Wings of Paper - Chapter 13

Falling Rocks and Firelight Dances

Sammy and I had a silent agreement to keep his flashbacks private. He didn’t want anyone to worry about him and I didn’t want to think about his mother’s sacrifice any more than I had too. 

My own sleep was restless and I felt exhausted when I peeled my eyes open in the morning. We ate a silent breakfast, everyone lost in their own thoughts. 

We hiked all morning without occurrence. The forest was eerily quiet and by noon we reached the end of the woods. The trees cut off abruptly at the edge of a canyon. Though the walls of the canyon weren’t entirely vertical they were quiet steep. 

“There’s a small river at the bottom,” Sammy explained to us, rummaging through his bag for a rope. “The walls aren’t too steep to walk down, but we should still secure ourselves to something.” He handed Kenzie a coil of thick rope, who began to wrap it around her waist, winding it around and around before tying a thick knot. 

“Are you sure this is safe?” Alex asked as she helped Sadie fasten the rope around her waist. “It looks pretty eroded. One wrong step could send us plummeting.” 

Sammy shrugged. “Sadie and I got down there, but then the soldiers found us so we didn’t cross the river. The wall can be scaled, and we don’t have a choice. We need the volcano.” I was beginning to wish the volcano wasn’t so far away. 

My legs already burned. Hiro handed me the rope, which I knotted around my own waist. It was tight and constricting, but I didn’t want to risk falling. 

“Everyone ready?” Kenzie asked. Sammy was leading the line, followed by Sadie, Alex, Kenzie, Hiro, and finally me. We all nodded, though I was struggling to contain my nerves. I forced my limbs to stop shaking. 

“There’s a path over here,” Sammy told us as he lead us to a group of bushes. Sure enough there was a signpost behind the bushes, pointing downwards into the depths of the ravine. “It’s steep, but unless you want to actually climb down it’s our only option.” And there was no way he was forcing me to climb down the mountain itself. 

We started our way down the path. I could practically hear my heart pounding as I took a step. And another. The road wasn’t vertical, but it was close. Maybe a sixty to seventy degree angle. 

Sammy and Sadie were obviously the most nimble of our group because of their elvish genetics. Kenzie and Hiro also had a similar grace like a gazelle. Even Alex was better off than me. When I slipped the entire group rolled their eyes. I made a mental note to add walking to the ever-growing list of things I was bad at. 

The path was rocky, winding, and most of all - terrifying. It was narrow, only about a foot wide. Rocks were carelessly discarded all over and when one rolled it set the rest of them off too. The dirt was compact and dry, but it cracked whenever I stepped in the wrong place. 

We were about halfway down when Alex let out an ear piercing shriek. I was too far behind her to see what was happening. “Is everything alright?” I called out. 

“Perfectly fine,” came Kenzie’s strained reply. 

I peered around Hiro to see Sadie and Kenzie pushing their heels into the ground, Alex grabbing on to the side of the path as she began to slip. The rocks had given way beneath her feet, tumbling the long way to the ground below. 

Kenzie bent over, muscles tensing and her skin slick with sweat as she reached for Alex and pulled the girl up with all of her strength. 

Alex bit her lip as she finally regained footing. “I’m good,” she said, her voice shaking. 

“This is the worst part of the path,” Sadie informed us. “Watch your step.” 

Because I needed any more anxiety added to this challenge. Alex and Kenzie leapt perfectly over the gaping hole in the path. 

Hiro made it across too, but the second his feet touched the other side he grasped his head in his hands, stumbling slightly. I had already began to quick leap to the other side of the hole, and Hiro was backing towards me. 

“Hiro!” Kenzie called out as he fell into me. The seconds slowed down as Hiro collapsed onto me, pushing me backwards. 

I felt like a cartoon character as my arms flailed around. I managed to regain my footing just as Hiro slumped to the ground beside me. Kenzie was further ahead with the others and another hole had opened on the ground between us and them. 

“We’re alive!” I called out, trying to push back the fear rising in my chest. 

“I assumed as much,” Kenzie replied. I pulled myself to a standing position. We had barely enough room to stand on this little island. And Hiro wasn’t move any time soon. 

“We need to get across,” I said, even though I knew Kenzie had already figured that much out. “Any ideas?” I wasn’t getting any ideas. I had no idea how I was to get out of this situation. 

“I could leap back over there,” Sadie offered. 

“That would tangle the rope,” Alex argued. “Luke and Kenzie are the only ones who can get to Hiro.” 

Which was terrible because I could barely hold myself up. I kicked Hiro in the side but he didn’t even stir. That wasn’t a good sign. The movement caused a stone to shift under my foot and tumble down the hill. That complicated everything. 

“You’re going to have to lift him and hand him to me across the crack,” Kenzie said. 

“How am I supposed to do that?” I barked. 

Kenzie slapped an open palm against her face. “Lift him under the arms and drag him towards the crack. I’ll grab his feet and get him the rest of the way across.”

Easier said than done. I wrapped my arms under his armpits, straightening my legs in attempt to lift him. Hiro was lighter than I thought, and the thought to check his wound passed over me briefly. Then I remembered that the rocks were tumbling away beneath my feet. 

I pulled him up towards my chest until he was entirely aloft. Kenzie reached for him, her arms stretching as far as they could go. 

“Hurry, Luke,” Kenzie said, her voice rising higher. 

“I’m trying!” I argued, hoisting Hiro even higher. I wasn’t sure how I was going to hand him to Kenzie. The gap between the island and the path was about two to three feet, maybe five at the most. 

Kenzie wouldn’t be able to reach him. Which meant I had to throw him. 

“I’m going to toss him over. Be ready to catch!” I called out. A rock hit my ankle, reminding me of the pressing time. 

Kenzie nodded, readying herself. I bent my legs, ignoring the strain in my arms. And with all my might I launched Hiro into the air. He arced higher than I had anticipated, falling quicker too. 

Kenzie lunged to grab him. She managed to grasp the collar of his shirt with both hands, falling to the ground in the process. Hiro’s weight was dragging her downwards and Alex braced as the rope pulled taught. Kenzie grit her teeth and I held my breath as Alex gripped her ankles. 

Sammy pulled on Sadie who pulled on Alex who was holding Kenzie’s legs who was holding Hiro’s shirt. I honestly felt a little left out.

Slowly, inch by inch, Kenzie was pulled onto solid ground. Hiro was raised right behind her. He was still unconscious but his eyes were fluttering beneath closed lids. He would wake sooner than later. I hoped. 

“Luke, jump,” Alex demanded. “The whole path is collapsing.” 

The rocks were giving way, but not just beneath my feet. Alex and I met gaze as the dry dirt cracked. The ground disappeared my feet and I barely had time to scream before the sensation of falling overwhelmed me. 

Down, down, down I plummeted. I wondered if my last words would be intense screaming. 

I hit the ground hard, spikes of pain shooting through my legs. Next came the crushing weight, pressing down on me from all directions. I groaned on impact but bit my tongue to keep from shouting out. 

The rocks had fallen down the side of the mountain to create large piles of dirt and debris. My legs up to my torso was covered in the sandy dirt and I was jutting out from the pile. 

After a few minutes of wiggling against the coarse dirt I managed to get free. I tumbled down the side of the dirt pile until I landed on the ground. My muscles ached in protest and my shoulder screamed at me. 

“Guys?” I called out. “Where are you?” 

Surely my friends weren’t entirely buried in the dirt. Or at least if they were I hoped they would attempt to make their way out before suffocation took hold. 

Except Hiro was unconscious. The reminder slapped me into action. I scrambled back up the pile of dirt, the loose stones giving way beneath my feet. I tore into the pile using my hands as shovels and making zero progress. 

Suddenly I remembered my imagination. It was certainly a useful tool, one that I kept forgetting about in the midst of trouble. I closed my eyes, picturing the canyon empty. There was a moment where I thought my imagination had failed me, but then the dirt pile blinked out of existence. I dropped about eight feet to the ground, bracing at the impact. 

Just like a cartoon, my friends flopped to the ground beside me. Alex was coughing up a lung, spitting sand from her mouth as Kenzie crawled to a still sleeping Hiro. Sammy stumbled towards Sadie, hacking the whole way. 

“He’s alive,” Kenzie exhaled, her voice gritty from the dirt. She spat a few times before clearing her throat. “Luke, grab the water.” 

I did as I was told. I handed out our canteens to everyone and the skins magically refilled. Sammy helped Sadie to her feet, wiping blood from a small cut on her forehead. Kenzie was tipping a canteen into Hiro’s mouth. Alex stumbled towards me, grabbing onto my shoulders for support. 

“Need anything?” I asked her. 

Alex coughed in my face. “Nope,” she smiled sweetly. “At least we didn’t have to walk down the canyon now.” 

“How are we going to get back up?” I asked, crossing my arms. Alex shrugged. “I’m glad we’re all fine.” 

“That’s debatable,” Alex muttered. She sent a pointed look at Hiro who was struggling to sit up. At least he was awake - that’s all I had to say. “When you created him did you give him anything like this?” 

I shook my head. “Why? Isn’t it just the Darkness?” 

Alex shrugged. “The Darkness isn't affecting the others the same way. Yes, I know that the Darkness hit his home first. But I think the Darkness would be catching up to everyone else sooner than later. There’s something else going on.” 

“I guess it’s something to look into,” I sighed. “As long as he can make it do Dee’s castle when I vanquish the Darkness we’ll all be fine.” 

“Actually, about that…” Alex began. But she was cut off by a yelp from Hiro as he was pulled to his feet by Kenzie. “Later,” Alex assured me before hurrying to help him up. Hiro was clutching his head. 

I ran to grab his arm to support him. “Thanks,” Hiro muttered. “I’m fine, guys. Seriously.” And he wondered why we didn’t believe him. 

“Well, we just have to get up the volcano now,” Kenzie said, more to herself than anyone. “It shouldn’t be too hard.” 

“Actually,” Sammy said, pointing at the volcano. “Look.” 

My chest felt cold. The top of the mountain was ringed with Darkness. It would be almost impenetrable for me, and impossible to walk through for the Fictionals. Alex wouldn’t be able to do it alone, either. 

“Well that’s just wonderful,” Kenzie grumbled. 

“Hey, at least it’s only at the top,” Hiro pointed out. “We get as close as possible and figure out something from there. Maybe there’s a secret hole in the Darkness.” 

“We can’t turn back now,” I said, even though we most certainly could turn back now. 

“Adventure!” Sadie yelled, pumping her fist in the air. We began the long trek that would lead us up the mountain. 

“Are we there yet?” Sadie asked for the millionth time. If she asked again I was sure that Kenzie would toss her off of the cliff and into the canyon below. 

Honestly, I would have been fine with it at the point. 

“Does it look like we’re there?” Kenzie sighed. “Sadie, it's going to take us at least until noon tomorrow to get there. Especially because we’re going to need to rest before too long.” She gazed out at the setting sun longingly. 

“The next flat spot we can rest,” Sammy decided. “We won’t even need blankets.” 

He wasn’t wrong. The air was thick with heat and I could feel the sweat dripping down my back. I should have expected the volcano to be warm, after all. 

My legs burned from the exertion it took. The canyon wall had been relatively easy to scale once Sammy found an abandoned sightseeing path. It had been half as steep as the way down, which was good because our rope had frayed to a point of snapping. 

The volcano had a trail that wound around the outside, spiraling upwards to the peak where supposedly there was a door that led to the center of the volcano. Alex picked up a brochure at the abandoned tourist stop. At the top of the brochure it read, “The World’s Worst Vacation Spot - You Can’t Even Get a Nice Tan.” 

Apparently tourists from the kingdoms and especially from Kip’s sector of the world enjoyed hiking up the volcano even if none of them ever made it back down alive. The volcano - or Mount Inlustris - which meant starlight in Latin. 

There were campsites set up along the way, most of them ravaged by the Darkness and torn to pieces. 

“Here we are,” Kenzie announced, startling me out of my thoughts as she dropped her bag to the ground with a heavy thump. This campsite was in better shape than the rest - and that was saying something because the buildings were nothing but charred cinders. 

Alex and I built a campfire while Sammy and Kenzie practiced sparring and Sadie cooked supper. Hiro stared blankly into the distance, watching the sun sink even further beyond the horizon. Every day it grew dimmer. Even the moon had lost its shimmering pallor. The world was dying. 

I wasn’t hungry but Alex forced me to eat. She reminded me - rather harshly, really - that I had to eat or I would die and no one wanted to bury a body on this mountain. 

This entire journey I had been receiving sword fighting lessons from Kenzie and the others. Each one had their own method of fighting, and I kind of absorbed all of them. Kenzie preferred rash attacks without logic, letting her instinct guide her. Hiro used a similar philosophy, but he relied on the element of surprise to begin his attacks. Sammy placed strategic blows designed to wear down an enemy and practiced more defensive maneuvers. Alex showed me more wound-inducing moves rather than fatal ones. 

As for Sadie… 

“Place your hands on my hips,” she ordered. I could see Alex, Hiro, Kenzie, and Sammy grinning from the firelight. 

“What does this have to do with anything?” I groaned, placing my hands where she showed me. It was challenging to dance with a twelve year old at least two heads shorter than me. Sammy and Hiro were both shorter than I was, why couldn’t they do this with Sadie? 

The simple answer: they could actually fight with a sword, though I was still confused as to what dancing had to do with this. 

“A fight is like an extremely intricate dance, but every move is improvised,” Sadie explained. “Footwork is imperative, almost as important as using the blade with technique.” I might have taken this seriously if she hadn’t giggled right afterwards. 

“Can’t we just duel already?” I groaned, wishing to spare myself from this embarrassing scene. Sadie slapped my hand for slipping too low. Hiro snorted. 

Sadie glared at me. “You learned everyone else’s methods, why not mine?” 

“You’re self-taught,” I argued, hoping maybe she would trip and I wouldn’t have to do this. 

“No, actually, Professor Lilia taught me to fight,” Sadie informed me. “She taught all of the girls at the Daerin Academy. All of the girls in Daeria attend her classes about self-defense.” Great, so now I was being taught the way all six year old girls in Sadie’s kingdom were taught. 

“I’m sure Lilia hasn’t seen any real battles then,” I mumbled. 

“Professor Lilia once escaped the witch’s prison in less than half an hour,” Sadie said, swaying slightly to the inaudible beat. “She’s the best female warrior we have.” 

“And she dances?” I rolled my eyes. 

“Most of our soldiers are taught to dance,” Sammy replied. “We learn an assortment of dances for balls but also for fighting. I’ve always preferred more … manly methods.” 

It was my turn to snort. Sammy dancing was a scene I wanted to see. I told him so and he shrugged, getting to his feet. “Fine,” Sammy said. “I’ll show you how to dance. Move over, Luke, real man coming through.” 

I took a seat by the fire and watched as Sadie took Sammy’s hands. 

Kenzie rummaged through her pockets for only a moment before producing a tiny flute-like instrument tied to a thick cord. She smiled at me. “Never leave home without this!” 

She pressed the instrument to her mouth and began playing a quick tune that made me think of nature. Even though it was wordless at first I could imagine the rolling hills and the meadows. Sammy and Sadie stepped into a world of fast-paced movement, twirling and tapping.

The dance and song were definitely Elvish because Sadie began to sing in a voice of a sparrow. Her words were light and airy yet I couldn’t understand them. And even though I didn’t know what she was saying I could still feel it. I could picture everything, the dance of the deer and the song of the flowers. It was purely beautiful and for a few precious moments I forgot about the Darkness. 

The song died out on a long note on Kenzie’s instrument - a fife as she called it, though a miniature wooden version. 

“I have more songs,” Kenzie offered, sending a look my way. I didn’t know what the look meant, but I decided that maybe I could ease up the tensions among us. I nodded towards her and she began to play some more. 

And so we danced. I danced with Sadie, I danced with Sammy, I danced with Hiro - though he had to sit out after a while because he was feeling light headed. 

I even slow-danced with Alex, though it was kind of awkward at the end when we separated. But I felt better than I had in awhile - my back even seemed to be less painful than before. Alex informed me that my cuts had almost healed. 

And even if we didn’t notice, the Darkness receded just a tiny bit that night.