I paused. We’d never discussed what to do once I found the halflings. I thought I’d be wandering around forever, only to return home empty handed.
“We should leave them at your parents’ house on First World, Abbs,” Lucy said. “The place is huge, and Lalli will keep an eye on them.”
I nodded. “I think my parents’ home is the safest. That way I can get around to all of the planets as quickly as possible.” I had another thought. “We live on the ocean, Raror. You can come with Talina, if you want?”
Talina’s face lit up.
He hesitated, before finally shaking his head. “I can’t. I have responsibilities. I am the next successor to rule Earon. With everything that’s happening here, I can’t abandon my people.”
“What’s happening here?” Lucas asked.
“Besides finding you on the Sacred Isle and the mutant creatures that shouldn’t exist, we also have incidences of missing wood and fruit.”
Talina and Raror’s expressions indicated this was the gravest of crimes.
“We’ve also had a few Spurns go missing in the water, which is not a common occurrence.” He looked grim. “But even if we assume that was the work of that creature, there is something in the waters, a new type of darkness.”
His words reminded me of Francesca’s warning just before we left.
“You might find this is a ricochet from the release of the Seventine. Apparently, First World’s energy travels to the youngling planets, and since the Seventine is pure negative energy, this is influencing the planets.”
It didn’t hurt to let them know the seriousness of the situation. I wanted Talina to be happy to leave; kidnapping was not part of the plan.
“Have they already been released?” Raror asked, his features falling in lines of horror.
I shook my head. “No, not all of them. The information we have is that one or two are free. But it’s any moment until the others find freedom. Each subsequent release will only throw the balance of these worlds even further off. It’s going to get worse before it gets better.”
“Why haven’t they just freed them all? This has been bothering me for a while?” Samuel draped his long arms over Lucy’s shoulder.
She cuddled against him.
“I get the feeling that it’s not that easy to release them,” Brace said. “It either takes a lot of time or requires lots of energy.”
I raised questioning eyes in his direction.
“That’s what Josian always indicated to me whenever we discussed possible scenarios for our journey.”
The doubt must have shown on my face, considering the way Josian had treated Brace before we left. I couldn’t imagine my father discussing anything important with him.
“So when do we leave, Abby?” Talina looked like she was both excited and hardcore freaking out.
She reached out and took Raror’s hand, squeezing it tight.
He growled. “Talina, no, I have already decided that we must travel to Silver City and discuss this with Ladre. I know you hate Spurn. I know you have always dreamed of an escape, but this story is borderline crazy, and we don’t know these people.”
Gee, don’t sugarcoat it for our benefit, Raror.
“That will probably work out for the best.” I interrupted their intense stare-off. “At the moment my powers need recharging, and I can’t access a Walker doorway until this happens.”
“How long will that take?” Raror asked. “We will only need a few days to reach the city.”
“I’m going to say a week, but it’s only a guess. My powers seem to require an intense charge or some form of motivation to work correctly.”
The previous dream scene had demonstrated that I had the power levels. I just couldn’t figure out how to use them.
Talina’s eyes were crinkled at the edges as she turned to me. “Sorry for the extra stop, but I know Ladre will understand, and then I will be free to leave. Plus, this is a big deal; not everyone gets to visit the city under the sea.”
I smiled back at her. She was right; it was an amazing opportunity. If only Raror wasn’t scowling and mumbling under his breath at me, it would be perfect.
“Alrighty,” Lucy interrupted. “I’m not sure about everyone else but I’m tired as hell. I think we should get some rest if we’re cruising ... under the sea, oh, under the sea, nothing is better, down where it’s wetter ...” Her eyes twinkled as she started to sing. Her voice was awkward and off-key, but endearing somehow.
Uncontrolled laughter spluttered from me. I remembered that song from when we were kids. Everyone else looked pretty confused, which only made the pair of us laugh harder. Nothing like an inside joke to break the tension.
“I’ll show you where you can rest for the night, since I assume you do not sleep in the water.” Talina words broke through our laughter. She waved us toward the room exit.
“Uh, no, we don’t sleep in the water, or on a water bed, thanks,” Lucy said, her laughter turning to astonishment.
I followed along with the brief hope we wouldn’t drown in our sleep that night.