Fated

The booming sounds from behind us were clearly audible now, and they were causing the room to shake. Almost all of the lights from the cube and statue had intersected; only three had yet to fuse. I spoke quietly to Luna. ‘When the door opens, grab that cube and stick close to me. Take the right exit.’

Luna nodded. ‘Um,’ Sonder said hesitantly from the other side. ‘What should I do?’

‘I’d follow Luna,’ I said. ‘Unless you want to meet Onyx.’

Sonder swallowed. ‘I think I’ll stay with you if that’s okay.’

Another pair of light beams intersected, followed by another. ‘Five seconds,’ I said loudly. The booms from behind were like thunder now, and the floor was shaking with each one.

The last pair of beams matched. A pale light filled the room, and the statue seemed to fade, becoming something else. For one moment it was as though two things were stacked in the same location: the statue, glowing palely, and an arched doorway, leading into a wide chamber. ‘Go!’ I shouted, and ran. For an instant I was running through the statue, and there was a brief dizzying feeling as my eyes tried to process two sets of visual data at once, then I was through into an entrance hall with a domed roof, lit by dim flickering lights. Behind me Luna snatched the cube from the statue’s hand and ran after me, Sonder at her heels.

From behind I heard a thunderous crash and the crack of flying stone, followed an instant later by the boom of Griff’s earth magic. Suddenly the battle was in the statue room, and everything was chaos and darkness and fire. The gate was closing, fading, but too slowly, and I knew we had only seconds before the battle spilled through. I made it into the right-hand tunnel, hit something to my left, and a heavy door slammed behind us, cutting off sound and leaving us in pitch darkness.

12

It was pitch black.

‘Luna?’ I said.

‘Over here.’

‘You okay?’

‘I’m fine; don’t come too close!’

‘Er, hi.’

‘What’s that?’

‘What’s what?’

‘Who’s there?’

‘Luna.’

‘Not you!’

‘Sonder. Er, I mean David. I met you at—’

‘I know who you are, Sonder.’

‘You made it through?’

‘Well, Mr Verus, I mean Alex, said to follow you, and—’

‘Has anyone got a light?’

Silence.

‘Anyone?’

Silence.

‘Luna?’

‘I brought the stuff you asked for.’

‘So that’s a yes?’

‘Yes, but it’s sealed. If I touch it …’

‘Okay, okay. Sonder?’

‘Yes?’

‘You’re a mage, right?’

‘Well, yes.’

‘Great, cast a light spell.’

‘…’

‘What’s wrong?’

‘Um, well—’

‘Please don’t tell me you can’t make one either.’

‘Well, I’ve never really gotten the hang of it. And there’s usually someone else around who can, so …’

‘Oh, you’ve got to be kidding.’

There was a fumbling sound, then there was a click and a cone of light broke the darkness, causing me to flinch. As my eyes adjusted I saw Sonder holding a torch looking apologetic. ‘But I did bring one of these. Is that okay?’

As Sonder flashed the light around I saw Luna, pale but unhurt, pressed up against the wall. We were in a circular room with a doorway leading out into a corridor. I couldn’t see any trace of the doorway we’d entered from, and I couldn’t feel any vibration through the floor. Either the walls were really thick or we’d been transported. Either way, a quick look at the future confirmed no one was going to be following for a while.

‘Where are we?’ Luna asked

‘Sonder?’ I said.

‘This is amazing,’ Sonder said. He was looking around in fascination. ‘We’re actually inside a bubble! All of this must have been built during the Dark Wars. I’ve never seen an installation as well preserved—’

Luna and I looked at him, and Sonder suddenly looked flustered. ‘Well, I mean— We’re inside the bubble. It should be safe. I mean, it’s lasted this long.’

‘Can anyone else get in?’ I asked.

‘Oh, no. Not once the gate’s closed.’

‘I think it was closing at the end,’ Luna said. She was still holding the red crystal cube, looking down at it. ‘When I took it away I wanted it to. And it did.’

I glanced at Luna curiously. Absorbed with the cube, she didn’t seem to notice. ‘Um …’ Sonder said. ‘Did anyone else get inside?’

‘Let’s hope not. Luna? Luna!’

‘Hm?’ Luna shook herself. ‘Oh. Right.’ She stood and walked to the middle of the room. With my mage’s sight I could see the silvery mist coating her and the pack, odd tendrils drifting towards me and Sonder but not quite able to reach. Luna took off her backpack, put it upside down on the ground, then lifted it quickly off, stepping away. A handful of items spilled out. ‘This was everything I could find.’

‘Shine the light,’ I told Sonder, who obeyed. The first thing I picked up from the pile was my mist cloak, and I felt my heart lighten as I saw it. It’s funny how attached you can get to an item, but then imbued items are practically living things. In any case, it’s saved my life more times than I can count and, as I swung it over my shoulders and fastened it around my neck, I felt better immediately.

‘Is it all there?’ Luna asked.