Rise of Keitus (18 page)

Dad nodded slowly, probably digesting this information. “Yes, good idea.” He tapped his lips with his fingers. “But we’ll need more people.”

Kenji refilled his cup with water. “We’ll ask people pulled from the scented air to help. They’ll add to your group, giving you enough to make two separate groups. There are plenty who are eager to get more involved in the political side of things.”

Mom touched Dad’s arm. “So, how is this going to work? When will all of these groups leave?”

“I think it’ll take a month to prepare, at least. We’ll want to be well out of winter and into spring.” He motioned to Jacob. “You’ll need to Key everyone to their starting positions and then return from the past frequently to check on the groups. If something bad happens, we may need a quick exit.”

Dad made sure everyone was on the same page, then he closed the meeting and had Jacob return him to work.

Jacob still couldn’t believe he’d been in Keitus’s
actual
castle. Freaky. He snuggled in his blankets, deciding to think about all of that later.

Chapter Eleven: Dungeon Visits

Jacob took Akeno to visit Onyev one last time—they’d be taking a break while Jacob learned more about Troosinal and Akeno focused on preparing his part of the task in destroying Molg tunnels.

As it turned out, Onyev needed time to travel, so it worked well. He promised to think about the problem with the bugs and see if he could come up with a cure. Perhaps Akeno wasn’t powerful enough just yet or the Lorkon had given the bugs extra energy, but nothing Akeno had done so far reversed the issue with the flying earwigs.

Mom called Mr. Coolidge and arranged for a pause in Jacob’s studies. Jacob was grateful for that—he was still studying with Azuriah, on top of preparing for his trip to Troosinal and watching the Lorkon, and the extra few hours a week would be beneficial.

Jacob started hanging out with Dad at work. In between work projects, Dad gave Jacob new things to figure out and understand when it came to the mannerisms of the people who lived in Troosinal, then he’d quiz Jacob. It took a few days of this until Dad felt Jacob was ready to go there in person.

Dad leaned forward, resting his elbows on his desk. “Your next task will be to Travel to Troosinal—in the past—and find a place where you, Matt, and Aloren can stay.”

Jacob’s first trip to Troosinal—actually Traveling to the city, not just Time-Seeing—was scary. Dad had him memorize several different maps, each detailing a different area of the place, and he’d even made Jacob promise to keep one with him all the time. But none of that completely prepared Jacob for his experience.

And it was just his luck to end up in one of the worst, dirtiest parts of the city.

The abandoned building he Traveled to stank like sewage and vomit. The windows were boarded over and the smell was so strong, Jacob felt like he was about to lose his lunch. He couldn’t see anything and tripped over several soft, mushy things of varying sizes on the floor. He didn’t want to know what they were.

Finally, he found his way to an external door. A woman was outside, crouched in a pile of garbage.

“Ya wanna spend some time with me?” she asked, grabbing his ankle.

He jerked away from her, backing against the opposite wall. Rather than reply, he took off at a run, heading in what he hoped was the right direction. He couldn’t believe what she’d just asked him. Wow. So gross.

He wandered for a full twenty minutes before discovering he was in an area of Troosinal called Dog. Each section of the city was named after an animal. The place where Dad said they’d be able to stay without raising suspicion was named Cow. Jacob paused on a busy street corner in an area that bordered Dog and Chicken and studied his map, trying to find the easiest, fastest way to Cow. He felt silly, thinking about a city in these terms, but they didn’t have north and south directions, or even street names in most cases.

According to Dad, the areas he, Matt, and Aloren needed to avoid were Dog, Chicken, Mouse, Bird, and Cat. Areas that were safer—though not completely safe, since Troosinal was such an evil city—were Horse, Cow, Pig, Rat, and Rabbit.

Realizing he didn’t have a lot of time before someone else attempted to talk to him, Jacob tried to get his bearings quickly. The road that divided Dog from Chicken was crowded, and should be safer than the quieter streets that led through the areas. Trusting his instincts, he followed this road until it led him to Pig, which he walked through as fast as he could. He knew it was one of the safer areas, but it looked far too similar to Dog and Chicken for him to relax.

On the other side of Pig was Cow, and he breathed a sigh of relief when he entered that area. Like Pig, it was just as ugly and dirty as the worst parts of town, but he trusted his dad and started searching for an abandoned place to claim.

He found several, and with each one, he returned to the present, giving particulars of the building to Dad. But Dad repeatedly sent him back to find something else. He was being extra picky, but Jacob understood why. Dad knew the city and its history and would do his best to direct Jacob somewhere safe.

Finally, they both agreed on a building. It wasn’t very big—maybe the size of three or four high-school classrooms together—and only half of it was usable, but it was perfect. There was a room that would function as a bathroom—no Makalos, so no plumbing. Just a hole in the ground. Jacob wrinkled his nose, thinking of that prospect. Dad had Jacob set up camp in the main room, which was the largest, saying they’d be safer if they all stayed in the same spot.

Jacob surveyed the big area. It really, really needed work. Knowing he was the only one who could do it—Matt and Aloren were still in school and wouldn’t be able to help—he started cleaning up the place.

He made frequent trips to and from the present, taking cleaning supplies and other things back with him. It amazed him that his magic allowed him to take stuff to the past, but not bring things from Troosinal to the present. Azuriah’s explanation about that made sense. Jacob couldn’t do anything that would affect the future, and removing something from the past most likely would. He wasn’t about to try to find the one object that it wouldn’t matter if he took home—the pain that hit his heart every time he tried wasn’t worth it.

Kenji and Ebony gave him a very small amount of Kaede Sap and he safeguarded it, hiding it under a brick in the floor. He’d been tempted to keep it with the other supplies he’d brought, but realized those things would be the first stolen if anyone ever broke in. Food, water, blankets, pillows, air mattresses, and all the rest would bring in a good price at one of the many markets.

His next project was to purchase clothing for them to wear while in Troosinal. Obviously, jeans and T-shirts would draw way too much attention.

Dad gave him money—metal coins—to buy clothes, along with a healthy dose of advice on what to look for. “Anything brown in color would be fine. Avoid white, purple, red, blue, green, oran—”

“Anything noticeable, cool, or attractive, in other words.”

Dad smiled. “Yup. I’m afraid Aloren isn’t going to like Troosinal fashion for women who aren’t wealthy.”

She’d be wearing a long, heavy skirt made of fabric that looked and felt like a burlap bag. Her apron would be brown and her top brown. At least she could wear a pair of sneakers that she’d fallen in love with since starting school at Mountain Crest. Her skirt would definitely cover them—skirts were required to touch the floor, and it was considered obscene for a woman’s shoes to show.

Jacob and Matt had to be more careful, however. The style of pants for men, even poor ones, was that they had to have two inches of shoes visible. And those shoes were insanely uncomfortable. He bought them along with pants, shirts, and hats for himself and Matt.

Buying the clothing was difficult. People seemed to be able to tell he wasn’t from Troosinal right away. Even with his contacts, his eyes were lighter than the other people’s, and his American mannerisms were too casual and upfront at first. Making eye contact with someone showed how wealthy you were, and Jacob quickly learned to keep his eyes down if he didn’t want to spend a ton of coins to get clothes.

By the time he finished making the purchases and got back to his new “home,” he was exhausted and felt cranky, and he still wanted to section off the living area of the place before going back to the present.

He slumped on a chair and kicked off his shoes. Why people enjoyed shopping, he didn’t know.

An hour later, he finally got up and hung sheets and blankets to form four separate areas in the room: one for Aloren, one for him, one for Matt, and one for them to gather and talk. That section had three chairs and a small table. Jacob had to scrounge around in Troosinal to find them—he didn’t want to risk bringing something that big from the present that would attract attention in case they ever had visitors.

He’d been nervous about bringing air mattresses, but he figured that so long as they released the air from the mattresses every day and hid them under their blankets, they’d be fine.

Being in Troosinal so much did nothing for his spirits. The people were poor, dirty, and downcast. Smiles were rare, and he learned quickly that manners were even rarer. How could these people stand to live here?

Jacob spent most of his time in Troosinal strengthening his heart and learning his way around the city. He stuck to the safer parts of town. He also practiced Time-Seeing, though at that point, he really didn’t need to—it was easy, after learning to Travel.

One of Jacob’s favorite things to do was Time-See to the past when King Ramantus and Prince Dmitri actually got along. He avoided watching any of the king’s more evil deeds, but it was so very apparent how much Ramantus favored Dmitri over everyone else. Het and Isan, the older brothers, practically begged for attention they rarely got.

By accident, Jacob Time-Saw to the part of Dmitri’s history when Ramantus came home in a drunken rage, attacked Dmitri’s sister, and threw the queen, Edyta, into prison. Reading about this in Dmitri’s journal was one thing, but actually seeing it? Jacob couldn’t believe how evil and disgusting King Ramantus was. And Dmitri’s poor sister. It was apparent she’d suffered severe mental damage. She was even-tempered and sweet, but drooled and had to be taken care of all the time. So very sad.

Jacob Time-Saw to the dungeon the first day the queen was there, and watched as Dmitri snuck down to visit her. Their conversation was heartfelt and emotional as Edyta did her best to help Dmitri see what was going on in his life and how his choices affected his future.

Dmitri left the cell and the queen looked discouraged and depressed, as if she wondered if she was wasting her time.

Jacob wished he could do something to ease her suffering, to help her know that turning Dmitri toward good had actually worked—that many amazing things would come about because of her son.

Suddenly, he decided he was going to visit her, there in the dungeon. Why not? It wouldn’t hurt anything. According to Dmitri’s journal, she would only live another week, and from what that first day looked like, she wouldn’t be receiving many visitors.

He pulled back from Time-Seeing, the now-familiar interior of his new shelter surrounding him. Would he be able to bring anything with him when he went to see her? Only one way to find out.

Without telling Mom what he was doing, he returned to the present and cooked up a can of chicken noodle soup. Then he Traveled to the dungeon, around the corner from the queen’s cell on her second day of being imprisoned. There were no guards in this area—it was like King Ramantus knew she wouldn’t be able to go anywhere even if she were rescued. She was too sick.

The soup steamed in the damp, chilly air, and Jacob took tentative steps toward her cell. When he got closer, he whispered, “Your Majesty?”

She was lying on the bed, a fit of coughing making it hard to know if she’d heard him. But she stirred and turned to him. Relief colored the air around her and flooded across her face when she saw the food.

He pushed it through the slot in the barred door, but she was too weak to get up so he Keyed into the cell. He helped her sit up, then gave her the soup. “I’m sorry, Majesty, but I won’t be able to release you.”

“That’s fine. Who are you, child?”

Jacob thought through his response carefully, not wanting to say anything that would force him to return to the present.

“My name is Jacob Clark. You don’t know me.”

She nodded. “Thank you for coming.” Another coughing fit hit her, and Jacob moved the bowl so it wouldn’t spill.

Neither said anything, and when she’d overcome the fit, she took the bowl and started eating. It was a slow, painful-looking process. Jacob cringed as he saw her bruises and scrapes, inflicted by her own husband.

He stood and paced the cell. “I can’t believe he treats you like this.”

She waved her hand. “I accepted his offer of marriage fully knowing what I was getting into, hoping I’d be able to help many people.”

“And you’ve helped a lot.” Jacob sat on the cot opposite hers. “More than you might ever know.”

She looked at him, the spoon pausing before reaching her mouth. “You truly believe that—I see it in your eyes. Thank you, child. Thank you.”

She continued eating, and Jacob didn’t interrupt. When she finished, she set the bowl aside and he jumped to his feet to help her lay back on the cot. He tucked the blanket around her frail shoulders, his heart swelling. He’d never felt this way before—this intense need to protect and help someone so fragile. His own grandmother.

“I don’t have much time left,” she said. “I feel it.”

“And you’re okay with that?”

She gave a slight nod. “Yes—I’m ready. I’ve done all I can.”

Jacob sat on the other cot again, not sure what to do. But a moment later, her breathing slowed and her body relaxed. She’d fallen asleep.

He returned to the present, putting the bowl in the sink. Without saying why, he walked over to his mom at the kitchen table and hugged her.

Jacob returned to Edyta’s cell several times over the next few days, asking her questions about the castle, trying to get a feel for how things were run. He knew he’d be spending a lot of time there soon, and who better to learn from than the queen herself? She helped him out a great deal, answering honestly. It seemed she enjoyed his presence, and Jacob found himself looking forward to his visits with her.