Discovery at Nerwolix (29 page)

What do I do?

Releasing the leaf, I secure both hands on
my gun and carefully peer over the edge. Three Vermix ascend the
tree, racing up the trunk toward me. Taking aim, I focus on the
closest one, on the green patch in the center of his head. I pull
the trigger and he falls back, landing on the last one and the two
hit to the ground with a thunderous smack. The second races faster
and I aim for the same spot, pulling the trigger again. But as he
falls to the ground, another five have ascended in his place.
Before I have time to calculate if I’ll even be able to shoot them
all down, a deep growling emits from the other side of the tree and
just as I turn, a snarling, yellow-eyed Dofinike appears. He’s
about to lunge for me but I pull the trigger again and he flies
backward.

Tucking my Traxpire into my left hand, I
grab for the Yulu again. I need to get off of here.
Now
.
Just as the other Vermix reach my branch, I take off in a swing to
another tree, one closer to the city. Securing myself, I spin and
find my previous spot is now covered with Vermix, all yellow eyes
locked on me. I start firing at them before peeking over the
branch. More have ascended, racing up the trunk toward me. Shit. I
won’t be able to stay in one place very long. Glancing around, I
try searching for the others but I can’t find them. I hear
them—hear their Traxpires going off in the distance. Unless those
are the Vermix… No—I can’t think like that. Pratt and the Rogues
are smart enough to keep moving, keep swinging in closer to the
city. We just need to keep going. Need to keep moving—

My Traxpire is knocked from my hand. An
enormous Dofinike stands over me and in my moment of surprise, he
grips his talons around my neck. My heart stops, fear choking me
until I hear a scream in the distance. Pratt. The fear turns to
anger and then rage. Reaching into my other pocket, I yank free the
small blade that Reid insisted I carry and I jab it straight into
the soft patch of the Vermix’s belly. His eyes widen just as I yank
it free and stab him again and again and again. He’s still holding
me but his grip loosens. I’m able to get a little air into my lungs
now and he releases me completely, holding his stomach. Right
before he flails backward, he shoves his talons into my chest with
a snarl, pushing me off the branch too.

I’m falling, my arms up and reaching, trying
to grab something—
anything
. I hit the Yulus all around me,
crashing through them like different layers of round rubber, trying
to clasp one. Just one. That’s all I need. Somehow I manage,
gripping a Yulu and yanking it hard, I’m suddenly soaring the other
way, back through the lime green lush. Everything is happening too
quickly. I don’t have my Traxpire and I’ve lost the little blade.
It fell somewhere below, into the sea of Vermix that are swiftly
climbing every tree in this forest. Where are the others? And what
do I do now?

Still soaring, I tug on the leaf when I
finally pass the mid-level branches. I’m higher than the Vermix,
who seem to be keeping to the ground or just above it. I should
probably head back for the city up here, where the Vermix probably
won’t go. They can climb, but the chances that they’ll chase me all
the way—

A flash of orange light rips past me,
searing the trunk by my head. I follow its source and find a herd
of Vermix atop the same height branches, a few trees away. Holy
shit. One launches itself for me, but I swing to the next tree,
securing myself quickly. How did this happen? There are too many of
them. And the others… where are the others?

“Fallon!” Able calls a few trees down. His
eyes are wide and alarmed, his finger pointing. “Behind you!”

I turn to find a Vermix soaring toward me,
his Traxpire out. I don’t have time to think. I don’t have time to
do anything. My heart has stopped, my body refusing to move as I
brace myself for the brutal impact. Except, at the last second, an
orange blast rips through his chest and he tumbles back to the
ground below.

Walker is here, on the branch with me, one
arm on a Yulu and the other grasping his Traxpire. “Fallon! You
okay?”

I nod, still expecting to be hit. “I… I lost
my gun. And my blade.”

“Here,” he hands me a small knife. “We’ll
get you another Traxpire.”

I take it, still trying to understand the
last few minutes, trying to remember everything that happened.
There’s a whole army of Vermix and they’re invading the trees down
here by the shore. I heard Pratt scream but I don’t know where she
is. I don’t know where anyone is other than Able and Walker. I turn
to him. “Pratt… I heard Pratt.”

“You did,” he fires the Traxpire at two more
leaping Vermix before winding his hand around my waist. “Hold on,
we need to get off this branch.”

Squeezing him, we take off for another tree,
swinging closer to Able who is shooting at the impending Vermix
climbing up the trunk of his. He shoots a few times then switches
to the other side, firing off a few more rounds. Walker and I land
just two trees away and he’s already taking aim at the Dofinikes
racing up our trunk. I don’t have a Traxpire—just the small
blade—so I can’t really do anything to help. Why oh
why
did
I have to drop it?

Something grazes my leg and I fall back,
nearly off the branch. But before going over, I grip the edge of
the wood, holding on as I watch a Vermix climb up.

“Walker!” I scream, using all my strength to
hoist myself up. He turns, looking for me first, but finds the
Vermix. He shoots him just as another Dofinike pulls himself up and
I call again, “Behind you!”

With his back turned, he takes care of the
second Vermix and I manage to hoist myself back onto the branch. I
only have a moment to breathe before a set of black talons digs
into the wood. On instinct I grab the blade and jam it into the
green claw. A hiss of pain emits as his head and chest appear, a
set of loathing yellow eyes glaring into mine. But I don’t give him
a second. I jab the blade though his neck over and over. His eyes
widen and then roll back. Before he falls, I reach for his Traxpire
and grabbing it, I snatch it back to my chest.

Finally!

“Fallon,” Walker calls, “we’ve got to
move!”

I jump to my feet and with the gun in my
right hand, I wrap my other around Walker’s neck. Holding me by my
waist, he takes off, swinging us to another tree. Able is doing the
same thing, flying back for the city but this may not do any good
any longer. There are just
too
many Vermix. And there’s only
the nine of us.

“Tell me Pratt’s okay,” I say, just as we
land on a branch, Walker reaching for a new Yulu.

“That I know. They spotted Jace when he was
trying to notify Werzo. He shot at them before I could tell him to
use the Brulily.”

“What good would that do?”

“There were only three. The others might not
have noticed. But he fired his Traxpire and the whole thing was
blown,” Walker swings us to another branch. “But Pratt shot hers
too, giving away her position. They started in for her.”

“Do you know… is she…?”

“Rox got her. As long as they’re still
moving, she’s fine.”

Able is swinging parallel to us, back
towards the city. But he’s the only one I can find. Tucker
disappeared somewhere behind us and I haven’t seen or heard
anything from anyone else.

“What about the others? Do you know?”

Walker shakes his head. “They’re
retreating—they should be at least,” he reaches for another leaf.
“I tried to do an estimate of how many Vermix landed…”

“And?” I ask, mid-swing.

He exhales. “From my calculations… could be
about five thousand.”

“
Five
thousand
?” I gasp as
another orange blast flies ahead. We both duck and in that moment
of surprise, a Vermix leaps on the branch, knocking Walker to his
back, separating us. He advances while Walker reaches for his
Traxpire, trying to aim it in time. Focusing on the Dofinike’s
three red lines, I pull the trigger, shooting an orange blast right
through the back of his neck. He falls to the side, revealing a
shocked but smiling Walker. But then his glee fades. He starts to
reach out but I don’t see it in time—the Vermix who has launched
himself at me. It happens in slow motion, the snarling and narrowed
yellow eyes, aimed to knock me from the branch. I brace myself for
the impact and this time it hits, like a boulder slamming into me,
the branch is gone. Only air and layers of the lime green Yulus
surround me as I tumble back into nothing.

Somewhere in the distance above, Walker is
calling my name. But it’s so high up already, nearly to the top of
the tree. Where I was only seconds ago. But I’m all the way down
here, passing the Vermix who scale the trees with ease. I’m going
to hit the ground any second. I know it. And I’ll be dead. Dead
unless I can slow myself, unless I can stop myself from breaking on
the ground. I need to reach out like I did before. I need to find a
Yulu, another branch—
something
to hold on to. With my hands
out, my fingers reach, trying to find the something I need to save
myself. But I’m almost there. Any second now and it will be too
late.

Please… please let this not be the end.

Something hard grips my wrist.

I stop with a jerk, pain shooting up my arm.
It reverberates through my body, but I know I’m not crushed. I
didn’t hit the ground. I’m suspended about ten feet from it and
panting out the fear of nearly being flattened, I look up to find
Booker with a finger over his mouth. He drops it and points one
way. Low hisses and murmurs sound from behind a wall of rustling
Yulus. There must be a small herd of Dofinikes moving through the
trees, passing in and out of the low-hanging lime leaves. Looking
back to Booker, he silently tugs me up and onto the branch with
him.

My heart is racing, trying to catch up with
the sudden change. I’m not falling anymore…but here, on the branch
with Booker, in the middle of the Vermix army. He looks around me,
checking my hands for weapons. Any Traxpires? Nope. Dropped it
again when I fell. But I check my side pocket and yes! I still have
the blade Walker gave me. And my Brulily in the other one. It’s not
a lot, but it’s something. And it’s sure as hell better than
nothing.

I scan him too. He only has his Brulily
left. There’s not a lot we can do with this.

Besides the Yulus still swaying from where
the Vermix passed by, everything else is quiet. Motionless. Leaning
my back against the trunk, I let out a deep breath. My heart is
still pumping hard, thundering through my chest, anticipating the
impact of death. I close my eyes, trying to regain the calm I had
in the tree earlier. That was only a little while ago, but it feels
like everything has shifted. I’ve already thought I was going to
fall to my death twice and thanks to Booker, I’m alive for the
second time.

I open my eyes and find him watching me.

“Thanks,” I mouth.

Booker nods.

I gulp, glancing around before inspecting
myself. Reid’s Callix is still fastened securely around my wrist
but parts of it are crumpled and worn from dirt and pressure. I
shouldn’t be concerned with it—especially now—but I’m still glad
it’s survived all this. I stroke a few of the petals, seeking
solace as I scan the rest of my body. Besides a little dirt and
exhaustion, I’m fine. But then I notice my neck is throbbing from
where the Vermix gripped it earlier. I bring my fingers to the
stinging and pull back. A small trace of blood dots my
fingertips.

“What happened?” Booker whispers.

“Vermix got a hold of me,” I look at the
blood on my fingers again, then at him. “Is it bad?”

He leans in, gently touching my skin as he
inspects it. Finally he withdraws, shaking his head.

“You?” I scan him. “Are you okay?”

He nods, looking off to the Yulus.

We sit in silence for a few minutes and I
wrap my arms around my legs, hugging them close to my chest. I
close my eyes again, pressing them against my knees. We really need
to figure out what to do next. We’re sitting in the middle of enemy
territory without any weapons and with no idea where the others
are. Hopefully they made it back to Zinnollo.

“Fallon,” Booker whispers and I look up. A
Yulu rustles behind him. He glances over his shoulder and it stops.
Once satisfied, he turns back to me, his voice low, nearly
inaudible. “Know where the others are?”

I shake my head.

His face falls and I gently tug on one of
the Callix petals. “I only saw Walker and Able,” I whisper. “They
were heading back to the city.”

“I saw Boss take off with Pratt,” he nods.
“Lost the rest.”

That’s what Walker told me. So at this
point, it’s only Jace and Werzo that we don’t know what happened
to. Mae stayed back at Zinnollo with Sampson and the others. It was
decided she would be safer there and right now, I’m glad she did. I
couldn’t imagine her out here, possibly on her own. Perry also
stayed back. It’s not like volunteered to come, but even if she
had, I doubt Sampson would’ve let her.

“Do you think—”

The Yulus rustle behind me.

A snarling sounds, followed by another
voice. The two exchange words in their language which suddenly
doesn’t sound so foreign. Oh, right. I should know this… shouldn’t
I? Booker and I remain motionless on this branch, camouflaged by
the low-hanging Yulus and I take this second to really concentrate.
Maybe I can figure out what they’re saying. Maybe something will
trigger meaning. Closing my eyes, I focus on their voices.

It’s all blurry at first, just nonsensical
noise until slowly, piece by piece, it comes together.

…
heard something…close by…

My eyes shoot open. Is this real? I can
understand them? I close my eyes again, listening.