“It’s as if they all just got up and left.” He says, before glancing out the great arch windows against the far wall, his tone serious. “I wonder if Moon Castle is the same?” He questions, and I follow his gaze and set my eyes upon the twisted trees of Moon forest in the distance. “I hope not, I’m starting to get really freaked out.”
The courtyard is empty as we walk towards Moon Castle with trepidation in our wake. The door to the Greenhouse is still open—the plants inside still wilted and dull, evenmore so than yesterday. My eyes only glance at the sickness for a moment before looking straight ahead. I can’t bear to watch the flowers die.
For many of us, that garden is a lifeline,wasa lifeline. It was a connection to the Gods, a sign that they were watching, protecting us and as long as the garden flourished, so would we. Another petal falls whimsically, dancing with the breeze, but my heart doesn’t dance with it; it’s skipped so many fucking beats I’m not sure it is even working properly anymore. I wish Oriah would just pop back into my mind, as annoying as her intrusions were, my sanity is spiralling more without them.
Ryder is determined ahead; he pays no bother to the garden or the deep red hues of the sun. I guess all things daylight aren’t really something he is used to looking at, though he should know that the sun doesn’t usually look like a pained blister in the sky, throbbing like the energy is being sucked out of it. Or maybe he just simply doesn’t care.
An ominous shadow casts over the twisted pine trees, the branches looking like claws ready to grip our ankles and drag us through the underbrush.
“Can you still feel what you felt before, with River?” I ask, the thin soles of my boots making each twig apparent as I step over them.
“I can usually block him out,” Ryder replies, his hands touching the bark as he pushes past a tree. “His emotions, his pains when he gets hurt in combat—and that fucker gets hurt a lot.” He grits his teeth and a small chuckle threatens to escape his lips, but it doesn’t. “When he’s drunk, my limbs feel a little heavier, but I can always shake it off.” His eyebrows furrow. “This is… different.”
My lips don’t part to speak again because worry holds them hostage. They say bad things come in threes, but an empty Moon Castle stands in front of me, and now I am beginning to lose count.
The wind taps at the windows as we walk from Ryder’s room into the corridor. The walls are charcoal black, and the wooden floors creak underneath our feet; a long red rug suffocates the wood down the length of the hall. It feels oddly parallel in here, like I am in Sun Castle, only a darker and more eerie version, a contradicting copy that makes my hair stand alert. Although I am half Moon, it feels as though my body is rejecting this place; if I could switch on autopilot, I’m sure my legs would run me right back outside.
“You okay?” Ryder asks me, his eyes resting on mine as he slows his steps to walk next to me.
“Something about this place…” I pause as if trying to find the right words to say. “It feelswrong.” I finally land on the only word that my brain can comprehend to relate to this feeling.
“I feel it too.” His eyebrows furrow as he pulls back the black cuff of his shirt to reveal his forearm, his dark hairs also standing to attention. “It’s a Shadoro warning. The foreshadowers’ curse. To always know when something bad is going to happen.” His voice trails off into a whisper as he opens a dorm door, another empty room. The sheets should be slept in, but they’re not—they are crisply tucked into the mattresses. Too pristine. Too perfect.
A door slams from below us, and I jump, but Ryder doesn’t; he just simply takes me by the wrist and runs me towards the sound, his ears pricked like a dog that has just been thrown a bone. We stand at the bottom of the grand staircase, in a room that mirrors the first quarter, alert. My chest thumps as my heart recovers from the sprint to this location. Ryder looks at me and presses his finger to his lips. “Shhh.” The darkness in his eyes compelling me.
I hold my breath.
‘Slam’
The noise came from behind us. Ryder’s head snaps in its direction, and he races towards it. My feet struggling to catch up with his strides. He winds through the labyrinth of the castle halls, through the dining area, before eventually stopping at the door that leads to the courtyard. I catch my breath, placing my hands on my knees and taking in three sharp breaths. The door is open, ajar. Tormented by the wind, it slams again.
“The minute the sun rises over the horizon, these doors are locked… So why is this one open?” Ryder fiddles with the lockbefore opening it wide, his face briefly restricted from my view as he looks out of it.
I gulp.
Whatever the reason, it can’t be good.
Ryder’s forearm brushes against mine as we assess our surroundings. His eyes narrow as he scans the field before landing on the trees in the distance. “What’s that?” He points, but from this far away I can’t see what he’s looking at. “There. Just behind the combat platform.” He repeats, and I have to squint my eyes to focus; the sun’s rays, though dimmer than usual, still make my eyes sting.
The leaves in Moon forest shake ever so slightly, like they are parting to make way for someone. I take this moment to breathe in as deeply as I can, because I know that look in Ryder’s eyes, we’re about to run again.
Holy Gods, this man can run fast. His shadows propel him forward like a bullet, a force of darkness that you could miss if you blinked. My wrist aches under the pressure of his grip, my feet getting lost in the motion of him. We reach the trees and duck behind them. I’m not exactly sure what we are looking for, but the hairs on my arms are still aware.
A branch yelps in the distance, a snap from heavy footfall. Ryder and I snake around the tree to see sandy blonde hair bobbing away from us, the curls are taken briefly by the wind before they settle back into place. We tail him discreetly as he walks determined, like nothing could stop him from reaching his destination. My feet carry me forward, but my eyes stay still, focused on the bouncy locks until nothing.
The boy is gone.
“What the?” I whisper to myself, Ryder is still marching towards where the head disappeared.
I reach the edge of the forest just after him. He stops and stares down. There is a decline, the earth becomes steepand thick with shrubs and thorns, but I can see the head in the distance, still bobbing along and weaving through the shrubbery.
“Hey!” Ryder calls out to the boy, but he does not respond. We pick up the pace so we are close enough to touch him. “Hey, you!” Ryder shouts, tapping him on the shoulder. “Do you not hear me calling you?” He stands in front of the boy to block his path, but he just walks past him, his eyes glazed. “What the fuck!?” Ryder yanks him back now and holds him by the forearms, making me gasp at the sudden manhandling. His stern gaze compels me to stay back. “Answer me, you little—”
Ryder’s face battles three emotions: anger, confusion and then worry. “Asha, you have to come see this.” I fight the pit that attempts to weigh my stomach down and make my way over to him.
The boy looks about my age, definitely a first year. He stands emotionless, unbewildered by Ryder’s harsh grip on him. I wave my hand in front of his face as if a remedy to break whatever trance intoxicates him, but it’s no use. The boy is unresponsive. Captive by whatever drug swirls within his veins. I look at Ryder and match the worry on his face. “What are you thinking?” He says, his jawline more prominent now, he is deep in thought.
“Let him go,” I state, my eyes tracing over the details of the boy’s face. Ryder nods his head and releases the boy from his clasp. He begins walking again, in the same way he was going before, like a mindless drone. “Let’s follow him.”
