“I believe you, Pendragon. They’ll be safe with me.” “Uh-oh.” Spader gasped.
He was looking toward the surface through the bubble of the hauler submarine.
Yenza gasped, “She’s breaking up.”
We all looked up to see cracks appear in the black mass that was the hull of the habitat Grallion.
“This is impossible,” Yenza cried. “Why do they have such powerful weapons?”
“It’s all about Ravinia,” I answered.
The cracks grew larger. The barge was being wrenched apart. I think the realization hit us all at the same time that the giant city was going to sink… and we were directly beneath it.
“Get us outta here!” I screamed.
Yenza jumped into the bubble, pulled Peter out of the pilot seat and took over the controls. She toggled the water-fed engines to life, grabbed the control stick, and pushed us forward without bothering to ascend from the sea floor. We dragged up a bunch of sand, but we were moving.
Carolyn gasped, “It’s coming down!”
All around us giant shadowy chunks of habitat were slowly floating toward the bottom. The pieces were of all sizes. Some were as big as houses, others looked to be a half mile across. The raiders had done it. They had destroyed a habitat. I didn’t want to know what the rest of Cloral looked like.
“I hope they evacuated in time,” Yenza said. Her voice cracked. I had never seen her show emotion of any kind. “I should have been there.”
I didn’t know how to tell her that as horrible as the loss of Grallion was, her mission to protect the exiles was about her entire world, not just one habitat. There was no way she’d understand that, so I kept my mouth closed.
“They were prepared,” Spader said with sympathy. “You saw to that. The aquaneers were ready to get everyone off.”
“This is all because of us,” Carolyn said, sobbing.
I had no idea how to comfort her. I wanted to say how her survival was critical to the future of Halla. I wanted to tell her that she had the power to topple Ravinia. But that was all so impossible to grasp, especially as the remains of a destroyed city were raining down around us.
“Watch it,” Spader calmly cautioned Yenza.
A massive piece of barge glided down in front of us. Yenza expertly guided the hauler around it. We all looked in horror to see a piece of decking with buildings still attached sink to the ocean floor. Like with New York, a city had been destroyed.
Ravinia was alive and well on Cloral.
Soon the water grew lighter as Yenza piloted the hauler safely out from beneath the sinking wreckage.
“Get them to Panger City,” I said to Yenza. “Keep them safe and wait for word.”
Yenza nodded. She didn’t try to speak. I think if she had, she would have burst out crying.
“And me?” Spader asked.
I knew the answer he wanted, so I gave it to him. “You’re coming with me.”
Spader beamed. “That’s what I like to hear, mate!” he exclaimed, clapping me on the back. “Just like old times.”
Wu Yenza wasn’t as happy about it. “But you’ve only just returned,” she said softly.
For the tough chief aquaneer, that was a huge show of emotion. I didn’t blame her. She had just witnessed the total destruction of her home. Besides that, I think she had a little “thing” for Spader. Spader leaned in and gave her a hug.
“I’m proud to call you my chief… and my acolyte. Thank you.” He didn’t say anything about coming back to Cloral again. He knew that wasn’t a guarantee. “Take care of them.”
Yenza nodded and gave him a weak smile. Spader let her go and backed into the cargo bay of the hauler.
“Be safe,” I said to the others. “Please.”
I touched the cheek of the beautiful little girl named Maggie. I hoped that the spirit held by the children of the exiles would be just as strong as their parents. I then touched Yenza’s shoulder. I didn’t know what to say, so I gave her a simple, “Good luck.”
Yenza looked at me. Her eyes were red. “We do have a chance, don’t we?”
“As long as we’re alive, we have a chance.”
She nodded. “Don’t let him get into too much trouble.”
“Spader?” I said, with mock surprise. “Does he get into trouble?”
She chuckled.
Carolyn asked, “Are you going to swim back to the flume?”
“Yeah, something like that,” I answered, and closed the hatch leading to the hauler’s cargo bay behind me.
Spader and I stood together in the empty tanker.
“Want to see a new territory?” I asked.
“Been a long time since we rode together, mate,” Spader said. “Gotta say, I’m a touch excited.”
“Then let’s go,” I said, and took one step forward on Cloral.
The second step was on the territory of Zadaa. It was time to find Loor.
Chapter 16
Spader and I found ourselves standing on the shore of a young ocean.
It was a familiar sight. I had witnessed this body of water being born when the pent-up rivers that ran beneath the desert on Zadaa erupted with spectacular fury. Fault lines had cut quickly and violently across the sand, sinking miles of desert that were soon replaced with water, gushing in from hundreds of underwater rivers. In minutes a desert had been transformed into an ocean.
Life now grew where none had existed for centuries. I didn’t know how long it had been since I was on Zadaa, but time had definitely passed. The shore was now lined with palm trees and swaying grass. I saw what looked like small deer drinking from the freshwater sea. The day was clear. The sun was warm. For a brief moment I let myself believe that all was well with Zadaa.
A very brief moment.
A lone person sat by the shore, staring out at the dark green waters. One look at this woman told me that the spirits of Solara had put us where we needed to be. They had brought us back together with Loor. As relieved as I was to have found her so easily, it was strange to see her sitting alone, quietly, as if lost in her own thoughts. That wasn’t like her. “Loor?” I called.
She gave us a quick look, but showed no emotion or surprise. She nodded to acknowledge us, then went back to staring out at the sea.
I looked at Spader. He shrugged. I wasn’t sure of what to say. Loor was obviously preoccupied. I didn’t think it was right to jump at her, all excited, to say, “Hey! We heard some exiles were here. Did you find them? Did ya? Did ya? Huh?” There would be time for that.
Spader and I sat next to her. The three of us sat for a while, enjoying the warm breeze. At least I did. My clothes were still wet from Cloral, so I didn’t mind letting the hot sun of Zadaa dry them. Finally Loor looked at me. I was surprised to see that her eyes were red. She had been crying. There was nothing right about that.
“What manner of evil has the power to change the course of so many worlds so dramatically?” she said.
We’d been dealing with that question since day one of this adventure. I wondered why Loor was just getting around to it.
“You’ve always known what Saint Dane is capable of” was my answer.
“It is not his intent that disturbs me so,” she replied thoughtfully, as if trying to measure her own words. “I understand his quest. What I do not understand is why so many have chosen to follow him. Saint Dane would not hold the power he does now, he would not be on the verge of destroying Halla and creating his own universe, if not for those who have allowed him to do so.”
“She’s right,” Spader added. “He may be a nasty woggly, but he’s had a lot of help from the very people we’re supposed to be protecting.”
“It is a disheartening reality.” Loor sighed. “It leads me to even darker thoughts.”
Spader and I exchanged looks. What could be darker than what we had seen Halla go through? I wasn’t so sure I wanted to know.
Loor continued, “Press said we are given power by what is left of the spirit of Solara. The positive spirit. If that is so, from where is Saint Dane drawing his own power?”
Turned out I wasn’t the only one who was bugged by that question.