Keys to the Demon Prison (Fablehaven #5)(75)




"Should you require further aid, as I suspect you might, consider finding Agad, the wizard in charge of Wyrmroost. Unbeknownst to most, he is one of the five wizards who founded Zzyzx. He may be able to provide wisdom in dealing with this threat. None wish to see those demons remain in confinement more than he.


"You now have all the ideas I have managed to compile. Use whatever makes sense. No doubt you will devise other strategies on your own as the situation evolves. Ephira should effectively safeguard my communications to you until less than a year before your hour of need arises. I trust you will find my messages undisturbed.



"I wish I could do more for you. Please do not obsess over choices you cannot change. Mistakes happen. Learn from the past, but concentrate on the present and the future. Difficulties like I have never faced await you. I don't want to guide you toward harm, but when the world is about to end, the only real option is to save it. With a threat like the opening of Zzyzx impending, no safe choices remain. This message will repeat if you uncork the bottle again. It will play only for you. Good luck."


The gaseous form of Patton returned to the bottle in a rush. Once the gas was inside, Seth pressed the cork into the mouth.


So much to digest! Too much! Seth squeezed his head. For some reason, it was one thing to tell himself he was going to try to save the world, and quite another to receive that assignment from Patton, as if everything really did depend on him. Too much was at stake!


But Patton was right. All safe choices were gone. And trying to hide from the responsibility would be a choice as well. A bad one. At least Patton had shown him a path to follow. He would do his best, one step at a time.


Crossing to the desk, Seth found an envelope with his name on it in the second drawer he checked. Beside it he discovered the dungeon keys. Opening the envelope, Seth scanned the pages inside. He saw the promised latitudes and longitudes, along with accompanying explanations and descriptions. At the end he read about the Eternals and the final steps required to open Zzyzx.


Satisfied that he had everything Patton had promised, he folded the papers back into the envelope and tucked it in his pocket. "Come on, Hugo," Seth said. "Let's go see if those satyrs have shown up."


As the golem followed him out of the grotto, Seth reconsidered using the coin to contact Bracken. It would be painful and embarrassing to explain how he had lost the Translocator, but Bracken could possibly find ways to help. After all, he was at Living Mirage, and he seemed like a resourceful guy. Who knew when a well-timed prison revolt at the Sphinx's headquarters might provide an important diversion? At this stage, Seth could not afford to ignore any possible assets.


Chapter 16 The Sealed Shrine


Near the top of the stairway, Bracken grabbed Kendra by her upper arm. "Your brother is contacting me," he whispered.


"Is he all right?" she asked.


Bracken paused, listening inwardly. "He's unharmed. He's devastated by how Nagi Luna used him to free Graulas. The sentiment comes through in more than his words. Your friend Coulter has perished."


"No," Warren said, reflexively rejecting the news.


"My condolences, but Seth seems certain," Bracken said. "He feels tremendous guilt, potentially enough to break him. I am telling him he was used, tricked, and that there is nothing to be done about it now."


Kendra tried to choke back her tears. How could Coulter be gone? He was supposed to be safe back at Fablehaven! Warren watched Bracken expectantly.


"Seth says Graulas destroyed the foundational treaty of Fablehaven."


"He needs to get out of there," Warren said.


Bracken nodded, holding up a finger. "Seth says he will depart soon. Apparently he has received advice from an ancestor of yours, Patton Burgess, and Seth is now preparing to embark on a quest."


"Patton would have provided sound guidance," Warren said.


"I'm telling Seth that you two are with me. He's thrilled to hear it. I'm telling him we're in the middle of an emergency of our own, and am advising him to contact me again soon. I'm advising him not to fret about losing the Translocator. I can tell he appreciates the support, but he is still wrestling to come to terms with the crisis resulting from that loss. He longs for a way to make restitution. He has put away the coin."


"Will he be all right?" Kendra asked anxiously.


"I think so," Bracken said. "Evidently your ancestor gave him an ambitious assignment. We didn't go into specifics, but if Seth can channel his energy into an active endeavor, it should help him cope. He will hail us again soon. We must press on."


They continued upward. The stairway had been tunneled through smooth, dark stone. Warren ran a hand along the wall. "No digging into this stairway," he said.


"These walls are harder than steel," Bracken agreed.


The stairway ended at a blank wall. Warren recited an unintelligible phrase, and the wall faded, almost vanishing. "Should I extinguish my light?" Bracken asked. "Keep it shining," Warren said.


They passed through the ghostly wall into a cave composed of sharp, angular rocks. Bracken's light glared off the glossy black stone. Glancing back, Kendra noted that the wall appeared solid again.

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