Her eyes returned to Seth, burning with hate.
“I don’t think we’re supposed to kill people here,” he said.
Growling, she sprang forward, lashing out with one leg. Seth skipped aside, and she kicked the wall instead.
“Seriously?” Seth asked.
She kicked at him again, and Seth caught her booted foot, leaving her balanced on one leg, truncated arm flailing. Still holding her foot, Seth started walking toward her, forcing her to hop backwards.
“Who are you really?” Seth asked. “Who do you work for?”
Jumping and turning, Lydia twisted her leg free from Seth’s grasp and tumbled to the floor. She struggled awkwardly to her feet, then ran off down the passageway.
Panting from the stress and exertion, Seth watched her flee. The woman clearly worked for his enemies. Ronodin? The Sphinx? The Underking? The dragons? Humbuggle? It was hard to guess who his biggest enemy was anymore.
He could not remember seeing the woman before, but she had seen him despite his shade walking, and she had known his name. Lydia had become so flustered when he had grilled her about Kendra that he doubted she actually knew his sister. Had she been serious about tasting her? Could Lydia be a monster or a dragon in human form? Was Kendra all right?
Seth debated about whether he should chase the green-haired woman. Lydia was fast, and she was heading back the way he had come. What if she rounded up reinforcements? And what would he do if he caught her? He’d had her by the foot before she ran away, and that had yielded little. He decided it would be smarter to keep looking for clues about the Games.
At the junction where the passage forked, Seth took the branch Lydia had used. He didn’t have to go far before the passage ended at a steel door. It was locked, and Seth could see no keyhole or other means to open it.
Placing a palm against the cold metal, Seth focused on the dark power inside himself. He mentally probed the door, calling upon it to open, and felt considerable resistance. Gritting his teeth, Seth insisted with all his effort, and, after a trembling moment, an unseen locking mechanism released.
Seth opened the door to find a more polished corridor beyond, the air still and cold, the stone walls black and smooth. When Seth released the door, it started to close. He considered propping it open before deciding a closed door might help foil Lydia if she found help and came after him.
He advanced along the hall, impressed by the reflective finish of the black walls, ceiling, and floor, lit by the occasional dim crystal. A bronze door came into view at the far end of the hall, but before he reached it, Seth noticed a silver door on his right out of the corner of his eye.
When Seth turned to face the silver door, it was gone.
He immediately thought of the door to the shop that Virgil had shown him. Seth returned his gaze to the distant bronze door until the silver door appeared again at the edge of his vision. Stepping carefully, keeping the silver door barely in sight, Seth drew nearer, then reached out and caught hold of the handle. This time, the silver door remained when he looked at it directly, and Seth hoisted it open.
Beyond the doorway, he encountered a natural cavern bristling with bluish, glowing crystals. Seth waited in the doorway, astonished at how the quartzlike crystals covered every wall and protuberance in the room while leaving the floor and ceiling bare. The even blue glow emanating from all directions left the room shadowless, though not very bright.
Seth entered the room. The crystals were all roughly the size of his finger. When he drew near to a cluster of them, they glowed a little brighter, and he could hear them faintly vibrating. He cautiously extended a hand to touch one.
“Don’t,” a voice commanded.
Seth jumped and turned, letting out an involuntary yelp.
A gaunt man with a fringe of white hair approached. He was a few inches shorter than Seth, with a large mole prominent on one cheek. His long robe hid his feet.
“You do not belong here,” the man accused.
“I’m a participant in the Games,” Seth argued.
The man shook his head and waved his hands. “Move away from the crystals.”
Seth took a couple of steps away.
“Why have you come here?” the man asked.
“I’m trying to figure out the Games,” Seth said.
“Don’t you mean win the Games?”
Seth shook his head. He figured honesty was his best chance for information. “I lost my memories. I want them back.”
The man seemed to relax a little. “How did you lose them?”
“Stormguard Castle,” Seth said.
“I regret to inform you that your memories are not here,” the man said. “You should depart.”
“What is this place?” Seth asked.
“A private repository where you are trespassing,” the man said. “A sanctuary where you could cause great harm.”
“To the Games?” Seth asked.
“To innocent lives,” the man said.
“What about my life?” Seth asked. “Humbuggle wasn’t shy about harming me. Maybe if I smash some of his precious crystals I can finally get some payback.” Seth stormed over to a dense cluster of crystals and raised a threatening hand.
“Stop!” the man exclaimed. “You don’t understand the consequences!”
“Then tell me,” Seth insisted.
“Listen,” the man said. “Certain competitors are granted access down here because learning Humbuggle’s secrets is part of the Games. Since you’re forcing my hand, I’ll tell you a little about this sanctum, and then you must depart.”
“Deal,” Seth said.
“You get nothing if you harm a single crystal,” the man said. “And you must keep this information to yourself.”
“Sure.”
“That means you promise to tell nobody,” the man emphasized.
Seth thought of Virgil. “All right.”
The man held out his hand. “I’m Willard.”
Seth shook it. “Seth.”
Willard gestured at the crystals surrounding them. “This is the Crystal Hollow. This is where the gladiators hibernate and heal until they are called upon to rejoin the combat.”
Seth surveyed the room. “Where are they?”
“Each
