communicate with Bracken. The thought of talking to the unicorn made him shiver. How could he tell him that he had already lost the Translocator? No, he would reach out to Bracken later.

What about Dale? Might he have joined the rescue mission? Coulter hadn’t specified. Seth had never known Dale to go abroad on a mission. He was probably around here someplace. If so, with the treaty undone, he might be in trouble. Seth would ask Hugo.

Before long, heralded by heavy footfalls, the golem returned. Seth rose from the damaged couch.

“Do you know where Dale is?” Seth asked.

The golem tilted his head back. Was he looking at the broken ceiling? Was he listening? Seth wasn’t sure how the golem saw and heard, or if his senses worked some other way. “Stables,” the golem said. “Safe room.”

“Does the safe room still work?”

“Yes.”

Seth regarded the golem. How could he know Dale was at the stables? “Do you see him, Hugo?”

The golem placed fingers into the empty hollows of his eyes. “Not here.” Then Hugo tapped his temple. “See here.”

“With your mind?”

“Yes.”

“So Dale is safe for now?”

“Yes.”

“Can you see Grandpa?”

Hugo raised his head searchingly, leaning first one way, then another. “Too far.”

Seth hadn’t expected it to work, but it had been worth a try. “I need to look for my emergency kit before we go.” The staircase from the entry hall had collapsed, but the hall at the top partly remained. “Can you get me up to that hall?”

Hugo picked up Seth, walked over to where the stairs had once stood, and lightly tossed him up to the hallway. With Hugo’s height and reach, the golem did not have to throw him far. In one direction, the hallway ended along with the rest of the house, leaving an open view of treetops and stars. The attic stairs were the other way.

Passing gaps in the walls, Seth hustled to the attic stairs, which he found mostly intact, although deep cracks ran through the stairwell. The playroom at the top was missing most of one wall, part of another, and a good portion of the ceiling. There were some holes in the floor. But the beds were in place. Peeking under his bed, Seth instantly spotted his emergency kit. He checked inside and found the contents in place, including the figurines of the leviathan and the tower he had brought from Wyrmroost.