D. MacHale - Black Water

“Boon!” one cat yelled. It was the same cat who had chased the quig back in the tree with the flume. “You made it back in time!”

“Can’t talk now!” Boon said as he tried to pull me through the crowd.

“But this is history!” The cat grabbed Boon and tried to pull him into the crowd. Boon struggled to get away, but these guys weren’t letting him go.

Boon complained, “I need to bring my gar-“

“Forget the gar!” the cat said. He yanked the leash out of Boon’s paw and tied me to a railing along the wall. “He’ll be here when you get back… if he’s lucky!” The cat laughed. He and the others grabbed Boon and pulled him into the crowd. Boon glanced at me, helpless. He was swept away in a jumble of fur and whiskers. Now I was alone…and trapped in a room full of predator cats who were getting all sorts of psyched about eating humans. As bad as that was, there was something that worried me more.

I heard the voice before I saw him. “Welcome to Eelong, Pendragon,” he said calmly. “I trust you enjoyed my performance.”

Ididn’t have to look. I knew who it was. He may have taken the form of a jungle cat named Timber, but I knew the truth.

“Hello, Saint Dane,” I said. Trying to sound as if I wasn’t surprised, or scared-because I was both. “You really must be getting desperate.” I turned around to see him standing a few feet from me. He stood on two feet, staring down at me like some lowly bug. It was Saint Dane, all right.

“And why would you say that?” he asked.

“I can’t change myself into a klee like you,” I said. “It gives you an unfair advantage here. But maybe that’s the only way you can beat me.”

Saint Dane chuckled. “Oh, so brash for a young Traveler who failed so miserably on Veelox.”

It took all my willpower not to scream at this creep. I didn’t want to let him know that he was getting to me, which he was. “What have you done here?” I asked.

“Isn’t it obvious?” he replied. “The word has such a nice ring to it, no?”

“What word?” I asked, not really sure I wanted to hear the answer.

“Genocide,” Saint Dane said with finality.

“Genocide?” I repeated. “You want to wipe out the gars? Why? Aren’t the gars like animals here? Wiping them out would be horrible, but not exactly a turning point for the territory.”

“Ahh, but you’re wrong,” Saint Dane said. “The gars are much more integral to life on Eelong than the klees realize. Without the gars, the tangs will have no prey. It will only be a matter of time before those vicious lizards become desperate enough to rise up against the klees. The klees may be the superior race on Eelong, but they are no match for the tangs. So when I speak of genocide, the gars are simply the first step in the cycle of destruction.”

It was a chilling thought. Saint Dane was monkeying with the food chain on Eelong. If he succeeded, the hunters would become the hunted, and Eelong would be left to a race of mindless, carnivorous dinosaurs…and he would have his second territory.

“You never told me your plan before. Why now?” I asked.

Saint Dane, or Timber as he called himself here, looked me in the eye. It took everything I had not to look away.

“Things have changed, Pendragon,” he said with confidence. “As I said, once the first territory falls, the rest will topple like dominos. Veelox is on a path to destruction, thanks to your failure. My power is growing. Nothing is as it was. The order that ruled the territories is crumbling, and so is Halla.” He backed away and added, “Which reminds me, it’s time to pay a visit to your friends on Second Earth. What are their names? Oh yes, Mark and Courtney.”

Hearing that, there was no way I could keep my cool anymore.

“Leave them alone!” I shouted. “They aren’t Travelers. They have nothing to do with this.”

“Everyone has a role in our little drama, Pendragon,” Saint Dane shot back. “It’s their turn. But don’t blame me. It was you who chose them. I wonder how they’ll use their new power.”

“Power? What power?” I asked. “What’s happened?”

Saint Dane backed toward the door. “Like I said, the walls are crumbling. I’ll give them your regards.” He held up a rotten, cloth bag and said, “Along with a small token from our friend Gunny.” With that he turned and walked quickly for the door.

“Saint Dane!” I shouted, but it was useless. The big cat dropped down on all fours and sprang forward, leaping out of the doorway.

He was headed for the flume. For Second Earth. For you guys.

I knew I couldn’t stop him, but you two had to be warned. I yanked at the leash, desperate to get loose and chase after the demon. All I did was pull the knot tighter. Idiot. Thankfully Boon came back.

“What are you doing?” he asked nervously. “Everybody’s watching you!”

“It’s Saint Dane,” I said frantically. “Timber is Saint Dane.”

“What?” Boon said, confused. “Timber has been on the Council of Klee since, well, since forever.”

“Then Saint Dane has been here forever,” I answered quickly. “Or he got rid of the real Timber and took his place. I told you, he can turn into whatever he wants, and he wants to be on the Council of Klee. That’s what he does. He slimes himself into a territory and manipulates people and…now he’s going after my friends on Second Earth. We’ve got to get back to the flume!”

“Maybe we should find Seegen first and-“

“No! We don’t have time!”

Boon must have seen the desperation in my eyes. With one quick move he flashed one of his sharp claws and sliced through the leash. “Let’s go,” he said, all business. He grabbed the cut end of the leash for show, and the two of us ran out of the Circle of Klee. Good cat.

“I gotta beat him to the flume,” I announced.

“If he’s on the run, you’ll never catch him,” Boon warned.

“You gotta get me there, Boon,” I said, not caring that other cats were watching us curiously. The thought flashed that I could jump on Boon’s back and ride him to the flume, but Boon had another idea. He led me to an elevator platform and to my surprise, we went down… to the jungle floor.

“Whoa, isn’t this dangerous?”

“You want to get there fast?” he asked. “This is the way.”

We hit the ground, and Boon ran across the jungle beneath the trees. He stayed on two feet so I’d be able to keep up. But he was still faster than I was. It didn’t help my speed any that I kept looking around, expecting a tang to leap out of a bush and start chewing on my butt.

“Don’t worry. It’s pretty safe inside Leeandra,” Boon said without slowing down. “There are guards everywhere. We won’t be in any real danger until we leave the city.”

Good. No worries…for now. Boon led me to a tall fence made of bamboo that was around ten feet high. There was an opening with two klees standing guard. Boon ran up to one and said breathlessly, “I need a zenzen.”

The guard answered, “What’s your rush? The wippen tournament is over.”

“And those guys from the north made us look bad,” Boon said, thinking fast. “I want the extra practice.”

The guard stepped aside and said, “Good! They aren’t better than us, they just train more.”

“Exactly!” Boon replied. “Watch my gar, would you?”

That was me. Boon ran inside the gate, leaving me alone. I stood in front of the two guards, feeling all sorts of vulnerable. I almost whistled casually, but figured that would have been a little suspicious. I looked to the ground but still felt their eyes on me. I really hoped they weren’t hungry.