D. MacHale - Raven Rise

“Of course!” She laughed, as if realizing something she hadn’t thought of. “That’s exactly what you would assume.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked with caution and more than a little confusion.

“It appears I’m better at this than I thought.” With that, Telleo began to transform. Her image melted before my eyes. She became a moving mass of liquid smoke. I knew what was coming, or at least I thought I did. I was ready to see her become Saint Dane. She didn’t. When the transformation was complete, I stood face-to-face with Nevva Winter. It was a good thing I was still holding on to the bed, or I would have gone over for sure.

“Surprise,” said the beautiful, dark-haired woman from Quillan. “It was fun while it lasted, wasn’t it?”

I opened my mouth, but no words came out.

Footsteps were heard outside, coming quickly. It was the security detail I had asked for.

Nevva walked quickly to the window, then turned back and added, “It’s too late, Pendragon. While you were busily rebuilding this sandy village, the Convergence has begun. Unlike you, Saint Dane didn’t quit. I suggest you continue to enjoy your oblivious little life here. At least what’s left of it.”

I ran for Nevva too late. She dove out the window, already transforming into the raven that quickly flew away. A second later the security team entered the room.

“Is everything all right?” the first guy to arrive asked.

I stood at the window, numb. I didn’t even bother to look out. My entire world had collapsed. Nothing was what I had thought it was. I had been played as a fool for months.

“Yes,” I said in a soft whisper. “Everything’s fine. False alarm. I’m sorry.”

“We’ll wait outside,” the guy said. “Sure, whatever you want.”

They gave me an odd look, as if I were acting strangely. Which I was. I didn’t care. “Go!” I shouted.

The security guys quickly backed out of the room, leaving me alone with Loque. I looked down at the sleeping Jakill. He was out of danger. He would live. But what kind of life had he come back to? What was Saint Dane’s plan for Ibara? Was it possible that this Convergence was truly under way? Had Saint Dane unearthed the flume? Was Nevva lying, or was it really too late?

I sat down. I had to think. I felt like such an idiot. If Loque hadn’t beaten the odds and pulled off an impossible escape, I’d still be clueless. But clueless to what? What was going on? There was only one way to find that out. Other than learning that I had been a total idiot, nothing had changed. I knew where I would find the answers. Rubic City.

Iplanned to leave before sunrise.

I wanted as much daylight as possible to navigate my way across the ocean, back to Rubic City. I would have left right then and there if I hadn’t thought I’d get totally lost at sea. Besides, I needed sleep. There was no telling when I’d get another chance. It was going to be a long, grueling trip, and that would be the easy part. I had to be at my best. Or at least, I needed to be at my most awake.

I found an empty room with a bed near where Loque was staying. I lay down and proceeded to stare at the ceiling for the next several hours. So much for sleep. It’s not easy to relax when so much is bouncing around inside. Things had changed so drastically, so quickly. When I destroyed the gate to the flume, I truly believed I would never have to deal with Saint Dane again. I had had enough. I thought I had done more than my part and deserved to let it go. Trapping us both here was the perfect solution. Or so I thought.

The thing is, once the pressure was off, I totally gave myself over to my new life. I think you probably got that from my earlier journals. For the first time in a long time, I was looking forward to the next challenge, as opposed to always looking over my shoulder, wondering when the next disaster would hit. I had put the battle with Saint Dane behind me. Rebuilding Rayne was like rebuilding my own life as well. I accepted the fact that I’d never see Second Earth again. Or my family. Or you guys. That was the only regret in an otherwise perfect plan.

But since Loque returned, I not only found out that Saint Dane might possibly find a way out of here, but the new life I had been building was with the enemy. Nevva Winter. A traitor to the Travelers. I may be slow, but I’m not dumb. Saint Dane must have sent her here to watch me. No, it was more than that. In the form of Telleo, she supported me. She made me love Rayne. She and her father took the place of the family I had lost. I can’t help but think that my wanting to live the rest of my life in Rayne was exactly what Saint Dane wanted. I may have been done, but he wasn’t. He wanted me out of the way while he worked to reopen the flume in Rubic City. He sent Nevva Winter to make sure I didn’t leave.

Okay, maybe I am dumb.

How could I have kidded myself into thinking that Saint Dane would just lick his wounds and not cause any more trouble? Had I wanted out of this battle so badly that I would throw logic away? It was beginning to look that way. I figured I could beat myself up over it, or I could move forward. But what did that mean? I had totally checked out of this war. Other than writing these journals and examining the flume-grave on Ibara every once in a while, as far as I was concerned, the fight for Halla was over. I was done. Would I be able to jump back in?

The answer I came up with was yes…and no. When I wrote that my days as a Traveler were over, I meant it. Halla would have to take care of itself. Of course, that was an easier choice to make when I thought Saint Dane wouldn’t be jumping around to cause trouble. Still, my feelings hadn’t changed. I had done my part. I was finished. But I didn’t plan on being a total load and hanging out eating pineapple. Part of the decision I made when I destroyed the gate was that I was going to do all I could to help rebuild Veelox. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing, and I’ve loved every minute of it. At least every minute until I heard Loque’s story.

I decided I wasn’t going to give up that plan. I was still going to do all I could to help Ibara. To help Veelox. To do that, I had to go to Rubic City, find the “mine,” and destroy it. With the flume open, Saint Dane could bring more dados from Quillan. He could bring more skimmers and weapons and anything else he wanted. I couldn’t let that happen. My duty now was to this territory. In that sense, I was keeping with my decision. I was going to do all I could to help Ibara thrive and bring Veelox back. If that meant going up against Saint Dane again, I was ready to do it.

What I wouldn’t do is jump back into the flume. I am no longer a Traveler. Do I feel guilty about that? A little. But by destroying the gate in Rubic City, I’ll be making sure that Saint Dane is trapped here for good. That’s a good thing for all Halla. How will I do that? No idea. I’ll have to figure that one out.

I also have to hope that the Flighters haven’t already uncovered the flume. I’m sure that as soon as Nevva left Tribunal Mountain she flew right to her boss to tell him that the masquerade party was over and I knew all about Project Flume. Saint Dane would be ready for me. That made me a little anxious. I’d been out of the game for a while. I was feeling kind of rusty.

All those thoughts fought for brain time while I was supposed to be resting. I may have dozed off a little, but not for long. I wrote some in my journal, then finally decided that lying there was a waste of time.

I first went to Loque’s room and woke him up. I needed to tell him all that had happened since he was nearly killed. He deserved to know. But I had trouble finding the right words. How could I tell him the truth, when the truth was so freaking complicated? I decided that the best thing to do was to say that Twig would tell him everything. Once I said the words, I realized it was the perfect solution. Everyone on Ibara had their own way of dealing with the events of the war, and the revelation of their past. It would be better for Loque to hear it from the perspective of someone who was like him-a Jakill who’d lived on the island his entire life. Twig didn’t know of Travelers and flumes and Halla. All she knew was that some mysterious evil guy organized the Flighters and launched an attack against their home. The people of Ibara banded together to stop them. That’s all Loque needed to know.