The Brothers Locke, page 18
“We all have to face our fears,” Bando continued. “Yours will clean the Dea. It is poisoned and has been for a long time. What you will do up there will make it right. It’ll make the Dea whole again, not broken into fragments the way it is now. You’ll see.”
“No matter how many people have to die?” she asked. “You do know that if what you believe is true, the Dea as we know it will be destroyed. The Spire holds this all together and adding another Child to it, me in particular, could bring this all to a violent end.”
“That’s what I’m counting on.”
Dana just stared at her former teammate with shock in her eyes. Bando was truly insane. The clerics of Icagoro and every ancient cult that studied and obsessed over the Children of the Spire had taught for millennia that The Spire maintained the Dea. It was an energy, an entity, a source that this world thrived on. The Children weren’t meant to enhance it, they were meant to destroy it.
“All those wars for all those years. All the people who died trying to defend the Dea. Standing up against those who thought the Dea was better off destroyed and used children to do it. All of that will be for nothing because of you!”
“No, Dana,” Bando said as he finally turned to look at her. “It will be because of you.”
“There are a lot of tracks up here by these tents. I think this is where they took her,” Kale said as their vehicle approached a cluster of tents.
“Looks like they’ve already left,” Bulk said.
“The tire marks are fresh,” Sharp signed to his brothers. “They’re going in two different directions. One set is away from the mountain, and the other is going further into the valley between them.”
“So we’re close then, Sharp?” asked Mouth. “Can you see them up ahead?”
“I can’t see through the mountains. They’re too thick. But Bulk is right, those tire marks are fresh.”
“We need to keep going. We’re close,” Mouth told the rest of the team.
Von Strauss’ caravan had successfully passed over the rocky terrain of the foothills and was now entering a clearing. Beyond was a low-lying valley that stretched for miles in each direction, the mountains of the north encapsulating it like the sides of a bowl. Their vehicles wouldn’t be able to make it down into that valley, so they would have to go on foot.
The Bascelics, who weren’t created for such extremely cold conditions, were starting to show the wear on their bodies. Their leathery wings were shivering in the bitter wind, their gray skin turning a lighter shade with the dropping temperature.
Bando took note of this as he left his truck. Dana was still his prisoner, and he kept his weapon to her back as they followed Von Strauss down into the frozen clearing. The snow was thick, and after a few meters, it was up to their knees, making it a slow process.
“Your creatures don’t look too good, Von Strauss,” Bando shouted.
“They are tougher than they look. Some may fall, yes, but the strongest will be our protection. Come now, we are not far. Do you see that up ahead?”
Bando followed Von Strauss’ hand as he pointed to a mound in the middle of the clearing. He had not seen it on the way in, and as they continued walking closer, it became clearer. It was as if the structure was allowing itself to be seen only if you approached it and disappeared if you didn’t look directly at it.
“Some sort of illusion?” Bando asked.
“Protection, I would guess, yes? It doesn't matter. We are close to the Hanging Trees. And once we are there, this journey will really begin.”
The hike to the Hanging Trees was taking far longer than Von Strauss had anticipated. Several of his Bascelics had dropped dead from the cold, frozen in the snow like demonic statues. Even Bando was feeling the effects of the long hike. It felt as though with each step they took, their destination was getting farther away, not closer.
“What are we doing wrong?” Von Strauss asked to no one in particular.
“Just keep going. We have to reach it eventually.”
“We should have stayed in the trucks. It would have been quicker.”
Dana suddenly stopped walking and turned back towards the cliffs. Bando demanded that she keep walking, but that was not going to work. She was focused on something far off in the distance.
“What’s the problem now?” Von Strauss called back.
“She stopped. I don’t know why.”
Dana sighed, “You know, you two were right. You should have used the vehicles. They’re much faster.”
The statement confused Bando and Von Strauss until the motor of a vehicle could be heard coming mountains behind them. Who else could be out here? How did they get a vehicle down into the valley?
“Bulk,” Bando muttered. “It’s Bulk Brown! We need to hurry!”
Knowing that she wouldn’t voluntarily leave, Bando lifted Dana over his left shoulder and, with as much energy as he could, started to run towards the Hanging Trees beyond. The Bascelics groaned in protest but followed Von Strauss as he too started to sprint towards the structure. They weren’t that far, but the vehicle behind them would clearly catch up with them before they made it there unless they hurried.
“I can’t believe you jumped the cliff,” Mouth said to Kale as he was still trying to get over his shock from the last five minutes of their journey.
Kale’s original trepidation about the entire rescue operation had fallen away once he knew they were close to finding Dana. He pushed their truck to its limits in speed, and once they had reached the cliff, instead of trying to navigate down into the valley, he calculated (or hoped) that the truck could take the shock of sliding down the mountain.
While it did survive with some damage to its suspension, the sheer violence of the maneuver had nearly made everyone else in the truck sick. Echo and Sharp had bounced their skulls off the roof nearly a dozen times, Bulk Brown looked as if he was about to vomit, Mouth hadn’t stopped chastising him since he took the first dip down the cliff side, and Jocelyn just stared at him as if he was insane.
“You want to get Dana, right?” he yelled over the roaring engine.
“I want to actually make it to her alive, Kale,” Mouth protested.
“It’s kind of fun. I’ve never done anything like this before.”
Bulk Brown was far more outraged, “Clearly, you haven’t. Boy, you have lost your mind!”
“As terrifying and idiotic as that was, I think it might have been the right move. Look!” Jocelyn told the rest as she pointed ahead to several dots in the distance.
“That must be them,” Mouth said.
“I’ve got this!” Kale said, his eyes wide as he pushed down on the gas pedal.
Bando had put some distance between himself and everyone else. Even with Dana over his shoulder, he reached the Hanging Trees well before anyone else could get there. His lungs were about to explode from the effort, and he needed a minute to catch his breath. He dumped Dana on the ground but still held a tight grip on her wrist.
“Come on!” he yelled at Von Strauss.
Only three Bascelics remained, and they were struggling to live, let alone keep up. Von Strauss did his best to encourage them, but he could see it was doing no good.
The oncoming vehicle was still a good distance away, and it looked like his Bascelics had a chance to make it. That wasn’t their main concern at the moment. Bando was already working where the entrance was to the tunnel that led to the Spire. The frozen, frost-covered bark gave no clues. Neither did the dangling tree branches that hovered overhead like the fingers of an old witch clawing at them.
“There must be something we’re missing,” Von Strauss said as recovered. “We have not come all this way to be stopped now.”
“I’m looking. I’m looking,” Bando replied.
But there was very little here to be found. No signpost or ancient text or open tunnel presented itself. Just the trees and their eerily abnormal limbs the surrounded them on all sides.
It was then that the Bascelics arrived at the trees, and as they approached, their behavior changed. A few seconds ago, they were clinging to life in the cold, and now they were excited, animated, and whooping a series of calls to one another. Bando didn’t understand what they were saying, but Von Strauss certainly did.
“There’s an energy here,” he explained. “The Bascelics can sense it.”
“That’s great, but do they know where the entrance is?”
“I believe we should watch them for that answer.”
The winged creatures circled a point in the snow that was directly in the center of the trees. Their movements were apprehensive and interested at the same time. Inch by inch they got closer to this spot, their wings twitching and their chatter increasing. Suddenly, they stopped moving altogether and extended their wings in a circle around a foot wide spot between them.
“I think they’ve found it,” Bando said. He pushed between the Bascelics and knelt down to the spot they were surrounding. They grumbled as he did, but Von Strauss backed them away. Bando took his time observing the spot and then gently placed his palm flat against the snow-covered ground. It chilled his hand to the bone. Carefully he started moving his palm back and forth, and after a few swipes, he started uncovering a structure beneath.
“What have you found?” Von Strauss asked. “They are almost on us.”
Bando smiled as he dug away at the spot. Beneath the snow was an oval-shaped metal plate, and in its center was a beveled, hand-shaped impression. He turned to Dana and then nodded to Von Strauss.
“Bring her over quickly,” Von Strauss told the Bascelics.
Dana, who had been struggling to keep herself warm during all of this, refused to be moved by the creatures. It was to no avail. All three seized her arms and legs, dragging her to the spot. Once there, they forced her hand down towards the metal plate.
Her hands were already cold, and the icy steel beneath her palm just added to her discomfort. A chill shot through her flesh like pinpricks. She shuddered as they pressed her hand down, harder and harder, until she couldn’t feel anything at all.
The plate shifted and then spun counter clockwise. The Bascelics released their grip on her arm, and she quickly placed her hand into her jacket for warmth. The spinning increased as the plate sent a shudder through the ground beneath them. Everyone moved away from the plate as an opening began to form on all sides, the ground struggling as a mound of earth stretched upwards. Gradually, the ice and snow melted away to reveal an enormous entryway, yawning to unveil a cave beyond.
Without hesitation, Von Strauss and the Bascelics entered. Bando needed to drag Dana along with them. She was hoping to stay, but at this point, the cold and exhaustion had taken over, and she didn’t have the strength to fight back. Reluctantly, she entered the cave with Bando close behind her.
A metal switch hung just inside the cave entrance, and Bando forced it down. It reacted as he expected, triggering the mechanisms needed to close the entryway behind him. With any luck, the entrance would close before their pursuers could reach it.
“Where did they go?” Jocelyn asked as the truck got closer to the Hanging Trees.
“Underground,” Sharp signed to Mouth.
“Sharp can see. They went underground. Through that hole up ahead.” Mouth translated to the rest of the team.
“And it’s closing,” Bulk Brown warned.
There was a moment of silence and everyone’s attention turned to Kale. His eyes widened, realizing what was ahead of them. This might be their last chance to help their friend, but it also meant that he’d have to make a decision. It was unlikely they would be able to get out of the vehicle, especially with Bulk’s bad leg, and get inside the cave before the opening closed. There was only one option, and it was up to him as the driver to do it.
“Don’t!” Bulk cautioned, reading what his teenage driver was thinking.
“Kale, you can’t make it,” added Jocelyn.
Kale swallowed hard, tightened his grip on the steering wheel and, with as much confidence as he could muster, told his passengers, “Better hold on to something.”
“No! No! No! No!” Mouth shouted.
It was too late. With a roar from the engine and his mouth, Kale pressed down on the gas pedal and pushed the truck at top speed towards the closing cave opening. The vehicle bounced up and down as it powered across the snow, kicking up ice and dirt as it chewed the ground towards its destination. The opening was rapidly closing.
“If we die, Kale, I’m going to kill you!” Mouth shouted above the noise.
They were close. There was just enough room to fit the truck through but not by much. Kale would have to be accurate, which was almost impossible with the amount of shaking and rocking the truck was doing. A few more feet.
“Almost there,” he said.
He could see the entrance closing faster now.
“Almost there!”
He closed his eyes and leaned back as if to give the truck an extra push with his hands. With a loud bang, he managed to clear the entrance, but the vehicle stopped midway through.
“What happened?” asked Echo, who was totally in the dark about what was going on. “Did we make it?”
The truck was wedged at its center by the closing sides of the entrance. It wouldn’t last long as the metal of the truck began groaning. The doorway was penetrating its sides, still attempting to close itself and slice the truck in half if it had to.
Kale tried to accelerate the truck, but it was no longer on the ground. The wheels just spun in the air as it was now tilted up off the ground. They were not getting the truck out of this vice grip.
“Kale! Jocelyn! Move to the side,” Bulk Brown commanded.
He raised a firearm towards the windshield and pulled the trigger several times. The glass cracked and with as much strength as they could muster, Kale and Jocelyn kicked the windshield free. They immediately scampered out of the new opening, followed by Bulk Brown.
“Come on Echo!” Mouth yelled as he grabbed his brother’s arm.
The sides of the truck were quickly collapsing on itself like the inside of a fist. The triplets escaped through the front just in time before the entranceway sliced the vehicle in two. The remains of the front end teetered for a moment before slamming violently, headlights first, into the dirt.
“Well, that was a small miracle,” exclaimed Kale as he brushed the snow and dirt off of his jacket.
Bulk Brown abruptly hoisted him in the air. The rest of the teens pleaded for him not to hurt Kale, but their cries went unheard. Kale looked as if he was about to cry as Bulk shook him up and down.
“If you ever try anything like that again with other people’s lives, I will knock your head off, poke out your eyes, and use your skull for a bowling ball. Do you understand me?” Bulk yelled.
“What?” Kale responded.
Bulk grimaced and started shaking him again.
“Just say yes, Kale, for the love of the Dea!” Jocelyn said.
“Yes. Yes! I understand Bulk. I’m sorry!” the boy answered finally, his voice wobbling as he was being shaken.
Bulk stopped his assault and gently put Kale back on the ground. He patted him on the head and walked away. The Locke Brothers were more thankful to Kale than Bulk, patting him on the back for the courage — albeit reckless courage — he had just shown.
“I think most of what we brought with us is lost in the other half of the truck,” Bulk Brown said as he looked through what remained of the vehicle. “Which means I’ve got one weapon with maybe ten rounds in it. And your computer stuff is gone too.”
Kale and Jocelyn dashed to the wreckage but knew as soon as they got there that their equipment had been lost. Without it, they wouldn’t be able to do much for the team. Then again, given where they were, it might not have mattered anyway. They were underground in an uninhabited part of The Dea. There were no computers to hack, no locks to pick, no security systems to breach.
“Well, let’s get going. There’s light up ahead in this tunnel. It’s probably an opening to a bigger area beyond. We need to hurry if we’re going to catch up with them,” Bulk said.
Gathering what materials they could, the teens followed Bulk down the tunnel towards a warm, golden glow that was just ahead of them. After a few turns, they emerged into a spacious open cavern.
“Will you look at that,” Mouth said.
“Lots of brightness is all I see,” Echo said, reminding his brother of his handicap. “Describe it to me.”
Mouth did his best to explain to his nearly blind sibling the wonder that existed beneath the ground. A cavern lay ahead of them, its expanse the size of a small town with stalactites and stalagmites of glittering earth jutting from the cave’s floor and ceiling. The platform they stood on was like a foyer into the rest of this underground world with a series of makeshift steps to their left leading down into the heart of the cavern.
Above them were the roots of the forest. Their spindly stems curved and curled along the roof of the cavern, feeding off the dripping condensation that the cave provided. It was temperate down here, which clashed with the freezing cold of the snowfield above, creating a misty haze that floated like a fog throughout the cave. Large mushrooms billowed up from the ground in sizes nearly twice that of a grown man. Their stalks shimmered with a blue-grey light that illuminated the ground, which itself was sparkling.
There was vegetation here as well, but none like any the teens or Bulk Brown had ever seen. Slender trees grouped themselves in clusters along the path before them, each one over twelve feet in height but sprouting short branches and bright golden leaves. The scent of sweet pollen was heavy in here, and flecks of the glowing seeds drifted through the cavern, like lazy fireflies in an afternoon sunset.
“What a sight,” Echo said to Mouth after his brother finished his description.
“And me without a camera to capture it,” Kale exclaimed. “No one is going to believe us.”
“That doesn’t matter. That is your focus,” Bulk Brown said as he pointed far off to the center of the cave.
