Exiled (The Never Chronicles)

by J. R. Wagner

  The pair silently made their way to the dinghy without incident. They made quick progress across the channel and reached the shore of the second widow within an hour. They secured the small boat and moved down the shoreline to the east, parallel to the course they had just run on the first widow's coast. Kilani had spotted cliffs on the far western side of the second widow. They made their way rapidly to where the shore turned sharply to the northeast.

  James noticed similar-looking tracks in the sand: two pair of large tracks and countless smaller tracks. Based on his pace counting (a mapping trick Luno had taught him), they were approximately across from the tracks he'd spotted on the first widow. Underfoot the soft sand gave way to small stones. As they drew nearer to the southeastern point on the island, the size of the stones lining the shore gradually increased until James and Kilani were hopping from stone to stone. They had decided to avoid going into the jungle (and the mist) until they reached the cliffs.

  The stones became boulders and spilled out into the sea as they reached the southwestern corner. James and Kilani looked up to the north, the cliffs now in sight. Considering the lack of elevation change from the western side of the island to the eastern, James couldn't understand how there were cliffs on this side of the island. By all logic they should be underwater. Knowing better than to question the rationality of The Never, James followed Kilani as she made her way toward the cliffs.

  Unlike the cliffs by Harbor Town, which were virtually smooth and perfectly vertical, these were choked by roots and vines and had numerous ledges and outcroppings. James and Kilani were reassured. Even in The Never, plants needed fresh water to survive.

  Kilani grasped the nearest vine and began to climb. James followed closely. When they reached the first overhang Kilani paused.

  “What is it?” James asked.

  “Those plants,” she said, looking at the low-growing purple and white plants that were tucked into where the vertical face met the outcropping. “I've never seen them before.”

  Before he could stop her, Kilani jumped from the vine to the ledge and carefully pulled one plant, roots and all, from the rock. The long white roots reminded James of the guardian's tendrils. She wound them around the base of the plant and gently placed it in her satchel. James knew they were in a hurry but decided not to rush her. He had long since suspected Kilani's obsession with finding the local ingredients for transporting powder directly correlated with her desire to leave this place and return to … to something.

  Without making eye contact, Kilani jumped from the ledge and grasped the vine above. She continued upward. Near the top, she paused again. James was about to insist that they keep moving when she spoke. “Do you hear that?” she asked.

  “I hear nothing out of the ordinary,” James replied.

  “I hear running water,” she said.

  Without another word, she began moving across the cliff face, jumping from vine to vine. James followed, though he questioned whether several of the vines would hold his weight. When she reached a leaf-covered protrusion, she paused. James froze as he gained purchase on the vine beside her. He listened. Sure enough, he could make out the faint trickle of water echoing through a cavern. Kilani removed her short sword from its sheath and began hacking at the vegetation covering the cliff face. As it fell away, a small shelf was revealed. James climbed until his head was even with the shelf. It stretched back two arm-lengths where a small opening, no higher than James's forearm and no wider than his shoulders, continued into the cliffs.

  Having learned from Luno, James removed a fire-tree leaf from his satchel. He removed a second, which he kept tucked under his belt, and touched them together just above a small torch he'd also kept in his satchel. The leaves immediately ignited and fell in a ball of flame onto the sap-soaked torch. He extended his arm toward the opening, and the light from the torch spilled inside. Kilani crouched, looking.

  “It goes back for some distance,” she said.

  “Can you tell if it opens up?” James asked.

  “No. It curves to the left.”

  James shifted the supplies that hung from his belt to his back for more freedom of movement and crouched. He peered inside and saw just what Kilani had described, and he could hear the sound of running water clearly. There was no doubt that inside was what they were looking for. Getting there would be another matter entirely.

  “I may fit,” James said, measuring the opening with his hands. He looked at Kilani. She had already removed all of the supplies she had been carrying, save a small dagger, which she slid from her hip to the small of her back, and her own ready-made torch.

  “I'll go first to see if it widens,” she said, already lying prone on the shelf and pulling herself toward the opening. After lighting her torch from James's, she wriggled her way inside, shifting her hips from side to side. Her bare feet—eternally dirty, as none of The Never's residents wore shoes—disappeared into the opening.

  Several minutes passed as James watched her silhouette dance in front of the torch that lit her path. Soon the opening fell dark as she turned the corner. Minutes ticked by, each longer than the next. The rustling of her body shuffling along the stone floor ceased, and James's pulse quickened. He called out to her. With each silent moment that passed James could feel his heart steadily making its way up into his throat. Finally she replied. The echo off the tunnel walls made deciphering the words difficult. James thought he made out the words “Come in.”

  He quickly removed his gear, lashing it to the vine hanging over his head, and crawled toward the opening. He began moving into the narrow entrance, gripping his torch awkwardly. James had never liked tight spaces and this was no exception. He kept his arms in front of his body narrowing his shoulders enough to squeeze inside.

  He rounded the bend, grateful that it wasn't a sharp turn. The tunnel began to widen ever so slightly until James was finally able to return his elbows closer to his body and move along at a much faster pace. He also noticed the walls were wet as they shimmered in the torchlight. The sound of the flowing water was much louder and he thought he could hear Kilani calling out to him.

  “I think I'm almost there,” he replied.

  The tunnel widened again, and he was able to crouch. Beneath his feet, James felt moisture for the first time. He could feel each step become less secure, like the algae-covered rocks on shore at low tide. As he placed his foot and shifted his weight, James's legs slipped out from under him, sending him to his back. As he attempted to reorient himself, he realized he was sliding downward on the slime-covered floor at great speed. He tried to gain purchase with his feet and hands but was unsuccessful. The flame of the torch rippled as the air blew past. The sound of water grew louder still and for the first time, James could make out what Kilani was saying.

  “Mind the rocks at the bottom,” she shouted from somewhere below.

  James began to panic as the speed of his descent began to exceed the strength of his light. He tried to sit up but the shifting of his weight only sent him rolling onto his stomach. Before another thought could run through his mind, he felt the impact tear through his feet and up his legs. He bent his knees in hopes of absorbing some of the inertia. His body crumpled and his torch went dark as he let out a pain-stricken cry.

  Minutes, hours, days. James had no idea how long he was unconscious. He thought he might be dead, as a dim glow moved in his direction. The pain quickly reminded him that he was indeed alive. The glow brightened and drew nigh. James could make out a shape beside it. He tried to remember what had happened, where he was, but he could only focus on the approaching light and the figure beside it. It was blurry yet familiar. As it moved closer, James realized who it was. Akil Karanis was standing before him. Akil smiled, nodded, and said, “Get to the castle.”

  James was about to reply when his vision went blurry again. He squeezed his eyes closed. When he opened them, Kilani was standing in front of him. She wore a smirk that gave James a sense of relief. Perhaps his injuries we
ren't as bad as he thought. He tried to move his legs as she crouched over him. Pain shot through his hips and up his back. He let out a cry.

  “Stop trying to move, you bloody idiot,” she said, inspecting his body. “I told you to mind the rocks at the bottom.”

  “And how was I supposed to mind anything? That was like a bloody sheet of ice. How did you escape injury?”

  “I know how to land,” she replied.

  Kilani reached her hands under James's arms and placed her palms against his ribs. Once again, James felt the warmth and energy travel between them. His mind went immediately calm, and the pain and despair that had gripped him a moment ago was gone. He looked into her eyes and she into his, and he longed for her. To touch his lips to hers. To feel her breath against his skin. The need was overwhelming. He reached for her, but she quickly pulled away. Their eyes met again, and she was smiling. It was then that James realized he was standing. The pain in his legs and back were gone. He could move again. He had no idea how it had happened, and before he could ask, Kilani was on the move. “Come,” Kilani said, handing James his re-lit torch and heading off in the direction she had approached from. James followed, forgetting about his vision of Akil as he did.

  The sound of flowing water grew as they moved down the tunnel until it reached a deafening volume. James thought he detected a faint glow ahead. Kilani stopped and looked over her shoulder at him and smiled. A deluge of water spilled across the passageway in front of them. We must be behind a massive waterfall, James thought. He stepped closer, looking for a way around in the torchlight. The water fell up against the passage on all sides, limiting the exit to either turning around or stepping through the powerful stream of water. Because they couldn't see the bottom of the falls, James wasn't comfortable with blindly stepping into the stream. It could be hundreds of feet to the bottom.

  Kilani extended her hand into the stream of water, expecting the force to push it down. She was surprised to feel little resistance. Carefully, she leaned forward and let the water run into her mouth. Neither of them had drunk since early that morning and she could immediately feel the energy rushing back into her body. When she had her fill, she stood upright and motioned to James to drink. He drank greedily from the falls once he also realized the pressure of the water was not a concern. His dark hair, only a fraction shorter than Kilani's, was plastered to his head as he pulled himself back into the tunnel.

  “Take my arm,” she said, extending it to James.

  Without question, James grasped her forearm, just above her wrist. He was confident his reenergized strength would find no difficulty in holding her. Kilani handed James her torch and leaned into the stream of water. James held her by the arm as her head disappeared. Almost immediately, she straightened, a smile on her face.

  “It's all right,” she shouted over the noise. “Take a big step and you'll be fine.”

  “What about the torches?” James asked.

  “There is light on the other side,” she replied.

  Before he could respond, she released her arm from his grip and stepped through the water. James followed, carefully laying the torches on the tunnel floor before stepping through. He immediately found his footing as he passed beneath the falls. The deafening noise ceased the instant he crossed to the other side. He looked up. The light source appeared to be the water itself, for it emitted a soft white light all around the perimeter of the cavern.

  Every wall in the circular cavern was draped in a curtain of water. It was absolutely silent. In the center stood a rock structure James immediately recognized. It was identical to the structure they'd found on the first widow. Careful not to touch it, James and Kilani circled the stone spire. Rather than one column of unidentifiable markings, this had two, each on opposite sides. The top of the stone tower stretched far above the light from the flowing water and into darkness.

  James tried to consider how much time they had spent inside. He wasn't exactly sure, but he knew they must find a way out quickly or their friends would be stranded on the first widow. He looked back to where they entered the cavern and realized he wasn't certain.

  “Do you remember where we entered?” he asked, looking at Kilani. She jumped at the sound of his voice, which was loud in the silent room.

  “Of course, it was right over—” she too stopped to consider. “We stepped in and made our way to the center where the tower stands. The side of the tower we approached had no markings, which limits it to one of two sides.”

  As she said this she moved around the circular spire, looking for some indication of where they had entered. “It's only been a few minutes; we should be able to follow the water that dripped from our—” She reached down and felt her clothes, then her hair, both of which, to her surprise, were completely dry. “Either way, we entered in that direction,” she said, pointing behind James. “Or that direction,” she said, pointing past the tower to the opposite side of the room. “I'll check one. You check the other.”

  James nodded and moved off in the opposite direction. The logic of this approach was sound, but it left much room for error, which made James uncomfortable. He began to circle the stone spire stopping exactly halfway between the two columns of markings and began moving toward the curtain of water opposite his position. He looked over his shoulder repeatedly to confirm he was maintaining the proper heading. When he reached the water, he marveled at its beauty as it shimmered in its own luminescence.

  Cautiously, he extended his hand into the water. His fingers contacted the wall behind before his entire hand was through the stream. He placed his hand flat against it and began walking, letting his fingers feel in hopes of finding an opening. James looked across the cavern to see if he could spot Kilani. The tower between them obstructed his view.

  “Did you find it?” he called, knowing that despite the size of the cavern, sound traveled well.

  No reply. James kept moving along the circular wall, his hand feeling for an opening. He called out again, this time much louder. No reply. James was about to break away from the wall and go looking for Kilani when he felt the beginning of a depression in the stone behind the curtain of water. He slid his hand along the depression until his entire arm was engulfed.

  The opening they had come through was a clean-cut entry into the cavern. This was more of a gradual tapering away from the water curtain.

  He looked around for anything he could use to mark the depression. Neither displaced stone nor wayward debris littered the cavern floor. Allowing his concern for Kilani to override his desire to mark the possible exit, he pulled his hand from the wall and headed across the cavern. As he approached the stone tower, the strange glyphs etched into the black granite reminded him once again of the black metal key, and he reached for it in his satchel.

  James had an overwhelming desire to touch the spire, which looked strangely familiar. His mind lost all focus. His arm lifted and reached his hand toward it, guided not by his body but the tower itself. James could feel an energy radiating from the stone as he drew closer. His hand pressed this energy. Like an invisible membrane, it gave but did not break. James pushed harder until he penetrated the membrane. As he moved his hand through, James could feel the barrier wrapping his wrist. As he stretched closer still, the invisible barrier moved up his forearm like a sleeve.

  Deep inside his mind a futile cry attempted to prevent contact, reminding James of Luno's instructions. The draw of the tower was too strong. James's fingers barely contacted the stone when a surge of energy pulled him forward until his palm lay flat against it. His vision went white. James could feel his mind with more clarity than ever before. He could feel it connecting with his body. He could feel it connecting with his surroundings, and he could feel it connecting with the tower. Then everything went black.

  Kilani watched James step toward the tower and stare at the inscriptions. By chance or fate or the will of The Never, she had decided to see if he had discovered the exit, having had no luck herself. They must have pass
ed each other on opposite sides of the tower. When she doubled back, he was there. The instant his hand lifted toward the spire, she began to panic. She shouted his name as she ran toward him. When she reached him she heard muttering. Some of the words sounded familiar, but most she'd never heard before. She shouted again and reached out to him. A force stopped her from touching him. A barrier just inches from his body. She shouted his name again. He did not reply but continued to mutter in the strange language.

  His eyelids fluttered but remained closed. His lips moved impossibly fast, but otherwise his body remained still. He had an expression not of fear but almost … pleasure. Kilani tried to step between James's body and the tower, but the same invisible barrier that surrounded his body extended outward to the tower. She pulled her dagger from its sheath and drove it into the barrier. The blade snapped and a jolt of pain shot up her arm and down her spine, sending her to the ground. Slowly, she got to her feet. She looked around for anything she could use to break him free. There was nothing. She cursed the place. Her magical powers were limited here, unlike back home where she could think of at least a dozen incantations that would break the barrier.

  Growing increasingly frustrated, Kilani decided to try the only thing she could think of. She ran to the curtain of water and said, “Poikelo.”

  A gust of wind rushed from her hands and blew through the curtain of water, refracting off the wall as it carried the water with it, speeding toward the tower and James.

  The force of the impact was incredible. At first, Kilani feared she had crushed him. She ran back to the center of the cavern as the water settled on the floor. As she drew closer, her heart sank. He stood in the same position and was looking the same direction, yet something was different. His hand was at his side. Not only that, but he was dripping wet. He turned to her as she approached.