Silvern (The Gilded Series) (16 page)

Marc’s forehead scrunches up in concentration. “There’s something strange about this place. I’m just not sure what it is.”

He takes off down the steps back onto the path. I race after him until he stops before a massive stone wall with Chinese writing on it.

“What does it say?” I ask, struggling to read each of the characters.

“It’s about the pool and the dragons that guard it.”

“What pool? I don’t see any.”

“I suppose it’s above the waterfall. There’s also something here that talks about the Seonyeo—they’re angels—that bathe in the pool at the top of the waterfall. Wait. Look here.” He points to the left side of the stone’s lettering.

“I don’t see anything.”

“There’s another message on this wall,” he explains. “It’s shimmery, and it moves almost like a dragon itself. It says, ‘We guard the entrance for all eternity.’”

“What does
that
mean?” I ask.

“That something guards the entrance for all eternity.”

I hit him. Hard.

“I don’t know. I’m just reading it.” He laughs. “Hey, I’m only sixteen. Give me a couple more years, and I’ll know everything.”

I roll my eyes, then leave the wall and wander down to the water’s edge. It roars against my ears, and the spray splashes against my cheeks, cold as winter ice. A mist has curled down from the mountains, shrouding the valley in white and gray shadows.

Then the water buckles, and a form pushes against the water’s surface, rising out of the foam. A
gwishin
. Her white dress whips below her legless body. Long black hair flies with the wind, yet still covers her face. She must be a
mool gwishin
, always connected to water. Maybe even the same one who found me in the bathroom.

She reaches out, calling for me. “Princess. Come to our lands where you belong.”

Once again I’m immobilized. My legs grow numb as she pulls me closer to the water’s edge. My fear crystallizes into ice, and I stare as her fingers touch mine. A chill courses through me, and then I fall, the air pushing against me until I hit the sharp water, needles spiking through my flesh.

Water crashes around me, shockingly cold. My body sinks below the surface, and I’m drawn into the surging waters, round and round. I crash into rocks, helpless in the waves. Farther I sink. Below me is an endless darkness, and I know I’m being pulled into some sort of hell.

Until I see them. The dragons. Their sleek bodies slice the water. Fire erupts around me until everything is a shocking red. I’m released from the
gwishin
’s hold, and as her fingers slip away, the heat licks warmth back into my body. My back tingles, and I’m able to bend and twist again. I kick my legs, and my lungs scream for oxygen.

A dragon swoops underneath me.
Hold tight,
it says in my mind. I latch on to his back and we take off, flying beneath the surge of water above us. It takes only moments, but each half second becomes eternity as my body craves air. A rock wall comes into view, and then, just beneath where the waterfall crashes into the pond, I spot a crevice in the rock. My lungs scream for air as my dragon aims for that narrow hole. I’m not sure if it’s my imagination, but it appears to crack open just enough to allow us inside.

Red spots fill my vision, and my grip on the dragon loosens. We rise until we’re cannonballing out of the water, so fast, so swiftly, I nearly tumble off.

The dragon slides onto a rocky surface, slick from the water. I fall off his back and onto the cold stone floor, gasping for air, choking on water, and completely unsure what just happened. Through my oxygen-deprived haze, voices speak around me. Not out loud, but in my mind.

What have you brought?
a voice says.

A human
, another says.
The mool gwishin had its hold on it.

You should’ve let it drown.

But look
, the first dragon, who I think is my rescuer, says,
it has the silvern sheen. There’s something different about this one.

As my vision loses the red spots, I blink away the haze and drag my hair out of my face. I’m in some sort of cave. The stone walls are dark and natural, with no carvings that I can see. In fact, the cavern is completely barren except for the large group of dragons slinking out of their hiding places, observing me with their blue eyes.

Is it immortal?
a large-eyed one
asks.

No, it is mortal. This I am sure of
, the thin red dragon says.
Look, its heart beats and blood flows.

Such a strange creature.
The black one flicks his tail as if contemplating me
. Never have we seen such a one, half mortal, half immortal.

I grit my teeth, choking on water that I must have swallowed. “Palk sent me,” I tell them, hoping his name will catch their interest.

Palk, is it?
Beady Eyes says.
Ha. No one speaks to Palk. Especially a mere mortal like you.

Yet how does a mere mortal know of Palk?
the red one asks.

“I’m searching for the White Tiger orb, and there were rumors you were its keepers. I want to return it to the Heavenly Chest.”

Risky
, the green dragon says.
Very risky
.

Terrible idea
, says another.

Impulsive
, Beady Eyes says.

Impetuous
, the large black one says.

We have kept the orb a secret for a thousand years. Why change now?

“We believe Kud wants the orb and is very close to finding it,” I explain. “We’re afraid if he gets his hands on it, he may use it to seek the other orbs.”

Silly child.

Silly thing.

Yes, definitely a mortal.

I stand, wobbly at first, but I realize the pain in my back has vanished. “You must be the Nine Dragons who guard the falls. Please let me in.”

I do not like this.

Very bad idea indeed
, Beady Eyes agrees
. We should kill her.

But this one is different. She has spoken of the Heavenly Chest.

That worries me even more
, the black one says
. Send her back to the water’s clutches.

Be gone!
the blue dragon says, and with a flick of its massive tail, hurls me back into the water.

I gasp as the icy current sucks me beneath the water like a hungry lion, eager to eat me whole. Flailing, I fight the current, but it drags me deeper and deeper. The water rushes around me. I can’t determine which is up or down.

Until I see her below me. A cloud of white. Outstretched arms reaching to mine. She’s singing this time, and a crooked smile rips her face like a scar. I kick at the water to rise away from the
gwishin
, but her voice coils around my body until my every nerve numbs under her spell.

And I fall.

Down toward her.

My insides are screaming. My heart is pounding. My lungs are bursting.

Strong arms grip my shoulders, and a hand stretches out to the
gwishin
. She screeches in agony and falls away.

I’m ripped to the surface. As my head breaks the water’s surface, I gasp for air once again. My arms hang at my side, but I allow myself to be dragged and hauled onto dry land.

I choke on the water and throw up. Kang-dae has his arms wrapped protectively around me as if guarding me with his life. Then I watch as Marc rises out of the water and splashes to shore. He was trying to save me, too. My heart crashes against my chest.

“Jae!” He races to me and cups his hands around my face. “You’re okay. You’re alive.”

I reach to him, but Kang-dae holds me back, almost possessively. “You can let go now, Kang-dae,” I say.

“Yes, of course,” Kang-dae says, parting strands of hair out of my face and tucking them behind my ears. “After seeing you nearly drowned, I’m slightly paranoid some other creature will take you.”

Marc pulls me to his side. I shiver against his warm body.

“As soon as you fell in,” Marc explains “we both dove in. We’ve been looking for you for maybe ten minutes. I thought we’d lost you.”

“I thought you were at the border.” I look over at Kang-dae in shock. “Haraboji went to pick you up.”

He grins. “The paramedics bound my wound and gave me some medicine. I hated knowing I’d failed the Guardians, so I took the next bus across the border. I thought you might need me.”

“Someone needs to tell Master Lee,” Marc says. “He’s going to be worried when he doesn’t find you there.”

“It’s fine.” Kang-dae waves his hand and shrugs. “I left him a note.”

I grab Kang-dae’s hand. “I’m so glad you’re okay. We’ve been worried, but I guess you’re tougher than I gave you credit for. Nothing can stop you, not even weasels from the Underworld.”

“Well-spoken,” Kang-dae says. “Words I’ll remember.”

I wipe the water out of my eyes and wring out my hair, wondering how I’m going to tell them I’ve failed with the dragons. I eye the water, itching to dive back in and search for that underwater cave, but I’m too worried about the
gwishin
and even the disagreeable dragons.

“What did you do down there?” Marc asks Kang-dae. “You said something to that
gwishin
, didn’t you?”

“The
gwishin
was dragging Jae into the Underworld.” Kang-dae shrugs. “I think I intervened at just the right moment.”

“He can control supernatural creatures,” I say.

“Interesting.” Marc’s grip tightens around my body. “You never mentioned that before. I didn’t know humans could have power over immortals.”

“Give him a break,” I say. “He’s saved my life twice. That’s enough to make me happy.”

Kang-dae bows to me, his eyebrows rising and eyes twinkling.

“I got inside the dragon’s cave,” I blurt.

“What?” they both say.

“Yeah.” I rub my eyes, trying to process what actually happened. “A dragon rescued me from the
gwishin
when she pulled me in the first time. He took me to their cave, just in time. I nearly ran out of air. I explained why I was here and asked for their help. They didn’t want to give me the orb and kicked me out. Literally.”

Marc whistles, while Kang-dae’s eyes narrow.

“So all this work coming here was for nothing,” I say.

“This isn’t nothing,” Marc says. “You’ve discovered that these dragons are real. That the legends are more than just stories being told. This is a huge discovery. We need to think this over and not jump to conclusions. Besides, your grandfather said we’re only here to check the area out.”

“They wouldn’t listen to me,” I say. “Between the dragons and the
gwishin
, there’s no way I can get in there.”

“Unless there’s another way in,” Marc says, rubbing the back of his neck. “It’s hard to decipher what the words actually say, but the engraved messages seem to hint at more than one entrance.”

“Let me see it,” Kang-dae says.

We trudge back up to the pavilion, and as we do, my back and legs prickle with the memory of the pain from fighting the
imoogi
. I grind my teeth. Marc shows Kang-dae the inscription.

“Yes, you may be right.” Kang-dae rubs his chin. “I think it’s referring to a back door.”

Marc and I stare at Kang-dae. “You do?” I ask.

“That’s cool, man.” Marc crosses his arms. “But that still doesn’t help. We’ve no clue where this back door might be.”

Kang-dae ignores Marc and spins on his heels to march down the shoreline, his eyes scanning the forest as if searching for something.

Marc moves to follow Kang-dae, but I pull on his sleeve, holding him back. I squint through the mist to where the path spits out into the falls area, realizing for the first time that there have been no other hikers since we got here.

“Do you find it strange that there are no other tourists here?” I ask.

Marc’s body tightens, his legs bent as if ready to spring at the slightest movement. He must feel that pressing urgency that is tugging at my chest. The mist has gathered over the water. It begins to stretch and pull until the water froths up in a whirlwind. I grab hold of Marc.

“Something is happening,” I whisper. “Something not good.”

Then, out of the water rise the dragons. One by one they emerge as mountains of fire into the mist. First their eyes, then snouts, blasting out steamy air. Next stretch up their necks. Higher and higher they rise until they form a wall, formidable beasts of ancient days.

Their power ebbs off them in scorching waves, and my skin soaks it up as if hungry. Back in the cave, they were merely mischievous creatures, but here at the water’s edge, their blue eyes have turned lava red and focus on Kang-dae inspecting the rock face’s edge. My heart slams into the pit of my stomach as their graceful necks rear back, pythons prepping to strike.

I take off running toward Kang-dae. I must be screaming his name, because he glances at me and then at the dragons. His eyes widen.

The black one in the center rears back. I cartwheel and then leap into the air right in front of Kang-dae, kicking against the tail that was aimed to hurtle into Kang-dae. The dragon misses its mark and shakes its head, eyes burning.

A blast of fire erupts from each of the nine dragons in succession, inferno balls spewing toward Kang-dae and me.

As I drop to the ground, I lift my hands, drawing the water to me and holding it up. The water forms a wall, barricading the dragons’ fire from hitting Kang-dae and myself.

“You will not hurt him,” I cry out. The wind blows and whips my hair against my cheeks.

The silly thing
, the black dragon says, recognizing me.
We should have killed her.

“What wrong have we done to you?” I ask the dragons. “For you to treat us this way?”

The one you guard is not wanted
, the dragons say in unison.
We stand against him.

“You will have to come through me first,” I say. But the truth is I don’t want a fight. These dragons are on Palk’s side, even if they are temperamental.

You will not pass
, they speak as one.

Kang-dae wisely scampers away, and the dragons sink back into the water until all that’s left is mist and the hint of sulfur tingling my nostrils. I rush to Kang-dae where he is sitting on a rock at the edge of the forest.

“You okay?” I ask.

“Yeah, I guess so. Thanks to you.” His shirt lies in tatters, and his face is chalk white.

“Still alive, I see,” Marc says, sauntering toward us. There’s a tone of disappointment in his voice.

“Yes, well,” Kang-dae nods to me. “That was a close one. You came to my rescue, though, Jae Hwa. I won’t forget that.”

“Payback.” I hit him on the shoulder. “Now we’re even.”

“So any clue where this secret entrance might be?” Marc asks, his brows furrowed. “Otherwise I think we should head back.”

“Before those demon dragons attacked me, I think I spotted it. Follow me.”

“We should hurry,” Marc says. “It won’t be long before the dragons see us and guess what we are planning next.”

Kang-dae leads us back into the forest, carefully avoiding the water and the dragons. I scan the area for the dragons or
gwishin
or even
dokkaebi
, known to like remote places, but I detect nothing. The air smells fresh and moist, and the only sounds are the whistling of the wind through the trees and our bodies brushing against the plants as we hike.