The Beast Page 6

  “I don’t know.” Wedging her flashlight into the crook of an elbow, Opal started to unbuckle the snap.

  Branches crunched in the night.

  Everyone froze.

  Tyler spun, aiming his beam down the path. “Did you hear—”

  High-pitched, cackling laughter echoed from somewhere overhead.

  Nico looked up, then stumbled backward in alarm, tripping awkwardly and landing on his butt. “Guys, look out!”

  Standing on top of the crypt, just above the swirly torch carving, was a green-skinned creature with wiry limbs and wide, flaring ears. Unblinking red eyes peered down at Nico, above a grinning mouth bristling with sharp, pointy teeth.

  Nico stared, his heart rate speeding to a gallop.

  Emma screamed and slammed back into Tyler, who was gaping at the creature in horror. Logan dropped into a crouch, while Opal backpedaled, shoving the leather bag into her pocket.

  “What is that thing?” Opal gasped.

  “You mean things!” Tyler pointed at the weeping willow looming behind the crypt. Two more reptilian creatures lurked in its branches, gazing down at them with malevolent scowls. One started laughing uproariously—a piercing, chattering sound that froze Nico’s blood.

  “Gremlins,” Logan whispered, his voice cracking. “They must be figments that escaped the Darkdeep. But how’d they get here?”

  Before anyone could respond, one of the tree gremlins swung down on a vine with a gleeful howl, forcing Logan to dive for cover. His companion dropped to the ground and charged at Emma, arms spread wide. She lurched backward and tripped over Logan, collapsing on top of him in a heap.

  “Oof,” Logan wheezed. “Get off me!”

  The lead gremlin laughed from his perch atop the crypt. He seemed to be enjoying the show. Nico clambered to his feet, his anger rising. “They’re just figments,” he yelled. “Spread out!”

  Reaching into his jacket, Nico removed a Torchbearer dagger and held it up for the gremlin to see. The creature stuck out his tongue, cackling maniacally. The other gremlins feinted at the group, making everyone jump back. Then they scurried onto Dixon’s tomb to stand beside their leader. All three made a rude gesture in unison.

  “Oh, that is it,” Opal snarled. She pulled out her dagger as well. “Try that vine trick again, tough guy. I dare you.”

  The gremlins were capering in a weird dance that Nico felt sure was some kind of calculated insult, but they suddenly froze. Their leader sniffed the air. Eyes widening, he spun and chittered something to his companions. As one they scampered into the willow tree, making whimpering noises as they scurried from sight.

  Logan smiled, nodding sharply at Nico and Opal. “Good job. You scared them off.”

  A loud thump echoed in the darkness. Nico felt its vibration run through his legs.

  He stopped breathing. Slowly turned around.

  “Um, guys?” Tyler whispered. “You hear that?”

  A second thump sounded, closer than the first. Nico felt it in his bones.

  “I don’t think they ran from us,” Emma breathed.

  Hands shaking, Nico aimed his flashlight down the path.

  Two huge, glowing eyes stared back.

  8

  OPAL

  The enormous gleaming eyes met Opal’s.

  An overwhelming scent—that of deep ocean, of ancient salt and seaweed—assaulted her nose as something massive stalked into the glow of their flashlights. The creature reared up, towering over Opal and the others as they cowered beside Dixon’s crypt. A roar shook the ground.

  The Beast.

  It’s real. Really, really real.

  “How is it back?” Emma squeaked, recoiling beside Opal. “Tyler dispelled this figment weeks ago!”

  The sea monster was blacker than the night behind it, except where their lights touched its body, revealing sleek indigo-blue scales. Opal heard its lungs bellowing in and out, then another sound crowded her ears—a rapid pounding, like a jackhammer. She realized it was her own heart beating out of control.

  “This isn’t a figment,” Nico warbled, his shoulders quivering with fear. “It’s the real deal.”

  “But the Beast doesn’t actually exist!” Logan yelped, denying the evidence in front of his own two eyes. “It’s just a story!”

  The monster stamped a massive foot, dragging thick claws through the hard-packed earth.

  Nico swallowed. “I think it’s … angry.”

  “Really?” Tyler shrilled. “What tipped you off?!”

  The Beast thundered a second time. Moved closer toward them.

  Everyone took a step back.

  Tyler stammered in nervous terror. “I was r-right, by the way. About what it l-l-looks like. What are the odds, h-huh?”

  Opal backed up another step, afraid to move too quickly and trigger a reaction. She noticed a few small differences between the figment Tyler had conjured inside the Darkdeep and the creature in front of them—this Beast’s head was slightly narrower, its legs bulkier under a sinuous body—but not much. The monsters were largely identical.

  How is that possible? How did Tyler know what it really looked like?

  The Beast lowered its head, regarded them with all-too-intelligent eyes. Then it turned to look at something on the path. For a brief moment Opal thought it might return to the ocean only a short distance away, but the awful head swung back. The Beast’s mouth opened to reveal twin rows of razor-sharp teeth. Lashing its tail against the ground, the monster began closing in again.

  “Run!” Nico shouted.

  Everyone scattered among the crypts and tombstones, yellow beams bobbing madly as they scampered for cover. Opal ducked behind Charles Dixon’s tomb and switched off her flashlight, fingers shaking as she peeked around the corner.

  The graveyard had fallen deathly silent—even the insects were quiet—except for the thud of the Beast’s lumbering treads. The creature moved slowly, pausing to snuffle the air as if searching for something. Or hunting dinner.

  Then it exploded forward, impossibly quick for something so large.

  A scream, then sounds of struggle.

  “Help!” Logan shrieked in terror.

  Pulse racing, Opal switched on her light and swung it around the crypt. The Beast had snagged Logan by the hood of his jacket and was shaking him like a dog with a rat in its mouth.

  “Logan!”

  Opal darted into the open space before the crypt, only to stare helplessly, unable to do anything as the creature began dragging Logan toward the sea. Nico charged out from behind a tombstone, waving his flashlight, Emma a short step behind him. The Beast paused, a low growl escaping its jaws.

  Logan managed to twist, turn, and shrug out of his jacket. He hit the ground and scrambled toward his friends.

  “Scatter!” Opal yelled. “Don’t be an easy target!”

  The Beast’s vast bulk was blocking the path back to the wider cemetery beyond. They’d never sneak past it and escape. So Opal switched off her light again and the others followed suit, plunging the older graveyard into a gloomy moonlit haze. She peered nervously at the pointy fence surrounding this section—they could try to climb over, but it’d be tricky and leave them exposed. Could they scale it in time?

  Someone bumped into her in the dark, whispering, “It’s real, it’s real, it’s real, it’s real.”

  Opal calmed her nerves enough to whisper. “Ty?”

  Silence, then a shaky voice replied, “Yeah.”

  “Can you think of anything that might help us?” Opal hissed. “A way to fight back?” Tyler had been terrified of the Beast his whole life. He has to know something useful about it, right?

  But Tyler didn’t answer. Opal was afraid he’d locked up completely.

  The Beast approached, sniffing Dixon’s tomb. Pushing Tyler before her, Opal slipped around a corner just as a giant eye appeared right where they’d been hiding. They scurried around the next corner and put their backs to the crypt door. Opal gasped as the Beast’s long,
muscular tail swung close. The monster’s head appeared above the crypt, but it didn’t look down to see them.

  Nico’s voice cut through the night. “Who can hear me?”

  “Me,” hissed Logan.

  “I’m here,” Emma whispered.

  “Tyler and I can.” Opal shrank back against the marble as the Beast howled, eyes combing the darkness.

  “We should all bolt together,” Nico called out, still invisible in the gloom. “Try to lose it in the woods. Ready?”

  Various grunts sounded. All seemed to agree.

  Opal felt her palms begin to sweat. Who would the Beast attack? Don’t think. Just go.

  “Now!” Nico yelled.

  Opal heard pounding feet. Shadowy forms slipped behind the Beast and tore down the path.

  “Go!” Opal pushed Tyler in front of her, but their feet got crossed up and they slammed into each other, collapsing in a tangle.

  The Beast spun, roaring in triumph at winning the game of hide-and-seek. The monster loomed over them, exposing its teeth. Saliva dripped onto Opal’s leg.

  That’s it. We’re officially Beast chow.

  A light flickered on the path. Nico was racing back toward them, eyes round as dinner plates.

  “Over here!” he shouted, waving his flashlight. “Come get me, you big dumb lizard!”

  Opal rolled away from Tyler, who was on all fours. Pulling her legs back, she kicked him with both feet, propelling him behind Dixon’s crypt with a squawk. Then Opal powered her flashlight and aimed it directly into the Beast’s eye. The creature jerked away with a startled snarl.

  But it recovered fast. Growling in rage, the monster’s jaws snapped toward her head.

  Without another option, Opal dove back against the crypt, ripped its door open, leaped inside, and pulled the portal shut with a clang.

  Something heavy smacked against the other side, shaking the whole tomb. Opal screamed. She heard a frustrated growl as the Beast hammered the crypt again, harder than before. Was that its tail? Will the roof cave in? But the door held, and the building didn’t collapse around her.

  Opal almost laughed. She was safe, but trapped. What do I do now?

  FIRE.

  The word blasted into her mind as if someone had spoken it.

  Opal sat up straight, nearly slammed her skull against the low ceiling.

  What was happening? Was that a voice in her head?

  The Beast pounded the crypt again, and this time the walls groaned ominously. Dust rained from between marble slabs in the ceiling, filling her eyes and making her cough and choke.

  FIRE.

  Opal was too scared to question what was happening. “Okay, sure. But where am I supposed to find fire?”

  SHELF. LEFT SIDE.

  Who is saying these things?! But Opal reached into the gap in the ceiling and felt around, this time running her hand along its sides. She touched a pair of knobby, elongated sticks. For a horrible moment she thought they were human bones, and snatched her hand back. Why was the crypt empty?

  But another tomb-shaking thump settled it. Opal pulled down one of the objects—a length of wood with tattered, desiccated cloth wrapped around one end.

  A torch.

  Torches!

  Opal yanked the other one down and hugged the ancient brands to her chest. But how do I light them? And will they even catch? The cloth-wrapped ends were stiff and crumbly, and smelled odd, like seaweed dipped in brine.

  “Opal!” A voice yelled. “Are you okay?!”

  Nico. Why didn’t he take off? Opal could practically feel the Beast turning on him. She had to act quickly. “Why store torches with no way to light them?” Opal muttered darkly.

  Then her eyes popped. Her backpack! She had the Zippo lighter from the tunnel chamber. Opal wriggled out of the straps, then dug inside until she found it at the very bottom. She nearly squealed in delight.

  Outside, the Beast howled.

  “Oh crap,” she heard Nico blurt. Then, “Tyler, get back!”

  No more time. Opal kicked open the crypt door and slithered outside. Dropping to her knees, she flicked the lighter and spun its wheel. “Please, please, please.”

  A spark kicked, then a flame. Without looking up, Opal held the lighter under the torches and watched the fire spread. In moments both were burning, giving off a weird, organic scent.

  Opal whirled, only to find the Beast’s face inches from hers.

  With a terrified yelp, she swung the torches in front of her like two batons.

  The Beast shrieked and pulled back a few feet.

  “Nico!”

  Opal darted to where he and Tyler crouched on the Beast’s opposite side. Nico had his dagger out and was gripping it tightly, his face a mask of determination. Tyler was holding a rock as if he intended to peg the sea monster. His gaze cut to Opal, frightened but unyielding.

  The Beast made a sound deep in its throat, regarding Opal with narrowed eyes as she shielded the boys behind her torches. She passed one to Nico, who took it and squared his shoulders, his face ghostly pale.

  Opal took a tentative step forward, holding her torch high. “Leave us alone!”

  The Beast’s eyes glinted, its scales shimmering like deep ocean currents. With a last, spine-shivering howl, it spun and vanished into the darkness. Opal heard a crunch, then a loud splash. The monster was gone.

  Opal’s legs gave out, and she sat heavily on the ground. Tyler collapsed beside her. He was shaking all over.

  “Where’d you find these?” Nico asked, staring at the torch in his hand. His features glowed in the fiery light.

  Opal felt like hugging him. He and Tyler had come back for her, even with the Beast in their way. She took a deep breath, trying to slow her racing heart. “They were inside the crypt.”

  Nico nodded. “That’s some quick thinking. How’d you know they would scare it off?”

  “I just … did.” Opal wasn’t sure what to say. She could still smell the creature’s musk on the breeze.

  Tyler’s head shot up. “The Beast. It’s real. No question about it this time.”

  Opal waved in the direction the Beast had vanished. “I’d call that pretty definitive proof.”

  Footfalls echoed off the crypts. Emma and Logan appeared, running back down the path to join them. “Where were you guys?” Logan called out. “We lost you in the woods.”

  While Nico explained, Opal blinked in the torchlight. How did I know these were there?

  She could try to play it off. She could say she’d rummaged the crypt and found them, and had guessed that a Beast from the ocean’s murky depths would naturally fear an open flame. She didn’t have to discuss the voice that had sounded in her head.

  But that wasn’t what happened. Some … thing had spoken. As clearly as the day she’d stared into a glass jar on its pedestal and saw the green blob inside smile at her.

  Come, Opal.

  Come and see what I have for you.

  Opal rose, slowly pivoting to face the others.

  “Let’s go back to the houseboat,” she said. “We really need to talk.”

  Thunder cracked behind her.

  Then, suddenly, it began to hail.

  PART TWO

  TORCHBEARERS

  9

  NICO

  Nico rubbed his forehead in exhaustion.

  It’d been a crazy night. Outside, fist-sized chunks of hail rattled off the houseboat’s roof. The moonlit sky had turned a weird green-black haze. Nico wanted to go home, slip into his bedroom, and fall dead asleep before his dad could ask him a bunch of questions. But Opal had insisted they return to the houseboat first. So here they were, even as the clock inched closer and closer to his curfew.

  “So the torches were hidden inside the crypt?” Emma asked, drawing Nico’s attention back to the discussion. They were sitting on the showroom floor in a ragged circle. Opal nodded, explaining again where she’d found the lifesaving brands. But as she spoke, her eyes kept straying over Nico’s shou
lder.

  He glanced behind him, but there was nothing to see except the pedestal with its green jar and the secret wall-panel entrance to the Darkdeep, which now had a bookcase pushed in front of it for safety.

  “It’s truly amazing, isn’t it?” Tyler was propped back on his elbows as he gazed at the ceiling skylights. “I’m so incredibly brave that I’ve battled both a figment of the Beast and the Beast itself. Who do you think will play me in the movie?”

  “Please,” Logan joked, pushing Tyler’s shoulder until he flopped sideways. “What actor wants to hide behind a crypt for the pivotal fight sequence?”

  Tyler sat back up, his brows arching indignantly. “Perhaps you didn’t hear about my selfless rock-throwing charge, Logan. You were busy cowering in the woods while I attacked the deadly monster with nothing but my bare hands. And some rocks.”

  Logan closed his eyes and made snoring sounds.

  “Those gremlins,” Nico muttered, frowning at the floorboards. “They were figments, even if the Beast wasn’t. And they’re on the loose.”

  Tyler clicked his tongue. “Where do they keep coming from?” He glanced out the window and shivered. “Guys, I don’t think I’m up for chasing monsters through”—he tossed a hand—“whatever this storm is right now. Frozen baseballs are falling from the sky.”

  Nico nodded sullenly. “The gremlins could be anywhere, it’s pitch-dark out, and the weather is terrible. Our bike ride home is going to be ugly enough as it is. We’ll just have to deal with them later.”

  Logan blew out his lips. “And hope they stay away from town.”

  “How’d you know to look for torches?” Emma asked Opal curiously. “You’d been inside the crypt once already, and only found that little bag.”

  The bag.

  They needed to examine it, but Opal didn’t seem in any hurry to do so. She didn’t even seem to be listening to Emma, though coming back to the houseboat had been Opal’s idea.

  “Can we see what you found?” Nico prodded gently. “Might be a clue and all, you know?”

  Opal’s head jerked up. “Huh? Oh, yeah. Sure. Hold on.”

  She pulled out the faded leather satchel and handed it to Nico.