“Is Baga Loa going to blow?” she asked.
“For the first time in many years,” Tal said.
“Should we run?” Kendra asked.
“You could not outrun Baga Loa if she erupted in earnest,” Hobar said.
“We will be safe here for a time,” Baroi said.
Kendra gasped as a column of ash and smoke exploded from the mountaintop. The sound hit a moment later, prompting Kendra to cover her ears. Lava fountained up at the base of the smoke.
The cyclopses placed their hands over their chests and bowed their heads. The ground stopped trembling, but the smoke and lava kept gushing.
“Baga Loa is displeased,” Tal said.
“Someone tried to take the Everbloom,” Hobar said.
“The eruption will worsen unless the firewalkers soothe it,” Baroi said.
Kendra watched in awestruck fascination. What would she do if a river of lava came her way? Would there be anywhere to hide? High ground? Or out in the ocean? Were the cyclopses right that there was no point in running?
“Come,” Baroi said. “You grow restless. Let me escort you back to the Monkey Maze. No harm will come to you today from this eruption.”
Kendra accepted the invitation after one last long look. She also gave final glances to the Sunset Pearl and to the spot where she had planted the banyan seed before she walked away.
As Kendra balanced on a platform rising to the elaborate tree house, she listened to the roar of the volcano rumbling like a mighty wind. She could not see the eruption through the layered screen of leaves, but she had caught several glimpses of the towering discharge on her way back to the Monkey Maze with Baroi.
Kendra wondered how long the ancient trees would last against a river of lava. How much shelter could the powerful limbs provide against a pyroclastic flow of sweltering ash? How long before the forest and the hidden dwellings it protected toppled in fiery ruin?
As she neared the top of her ascent, Kendra saw the satyrs Newel and Doren on a platform off to one side, using badminton rackets to swat a shuttlecock back and forth without a net. Newel paused to wave at her before returning to his horseplay.
Kendra’s lift drew level with a much bigger platform and stopped. The larger structure was one of many covered platforms, at various elevations, connected by walkways, rope bridges, and ladders, extending out of view in the lush canopy.
“Kendra!” Tess called, running to greet her.
Kendra was glad to see her cousin so exuberant. Behind Tess, Knox seemed calm and unharmed. Tanu acknowledged Kendra from beside Knox, his eyes showing both concern and welcome. The Samoan potion master looked rumpled but unhurt.
Standing apart from the others was a man clad in dark robes, with white hair and a neatly trimmed beard. Kendra had not expected to see Andromadus, and she was relieved by his presence.
“Are you all right?” Kendra asked Tess as they hugged.
“Yes,” Tess said. “Except for the sand monsters who tried to kill us. And the erupting volcano.”
“We’ll keep you safe,” Kendra said.
“That’s what everyone keeps telling me,” Tess said. “It kind of makes me worry.”
“We have some reasons to worry,” Kendra admitted. She lifted her gaze to Andromadus. “You came.”
“We must talk.”
“How are my grandparents?”
“The Sorensons remain in the secure room at Blackwell Keep with the others who sought refuge there,” Andromadus said.
“Can’t you just use magic to teleport them out?” Knox asked.
“The room is impervious to magic, which is part of what makes it secure,” Andromadus explained.
“Did you know we were under attack?” Kendra asked.
Andromadus gave a weary sigh. “Everywhere is under attack. I came here to inform you and to recruit your assistance. Can we converse in private with Savani?”
“Sure,” Kendra said.
“I want to hear,” Knox complained.
“You will learn all you should know,” Andromadus assured him.
“Don’t forget, if the problem involves unstoppable demons, you might want me around,” Knox warned.
“I’ll watch Knox and Tess,” Tanu offered. “Go.”
Andromadus led Kendra over a sturdy bridge to a thatched platform, and then over a long rope bridge that rippled with every step. Pushing aside vines, they climbed a ladder to a higher, smaller landing, birds hooting around them, then crossed to a completely enclosed platform with a door. A menehune stood guard out front, not much taller than Kendra’s waist, but with a gruff face and a body crammed with veiny muscles. Unseen through the leafy barriers, Baga Loa continued to grumble.
“Savani expects us,” Andromadus announced.
The menehune rapped the door twice with his elbow.
“Send them in,” Savani called.
The menehune reached up to open the door and stepped aside. Kendra and Andromadus entered a shuttered room with a tree trunk ascending through its center. Dim hanging lanterns and unshielded candles provided mellow luminance. Savani sat cross-legged before a brazier of red-hot coals, her back to the door, sleek shoulders exposed by a strapless wrap.
Kendra winced as Savani reached into the glowing coals and retrieved two in each hand. “Baga Loa is upset,” intoned the caretaker of Crescent Lagoon.
“So we noticed,” Andromadus replied.
“A thief tried to steal the Everbloom from her depths,” Savani chanted with little inflection, rolling the coals against her palms, fingers caressing them.
Kendra had a sick feeling. “Was it Seth?”
“Your brother did enter Baga Loa,” Savani said. “He approached the Everbloom but caused it no harm. The thief came afterward and was consumed by lava in the act of treachery.”
“How safe is the Everbloom now?” Andromadus asked.
“The bloom was damaged but will be renewed,” Savani said. “Baga Loa is one of the Earth’s mightiest chimneys, and she remains in a state of distress.”
“How bad will the eruption get?” Kendra asked.
“My people, the firewalkers, are performing the rituals to pacify her,” Savani said, replacing the hot coals into the brazier. Without the coals in her hands, she assumed a more conversational tone as she turned to face them. “I believe
