Chapter 19 – The Glass Desert
Ilin slept longer this time. The glowing moss under her made a soft bed, and the light from the Lumenwood kept the night gentle. I stayed beside her, my back against a tree, my blade across my lap, my eyes on the passage where Ael said the next portal would open at dawn.
Garrick's breathing was even. Mara had wrapped her arm and was dozing with the rebar across her knees. Finn had cleaned his pistol and was watching the tree line.
When Ilin's eyes opened, the blue shimmer in them was fainter.
"How do you feel?" I asked.
"Tired," she said, "but not dizzy. The healer was right — I need to stay still."
Ael approached, his robes blending with the dim light. "The next Anchor is in the Glass Desert. It is guarded by the Shard Sentinels."
"Glass desert," Mara muttered. "Sounds hot."
"It is," Ael said. "The sand is crystal. It reflects the sun and cuts like knives."
I helped Ilin to her feet. She leaned on me, but she was walking on her own.
We stepped onto the platform where the first portal had been. Ael placed his hand on the stone; the symbols lit blue, and the oval of light appeared.
"This one will take you to the Dune of Mirrors," Ael said. "Be careful. The light there can deceive you."
Ilin took my hand. "Ready?"
I nodded. "Ready."
We stepped through.
The light was blinding.
When my eyes adjusted, the world was white and gold. Endless dunes of crystal sand stretched to the horizon, each grain catching the sun and throwing it back in a thousand sparkles. The sky was a pale blue, the sun high and harsh.
The heat hit us immediately.
Ilin's staff glowed, giving her a cool blue aura that eased the heat around her.
Garrick cursed. "I hate it already."
Mara shielded her eyes. "My skin's gonna peel."
Finn wiped sweat from his forehead. "Stay hydrated."
Ael pointed to a dark shape in the distance — a structure of black glass rising from the dunes. "The Anchor is there."
We started walking. The crystal sand crunched under our boots, and every step sent a flash of light into our eyes.
After an hour, the first Sentinels appeared.
They were humanoid, but their bodies were made of sharp, translucent crystal. Their edges glinted, and their eyes were empty sockets of light.
Three of them.
Garrick raised his crowbar. "Here we go."
The first Sentinel lunged at Garrick. He swung, the crowbar struck the crystal arm, and the impact sent a vibration up his arm. The Sentinel's arm chipped but didn't break.
The second Sentinel came at Mara. She swung the rebar, it hit the Sentinel's leg, and the metal bent.
The third came at me.
I dodged its swing, rolled, and drove my blade into its side.
The blade scratched the crystal but didn't penetrate.
The Sentinel grabbed my shoulder — the same shoulder Ilin had healed six times.
Pain flared.
I twisted, drove my blade into the joint of its arm, and the arm shattered.
The Sentinel collapsed into a pile of glittering shards.
I turned to the first Sentinel. Garrick was bleeding from a cut on his forearm.
Mara was on the ground, her lip split.
Finn was circling the second Sentinel, pistol empty.
I ran at the first Sentinel, jumped, and drove my blade into its neck.
It shattered.
I turned to the second Sentinel. It raised its arm to strike Finn.
Ilin stepped forward, staff raised.
"Ilin, no!" I shouted.
"I have to," she said.
She directed the blue light at the Sentinel.
The crystal creature slowed, its light dimming.
I ran and drove my blade into its chest.
It shattered.
Ilin dropped to her knees.
I was at her side in two steps, catching her.
"You used healing," I said.
"Only a little," she said, voice weak.
"You said you wouldn't," I said.
"I couldn't let it hit Finn," she said.
I lifted her and carried her to a small shadow cast by a dune.
"You're done," I said.
"I know," she said.
Garrick sat beside us, holding his arm. Mara was wiping blood from her lip. Finn was checking his pistol.
Ael stood, looking at the black glass structure ahead. "The Anchor is inside."
I carried Ilin the rest of the way.
The structure was a black glass pyramid, its surface reflecting the desert. Inside, in the center, was a crystal pulsing with violet light — the Anchor.
Around it stood four Shard Sentinels, larger than the ones outside.
Ael's voice was quiet. "The Sentinels will not let you pass."
I set Ilin down in the shade near the entrance.
"We do what we've been doing," I said. "Hold them off while I reach the Anchor."
Garrick nodded, wincing. "Just don't die."
Mara spat blood. "No promises."
Finn nodded, pistol ready.
The four Sentinels moved at once.
Garrick met the first, crowbar striking its arm. The crystal chipped, the Sentinel backhanded Garrick, sending him to the ground.
Mara swung her rebar at the second. The rebar bent, and the Sentinel knocked her aside.
Finn fired his pistol at the third. The bullet ricocheted off its chest.
The fourth came at me.
I dodged its swing, rolled, and drove my blade into its leg.
The blade scratched the crystal.
The Sentinel grabbed my shoulder — the same shoulder Ilin had healed seven times.
Pain flared.
I drove my blade into its neck.
The Sentinel shattered.
I turned to the first Sentinel. Garrick was back on his feet, crowbar in hand, blood running down his arm.
Mara was getting up, her arm bleeding.
Finn was out of bullets.
The first Sentinel charged Garrick.
Garrick swung, the crowbar chipped the Sentinel's arm, the creature hit him again.
I ran and jumped onto the Sentinel's back, driving my blade into the base of its neck.
It shattered.
I turned to the second Sentinel. Mara was on her feet.
The Sentinel swung. Mara ducked, swung her rebar, and shattered the Sentinel's leg.
I ran and drove my blade into its chest.
It shattered.
The third Sentinel was on Finn, arm raised.
I ran and drove my blade into its back.
It shattered.
I looked at the Anchor.
Ilin was on her feet, staff in hand, the crystal glowing faint blue.
"I can weaken it," she said.
"Ilin, no," I said.
"I have to," she said.
She raised the staff and directed the light at the Anchor.
The Anchor pulsed, the violet light flickering as the blue light hit it.
I raised my blade and brought it down on the crack.
The blade sank in.
The Anchor pulsed, the violet light flickering, then dimming.
A low sound resonated through the pyramid, like wind through glass.
I hit it again.
The crystal shattered.
The violet light went out.
The pyramid's walls lost their reflection, becoming plain black glass.
Ael placed a hand on my shoulder. "The Anchor is destroyed. The rift in the Glass Desert is closed."
I looked at Ilin. She was swaying.
I caught her before she fell.
"You did it," I said.
She opened her eyes, smiled faintly. "We did it."
I carried her out of the pyramid and laid her on the cool crystal sand outside.
"You're done," I said.
"I know," she said.
I sat beside her, holding her hand.
Garrick was sitting nearby, holding his arm. Mara was wrapping her arm. Finn was staring at the now-dark pyramid.
Ael stood, watching the horizon where the sky was now a normal blue.
Ilin squeezed my hand. "We did it."
"We did," I said.
She smiled, tired but genuine.
I leaned in and kissed her forehead.
"You rest," I said. "I'll be right here."
"I know," she said.
She closed her eyes and fell asleep.
I stayed, watching her, listening to the wind move across the crystal sand.
The rift in the Glass Desert was closed.
Ael had said there were many worlds.
I looked at Ilin's peaceful face.
We would rest here, and then we would find the next passage.
Whatever came next, we would face it together.