Crusade Across Worlds (34 page)

“Jace!” Reid calls.

Clarence dives after them, leaving the rest
of us in the hollowed trunk, which is quickly going up in flames. I
look at Reid and then at the others, trying to figure out what to
do next. Stay or go.
Stay or go?
Vermix race pass the
opening now that the curtain is no longer obstructing the outside
view. They could jet in here any minute—if there is an ‘in here’
left.

“We need to go,” I turn to the others.

“Where?” Pratt asks.

“Anywhere that isn’t burning,” Walker ducks
away from the crackling wall. Booker is right behind him and moving
for the opposite side of the space. “But we need to go now.”

“Where do we meet up with the others?” I
ask. “With Clarence and Sampson?”

“There is no place,” Walker starts as a
Vermix climbs through the charred opening in the wall. But before
he can pull all the way through, Booker shoots him in the head and
the Dofinike falls back outside.

Threading his fingers with mine, Reid yanks
me through the entry. “Keep together!”

I’m right on his feet which halt the second
we’re out of Tucker’s home.

The entire city is in flames. Vermix leap
from Eckle to Eckle, firing Traxpires while Zingfinolds and Nerwos
swing after them, slicing blades and firing shooting Brulilies.
Darts and explosions rip through Zinnollo as screams call out to
one another in the distance. I don’t know which way to go.
Everything is in panicked motion. Everyone is racing this way or
that way. There’s no time to stop and think. We can only keep
going. Keep moving.

“Boss?” Able asks.

Before Reid can answer, a pair of Vermix
launch themselves at us from a nearby branch. But an enormous
Zingfinold knocks into them first, clobbering the duo and all three
fall into the lime Yulus below.

“Hozfin’s home,” Reid decides. “Safest place
for us to go.”

We jet over the closest bridge and toward
the post, making our way for our intended target. Traxpire bullets
soar overhead, blasting nearby Eckles as orange explosions take
over the city, illuminating it with harsh, crackling heat. We keep
to a crouch and head for the king’s home, darts swishing past as
the golden-bodied Nerwos swing through the air, slicing everything
that moves.

Walker ducks to avoid a Traxpire explosion.
It hits the bark next to him, immediately engulfing it in flames.
“These bastards are giving us no room!”

“Keep going!” Reid calls back. “Make it to
Hozfin’s!”

We move quickly and steadily, crouching low
to use the bridge’s wooden side as a shield.

“We’re going to make it!” Able glances back
at Mae. “We’re going to—”

A huge explosion rips through the bridge,
blasting a fiery hole in the middle. Reid, Pratt, Walker and I are
on this side while Able, Mae, Tucker and Booker are trapped on the
other. The entire bridge is shaking, rumbling with the constant
Traxpire hits as pieces of enflamed bark fall below.

“Swing across!” Reid cups his hands around
his mouth. But the others are blocked behind loud, crackling flames
and I can’t tell if they heard him. He turns to me, sweat pouring
down his face. “Take Pratt to Hozfin’s. Stay there.”

“I’m not leaving—”

“
Fallon
,” he grips my shoulders. “I
need to know you’re both okay. I’ll help the others. I’ll meet you
there.”

“No! I’m not—”

“Please, just go!”

“Reid—”

“Take them,” he ushers me toward Walker.
“Make sure they get there.”

Walker clutches my hand. He’s already
dragging me but I can’t take my eyes off Reid. I can’t lose sight
of him. Jumping on top of the branch, he clutches a Yulu and swings
himself to the opposite side where the others are. But I can’t see
anymore. The tall orange flames are blocking my view and Walker is
pulling me too far, too fast.

My heart is racing, my mind buzzing. Too
much is happening too quickly. We were never supposed to be in the
crossfire. This was all supposed to happen down at the valley where
the ‘fake Gifts’ would be transported. Everything was supposed to
happen there, where the majority of our forces were waiting. Except
Reuzkimpart must have changed his mind; he must have given the
order to go after the real Gifts here in the city.

“Fallon,” Walker jerks me forward.

Pratt jets on his other side, grasping his
right hand as the three of us race toward the largest trunk.
Zingfinolds line the outside like an impenetrable force, dodging
flying explosions and shooting Brulilies at all intruders,
disabling them before they’re able to get near. But Vermix still
launch themselves toward the enormous Eckle. I think they’re going
to break through the shield, but then they’re swatted away by
leaping Zingfinolds that send them falling to the forest ground.
Reid was right. Nothing can get to the king’s home. It’s the safest
place and I desperately wish the others were here with us.

Warze sidles back and forth across the
entrance, like a panther protecting his den. When he sees us, he
indicates the curtain. “Inside.”

The king’s home is teeming with tribegirls
and young males, most of whom are gesturing outside, arguing about
going out to help. But Hozfin sits on his throne, body still and
eyes scanning everyone. His focus drifts to Walker.

“Brother Walker,” he gestures him
forward.

The tribesman is reluctant to let go of our
hands, but eventually acquiesces. When he does, Pratt races toward
the small cluster of boys. I think she’s talking with Zeed, but I
can’t hear what they’re saying. She’s nodding and he’s shaking his
head, his face filled with pain and fury. With Walker and Pratt
distracted, I finally have a moment to think, to sort everything
out. To assess the situation.

The Vermix are here, in Zinnollo. Reid
stayed behind with the others, and Clarence, Jace and Werzo are out
there somewhere without any idea that we’re here. But they have to
know. They have to know we’d go to Hozfin’s in an emergency.

Right?

And what about Sampson?

Closing my eyes, I take a breath.
Sampson?

Nothing.

Sampson?
I try again.

Not a good time, Fallon
, his voice
enters my head.
A little distracted at the moment
.

Are you okay? Is Blovid?

We’re attempting to remain so. We’re on
our way to Hozfin’s but it’s heavy with movement out here. I’ll be
in touch when I can
.

I open my eyes and find Walker and the king
still exchanging words. They’re leaning into one another, heads
almost touching. Probably discussing defenses for Zinnollo. That,
or the relocation of the Gifts. Both look up at my approach.

“The Fychu is on his way here with
Blovid.”

King Hozfin sits back. “What else Fychu
say?”

“Not much. But there’s a lot of—”

The great tree rumbles and the tribesmen
inch closer to the entryway, focused on the commotion beyond the
red curtain. But then Warze rushes past, his chest rising as sweat
pours down his face. “Vermix attack growing stronger.”

“How many?”

“Same as last invasion.”

The king nods. He glances at me, then back
to his second in command. “Fychu and Arizal Leader coming.”

“Where’re the others?” I look between Warze
and Hozfin, suddenly noticing the absence of the three Dofinikes.
Vix, Qippert and Jothkore should be here. Clarence told us they
would be waiting in Hozfin’s home while the battle took place. If
anything turned sour, and they needed to flee the planet, they
would be able to do so. Clarence left to help Jace and Werzo…but
where were the other three?

“Fighting,” Warze says. “When Vermix arrive,
Arizals leave to stop invasion.”

“So they’re out
there
?” Pratt looks
at the curtain, her eyes going wide. “Are we waiting for Sampson to
get here to move the Gifts?”

“We may not have to,” I say, still clinging
to the hope that this isn’t as bad as it seems. “If the others can
drive the Vermix back into the valley, they’ll be surrounded.”

Walker shakes his head. “Sounds like they’re
not going for the bait anymore.”

I throw him a look just as another
thunderous rumble shakes the tree. Hozfin’s home is situated in the
largest Eckle, but even his wooden walls quiver from the impact.
Screams fill the outside air and my heart pounds in my chest. Reid
is still out there. And Able and Mae and Clarence and the rest of
my family. Where are they? And why haven’t they made it back
yet?

I can’t just stay here waiting, not when
it’s my responsibility, not when it’s up to me to end it. I head
for the curtain, determined to help, to fight, determined to do
something
.

Walker grips my hand. “Where are you
going?”

“I have to help.”

“No way.”

“Walker—”

“What—you’re going to go out
there?
”
he points to the flapping red curtain. “You think getting yourself
killed is better?”

“The others are out there!”

“I know,” he grips my hand tighter. “But Rox
is bringing them back. And Clarence is grabbing the others. They’ll
all be back here soon. And if you go out there and get yourself
killed…I can’t tell them I let you do that.”

I understand what he’s saying, but I can’t
stay here and do nothing. It’s just not in me. Scanning the king’s
home, I search. There wouldn’t be any whips in here, and I need to
get one. I’ve trained with it for three months. I feel comfortable
with a Traxpire in my hands but I’d feel even better with a whip. I
just need to get a-hold of one.

I face Walker. “I’ll be right back.”

“No.”

“I just need to get a—”

The tribesman drags me to the back of the
king’s home. He won’t let me go willingly. Already feeling bad for
what I’m about to do, I convince myself it’s the best for
everyone.

Whipping my hand back, I throw my fist
forward and it hits Walker in the bridge of his nose, temporarily
blinding him. In his moment of confusion, I sweep my leg under his.
Still clutching his face, he falls back and I take off in the
opposite direction, jetting past the curtain and back outside.

It’s not any better.

It’s
worse
.

Vermix reign down from the canopy, Brulily
darts shooting every which way, striking into leaping targets that
shriek and fall through levels of Yulus. Orange blasts erupt in the
distance and then only feet away. I’m not sure where to look. I’m
not sure where to go. I need to get my hands on one of those whips
but the Vermix are soaring through the city so quickly, I couldn’t
possibly catch one. And with the Zingfinolds and the Nerwos chasing
them, it wouldn’t make much sense to go after one myself. I might
just need to find a Vermix that’s already been hit. One that’s
already down.

I peer over the edge.

Something hard knocks into me and I’ve left
the safety of solid ground. I’m falling through the air, plummeting
past leaping Dofinikes and soaring, striking Nerwos. Arms out, I
try reaching for something that will slow me to a stop. But there’s
nothing. Nothing that I can reach, nothing that I can grab and hold
onto. I’m falling past Yulus but can’t seem to grip one. They’re
swinging from constant movement—back and forth, back and forth—and
I can never get a grasp. I’m going to hit the ground this time. I
know it. Darts whiz past, Traxpire explosions lighting up every
visible Eckle. I shouldn’t have stepped outside. I just needed a
whip and now I’m—

Something slams into me. I’m not falling
anymore, but swinging through the flaming trees and whistling
darts. It takes a moment to realize the change and when I do, I
look up, into the face of an unfamiliar Nerwo. He has one arm
wrapped around me while the other clutches the Yulu. Soaring
through the city, he perches us on the closest clear branch and
turns to me.

“It is not safe for you here. You must
return to King Hozfin’s home.”

“I need a whip.”

“A
whip?
”

“The Vermix—they carry whips. I need
one.”

He frowns. “You should not be fighting. You
should be up—”

A Vermix leaps toward us but the Nerwo
swings his arm out, effectively slicing the Dofinike across his
throat with a blade strapped to his wrist. The Vermix falls back
and the Nerwo looks at me again. “It is not safe for you.”

“I need a whip,” I protest. “
One
whip.”

A second Vermix launches himself but this
time, the Nerwo grips the Dofinike’s shoulder after sending the
same bloodied blade across his throat. The invader stumbles back
but the Nerwo yanks the whip free before the Dofinike falls off the
branch. He turns and hands it to me.

“Thank you. Who are you?”

“I am Commander Leoh.”

“You’re
Ghion’s
brother?”

He nods. “And you are?”

“Fallon.”

His eyes grow wide. “Yes. I have heard of
you...Ehan and Norhra have told us of your quests,” his eyes drop
to the weapon in my hands. “Why do you require this?”

“It’s what I spent the last three months
learning,” I step forward, nearly to the edge of the branch.
“Learning how to do
this
.”

And then everything slows.

Vermix and Nerwos and Zingfinolds fly
through the chaotic scene, moving inches at a time. Darts zip every
which way but I can see all of them; I can see every individual
needle soaring mid-flight, creeping through the heavy, almost-still
air. I can see the orange explosions crawling toward their intended
targets and the Nerwos and Zingfinolds leaping out of their
way.

I’m at the edge of the branch and I look
back to an almost-frozen Leoh. He’s reaching out to me, confusion
painting his brow, but this is what I need to do. This is what I
was trained to do. Gripping the whip, I take a deep breath and let
it out.