“Claim the blade, Seth,” Merek said. “I can’t do it for you. Be extremely careful. Wounds from that edge will never be repaired.”
The words reached Seth from far away. He extended his hand, not to the ebon handle of the Unforgiving Blade, but toward the darkness encasing it.
“Seth!” Calvin shouted from his pocket. “Not the stone! The knife.”
Seth heard the words, and he numbly glanced at the nipsie waving at him. He felt deliciously drawn to the stone, as if an unnamed appetite that had starved throughout his life was finally about to be sated.
“Seth!” Calvin yelled. “Wake up!”
Seth paused. He was here for the blade, not to commune with the darkness.
His eyes flicked to the dark handle and the darker blade. The blade seemed made from the same shadow substance as the stone. He grabbed the hilt and lifted the long knife. The stone offered no resistance. The knife felt so light, Seth wondered if the hilt provided the only weight. A shudder ran through the pyramid, then subsided.
“I’m not sure that’s a stone,” Seth said, forcing his mouth to speak and his legs to back away. “It’s more like the absence of a stone.”
Merek watched the dust trickling down from the fitted stones of the sloped ceiling. “We should not linger.”
The darkness did not speak to Seth with words. But he knew the absence of stone wanted him to cut off a piece of it to bring with him.
“Merek?” Seth asked, feet sliding toward the absence of stone against his will. “Can you get me out of here?”
Strong arms encircled Seth and carried him from the room. Once he was back on the stairs, the draw of the void ceased. Seth didn’t look back at it.
“Hurry,” Merek said.
“What about Isadore and Basirus?” Serena asked.
“We’ll solve that problem when we reach it,” Merek said. “Let me lead the way. Don’t forget the room with the draining stone.”
“I wish this knife had a sheath,” Seth said, holding it away from himself.
“I’m not sure such a weapon can be sheathed,” Merek said. “Except perhaps in pure darkness.”
“I think you’re right,” Seth agreed.
The pyramid did not tremble as they descended the long stairs. The spherical rock remained at rest in the bowl-shaped room, and Seth crossed the room with the draining stone the same way he had coming up. Seth held the knife out in front of himself, careful not to let it touch anything.
When Seth reached the bottom of the stairs, the pyramid began to quake. A huge boulder dropped from high above and crashed against the floor, spitting dusty fragments in all directions.
“Run,” Merek urged, staying behind Seth.
Seth sprinted to the opening and dashed along the triangular corridor. The rumbles of the pyramid were punctuated by rocks falling behind him. Seth burst out of the passage into a torrential downpour. Lightning slashed across the sky, producing thunder that overpowered the crash of tumbling boulders. Merek emerged behind Seth, and he pointed to where Isadore had found shelter beneath a dome visible only by the rain being repelled off of it. Basirus waited beside her in his human form. Both of them looked perfectly dry. The sorceress waved for the others to join her.
“She’s using magic,” Merek said.
“Do we go to her?” Seth asked.
Lightning struck the pyramid, and the thunder felt like a physical blow. Seth was already halfway soaked.
“Take care if you do,” Serena warned.
“We have matters to settle with those two,” Merek said. “And having shelter is preferable to being caught in this storm.”
Seth ran to where the rain splattered against the invisible dome. Isadore waved a hand, and part of the dome stopped repelling rain. Seth figured the barrier was gone, and he stepped into her dry refuge. After Merek entered, Isadore made another gesture and the dome re-formed, significantly muting the storm.
“I see you were successful,” Isadore said, eyes on the shadowy blade.
“We got it,” Seth said. “I think the pyramid is collapsing.”
“May I hold it?” Isadore asked.
“No,” Seth said.
“Don’t be selfish,” Basirus pressured.
“This blade stays in my hand until I’m done with it,” Seth said.
“And what are you going to do?” Isadore asked.
“We have a long road ahead,” Merek said. “Thank you for your help with this leg of our journey.”
“We’re not fair-weather friends,” Isadore assured him. “This dome will protect us from the storm. It is a specialty of mine. It even repelled some nasty rocks who took an interest in us.”
“Can the dragon fly?” Merek asked. “We need to travel.”
“What is the destination?” Basirus asked.
“The wild highlands,” Merek said.
“Could that involve the Dragon Temple?” Isadore asked.
“Our business is private,” Seth said.
“Am I not part of your business?” Isadore asked. “I seldom give charity.”
“I can’t fly in this weather,” Basirus said.
“What about running?” Merek asked.
Basirus sneered. “Run through the Perennial Storm to the highlands? For what?”
“To reach the Dragon Temple before the storm abates and entry becomes impossible,” Isadore guessed. “Why did Humbuggle involve the Dragon Temple? What has he hidden there?”
“You ask many questions,” Merek warned.
“You need a key to enter the Dragon Temple,” Isadore said. “Is that already managed? Do you have other partners?”
“We need transportation,” Merek said.
“A run to the Dragon Temple from here might not be possible until the storm ends,” Isadore said. “Even for a dragon as strong as Basirus. Not to mention the danger from the lightning and the thunderbirds. We would need to be full partners to attempt such folly. And I would have to carry the blade.”
“We’ll find our own way,” Seth said.
Isadore laughed richly. “Oh, you will? How fast do you run during hurricanes? I’ll take Serena back.”
“No,” Serena said.
“Excuse me?” Isadore responded.
“Our partnership ends tonight,” Serena said.
“After so much time,” Isadore said. “I wonder what prompted such an abrupt
