Kilenya Series Books One, Two, and Three (82 page)

A huge fish was running on four legs through the gulch far below him, fins and tail flapping. Why hadn’t Early warned him?

Just as soon as Jacob saw it, it saw him.

The Eetu went into a frenzy, scrambling up the side of the gulch. No way could it make it—the cliff was completely sheer. Jacob backed up anyhow, then jumped off the boulder and ran for his life. Literally. Maybe he could make it to the bathroom in time to Key away.

Early appeared next to him. “I’m sorry, Jacob. I’m sorry!”

She started crying—a Minya! Crying!

“No worries,” Jacob said, pushing his shock away. “Where is it?”

She disappeared, then came back. “Almost to the top!”

More screams from behind, and Jacob heard footfalls as other people finally started running. Maybe they’d distract the Eetu?

He wouldn’t count on that.

The switchbacks slowed him down. He took shortcuts wherever possible.

A moment later, as he crossed the bridge, he realized something: the fish wouldn’t follow the trail. It would go straight down the hill. Jacob looked over his shoulder, trying to see where it was.

Just then, the Eetu jumped out of the water to the right of him. Jacob skidded to a stop so he could run the other way, but the creature tackled him, hissing loudly.

With a hard
thud
, he landed on his back on the wooden planks, people scattering and screaming around him.

The wind knocked out of him, he shoved and kicked, trying to get away from the fish, trying to push it away. Green, the color for excitement, flowed in the air around it.

The Eetu was incredibly strong. It repelled all Jacob’s attacks, then faster than Jacob thought possible, swung him up in the air, mouth open, ready for a bite.

Suddenly, it went limp.

Its intelligent eyes appraised Jacob.

Then it dropped him hard on the bridge and jumped over the side.

Jacob gasped when the cold water splashed him. He watched the fish swim leisurely away, then spring out of the water and run off the way it had come.

“Early? Early!”

“Here, Jacob!”

He rolled into a sitting position until he saw her floating above him. “It’s gone? Did it . . .”

“It lost scent of the water. You’re okay! You’re fine!”

Jacob slumped in relief, holding his knees to his chest. “Oh, man, oh, man, oh, man.”

She patted him on the head. “I’ll go watch it.” She disappeared.

“Hey, dude, you okay?”

Jacob turned—a man in his thirties was staring at him. “Yeah, I think so. That was really close!”

“What on earth was it?”

Jacob shook his head, not sure how to answer, and the man pulled him to his feet.

“That was insane!”

“You have no idea.”

“Are you sure you don’t need anything?” The guy reached into his bag. “Here—my name’s Jared.” He handed Jacob a business card. Jacob looked at it. He was a photographer—that explained the huge camera hanging around his neck. “Please—call if that thing comes again or you need help in some other way.” He peered down at Jacob. “Where are your parents?”

Jacob shook his head. “I’m not—I mean, they’re waiting at another trail.”

“I’ll give you a ride.”

“I think I’m going to be sick. I’ll walk back when I can—when I . . .” He turned and stumbled to the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. Luckily, no one was inside. He took a few deep breaths, then Keyed back home.

Jacob’s parents were understandably relieved at his return. Dad insisted he fill them in on all the details, then Mom insisted he sleep. He was glad for that.

When he woke, his mom said he’d been in the news and showed him the webpage. Jared, the photographer, had been taking pictures of the Eetu as it ran down the hill. The last shot was of the fish right as it jumped for Jacob. Only Jacob’s back was visible, but the picture of the Eetu was pretty awesome. With all the eyewitness reports, authorities were looking into the event, though they doubted anything would come of it.

Jacob agreed.

He finished his breakfast, then pushed away from the table. “Okay, time to go recruit Wurbies!” He ran upstairs to grab his spare backpack, since the usual one was probably at the bottom of Sonda Lake by then, and dashed to the kitchen to stock supplies.

Mom was waiting by the counter. “Sorry, honey, but the meeting has already taken place.”

“What? They didn’t wait?” Disappointment flooded over him. “Why?”

“Apparently, the Wurbies found
them
and forced them to enter the village to talk. They had to negotiate terms for their release before the Wurbies would consider untying them.”

Even though he was really disappointed to have missed it, Jacob couldn’t help but smile at the thought of his friends being tied up by the Wurbies. He’d been in a similar situation once, but with Dusts. “What happens now?”

“They’re waiting for you. The Wurbies wouldn’t release anyone until they were promised you’d go meet them. And even though they’ve already discussed the upcoming war, they want you to make things official.” She put her arm around him. “Go—make us proud. This is your first act as prince.”

Jacob felt a blush cross his face, and he resisted the urge to duck his head. He wondered if Aloren had been impressed. He could see himself striding into the village, commanding attention. But underneath the excitement was a nagging worry that they expected something from him he couldn’t give. He’d never met Wurbies, after all. What would they want?

Jacob Keyed to the door number Early gave him. Gallus was waiting on the other side and led Jacob back to the makeshift camp they’d set up.

“I wish you’d been here when we first arrived,” he said, motioning to Jacob to enter a stick hut—obviously Akeno’s handiwork. “It would’ve been much easier, actually, to get ourselves out of jeopardy.”

Jacob stepped into the hut and found Aloren, Matt, Sweet Pea, and Akeno there, sitting around a small fire in the center of the space. He joined them, holding his fingers to the heat. “Sounds like you guys had a lot of fun.”

Matt laughed. “Yeah, after everything you’d said about Dusts, I figured Wurbies would be easy.” He shook his head. “They weren’t.”

Jacob sighed in disappointment. “Man, I hate missing out on things like this.”

Gallus pulled up a log and sat. “From what we heard, you had just as much excitement as we did—perhaps even more.”

Jacob nodded, then filled them in on what had happened. After he finished, Gallus told him more about the Wurbies’ desire to meet him.

“Fubble, the leader of the Wurbies, begged to meet you.” Gallus shifted forward. “They’ll recruit as many Wurbies as they can. They’ll gather in their main village—the one we’ll take you to—and in a year, will let us know they’re ready. At that point, you’ll Key them to Taga, where they’ll receive further training.”

“So . . . we have at
least
a year before the war starts?” Jacob asked.

Gallus rubbed his forehead, then dropped his hand. “I hope we have more time than that, so we’re better prepared.”

“Sometimes it feels like it’s on the verge of happening.”

“I know. And either way, we can’t count on anything, really.” He got to his feet. “Let’s get going.”

Aloren rolled her eyes. “At least this time we’ll have Jacob—they can fall to the ground in excitement instead of tying us up.”

Gallus snorted—a half laugh—then got back to business and motioned for the others to gather their things. “Fubble has been waiting near the entrance to their village since we told him you were coming. It’s farther up the canyon. I’ll lead you there.”

“You’re not coming?”

Gallus shook his head briefly. “No—I need to take note of everything that has happened. Besides, they don’t see me as a leader, so it won’t matter if I’m there or not.”

Jacob watched the black man carefully, waiting to see if he was disappointed or annoyed at all by this turn of events. If he was, he covered it very well—including masking his emotions, even the colors in the air. Maybe he really didn’t care.

Jacob stepped out of the hut, taking a look around. The canyon had received a lot of snow since the last time he’d been there—everything was pristine. And the view of Sonda Lake and Gevkan was astounding. The water was an intense shade of blue. Maivoryl City had the typical smudge over it, and Macaria was just as white and bleached as ever. Dunsany Mountains were covered with snow and looked very dramatic.

Just then, Jacob noticed that the forest surrounding him appeared to have burned recently. He covered his head with his arms, then peered out from under his arms, glancing up into the sky. “What about Lirone? Has he come? Will he?”

Gallus shook his head. “We’ve been watching. According to the Wurbies, he attacks every three or four days. This one happened two days ago—right before we got here. The Wurbies have a warning system in place and we’ll know when he’s on his way. Frankly, I don’t understand how they can live here, with him going on the rampage all the time.” He reached into the hut and pulled his bag out. “The skies are really clear right now—the Wurbies say he’s sleeping.”

“So, you’re telling me not to worry?”

“Exactly. Unless clouds form and you hear alarms going off.”

Good to know. Jacob stamped his feet on the trail, trying to stay warm, while Akeno finished unfolding the hut, letting the branches go back to their normal position. Gallus looked at Jacob, who nodded.

“Okay, let’s go see this Fub guy.”

“Fubble,” Aloren said.

“Your Highness, would you like to lead the way?”

It took Jacob a moment to realize Gallus was talking to him—the man had never referred to Jacob in that way before. He didn’t know how to answer. “Uh . . . why?”

“Because you are the future king of this land. You need to get used to people following you.”

Jacob felt his cheeks flush. He really didn’t want to walk in front of Gallus. “How about I go in the back, and the rest of you act like you’re escorting me or something?”

Gallus half-smiled. “As you wish. Though, let’s have Matt walk behind you. Let him get attacked by random creatures instead of you.”

“Hey!” Matt said. “I’m his brother—doesn’t that mean I should be treated better?”

Aloren jumped to Matt’s side, linking her arm with his. “And I’m Matt’s sister!”

Gallus only laughed, then turned and followed the trail in the snow. Aloren, Sweet Pea, and Akeno walked in line behind him. Jacob tried to see the expression on Aloren’s face, but couldn’t. He followed Akeno, with Matt bringing up the rear.

After five minutes of walking, Jacob heard a high-pitched voice up ahead.

“He coming? Coming? Where?”

Everyone stopped, and Jacob stepped into view. “Hi.”

He saw a bright flash of blue cloth, then felt something pelt him in the legs, knocking him into the snow. “Whoa! Hello.”

The short creature released him, then stepped back and pointed to himself. “Fubble the Wurby.” He shook his hands in the air, an expression of intense excitement on his face. “So glad! So glad you here!”

Jacob swallowed his laughter. “Nice to meet you, Fubble.”

“Sorry, sorry. Not Fubble. Fubble the
Wurby
.”

“Oh, I apologize. Nice to meet you, Fubble the Wurby.”

“Eeep!” Fubble’s hands turned into a blanket, which he put over his head.

Jacob felt red creep across his cheeks and his ears burned. He smiled sheepishly at Gallus. The black man shrugged. Jacob would really need to get used to this treatment.

Fubble removed the blanket and jumped away, his hands returning to normal. “Come! See Wurb!”

“Wurb?” Jacob asked, but Fubble had already dashed off.

Gallus nodded. “ A baby Wurby.” He sighed. “Juvenile, but they’ll only help us if you see Fubble’s baby. It’s ridiculous.”

Aloren tugged at her shirt, then turned to Jacob. “It’s a sign of respect and mutual agreement to Wurbies and Dusts alike. The Wurbies show you their most beloved possession—something that symbolizes the future—and depending on how you respond, it seals whatever deal was made. It’s a thing of trust.”

“Sounds more like a way for them to go extinct to me,” Matt said. “I mean, listen. How many babies have died after being shown to strangers who weren’t really the good guys?”