by Brandon Mull
A wayport opened.
CHAPTER
19
PROPOSAL
Kendo Rattan sent you back with the pathway unshielded,” Lorenzo said after Cole, Mira, Jace, and Violet returned. “I could see where you came from. He deliberately let me know how to access the Crystal Asylum.”
“He wants us back there twenty years from our previous visit,” Violet said.
“I understand,” Lorenzo said. “But the Crystal Asylum is the stuff of legend among Wayminders. Even among Grand Shapers.”
“Ramarro is a pretty big problem,” Cole said.
“What about your friend Twitch?” Lorenzo asked.
Jace explained the fight with the Perennial Serpent. Cole struggled to keep his outward composure.
“What a strange coincidence that the serpent attacked on the very day I sent you back,” Lorenzo said. “To my knowledge, the attack was not recorded, perhaps because the Wayminders survived. I’m sorry about your friend. Like you, I hope he is well and simply far away.”
“Can I have a minute?” Cole asked. “Do you have a private place here?”
Lorenzo showed him down a hall into a small room with a cot and a writing desk. “Take your time,” the Wayminder said, closing the door.
Cole flopped onto the cot and let himself sob. Hot tears flowed.
Why had he brought Twitch into this?
Cole pressed his teeth together. Without Twitch, would he have vanished instead? Would he be dead? Or maybe exiled to some distant location? Would his friends be doomed without him? Was it maybe for the best that Twitch had protected him? Was that fair to think?
Cole clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes against the tears. He had to keep it together. He and his friends had to stop Ramarro.
Who was he kidding? Twitch had died. And it was probably pointless. Cole wiped away snot with the back of his hand. He was going to get himself and all his friends killed.
Would it be better to serve Ramarro? They might live. But what kind of life? A life of slavery. A life of becoming like Owandell.
Better to die fighting.
Much better.
But he wanted to live. And he wanted his friends safe.
That meant defeating Ramarro. Was it possible? He simply couldn’t know yet. It didn’t seem likely at the moment. Hopefully, Kendo Rattan would help them find a way.
Somebody knocked on the door.
Probably Mira.
“Come in,” Cole said.
Jace entered.
“Are you all right?” Jace asked.
“Not great,” Cole said.
“Twitch might be okay.”
“He might be dead.”
“We’re probably all dead,” Jace said, taking a seat beside Cole on the cot. “Ramarro is coming. Think like a Sky Raider. Realize you’re probably going to die. And die bravely.”
“I’m as ready as I can be,” Cole said.
“I know,” Jace said seriously. “I’ve seen. You’ve changed. Especially since the echolands. You’re devoted to this now. You’re not as worried about getting home.”
“I still want to get home,” Cole said.
“But not until you finish what you started here,” Jace said. “Not until Ramarro is stopped. Not until the princesses are safe.”
“I had a chance to go home,” Cole said quietly. “In the echolands. I think it was a real chance, not just a test. And I stayed. I’m committed.”
“It shows,” Jace said. “But losing Twitch is different for you.”
“I went and got him,” Cole said. “I brought him into this.”
“You gave him a chance to die well instead of cowering,” Jace said. “We all have that chance. We should be grateful for it. Don’t fall apart. We’re all ready for the risks. We’re all volunteers. If any of us fall, the rest have to keep going.”
Cole nodded. “It’s hard.”
“Brutal,” Jace said. “We have to try to win.”
“Right,” Cole said. “How is Mira?”
“Honestly? Kind of mad at you.”
“Because of Twitch?”
“No. Because you cut power to her sword. On purpose, right?”
Cole winced. “Yeah. She was going to jump at the serpent when it was going wild.”
Jace nodded. “She’s not happy about it. Feels like you don’t trust her. Wonders if you see her as a real part of the team. Worries you might do it again.”
“Did she ask you to talk to me?” Cole asked.
“I offered,” Jace said. “She complained after you left. But I could tell she didn’t want to bring it up with you because of Twitch.”
“I was protecting her,” Cole said.
“Between you and me, I’m glad you did it,” Jace said. “I’ll deny those words if you tell her.”
“I hear you,” Cole said. “Maybe I should have let her jump. Maybe she would have killed it.”
“Do you believe that?”
“Not really. I’ll talk to her.”
“Should we get going? See what Kendo figured out?”
“What if he has nothing?”
“Only one way to find out.”
Jace stood. Cole held out a hand, and Jace hauled him to his feet.
The others waited in the main room. Lorenzo was speaking with Violet.
Cole approached Mira. “Sorry for cutting power to your sword.”
“Don’t try to tell me it was an accident.”
“It wasn’t,” Cole said. “I was trying to protect you.”
“I’ve used Jumping Swords longer than you,” Mira reminded him.
“You gave me my first one,” Cole said.
“I know you meant well,” Mira said. “Please trust me to take care of myself. Let me be part of the team. I need to know you won’t strand me in the middle of a fight.”
“I’ll do my best,” Cole said. “I have to do what I think is right. I promise not to do anything like that again unless I have an amazing reason.”
“Is that as good as I’m getting?” Mira asked.
“I could lie,” Cole said.
“Sorry about Twitch,” Mira said.
“Let’s hope he’s all right,” Cole said. “Might as well.”
“He could outlive all of us,” Jace said. “He might be in some forgotten corner of the Outskirts when the world ends.”
“It won’t end,” Mira said. “We’ll stop it.”
“Should we go meet Kendo again?” Cole asked.
“I sure hope he has some good news,” Mira said.
Cole crossed to Lorenzo. “We’re ready. Can you send us?”
“No problem, if you lend me the power. I’ll send you back to twenty years after you first met Master Rattan.”
Cole took his hand.
A wayport opened.
“Ten hours, if you need it,” Lorenzo said. “Otherwise, Kendo Rattan can send you back earlier.”
Cole stepped through into the Crystal Asylum. Kendo awaited him, looking much the same, except for different clothes and slightly longer, messier hair. Jace, Violet, and Mira came through behind him. The wayport was not visible on this end, and so they seemed to simply appear.
“Right on schedule,” Kendo said. “A quick twenty years for you four, I imagine?”
“Minutes, not hours,” Mira said.
“I have refreshments this time,” Kendo said, gesturing at a crystal table with five chairs. “I had more time to prepare. Least I can do, seeing as you’re trying to save the world against horrible odds. Some quiche. Pies, mostly. Savory on the left, sweet on the right.”
“Can we stop Ramarro?” Cole asked.
“I have thoughts on the matter,” Kendo said. “More than last time. You realize you caught me off guard. We’ll talk as we eat. Come sit.”
They gathered around the table. Cole sat beside Violet, across from Jace and Mira. Kendo claimed a seat at the end of the table. He began pointing at various pies with a fork.
“Sausage, beef, lamb, and t
urkey,” he said. “I like the white quiche more than the yellow. And for dessert, peach, apple, or berry.”
“Looks good,” Jace said, helping himself to a slice of sausage pie. Cole saw cheese in it and bits of vegetables. He went for the beef. It had a layer of mashed potatoes at the base.
“I have only one plan,” Kendo said as the kids started eating. A piece of lamb pie sat before him. He spooned mint jelly onto it.
“What is it?” Cole asked.
“It combines the two issues you asked about,” Kendo said. “I have come up with no way to strengthen the Void. It will hold as long as it will hold. Probably not very long. I can think of no way to entrap Ramarro once he gets free. And I have no idea how to defeat him.”
“Not great so far,” Jace said.
“Let me share the plan,” Kendo said. “I have explored the feasibility of the Pilgrim Path—a way to go permanently from the Outskirts to Earth. I believe it is possible. I also suspect that if we could lure Ramarro down the Pilgrim Path, we might be able to solve our dilemma.”
“What about Earth?” Cole asked.
“There is a chance Ramarro would be powerless on Earth,” Kendo said. “And . . . it is possible he would take over your world and rule unchallenged until the end of time.”
“We can’t let that happen,” Cole said, no longer interested in his food.
“Agreed,” Kendo said. “And so I must research exactly which alternative would play out.”
“Haven’t you done that already?” Jace asked.
“As much as I can for now,” Kendo said. “The Pilgrim Path remains a theoretical option. I can’t be sure it will work until I walk it. And once I walk it, I cannot return.”
“So you’re waiting,” Violet said.
“Yes,” Kendo said. “I may have to wait a good while. Walking the Pilgrim Path will strip me of all connection to the Outskirts. I would permanently lose my powers.”
“Does that mean Ramarro would lose his powers if he walks the path?” Mira asked.
“I think so,” Kendo said. “He would certainly lose his connection to the Outskirts. But torivors are from Outside as well. I’m not sure how his native powers would manifest in Cole’s world. I believe Earth would be inherently hostile to his source of power. But I’m not certain.”
“We can’t send Ramarro to Earth unless we know he won’t destroy the planet,” Cole said.
“Agreed,” Kendo replied.
“Do you think the Pilgrim Path will work?” Violet asked.
“I strongly believe so,” Kendo said. “But I’m not completely certain. Nor am I sure what walking the path will do to me. My shaping powers are so much a part of me, I don’t know who exactly I will be after I lose them.”
“You’ll age again,” Mira said.
“Yes,” Kendo said. “Possibly all at once. I might walk the Pilgrim Path and immediately turn to dust! Though I suspect I will simply return to the normal process of aging.”
“How do we find out more?” Cole asked, working on his pie again.
“I have a plan,” Kendo said. “Part of me has wanted to attempt the Pilgrim Path for a good while. No man is meant to live forever. At least not as a mortal. And I have borne the burden of protecting the Outskirts for so long. I don’t want to bear it eternally. And now I know the day. You children have given me a reason. I can walk away from the Outskirts and protect it at the same time.”
“I don’t follow,” Jace said.
“Hundreds of years from now, ten years before you meet Lorenzo Debray, I will walk the Pilgrim Path. That will allow me to confirm that the path can be walked, and give me time to study the safety of bringing Ramarro to Earth.”
“And we will be able to visit you there,” Violet said.
“I will continue to research the matter and examine all contingencies. When you return to Lorenzo, he will have information about how to contact me on Earth. And he will send you there to find me.”
“Then he already knew you were there when he met us,” Cole said.
“Correct, assuming I follow through on this plan. If I do not, he will have other instructions. When you return to Lorenzo, simply tell him I gave you permission to see inside the green box.”
“That green box?” Violet asked, pointing to a container roughly the size of a shoe box beside the dessert pies.
“If you have no objection to the container,” Kendo said. “I rather like it. I will be preparing for hundreds of years. And you will know my fate in a matter of hours.”
“Does this mean I could walk the Pilgrim Path one day?” Cole asked. “And could my friends who were taken?”
“I will leave detailed instructions behind,” Kendo said. “If I succeed, yes, it means you could probably walk the Path as well. At the same cost of course. You would lose your shaping abilities, and become so out of tune with the Outskirts that you could never return.”
“What about the echolands?” Cole asked. “After I die?”
“I can’t speak to those matters,” Kendo said. “What happens after you die is an issue for the Grand Shapers of Necronum. Or, you know, wait and see. I rather enjoy a good surprise.”
“There is no other way to fight Ramarro?” Jace asked.
“Not that I can currently imagine,” Kendo said. “Not that leaves you a chance to win. I’ll keep pondering the matter. If things become sufficiently dire, you could always consult the other torivor.”
“Trillian,” Cole said. “I’ve met him.”
“And here you stand,” Kendo said. “Without his taint upon you. Impressive.”
“Talking to Trillian would almost certainly make matters worse,” Mira said.
“I agree in principle,” Kendo said. “Neither torivor can be trusted. Either would gladly take over the five kingdoms. And yet if defeat ever becomes certain, any chance is better than none.”
“It’s something to remember,” Cole said.
“Dessert,” Jace said, reaching for a slice of peach pie.
“So that’s it,” Cole said. “We go back to Lorenzo and see what’s in the box.”
“If I come up with new ideas between now and then, I’ll adjust,” Kendo said. “Otherwise, expect information about how to find me. Hopefully, I will have the answers you need. For now, enjoy the meal.”
Cole could not keep his thoughts from straying to Dalton, Hunter, and Jenna as he ate. And the other kids from his world. They would freak out when they heard there was a chance they could truly go home! It had seemed impossible for so long.
If only Cole could live long enough to see them again.
Cole almost didn’t dare to hope for success. Though perhaps possible, it remained so distant. And hoping for unlikely but desperately desired outcomes was a fast road to disappointment and pain.
One step at a time.
One victory at a time.
He tried a little of each dessert pie and liked berry the best.
It seemed Jace had about two slices of everything.
“How do you eat so much?” Violet asked him.
“I think the secret is spending most of your life as an underprivileged slave,” Jace said. “It also helps when you’re pretty sure the world is about to end. And if you don’t mind eating until it hurts.”
“If you’re done, I can send you back to Lorenzo,” Kendo said.
Cole looked around the table. The others seemed in agreement.
“Sure,” Mira said.
A wayport opened.
“I look forward to our next meeting,” Kendo said. “One way or another.”
CHAPTER
20
OUTSIDE
Kendo gave us permission to see inside the green box,” Cole reported once they were back inside Lorenzo’s subterranean lair.
“I knew it!” Lorenzo exclaimed.
“Did you know about us all along?” Mira asked. “And about the box?”
“I very strongly suspected,” Lorenzo said. “But I was under strict instructions not to sh
ow the box unless you asked.”
“How much did you know?” Cole asked.
“I knew about you, Cole, and your power,” Lorenzo said. “I knew Mira was a princess. I had heard about Jace and Violet. Kendo Rattan did not want me involving the wrong people. Cole, the extent of your ability still surprised me.”
“Have you looked into the box?” Mira asked.
“Never!” Lorenzo said. “I’ve waited for this day for the last ten years. That was when Kendo confirmed to me that the Pilgrim Path was more than just a fable and left the green box in my care. Then he departed this world.”
“Do you know if he survived?” Mira asked.
“He survived,” Lorenzo said. “I visited him right after he went. It was a success.”
“Did Kendo tell you about the dedication of the Halbrook School so we would find him?” Cole asked.
“Perhaps,” Lorenzo said.
“How does that work?” Cole asked. “How could he know to tell you? The first time the dedication happened we wouldn’t have been there.”
“Remember,” Lorenzo said. “Once you go back in time, you were always there. And if you were there, Kendo could have planted seeds to help it happen.”
“I don’t get it,” Cole said.
“You think of cause and effect as linear,” Lorenzo said. “You think one has to precede the other. That breaks down when you can move across time. It’s hard to think four dimensionally when we typically live in three. Even the best time jumpers only operate as guests in four dimensions.”
“The box?” Mira prompted.
“This way,” Lorenzo said. A wayport opened. He motioned for them to enter.
Cole went through after Jace and emerged in another large underground rectangular room that looked a lot like the one they had left. Violet and Mira came through, followed by Lorenzo.
“Is this really a different place?” Jace asked suspiciously.
“It’s a long way from my other hideout,” Lorenzo said. “I’m not much of an artist. I’ve used the same plan for several hideaways. I almost never come here. It’s where I keep the box.” He led them to a table. Cole recognized the box awaiting them.
Lorenzo inserted a key and lifted the lid. He removed a piece of lined paper and handed it to Cole.
“This looks like it’s from my world,” Cole said.
