Chapter 30

The next morning Theo was the textbook definition of servitude.

He helped Cora divide the leftover meat into portions for later, wrapping them tight inside the spare newspaper Ren had in her bag. She didn't miss the irony of his earnest efforts brushing right back up against his worst mistake. He doused their fire and gathered more kindling. She'd have been more impressed, but her mother had always taught her that it was easy for someone to live out the first few days of an apology. The true test was whether or not they held their course when the sting of correction faded. How quickly would they revert to who they really were?

He also offered to cast the spells and boons. Cora was down to 70 ockleys. Just a handful of spells, really. They'd agreed to save as much of her magic as possible in case another serious injury occurred. After casting protections over their camp in the cave, Ren possessed only 200 ockleys. Timmons had 170. Theo's number loomed around 900. Ren felt like they were solidly positioned, as long as they didn't lose Theo's cache of magic. And they'd already come pretty close to doing exactly that.

They set out—armored with spells and full bellies—for what Ren knew would be the most difficult leg of the journey. Her guesses at how difficult fell well short of the mark. After getting their bearings, the group started upward again. Snow quickly turned to ice. The footing was devilish at first, playing little tricks that would send them sliding back down a few steps. They'd laugh at one another and press on. It wasn't as funny later in the day, when every foothold was impossibly slick and the wind howled at their backs. Before long the consequences of a fall became far more terrifying too.

Their conversion spells slowly turned into punishments. It was too cold outside the protection of the casting, which meant it grew far too warm within the radius of their spells. Ren was sweating profusely. So were the others. They were eventually forced to switch over to a more costly enhancement spell that made their clothes feel lined with fur. It would deplete their magical stores far faster, even if it felt like a fine solution for the time being.

Each new height exposed them to new dangers. Ren saw birds wheeling in the sky and knew that if the wyvern came for them now, it'd be as easy as plucking oysters off the sides of a dock exposed by a low tide. Theo tasked Vega with flying ahead of them. The bird would set down with a scrape of stone wings, landing on the ledges they needed to reach themselves. It was useful at first to have a guiding beacon, but eventually they came to the point where having something to aim at didn't mean they could actually reach the location in question.

"Too slick," Ren grunted, slipping down a third time. "We need to use rope spells for this."

All four of them were crowded on a slender shelf of stone. There was a nauseating view of the stretching green valley below with stone hilltops scattered throughout. Their view of the surrounding mountains had been reduced and narrowed to their current obstacle—a curving path of ice that led to yet another ledge. Fog curled in and out of everything, obscuring their view beyond that. Vega watched them from above with hooded eyes.

"We'll need to set anchor points." Theo gestured. "There and there and there."

Ren nodded. "Do you know how to do that?"

He'd been an image of humility for the last few hours. Her question finally dragged the haughtiness back to the surface. "Yes, I know how to make anchor points."

She still watched closely as his magic took shape. Checked to make sure each anchor was driven deep in the stone, rather than the surface-level ice. He wove another thread of unseen magic carefully through the invisible anchors before tying everything off with a knotting spell. She wouldn't have done anything differently, except that she could summon each spell much faster. He shot a look in her direction for approval and she nodded.

"Steadfast charms," she said to the others. "Timmons, if you'll amplify, we can use the elementary version to keep our feet steady on the ice. Everyone got it?"

Nods all around. She felt that familiar surge in her magic as Timmons lent them strength. A steadfast charm didn't offer perfect footing, but it would eliminate minor slips. Theo set his feet, tested out the first chunk of ice, then moved hand over hand up the incline. After he'd gone up a few paces, he looked back and handed off the invisible line to her. Ren reached out. He'd textured the spell to feel like an old sailing rope. She could sense the grainy fibers rubbing against her palm. She got a solid grip and started climbing, trying to ignore the waves of nausea as her body leaned in a perpendicular angle to the ground. Cora came on her heels. She was followed by Timmons, who muttered curses every few steps. Their added weight had the invisible rope flexing taut.

"First anchor is right here," Theo called back. "Just reach around it."

He slid his hand to the right, found the next run of invisible rope, and settled his grip. Ren watched him start moving diagonally to their right, following the icy trail. She repeated his motions. Her stomach lurched as she switched over. Statistically it was the most dangerous part of any climb. They were about fifteen paces above the stone shelf now.

"Well, I'm never going mountain climbing again," Ren whispered.

Timmons snorted. "Reminds me of those inspirational speakers Balmerick is always bringing in. Bloody pioneers climbing mountains just for fun. Teachers were always trying to make a lesson out of it. ‘What's your Watcher Mountain? What obstacle do you want to overcome this semester?'?"

Ren let out a nervous laugh. "Right now, my Watcher Mountain is Watcher Mountain."

Timmons snorted again as Theo finally reached the upper ledge. Ren was still a few paces behind when she felt something. Like a sharp fingernail scratching at the door of her mind. The sound dragged at her senses. She made the mistake of opening that mental door and heard a familiar voice whisper: I am hungry. You are food.

Theo was holding out a hand, waiting for her to take it. Ren ignored it, whipping her head around to look. Cora was below her, desperately clinging to the rope. There was fear in her eyes. She'd heard the voice too. Clyde was coming.

"Timmons!" Ren called. "Summon a retreating ward. Now!"

Gravity was tugging her friend's silver-white hair into a bright stream. It pointed back to the ledge they'd left behind. Ren watched her scramble for the wand at her belt. A shadow approached from below. Clyde had transformed. His skin was still a patchwork of burns and scars, but he'd grown unnaturally since they'd last seen him. At least a full head taller. His shoulders broad with muscle. He ignored Theo's rope, climbing from stone to stone with impossible agility. Timmons was still fumbling for her wand. Ren saw she wasn't going to be able to cast the spell in time.

"Cora. Get down!"

The girl pressed her body to the rocky shelf. Ren took aim. Thought, spell, magic. A bolt of fire burst from the tip of her wand. It whipped past Timmons and struck Clyde's shoulder just as he got close enough to swipe at her. His bare feet slid back down the ice, but he lashed out desperately. His hands caught the invisible rope. The entire length shook, jolting all of them. Clyde let out a hissing snarl. Timmons raised her wand at the exact moment he thrust out his hand.

His magic breathed through the air, dark and pulsing and hungry. Timmons's spell was like a dash of sunlight by comparison. Retreating charms were mental shields. The spell created a false layer—a sort of catch-point—for any magic that attacked it. Ren watched both spells form in the air, on the verge of collision. And then she let out a surprised cry when her friend's spell fizzled. It was a botched summoning.

Timmons's eyes swung back to Ren. "Help me."

And then Clyde's spell struck. Those beautiful eyes fluttered shut. Ren raised her wand, ready to cast another projectile spell, when the magic did the unthinkable. It leapt through the air. From Timmons to Cora in a breath.

A chain spell, Ren realized. It's a chain spell.

The next logical step happened before Ren could think to summon her own ward. The spell hit her square in the chest, and the world slipped away.…

A hand was on her shoulder, the grip sinking in like teeth. She was forced to look down at the sight of her father, bent wrongways in the belly of the canal. But… but… but… Clyde. This was Clyde. He was doing this to her. Think, Ren. Think! The theory of functional opposition. He's using… my mind… to stop my body.…

Ren broke free of the spell just in time to watch Timmons fall.

Her arms spread wide and she fell back with all the grace of an angel. Her body hit the stone ledge with a sickening thud. Clyde leapt down from his position and landed next to her. Ren's mind was still untangling as the monster crouched over her best friend.

A bolt of magic cut through the air. Theo struck true. His spell hit the back of Clyde's shoulder with enough force to send him stumbling toward the edge. The burned arms wheeled. Ren screamed, though, when he reached out for something to steady himself. His hands found the only thing in range: Timmons. Her beautiful silver-white hair.

Momentum took them both over the cliff, rag-dolling out of sight. Ren felt one final slash of Clyde's magic. It plunged knifelike through that spot in the back of her mind. It was so painful that her hands let go of the rope. Gravity snared her.…

"Ren. Get up. You're crushing me."

She opened her eyes to immense pain. Her elbow sent shooting vibrations down her entire right side. Something shifted beneath her. It was Cora. She'd fallen from the rope and landed on the other girl. The two of them were all the way back down on the stone shelf.

"Timmons. We have to help her. She fell.…"

But Cora grabbed hold of Ren, wrapping her up so that she couldn't start down the ice-laced path. "She's dead. I saw her fall. Ren. No. We can't go back."

"Get off me. We have to go get her."

"Are you two okay? Anything broken?"

It was Theo. He was scaling back down to help them. Cora was stronger than she looked. Ren tried to break free, but exhaustion stole through her entire body. The steadfast charm was completely spent. Every muscle felt even more drained now.

"She's gone, Ren," Cora whispered. "She's gone."

"We have to go after her."

Cora wouldn't let go. "The enhancement magic. Don't you feel it? Her spell is gone."

Those words broke her. It was such a logical conclusion. The truth slicing through a make-believe world where Timmons had survived. Ren slumped down to her knees. There was a scuffle of boots nearby as Theo arrived. Cora was right. The enhancement that had been bolstering their magic was gone. There was only one reason that would happen.

"But she… we have to…"

Cora still held her tight. "We need to keep moving. He'll come back."

"Let him come." Her anger flared. "I'm ready."

"No. You're not ready, Ren. You're in a heightened emotional state, but you are physically exhausted. We are facing a creature that we do not understand. We're not ready. We need to get as far as we can today and make a plan. If he circles back, none of us stand a chance."

Ren's chest was heaving. She felt something guttural rattle out of her throat. She wanted to pull her hair out. She wanted to burn the world to nothing. Her fingers were bleeding from how hard she was pressing them down into the ice. Theo gently helped her back to her feet.

When she didn't protest, he set his hands on hers, guiding them back to the rope. She followed the trail of his magic with mindless obedience. Her final glimpse of Timmons echoed. Those blackened hands tangled in her bright hair. The way her slender body was drawn like a marionette over the cliff. That memory felt vibrant and knife-sharp compared with the rest of the barren world, which had gone briefly colorless. Ren moved through that void without purpose.