He kept talking, but Kieran found himself zoning out as he stared at the aurora.Seaweed sniffed at the ice, eyes narrowed.It was strange—the movements didn’t seem random.While they flowed like water, there was an element of purpose to it.As if all the light was flowing downstream toward something.
Kieran stepped a bit closer.While those same rivers of light flowed just beneath the ice on all the walls, the one going down the hall on their left was much brighter and swifter.
Kieran pointed and, cutting Sebastian off, said, “The aurora—most of it is going that way.I think it’s magic being attracted to more magic.If I had to guess, I’d bet if we follow the brighter, more concentrated aurora, it will lead us to the Crown.”
The others paused, all studying the walls.Delilah began tonod absently while Briar let out a low whistle.Sebastian’s knife gently scraped against the ice as he mentally traced the path of it, nodding.
“You’re right,” he agreed.He met Kieran’s eye over his shoulder.“Well done, Kier.I didn’t notice that.”
“Me neither,” Briar agreed, while Delilah nodded as well.
Kieran flushed.“Oh, um—thank you.I think if we start that way, we’ll be on the right track.”
He pointed down the tunnel with the most light, and the others nodded.Sebastian returned to Kieran’s side as they’d planned, while Delilah stayed behind him and Briar remained at his other side.Keeping his chin up, Kieran let himself focus solely on the light, even as his heart began to race.
“Come on,” he said to the others, fighting back the anxiety that had begun to claw at him from the inside.He squared his shoulders, setting his jaw.“Follow me.”
As Kieran led the way through the tunnels, he kept his eyes and ears open.So far, they hadn’t run into anyone else.They had, however, avoided a few traps.One had been a snare—a bigger version of the sort used to trap rabbits.They’d been able to step over it easily but heard someone yelp behind them not long after.Another was a pit covered with a thin layer of snow-dusted ice that would collapse under the slightest weight.Seaweed had fallen into that one, only to use her magic to float back out, grumbling.
Now the only sound was their footsteps crunching in the packed snow and the faint sound of their breathing.Kieran pulled his coat tighter around himself, though the chill going up his spine had little to do with the cold.
Just as he went to navigate down another long passageway, a sharp yelp echoed down the icy path.He immediately moved closer to Sebastian, who skidded to a halt with a hand on his knife.Sebastian held a finger to his lips.Delilah and Briar pressed themselves to one of the icy walls, Delilah with a protective arm over Briar.Seaweed growled against Kieran’s ear.
A beat passed.Kieran heard whispered cursing down the passageway.Sebastian met his eye, then crept toward the passageway entrance to peek in.Kieran followed.He was a few inches taller than Sebastian, which meant he could peer over the top of his head.
Around the corner, an older witch—maybe in his forties—was submerged up to his waist in the snow.He had black hair and a dark beard, both dappled with silver, and pale skin.Around his top half was a cage made of icicles.When Kieran tilted his head upward, he saw more icicles hanging from the ceiling, each one glowing with more aurora light.Each time the older witch struggled, he sank deeper into the snow, the icicles flaring brighter blue.
“It’s another trap,” Kieran realized aloud.
“How are we supposed to get by?”Briar asked, fighting to see around Kieran’s shoulder.
“Let me test something,” Sebastian said.
He bent down and scraped up some snow in his hand.Packing it into a ball, he turned it over once before he launched it at theground near the trapped witch.The witch yelped in surprise.For a moment, nothing happened.
Then, for a flashing second, the packed snow floor suddenly glowed with light.Instantly, it was replaced with clear water.The trapped witch cried out, managing to free an arm before another second passed and the ground turned back into snow.As it did, more icicles fell from the ceiling where the snowball had fallen, creating another cage around the spot.
“Who’s there?”the trapped witch cried, trying to twist his body to see them.“Whoever you are, get over here and help me!I swear I’ll give you something in return!”
“He’s lying,” Sebastian muttered under his breath.“But unless you all have some idea of how to get past this without setting off the trap, we might need to find a way around.”
“Hold on,” Briar said, cracking her knuckles.She stepped out from behind Kieran, planting her feet firmly in the snow.She shifted into a ledrith stance, her eyes beginning to glow pale blue.“I can handle this.”
Briar took a breath, then swung her arms, blue light crackling between her palms.She kicked into the air, then slammed back to the ground, fist colliding with the snow.Instantly, a thick green vine shot out of the earth.It rocketed down the passageway before colliding with the wall, where it bit into the ice with teethlike thorny protrusions.It was thick enough to act almost like a balance beam across the snow, resting about a foot above it.
Briar shot a smile at Delilah, who quietly offered her a round of applause.
“Wow,” Sebastian said.“That was incredible.”
“I try.”Briar hopped up on the vine, then gestured for the others to follow.It seemed solid under her weight, though, considering that she was tiny, Kieran found himself feeling less than confident.“Go slowly and make sure to keep your balance.”
“I can go next,” Delilah offered, seeing the hesitation on Kieran’s face.To Briar, she said, “If I fall, fish me out of the snow?”
“I can manage that,” Briar said.
With a nod, Delilah followed Briar, stepping up onto the vine.Briar took a few more steps forward to allow Delilah enough room.She was a bit shakier than Briar, clearly less sure of her own balance.Briar held out a hand for her.Delilah took it, letting Briar lead her a few more feet down the vine.
“All right,” Kieran said.“Me next?”
