Pitch darkness. Gone was the green shimmer, the swaying trees of that underwater forest. A suffocating blackness had taken its place, wrapping all around me, its coolness telling me to let go, I am endless. It reminded me of when I was young, still in The Citadel.

  A Time Ago

  “Finnbarr, why are you holding up the line?”

  I could hear Master Topra’s voice. She had her arms crossed, her white curled horns glinting in the light. She stood at the edge of the river on a jutted rock. She was looking at me, and three dozen or so other initiates, all lined up to walk across this black, swollen river on nothing but a wet, thin wire. The river was swaying so fast it looked like black glass.

  “He’s scared, Master. Finnbarr is scared.”

  I could hear someone teasing me, one of my fellow initiates. I turned to the line. “I’m not scared, I’m thinking,” but the truth is, I am scared. The water, the deep dark of it, something about it makes me uneasy.

  “Finnbarr, a Jaknight must think and act at the same time. Do you believe one of the Umaraton will give you time to think before they fire a blast of rot and death at you?” Master Topra asked me.

  “No, Master.”

  She gestured toward the line, which seemed to stretch endlessly.

  “You got this, Finn.”

  A young female Edenian initiate, taller than even the boys, smiles at me. Her short bangs bob as she nods. I smile and nod back. I take a deep breath and walk on the line.

  It sways violently. My leg shakes, but I steady it. I put my other foot down. I try to feel the string, try to imagine my body is anchored. My legs are the strings; where it goes, I go.

  “Remember, Finnbarr, you must drown out the noise of the river, the beating of your heart. The string must not just be felt in your toes, but in your body. Do not let your fear stop you, for if you do, you will begin to shake and lose your balance, and balance is how one maintains themselves when facing what we face.”

  I try to heed her words. I try to walk straight, but I see the endless dark glass beneath me as if saying one slip, one moment. I feel my foot touch air. I gasp as I feel weightless for a brief moment, and then I feel it—the coldness. The swiftness of the river twists and tumbles me as it carries me. I see nothing. I can’t hear anything but rushing water. Oh, I’m gonna drown. I’m gonna be one of those initiates who are buried in the mound at the citadel. Fear grips me, a fear of death, of failure.

  Then a moment of clarity in myself, a part that says, Finnbarr, relax. Reach out. It’s not over. I still myself for a moment, quiet the rushing river, and push back the dark. I control my panicked heart and reach up. I feel something grip my hand and pull, yanking me out of the water.

  “Master Topra!” I sputter, coughing up some water.

  Master Topra stood staring at me as she held me up with one hand. The rest of the initiates were like tiny dots in the distance. I had traveled far.

  “Thank you, Master,” I told her as she put me down on the ground.

  “You would have died, Finnbarr, had you let fear and panic take the heart of you. Your calmness reached out, your energy. It allowed me to see you inside and reach to you. Do you understand this, Finnbarr?”

  I simply nod.

  The Present

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  All right, Finn, save the flashbacks for later. I concentrate and activate my third sight, and it pierces the darkness, casting it all into an eerie gray. The sea drake now glowed white, its body wrapped around me. The other drake was following, moving fast. Well, if he wants to join the party, he can.

  I twist one way, and the drake wrapped around me finds himself being whipped around, and his head collides with the other drake with a sickening crunch. His grip loosens on me, and he swims away. The drakes appear stunned. I dart for the tree. I can see the faint glow of the forest like an emerald light in water.

  Shit. I can feel behind me that the drakes have recovered. They dash their way toward me, firing jets of boiling water and trying to use bubbles and invisibility to aid them. I’m moving around. My third sight can track them, but they are dangerous. Their boiling water hurts even my enchanted skin. It must be as hot as black suns to do that.

  I’m a good fighter, but in water, these drakes are masters. I do all I can to stay ahead of them, but they keep me away from the forest, trying to circle me and boil me to death. I dive down, and they follow. One tries to come from the top, the other from the bottom. I know they’re gonna twist and circle and come from the sides. Sure enough, they pull that move.

  I’m ready, though. My sword flashes as I spin up. It slices drake flesh as the waters turn red. I can hear the drakes roar. They swim around, the blood trailing their wounds like ribbons. They begin to move faster and faster. Uh oh. This can’t be good.

  The drakes begin circling each other. As they do, they begin to merge into one, shifting like two liquids joining. Soon they are one, some horrid monstrosity, long with a powerful mouth and fangs. He roars, and the water shakes.

  Damn. I don’t have time for this. I have no choice. I need to go into the Flow to deal with this quickly. I don’t want to. Using the Flow or any type of environmental override in a dead zone is like turning on a light in a cave; even if just for the briefest moment, it can be seen by things you may not want to see. Yet I can’t wait. Who knows how far the imps have gone?

  I feel the Flow channel in me just the tiniest bit, a tingle on my fingers. My eyes flash blue as the runes appear glowing on my face. The unified drake comes toward me with the speed of a falling star. I meet him with a wave of my sword. The shockwave slices him to pieces.

  I hope the energy I released went unnoticed as I calm myself out of the Flow. My eyes return to normal, and my runes fade. I turn and swim back to the forest. The corja tree, with its white twisted trunk, awaits me.

  “Hurry, Finnbarr. There is not much time.”

  I can hear Monchep’s voice in my head. Oh, Monchep, could have used you back there, you know.

  “I apologize, but I am not a fighter, Finnbarr.”

  “Not much of a navigator either.”

  Monchep ignores my quip. “You must press the knot of the tree, and the way to the underground will open.”

  “Ahh, I thought maybe there was some song and dance I had to do.”

  “No. Just the knot, Finnbarr.”

  “Monchep, I was joking.”

  “Oh. Ha ha ha. Very funny.”

  Monchep’s low monotone voice makes me chuckle a bit as I swim up to the tree and press on the knot. The corja tree seems to untwist, and it opens its trunk to a hole that glows a soft whitish blue—the way to the imp underground.

  “When you’re in the underground, I won’t be able to talk to you. Perhan said he is at the Spruces. That’s where they are holding him.”

  “Spruces, right. I’ll remember that.” But I need to find the damn imp who has my cup finder. Hopefully, they are in the same place.

  I swim through the glowing hole. It is like going through a dry, hot jelly. My body, that had been swimming in water, now finds itself in the air, flailing. Oof. I land hard on the floor of packed clay. I’m here in the underground.

  Let me tell you, the imp underground does not look at all like you imagine. You probably thought it was dank dirt tunnels with roots and the smell of earth. Yet no. The underground is a packed, dense city of buildings made of metal that twist and bend, creating a skyline of twirled tops and arched bridges. It glimmers with alchemical light. I am about a hundred or so yards away on some hill that overlooks the rolling city before me. Smoke and bright colored explosions dot the sky above the city.

  Fleck, how the hell am I gonna find Perhan and the cup finder in that labyrinth? Well, as Master Topra said, a Jaknight must think and act at the same time.

  I get up and take out my cloak, putting it on to cover myself and hide my face. No need to let anyone know I’m here. I begin to walk toward the city on a clay path carved like stones. The underground is bathed in a twilight that keeps me hidden in partial shadow. I move low in them, using them like a shield. Some imps pass me by, not paying attention, thankfully.

  The city is surrounded by a large stone gate and large iron doors. Several guards stand watch, holding some arcana cannons. Let’s not alert them you’re coming, Finn, I think, as I look for another way in. My fourth sight looks for any imp traps. Sure enough, the wall is enchanted, and so is the ground. Any phasing or underground digging would trigger a nasty surprise.

  Wait. The air above is clear.

  I grin, and with a push of muscle, I leap past the wall and land on the other side.

  Good. I’m in,now Where to go?