A Breeding Darkness (Complete)

(11)

Using the momentary distraction of the Denizens, Lucy dug into her satchel. She hadn't yet emptied out the Findings she'd found when she first entered Zerkalo after the darkness. They sat, heavy and vibrating with invisible energy as her fingers wrapped around the furry box. She yanked it out, grimacing as it purred and sharp teeth glinted under the edge of the lid. Black ooze dribbled down the front of the box and dripped to the ground and Lucy made sure to hold the box away from her body so none would hit her skin or clothing. Whatever was happening to the Findings might help. Koshmar had said they were dangerous now, and dangerous meant she could use them as weapons.

Carefully holding the box, she ran away from the forest and toward the thrashing bird and its coating of Denizens. Taking a deep breath, she hoped she was doing the right thing, and then whistled long and sharp to draw the creatures' attention.

"Hey! Over here!"

The Denizens, slightly confused, looked from each other to her. Their crooked smiles were back and a few of the group broke away from the bird to come toward Lucy. She hoped that the bird could break free, and even more she hoped Koshmar was right that the Findings had been corrupted. Because if this box simply played a lullaby, she was going to find out what being torn into pieces in Zerkalo did. Holding her breath, she held out the music box in front of her and flipped the lid open.

At first, nothing happened. The Denizens simply kept up their advance, their smiles growing even wider. After another moment, however, a strange sound started to build. It was hard to place at first, but as the sound grew louder, it was clear it was coming from the box. It was a high-pitched squeal, so shrill that it hurt Lucy's ears. It only grew louder with each moment she left the music box open, until it shook her bones and knocked her heart off rhythm. She grimaced against the noise, and the Denizens shrunk back. The black ooze bubbled up from the pit of the box, spilling over its sharp teeth. Like a thick molasses, it spilled onto the ground, a continual fountain, and began to spread to the Denizens. Not noticing it, or perhaps not caring, they kept walking and stepped right into it. As soon as their spectral bodies floated above the goo, it seemed to reach up for them, grabbing them as if they were made of more than shadow. Their unnaturally wide smiles faded, and they jerked back and forth to try and free themselves of the goo. But it held tight, and they writhed under the noise of the box.

Unable to shout anything to the bird, Lucy was forced to go to it. She placed the box on the ground, carefully out of reach of the Denizens, and rushed around the black ooze and to where the bird struggled to knock off the last Denizen on its back. Lucy didn't waste her breath trying to say anything, and instead slammed her whole body into the Denizen. It went flying, and she nearly did too if it wasn't for the bird jolting up and stopping her with its side.

The bird stared at her with its fiery eyes but did not make any moves to tear her throat out or impale her with its talons. It ducked down and tilted one shoulder, as if asking her to climb on its back. She hesitated, unsure that she wanted to trust this massive bird of prey, but when she glanced behind her and saw the Denizens pushing closer to the box, she knew she didn't have much choice.

After checking that her lantern was secure, she hiked up her skirts and climbed onto the bird's back. Its wings bunched beneath her legs, rolling as it began to hop to try and gain enough air to take off. Lucy clutched the feathers around its neck, feeling blood oozing between her fingers, as the bird launched into the air and soared toward the woods. It couldn't gain much air, due to Lucy's weight, and they slammed into many of the branches of the trees. Lucy felt leaves whip by her but could see next to nothing in the darkness as the bird careened, off balance and weak.

"You can do it," she whispered, her face pressed down near where she thought its ears might be. She closed her eyes, hoping she could impart some sort of strength through her fingertips as she pressed them to the bird's sides and felt its heart beating faster than any human's. "Remember how to be strong. Remember your strength." She muttered it like a mantra, hoping that somehow the bird might find some untapped pool of energy deep within its breast.

But instead, they only flew for a few minutes before the bird suddenly went completely still.

For a moment, she thought they had landed, but then she felt herself falling. Beneath her, the feathers of the bird seemed to melt away in the whipping air of their descent. The warmth of the bird vanished, as if it was never there to begin with, and she found herself clutching no longer to a ruff of feathers but instead to something slick and smooth. Screaming, she jerked back, but she was already plummeting to the earth.

A second later, she slammed into a tree branch and frantically clutched at the rest as she fell through the boughs. Her lantern smashed around her waist, and just as she caught onto a branch and came to a sudden halt, the flame flickered out and she was left in complete blackness and dangling from a tree.