Raindrop's Arc

Chapter 12 of 15

The vortex screamed above the stage, and Raindrop knew he had seconds. He grabbed his honey jar and a small lead weight from his pocket. He flung the honey in a wide arc across the funnel, then dropped the weight into its center to slow the spin. The funnel staggered. It did not stop. Raindrop turned and whistled sharp into the wind. Zephyr Whisperwind swept in and landed on a stone tower that twisted up beside the stage. They braced their feet on its top ring and pressed both palms outward. "I can hold the outside," they said. "Not for long. Move now." The outer ring steadied. Raindrop lifted his wand and matched its tip to the spiral's pulse. A bright crystal rose from the eye of the funnel and locked onto the wand, spinning fast, throwing colored light across the boards. For three full seconds, the dance was his again. Then Zephyr's glow dimmed. The honey ribbon inside the spiral broke apart into thin gold threads and hissed into steam. The outer ring sagged. The crystal kept spinning on his wand — but the wider spiral above began to slip loose, drifting wide, drops scattering off the curve into open sky.