Gates of Thread and Stone(45)

CHAPTER 21




WHEN I AWOKE on the last day of Sun, Avan’s spot on the floor was empty. After washing up, I made my way down to the mess hall and ran into G-10 outside the door.

“Avan’s up in the nest,” he said.

Maybe his observation skills came from his superior abilities. Or maybe I was just that easy to read.

“By himself?”

“I keep telling you, the gargoyles are tame. They won’t hurt him.”

I flushed, nodding. “I know.”

G-10 shouted at my back as I walked away: “Don’t be late for training!”

Since our meeting with Irra, G-10 wouldn’t talk about my progress with me. Yesterday, I had kicked his leg and gotten him down on one knee. Of course, then he’d flattened me, but I still got in a hit. Hina was helping as well by sparring with me in the afternoons.

When I reached the bottom of the staircase, I looked up at the endless spiral of rust and wood rot. Did I really want to go up there again? I groaned and started climbing.

Halfway up, I plopped down on a step to catch my breath. The sound of creaking steps echoed through the shaft. I could see Avan descending. He pulled up short when he saw me.

“What are you doing?”

“Resting,” I said, and patted the step beside me.

Avan sat, stretching his long legs over the steps and crossing them at the ankles.

“What were you doing?” I asked, leaning against his arm. “Besides communing with gargoyles.”

“They’re interesting animals. G-10 says they’re enchanted, but I’m not sure that’s it. Or at least that’s not all of it. They’re too smart.”

“Did you make a new friend up there?” I teased.

His dimple appeared briefly before he turned serious again. “I guess it got me thinking about what might have been done to them. Back when they were first created by Ninu and then changed by Irra. You can’t will loyalty through magic.”

“Every sentinel trapped by Ninu’s collars says you can.”

“But that’s not real. They’ve lost all sense of self. The gargoyles aren’t like that. Real loyalty is a decision you have to be able to make for yourself. Like how the hollows choose to stay here and fight for Irra.”

“Avan, for all we know, the collars Irra put on them might not be just for communication.”

Avan shrugged and fell silent.

I stared at a large scratch in the wood beneath my feet, the random creaking of joints the only sound between us.

At last, I said, “If this is about the decision you have to make today—”

“I’ve already decided.”

“Oh.” I pushed my hair behind my ear, waiting for more.

He stood up. “Come on. If we’re late, G-10 will probably punish us by making us climb these stairs again.”



After training, Avan and I spread out on the grass beneath the tree in the courtyard to enjoy the last of the sunlight. Already, the clouds had begun to close in, thick plumes flaring orange. We stayed there for what felt like hours, until the shadows grew long and the Sun made its final, valiant fight, beams of light pushing through the crowding sky. But eventually, the last of its rays diminished.

G-10 had informed us that Irra would see us in the hospital wing as soon as night fell. So Avan and I picked ourselves up and made our way there.

The space was strangely cozy. Lively drapes in all colors separated the cots, and patterned rugs cushioned the floor. I tilted my head to study one of the patterns. The geometrical shapes looked a bit like gargoyles.

Irra instructed Avan to wait as he took me into a well-lit room. He pointed me to a padded chair beside a metal counter. Nearby was an operating table, which we hopefully wouldn’t need, and various instruments, the purposes of which I didn’t want to know.

I extended my arm across the counter, palm up. Irra sat on a stool opposite me. G-10 had told us that each ID contained threads of blood through the metalwork—a simple enchantment that allowed Ninu to trace people. We were too far away from Ninurta for Ninu to trace us now, so I didn’t know if the Watchmen had identified us as the fugitives. But in case our new IDs were given close scrutiny in Ninurta, Irra would have to re-create the fusion of blood and metal.

“G-10 is pleased with your improvement,” Irra said as he felt along the bend of my elbow.

I smiled, proud of myself. It had been only a few days since we began real fighting, and every training session left me more bruised than the last; but I was learning to tolerate the pain. Anything less was unacceptable. With another week left to train, I could only improve. The true test of my progress would be in the arena.

“When new hollows join, do you break their connection to Ninu yourself?” I asked.

“Certainly,” Irra said as he picked up an ominous-looking needle. “Ninu also works on his sentinels himself. The branding requires a careful touch. The human brain must be handled with precision.”

His hair was especially wild today, sticking out from his head like wires. When I didn’t look into his eyes or hear the emptiness in his voice, he might have been just a peculiar man. If he was Infinite—was this his real form?

“Why ‘the Black Rider’? What is it supposed to mean?”

Irra glanced up at me, the needle in his hand hovering above my skin. “You know the temples they once built to worship me?”