Nil on Fire Read online

  She cocked her head, her joy at being out on the water making her giddy. “Now would you like to see how to really ride a wave?”

  *

  The island watched the one called Carmen with concern. It had taken an unacceptable amount of the island’s remaining strength to alter the path of Carmen’s blade. Responding to a calculated dose of pressure, the knife had sailed wide, barely missing the one called Lana’s back. Intent on the water, the one called Lana had not seen it, had not felt it; she had no inkling that her fate had nearly been altered by a hate-driven hand.

  The one called Lana had walked on, unharmed.

  The one called Carmen had shaken with fury.

  The blade’s error had stoked her anger, an unfortunate effect of the island’s interference, but the one called Lana’s choice to engage with others had already been seen, and she had a role to play. Her death was not written yet.

  But alteration of the knife’s trajectory had cost the island in many ways; it had sapped its reserves beyond acceptable levels. The island had no strength left to guide today’s noon. So when a frightening beast with blood dripping from its jaws arrived through the gate and ambled toward the human City, the island simply watched. And hoped that the humans still had strength to run.

  Days passed.

  Time passed.

  The island was accustomed to the passage of time; time gave and time took, because time always was. But now, time bled like an island wound. The one called Skye felt the loss as keenly as the island.

  The island shared her agitation, and her mounting frustration. The one called Thad had given her the clues, yet she did not see. The monumental blindness of this species baffled the island; it hindered their ability to learn and grow and transform. Even once Sight was bestowed, understanding did not necessarily follow, as if the blindness continued by choice, a completely illogical course of action. But the island believed that if given the opportunity, she would understand; she would not turn a blind eye to the present, or the future.

  But first, she must open her eyes. If she could not open them on her own, the island would assist her.

  Time would wait for no one, and the island could no longer wait for her.

  She must look, now.

  CHAPTER

  49

  SKYE

  42 DAYS UNTIL THE AUTUMNAL EQUINOX, MORNING

  Skye. The girl who wasn’t really a girl at all crooned in my ear. Look for what you don’t see.

  I’m trying, I wanted to snap. I was trying so hard I thought I might combust internally from the pressure building inside myself. I had no idea what befell the people lying still in the Dead City, and no clue how to save my friends and end Nil’s deadly cycle. Frustration didn’t cover how I felt right this minute.

  At the water’s edge, froth wrapped my ankles and tickled my toes, begging me to play; the sun kissed my shoulders, warm and soothing, an invitation to relax. But deep inside me, something shifted, something untouched by what was happening around me.

  Look.

  As if I looked through the eyes of a stranger, I took in the entire scene before my eyes. One click of a frame, then two.

  Rives and Thad carried their boards up the beach, laughing and smiling over a joke I couldn’t hear; closer to me, Lana squeezed water from her hair, her eyes closed, her expression content. To my right, Hafthor stood near Kenji, inspecting Kenji’s last bokken creation with approval; Chuck sat alone, rocking slightly as he played with fire. On my left, Davey strolled along the beach, away from me, cane pole in hand. Molly was talking to Calvin; Amara was talking to no one. Carmen stared at the sun. Paulo stared at her.

  Everyone moved slowly, unhurried, playing into the island feel. It could have been any day, any beach, anywhere.

  But we weren’t on just any beach, just any island—we were on Nil, and the entire scene was a mirage.

  Something inside me snapped.

  We had no time to waste, no time to play. We had six weeks left to figure this whole end-the-island thing out. I seethed with frustration; it welled inside me, building without end. I wanted to scream, to run around and shake everyone and yell, Wake up! Wake up!

  “Skye?”

  “What?” I spun around and came face to face with Zane. His eyes widened, his grip on his surfboard tightened.

  “Hey, sorry. I was just thinking.”

  “It looked like you were surfing.” My words practically cut my own tongue with their edge. Part of me felt terrible for being so rude to Zane, but my frustration bubbled over. “Sorry for snapping,” I snapped again. Then I gave up. “What?”

  He shook his head. “Listen, when we went to Quadrant Two on our magical mystery hunt, you said we were missing something, remember?”

  “I remember.” It’s all I think about.

  “I know what we’re missing. Gates. Specifically, outbounds. When you went on your trip to the Dead City, did you see any?”

  I thought back. Had I seen any on our trips to the ruins? I hadn’t, but then again I hadn’t been looking for one, either.

  Davey’s words echoed through my head. You weren’t looking for it, and you were specifically looking for something else. So you didn’t see it.

  “No,” I admitted, my tone slightly less acidic. “But I wasn’t looking for any, either.” I’d already decided the wild ones weren’t for me.

  He nodded. “Well, I’ve been looking, and I haven’t seen one. So.” He paused, his expression incredibly serious for Zane. “If Nil’s not sending us gates, then we’re all waiting for the golden equinox ticket, right? What if it’s a no-show, Skye? What if the island’s losing the ability to bring gates? Or, what if it’s waiting to take us down as a group, like the Dead City? I’m starting to think you might be onto something.” Zane glanced at Mount Nil. “Hafthor says he feels tremors constantly, like the ground is restless. Says they’re worse by the mountain, but he feels them here, too.”

  “Really?” Were there more steam vents than before? I wondered. Was magma building, like fire within, and here we were, trapped like the poor souls in Pompeii? I studied the mountain. From here, the mountaintop hid in the clouds; the west slope gleamed bright green in the sun. A wash of red flashed near the clouds, then vanished. I squinted, blinking. My eyes were playing tricks. “I haven’t felt any tremors,” I said, as if my declaration might make it true.

  Zane waved off my words. “The point is, what if the volcano erupts or a quake happens and the island takes us all at once?”

  “I don’t know. But I don’t think we can worry about the what-ifs. I think we have to worry about the now.” I wasn’t sure if I was talking to Zane, or myself, or both. “And right now, we need to figure out what we’re missing other than gates.”

  On the beach, Lana was gone. Davey was nearly out of sight. Rives now walked toward me, eating a mango; Thad talked with Paulo. The water had nearly reached the high-tide mark, but not quite. Part of my brain processed the slight shift in people and places, taking note out of habit; the rest of my mind screamed, None of it matters because you can see it.

  Wild splashing caught my attention. Dominic surfaced, breathing hard. He raised his empty spear and grinned.

  “That was a big one, Skye. Too big for me.”

  “A fish too big for you, Aquaman?” Zane grinned. “I don’t believe it.”

  Dominic laughed. “I telling you, mon, that fish was huge. Twenty feet at least, maybe more, the kind of fish that might eat me. The minute it popped out of the water light, I was gone. No need to wait for it to wake up.”

  “Water light?” I frowned.

  He nodded. “I see many here, in the water.” Seeing my blank expression, he continued. “The light holes. You know the ones, under the water, where the light appears and glows, and the sharks and the fish, they disappear into the light. I see many here. Sometimes, I see the light turn dark and spit out fish.” He grinned. “Yesterday I saw it deliver a stingray. Today, a tiger shark. Who knows what tomorrow will bring?”

/>   “Amen, brother.” Zane nodded.

  Dominic’s casual revelation sunk in. “Gates in the water exist,” I said slowly. “You’ve seen them. And they bring cold-blooded things. And you’re mostly seeing outbounds, the opposite of the land gates.” Because they’re linked, I thought. I’d suspected underwater gates existed; now I knew. The yin and the yang. The balance of it all.

  Balance reigns, Rives had told me more than once. It’s Nil truth number four.

  I closed my eyes again, desperate to see.

  Land gates, water lights.

  Nil City, full of people; the Dead City full of ghosts. Twin cities, on opposite coasts.

  Four labyrinths, four quadrants, equally spaced like the points on a compass.

  Four numbers, two sets of two. Both pairs equaling five, adding to a perfect ten.

  The cave of South Beach, shaped like an ear; the cave on the north shore, shaped like an eye.

  One mountain.

  One Looking Glass Cavern.

  They were not a match.

  My eyes flew open, finding Rives. “They don’t match,” I exclaimed. “The mountain and the Looking Glass Cavern! The mountain’s balance might be us, or maybe it just represents the island. I’m not sure it needs a match, because it houses the platform, and the platform’s mate would be underwater, right? Or back on the Death Twin. Either way, it’s not the Looking Glass Cavern. Which means, the Looking Glass Cavern should have a match, a balance, on the opposite side of the island. That’s what we need to look for.” I smiled triumphantly. “We need to find the Looking Glass Cavern’s island match.”

  Rives hadn’t moved. “Why?”

  “Because it’s important! Balance reigns, remember? It’s what we don’t see, and we have to look for it!”

  Rives didn’t look convinced. “To draw a direct line from the Looking Glass Cavern across the island puts its complement on the east coast, below the ruins.” He paused. “Directly below the meadow.” He crossed his arms. “We can’t take the coastal route to the south, because it’s blocked by lava. The northern coastal route will take us about a week, right?”

  I shook my head. “I say we go direct.”

  “Skye—”

  “I know what I’m asking.” We’ll have to go through the meadow. But the thought didn’t worry me like it did Rives, because I felt certain that if the island wanted me there, it would protect me, too. “I think something’s there, something important. I’m not asking anyone to come with me this time,” I added.

  Rives’s jaw ticked. “You know you don’t have to ask. Of course I’m going with you. Let’s just think about it for a few days, okay?”

  “We don’t have a few days! The clock is ticking, literally. We’ve been here for forty-four days, Rives. Forty-four days! And we’ve found nada. Zip. Zilch.”

  “Nil,” Zane added.

  I ignored him as I stared at Rives, my eyes pleading with him to understand. “If I sit around and do nothing,” I said quietly, “I’m going to go crazy.”

  “Why don’t we ask Paulo if he knows of anything on the other coast?” Rives said. “Or Lana? Or both?”

  “Fine.” I started up the beach. But I didn’t say I wouldn’t go.

  CHAPTER

  50

  RIVES

  42 DAYS UNTIL THE AUTUMNAL EQUINOX, LATE MORNING

  Merde.

  Skye’s think-first, panic-never mode was in full effect. As much as I hated to admit it, her decisions were never impulsive, even though they looked that way on the surface. She was cerebral, almost to a fault. But she tended to ignore dangers right in front of her face, or rationalize them away.

  Like now.

  A trip through the meadow?

  Suicide.

  The image I’d seen at the ruins flashed through my head. Skye lying on black rock, eyes closed forever, claimed by the darkness. Nil wanted her dead.

  How could she not see it?

  Skye was already walking away, toward where Paulo stood beside Thad. The two talked in low tones that Skye obliterated without introduction.

  “Paulo. I have a question. Do you know of a cave or cavern on the far side of the island? Like if I drew a line from the Looking Glass Cavern across the island, what would I hit?”

  “Other than the meadow?” Paulo thought for a moment. “Nothing.”

  “Are you sure?” Skye lifted her chin but I felt her rush of disappointment.

  “Positive. As far as I know, there’s nothing on that side of the island but the platform. And the mountain, of course.”

  Skye fell silent.

  Skye turned to me, her eyes full of determination. I knew that look. It said I may as well start packing.

  “Rives, I have to go,” she said, her tone adamant. “To rule it out. Just because Paulo doesn’t know of it or we haven’t seen it doesn’t mean it’s not there.” She paused. “And we actually don’t need to go direct. We can skirt the base of the mountain and drop down below the platform to the coast, rather than going through the meadow.” She cocked her head at me. “Deal?”

  “Deal.” As in package. As in two for one. As in if you’re going to risk your life, I’m going to be right there with you.

  She smiled as she rolled her eyes. “No need to be so melodramatic. It’s just another hike. No big deal.”

  “Right. I’ll be sure to file away the wolves and the tigers and the hyenas in the no big deal column of Nil.” I shot her a pointed look.

  “I will come and feed the tigers,” Dominic said soberly.

  “You want to be a tiger treat?” Zane looked confounded.

  “I am not the treat, but the fish I catch are. I toss fish into the meadow to keep the big cats happy. So far, so good.” Dominic smiled.

  “So crazy,” Thad murmured.

  “Amen, brother,” Zane agreed, his eyes wide on Dominic.

  Thad turned to Skye. His gaze was wary. “So when do we leave?”

  “Tomorrow.” Skye spoke the word with finality. “We leave at dawn. We only have six weeks until the equinox gate and we don’t have a minute to waste.” She glanced around. “Has anyone seen Lana?”

  Paulo pointed up the beach, toward the trees. Skye strode off, her steps full of purpose.

  “Scary Pam,” Zane mumbled.

  Paulo watched Skye go, his arms crossed, lips closed tight. Normally calm, he looked worried. No, I corrected myself. He looked disturbed.

  “What’s running through your head, Paulo?” I asked. “And does it have to do with Skye, or Lana?”

  “Both.” He sighed. “I don’t think this trip will be as easy as Skye thinks. It’s one thing to travel the island for clues; it’s another to go to the mountain—the heart of the island.” He shook his head. “The island didn’t like that we tried to leave as a group last time, that we tried to cut off its lifeline. I know that in my soul, just as I know noon is close. And while the animals have left us alone in the City lately, Nil’s paying full attention. Maybe it’s trying to lull us into complacency; I don’t know. But I don’t think that equinox departure will be smooth, or this trip. And if this trip is easy, that worries me even more.” His voice grew quiet. “I worry the island is biding its time.”

  Damn, I thought. Paulo had a solid point. Every move Nil made here was calculated. Point, counterpoint. Pawn, king. It had been quiet in the City, too quiet.

  What the hell was Nil up to?

  “Whoa,” Zane said. He’d paled under his tan. “Talk about a downer. Not exactly the pre-trip pep talk, dude. I’m thinking you could cross motivational speaker off your career list. No offense,” he added hastily.

  “None taken.” Paulo grinned but his eyes remained troubled. “Go team. Better?”

  “Totally. I really felt that, here.” Zane thumped his chest.

  Paulo laughed, then looked away toward Carmen. His grin vanished.

  And then the breeze stilled.

  CHAPTER

  51

  NIL

  NOON

 
; The group conferred among themselves, consumed with plotting and planning and other meaningless minutiae. Intent on searching for answers they would never find, the humans had grown rather boring.

  Yes, the island mused, it was time for some fun.

  After all, it was noon.

  It was the best hour to bleed.

  *

  Paulo glanced at Carmen. She smiled, feigning politeness, but before her bland mask slipped into place, he glimpsed the hate on her face. He didn’t trust her. He didn’t care for her much either. She played the part of a team player, but not well. Paulo didn’t understand why she bothered to pretend at all.

  People only pretended when they had something to hide. He watched her, carefully, waiting for a slip.

  The air stilled, as if the very breeze itself had been inhaled.

  Rives noticed the lull at the same moment Paulo did.

  “Gate at one o’clock,” Rives said abruptly. “Mid-beach.”

  Paulo spun to look. Above the sand, a gate stretched to its full height and locked into place, then an eerie, utterly still moment passed before it began to roll. The wild gates still unsettled Paulo; thinner than the solstice gate, the wild gates writhed and glittered and moved, shifting as if they were alive, like heat-seeking missiles.

  Out of the corner of his eye, Paulo saw Amara take off toward the gate, spear in hand, feet flying, face set. One second later, Carmen gave chase, a few meters behind.

  “Carmen, stop!” Paulo yelled, jumping toward Carmen and waving his arms. “Let her take it!”

  The gate writhed and glittered over the sand.

  Come, it whispered gleefully. Run.

  Fine, Paulo thought. I’ll run. But not for the gate.

  Amara closed the gap to the gate; so did Carmen. Cutting diagonally, Paulo tackled Carmen just as Amara leaped into the gate. Amara flickered inside the iridescent light, her face shifting from fight to relief. The gate winked out; Amara’s spear lay on the sand. Carmen spun toward Paulo, her scowl furious. “How dare you! That was mine!”