Page 72 of Wings of Ebony
This time, I take it.
“A little farther,” he says, looping my arm over his shoulder. A swirl of fire slams into the wall, its heat licking my neck.
The General laughs, his voice not nearly far enough away as I’d like it to be. “I love a good chase,” he says. The space between the echo of his footsteps grows shorter. My side throbs, but I ignore it and push, limping as fast as I can.
I refuse to die in this cave.
The cuff burns hotter, like fire itself is in my pocket. Several more feet of hazy dust. My neck aches and my thighs are crying for me to stand up straight.
Then we stop.
Just stop at what looks like a dead end, a solid stone wall inches from my nose.
“Put your hand here.” Aasim places my hand on the scratchy stone. The wall’s chill pulses through me. “Push,” Aasim says.
Push a stone wall? Is he serious?
“She’s quite the nosy one, Aasim. Been meddling in all my business.” The General’s voice reverberates down the cave. He’s close, so close. Another flash of magic explodes rocks behind us. Aasim ducks and presses my hand to the wall harder.
My hand shakes.
I can’t think.
“Rue, push, NOW!” I push the stone wall with every bit of strength I can muster. It ripples like quicksand and he shoves me forward.
“Go.”
“Wh-what?”
“Go, hurry!”
Through the wall? This is absurd!I suck in a breath and step into the rippling wall. Cool washes over me like I’ve stepped through a waterfall and for a moment the raging fire in my bones is gone. I step out on the other side and air assaults my head.
Streams of magic and the General’s shouts dissolve into the solid stone wall behind us.
“He can’t get through there, can he?” I ask, panting.
“Shouldn’t be able to.” Aasim’s behind me and I blink several times, adjusting to the light. Whispers from my pocket burn my ears and the rock wall behind us glows a moment like it’s dotted with a thousand fissures, then shifts. The stone wall buckles and cracks, folding in on itself, loosing clouds of dust, doubling in thickness… like it’s protecting itself.Whoa.
Where there was just a layer of stone wall is a packed stack of boulders layered on one another. It looks secure.
I hope it’s enough.
The space around us is tall and towering again, much like the entrance to the mountain. No piles of onyx in the corners. No sooty smell. Just empty, open air. I smooth my bloody hands on my hoodie and the wound on my cheek stings.
“He knows the way through the tunnel now,” I say. “This place was secret before, right?”
“It was.” Aasim pats the wall. “He still has to get through there to reach us.” He reaches for my face. “You’re hurt.”
I jerk back out of habit. “S-sorry.”
He nods in understanding and I feel bad. “I-I never said thanks, by the way.” I study my feet because that’s easier than looking at him. “F-for the necklace you gave Moms. I-I should have at least said thank you. For that.”
He doesn’t say anything, just nods, a solemn look in his eye.
“So, wh-what is this place?” My voice echoes as clacking footsteps grow louder our way. Out of the haze of dimness comes an older man with brown skin as rich as sable, his arms held wide with a smile to match.
H-he’s Black?
