Tiger's Voyage (58 page)

He held the conch shell under a stream of milky water. “What am I supposed to do with it? Kill people?”

The mermaid laughed—a bubbly, happy sound. “No. Its properties change once it leaves this place. It won’t hurt you any longer. The nectar of immortality is to be used when you are the most desperate. Trust your instincts. To use it liberally is to change the course of destiny. A
wise
man sees the path all must walk and embraces the free will of humankind, even if to watch it unfold causes him pain.”

Kishan nodded and placed the
kamandal
under his shirt.

“If your decision is to move forward, I suggest you go quickly.”

Ren and Kishan prepared the sled while the mermaid called me to her. She plucked a bloom from the lei and pressed it into my hand.

“You’re a lucky young lady. Love can overcome many challenges. It’s a precious treasure—worth more than all of these other miraculous things. It’s the most powerful magic in the universe. Don’t let it slip through your fingers. Hold onto it. Tightly.”

I nodded and left to strap in the tigers. After I was seated and buckled in, I turned to look at the mermaid one last time. She was splashing contentedly in her fountain. I patted Fanindra and tied one of the bags more securely, and then we started off.

As the boys circled the fountain, I gasped in shock. The mermaid and the entire fountain were already frozen. Milky droplets hung suspended in the air, trickling from the mouths of frozen fish. Kaeliora had dipped her head to smell the lei and had iced over with a glistening smile on her face. The boys started running, and I shifted to watch the path looming before us.

It wasn’t long before we shot into the ice tunnel again, running through the ocean. The black water surrounding us suddenly made me fearful. As we raced along, I couldn’t help but hum the song from Willy Wonka’s scary paddleboat ride. Creepy neon fish darted up to take a look but mostly left us alone. They weren’t really big enough to break through the ice, but it wasn’t very long before something large took an interest.

I didn’t see anything except a gray shadow at first. I thought my mind was playing tricks on me, but then I looked down over the side of the sled and saw a giant eye peering up at me. I screamed, and the tigers slid to a halt. Something about us stopping spurred the creature to action. It nudged the ice tunnel from beneath. The sled popped into the air abruptly and crashed down, knocking the air out of my lungs. Kishan and Ren fell in a tumble of legs and tails, and the sled tilted and slammed into the side wall. I pushed against the ice and righted us again while the boys scrambled to their feet.

The creature swam to the right and scraped its scaled side across the ice. We bounced into the other side, and a large crack appeared. Ren and Kishan broke into a run, with the creature giving chase. I started calling out its positions, so they could brace themselves when it hit. Cracks were forming all over the tunnel. I knew the ocean could easily rush in and kill us. We had no dragon air bubbles here—all we could do was run.

Faster and faster the tigers sprinted, but the creature easily outswam us. At one point, I couldn’t see it anymore and had just breathed a sigh of relief when I looked to the right and saw something swimming toward us at top speed. It looked like a prehistoric crocodile. Its long snout gaped open as it headed right for us. It was going to bite the ice tunnel in half!

I screamed again and braced for the impact. Closing my eyes and covering my head, I felt the tunnel shake violently as the creature hit. Kishan and Ren slid to a stop and dug in their claws. I’m sure they were wondering, as I was, if it would be smarter to turn around and go back.

As we waited for the shaking to stop, I looked deeply into the maw of the beast. The only thing preventing us from being fish food was the tunnel. Its teeth were each a foot long and jabbed into the ice with a terrible crunch. Water started leaking in where a tooth pierced the top. Kishan nudged Ren, and they began running forward again.

The creature wrenched its head up and bellowed in frustration as we moved away from it. More huge cracks appeared in the ice as its body pounded over the top of the tunnel trying to catch us. Its noise must have attracted attention, because it was soon joined by another beast—an eel that had a long tail ending in a fin. It wrapped its tail completely around the ice tunnel and started squeezing. I heard several pops and water streamed in, coating the walls and making the ice slippery. The tigers slid and had to slow down to dig in their claws for traction.

A vibration shook the tunnel as the crocodile bellowed and started to fight the eel for the prize. The eel creature bit the crocodile’s tail while the latter slammed its body against the tunnel, pinning the eel. The ice crackled before they swam off in a flurry of fins. The tigers took advantage of their absence to press on.

We turned a corner and saw a rocky outcropping and a glint of gold ahead. The Seventh Pagoda! We were close. Through the ice I made out the temple. We were headed for a mountain of stone that rose from the bottom of the sea. Carved into that mountain were tall pillars and smooth dark panels that looked like glass, though I knew the pressure here would implode windows. The tunnel led right to its golden door.

The tigers doubled their speed, but the first creature was back, slamming its head violently against the tunnel. Water sprayed against us as more cracks appeared. The frozen rivulets dripped into the thick layers of my clothes, making me shiver. Icy water hit my face and my hair, instantly freezing it and causing my breath to hitch. A thin river ran under our feet making the path slicker, even for claws. Ren and Kishan scrambled as best they could, knowing it was going to be a close race. A cold fear crept into my stomach and grew, creating sharp icicle daggers that shot through my limbs.

Another impact, and I saw terrible claws rake down the sides of the tunnel. Shards—dangerous spear-sized icicles—dropped and shattered around us. A section of tunnel opened and a wall of water slammed against the sled, spinning us around. We were only twenty feet from the door, but the tunnel was filling with frigid seawater. The beast bit the tunnel again. The horrible crack sounded like a pocket of ice breaking off a glacier. I wrenched off my ties to the sled and unstrapped Ren. He changed quickly and began helping Kishan.

“Run, Kelsey! Get the key into the lock.”

I waded as fast as I could, but my clothes dragged me down. The water was up to my waist now. I tried to gulp in air, but the shock of the frozen water on my body was overwhelming. My lungs tightened and wouldn’t expand or contract normally. Prickles of pain raced through my limbs then faded to numbness. Ren and Kishan were coming up fast behind me. The crocodile beast bellowed again and a rush of freezing water slammed me into the golden door. My hand shook as I pulled the key out of my pocket with frozen fingers. The keyhole was underwater, and thanks to my panic and fuzzy depth perception, I couldn’t get the key in the lock.

Hands covered mine and guided the golden key. We twisted it, and the door opened just as a surge of ocean threw us into the Seventh Pagoda. I spilled out onto the floor next to the bags Ren tossed in and scrambled to my feet as Ren and Kishan threw themselves against the door, trying to shut it against the weight of the water. A shiny object hit my shoe. I reached down to pick up Fanindra and cuddled her against my chest. Grateful that Ren had thought to retrieve our bags and my golden pet, I stroked her coils and apologized as best I could.

The brothers somehow managed to shut the door and lock it, and then slumped to the wet floor, panting. I positioned myself between them and slid to the floor too.

Leaning my head on Kishan’s shoulder, I said, “We made it. The Seventh Pagoda.”

At first, I was aware only of our breathing. Then I began to shiver. We stood and by mutual decision chose to change into warm clothes, eat, and sleep. Ren and Kishan had used all their energy. I remembered Ren’s circus trainer, Mr. Davis, had once told me that big cats sleep most of the day and use up their energy in quick bursts. These two had been running for quite some time, and Kishan had been swimming like a polar bear. I knew they were exhausted.

We explored the shrine a bit, looking for a place to camp, and found it smaller than the other two underwater castles. It wasn’t cold like Yínbáilóng’s palace. Instead, it was warm and dark.

I hastily dried off and set up a tent and sleeping bags while the Scarf created warm clothes. Everyone made their own dinner using the Fruit. Kishan ate three pizzas, I chose Grandma’s biscuits and gravy with hash browns and eggs, and Ren ordered stuffed pasta shells, breadsticks, and salad—the first meal I’d ever made for him. When I gave him a look, he raised an eyebrow and nonverbally dared me to do something about it. I decided ignoring him would be better, so I turned my back to him and scooted closer to Kishan, who was already on his second pizza.

“Want a slice?”

“Nah, I’ve got plenty, thanks.”

Nobody said much of anything else. It was awkward. We ate in silence and then prepared to sleep. I sipped my hot chocolate and wondered what I was going to do about sleeping in such close proximity to Ren as a man. Kishan didn’t seem to have a problem at all with our sleeping arrangements. He just crawled into his bedroll and began snoring.

Ren turned to me. “You coming?”

“I’ll … be another minute.”

He watched me thoughtfully for a moment, and then finally ducked inside the tent. When I couldn’t put it off any longer, I pulled open the flap and sighed at the very obvious empty place for me between Ren and Kishan. Hoping not to disturb them, I quietly picked up my sleeping bag and tugged it to the other side of Kishan. There was only a tiny space available so I asked the Scarf to widen the tent, crawled into my bag, and turned to face the tent wall.

“It’s not like I’m going to attack you in your sleep,” Ren said softly.

“I get too hot between the two of you,” I lied.

“I could have switched with you.”

“I wouldn’t want Kishan to get the wrong message.”

I heard a deep sigh. “Goodnight, Kelsey.”

“Goodnight.”

I stared at the tent wall for several hours, and, though he was quiet, I didn’t think Ren slept much either.

When we woke or, in my case, decided to move, we packed up and further explored the Seventh Pagoda. The structure was still dark, and the light Fanindra created worked only in a small area. We found rooms full of treasure. Gold, precious gems, and priceless statues littered the floors and shelves of each room.

We entered a cavernous area and paused as the sounds of our voices echoed in the space. I could hear a waterfall and smell the ocean, and I imagined the brothers smelled something else as well, because, at the same time, both brothers moved in front of me. We inched forward slowly and came to a large basin filled with sand. Boxes of long sticks rested on a side table.

“What is it?” I asked.

Ren picked up a stick and studied it. “Incense. They’re used in shrines.”

I gathered a few sticks, placed them in the sand the way Ren had done with his, and used my power to light them. Delicate smoke rose up, smelling of pine. Kishan opened a box of red sticks and began filling the basin with them. I lit them, and my nose twitched as I smelled sweet blossoms. As the incense burned, we noticed the room became brighter.

The pagoda was stunning! We hadn’t been able to fully appreciate its splendor before. We were in a room so huge hundreds of people could have fit in the area comfortably. Golden pillars three floors high supported the painted, domed roof overhead. Thick arched windows displayed the sea in such a way that I felt I was looking in on a series of exquisite aquariums. Detailed scrollwork and murals were framed on the walls, but otherwise the walls and ceiling were painted red with lacquered dragons spurting flame.

The floor was made of polished black tile. A small fountain trickled into a wide pool that took up most of the space. The water was white like the mermaid’s pool, impossible to see through. I made a mental note not to touch it no matter how beautiful it was. Kishan and I joined Ren, who was studying one of the murals.

“There it is. The Necklace. See how it rests in the oyster?” Ren said excitedly upon spotting a mural depicting Durga’s Necklace surrounded by hundreds of oysters.

“Hmm … yes, but we can’t see anything in the water. It’s too cloudy. How is Kishan supposed to find it? And what else is down there?”

“According to the mural, nothing. Only an oyster bed. He’ll have to open all the oysters to find it.” Ren patted Kishan on the shoulder. “Glad you drank the
soma
instead of me.”

“Thanks. Well, no time like the present. You two sit poolside, and I’ll toss them up.” He peeled off his shirt and kicked off his shoes.

As I turned back to the mural, Kishan wrapped his hands around my waist from behind. “Want to go for a swim, beautiful?”

“The water will kill her,” Ren said dryly.

I glared at Ren, turned around to hug the bare-chested Kishan, and smiled. “Maybe later.” I patted his chest and ran my hand down to his waist. Poking him in his rather fine abs, I said, “I really think you need to be working out more, Kishan. You’re getting all flabby in your old age.”

“Where?” he demanded, as he tried to pinch the skin at his waist.

Laughing, I said, “I’m being sarcastic. You could grate cheese on your abs. I’m just lucky there aren’t any other girls around. They’d all be swooning at your feet.”

He grinned. “One girl swooning is enough for me. Besides, a guy’s got to be strong enough to save his damsel in distress, doesn’t he?”

Ren frowned and interrupted. “What will you use for a knife?” he asked.

“I’ll use the
chakram
. How are you going to wedge them open?”

“
We’ll
think of something.” He gave Kishan a debatably friendly shove toward the milky pool. Kishan squeezed my hand and carefully slipped into the water. A few seconds later, we heard a wet thunk as a heavy oyster the size of a pancake hit the tile. I left Ren alone for a few minutes to figure out how we were going to pry it open and wandered around the outside of the pool.