The Three Furies (Erec Rex) (62 page)

T
isiphone laughed in delight, then sucked in. . . .
T
he room swirled. . . .

E
rec's soul was leaving him.
P
ulling out into the air.

E
verything was going black.
H
e could feel himself drop.

"
T
ake this," a voice whispered. "
A
nd remember me."
S
omething fell into his hand.

T
he last points of light faded.

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D
ying.

G
one.

Static filled the windows. After watching a while to make sure, Erec pulled the shades. He climbed slowly out of the dark rooms in his head and back out to his dark room in Aunt Salsa's apartment.

What had happened? He had died. But he had not broken the yellow Awen ball to give him all the knowledge he needed. He had broken the red one--the Awen of Harmony. Why did he do that? It didn't make sense. Wouldn't the Awen of Harmony ball make everyone else miserable and insane with rage, and make Erec peaceful when he broke it? But it looked like the Awen's powers spread out to include the Furies, making them all peaceful and happy.

So, the Furies felt great. Wonderful. He would still die if he broke the red Awen ball. That was now clear. Okay, no problem, then. He would just break the yellow one. That would give him a chance to live and to save everyone.

It was five in the morning. Erec took the bee encased in amber out of his backpack and put it into his pocket. Maybe he would return it to Megaera when he arrived. Why not? he thought. He wouldn't need it, anyway, and it was probably hers. With a sigh, he wondered how long it would take to find the entrance to Tartarus, and then how much time would be involved in getting there. Erec had no idea where to start looking for it. He should have checked when he was at the library, he thought.

A bolt of fear flashed through him. What if he couldn't find it? Had he not looked for its location when he was at the library for a reason? Was he subconsciously afraid to go, and had he sabotaged his own plans?

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But then again, it probably did not matter. There was a saving grace for him--the Hermit. Erec could always count on him to show up when he started a new quest, and make sure he was headed the right way. Why should this time be any different?

He debated waiting another few hours and saying good-bye to everyone, but realized that they would try to stop him from leaving. No, he would say his farewells now, while they still slept. That would give him more time to find the Furies before Baskania brought Spartacus Kilroy to them.

His stomach tightened into a knot as he made his way through their rooms a final time. A last glance, a hug, a kiss on the forehead. He reached Bethany last, wiping a few tears from his cheek. As he bent over her, one dripped and fell onto her face. She stirred, but did not wake. Erec put a hand on top of her head and closed his eyes, thinking of the bright future she would now have ahead of her.

Then he turned and walked out the door. Aunt Salsa's Port-O-Door stood open, and the Hermit was inside waiting for him.

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CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX Tartarus

HERE WAS a chill in the air of the Port-O-Door vestibule, and it was not from the temperature itself. The Hermit seemed completely different from any other time Erec had seen him. He wasn't smiling, no jokes or winks. In fact, he seemed as somber as if somebody had just died.

A white sheet was wrapped around him like a burial shroud, with a hood that stretched so far over his face he looked like a

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ghostly Grim Reaper. He did not say a word as he pushed spots on the map of Otherness so fast that Erec could not follow where they were going. The map resembled that of Aorth, but only because it lay deep in the earth. Erec had not seen a map like it before.

Soon the map showed a place that was aboveground, then underground, and then aboveground again. The Hermit pointed at a river running near the base of the Nether Volcano. "These are the Waters of Oblivion. They are shallow. You can walk through them. But I cannot cross with you."

Erec could hardly speak because his teeth were chattering. "Why not?" He did not want to hear the answer. He did not want to cross the Waters of Oblivion either.

"Anyone crossing them will soon die."

Erec gulped. "Can't we just put the Port-O-Door past the river, so we don't have to cross?"

The Hermit looked at Erec with mournful eyes. "I wish, Prince Erec, prince of light. I wish."

Erec felt himself gasping, as though he was removed from his own body. None of this seemed real. "What about B-Baskania? Will he cross the waters? How will he g-get out alive?"

"He has an agreement with the Furies. They signed an oath that he will live, as a reward for his help."

"H . . . h-how did he get his first message through to them?" Erec clutched his sides. "Maybe I could--"

"No, Erec Rex. You cannot. Baskania sent people across to the Furies carrying the messages that he would help them if they promised he could cross in safety. You could not do that--you have nothing to offer them."

Erec was shaking now. Why couldn't he appreciate his last breaths like he had in Aunt Salsa's apartment? Gone was the joyful feeling of life. Instead he felt only an ice-cold dread.

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The door shrank to fit into a large rock by the river. The Hermit opened it, since Erec's hands were trembling too much. Erec felt the Hermit's hand land on his back and then push. . . .

When he looked behind him, the door was gone.

For a moment he stumbled around desperately in search of the door, or any way out of here. Jagged cliffs surrounded him, and the air was filled with an eerie flickering light, as though he were indoors. When he looked up, he saw no sun, only Earth far above him. Where was the light coming from? Was there a fake sun, like in Aorth?

A dancing reddish glow came from cracks in the nearby mountain bases, as if fires were lit behind them. Erec wondered if fire was burning in the base of the volcano. How would he get out of here? There had to be a way. . . .

He closed his eyes and calmed himself down
. Come on, Erec, why are you here?
He had to complete his sixth quest.
Give yourself to the three Furies.
There was no choice. He had to make a sacrifice to save everyone else. People he loved, and those he never met.

That idea gave him focus and strength. He fingered the Twrch Trwyth vial around his neck. All the knowledge of the world sat there inside the yellow glass ball. If he broke it now, he would know just what to do.

But how long would that knowledge last? It would no doubt tell him to cross the water now. What else could he do? The Fates had sent him here for that reason. He might as well do what he had to first, and wait until he needed the Awen of Knowledge before using it up. A small ray of hope welled up in him. Maybe when he knew everything, he would find a way to escape, after all. Baskania had made an agreement with the Furies. Maybe he could too.

After a few long minutes of staring into the shallow, rippling water, Erec waded in. He cried out in pain from its unexpected

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deathly cold. Was this it, then? His life would be over soon. He had stepped into the Waters of Oblivion.

Another step forward, and then another. The stream was shallow--the Hermit had been right--but the water raced around his shoes so fast that he almost fell over twice. Each pace felt final, fatal, as he continued. And then he stepped onto a dusty shore. Not far away, a dark slit at the foot of a steep cliff looked like an arched crevice in the rock. It probably was the base of the Nether Volcano, he thought. He set forward toward it.

Erec had never felt so alone. That's why he nearly jumped with surprise when a small figure darted out of the crevice and raced toward him. It took a moment before he recognized it was a cat. Soon, several more cats followed it out from the opening in the rock, running around through the dirt in circles. Erec was not sure if they were playing or if they were chasing something.

A scrawny cat sauntered up to him and rubbed itself on his ankles as if it knew him. Even though it was only a small comfort, Erec was glad to have the company. Plus it cheered him to see something here that was alive. If the cats had crossed the Waters of Oblivion, they had not died from it yet. So maybe he had a little time.

As he grew closer to the towering rock face, he could see that the crevice opened into a cavern. He approached it from the side. Most of its entrance faced away from him, so his view into it was obstructed. Still, he became more and more sure that this was the Furies' lair. A blue lizardlike creature bounced nimbly out of the cavern on its twelve legs, scuttling between Erec's feet before darting to the water for a drink. The odd thing ran away from a few cats, then back inside the cave.

While Erec walked closer, dragging his feet, a dozen blackbirds plunged from the sky into the cave. Erec wondered how they had gotten this far underground. They must have found a passageway

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somewhere. What was attracting them here? It was interesting, he thought. The birds were able to go straight to the cave without touching the deadly river that he crossed through. Even the cats strode through the waters, but the birds seemed to have a free pass.

A strange noise, like roars of vicious animals, came from the cave, growing louder as he approached. Snarls and screams echoed off the nearby cliff faces. It was hard to keep walking toward it. Whatever was in there did not sound human enough to reason with.

He forced one foot in front of the next until he finally rounded a corner. There, facing the cave entrance, stood Thanatos Argus Baskania, his black cape whipping behind him from the wind that rushed out of the cave. His face was molding and reshaping. Multiple eyes as well as his nose sank into deep pits in his skin, and were then swallowed completely into his head. The hideous gaps began to fill in until a smooth surface of flesh covered his entire face--except for a gaping mouth with a wicked grin. Then eyes sprouted everywhere, looking in all directions, both fearful and full of glee, depending on who their prior owners were.

Erec heard a whimper from not far away on his other side. He had been so overwhelmed with Baskania and the noise in the cave that he had not noticed the figure pressed against the rock. A pale, trembling Spartacus Kilroy sat on his feet, gripping his knees to his chest. His eyes were squeezed tightly shut and his lips moved silently. Neither he nor Baskania noticed Erec.

Baskania rubbed his hands together, facing into the winds blowing from the cave. He laughed with delight. "I have him here now, with me. I know you can sense him. How does it feel, my three lovely ladies, to be so close to freedom? You know all that you have to do if you want to get this last human soul, don't you? It's such a small price to pay."

A wicked hiss resounded from the cave, and something was

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spat out at Baskania. A shrill voice cried, "Let us see this human, then. Prove to us that he is here before we discuss it."

Baskania chuckled. "Do you think you can fool me that easily? Once you see him you will put a Draw on him, and he will be yours. No, this human is nicely hidden at the moment, but
so
close at hand. Can you
feel
him nearby? Your freedom is so close. Ah, it must be tempting for you. Such a small promise you would have to make in exchange for this gift. I would be such an easy master. You could create all the ruckus you wanted, do anything at all, as long as you served my occasional commands. But if you'd rather wait another few years ..."

The snarling in the cave grew, as did the wind, forcing Baskania back a few steps. He turned toward Erec, and suddenly shock and confusion registered in his many eyes. His mouth sneered as he stepped toward Erec. "What are
you
doing here, boy? You'd be a nice gift at any other time, but you're in the way now. I'll deal with you later." He pointed at Erec and a rope spun out of his finger. It snaked through the air, but instead of wrapping around Erec, as it had in the past, it was swallowed whole by the Amulet of Virtues that hung around Erec's neck.

Baskania growled. "It's too bad I didn't have the chance to kill you before that thing got more powerful. But I'll take care of that now." He pointed again and a blast of black smoke shot toward Erec's face. About a foot away, it dove down and spun into the amulet, just as the rope had.

Anger flushed Baskania's features. "I've had enough of you, boy. Why don't you try a taste of what I gave to your old dragon friend? What was his name again? Aoquesth?" Something shiny flashed from his finger, and a silver black dagger sailed through the air toward Erec's heart. Erec froze, arms out, unable to move. The smoking blade brought him back to the day Aoquesth had died. Not even

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a powerful dragon could withstand the Death Blade. Now it was his turn.

But the Death Blade dipped in its course. Instead of slicing into Erec's chest, it struck the Amulet of Virtues hard, knocking him back a few steps, and then clattered to the ground.

Baskania glowered, staring at the blade. "Don't worry, boy. Killing you won't be a problem once I have a little more time on my hands. But I have something more important to do now. So take care of your dragon eyes for me. I'll want them in good shape once I'm ready to pluck them out of your head." He turned back to the Furies. "Well, ladies, have we reached a decision yet?"

Erec took another step forward and then froze. If he went farther, he would be able to look into the mouth of the cave. He was terrified of what was waiting for him. And they would see him. They would put a Draw on him, and he would not be able to turn back.

But, then again, there already was no turning back. He had crossed the Waters of Oblivion. There was no place to go.

"Who is out there?" a high-pitched voice screamed.

"Nobody important, I assure you," Baskania said. "Think about my offer, please. I am growing impatient."

Their rancorous screeches and screams rebounded through the open valley. Erec was shaking so hard that his muscles felt frozen. But he had to move now. Once the three Furies had agreed to Baskania's terms, it would be too late. He had a quest to do, and now was the time.

Before he could stop himself, Erec ran straight to where Baskania stood. What he saw in the entrance to the cavern made him gasp. Tartarus was well lit, much brighter than the valley where Erec stood. The opening was large enough for him to see far into its depths. Birds and bats filled the air, swarms soaring in flocks and solo. Harpies hopped and flew among them, shrieking and shouting out orders.