his teeth going daemon for just a moment then back again.
“If you’re up for it,” I said. “You look pretty green around the gills lately.”
“Eh, I’ve got enough pep left in me for one horseback ride,” he said, his eyes on the horizon. “Besides, I can make sure we don’t catch any eels—just don’t tell Cassandra!” He kicked the horse in its metal ribs and it leapt forward, following the fish.
The wind rose up as we rode, and when I put my dust mask on, I let all thoughts of the dream lose themselves in the thrill of that fast, regular run. We ran and jumped and careened, following those shining fish and dark eels for miles and miles. The mechanical horses were faster than any horses that had ever lived, and they could turn so quickly and sharply that several times we were almost thrown as we lunged to catch a fish or avoid an eel. When the wind burned our faces, even with our dust masks and bandannas, and some of our horses began to rattle in odd places, we decided to stop for a rest. We settled in a scrubby area beyond the ravine and sat in the horses’ shadows. The eels and fish disappeared in plumes of green and pink smoke, respectively. Susanah tinkered with our horses, tightening this and banging on that.
“Well, they held together pretty well,” said Susanah. “It’ll take me about thirty minutes, but I can have them up and running in time to take us home. Just gotta”—she grunted—“adjust this removable bit in the… spine!”
“Whatever, Suze. You’re just distracting yourself from your blistering loss.” Judith laughed. “Right, Zo?”
“Yep,” Zo said, setting her hat to a cocky angle and leaning against Judith. “Forty-two fish and only three eels. The reigning champions: Judith and Zo! Put that in y’all’s pipes and smoke it.”
“Cheaters!” Mowse said. “That last eel had three heads! It counts for three!”
“I hope you don’t mind if I take a nap,” Asa said, his arm flickering daemonic for a second. He looked even worse than before. “I’m feeling a little drained these days.”
“Sure, just be ready when…” Olivia started, but in the horses’ shadow, with his dust mask still fastened, Asa was already fast asleep. “… it’s time to go.”
“Aww no,” Susanah said, looking at her own horse. “It’s got a bum eye.”
“It’s winking,” said Mowse, tightening one of our horses’ hooves with a ratchet. As they fixed our horses, we all sat beneath them, fanning ourselves, watching the heat bend over the desert. When a small earthquake rumbled beneath us, we pretended not to notice.
“How far do you think we went?” I asked Olivia.
“Like… two miles, I’d say.” Olivia pulled her bandanna down and pointed into the distance. “See? You can almost see Elysium from here.”
But Zo was looking in a different direction.
From the north, a storm was rolling in, miles high and wide as the horizon. In the distance, Elysium’s sirens blared, the echoes rising like birds and getting lost in the roar of dust.
Deep within me, the old fear rose. My blood went cold. My breath began to come in gulps. My heart felt like a canary, clanging against my rib cage, desperate to escape.
“Shit!” said Zo. “Shit! Shit! Shit! We’ve got to go!”
We sprang into action, pulling bandannas and dust masks over our faces, looking for cover, as our horses stood, eerily still and unspooked by the coming storm.
“Everyone take cover!” Judith said.
“There is no cover!” Cassandra shouted.
With Mowse behind her, tying her homemade dust mask, Susanah worked trying to tighten our horses’ screws. “Come on, come on, come on!” she said. There was a spark, and she jerked her hand back. The horses’ lightbulbs blinked, then went out completely. “Shit! The static electricity! We’re stranded!”
My breath came in short, sharp spurts. My knees shook, threatening to buckle. What were we going to do? What could we do? Dust Dome. It was our only chance. But I couldn’t cast that spell. Not like last time. I ran to Asa on the ground.
“Asa!” I shouted. “Asa, wake up! There’s a dust storm!” I shook him, but he would not wake. And without Asa, what could I do?
The wall of dust roared closer.
“You know Dust Dome, right?” Olivia said, her voice carefully steady. “Pulvarem something… you got the stuff for it?”
“Last time I couldn’t do it!” I said. “Asa had to help me, and look at him!”
“We’ll do it together, all right?” said Olivia, her eyes on the wall