Fablehaven_ Rise of the Evening Star Part 26

Kendra scrunched her eyebrows. Grandpa thought it would be more appropriate to toss it onto the water. He thought it would be disrespectful to go back.

The naiads have claimed it as a tribute, s.h.i.+ara said.

In the future, bear in mind, if you take something in need, you will not be punished for returning it in grat.i.tude. Such action would not have harmed your standing with Her Majesty.

I'm sorry, s.h.i.+ara, Kendra said. We thought they would return it.

The naiads fear and respect our Queen, but elected to accept the bowl as a gift freely given, s.h.i.+ara said. I sought to retrieve it but they would not yield, blaming you for awarding it to them. Some among the fairies hold you culpable.

The silver fairy hovered higher. It appears the situation here is now under control.

Wait, please don't leave, Kendra said. I don't know what to do.

I will try to make the others mindful of the threat you named, s.h.i.+ara said. But do not count on aid from our kind. I admire your goodness, Kendra, and wish you no harm.

s.h.i.+ara streaked away, vanis.h.i.+ng into the night. Kendra turned and studied Mendigo. He stood motionless, awaiting instructions. Kendra sighed. The only person on her side was a big, creepy puppet.275 Groaning, Seth stirred. He tried to stretch but the effortwas thwarted by the snug confines of the coc.o.o.n. The realization of where he was caused him to snap awake. How long had he been asleep?

Opening his eyes, he was surprised to find the inside of the coc.o.o.n illuminated by a soft green glow, as if light were filtering in from outside. The coc.o.o.n remained unusually still. Was Olloch sleeping? Why was there suddenly light?

Was the light pa.s.sing through both Olloch and the coc.o.o.n?

Seth waited. Nothing changed. Eventually he started yelling and tried to rock the coc.o.o.n by flinging himself from one side to the other. There came no roars, no growls, no movement except a slight tilting as he s.h.i.+fted his position.

Just silence and the even, muted glow.

Was the coc.o.o.n no longer inside Olloch? Had he been coughed up like a hairball? Perhaps the coc.o.o.n was indigestible!

He dared not hope for such good fortune. But it would explain the lack of growls and the new illumination.

Had Grandpa come to his rescue? If so, why wasn't anyone encouraging him to open the coc.o.o.n?

Could it be some sort of trick? If he opened the coc.o.o.n, would Olloch gobble him up again, this time without a coc.o.o.n to impede digestion? Could he still be in the evil grove with the revenant? He didn't think so. He felt no hint of the chilling, involuntary fear.

Seth decided to wait. Acting rashly had gotten him in trouble before. He folded his arms and listened, straining his276 senses for any indication of what was going on outside thecoc.o.o.n.

Seth quickly became fidgety. He had never coped well with boredom. When the coc.o.o.n had swayed and jostled with the movements of the demon, and when the silence had been interrupted by ferocious growls, Seth had remained on edge, which kept him occupied. The motionless silence was relentless.

How much time had pa.s.sed? Time always moved slower when he was bored. He could remember certain cla.s.ses at school where it used to feel like the clock was broken. Every minute felt like a lifetime. But this was worse. No cla.s.smates to joke with. No paper to doodle on. Not even the drone of a teacher to give shape to the monotony.

Seth began picking at the wall of the coc.o.o.n. He didn't have to break all the way out, he just wanted to see how tough it would be. He ate part of the wall as he went.

Soon he had made a pretty good hole in the wall in front of his face. As he dug deeper, the texture of the wall was changing, becoming goopy, like peanut b.u.t.ter. It was the best-tasting part of the wall so far, reminding him vaguely of eggnog.

After scooping away the eggnog paste, he reached a membrane. It was slick, and it rippled when he prodded it.

Seth ruptured the membrane by jabbing it with his fingers, and clear liquid gushed out, soaking him.

Now light was really pouring into the coc.o.o.n through the hole. He had reached a hard, translucent sh.e.l.l. Silvery light shone through it, overpowering the green glow. He was277 obviously no longer inside Olloch. And as he had dug, Sethhad neither heard nor felt any indication that Olloch was near.

Who knew if he would get another chance like this? He had to try to escape. The demon might return anytime. Seth began punching at the sh.e.l.l. The blows hurt his knuckles, but the sh.e.l.l began to crack. Soon his hand burst through, and unfiltered sunlight flooded in.

Seth worked furiously to widen the hole. The effort took longer than he liked. Now that his protective coc.o.o.n was breached, he wanted to get out as quickly as possible, before some creature came along and cornered him.

Finally the hole was big enough for Seth to squirm through. With his head, shoulders, and arms out of the coc.o.o.n, Seth froze. Olloch sat not twenty feet away, back to him. The demon had grown considerably. Olloch was bigger than the elephants Seth had seen at the zoo, not just taller, but much broader as well. No wonder the demon had been able to swallow him. The glutton was immense!

Seth realized he had made the worst mistake of his life, and that now he would die. Why hadn't he waited to open the coc.o.o.n? Why was he so impatient?

But Olloch did not turn. The huge demon continued to sit motionless, back to him. Seth began to notice a terrible stench. He looked at the sh.e.l.l of the coc.o.o.n. It was smooth, with a l.u.s.ter like mother-of-pearl, except that it was streaked with smelly brown matter. Huge clumps of mushy brown excrement sat on the ground nearby, buzzing with flies.

Suddenly Seth understood. He had pa.s.sed right through278 the demon, safe inside the coc.o.o.n! It was the only explanation.In one end, and out the other!

Olloch remained still. The demon did not even seem to breathe. He was like a statue. And judging from what Seth could see, the clearing he was in was not the haunted grove.

Seth squirmed the rest of the way out of the coc.o.o.n, trying his best to avoid touching the excrement. Once free of the coc.o.o.n, he picked his way through the minefield of reeking demon pies, slinking away from the enormous glutton.

While he was stepping around one stinking pile, a dry branch cracked loudly underfoot. Seth's entire body tensed.

After a breathless moment, he hazarded a glance at the demon. The glutton had not budged, and continued to hold perfectly still.

Deciding he had to confirm that the demon was no longer a threat, Seth started looping around so he could view Olloch from the front, giving the demon a wide berth.

Coming around to the front, Seth found the demon seated in the same sitting position as when he had first laid eyes on him in the funeral home. The texture of his skin had changed. The demon was a statue once more. Seth could not help smiling. He was no longer doomed! And until some new victim made the mistake of feeding him, Olloch the Glutton was frozen.

Seth surveyed his surroundings. He was in a small clearing encircled by trees. He realized he could be anywhere on the preserve. He needed to get his bearings.

Seth wished for his emergency kit. He had dropped it back in the grove. His only remaining a.s.set was the glove279 Coulter had thrust into his hand. Seth had stowed the glovein his pocket. He tugged it out and pulled it on.

The instant he put on the glove, Seth could no longer see himself. It was a strange sensation, like all that was left of him was a pair of transparent eyeb.a.l.l.s. He held up his hands in front of his face. When he moved them, his body flickered back into view. But when he held still, he didn't just see right through them, he saw no sign of himself. It was as if he had been completely disembodied.

The glove was a little loose on his hand, but it did not fit him badly. Fortunately it had belonged to Coulter and not Tanu. Keeping it on should afford him some protection as he tried to figure out where he was.

The sun was high in the sky, so for the moment it would be no help determining direction. And since he had no idea where on the preserve he was, identifying north would not help him much yet anyhow. He needed a landmark. Seth stepped into the center of the clearing, weaving around the piles of dung. The biggest stack was as high as his waist. Seth stood with his hands on his hips. The trees circling the clearing were too tall-he could see nothing beyond them.

He glanced at the demon. Climbing Olloch would give him an extra fifteen feet or so, but he did not want to get anywhere near that mouth.

There were no apparent trails leading out of the clearing, but the undergrowth was not heavy, so he chose a direction and set off. After a while, he became used to how his body would vanish whenever he paused, then reappear as he continued walking. His first priority was to find a landmark280or a vantage point that would allow him to get his bearings.For all he knew, each step was carrying him farther from the main house He came across a pair of deer. They paused and looked toward him. He held still, vanis.h.i.+ng from sight. After a moment they bounded away. Had they caught his scent?

Farther along he glimpsed a great black owl roosting in a tree. The feathery head swiveled toward him, round eyes staring. Seth had never known owls could be so large or so black. Even as he stood motionless and invisible, the golden eyes seemed to stare into his. In that instant, Seth realized he had not consumed any milk. It was a new day, and he had slept. He could not see the true forms of any of the magical creatures. The owl could be anything. The deer could have been anything.

He thought back to Olloch. Had the demon really looked as much like a statue as it had seemed to him? Or was that another illusion?

Seth backed away from the owl, eyeing the large bird as he distanced himself and circled around it. The dark owl did not turn, but the head pivoted, golden eyes trained on Seth until he pa.s.sed out of sight.

Before long, Seth came to an unusual path. Once it had been a wide road paved with flagstones, though now it was choked with weeds and slender young trees. Many of the paving stones were out of place or hidden beneath vegetation, but plenty were visible to help him follow the road.

Seth had never seen a paved path at Fablehaven, and even though the road was in disrepair, he decided that following281 an old road was probably safer than roaming aimlesslythrough the forest.

The path was not level, and many of the lichen-covered flagstones were crooked and loose, forcing Seth to watch his step or risk turning an ankle. At one point he stopped as a long snake slithered through the weeds. He held his breath, unsure whether it was really a snake or something more dangerous in disguise. The serpent did not appear to notice him.

Seth pa.s.sed the decaying remnants of a humble cabin not far off the path to one side. Two walls and a stone chimney remained partially intact. Farther along he spotted the jumbled remnants of a smaller shelter, splintered and rotten beyond recognition. It might have once been a shack or a lean-to.

He pa.s.sed a few more ruins of crude shelters before the road led him into an open area, where he stood facing an impressive manor, surprisingly undamaged compared to the road and the other dwellings he had pa.s.sed. The manor was three stones tall, with four large pillars in the front. White walls were now gray, and all the windows were covered by heavy green shutters. Flowering vines twisted around the pillars and climbed the walls. The road formed a circular driveway in front of the manor, doubling back on itself.

Seth remembered hearing about an abandoned mansion somewhere on the property. It had once been the main house at Fablehaven, and the center of a community, of which the dilapidated shelters were probably remnants. He could not recall ever hearing why the mansion had been abandoned.282 Given his current situation, one detail about the manorstood out above the rest. It occupied high ground. He suspected that from the roof he would be able to get his bearings.

Did he dare risk entering the house? Normally he would intrude in a heartbeat. He loved exploring. But he knew that barging into an abandoned mansion on Fablehaven property was a risky proposition. Here, ghosts and monsters were not only real, they were everywhere. And the manor had to be vacant for a reason. It was larger and more grand than the house his grandparents occupied.

He had to find out where he was. Although the sun was still fairly high, nightfall would inevitably come, and he didn't want to get caught in the woods after dark. Plus, everybody had to be terribly worried. If entering the house would help him figure out where he was on the property, it would be worth the risk. Also, it would be cool to see what the manor looked like inside. Who knew? There might even be treasure.

Seth walked cautiously toward the house. He decided to take it slow, keeping himself tensed to bolt at the first sign of trouble. The day was hot and still. Clouds of gnats twirled above the lawn. He could imagine carriages pulling up to the house, being greeted by uniformed servants. Those days were long gone.

He mounted the steps to the front porch, pa.s.sing the pillars.

He had always liked houses with pillars. They seemed so stately, like true mansions. The front door was ajar. Seth went to the nearest shuttered window. The green paint of283 the shutters was blistered and peeling. When he tugged onthe shutters, they rattled but would not swing open.

Seth returned to the front door and eased it open. With the windows shuttered and no other lights on, the house was gloomy. Beyond the cavernous entry hall, he could see into a s.p.a.cious living room. The furniture looked expensive, even under a heavy layer of dust. Everything was quiet.

Stepping inside, Seth left the door wide open. His pa.s.sage stirred up dust off the floor. Standing inside the house was barely cooler than standing under the sun outside. It smelled musty, with a hint of mildew. Great sheets of cobwebs hung from the high ceiling and veiled the chandelier.

He decided it might be wise to hurry.

A grand staircase led up from the entry hall to the second floor. Seth charged up the stairs, kicking up dust with each step, leaving footprints on the dingy carpeting. At the top of the stairs hung a sepia portrait of a man and a woman.

The man looked serious and wore a mustache. The woman was Lena-much younger than when Seth had known her, but even under the film of dust on the gla.s.s, her ident.i.ty was unmistakable. She had a slight, knowing smile.

Seth hurried down the hall until he found another staircase, which granted access to the third level. Climbing to a higher, narrower hall, he tried a random door and found it locked. The next door he tried was locked as well, but the third opened onto a bedroom. He hurried to the window, opened it, and unfastened the shutters. Already he had a good view, but only in one direction, so Seth stepped out onto the roof. The roof was steep enough that if he fell, he284 could conceivably roll off the edge and fall three stories tothe driveway. Treading gingerly, wood creaking, Seth moved to the crest of the roof.

Standing atop the manor, he found himself just high enough to get a decent view of the surrounding area.

Unfortunately, not much looked familiar. He identified the four hills that surrounded the valley where Coulter had led him. But he was not sure from what direction he was looking at the four hills. Slowly he turned, scanning the horizon, searching for clues. In one direction he could see what he suspected was the beginning of the marshland. In another direction he saw a single hill. On the hill, he saw a rooftop peeking above the trees.

Warren's cottage! It had to be. He could barely see the top of it from his current vantage point. He stood on his tiptoes, trying to improve his angle. It was a good distance away, but if he could reach the cottage, he knew how to find his way back to the main house from there.

Sweeping the area with a final look, Seth soaked up all the details he could. Back on the ground the way would not be plain. But the sun was moving, casting enough shadow now for him to feel confident which way was west. And by knowing west, he should be able to maintain his heading as he hiked to the cottage.

He returned to the window and climbed back into the room, closing and latching the shutters. Seth surveyed the room. It was well appointed, but he didn't see anything worth carrying all the way back to the cottage. Of course, now that he had been here, he could probably find his way285 back. Maybe there was money or jewelry lying around someplace,perhaps in the master bedroom. Might be worth taking a look around for a few minutes before he departed.

After all, it wouldn't be stealing since the house was abandoned.

He guessed a good place to start looking would be the second floor, where the rooms had seemed bigger. After quickly checking a few dresser drawers and glancing inside a nightstand, Seth exited the room. He stopped, staring down at the far end of the hall, where the dust on the floor was swirling in a low circle. The sight was unsettling, eddying dust at the height of his s.h.i.+ns. Where was the breeze corning from?

The staircase that accessed the second floor was about halfway down the hall toward the swirling dust. Seth found that his mouth was suddenly dry. He did not want to move toward the dust, but the hall came to a dead end in the other direction.

Seth moved lightly toward the unnatural disturbance.

Suddenly the dust began whirling more fiercely, rising in a column from floor to ceiling. Seth ran toward the dust devil as it moved down the hall toward him. Something told him that if he lost the race to the staircase, he would deeply regret it.

His pounding footfalls kicked up dust, but it was hardly noticeable as the wind from the oncoming vortex filled the hall with blinding particles. Seth squinted and tucked his head. When he reached the staircase, the whirlwind was scarcely ten feet away. Wind lashed at his clothes.286 Seth darted down the stairway, the whoosh of the vortexclose behind. At the bottom of the stairs he turned quickly down the hall toward the grand staircase. It sounded like a hurricane was on his tail. A wave of dust engulfed him from behind as he reached the top of the grand staircase.

Not daring to look back, Seth plunged down the stairs two at a time. Something smashed against the wall just behind him. Howling wind filled his ears. Coughing, Seth felt like he was lost in a sandstorm as decades of dust saturated the air.

At the bottom of the stairs, as he dashed for the front door, Seth glanced back. The vortex had grown. It was floating down toward him across the high entry hall, skipping the stairs and growing taller by the instant. Tentacles of dust stretched out from the center of the whirlwind. An icy gale hurled stinging dust into his eyes.

Seth lunged out the open door and slammed it behind him. Choking on dust, he raced down the steps to the driveway and sprinted across the yard in the direction of the cottage.

Only when the manor was out of sight did he relax his pace.

Kendra sat at the table with Warren, wracking her brains to decide her next move. Mendigo stood guard outside the window. Despite the company of the mute albino and the oversized puppet, she had rarely felt so alone.

Mendigo had proved to be quite useful. After he had gathered fruit for her on the small hill that covered the287 Forgotten Chapel, the puppet had carried her piggyback toWarren's cottage as dawn began to streak the sky.

But now the day was starting to fade, and she still had no plan, except to keep watch out the window in case Vanessa decided to pay her a visit. Kendra had spread out all the potions from Tanu's pouch on the table. She knew which containers held the bottled-up emotions, but was unsure which emotion was which. The rest of the potions could be just about anything. She had thought about sampling one, but became worried that some might be poisons or otherwise harmful concoctions meant for enemies.

Kendra concluded she should save testing random potions as a last resort.

She needed to find a way to free her grandparents. There were tools in the cottage, plenty of items she could use as weapons, but if Vanessa was still controlling Tanu, Kendra had a hard time picturing herself succeeding. Mendigo could help, but Kendra would be surprised if the puppet was able to enter the yard, since he could not enter the cabin. She was pretty sure Grandpa had to grant special permission to any nonmortal visitors. The fairies were permitted in the garden only by his consent.

Mendigo started tapping on the window. She had told him to warn her if anyone approached. What could she do?

Mendigo, protect Warren and me from harm, but stay out of sight until my command.

Mendigo crouched behind a bush near the porch as Kendra made her way to the window. She peeked out, moving her head slowly, and could not believe what she saw.288 Seth was emerging from the trees, walking up the path tothe cottage.

Initially she was shocked. When she recovered, Kendra ran to the door and flung it open, tears of happiness and relief springing to her eyes. Seth! she cried.

Kendra? he said, stopping in his tracks.

You're not dead!

Sure I am. I'm a ghost. I've been sent back with a warning.

Kendra could not stop smiling. I thought I'd never hear you say something idiotic again!

Who else is with you?

Just Mendigo and Warren. Hurry, come inside.

Ha-ha, Seth said, continuing toward the cottage at a leisurely pace.

I'm serious, Kendra said. Come inside. Bad things have happened.

And I'm serious too, he said. Muriel called me back from beyond the grave to deliver a singing telegram.

Kendra put her hands on her hips. Mendigo, show yourself.

The limberjack jumped out from behind the bush. Holy cow! Seth exclaimed, recoiling. What's he doing here?

And why is he taking orders from you?