“That was… unexpected,” Soph murmured, staring blankly at the spot where Myst had stood just a moment before. “And weird. There are a lot of weird things in this place. It’s not just me thinking it, right?”
“No, no, you’re onto something,” Dafne replied flatly.
“We have to keep moving,” Thayen said, taking the lead. We stayed close, continuing our trek through the redwood forest. It was only a matter of time before Haldor would find us again and set his shadow monsters on us. We needed better leverage, and we had a good chance of finding it in the form of weaponry and other supplies in the armory behind the training halls.
We had a long walk ahead of us, littered with different sorts of trouble. Funny enough, Haldor wasn’t even our main concern. There were clones living here, clones who impersonated us and hurt the ones we loved. My dad had often said that for every problem there would be a solution. He’d learned it from his parents, who had learned it from theirs. He’d also experienced it firsthand during the Eritopian troubles. Something good had come out of that mess, though.
Something good would have to come out of this one, too. Eventually.
“Do you feel your mom, by any chance?” Soph asked. “I know you two have a special bond as Daughters. The possibility just occurred to me.”
“I’m not sure. I feel a lot of things right now, so it’s hard to make sense of every emotion. But I know I would feel her if… if she died. Every Daughter would sense the death of a sister,” I said, taking comfort in this rather grim fact. It meant that Mom was alive. That was all that mattered.
“Okay, so… at least there’s that,” Dafne muttered, giving me a sympathetic smile.
The woods seemed the same as we went deeper in. Back home, I would’ve marveled at every tree and shrub I came across, but out here the drabness persisted and muffled the alt-Shade’s intended appeal. Then again, I doubted that whoever made this place had done so with the intention of imitation as flattery, but rather imitation as necessity. Something told me it had to look as close to ours as possible. The people in it had to look as close to ours as possible. But why?
Thayen stopped walking, carefully scanning our surroundings. His nostrils flared and his ears twitched, but the frown on his face looked more confused than concerned. “What’s wrong?” I asked him in a hushed tone.
“We’re alone.”
“And how is that a problem?” Jericho asked.
Thayen grunted softly. “I’m not sure. I would’ve expected Haldor and his shadows to stick around, at least maintain a limited distance. He’d know that Myst had left us, and he would absolutely be able to track us through these woods. You heard her earlier. They’re strongest in the darkness. Yet we’re completely alone right now.”
“Normally, I’d count it as a blessing, but you’re right. It’s odd,” Soph agreed.
“Okay, from the top, then,” Jericho replied. “What do we know so far?”
“Not enough to survive whatever they’re about to throw at us,” Thayen said, straightening his back. “I mean, we know they might have one or more of our people in this place. We know they’re really good at copying us but only up to a point, since some of the clones were faulty or had different enhancements, which means they’re no longer interested in acting as mirror images to break us. We know there are people like Myst and Haldor around, but their allegiance is ambiguous, at best. Yeah, we don’t know enough to even draw up a coherent summary.”
“We also know they want me dead, but they haven’t killed my mother,” I added, my stomach churning at the thought about her. “Let’s stick to the original plan, Thayen. Let’s head for the armory. We need invisibility magic if we’re to infiltrate this place and find out where they’re keeping the prisoners. I’m just as rattled in regard to Myst and Haldor, but it doesn’t change our core objective.”
He wanted to agree with me. I could see it in his eyes. But part of him drew back, keeping him focused on the mystery—on Myst, most likely. I’d seen the impact her presence had made. It was hard to pull away from her. Truthfully, I was also very curious to know more about her and her powers, to understand her origins and history. But she’d left us, and we didn’t have a second to spare dwelling over Myst’s departure.
Hooking my arm through his, I pulled Thayen from his thoughts and continued the trek through the forest. All around us, the permanent night thickened into black shadows and cold gusts of wind. Every breeze made the crowns overhead rustle, the leaves shivering in the absence of a moon. I’d yet to figure out where the faint light was coming from, but it was weak. It barely did anything to light our path. Fortunately, we were supernatural creatures. The darkness wouldn’t break us. The things that dwelled in it, however… they might.
I wondered about my father. He had to be worried sick. My grandparents. Derek and Sofia, too. Hell, I was willing to bet the entire island was mobilizing to figure out where we’d gone. Our unexpected trip had happened so fast that I hadn’t even thought to leave a message behind. I was certain they’d find the tracks and put two and two together eventually.
“Psst. Look over there,” Jericho whispered, bringing our party to yet another sudden halt. We stilled in the silence of the night, following his gaze to where lights flickered. A settlement, I realized.
“I don’t think that’s supposed to be here,” I murmured, going through my mental map of The Shade. A mile to our left, we’d find the treehouse residences, and farther out would be the witches’ sanctuary. To the right, where the lights were, there should be nothing but wilderness.
“The armory is in that direction,” Jericho said. “We might as well pass by and observe these freaks while we can. It looks small.”
Thayen frowned. He didn’t like it, but he, too, was curious. “We make no sound whatsoever. We don’t get closer than fifty yards. We don’t spend longer than five minutes.”
We nodded in shared agreement.
There was a logic behind this decision. First, we needed to observe the enemy every chance we got. A small village in the middle of nowhere was a safer bet than, say, the Vale. Second, it was close to our path anyway. If there was one thing I’d learned from GASP, it was that no opportunity could be wasted. We had been trained as agents, not as cowards. We were fighters, not scared little children.
This was a recon mission, and it could very well yield answers that we desperately needed.
Jericho
I had a feeling we’d find out more from this place. We had plenty of blank spaces to fill as far as the fake island was concerned, and the fact that they’d gone to the length of attacking me with my father’s clone had set a fire in my body I could not put out. They’d violated our home. The integrity of our world. To me that was unforgivable, and a price had to be paid.
We cautiously snuck through the woods until we got closer to the settlement. From this angle, I had a better view. Of course, Dafne’s presence had a tendency of throwing me off my game, but I’d managed to pull through every time. It wasn’t her fault. I’d just never seen a creature so beguiling. We shared our hybrid commonality, yet other than that we seemed to be complete opposites of one another. I didn’t mind. It just bothered me that she was impossible to read. I couldn’t tell if she felt the same way, and I wasn’t sure I could act on my growing feelings without knowing if it was mutual. I wasn’t sure I could take this further. Dafne kept me on my toes, and I was equal parts thrilled and concerned. I’d never been rebuffed before, yet the concept of Dafne’s potential rejection did not sit well with me.