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CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

ZéLIE

S TEPPING OUTSIDE THE S ILVER S KULL’S quarters is like stepping into another world. Gone are the thick marble walls that caged us in. Nothing hides me from nature’s rampage.

Rain pelts like arrows from above. Brilliant bolts of lightning crackle through the clouds. Thunder roars like a beast in the sky. Its booms shudder through my bones.

Mama was right. I brace myself against the door, in awe of the raging sea and racing winds.

I see the way Mama lifted her head to the chaos on that mountaintop.

I see the way the lightning illuminated the bright smile against her dark skin.

I lift my own head and open my arms, remembering that sacred night.

When I close my eyes, I hear Oya’s cry in the tempest.

I feel Oya’s power in the storm.

The golden medallion pulses in my chest as I embrace the pouring skies. A wild force races through my blood as the triple arrowhead etched into the medallion’s surface starts to flash.

I scan for King Baldyr’s hulking frame, but his golden skull is nowhere in sight. Another ship sails in the distance, nearly triple the size of the Silver Skull’s.

Baldyr.

A shudder runs through me as I watch his golden banners flutter in the winds. What will it take to track him down?

How can I destroy him and his people before the Blood Moon?

But when bodies move below, I don’t have time to stop and think. Skulls spill out of their quarters in droves. A heavy bell starts to ring.

Across the ship, the skies flash against the fighting silhouettes. Maji battle across the deck, taking over the vessel. My people fight with broken iron bars and stolen daggers, overwhelming the Skulls before they can activate their weapons.

My heart flutters when I see Nao leading a group of girls. They push two Skulls over the edge of the ship. Kenyon leads others to tackle another Skull to the ground. They use their fists to keep the enemy down.

“ Wake the captain! ” a Skull yells from the levels below. Movement rises, traveling up the stairs. I charge down the steps, gripping the beaded machetes tight. A Skull approaches and I run forward before he can strike.

“ Hah! ” I slice my machetes across his throat. Hot blood spills across the wooden steps. The Skull grabs his neck and falls back. Lightning crackles as he hits the ground.

A second Skull swings his axe. I duck and kick, sending him down the stairs. With a running start, I leap from the captain’s floor. I raise both machetes over my head. Lightning illuminates the needles of rain as I arc through the air.

“Awaken, Zélie.…”

Time starts to slow. The whispered chant shivers through my ears. But I don’t know who speaks the words. I don’t know how I can hear.

I feel the voice from within as the medallion warms in my sternum. A swell of power surges in my skin. With a roar, I land on the Skull’s chest. I drive both machetes through his abdomen.

“Awaken, Zélie.…”

The whisper builds. Blood coats my hands as I’m hypnotized by the chant. The triple arrowhead on the medallion starts to burn.

Behind my eyes, a red moon shines.…

Again, the world starts to spin, but I don’t have time to sit still. Footsteps pound down the stairs. I turn to find a group of Skulls. Curses ring as they bite through their hands and reach for their weapons.

Dammit!

I scramble to my feet and charge forward as the Skulls transform behind me. The deck shakes with their every step. Heat flares from their glowing hammers and axes.

I start to run for the other maji, but they’re too far away to help. The Skulls close the distance between us. I scan the deck for a place to escape.

There!

The skies flash above a flapping doorway in the middle of the ship. With no other place to turn, I run in. I nearly slip down the winding stairs.

The stench of feces and fur hits me like a wall. When I reach the bottom, a withered beast starts to growl. I skid to a halt, coming face-to-face with sharp, black-lined eyes.

A trio of cheetanaires glares at me from behind the bars of a cage.

They look like they haven’t been fed in days.

The spotted beasts are only a few of the dozens of ryders locked away.

I pass red-tailed antelopentai, blue-butt baboonems, and black-horned rhinomes.

In one cage, I even find a rare baby elephantaire.

Yellow pus oozes from a horrible gash in its left ear.

At once, I think of Nailah, my beloved lionaire. She was with us when we stormed the palace.

Is it possible the Skulls locked her in here?

“Nailah?” I spin around. I don’t know which way to turn. Commotion builds outside the door. I crouch behind the cages as I search.

“Nailah?” I drop my voice to a hiss. For a moment, nothing calls back. Then I hear a groan.

My ears perk up as a weak roar greets me in return.

Nailah!

Torches charge through the door. I drop to the dirtied floor. I crawl across the ground as the Skulls’ orange light spills into the pen, illuminating the wild maze of cages.

I move past wounded panthenaires and a white-chested gorillion. A fifteen-meter black mamba snake rises in its cage as I approach. The snake pulls one Skull’s attention. My muscles tense as he points.

“Nailah!” I scream my ryder’s name. This time, Nailah roars in return. Her call draws me to the corner of the room. My eyes widen at her wounds.

“Oh my gods, Nailah!”

My lionaire rises in a cage far too small for her hulking frame. Ugly red gashes mark her golden skin. Like me, her mighty mane has been shaved.

I press my forehead to hers, and she purrs in return. But I turn as the torchlight draws near. Three Skulls round the corner, menacing in their stares.

My pulse races as I strike my machetes against the lock on Nailah’s cage. Sparks fly as the metal meets my blade. But no matter how many times I strike, the machetes aren’t strong enough to break through the heavy iron.

Behind me, the Skulls’ boots near. Blood pounds so hard in my head I can’t hear. But then everything goes dark.

I freeze as the torchlight disappears.

What’s happening?

I drop to the floor and brace myself against Nailah’s cage. Out of the black, two axes glow red. They face each other, going head-to-head.

I turn away as glowing axes crash together. The weapons collide again and again. With a wild cry, a heavy body is thrown into the wall of ryders. A clamor erupts from the cages that crash to the floor.

Wounded animals shriek and roar. A few cages spring open, and ryders run free. I pull myself closer to Nailah’s cage to avoid the frenzy.

A long silence follows before heavy steps approach. I grab my machetes, not knowing who I’ll have to fight. My heart thunders as the figure nears.

Then someone picks up a fallen torchlight.

“Tzain?”

I blink. I don’t believe the sight. The brother I saw before is nowhere to be found. A strange haze fills his mahogany eyes. His skin drips with the enemies’ blood. One of the Skull’s weapons glows red in his palm. He raises the weapon to fight.

It’s like he doesn’t know who I am.

“Tzain…” I step up tentatively. I let my machetes fall by my sides.

My brother does the same, and all at once, the life returns to his eyes. He stares at his own hands. I feel the weight of his surprise.

“It’s alright.” I touch his shoulder.

Tzain falls to his knees, and we collapse into each other’s arms.