The Three Furies (Erec Rex) (27 page)

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all the muck out of that stable. So get to work. And no more tricks."

Erec's heart dropped. All of the people that he saved were dead? He thought about poor Mavis, so excited about climbing that tree. Little did she know she'd get cast into subzero temperatures and frozen to death.

If possible, the stable looked even worse than it had the day before. He had been stupid to let everyone out before he escaped. Now they were all dead, and Bethany was still locked away. There had been no way that he could turn his back on them, though. . . .

Wandabelle looked as desolate as Erec felt. "How could he have done that to those people? Is he truly heartless?"

The stench of the stable was overwhelming. Erec closed his eyes and tried to feel his body in the other world. Maybe if he stretched he could feel something that he could use here. Anything. But nothing was in his reach. Could he bring something into his dream just from imagining it? He tried to picture a giant backhoe tractor and mops. But even when he formed a clear picture of them in his head, he could not make them appear.

It was useless. He gave up and sank to his knees in the muck. Had he really blown his last chance of escape?

What must his mother be going through now? And his siblings? His father? He winced, thinking about how they would feel with him missing. Why hadn't he listened to his mother when she told him not to leave? He had really gone and done it now.

He could not believe that the Hermit had led him here to be trapped forever. Yes, he had taught Erec enough to escape, but not enough to get everyone out of there safely. Did the Fates really expect him to leave the others to suffer? The Fates were supposed to be right all of the time. But then again, King Piter had told him that they only knew what
could
happen--what people were capable of--not what
would
happen--what they would choose to do. So Erec had

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made the wrong choice. The Hermit's help had not been enough.

At least he had finally learned finger magic.

Erec froze, eyes wide.

Could the Hermit have taught him how to do that for a reason?

Wandabelle gave him a slight kick. "Get up, lazybones. We might as well--"

"Wait!" Erec put a hand up. "Let me think a minute. I have an idea." He could not bring any objects into the Nightmare Realm. He could not reach his remote control. But he could make things move with his finger at home. Could he do that here? He recalled how he had used the remote control on level three. It was such a peculiar sensation. Like a well of power sprang right out of his imagination.

As soon as he remembered the feeling, he knew he could reproduce it again. Erec stood and pointed to a mound of hardened animal droppings near his feet. In a small wave, part of the pile shot into the air. Some pieces flew to the roof, others wavered near the floor. Then the muck all dropped back to the stable floor.

"Hey, not bad!" Wandabelle grinned. "Look at this." She lifted a shiny pendant that dangled from a black ribbon around her neck and waved it in the air. A sudden wind blew by Erec's neck, and loud swishing noises zipped through the air. Then a bright streak shot like a lightning bolt into her pendant. The light reflected back in double into the stable. One of the beams shot to a small stack of dung near him, and the other shone on a similar one farther away.

The two mounds flew into the air, just like the pile Erec had lifted with finger magic. Seconds later, hers fell to the floor as well.

"You can do magic too?" Erec rubbed his hands together. "We can get this place clean together."

"Well, not really. But this can help." She held up the pendant, which looked like a small, round mirror. "This is a Doubler charm. It can pick up any magic that has been performed recently and repeat

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it twice. I mostly use it just for fun. It's not easy to direct." Her eyes met his. "But I'll do what I can with it."

A well of hope surged through Erec. "I think we'll be able to clean this place now. Stand away from the doors. I'll see if I can get one of these big piles out."

Droppings flew everywhere when he tried to levitate an enormous column of mud and dung. It was much harder to control than a small, solid object. The center of the stack liquefied when it moved, sloshing all over the floor, and harder bits struck the walls and ceiling. Only a small amount trickled out of the stable door.

Erec shrugged. "Well, it's better than using my hands . . . I guess. If I keep practicing, it should get easier."

Wandabelle waved her Doubler charm in the air, repeating what Erec did, only doubling it with two more huge stacks. Two small amounts flew out of the door, but the inside of the stable was a mess. Foul dirt dripped from the ceiling in clumps.

Unfortunately, while practicing did make Erec more coordinated, the droppings would not stay together. Small bits refused to move along with the large ones, and the liquid moved separately. At one point he was able to raise all of the wet muck off the floor and sent it sailing through the door, but the next time he moved one of the piles, more slipped back down again.

Wandabelle gave up doubling what he did, at least until he figured out a better method. Instead she scooped up handfuls and carried them out to the river. Even though the process was faster, it still wasn't nearly enough. Erec would have to bring more animals in at some point, and then the mess would become just as bad again.

If only he were better at doing magic! He wished that he had practiced more. Erec thought about the other things he had done with the Hermit. Maybe he should use his dragon eyes again and see into his future. Things would probably be different now than they were before,

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since he was stuck in this place. Sure, he thought. He would probably see himself levitating mounds of mud ten, twenty, thirty years from now. No more drowning in water, or getting hit by a tidal wave.

He looked around and laughed. Too bad, he thought. A tidal wave was just what he needed here.

His eyes widened. "No way!" he shouted. "I got it! I think I have the answer." He paced back and forth. "A vision I saw in my future--it was the right thing for me to see, I guess. It's exactly what I need to do here. And I think it will work, too. C'mon!"

They went to the back of the stable and yanked some of the old boards off the wall. He concentrated hard, crooking a finger in the air, and pulled the wood planks out one at a time. Prying them loose was hard, as they were nailed in, but if he really focused his thoughts he could make them fly all the way back to the riverbed. Finally, most of the wall had been removed.

"What are you up to?" Wandabelle crossed her arms, amused.

"You'll see. I need to make sure the front doors are clear." Erec propped them open with rocks. "Wandabelle, I think you better stay away for this part. If you can fly into a tree, that would be the safest." A sour note nagged at him and he frowned. "Are you sure you'll be okay if I'm gone? Because if this works I'll be able to get out of here."

She nodded. "Of course. You need to rescue your friend, then you'll come back for me. Right?"

"You got it," he promised.

"Here, take this." She took off the Doubler charm and hung the black ribbon around Erec's neck. "I won't be needing it here. Maybe it will help you on your quest."

"Thanks, Wandabelle." Her Doubler charm hung next to his Amulet of Virtues and the Trwyth boar vial.

She fluttered up to a treetop while he walked to the riverbed.

Erec closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
Concentrate
. He had

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to get this right. A small stream of water would not wash out the stable. He had to steer the entire river to run through it. The opening he had made where the water would come inside was bigger than the doors where it would leave, so the water should swirl around and scour the place clean as it rushed through.

So, the whole river had to change its course. This task would take every ounce of energy he had. He lifted both his hands and, like a conductor, swept them high into the air. He struggled to keep his hands lifted. Energy raced through his mind and out of his hands . . . pulling . . . lifting.

Unlike the smaller objects he had moved, Erec could feel the weight of the water resisting him. He fought it, tugged harder. Mind over matter. This had to happen.

Without warning, splashes drifted onto his face. It was coming closer . . . the balance was tipping . . . just needed more power, more force . . .

A loud roar nearly deafened him. Before his eyes, a wall of water raced toward him, towering over him like a tsunami. He was immersed, whipped around in eddies until he didn't know which way was up.

It was impossible to tell which way the surface of the water was, but it was so far away he might never reach it before he ran out of breath. He shot forward like a bullet along with the rushing waves.

Erec crashed into the ground at the bottom of the flood, then bounced up again. Big clumps of green and brown goo swirled around him, picked up by the rushing river. He could not hold his breath any longer. His head spun, and he was choking.

Yet at the same time he was so relieved, so excited. Who cared if he inhaled the water and all the disgusting things in it? He sputtered and coughed, limbs flailing wildly in an attempt to reach air.

Things were turning gray. He needed oxygen. Instagills weren't

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working--maybe because he was in the Nightmare Realm. Just as he was about to pass out, something hit him hard on the head. Did he crash into a wall? It looked like a door. He burst through an opening and was thrown to the side of the onrushing flood. Water sloshed past him, spreading out across the fields.

Right before everything turned black, he gasped air.

Erec awoke with a hand on his cheek. Wandabelle was looking at him in concern. "You're okay! Thank goodness. I think you would have died, except that nobody can die here." She tilted her head toward the stable. "Well, you did it. That place is clean as a . . . as I am! Congratulations, Erec."

He searched her eyes for fear of being left alone, but could only see her joy. "I'll be back for you. I promise."

"I know. Remember, I've been around a long time. Spending a little while in this place means nothing to me."

"Thanks for helping me, Wandabelle."

"No, Erec. I didn't do anything. Thank
you
."

"King Augeas!" he shouted. "I cleaned out the stable. You have to let me go now."

The king's face appeared in the clouds. He looked stunned. "How did you . . . Ugh! Obnoxious brat. Fine, I don't want you around here anyway. You've caused nothing but problems since I took you in. Get out--now!"

Erec sat up on a cold floor, shivering. His hands were tied behind his back. King Augeas stood before him, glowering.

"C-could you p-please untie me?"

The king shrugged. "If you wish. You won't last one bit longer out there, though." When he yanked the rope from Erec's arms, their hands touched for a moment. The king's skin was smooth and icy.

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Erec grabbed his backpack, which was lying across the room from where he had been asleep. "Were the others in here with me?"

"Yes, you fool. You've sent them all to their graves." A door opened into pure whiteness. Frozen wind rushed into the room. "Get out."

"Where is Wandabelle's body?"

"None of your business! Out of here. Now!"

Erec stumbled into the blizzard outside and the door slammed after him. The cold swooped into his bones. A vague noise echoed through his head, a drumbeat in the wind. After a moment he realized that it was the pounding chatter of his own teeth.

He spotted something red in the snow, a drop of blood, or a rose. He stooped for it, so stiff from the cold he almost toppled over.

It was, of all things, a snail shell. Erec scooped it up. The snail trembled in his hand--or maybe it was his hand that was shaking. He rubbed it to warm it up.

A sheet fluttered in front of him, like a white flag in the snow. With a dark flash, a hand beckoned him. He stumbled forward, falling. Something hard under him moved along the snow. Was it a sled? Where were the others? Their bodies must be frozen under the ice.

He was dragged around a cliff and down a hill. Hands pulled him through a door and it slammed shut. Then another door opened onto a bright scene of sun and sand.

Heat seared his skin like fire. People were laughing, chattering. Someone threw warm water on him and it burned.

"He's coming to! Cap'n, can you hear me?"

Erec's eyes flew open. It was Griffin! Was Erec dreaming? Was he alive?

"How did you get yer scrawny bones out of there?" Griffin laughed. "Your funny little friend here said that ye'd be out before long. Guy has faith in ye, he does."

Erec turned to see the Hermit with a smile twisted across his

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