Keys to the Demon Prison (Fablehaven #5)(12)

"Create a champion," Kendra read. "Time is short."


"You read Sanskrit?" Vincent asked. "Or Chinese?"


"I see English," Kendra said. "And some scribbles, too."


"Must be a fairy language," Trask said. "The message repeats in several languages. What does it mean?"


"The basins must be clepsydras," Elise said. "Water clocks."


"The clay," Vincent said. "It has to be the clay." He ran forward and plunged his hands into the moist clay up to his wrists, then started digging a hole, disturbing some of the writing in the process. "This is a pool of clay. A pit. I think we are to build a champion out of clay to contend with the statue."


"I was a failure in art class," Trask mumbled. "Who knows how to work with clay?"


"I have some experience," Elise said. "As do I," Mara offered.


"Mara and Elise will shape our warrior," Trask directed, voice tight. "The rest of us start digging out clay for them to work with and follow their instructions. How long do we have?"


Mara dashed across the room to look into the basins. Vincent was already vigorously scooping clay out of the pool and piling it nearby. Berrigan jumped onto the clay, sinking to his ankles. Dropping to his knees, he began heaving out armfuls. Mara considered the basins for a moment. "Ten minutes," she called. "Maybe eleven. Assuming the water keeps pouring in at the same rate."


Setting the iron egg aside, Tanu entered the clay pit, brown feet sinking deep. Seth waded into the clay along with Trask and Kendra. The top layer felt loose and slimy, but the clay got more solid about six inches down. He grabbed slurping handfuls of the mushy top layer and began hurling it toward Berrigan's rapidly growing pile.


"What do we want him to look like?" Elise asked.


Nobody answered for a moment.


"Make him like Hugo," Seth proposed. "Not pretty, just big."


"I like that," Trask agreed. "Build him sturdy. Thick arms and legs. Bigger than the other statue if we can."


"We'll have to make him lying down," Mara said. "Otherwise he won't hold together."


Berrigan had cleared most of the squishy clay from his area and was now using his knife to carve out large slabs of the firmer material. As they delved downward, it soon became apparent that the clay went quite deep. Three piles grew quickly at the edges of the clay pit. Elise and Mara stole from the largest pile to work on feet and legs. Tanu started running heavy loads of clay from the other piles to the largest one.


After several minutes, arms gray-green with clay past his elbows, Vincent ran to check the basins. "Over half full," he announced. "I better help mold the figure. Tanu, help me transfer more clay to our champion. Keep fresh clay coming!"


"You heard the man," Trask growled, using a sword to carve out another huge greenish slab.


Seth noticed that nobody dug out clay faster than Berrigan. The young man moved in tireless silence, his thin limbs carrying larger loads than Seth would have pictured. Muscles burning, Seth continued to harvest clay at his best pace, reminding himself that each dense wad would add mass to their defender. He was not as effective as Berrigan or Trask, but he was moving more material than Kendra.


Elise and Mara were now working on the arms, Tanu was adding bulk to the torso, and Vincent appeared to be fashioning a large hammer. The clay warrior might actually take shape!


"Check the basins, Kendra," Vincent called.


She ran across the floor. "Getting really full. Like seven-eighths. We only have a couple of minutes left."


"Berrigan can keep digging out clay," Vincent cried, placing the handle of the huge war hammer onto the crude right palm. "Everyone else should work on the warrior. We have lots of clay piled, get it over here! We'll want a shield for the left arm, and thicken up those legs. Make the feet bigger for stability. Hurry!"


The clay pit had already been excavated to waist deep in most places. Seth boosted himself out and started transfer-ring clay from the piles to beef up the legs. As he packed new clay against the existing clay, Seth wondered how long their warrior could survive. After all, the other statue was solid stone. Wouldn't its club slash apart the clay champion without any trouble? What use was a clay hammer against stone?


Kendra remained beside the basins. The statue loomed over her, almost twice her height. "Almost full," she called. "Maybe fifteen more seconds."


"Get away from the statue," Trask ordered.


"Don't stress about the head!" Vincent directed fervently. "I like him without much neck. More sturdy. Add to the shoulders! Quickly!"


Kendra raced back across the floor from the basins. Seth added another small slab of clay to the left foot. Mara crouched over the face, hollowing out eyes and shaping a nose.


As Seth heard the water lapping over the sides of the basins, a sudden wind swept through the room with surprising force. Staggering, Seth found himself leaning against the gale to keep his balance.


The wind died as quickly as it had risen, and the statue on the other side of the room stepped out of the alcove. The bulky figure on the ground sat up, no longer composed of clay. Like the other statue, the champion they had sculpted was now made of solid, greenish stone.