Anthony Horowitz - Nightrise

“Maybe he is,” Finn growled.

“Are you?” Scar turned to Jamie. She was almost pleading with him. “Because we need you to be. Tomorrow we fight the Old Ones for the last time. They’re waiting for us, less than half a league from where we’re sitting now. We need you to be one of us.”

Jamie tried to collect his thoughts.

“I’m Jamie,” he said. Suddenly, he was tired. “I’m sorry,” he went on. “I wish I could be the person you want me to be, but I don’t think I am.”

“Then it’s over,” Scar replied. “Sapling is dead and the Old Ones have won.”

She got up and walked off into the dark.

Jamie woke slowly the next morning and, before he had even opened his eyes, he sent out his thoughts, searching for his brother. It was instinctive, something he did automatically. He knew there would be no reply.

Scott. Where are you…?

But this time it was different.

Here!

The single word came back, very faint, from somewhere far away. Jamie sat bolt upright, fully awake in an instant. That was when he saw where he was. He was lying on the temple floor, dressed in the clothes he had worn the day before and wrapped in the same blanket that he had used as a saddle. One side of his body was numb and there was a crick in his neck. In fact most of his bones were aching; he was surprised he’d managed to sleep at all. He groaned quietly and raised himself up on an elbow. Erin was on the other side of the temple, relighting the fire, stirring the embers with his metal hand.

Had it been Scott who had replied? Jamie tried again, visualizing his brother.

Scott, are you there…?

But this time there was silence and Jamie wondered if he hadn’t simply imagined his brother’s voice while he was still half asleep. Scott wasn’t here. As far as these people were concerned, Scott didn’t even exist. Jamie looked around. Nobody had noticed that he had woken up. Erin was lifting a pot of water onto the flames. Corian was sitting near by, sharpening his sword between two stones. There was no sign of Scar or Finn.

So what had happened? How had he got here? Still lying on the hard ground, Jamie went back over everything that had happened, trying to make sense of it. All he knew for certain was that he had arrived at the end of a long war between mankind and creatures who called themselves the Old Ones. And the hopes of all humanity rested on five teenagers. Matt was their leader. Then there was Scar and a boy called Inti, who was near but who had yet to arrive. And finally two brothers

… twins. Flint and Sapling.

That was the most difficult part. As far as everyone was concerned, Jamie was Sapling. And that meant he was expected to fight in the battle that was going to begin just a few hours from now. The thought of it made him tremble. He didn’t know anything about swords or arrows. And now here he was in the middle of a war of his own and he was hopelessly out of his depth.

And yet…

That wasn’t quite true. Only the day before he had snatched up a sword from a dead soldier and fought hand-to-hand with a creature twice his size. He had known exactly what to do – and he had won. Admittedly Scar had arrived in time to finish off the man-scorpion, but only after Jamie had cut off its tail and stabbed it almost to the heart. And that wasn’t the only thing. Although he had never sat on a horse in his life, he had ridden many miles, trotting, cantering, even galloping. And right now he wasn’t even stiff. It was as if his body was used to spending long hours in the saddle.

What did it mean?

He wasn’t Sapling. He was Jamie Tyler. But Sapling seemed to be part of him. The two of them were the same age. They looked the same and had the same skills, even if they had been born thousands of miles and perhaps thousands of years apart.

There was a movement at the entrance to the temple and Finn appeared, carrying a water bottle. He came over and handed it to Jamie.

“You’re awake,” Finn said. “Did you have any dreams?”

“I was too tired for dreams.” Jamie sat up, took the water bottle and drank. “Where does the water come from if the rivers are poisoned?” he asked.

“We have wells, but they have to go deep.”

Jamie was aware that Finn was examining him. In his own way, Finn was as beaten about as the city in which they had spent the night. His hair had turned grey too soon. The scar on his cheekbone had been left by a wound that had cut deep. His eyes, soft grey and watchful, had seen too much pain.

Jamie handed back the water bottle. “Thank you,” he said.

“Sapling…”

“I’m not him.” Jamie shook his head. “I know you want me to be. I know he was your friend. But I’m not.”

“Maybe not,” Finn said. “But today you have to be.”

“Then tell me about him. And tell me about Scar. How did the two of you meet?”

Finn sat down next to Jamie. There was obviously some sort of activity going on outside. Jamie could hear the clatter of hooves, the occasional whinny. The army was assembling in the main square just outside the temple. They were preparing themselves for the last march to war. But for the moment Finn seemed content to let them get ready on their own.

“I met Scar four seasons ago,” he began. “Before the snow arrived. I had travelled far and I was resting with my back against a wall, wondering what to do next. There was a door in a wall and it opened and she appeared… just like that. She was lucky in a way. If my sword had been in my hand I might have killed her before I realized who she was, but I’d been careless and left it with the horse. She told me her name, but I didn’t ask her where she had come from even though – and this is the strange thing – the door in the wall didn’t lead anywhere. It was just a ruined wall. She knew where she was going. That was all that mattered. And I decided to go with her.

“She and I travelled together for a while and I looked after her. She was different then from how she is today. She was more scared – though it would be best not to tell her I said so. She said she was searching for someone called Matt, a boy she had seen in her dreams. I thought she was mad. But then we found him – or he found us – and suddenly I saw it was all true.”

“And Sapling…?”

“I can’t help you there. It’s all beyond my understanding. You look like him. You sound like him. And if I didn’t know for certain that he had been killed and his body burned, I’d say you were him.”

“What year is this?”

Finn shrugged. “It’s the year after the one before. I’ve heard it said there were numbers once but that was long ago and they’ve all been forgotten.”

“The Old Ones…”

“That’s right. They’ve made life miserable and painful but at least they’ve made it short.” Finn thought for a moment, then got to his feet. “Come with me,” he said. “I have something to show you.”

Jamie rolled himself out of his blanket and followed Finn across the floor to the far wall, where there was a doorway he hadn’t noticed before. It led into a small circular room with a ceiling that was vaulted and painted blue with gold stars. The walls had once been painted too but now there was nothing left, any images scratched out of existence.

Scar was there, kneeling in front of a stone slab that might once have been an altar, cradling across her thighs a parcel wrapped in cloth. Hearing Finn, she got up and turned round. She looked at him almost accusingly.

“What are you doing here, Finn?” she demanded.

“And good day to you, Scar,” Finn replied.

“I was asleep.”

“No you weren’t.” Finn glanced at the bundle she was holding. “I knew you’d be here,” he said. “Give it to me.”