Above World - By Jenn Reese Page 0,73

new one.

Dash swallowed and nodded, clearly trying to stay calm.

Hoku pointed to Dash’s eyes, then to his own feet. The horse-boy couldn’t hear him underwater, but he spoke anyway. “Focus on my feet, but don’t get too close. I don’t want to kick you in the head.”

Dash nodded and smiled weakly. A good sign.

Hoku started up the tunnel, using his hands to feel his way along the metal. It got darker as he swam, and soon even his Kampii eyes couldn’t find enough light to see the way.

“Zorro, make light,” Hoku said.

Crouched on his back, Zorro obeyed. His eyes glowed green to acknowledge the command and then yellow to illuminate the tunnel.

“Good boy,” he whispered. He had no idea how much of Zorro was animal and how much was machine, but he knew the little guy enjoyed a compliment and a good scruffle once in a while, so that’s what he got.

They made their way in silence. Hoku stayed focused on the tunnel in front of him. How many hours had they been swimming? Were the darkness and the cramped tunnel playing tricks on him? Were they heading straight for some kind of ancient industrial grinder?

Calm as Big Blue, he told himself. That’s what Aluna would say. She never panicked at times like these. She wasn’t here now, so it was his job to stay calm all by himself. Besides, Dash needed him. And somewhere out there, Aluna and Calli and all the Kampii needed him, too.

Eventually the narrow tunnel joined with three others into a larger waterway. The prince had drawn him a diagram of this intersection, and he started breathing easier. They were going the right way. Maybe he wasn’t going to get them both killed after all.

Not long after that, they emerged in a place the Deepfell had called the Moon Pool. The air in the small room felt pressurized — just like the ocean — which seemed to keep the ocean from filling up the tiny chamber.

Dash popped up beside him, looking pale and wild-eyed. The horse-boy popped his breathing bubble with obvious joy.

“I hope I never have to do that again,” Dash said, and paddled with one hand toward the edge of the pool.

The room was brightly lit and contained piles of equipment — lots of unmarked crates and weird clothes that looked way too big for a person to actually wear.

“Swimming clothes,” Dash said. “For people who can’t breathe water.”

Hoku swam over to the lip of the water and pulled himself out. Zorro, eyes still glowing, hopped down onto the metal walkway.

“Zorro, stop making light,” Hoku said, and the raccoon’s eyes flashed green before he obeyed.

Dash, who had been drying himself off with a piece of cloth he had found, suddenly stopped and lifted his head. The motion caught Hoku’s attention. It looked as if Dash were sniffing the air.

“I hear something coming,” Dash said. “Something with eight feet.”

“Eight legs?” Hoku asked. Dash nodded.

He hadn’t heard anything, but he had long since learned to trust Dash and his odd skills. The horse-boy disappeared behind a large suit of swimming clothes. Hoku was about to do the same when a round hatch dilated open behind him.

THE CREATURE that scuttled into the room was Human from the waist up. A Human girl with skin the color of dead coral and round black eyes with no irises. Her pale white head was bald, except for a patch of metal wires in the back that were gathered in a bunch.

Below the waist, the girl’s body became a crab. A giant red, evil-looking crab. A crab with eight chitinous legs for running and jumping and walking, and two huge claws for fighting and gripping. One of the claws held a large metal wrench.

“Ooh!” the crab girl said when she saw Hoku, and she dropped her wrench. It clattered against the metal floor so loudly that it made him cringe.

Hoku glanced over to where Dash had been, but the horse-boy stayed hidden. Hoku took a deep breath and tried to stop himself from screaming. A Dome Mek, he told himself. She’s just a Dome Mek.

“Don’t hurt me!” he said. “I’m a friend!”

She raised her left eyebrow. “Friend?” she said. “I don’t have any friends.”

He felt a sudden pang of sympathy for this bizarre crab creature, but not enough of one to let his guard down.

“Well, I’m not a friend yet,” he said quickly. “I meant that I’m not an enemy. I don’t mean you any harm, and I hope you