by Scott Wilson
“Hello Caden,” he said, eyes flashing at full speed. “I am now fully charged. It’s time to go.”
Chapter 6
Five and Six
Dom lay twitching on the ground. Tooby stood next to him victoriously on all seven legs. Caden knew that in a matter of minutes the other Nobodies and Mother Mildred would be here. If they were going to run away, it was now or never.
“Let’s go, Tooby!” Caden called. Tooby gave a buzz of approval. Not daring to waste valuable seconds to grab anything to bring with him, Caden dashed right out of the stable. Tooby kept pace behind him, moving much faster than his slow crawl this morning. If they could just get to the woods surrounding the Home, then they might have enough of a head start to outrun the Mothers and Mr. Stercus.
But as soon as Caden took his first step outside, he saw that their plan had already failed. Up at the Home, Mother Mildred, Mr. Stercus, and all the Nobodies were filing outdoors, craning their necks and gazing at the stable in curiosity. They must have heard the crashing of the sledgehammer and realized that Caden wasn’t just saying goodbye to the horses.
Caden’s heart sank. His last hope of leaving unnoticed was gone. If he tried to run now, he’d be seen and caught within minutes. He was a fast runner, but he couldn’t outrun the Mothers and Mr. Stercus on horseback. He was trapped. Caden started thinking about what that meant. He’d have to explain what happened to Dom. Tooby would be found and destroyed, taking away any chance of him ever finding his dad. And, worst of all, he’d be forced to live with Mr. Stercus.
Caden’s hopelessness turned to rage. He curled his fingers into shaking fists. No, he wasn’t going to give up. There was one last hope.
“Tooby!” Caden called. “Can you hold onto my back?”
“Affirmative,” Tooby said.
“Good. There’s been a change of plans. We’re not running anymore. We’re riding.”
Tooby turned his mechanical head to Deber as if scanning her. The horse had been patiently waiting in her stall, her head darting back and forth between Caden and the strange metal spider on the ground.
“Riding this creature will increase our chances of escape by approximately eighty-two percent.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Caden said. “Now get on my back and let’s get out of here.”
Tooby sprang onto Caden’s shoulders, wrapping his legs around Caden’s back. It felt strange, but Caden didn’t care. He was already tearing open Deber’s stall door and tossing on her saddle and reins faster than ever before. Deber could hardly stand the excitement, neighing and shaking her mane, ready to ride. Caden hadn’t planned on adding horse stealing to his list of crimes today, but he figured it couldn’t make things any worse.
In ten seconds flat, Deber was saddled up. With Tooby on his back, Caden leaped on top of his horse, then gave her an order he’d never given before.
“Run, girl! As fast as you can!”
Caden squeezed Deber with his legs and she understood immediately. They’d done fast galloping before hidden away in the fields when no one was looking, but now Caden’s squeeze was the strongest it’d ever been. Deber whinnied, tossed her mane, then burst through the open stable doors.
Right into Annika.
Caden yanked the reins just in the nick of time, stopping Deber from slamming into her by an inch. Annika covered her face with her hands, then looked up at Caden. She was out of breath from sprinting down to the stable ahead of everyone else.
“Get out of the way!” Caden demanded. Right behind Annika was the rest of the Home. This was no time for chit chat.
“What are you doing?” Annika asked sharply.
“I don’t have time to explain,” Caden said. “I’m leaving the Home. Now.”
Annika stared at Caden. He didn’t have time for this. Just as he was about to signal Deber to gallop around her, she spoke.
“Take me with you,” she said. Caden wanted to ask why—or just leave without asking—but another voice, cracked and frazzled, broke out behind him.
“Don’t … don’t trust him, Annika!” screamed Dom. He was covered in hay and dirt and his hair was sticking out straight in every direction. He pointed at Caden with an accusing finger. “I saw it! He’s using Iltech. I … I knew it! I knew all along there was something evil about him.”
As if on cue, Tooby peeked over Caden’s shoulder into Annika’s view. She saw the seven blinking eyes, the wiggling metal fangs, and her jaw fell open.
“Caden Aire,” Tooby said in his metallic voice. “Our probability of escape is decreasing by approximately four percent every second we are not moving. I recommend leaving immediately.”
“Annika,” Caden said quickly. “If you want to leave, then get on. Now.”
Annika reached up to Caden. He leaned to grab her hand and—
Dom leaped from behind and grabbed Tooby.
“Come here, you Iltech monster!” Dom yelled. He wrapped his fingers around Tooby’s body and tugged as hard as he could. Tooby let out whirrs of anger and his legs clung to Caden’s sides even more tightly as Caden was yanked backwards, struggling to stay on the horse. The crowd of Nobodies and Mother Mildred was almost here. Caden had to leave now.
“Deber!” he yelled. “Kick, girl!”
Deber reeled back her hind leg and slammed it into Dom’s stomach. He crashed through a stall door, bringing it to the ground in a pile of splintered wood.
“If you’re coming then get on!” Caden said to Annika. She grabbed his arm and pulled herself up behind him. As soon as her arms were wrapped around him just like Tooby’s, Caden squeezed Deber with his legs and gave the command again.
“Let’s go, go, go, girl! Go!”
But Deber didn’t budge. It was too late. Everyone was outside the stable. The Nobodies, Mother Mildred, and Mr. Stercus were standing together as an impenetrable wall of shocked faces.
“Caden!” Mother Mildred shrieked. “What are you doing? Get off Deber right now!”
Deber fidgeted her hooves uncomfortably. She’d gotten Caden’s signal to run, but she knew better than to gallop straight at a group of people. Caden closed his eyes and grit his teeth. He didn’t want to do this any more than she did, but they had no choice.
“I … I’m sorry!” he shouted. He squeezed Deber again and she let out a pained growl. This time she obeyed. She ran straight at the crowd full speed. There were screams as everyone scrambled to move out of the way of the rampaging horse, but the loudest came from the back of the stable.
“Caden has Iltech!” Dom boomed. “He has an Iltech spider!”
As Deber galloped away, Caden opened his eyes and looked behind at the terrified faces he and Annika were speeding away from. He had Iltech, he’d broken a holy contract, and he’d stolen a horse. He was a criminal now. Caden gripped the reins and turned his attention back to where they were headed, desperately trying to suppress the wringing feeling in his gut.
“Where are we running away to?” Annika asked from behind.
“I … I don’t know,” Caden admitted.
“You don’t know?” She didn’t sound as excited as before.
“Tooby, the spider thing, he knows where to go,” Caden said, trying to sound confident. “But first we’ve got to get to the woods. Once we do that, we’re safe.”
Annika didn’t reply. Caden tugged Deber’s reins and steered her sprinting legs past the kitchen and bathroom shacks, then around the Home itself. Tied up to a post in the front yard was Mr. Stercus’s red stallion, munching apathetically on some hay as Caden and Annika zoomed past. Caden took another look back at the group they’d left behind. Everyone was as small as ants in the distance, except for Mr. Stercus who was huffing and puffing in a feeble attempt at pursuit.
Caden allowed himself a smile. Somehow, even with everything going wrong, they had managed to escape. The only ones who could chase after him were Mother Mildred and Mother Laura riding Mara, and they wouldn’t dare go as fast as
Caden. And he couldn’t imagine Mr. Stercus managing to wheeze his way to his stallion before they were out of sight. They were actually going to make it.
“Oh no,” Annika whimpered, pointing ahead. Three horses had emerged from the archway of trees around the entrance to the path to Salem. One of them was Reabon ridden by Mother Nadine. The other two riders—Caden didn’t know them, but he recognized them immediately. They were Holy Police.
Caden had never seen the Holy Police himself, but he’d heard enough whispers from the Nobodies to know what they looked like. They wore a pure white uniform from head to toe with Gotama’s Ant emblazoned on the front. Only their faces cut out from the rest of the cloth showed that they were human. Their horses were tall and muscular, twice the size of Mara, with white saddles and reins.
But the scariest part was what they were carrying. Slung over each of the Holy Police’s backs was a sheath containing their trademark weapon: the crossbow. There was no use running from the Holy Police; you’d just get an arrow in the back. Caden had heard stories told between Nobodies when they thought no one was listening. Tales of tears being spilled as they recounted how their parents had to choose between running away from the Police or surrendering. All the ones who had run didn’t make it very far.
And now, Caden was going to have to make the same choice.
“Those are Holy Police,” Annika said, her fingers digging into Caden’s sides. “What are they doing here?”
“I don’t know,” Caden said. He had a sinking feeling that the Police had come for him. They needed to find a way to escape without being spotted before—
The Home bellrock started ringing. The clanging echoed as loudly as last night, like a pounding stone heart warning of danger. Mother Nadine and the Holy Police stopped, and their gaze immediately fell to Caden and Annika riding Deber. In unison, both Police reached behind and grabbed their crossbows, ready to fire.
“We’ve got to turn around!” Annika yelled. “They’ll shoot us!”
“I know, I know!” Caden said. He yanked Deber’s reins and skidded her off to the side, away from the path to Salem. The Holy Police were only a few hundred feet away. They were peering into the sight of their crossbows. Any second, Caden and Annika would have an arrow through their heads.
“Go, girl! Go, go, go!” Caden shouted. He kicked Deber’s sides and cracked her reins. She whinnied out loud as she burst away even faster. As soon as she kicked up speed, two arrows pierced the air behind them, sticking deep into the grass like nails driven in by hammers.
Caden glanced behind, dreading what he was going to see. The reality was even worse. The two Holy Police were chasing them, masterfully riding their horses as they held their crossbows steady in front, taking their time to aim carefully. Caden knew that unless they did something, the next shots were not going to miss.
“They’re shooting at us!” Annika said. “We’ve got to get away!”
“I’m going as fast as I can!” Caden said. The Home was nothing but open fields and pasture. There was nowhere to escape or hide until they got to the woods.
“Tooby!” Caden shouted. “What do we do? Tell me where we should—”
An arrow sliced through the air behind Caden, ending in a piercing pop. He looked back to see where the arrow had hit him, but the Police hadn’t been aiming for him. The arrow had struck Deber right in the rear.
Deber cried out and nearly shook Caden and Annika right off. Caden pulled the reins to get her under control, and even though he knew she was in pain, kicked her to keep going. Deber gave a high-pitch shriek and slowed to a crawl, limping with her back leg. Caden felt horrible, but if she didn’t keep moving then pretty soon they’d all have arrows in them. Panicked, he looked back. The Holy Police were reloading their crossbows. In just a few seconds, they could shoot at point-blank range.
“Tooby!” Caden cried. “What do we do?”
Tooby rotated his head backward, then forward again, scanning their predicament. His red eyes flashed wildly.
“Caden Aire,” Tooby said in his usual calm voice, “earlier today you asked me how I found you.”
This was not the response Caden had expected.
“Tooby, I don’t know if you noticed, but there’s two Holy Police behind us ready to—”
“I sensed your electric signal,” Tooby continued. “There are very few remaining in the world, and yours became stronger the closer I got to you. You must do the same to find your father. Follow the electric signals.”
“What are you talking about?” Caden demanded. “I don’t know how to sense anything!”
“I am sorry, Caden Aire,” Tooby said. Caden felt the spider’s metal legs detach from his back. “I will not be able to accompany you any farther. My life’s purpose is complete, but yours is just beginning. It was a pleasure to finally meet you. Farewell.”
Before Caden could say anything, Tooby scuttled around Annika and leaped off Deber toward the Holy Police. He soared through the air and latched onto one of their faces. The man screeched to a halt. He screamed and dropped his crossbow, grabbing at Tooby and trying to pry him off. His partner watched in horror as both their horses stumbled from shock, stopping in their tracks.
“Tooby!” Caden yelled. “What are you—”
Tooby exploded into a thick cloud of dirt and fire. Chunks of smoldering earth seared past Caden, smacking him and Annika as hot dust filled the air. Caden couldn’t see. He could only cough into his gloves to ward off the burning in his throat. He squinted his itchy eyes and looked back to where the Holy Police and Tooby had been moments ago. Now there was just a scorched crater and plumes of black ash rising to the sky.
“Tooby!” Caden screamed. There was no sign of the spider. No reflection of any metal, no scuttling legs, no flashing eyes. Caden gave Deber a good squeeze with his legs. She growled in protest, still in pain from the arrow protruding out of her backside, but obediently hobbled toward the aftermath.
“Caden,” Annika said from behind, “we have to get out of here.”
“No! I’m not leaving without my friend!”
From not far away, Caden heard the unmistakable deep wail of a stallion. Mr. Stercus was coming after them, and Mother Mildred on Mara wouldn’t be far behind.
“I don’t know what that spider was,” Annika said, gripping Caden’s shoulders, “but it … it sacrificed itself, so we could escape. Don’t let it go to waste by staying here and getting caught.”
Caden’s chest felt like it was filled with ice. No matter how much he blinked, the stinging tears wouldn’t stop. He closed his eyes and yanked Deber’s reins to turn around.
“Thank you, Tooby,” Caden whispered. He gave Deber a light kick, and they staggered away into the cover of the woods.
Later that night at the Home, the bellrock had stopped ringing, and night covered the fields and forest like a thick, silencing blanket. Mother Mildred and the Nobodies were inside after a day of mourning. Everyone had spent the daylight hours searching for Caden and Annika. Mother Mildred had dispatched groups of younger Nobodies through the fields and orchards, and Mr. Stercus had led the older Nobodies into the forest, scouring for any sign of blood or tracks.
But all they found was the scorched crater by the woods. When more Holy Police arrived to investigate, they roped off the area and didn’t allow anyone near it. Rumors spread. Some of the Nobodies claimed Caden was carrying an Iltech bomb when he escaped, others claimed Metl blasted him from the heavens. With Metl and its blood-red X now dwarfing the moon in the night sky, it seemed possible.
Once the sun had set, the search was called off. The Holy Police declared Caden, Annika and Deber dead, killed in the explosion along with the other two Police, and they told the Mothers to keep quiet about what had happened. It was a solemn time at the Home as Mr. Stercus left with just Dom—the only time an adopter had ever left without their adoptee. Mother Mildred led funeral prayers inside the Home and failed at holding back tears. At t
he front of the hall, where the bodies would normally be laid, there was only a small wooden box. No one asked why the box was being used in place of Caden and Annika, and Mother Mildred didn’t offer any explanation.
But hours later, once the Nobodies had been sent to their rooms for the night, someone else started searching for Caden. Someone who didn’t belong at the Home.
There were two people. One of them was a tall figure shrouded in a black robe and hood. The image of a red double-tailed scorpion surrounded by a gray circle was imprinted on the back. Peering out of the hood was a white mask with two eye holes and a permanently smiling mouth. The other figure was much shorter, half the size of the tall one, but otherwise a copy in every way—same black robe, hood, and scorpion. But instead of a smile, the shorter one’s white mask was twisted into a frown of agony.
The two figures emerged silently from the forest and walked as if hovering toward the roped-off crater. Burnt grass and pieces of the Holy Police’s uniforms still littered the ground. The two figures stopped and the taller one bent down. He picked something off the ground and inspected it close to his eye holes. It was long, thin, and metal. It was part of one of Tooby’s legs.
“Look here, Six. A Spyder unit,” he said. His voice was deep and cold, spoken as if every word was chilled on the way out. Six came closer to look.
“You don’t think it found him, do you, Five?” she asked. Six’s voice was high-pitched and curious. It did not match the horrified look of the mask. Five placed the metal leg inside the pocket of his robe.
“Let’s go find out,” he said. They walked toward the Home. The lamps in the hall were still lit. Aside from Metl’s red X in the sky, the gentle glow coming from the windows was the only light in the darkness. The two figures stopped in front of the Home’s wooden door and Five extended his hand. As if obeying his command, the door swung open, revealing Mother Mildred alone in the hall, caressing Caden’s empty wooden box. She gasped and dropped it when she saw the two intruders in the doorway.
