They traveled across the Quicksilver Sea most of the day. The rope remained taut, and Glissa could see the horizon move above the surface of the sea when she stood up. Periodically, Bruenna climbed up on top and pulled on the ropes to get Bosh to turn one way or another. The scenery was boring. They were in an open expanse of sea. Glissa could barely see the mountains in the distance past the endless silver sea. She wondered how Bruenna even knew where they were.
Early in the journey a group of silver eels attacked Bosh. Somehow they could sense where he was. They obviously weren’t made of quicksilver-at least not entirely-because Glissa could see them. She would have jumped from the diver to help her friend, but the eels couldn’t harm the metal man. They tried to bite him and wrap themselves around his invisible body, but they didn’t seem to be doing any damage and eventually turned away from the golem and headed for the diver. It was odd to see them swimming through the invisible quicksilver. It looked as if the eels were flying toward them. Glissa recoiled when the eels opened their mouths to attack. But the attacks stopped well short. They banged off the wall of the invisible diver. The eels attacked a few more times, then flew off through the quicksilver wall.
While the blue moon set in the sky behind them, Lumengrid rose up ahead. It looked like an immense mushroom sitting on the sea. The central tower was larger around than the entire crystal island chain. It quickly dominated Glissa’s view. The dome top spread out from the central tower on either side, seeming to reach out to the horizon.
Sitting atop the dome was a massive orb. It looked like a fifth moon-a silver moon-in the sky. Electricity arced out from it, filling the sky with a network of lightning that stretched to the surrounding islands-several dozen smaller towers clustered around the fortress. A system of bridges connected the lesser towers together. The lightning, towers, and bridges looked as if they were all joined together like a giant spider web.
CHAPTER 22
“Time to dive,” called Bruenna. “The sea gets deeper around Lumengrid. Bosh will pull us under any time. I need to start my air spell.”
Bruenna sat in the back of the diver and began moving her hands in an intricate pattern. Her palms danced around each other as she twisted her wrists and slid her arms over and under one another in a sinuous rhythm.
Glissa felt the pressure build around her as the mage’s arms wove their spell. It felt uncomfortable at first, and she found it hard to breathe.
“Relax!” called Bruenna. She spoke slowly and precisely. “Breathe normally. Close your eyes. Lie down. It will help.”
Slobad came over to Glissa and helped her lie down on the bottom of the diver. “Why … aren’t you … having … trouble,” gasped Glissa.
“Underground, undersea,” said Slobad, “no different to goblins, huh?”
He massaged Glissa’s temples. After a few minutes, she was able to breath almost normally again. The elf sat up and looked back at Bruenna. Her arms continued to weave in and around each other. The mage’s eyes had glazed over.
“Are you well?” asked Bruenna. Her voice seemed distant, as if she weren’t really in the diver anymore.
“I’m fine,” Glissa said. “Thank you. Thank you both.”
Glissa turned around to see where they were headed, but she could no longer see Lumengrid. She saw the taut rope coiled around the invisible the golem ahead of them, but they had completely submerged. All she could see above her was swirling quicksilver at the edge of the invisibility bubble.
“Does he know where to go?” she asked Bruenna, pointing toward the end of the rope.
“Hard to miss, huh?” said Slobad. “Lumengrid huge. Bosh not need eyes to walk straight.”
“Let’s hope so,” said Glissa, speaking so the goblin alone could hear her. “I feel trapped in here. What if something happens to Bosh or Bruenna? We should have a plan.”
“If plans make you happy,” said Slobad, “plan away. I sit and rest for both of us, huh?”
Glissa stared out the front of the diver and watched the rope bounce up and down. As the minutes wore on and the diver moved through the invisible quicksilver, Glissa became increasingly aware that she was completely out of her element here. She must rely on her friends. It was a strange sensation.
A swarm of the eels slithered from the opaque quicksilver, nipping at the invisible golem again. At first, the attack went as before. Glissa could see their open mouths stop short and bounce off when they hit what must have been Bosh’s legs. One wrapped itself around what must have been the golem’s neck or head-it was well above the ropes and narrower than his chest. It was strange watching the eel try to squeeze something that Glissa couldn’t even see. None of the eels seem to bother Bosh at all. At least, he wasn’t doing anything about them. The ropes continued to bounce up and down and the diver kept moving forward.
Glissa wondered how long it would take for the eels to give up again. Several more creatures joined the first one around Bosh’s neck and head area. They seemed to merge together and grow longer. Once four or five had wrapped themselves together, Glissa could see the golem’s head and neck outlined in the bodies of the silver eels. The eels striking at the golem’s feet also merged together and wrapped around both of his legs. Glissa almost laughed as she looked at the strange golem with a silver head and legs but no torso.
Bosh came to a halt, unable to move his legs any longer.
Glissa jumped up. “Slobad, Bruenna!” she called. “Bosh is in trouble.”
“I cannot help him,” said Bruenna, her face pale. “I must concentrate on the air.”
“What matter, huh?” asked Slobad groggily.
“He’s being attacked by those silver eels,” said Glissa. “They’ve wrapped up his legs. He can’t move.”
“What can we do?” asked Slobad. “Bosh out there. We in here, huh?”
Glissa watched as Bosh’s eel-wrapped head bent down. The sea creatures around his legs began to pull away. The golem was trying to pull them off. Glissa knew how hard it must be, since Bosh couldn’t even see his own hands. The eel around the golem’s head peeled away slightly and swam upward, yanking Bosh’s head back straight. The eels around his legs tightened their grip again. Several more eels merged together and began coiling around the middle of the golem.
“They’re wrapping up his arms now,” cried Glissa. “He needs help! I must get to him.”
“You cannot,” said Bruenna. “No air out there.”
“You control the wind,” shouted Glissa. “Make some air!”
Two eels broke away from the attack and headed toward the diver. Glissa didn’t flinch this time as the eels slithered toward her. She thought they might merge and attack the diver. Instead, they cut across in front of the diver and bit through the ropes tethering it to Bosh. The diver began to drift up and away from Bosh.
“Flare!” shouted Glissa. “We’re heading for the surface.”
“Wait,” said Bruenna. “Let me try something.”
She increased the speed of her hand-dance and muttered a few more words. The pressure Glissa had felt on her chest since they dived under the quicksilver decreased. The diver dropped to the bottom of the sea. The sudden jolt startled Glissa. She forced herself to take a few slow deep breaths to relax.
“Extended air bubble … out to Bosh,” gasped Bruenna. “Quickly. Cannot … hold it … long.”
“Slobad,” called Glissa. “Come with me!”
The elf dropped her cloak and scrambled from the diver. It took her several tries to grab the lip. She couldn’t see her hands or the diver. She had to feel around for the opening, then pull herself up. Getting Slobad out proved even harder. She couldn’t see his hands, and he couldn’t see hers. He finally held his satchel up, and she grabbed at it, pulling the goblin through the hole.