Zach Brenner's Arc

Chapter 52 of 86

Zach's door opened. Raven followed him out into the hall. Her cheeks were flushed, her lace top half-tied. She reached back and pulled the door shut behind them. The others waited outside her chamber. Talon leaned against the wall, arms folded, both katanas across his back. He looked his sister up and down. "You two couldn't wait to do that?" he said. Raven met his eyes. She did not flinch. "We don't know if we're going to survive this," she said. Talon's smirk faded. He knew the swamp waited below, and the fire under the world after it. He turned to Lyra, who stood near him with her staff. "I think we can wait fifteen minutes to go," he said. Lyra's face went red to the tips of her ears. For five years she had loved him and believed him dead. Now he reached for her hand in front of everyone. She took it. The two of them slipped into an empty room and shut the door. Ayla let out a slow breath and leaned on her staff. "We march to the world's center," she said, "and we stop for this." Garrok laughed low and shook his bald head. "Better they go warm than cold," the barbarian said. He set his axe against the wall and sat on the floor to wait. Zach checked his bag one more time. His sword hung at his hip, quiet for now. He thought of what waited past the marsh. Malachar had the crystal. The tower moved. Somewhere below the northern peak the eternal fire burned, and only his blade could kill Darkthorne there. He shifted his weight and let the crew have their minutes. Geneva came up the corridor, gray robe dragging, cat ears twitching. The old man took in the two closed doors and grunted. "You wielders never change," he said to Zach. "Rowan did the same the night before the sealing. Loved hard, fought harder." He tapped his staff on the stone. "Rest while you can. The swamp does not care what you feel." The door opened. Lyra came out first, smoothing her robe, unable to hide her smile. Talon followed, retying his mask. He picked up nothing, because he carried everything on him already. "Trail's set in my head," Talon said. "Dry ridges run east to the cave mouth. Lyra reads the ground when the mud turns soft. We move fast, we're through by dark." Zach looked at them all. Raven at his side. Talon and Lyra, together at last. Ayla, Garrok, Geneva. Six people who would carry him where one man would drown. "Then we go," Zach said. They walked out of the tree palace into gray morning. The swamp lay ahead, wide and steaming. Beyond it, the mountain and the fire. The group started down toward the cave, and did not look back.