I think,
remembering what Lukas told us.
“Are
they—” I start, and swallow. “Is there something inside them?”
Tahari
shines the beam on the sleek surfaces of the cylinders, picks up the first one
on the left, and hands it over to me. “This is the Wisdom Chavi .”
Aghad
flinches at the gesture but says nothing.
The metal
cylinder feels icy cold as I toss it from one hand to the other. It looks just
like the one Dottie found, except this one’s shinier. The symbol of Astraca
embossed on one side looks identical, and so does the iris opening on one end.
I prod it, but it doesn’t yield, just like Akaela’s didn’t yield.
“Here,”
Tahari says, taking it back from me. “Show him, Aghad.”
Aghad
takes the cylinder and rests it on the flat of his left hand with the Astraca
symbol facing up. He then presses it with his index finger. To my surprise the
whole embossing clicks down as if it were a button. Aghad turns his finger to
the right, making the symbol underneath rotate a quarter of a circle. As he
lets go, I hear a soft whir coming from a mechanism inside.
“There,”
Aghad says, his voice as rugged as his breathing. “It’s unlocked now.”
I flip the
cylinder over, and sure enough, a thin golden key slides onto my open palm, the
head shaped like a sun.
The Wisdom Chavi. Lukas would kill to be in my
shoes right now .
“How did
you know it opens like that?” I ask.
“I
remembered,” Aghad cryptically replies.
“You need
to remember how to open it,” Tahari
explains.
I nod. “I
know about the engrams.”
Tahari
tilts his head, his surprise quickly turning into a smile. “You’re a smart kid,
Athel,” he says. “There’s a total of five chavis .
We desperately need to find the remaining two.”
I squint
through the glare of the flashlight. “Why are you telling me all this?”
Tahari
retrieves his walking stick and stands up again. On cue, Aghad takes the key
and cylinder from my hands and returns them to the wooden box.
“Will you
help us find the other two, Athel?” Tahari asks, thumping the walking stick on
the ground.
I rise too
and stare him in the eyes. “You haven’t answered my question. Why me?”
He squeezes the walking stick with both
his fists and clicks his tongue. “Because you have something that no other
Mayake has. You can see in the dark.”
Part II
Chapter Nine
Akaela
I awake suddenly. Distant screams
spill through the window, making me jump out of bed and run over to see. The
first light of dawn rims the mountains looming over the forest. Below, billows
of smoke rise above the river and into the sky.
The rocket , my first thought.
A new blast
from the riverbank rocks the ground. The smoke thickens, followed by sparks
arching in all directions. The Tower awakens, the elevator starts clanging. The
alarms sound and an electronic voice announces a mandatory evacuation.
Still
confused, I turn to awake Athel, only to remember that my brother left hours
ago.
The time
on the bottom corner of my retina reads 5:30 a.m.
Athel should’ve been back by now .
Ash hops
onto the windowsill and rubs his side against my arm. I lean out and take
another look. I see people rushing to the riverbank, their shouts lost in the
rumble of the water running downstream and the crackle of fire, but I can’t
tell where the people are running to or where the flames are coming from. I
pick up the kitten, storm out of my room, and run into Mom, standing just
outside my bedroom.
“Something’s
happening over at the river,” she announces out of breath. “I need to go help
Kara with the little ones.” She tilts her head and blinks, deep shadows etched
under her eyes. “Where’s Athel?”
I squeeze
Ash in my arms groping for an answer, but all I can manage is, “He’s coming.
You go ahead, Mom.”
She nods.
“Don’t take too long.”
As soon as
she steps out, I stomp to the kitchen, check that Kael’s
remembering what Lukas told us.
“Are
they—” I start, and swallow. “Is there something inside them?”
Tahari
shines the beam on the sleek surfaces of the cylinders, picks up the first one
on the left, and hands it over to me. “This is the Wisdom Chavi .”
Aghad
flinches at the gesture but says nothing.
The metal
cylinder feels icy cold as I toss it from one hand to the other. It looks just
like the one Dottie found, except this one’s shinier. The symbol of Astraca
embossed on one side looks identical, and so does the iris opening on one end.
I prod it, but it doesn’t yield, just like Akaela’s didn’t yield.
“Here,”
Tahari says, taking it back from me. “Show him, Aghad.”
Aghad
takes the cylinder and rests it on the flat of his left hand with the Astraca
symbol facing up. He then presses it with his index finger. To my surprise the
whole embossing clicks down as if it were a button. Aghad turns his finger to
the right, making the symbol underneath rotate a quarter of a circle. As he
lets go, I hear a soft whir coming from a mechanism inside.
“There,”
Aghad says, his voice as rugged as his breathing. “It’s unlocked now.”
I flip the
cylinder over, and sure enough, a thin golden key slides onto my open palm, the
head shaped like a sun.
The Wisdom Chavi. Lukas would kill to be in my
shoes right now .
“How did
you know it opens like that?” I ask.
“I
remembered,” Aghad cryptically replies.
“You need
to remember how to open it,” Tahari
explains.
I nod. “I
know about the engrams.”
Tahari
tilts his head, his surprise quickly turning into a smile. “You’re a smart kid,
Athel,” he says. “There’s a total of five chavis .
We desperately need to find the remaining two.”
I squint
through the glare of the flashlight. “Why are you telling me all this?”
Tahari
retrieves his walking stick and stands up again. On cue, Aghad takes the key
and cylinder from my hands and returns them to the wooden box.
“Will you
help us find the other two, Athel?” Tahari asks, thumping the walking stick on
the ground.
I rise too
and stare him in the eyes. “You haven’t answered my question. Why me?”
He squeezes the walking stick with both
his fists and clicks his tongue. “Because you have something that no other
Mayake has. You can see in the dark.”
Part II
Chapter Nine
Akaela
I awake suddenly. Distant screams
spill through the window, making me jump out of bed and run over to see. The
first light of dawn rims the mountains looming over the forest. Below, billows
of smoke rise above the river and into the sky.
The rocket , my first thought.
A new blast
from the riverbank rocks the ground. The smoke thickens, followed by sparks
arching in all directions. The Tower awakens, the elevator starts clanging. The
alarms sound and an electronic voice announces a mandatory evacuation.
Still
confused, I turn to awake Athel, only to remember that my brother left hours
ago.
The time
on the bottom corner of my retina reads 5:30 a.m.
Athel should’ve been back by now .
Ash hops
onto the windowsill and rubs his side against my arm. I lean out and take
another look. I see people rushing to the riverbank, their shouts lost in the
rumble of the water running downstream and the crackle of fire, but I can’t
tell where the people are running to or where the flames are coming from. I
pick up the kitten, storm out of my room, and run into Mom, standing just
outside my bedroom.
“Something’s
happening over at the river,” she announces out of breath. “I need to go help
Kara with the little ones.” She tilts her head and blinks, deep shadows etched
under her eyes. “Where’s Athel?”
I squeeze
Ash in my arms groping for an answer, but all I can manage is, “He’s coming.
You go ahead, Mom.”
She nods.
“Don’t take too long.”
As soon as
she steps out, I stomp to the kitchen, check that Kael’s
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