“What’s wrong?” I asked sliding my knife back into its sleeve hidden under my pant leg.
“We—I don’t have much time. We must move,” she looked down to the ground as she stepped past me pulling her shawl around her body.
“Hey, wait!” I called turning around. She turned too quickly glancing at me before looking back down at the ground.
“I understand that something is wrong but before I can fully understand this situation we need to get rid of these men.”
She looked up at me, nodding. “Of course.”
“Do you see a black hole anywhere?”
We both scanned the forest floor.
“Right there.” Jo pointed.
“Perfect.” I bent down hooking my arms under the first man’s arms.
“I’m sorry Abigail. I would help you but I’m afraid I can’t, I’ll use too much energy. I don’t have much left.”
I sighed. “It’s okay. It’s only like twenty feet away. I can do it. Just stay right there.”
***
Half an hour later my arms were heavy but I stood up as straight as I could in front of Jo placing my hands on my hips and taking a deep breath. “Okay. Done.”
“Let’s go.” She smiled.
“Are we going to Ether?”
“Yes. Well, sort of.”
“Sort of? What?” I asked as I followed behind her. “What does that mean?”
“Well, we’re going to Ether but not Ether City. We are going far outside the city walls. Hopefully, we’ll make it there before nightfall.”
“Where are we going?” I asked. She was surprisingly fast. I had to take quick steps to keep up with her.
“The City of Spirits.”
“City of Spirits?” She was surprisingly easy to get answers out of. “City of—” I stopped short. “Wait!”
She turned to face me as we reached the base of the steps.
“Are we talking the City of Spirits? The one that is the farthest city from Ether City?”
“Not the farthest but yes,” she nodded.
“I have read about it. There is no way we’ll make it there before nightfall. It’s already mid-afternoon. That’s almost a two day trip maybe three on foot.”
“Well then we better get going,” she turned away starting up the stairs.
“We have no idea what comes out at night now. We could be killed. Then I’ll never find them. I’ll never find my family or friends or all of Ether.”
When we reached the top of the stairs she turned to me again. “By getting to the City of Spirits it will help you in your quest to find everyone.”
I sighed showing my frustration. I really shouldn’t be considering that this woman just saved my life but sometimes it’s just not an opinion. “Do you know how to get there?”
“I haven’t been there for many years but I’m sure I can remember the way.”
Suddenly a raven dipped to hover between us. It flew closer to me before circling us three times and flying away.
“Hey! Come back!”
The raven from earlier?
“It worked,” Jo whispered as a smile grew on her face.
“Worked? What worked?”
“It worked!” She cheered, tears forming in her eyes.
I was clearly missing something. “Okay, was that a sign that I didn’t understand?” I asked pointing to the sky. “Owl use to—does that but that isn’t Owl. That’s a raven. Well, the last time I checked that was a raven,” I paused. “He led me to the forest and showed me the symbol for Limbo engraved in a rock embedded in the ground. I think that might be where Ryan is because when I asked it if it knew Ryan and Chase it said it did but it only said that he knew where Ryan was.”
She laughed. “Yes, that was a raven. And yes, that is what Owl does. Ryan and I were trying to send you a message. It worked. I can’t believe I got it, though, before they blocked me. Have you seen him before? His name is Charlie, by the way. Charlie!” She yelled his name and the bird came flying to land on her shoulder.
The only thing my brain could focus on though was the fact that she was with Ryan. My knees almost buckled. “Wait. What about Ryan? He’s alive?”
She nodded. “Yes. Yes, he is.”
“What about Chase?” I could feel the tears stinging my eyes.
Her smile fell.
“Is he dead?”
“I—I don’t know. I’m sorry.”
Anger filled my chest.
“What do you mean you don’t know? Wasn’t Chase with Ryan? They are always together it seems.”
“We don’t know where he is. I couldn’t feel him at all. I have no idea if he’s dead or alive. But Ryan is and most of Ether is. That’s a start, right?”
I closed my eyes lowering my head. She was right.
“Where are they in Limbo?”
“I don’t know.”
I snapped my head up. “What? Weren’t you just with Ryan? I do recall you saying this.”
“Yes, but when they took me away I don’t remember anything from the time I left the cave until I got to the forest on Earth. They’re in a cave in Limbo somewhere. That’s all I know.”
Cave. Limbo. That’s a start, right? More than I knew a minute ago at least.
“How is the City of Spirits going to help me?”
“We might be able to get Ryan back. He can then help you find Chase. He has something—I can’t tell you here. It’s not safe but once we—you get there I—or someone will tell you the whole story and exactly what you need to do to find Ryan.”
“What happened to you? Why do you keep implying that you’re not going to make it there?”
“They poisoned me. I can feel it. I’m slowly dying. Anytime I move—breath, really, I drain the little energy I have. When I use my magic I drain it faster.”
“You’re dying?”
She nodded.
Even though I had just met this woman I was upset. “Let me go get some more knives and what little food I can find. God knows what’s going to be out there.”
I turned towards the large doors of Ether City. The walk seemed quicker than usual. It seemed we were just down in the forest but now we had already made it to the city.
“What? I thought you said that night was coming,” she replied grabbing my arm.
“It is but if you’re dying then we don’t have time to waste,” I stared at her as she slowly released my arm from her hold.
“Isn’t it too dangerous to travel at night?”
“I have no idea. Isn’t any time of day or night really safe anymore?”
We shared a long moment of silence before she nodded.
“Okay.”
CHAPTER EIGHT - ABIGAIL
“Are we almost there? Are you okay? Can you make it?” I asked trying to take most of Jo’s weight.
“Almost—almost there. Keep—keep going.”
“We can stop.”
“Can’t,” she replied trying to shake her head. “Through rocks.”
“Through rocks?” I asked. I tightened my grip around her waist as I looked ahead to the mountains that seemed to climb into the clouds. “Straight? Blink once for yes.”
I turned my head to watch her as we walked. Her eyes closed then slowly opened.
“Okay.” I nodded. We both knew that she wasn’t good. When we were attacked a day ago it took the little energy she had conserved. Now her breathing was labored and she could hardly hold her head up. I was doing all I could to help but I felt like I wasn’t doing enough. In the three days we’ve been walking I have come to learn a lot about her. Seeing her deteriorating so fast made my heart hurt more than it already did. While there was a ray of hope that I might find Ryan, Jo was dying.
My eyes began to water.
Don’t break down now, Abigail. I can’t. I don’t have the time too. I have people to save. When everything is said and done that is when you can cry but right now you need to be brave... or whatever I need to be I need to be it. Remember the goal. Is that
something Michael would have said? No, Chase?
“What—what are you thinking?” Jo whispered.
I took a deep breath leaning to my right to take more of her weight. “I’m thinking about how we’re almost there and once we get there I’m going to get you help and everything is going to be okay. And you are going to be able to help me find Ryan. And we’ll find your daughter too.”
A weak laugh escaped her lips. “Honey, don’t—don’t you—worry about me.”
I shook my head. “We’ll talk when we get there. Don’t waste your energy.”
I moved my hand down to her hip to get more leverage.
“C-can you keep talking? It keeps my mind busy. We’re almost there. Just—the big rocks,” her head dropped.
“Jo!” Panic ripped through my body.
She mumbled something.
“Okay. Well, the sun looks like it’s trying to come out. First time since the battle I would say. It might actually be a beautiful day if I could say that. I remember one day when I was seven—I think it was right after I broke my arm, anyway, that morning the sun was flooding into my room and my parents and brother, Carson, decided that we would have breakfast in bed because I wasn’t feeling well. They were trying to cheer me up, which it did. But the funny thing was that that same day my brother decided to fall from his bike and break his wrist. So I wanted to do the same thing that they did for me because I figured if it cheered me up it would cheer Carson up too. So the next morning we woke Carson up and had breakfast in his bed,” I weakly smiled as we began to walk through the path between two rocks that were almost the height of the Ether City walls. My story wasn’t important at all, and I was rambling but I was just trying to keep talking like Jo asked. “My parents couldn’t believe they have two children with broken arms. We were always hard on ourselves when we were younger.”
The rock that was scraping my shoulder disappeared and it was like we had walked into Heaven on Earth—if I knew what Heaven looked like and if we were on Earth. The sky was perfectly clear—the clearest I have seen in ages. For some reason, I felt lighter. There was a perfectly groomed dirt path leading into the city with small trees placed evenly from each other on either side of the path. The grass that the greenest grass I have ever seen in my life.
“We’re—we made it! The City of Spirits, Jo! We—” I looked down at her to see her head hanging. “Jo!”
I turned my head trying to see as far down the path as I possibly could. “Anyone! Is anyone there?”
It was like they came out of thin air. Four women and two men. All of them were dressed in white which flowed around them as they walked towards us.
“Can you please help me? Can you help her?”
“Abigail. We have been expecting you.”
At this moment I didn’t care how or why they knew me I just wanted to get Jo help.
“Josephine.”
They were all so calm. The two men took her from my tight grip. Once I didn’t have her weight to carry anymore it was then that I realized how exhausted I was.
“The tree.”
“Tree?” I looked down at my arm.
Tree?
My arm felt funny but it wasn’t painful. I couldn’t put my finger on what it was, it just felt different.
“Are you okay? You look tired,” the woman with long orange hair that fell past her waist placed a hand on my arm. I realized then that I couldn’t remember the last time I had actually slept.
“I’m—I’m fine. Thank you,” I weakly smiled.
“Your energy is extremely low.”
“Ener—energy?” I couldn’t seem to form my words.
“Sit her down.”
I looked up to see exactly where they were taking Jo and me.
I froze. The woman took her hand from my shoulder joining the others at the base of the tree where they sat Jo.
The tree towered over me. It must have been at least five stories high. Most of its leaves have fallen and were laying around the large perimeter of the tree. I looked down at my right arm. Looking up again I took a step back taking another look at the tree and my arm.
No.
“Way,” I breathed. “The same. Exactly.”
How?
“Are they the same?”
The confusion that I felt was quickly put on the back burner when I heard: “She’s not well.”
I ran under the tree sliding in front of Jo as the others circled around either side of her. Her back leaned against the tree as she tried to lift her head.
“Brothers. Sisters. Help me,” she tried to raise her hands.
Are all of these people witches too?
I leaned back so I was sitting on my heels as the six joined hands taking hold of Jo’s hands last. I looked over my shoulder to see that they had formed a circle around me. While Jo’s head was already bowed the others did the same.
They started to hum softly. As they did it felt as if someone squeezed all the air from my lungs. I raised my hand pushing it to my chest. I tried to suck in any air that I could but my throat felt like there was a cover over it. My head began to pound and my vision became blurry.
What’s happening? I can’t die.
I fell to the ground. My eyes closed and didn’t open again. My chest burned with the lack of oxygen. When I felt that I couldn’t take the pain anymore and was on the verge of unconsciousness a vision of Ryan played in my mind. He was on the ground tucked into a tight ball, something pressed in his hands. Before I could see any more of the picture faded to black and I felt reality slip from me.
***Ryan***
“How are you today?” I asked as I placed a hand on Ms. Wilson’s back as she rocked a baby girl, singing softly.
“Not enough food. Not enough water. Many of them want their families back. A few of them have caught something, but other than that we’re doing okay.”
“Mhm.” I placed my other hand in my pocket taking hold of the pendant. Ms. Wilson jumped. I took my hand from her back and my pocket stepping back from her.
“Shh, shh,” She said as she stood trying to quiet the now crying baby in her arms.
“What’s wrong?”
“What did you just do?” She asked, her eyes wide with shock.
“What did I do? I didn’t do anything.”
“What’s in your pocket?” She asked shushing the baby once again. A few of the many toddlers came pulling at our legs but she quickly shooed them all away.
“My pocket?”
“Yes, Ryan. Your pocket,” she snapped.
I was taken aback by her harsh tone but I reached into my pocket pulling the pendant out.
She gasped. “Where did you get that?”
“Jo. A woman I met. She gave it to me. She said that it might help Abigail fine me—us.”
“Josephine?” She breathed.
“Yes,” I nodded. “Do you know her?”
“Oh yes. One of the greatest witches to ever grace the Worlds.” Tears came to her grey eyes. “She’s in trouble isn’t she?”
I dropped my gaze to the ground.
“Tommy, come to take Lily-Ann please.”
I watched a boy that couldn’t be any older than seven came to take the small baby from Ms. Wilson’s arms.
Ms. Wilson wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “It’s going to take time. Abigail will find you. All of us. Give them time. I know Josephine. She’s going to do anything and everything in her power to get all of us home. Was that who they took the other day?”
I nodded as the tears welled up in my eyes. I opened my hand looking down at the pendant. A tear splashed off the pendant. A weak glow radiated from it as my heart felt like it was going to explode.
Gasping I closed my hand around the pendant, dropping to my knees.
“Ryan?”
“I—I—I—ca—” I fell to the ground curling into a tight ball. My hands pushed against my chest as I tried to reduce the pain.
“Ryan, close your eyes. They are trying to help you. It’s
Jo. I promise you, it’s Jo. Close your eyes. Close your eyes!”
As I struggled to inhale I forced my eyes shut.
“Do you see anything? Just wait. You’ll see something.” I felt Ms. Wilson’s hands on my body but I couldn’t tell where.
The blackness I saw slowly faded into a dark, grainy picture of Abigail standing in front of the tree portrayed on the pendant. Suddenly the picture changed and I saw what looked to be the stairs leading to Ether. Everything faded.
“Ryan, your fading. I can’t see you. Ryan, you’re going to be able to leave. You’re invisible. It’s the Spirits. I can feel them. You’re going to save us. Abigail is going to save us. Oh!” Ms. Wilson cried. “Jo did it!”
The pain dissipated but my body still felt funny. “Ms. Wilson?”
She didn’t respond as kids crowded around her.
I sat up placing the pendant on my leg.
“Ryan.” Ms. Wilson gasped. She lunged towards me awkwardly placing me in a tight hug even though she couldn’t see me.
I looked down at my hand only seeing the ghostly figure of it. I was invisible.
“Don’t you ever let go of that pendant until you reach Ether or find Abigail or Chase, you hear me?” She whispered in my ear.
I nodded.
She pulled away holding my shoulders. “Good.”
“Stay safe, please. If this works I promise I’ll come back and get you,” memories of playing in Ms. Wilson’s yard when she used to babysit me when I was young brought tears to my eyes.
“I know. Go. Go!”
I jumped up without another word. I held the pendant tight in my hand as I started towards the only exit.
Is this one step closer? Should I get my hopes up? But where’s Chase? Where’s Abigail?
I was already halfway to the exit when metal began to scrape against the rock. I squeezed the pendent tighter into my hand. The rush of people began, like when they came to get Jo but this time they were bringing in barrels of water.
The Divine Fallen Page 5
