The Guardian of Threshold (26 page)

“I knew it all along,” Jonas added.

We didn’t get very far before we ran into an improvised fence. It was made out of branches and dried vines, although it was very strong; no matter how hard we tried, we couldn’t move it.

“We’re officially screwed,” said Jonas.

“You worry too much,” Carla replied calmly.

“Ah yes, in case you didn’t notice, we’re stuck with nowhere else to go,” Jonas replied.

“It’s all part of the plan. Nyx, now we need you to do your part,” Carla said.

“I can’t, it doesn’t work like that,” replied Nyx as we looked at her in concern.

“You have to. If you don’t, he will find us. He’ll find you,” Carla said.

“Nyx, please concentrate,” said Jonas.

“I can’t! It’s not working,” replied Nyx.

If Carla’s plan was to get Nyx upset, then I guess it worked, because next thing I knew, Nyx broke down and started to cry. We backed away without saying a word, barely in time to avoid the flaming shockwave that left her body, burning everything within a ten-yard radius.

Even Spark jumped off my shoulder when he felt the heat wave hit.

“You did it!” screamed Jonas.

Although, her flames didn’t completely destroy the fence, we could kick it and make a hole big enough to get through.

“Thanks, Nyx. I knew you could do it,” I said as I dusted myself off on the other side of the fence.

The water was very murky; it was impossible to see the bottom.

“I don’t like this,” complained Jonas. “I hate not being able to see what I’m stepping on.”

The sense of dread and emptiness increased as we moved away from Watertown as fast as possible; the water and the mud made the journey difficult.

“So where do we go now?” Jonas asked as he carefully planned each step.

“I don’t know,” Nyx replied, sounding sad.

“I can’t believe that Oldroot fooled us. I should’ve seen that coming,” Carla said more to herself than to anyone else.

“Don’t beat yourself up. It wouldn’t have done us any good, and we would still be in the same boat,” I said.

“I wish we had a boat, that would make things much easier, not to mention faster,” Jonas said while he attempted to pet Spark. Spark didn’t seem to appreciate it and let out a screeching sound and moved to my other shoulder.

“I think we should continue to move east,” I suggested, pointing toward what I thought was east.

“East? What’s that?” Nyx asked to my surprise.

“You know, north, south, east, and west,” I replied, pointing to each one of them as I said it.

“Oh, over here we have a different name for that,” Nyx explained.

“What do you mean?” Jonas asked.

“Here in Threshold, we use Nightside, Upside, Dayside, and Downside, that’s how we refer to different geographical directions,” Nyx said as the swamp became more sparse.

“So that way is… Nightside?” I asked as I pointed west.

“Correct, and that way is Upside,” replied Nyx as she pointed north.

“Then we should continue toward Dayside,” I said.

“I don’t know, from here on it’s all new to me,” replied Nyx.

“Welcome to the club,” said Jonas, smiling.

“Quick, this way!” called a female voice from the middle of the woods.

We looked around to see where the voice was coming from. I was the first to notice a tree moving as if its branches were waving us over.

“Come quick!” the tree said.

“Guys, over here!” I said.

“What is it?” asked Carla and Jonas simultaneously.

“You don’t have much time. Come this way. We can protect you,” said the creature as I approached it hesitantly.

I was almost face to face with the creature when I noticed Carla right behind me.

“Don’t worry, Elder sent me. Please go straight through,” said the tree-like creature.

We all passed through the female tree and wandered deeper into the forest. After we were through the opening, dozens of trees moved to conceal the entrance and our trail.

After a few very stressful minutes, we stopped near a boulder to rest, mainly because Jonas kept complaining that he was too tired to continue.

“Quiet, he is still nearby,” said another tree-like creature.

“Who are you?” asked Carla.

“I’m Broto. Listen, your only chance to escape Phasma is to the head straight to Nightwell. Once there, you can take the aerobus to the City of Lights. You should be safe there. I’m pretty sure he won’t dare to follow you there,” Broto explained, looking truly concerned for our well-being.

“Aerobus? What’s that?” I asked.

“Sounds like some sort of subway,” Jonas said as he rested. We were all tired since we had been running.

“It kind of is, but it would take too long to explain, besides you can’t miss it,” replied Broto as he motioned us to press on.

We did as we were told. We didn’t have another option. We walked some and at times ran. Most of the time, Jonas sounded like he was about to pass out.

Soon I saw a tall wooden structure in the distance. At first I didn’t know what it was, but as we got closer I noticed that it looked like an improvised dam.

“How are we supposed to get past that?” Jonas asked as the current became stronger the closer we got to the structure.

“I’m sure we’ll find a way,” replied Carla.

“It’s not that steep,” I said as I moved closer to the dam.

“I just hope it’s not deep,” Jonas responded.

Apparently Jonas wasn’t the only one who didn’t like all that murky water, because Spark still clutched my shoulder. I must confess that my shoulders were sore from carrying him around. Even though he wasn’t very heavy—a few pounds at most—it was tiring.

I wanted to put him down, but I didn’t want to risk it. After all there was a lot of water around, and I didn’t know what an Everwell was exactly.

We all decided we should just climb the wooden dam. As we climbed it, I tried to decide which way to go. I noticed there was a little path by the riverbank and decided to follow it.

Slowly, as we followed the riverbank path, the swamp became a luscious green forest. On this side of the dam, the vegetation thrived.

As we moved toward Dayside, as Nyx would say, the sky became increasingly lighter, and its colors more varied and vivid.

CHAPTER TWELVE

CITY OF LIGHTS

“W
hat’s that?” Jonas asked, pointing into the distance. But nobody replied. To be fair, I don’t think any of us knew the answer.

We had arrived at our destination, a sprawling riverside city.

When we got closer, I saw a long and shiny object floating almost in the center of the river.

“Is that the aerobus Broto told us about?” I asked, perplexed.

“I guess so,” replied Jonas.

“It’s huge. I didn’t picture it being that big,” I said as we picked up the pace.

“I suppose that’s Nightwell,” said Nyx, following me closely.

Contrary to every place we had been so far, Nightwell was a stunning and modern riverside town. Towering spires and glass structures lit up in the sky.

But Nightwell was more than a town; it had all the characteristics of a metropolis. The river divided the city into two distinctive areas. Throughout, translucent bridges connected both sides of Nightwell.

Another remarkable feature of Nightwell was the modern structures, which were intertwined with vines and foliage. If someone on Earth decided to build a megacity right in the middle of the Amazon forest, I imagined it would look a lot like Nightwell.

As we got closer, the path slowly widened. It wasn’t long before we reached the entrance archway, which read in big, bold, and reflective letters, “Nightwell.”

“I guess we’re here,” said Jonas.

“Good job, you how to read,” joked Carla.

I looked around and noticed that most of the locals looked a lot like Manuk, except they seemed better cared for.

Up close, the city looked even more spectacular. Long, translucent, and brightly lit spires covered in green vines and a variety of plants occupied the sky. After everything I’d encountered in Threshold, Nightwell was by far the hardest thing to describe. It was a perfect marriage between technology and nature.

“Wow, this place is freaking huge!” said Jonas.

The people moving around the city were also different. They didn’t look anything like the Night Dwellers or the Bog. And even though their features were similar to Manuk’s, their attitudes were completely different.

All of them had very fair skin and slightly pointed ears. They had well-proportioned faces and slightly rounded green eyes that looked almost friendly, if it weren’t for the puzzled looks I got from some of them.

“Why are they looking at us like that?” Nyx asked.

“I don’t know. I’d imagine we look like an interesting bunch,” I replied. “We should find the aerobus before Phasma finds us.”

And that’s when I saw him. He would have gone unnoticed, if it wasn’t for his clumsy style that made him stand out as he struggled to balance his own weight and the weight of several books and scrolls he held in his hands and arms—perhaps he had misjudged how much he could carry. I wished I had noticed him just a second earlier. That way, I could have warned Carla, and she would’ve never crashed into the poor thing, sending his books and scrolls flying everywhere.

Nyx let out a gasp when she saw him. The exquisite Night Dweller elder had several eye-catching features. His feline eyes were better suited for the dark. They were remarkable, even though they sent chills down my spine. His dark garments defined his personality and served as a warning to anyone who intended to mess with him. His dark black hair seemed alive and changed shapes in unimaginable patterns.

My immediate concern was with Carla’s well-being. Once I made sure that she was fine, I tended to the elder.

“Oh my… I’m so very sorry,” he said, sounding sincere. His voice was the complete opposite of his appearance.

“Are you all right?” I asked.

“I’m fine. I’m so disastrous… it was completely my fault. I hope your friend isn’t hurt,” he replied. “But where are my manners? My name is Dr. Thomas Rainer, it’s a pleasure to meet you all.” Dr. Rainer sounded genuinely pleased to meet us as he looked around to see where his books and scrolls had landed.

“Nice to meet you too,” I replied as Nyx looked at him in fear.

I’d spotted a couple of his books, so I went to get them. As I bent to get the books, I caught a glimpse of their titles:

Dweller on the Threshold

The Constant Struggle Between Light and Darkness

By Simon Sin

Kunkan Endangered Species

What Tomorrow May Hold

By Charles Whithin

I carefully grabbed the fallen books and handed them to the doctor. He gave me a warm smile that didn’t seem to fit his looks.

“Ah, what a fine dragon specimen you have. Let me guess. He’s a
Draconoides Volan Ventralis
. How intriguing. These markings… I’ve seen them before,” Dr. Rainer said as he opened the book titled
Kunkan Endangered Species
and flipped through its pages.

“Is something wrong?” I asked, seeing the concerned look on his face.

“I knew I had seen those markings before. This dragon is a direct descendant of Sparkus, isn’t he? What’s his name?”

“His name is Spark. But don’t worry, he’s harmless,” I said.

“Oh my boy, he is many things, but harmless is not one of them,” Dr. Rainer replied, surprising me. After all, Spark just seemed like a docile and scared if not scarred creature.

“Spark? Hum… seems fitting. He’s remarkable, I wish I could examine him further,” Dr. Rainer said. Spark seemed to understand him, because when Dr. Rainer said that, Spark cowered. I felt his nails digging into my collarbone. I could swear that Spark’s claws felt stronger, longer, and sharper than before.

“Dr. Rainer, can I ask you a question?” I ventured.

“Sure.”

“You see, we have this creature chasing us. His name is Phasma, and I was wondering if you knew where we could go to get away from him,” I said hopefully. I didn’t know why but I felt like I could trust him even though his appearance looked menacing.

“Well, if I were in your shoes I would go seek help at the City of Lights,” suggest the old doctor.

“Excuse me, but aren’t you a Night Dweller? How come you can roam freely in these parts?” Nyx asked, finally breaking her silence.

“I am indeed. I’ll explain. When I was much younger, I tried to escape the confines of the Night Peaks, but I would always end up getting recaptured. Unsure of what to do, I did the only thing I could do. I studied and researched everyone and everything carefully. After many years, I came to the most stupendous realization of my life. I realized that the key to being free wasn’t in others. It was inside me all along. All that I needed to change was my way of thinking. So that’s what I did. After that, things just fell right into place,” explained Dr. Rainer. “Nyxy? Don’t you remember me?”

“Do I know you?” Nyx asked.

“Well, yes and no. You probably don’t remember me. You were too young,” said Dr. Rainer as he approached and gently grabbed her hand. His eyes welled up with tears.

“What do you mean?” Nyx asked, unsure of how to react.

“I took care of you ever since your first wind cycle,” replied Dr. Rainer.

“Then maybe you can explain why I seem to ignite whenever I get upset and why I’m the only one that this happens to,” said Nyx.

“Calm down, dear, first things first. You’re not the only one, but you’re very special. You see, that’s why he chose you,” explained Dr. Rainer.

“What do you mean? Please tell me more, I need to know everything,” Nyx said.

“Nyxy, before you can understand your past, there’s someone we need to see first,” said Dr. Rainer. “As a matter of fact, I’m going that way right now. Care to follow me?”

“Can we please have a moment to discuss it?” I asked politely, based on the skeptical look on Carla’s face.

We moved a few yards away and gathered in a small circle.

“Don’t tell me we’re trusting this guy,” said Jonas as he looked suspiciously at Dr. Rainer.

“Why not?” Carla asked.