Above World - By Jenn Reese Page 0,18

crashing over one another like waves.

He told her about the Trade Rock. About seeing Daphine and her brothers. About the Humans. About the horrible flying people-creatures and what they did.

“Daphine and your brothers got away — I’m sure of it,” Hoku said. “There’s no way the dragonflier could have followed them underwater.”

“But Pilipo’s wound —”

“Not serious,” Hoku said quickly. “He’s gotten injured much worse on hunting trips. He’s smart, Aluna. They all are. They’ll be okay.”

She let out the breath caught in her lungs and leaned her head against the wall of the hut. Her gaze fell on a small blackened object by the door. A child’s doll.

“We should search for survivors,” she said. “Four Humans made it to the Trade Rock. Maybe others are hiding in the village somewhere. I haven’t seen any bodies.”

Hoku stared down at his hands and looked as if he might throw up.

“I found . . .” He gulped. “I found a pit. It was filled with . . . The smell . . . There were arms. . . .”

“So all the stories about the kind of people who live up here . . . are true?”

Hoku nodded.

He looked so pale and thin. He probably followed her, convinced he’d find the Above World filled with artifacts and new tech. Instead, he’d been subjected to one horror after another. She’d left him behind because she wanted to keep him safe — but now that he was here, she couldn’t bear the thought of sending him back. No, they were on this journey together now.

She reached into her food net and pulled out a hunk of fish. Hoku’s eyes widened when she offered it to him.

“You sure?” he said. “You must be hungry, too.”

“Not really,” she said. “I practically ate a whole shark not too long ago. I’m fat as a whale.” One lie was all it took. Hoku grabbed the fish, mumbled a quick thanks, and shoved most of it in his mouth in one bite.

“Here, look at this,” he said with his mouth full. He reached into his waterlogged bag and pulled out a small glittering box.

“What is it?” she asked. Hoku was already looking better. Amazing how quickly his mood could turn when food and tech were involved.

Hoku jammed the last bit of fish into his mouth. “A water safe. Can you believe Grandma Nani had it? She said it was a gift to my family from Sarah Jennings herself.”

“From Sarah Jennings?” While the thought of touching something Sarah Jennings once possessed made Aluna’s heart skip, she had her doubts about Nani’s claim. The old woman had once told her that a Kampii could live for a whole year inside the belly of a whale.

Still, the box did look ancient. The silvery mermaid embossed on the lid reminded her of Daphine. She seemed so regal, so perfect. Except for being too skinny and not wearing enough clothes. “What’s inside?”

His smile faded slightly. “I don’t know, exactly.”

“You haven’t opened it yet?” He’d been shocked by the death of the Humans, and from finding their burial pit, and from the long swim, but still. This was Hoku.

“Well, of course I’ve tried to open it,” he said, irritated. “The safe is locked. Look.”

He lifted the flap hiding the numbers.

“If you press a number, it cycles up one until it hits nine. Then it starts over at zero again. If you press this button on the side, it tries to open.” He demonstrated. Nothing happened.

“It reminds me of the secrets dome,” Aluna said. “You have to blow on the conch shells in the right order so the hatch will open . . . and only the Elders know the order.”

“Exactly!” Hoku said. “Elder Peleke calls it a combination lock.”

“There must be dozens of possible combinations!”

Hoku frowned at her.

“Or . . . a lot more?” she said weakly.

“A whole lot more,” he said. “I’ve already tried a few hundred. I’m going to be systematic about it and hope they didn’t pick 999999.”

She looked at him. He looked at her. Hoku tapped in 999999 and pushed the button. Nothing happened.

They both grinned.

“Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s get moving,” Aluna said. “We need to find a splinter colony or another Human village. We may be swim — I mean, walking — for a while.”

“Back when our ancestors lived, people were everywhere. I’ll bet there were more Humans in the Above World than there are sharks in the sea,” Hoku said.

She snorted. “There’s no way there