For one surreal moment, Sophie and her friends stood, slack-jawed, clinging to anything they could grab hold of. Then the tidal wave crashed over them.
The bridge cracked on impact, splitting into two parts, showering them with green sparks as the flaming arches toppled. Dex’s group was forced to split, and he dragged Calla with him to share the piece of bridge holding Tam, Linh, and Fitz. Alvar jumped with the silver chest onto the piece of rubble that Sophie, Keefe, and Biana clung to, right as it broke free and took off down the river.
Their debris dipped and ducked and thrashed through the white-capped water, rushing so fast the world smeared to a blur.
“So, um, not to freak you out more than you already are,” Keefe shouted, catching Sophie’s arm and dragging her back before a smaller wave could wash her overboard. “But . . . what happens when we go KABOOM?”
He pointed ahead, where the gigantic iron gates were growing larger by the second. Linh had seemed sure the force of the water and debris would break the gates open—but that didn’t explain how they would survive the crash.
“Time for the famous Sophie Foster to come up with another brilliant plan and save us, right?” Alvar asked.
But Sophie was out of ideas. Even with all four of their minds combined, their telekinesis strength would never be enough to shove the gate open before they got there. And with the rushing wind and the panic pumping through their veins, Sophie didn’t see how they’d ever be able to levitate safely away.
Linh says to jump into the river, Fitz transmitted from his raft. She can cushion you in the water.
Sophie could think of many things wrong with that plan, but she wasn’t in a position to argue. “Linh says we have to jump!” she shouted, pulling the others to the edge of their rubble and leaping into the flood.
The water was freezing, but it had a strange burn too, like lemon juice in a cut, and the stinging pain made Sophie forget any of the tricks she’d learned in Exillium to hold her breath. The currents knocked the last of the air from her chest, and as the bubbles slipped toward the surface, Sophie followed, kicking her legs frantically, her lungs screaming, her vision dimming until her head broke through the water and she sucked in a grateful breath.
Keefe surfaced beside her and she clung to him. He held on tight and reminded her they had to get underwater for Linh’s protection. Sophie had just enough time to fill her lungs with air before Keefe dove, pulling her under with him.
She forced herself to swim, ignoring the pain as bits of rubble pummeled them from all sides. She tried to remember that she owned the new record at Exillium for holding her breath—she just needed to slow her body down, slow her lungs down, slow her heart down.
An explosion blasted through the water, but as the storm of shrapnel hurtled toward them, it split down the center, half of it drifting over their heads, the other half below their feet. Sophie had no idea how Linh could control so many things at once, but she sent silent thanks for protecting them as they washed through the blast zone to safety.
“WE’RE ALIVE!” Keefe shouted when they surfaced again in the middle of the raging flood. “And so are Alvar and Biana! I can see them a few feet behind us.”
“What about the others?” Sophie asked, kicking away debris before it smashed them.
“I can’t see that far, but the gate’s open now, so they should have a smooth ride. Plus, they’ve got Linh. She’ll keep their raft steady.”
“True,” Sophie said. “You probably should’ve grouped up with them.”
“Nah, I like my group better.” He pulled her closer, just in time to miss a jagged rock.
The river rushed at a breakneck speed, waves tossing them back and forth, knocking them into flotsam. They clung to each other until the currents washed them into a bed of broken reeds.
Sophie waded out of the shallows, collapsing on the grassy ground and gulping as much air as she could.
“I think we made it,” Keefe said, crumpling beside her.
Sophie stared at the sky—a red sunset so bold it felt almost violent. Still, she preferred it to the sour green light of Ravagog.
“Any sign of the others?” she whispered.
“I saw their chunk of bridge wash ashore a while back,” Keefe said. “So I’m betting they’re on foot now.”
Sophie knew they should get up and search, but her body felt like it had been molded from mashed potatoes. The best she could do was lean her head on Keefe’s shoulder, trying to stay warm in the chilly evening wind.
“Awwww, you guys look so cute!” Alvar said, stumbling toward them a few minutes later. “Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt cuddle time,” he added as Sophie scrambled away.
Sophie was sure her cheeks were redder than the sky, especially when she realized Biana was there too. She pulled her soggy hair forward to cover her face. “It’s cold here.”
“It is,” Biana agreed.