The Mad Apprentice

by Django Wexler

  Alice shrugged uncomfortably. “I’m sure you would do the same for me.”

  “No,” Soranna said. “I wouldn’t.”

  She walked ahead, leaving Alice staring after her.

  CHAPTER TEN

  THE COILS OF THE LABYRINTH

  “SISTER ALICE! BEHIND YOU!”

  A long, mottled green-and-purple tentacle with razor-edged suction cups slid up over the side of the bridge. It waved back and forth for a moment, as though tasting the air, then snaked in her direction.

  Alice felt like a car with only fumes in the gas tank. She’d never pushed her magical abilities this hard for this long, not even against the Dragon. This was the seventh or eighth bridge they’d crossed—she’d lost count—and practically every step of the way had been contested by monsters. It was like walking through a zoo where all the cages had opened, and the lions and bears were free to snack on the guests. Except that Alice would have welcomed a good, honest lion at this point, compared to the menagerie of weird insectoid and crustacean creatures that had attacked them.

  For what felt like the hundredth time that day, she reached for her threads.

  Dex, on the other side of the bridge, was fending off a similar tentacle with her paired swords. Ahead, the octopus creature had heaved its body onto the thin stone walkway, clacking a bright orange beak. Isaac directed a storm of sleet and ice into its eyes and Ellen sent bolts of blinding energy into the tentacles as they came into view.

  As usual, it was Garret who really turned the battle in their favor. As Isaac froze the creature in place, the older boy slowly and methodically slashed the thing to pieces. Its mucus-wet hide was too thick for his shadow-waves to leave more than long cuts, so he concentrated on the tentacles, severing them one by one. The octopus-thing gave a curious groaning bellow, severed stumps spouting an awful green fluid, and dragged itself back under the bridge with its surviving limbs.

  The next tower was only a few hundred feet away. Without discussion, the six apprentices ran toward it. Alice paused to grab Soranna’s hand, though her legs felt like lead weights and her feet screamed with pain at every step. She practically cried out with relief as they made it through the doorway and into the now-familiar circular room with its central mound of books. Alice lowered herself to the ground, shaking, and Dex sat down beside her. Soranna simply collapsed into a heap against the pile of books, eyes closed and breathing hard.

  Even Garret’s eyes were bright with exhaustion, but he remained on his feet, stalking around the pile of books.

  “There should be another bridge off this level that leads straight to the dome. I could see it from the outside,” he said. “As long as we keep going . . . Oh.”

  He stopped. Alice roused herself enough to peer over the mound of books, and saw him standing on the other side of the room, staring at unbroken wall.

  “Wonderful,” Ellen said. “I thought we climbed to the roof of that last tower so you could see where we were going.”

  “We did. And I did see where we were going.”

  “Evidently not.” She let out a heartfelt sigh. “I suppose that means another climb.”

  “I know this is the right way to the center,” Garret insisted. “The next bridge is just a level or two up or down, that’s all. I’ll find it.”

  “Brother Garret,” Dex said. “We need to rest. Perhaps afterward I could help to find the way?”

  “I’ve got this under control.” He frowned. “And I don’t want to stay here any longer than we have to.”

  “I’m not sure I can cross another bridge,” Dex said.

  “She’s right,” Ellen said. “And we’re getting sloppier. If we keep pushing, somebody is going to get badly hurt.”

  “All right, all right,” Garret said. “I’ll see if I can find the next bridge. The rest of you just . . . wait here, all right? This should be safe enough. Don’t wander off.”

  “I’m coming with you,” Ellen said.

  Garret seemed too tired even to argue. The two teenagers mounted the stairs leading to the next level up. Isaac, who had been lurking by the doorway, circled around the mound of books until he was out of view and then thumped to the ground. Dex shifted to a cross-legged position, hands resting in her lap, and closed her eyes. Soranna looked as though she was already asleep.

  Alice, in spite of her weariness, reached out for her threads. Her grip closed around the black line linking her to the Dragon.

  You can hear me. I know you can.

  There was a long, empty silence. Then, with a sigh, the Dragon’s mental voice answered.

  I can hear you. But you are deep within the labyrinth now.

  We should be only a little ways from the keep, Alice thought. It’s changing around us, isn’t it? That’s why Garret is getting lost.

  Yes. The connections of a labyrinth are under the control of its guardian. He shifts it to bring you into conflict with the resident creatures.

  We’re holding our own so far.

  Alice was honest enough to admit, to herself, that Garret and Ellen had been holding up more than their weight in that respect. Her initial irritation at Garret’s arrogance had faded a little as the extent of his power became obvious. His shadow-waves were accurate and deadly, and his magical strength seemed to be limitless.

  He is toying with you, the Dragon said. If he wanted to destroy you, it would be simple.

  You say “he.” Do you know who the guardian is?

  I believe so. The Dragon hesitated. He is a labyrinthine named Torment. A cruel, vicious creature.

  So what do I do now? Garret and Ellen won’t turn back until we’ve found Jacob.

  I do not know. It’s possible you may be able to save yourself, if Torment is distracted by the others.

  I’m not going to just leave them.

  Then you will die. The Dragon’s voice vanished abruptly.

  “Fat lot of good you are,” Alice muttered. She leaned back against the pile of books, which shifted slightly under her weight. A small volume with one cover torn off slithered down and bumped against the back of her head.

  I’ll figure something out, she told herself. There was a gnawing, jittery feeling in the pit of her stomach that she couldn’t banish, no matter how she tried. Ashes told me we were going to die when we fell into the Swarm book. And Isaac said the same thing when we fought the Dragon. We’ll get through this too.

  Somehow . . .

  Alice opened her eyes.

  She hadn’t intended to sleep, but exhaustion had crept up on her. There was no indication of how long it had been—the night sky visible out the doorway was the same, and the flickering torches still burned at intervals around the walls. Her legs ached abominably, with the bone-deep feeling that warns of aches to come. Nevertheless, she struggled to her feet, causing another small landslide of books.

  Dex and Soranna were both asleep too. The others were nowhere to be seen. Alice circled the book-pile, in case Isaac had nodded off on the other side, but there was no sign of him. She looked at the spiral staircase, sighed, and started to climb.

  I have to try and convince them. One more time. Even Garret must see that we can’t keep this up forever. And if she happened to find Isaac dozing off, then she could pin him down and demand to know why he was avoiding her. This is getting ridiculous. Could I have done something to upset him? He was the one who trapped me with the Siren song and stole the Dragon’s book!

  There was no one on the next level or the one after that. Alice shook her head and kept climbing, trying to force some life into her aching thighs.

  On the next floor—just below the roof, she judged—she heard the quiet sound of breathing under the low crackle of the torches. Thinking it might be Isaac, Alice padded around the ubiquitous mound of books as quietly as she could.

  Instead she found Garret, leaning back against the pile with his
head tipped back and his nose in the air. He looked so silly Alice almost giggled. His cloak flared out to one side, and it took her a moment to realize that it was Ellen underneath it, pressed up tight against him. Her head rested lightly on his shoulder, and his hand was snugged around her waist.

  Cheeks turning beet red, Alice retreated as quietly as she had come, back to the stairway. She shook her head. I could have sworn she couldn’t stand him. They do nothing but argue. It was, she thought, a very odd way to behave.

  Having come so far, she decided to climb one more flight, and take a look at the castle from the top of the tower. The steps led up to a circular roof surrounded by an iron railing. To one side, the central dome loomed, surrounded by towers and their wild web of bridges and looking as far away as ever. There was still no sign of Isaac.

  What happened to him? Something was badly wrong, she could feel it. She wanted to track him down, to grab him and make him tell her what it was, but her pride wouldn’t allow it. Why should I go running after him? The image of Garret and Ellen cuddling together on the level below sprang to mind, unbidden, and Alice felt herself blushing again. She turned away from the stairs and grabbed the railing, the smooth metal cold under her fingers. It’s not like that at all.

  She stood there for some time, staring out at the castle without really seeing it. When she finally turned around, fingers stiff from gripping the railing too tightly, she discovered she was no longer alone on the platform.

  “You don’t know how hard it is.”

  There was a boy standing there. He was taller than Alice, but so thin, he was painful to look at, as though he hadn’t eaten for days. His brown hair was a ratty mess, and his cheeks were sallow and sunken, giving his face the look of a skull. Blue eyes stared out at her from deep, dark sockets.

  Beside him there was another shape that Alice could hardly make out. It was inky black, not the glossy, furry black of a black cat but black like a hole cut out of the world. She could only tell it was there at all by its silhouette against the stars, until it turned its head toward her. Then a few details became visible—long ivory fangs, yellowed and sharp at the points, and a broad, canine tongue the color of old blood. Above them was a pair of eyes, as blue white as river ice, the pupils huge circles in the dim light.

  It was a dog—not a dog, Alice thought, a wolf—the size of a horse. In the depths of its gaze she felt a frightening intelligence, and she was forcibly reminded of the first time she’d met Ending, staring into her yellow cat-slitted eyes in the shadows of the library.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  TORMENT

  THE BOY SHOWED NO awareness of the wolf at his shoulder. He gave Alice a hesitant smile, and waved one hand weakly.

  “Hi,” he said. “We thought . . . I thought . . . we’d have a visit. You know. Talk about things. We don’t think . . .” He trailed off, as though he’d lost his place, and shook his head. “I’m not sure. It’s hard to remember. What’s your name?”

  “Alice,” said Alice, doing her best not to stare past the boy at the huge figure of the wolf. “But who are you?”

  “I’m . . . I’m Ev—” He stopped, and his brow furrowed, as though with considerable mental effort. “Jacob. I’m Jacob.”

  “Jacob.” Alice’s eyes went wide. “You’re Esau’s apprentice?”

  “Yes. Or I was. Until I killed him.” Jacob gave a sad little giggle.

  “But we’ve come to find you!” Alice said. “You can come back with us. We’ll all get out of here.”

  “I’d like—” Jacob stopped, eyes bulging. His throat worked, as if he were choking.

  “You’ve come here to kill him, you mean,” said another, much deeper voice. The wolf padded forward a step. It was big enough to look down at Alice. “Or drag him to your masters, which amounts to the same thing.”

  “I . . .” Alice couldn’t exactly deny that. “If you can explain, it might help.”

  “I didn’t want to do it,” Jacob said with sudden vehemence. “I couldn’t help it. I didn’t have a choice—”

  “That’s about enough out of you,” the wolf interrupted. Jacob stopped speaking immediately, as if he’d been gagged. “I apologize for his gibbering. Do you know who I am, girl?”

  Jacob’s eyes were desperate and pleading. Alice looked away from him with an effort to stare up at the wolf.

  “I can guess,” she said. “You’re Torment. Esau’s labyrinthine, the guardian of this labyrinth.”

  “I see my sister Ending has explained a bit,” Torment said. “She’s also told me a good deal about you. I wanted to get a look at you in the flesh.”

  Alice drew herself up a little taller and took a deep breath. “If she’s told you so much about me, she must have mentioned that my name is Alice, not girl. And I don’t appreciate being stared at like a zoo exhibit.”

  Torment chuckled, a deep, wet sound. “I see she was not exaggerating about you.”

  “Now that you’ve gotten your look, what do you want with us? Are you going to keep leading us around in circles?”

  “It has been amusing, I must say. Your struggle is pointless, but you’re so persistent. I would love to drag this out for days. How long would you keep trying? Until there were four of you left? Three? Two?” He leaned closer, until Alice could feel the hot wind of his breath. His eyes were huge, blue-fringed pools. “One? All alone in the dark?”

  “That’s not going to happen.”

  He chuckled again. “I can smell your fear, girl. Don’t worry. You’re perfectly safe. As for the others, it’s past time I disposed of them. A pity to end things so soon, but, as you humans say, needs must.”

  “I’m not going to let you hurt them,” Alice said. Her voice rose. “I’m not!”

  “No?” Torment said. “This is my labyrinth. Here am I everywhere and nowhere. I am the walls, the stairs, the floors, and the sky.” His voice rose to a thunderous roar, so loud that Alice had to clap her hands over her ears and squeeze her eyes shut. “Who are you, Reader, to let me do anything?!”

  When she opened her eyes, Torment and Jacob were gone. Alice, ears still ringing, ran for the stairs, only to find that Garret and Ellen weren’t where she’d left them. She kept running, taking the steps two at a time, but when she reached the level on which they’d come in, there was no sign of Dex or Soranna. Isaac was nowhere to be seen.

  Alice stared around wildly. The pile of books looked different, she was sure of it. She circled it at a run, but couldn’t find the spot where she’d slept. It was hard to tell after running in circles on the staircases, but she thought the doorway was in a different position too.

  It’s not the same tower. Her mind filled with panic. He moved me. And now—

  She turned around and raced back up the steps, fighting a vicious stitch in her side. By the time she got back to the roof, she was panting for breath, but she flung herself against the rail and looked down for any signs of the other apprentices.

  They could be anywhere. In her mind, she could still hear the echoes of Torment’s awful laugh. One? All alone in the dark?

  There! A light bloomed, far below, and Alice recognized the piercing beam of Ellen’s halo amidst a small group of hurrying figures. They were running from a tower doorway onto a long bridge—being chased out, Alice saw, by a swarm of flapping, bat-like things. The creatures circled the light in a vast shoal, swinging toward it in unison, only to be driven away by a burst of brilliant energy from Ellen or waves of shadow from Garret. Beside the two teenagers, the other three apprentices ran hunched over, shielding their faces from the swarm of fliers.

  Alice looked down at the bridges radiating out from the tower she was standing on and did a rapid calculation. None of them would lead her directly to the others, but one would pass over them. From the right spot, a sufficiently insane person could jump, and hope very hard to be on target . . .

  Not much choi
ce. Alice ran back down the stairs until she found the right doorway, and sprinted out onto the bridge. Below her, the small creatures attacking the apprentices had been joined by a pack of much larger things. The little ones turned out to be fish, not bats, with broad, sail-like fins. The bigger creatures were more like dolphins, but with a green sac where the dorsal fin ought to have been. They maneuvered agilely through the air with their flippers. When one of them darted toward the apprentices, Alice saw it bare a mouth full of nasty teeth. Dex ducked and it sailed just over her head. Garret caught the next one with a shadow-wave, and it fell screeching past the bridge and into the darkness.

  They’ll be all right. Alice slowed her headlong run, trotting along the side of her own bridge to keep the battle in view. She was trying to gauge the point at which she should jump—the fall would be forty or fifty feet, which ought to be all right if she hardened herself with the Swarm. Unless, of course, she missed the bridge entirely, in which case it wouldn’t matter how tough her skin was. Maybe this isn’t such a good idea after all.

  Something moaned, a vast, terrifying sound that echoed off the rocky spires and seemed to come from a hundred directions at once. Everyone below froze, looking around for the source of the noise, while the attacking creatures scattered in all directions like startled minnows. Alice was close enough now to hear Ellen shouting and to follow her pointing finger, down into the darkness.

  An enormous, bloated thing rose out of the darkness, lit by its own pale green illumination. It looked like a deformed, rotting whale, covered with huge, scabby lumps. Five stalks protruded from its forehead, like the antennae on a slug, and as all five aimed down at the apprentices, Alice realized those must be its eyes. Enormous, fleshy lips peeled back from interlocking triangular teeth like the blade of a hacksaw. Its tail flipped lazily, propelling it above the bridge and then down toward the apprentices.

  “Get out of the way,” Alice heard Garret yell.

  “But—” Ellen began. He shoved her aside.

  “Go. Now!”