Fablehaven2-Rise of the Evening Star Read online

  Mendigo, stop digging, Kendra tried. Mendigo

  stopped. Mendigo, set me down. He set her down.

  Thank you, Kendra said to the yellow fairy and the silver

  fairy, the only two who remained.

  Our pleasure to help, the silver fairy said. Though

  pitched high, her voice was richer than the others.

  The yellow fairy shook her head and buzzed away.

  Why are they hurrying away? Kendra asked.

  They have done their duty, the silver fairy said.

  None of the fairies have been very friendly, Kendra

  said.

  Friendliness is not always our forte, the silver fairy said.

  Especially to one who was shown kindness by our Queen.

  You are much envied.

  I was only trying to protect Fablehaven and save my

  family, Kendra said.

  And you succeeded, which only elevates your status,

  the silver fairy said.

  Why are you speaking with me? Kendra asked.

  I suppose I am peculiar, the silver fairy said. I am of a

  more serious mind than many of the others. I am called

  Shiara.

  I'm Kendra.

  Fortunately for you, we all have an interest in keeping

  Bahumat imprisoned, Shiara said. Otherwise I question

  whether I would have been able to rally sufficient help to

  turn Mendigo. Although Bahumat rightly blames you above

  all others, his vengeance against the fairies would be merciless

  were he to escape.

  Couldn't you just imprison him again? Kendra said.

  Your elixir augmented our size and our power. Without

  it we would be no match for a demon like Bahumat.

  Couldn't I get the elixir again? Kendra asked.

  My dear girl, you truly are naive, which may be partly

  why our Queen condescended to share her tears with you.

  Your decision to tread near her shrine would normally have

  been rewarded with a swift departure from this life. I suspect

  she spared you because of your innocence, though her reasons

  are her own.

  Fablehaven is in danger again, Kendra said. I could

  use some help.

  Do not seek favors from her again unless she invites

  you, Shiara said. Now that you know better, irreverence

  will not be tolerated.

  Kendra recalled how she had sensed that going to the

  island again would be a mistake. Could you help me?

  Obviously I could, because I have, Shiara said,

  twinkling.

  Have you seen Olloch the Glutton? He's a demon who

  is after my brother.

  The glutton is becoming dormant. He will not bother

  you.

  Kendra felt a stab of grief at the news. If the demon was

  slowing down, it meant Seth truly was gone. There is more

  to the problem than Mendigo and the demon, Kendra said.

  Bad people have taken over the house. They captured my

  grandparents and Dale and Tanu. They want to steal something

  precious from Fablehaven. If they have their way,

  they'll release all the demons from their prisons.

  It is challenging for us to mind the affairs of mortals,

  Shiara said. Dwelling on such concerns is not in our nature.

  You made the binding of Bahumat our duty with authority

  from our Queen. And we continue to attend to that duty. I

  keep a sentinel stationed here always.

  Kendra scanned the surrounding area, her gaze settling

  on the hill where Warren's cottage sat, some ways off.

  Could you help me heal Warren, Dale's brother?

  The curse upon him is much too strong, Shiara said.

  'All the fairies in Fablehaven together could not break it.

  What if you had the elixir?

  That might be another matter. I wonder, why did you

  fail to return the bowl to the shrine?

  Kendra scrunched her eyebrows. Grandpa thought it

  would be more appropriate to toss it onto the water. He

  thought it would be disrespectful to go back.

  The naiads have claimed it as a tribute, Shiara said.

  In the future, bear in mind, if you take something in need,

  you will not be punished for returning it in gratitude. Such

  action would not have harmed your standing with Her

  Majesty.

  I'm sorry, Shiara, Kendra said. We thought they

  would return it.

  The naiads fear and respect our Queen, but elected to

  accept the bowl as a gift freely given, Shiara said. I sought

  to retrieve it but they would not yield, blaming you for

  awarding it to them. Some among the fairies hold you culpable.

  The silver fairy hovered higher. It appears the situation

  here is now under control.

  Wait, please don't leave, Kendra said. I don't know

  what to do.

  I will try to make the others mindful of the threat you

  named, Shiara said. But do not count on aid from our

  kind. I admire your goodness, Kendra, and wish you no

  harm.

  Shiara streaked away, vanishing into the night. Kendra

  turned and studied Mendigo. He stood motionless, awaiting

  instructions. Kendra sighed. The only person on her side was

  a big, creepy puppet.

  Groaning, Seth stirred. He tried to stretch but the effort

  was thwarted by the snug confines of the cocoon. The realization

  of where he was caused him to snap awake. How long

  had he been asleep?

  Opening his eyes, he was surprised to find the inside of

  the cocoon illuminated by a soft green glow, as if light were

  filtering in from outside. The cocoon remained unusually

  still. Was Olloch sleeping? Why was there suddenly light?

  Was the light passing through both Olloch and the cocoon?

  Seth waited. Nothing changed. Eventually he started

  yelling and tried to rock the cocoon by flinging himself from

  one side to the other. There came no roars, no growls, no

  movement except a slight tilting as he shifted his position.

  Just silence and the even, muted glow.

  Was the cocoon no longer inside Olloch? Had he been

  coughed up like a hairball? Perhaps the cocoon was indigestible!

  He dared not hope for such good fortune. But it

  would explain the lack of growls and the new illumination.

  Had Grandpa come to his rescue? If so, why wasn't anyone

  encouraging him to open the cocoon?

  Could it be some sort of trick? If he opened the cocoon,

  would Olloch gobble him up again, this time without a

  cocoon to impede digestion? Could he still be in the evil

  grove with the revenant? He didn't think so. He felt no hint

  of the chilling, involuntary fear.

  Seth decided to wait. Acting rashly had gotten him in

  trouble before. He folded his arms and listened, straining his

  senses for any indication of what was going on outside the

  cocoon.

  Seth quickly became fidgety. He had never coped well

  with boredom. When the cocoon had swayed and jostled

  with the movements of the demon, and when the silence

  had been interrupted by ferocious growls, Seth had remained

  on edge, which kept him occupied. The motionless silence

  was relentless.

  How much time had passed? Time always moved slower

  when he was bored. He could remember certain classes a
t

  school where it used to feel like the clock was broken. Every

  minute felt like a lifetime. But this was worse. No classmates

  to joke with. No paper to doodle on. Not even the drone of

  a teacher to give shape to the monotony.

  Seth began picking at the wall of the cocoon. He didn't

  have to break all the way out, he just wanted to see how

  tough it would be. He ate part of the wall as he went.

  Soon he had made a pretty good hole in the wall in front

  of his face. As he dug deeper, the texture of the wall was

  changing, becoming goopy, like peanut butter. It was the

  best-tasting part of the wall so far, reminding him vaguely of

  eggnog.

  After scooping away the eggnog paste, he reached a

  membrane. It was slick, and it rippled when he prodded it.

  Seth ruptured the membrane by jabbing it with his fingers,

  and clear liquid gushed out, soaking him.

  Now light was really pouring into the cocoon through

  the hole. He had reached a hard, translucent shell. Silvery

  light shone through it, overpowering the green glow. He was

  obviously no longer inside Olloch. And as he had dug, Seth

  had neither heard nor felt any indication that Olloch was

  near.

  Who knew if he would get another chance like this? He

  had to try to escape. The demon might return anytime. Seth

  began punching at the shell. The blows hurt his knuckles,

  but the shell began to crack. Soon his hand burst through,

  and unfiltered sunlight flooded in.

  Seth worked furiously to widen the hole. The effort took

  longer than he liked. Now that his protective cocoon was

  breached, he wanted to get out as quickly as possible, before

  some creature came along and cornered him.

  Finally the hole was big enough for Seth to squirm

  through. With his head, shoulders, and arms out of the

  cocoon, Seth froze. Olloch sat not twenty feet away, back to

  him. The demon had grown considerably. Olloch was bigger

  than the elephants Seth had seen at the zoo, not just taller,

  but much broader as well. No wonder the demon had been

  able to swallow him. The glutton was immense!

  Seth realized he had made the worst mistake of his life,

  and that now he would die. Why hadn't he waited to open

  the cocoon? Why was he so impatient?

  But Olloch did not turn. The huge demon continued to

  sit motionless, back to him. Seth began to notice a terrible

  stench. He looked at the shell of the cocoon. It was smooth,

  with a luster like mother-of-pearl, except that it was streaked

  with smelly brown matter. Huge clumps of mushy brown

  excrement sat on the ground nearby, buzzing with flies.

  Suddenly Seth understood. He had passed right through

  the demon, safe inside the cocoon! It was the only explanation.

  In one end, and out the other!

  Olloch remained still. The demon did not even seem to

  breathe. He was like a statue. And judging from what Seth

  could see, the clearing he was in was not the haunted grove.

  Seth squirmed the rest of the way out of the cocoon, trying

  his best to avoid touching the excrement. Once free of

  the cocoon, he picked his way through the minefield of

  reeking demon pies, slinking away from the enormous glutton.

  While he was stepping around one stinking pile, a dry

  branch cracked loudly underfoot. Seth's entire body tensed.

  After a breathless moment, he hazarded a glance at the

  demon. The glutton had not budged, and continued to hold

  perfectly still.

  Deciding he had to confirm that the demon was no

  longer a threat, Seth started looping around so he could

  view Olloch from the front, giving the demon a wide berth.

  Coming around to the front, Seth found the demon seated

  in the same sitting position as when he had first laid eyes on

  him in the funeral home. The texture of his skin had

  changed. The demon was a statue once more. Seth could

  not help smiling. He was no longer doomed! And until some

  new victim made the mistake of feeding him, Olloch the

  Glutton was frozen.

  Seth surveyed his surroundings. He was in a small clearing

  encircled by trees. He realized he could be anywhere on

  the preserve. He needed to get his bearings.

  Seth wished for his emergency kit. He had dropped it

  back in the grove. His only remaining asset was the glove

  Coulter had thrust into his hand. Seth had stowed the glove

  in his pocket. He tugged it out and pulled it on.

  The instant he put on the glove, Seth could no longer

  see himself. It was a strange sensation, like all that was left

  of him was a pair of transparent eyeballs. He held up his

  hands in front of his face. When he moved them, his body

  flickered back into view. But when he held still, he didn't

  just see right through them, he saw no sign of himself. It was

  as if he had been completely disembodied.

  The glove was a little loose on his hand, but it did not

  fit him badly. Fortunately it had belonged to Coulter and not

  Tanu. Keeping it on should afford him some protection as he

  tried to figure out where he was.

  The sun was high in the sky, so for the moment it would

  be no help determining direction. And since he had no idea

  where on the preserve he was, identifying north would not

  help him much yet anyhow. He needed a landmark. Seth

  stepped into the center of the clearing, weaving around the

  piles of dung. The biggest stack was as high as his waist. Seth

  stood with his hands on his hips. The trees circling the

  clearing were too tall-he could see nothing beyond them.

  He glanced at the demon. Climbing Olloch would give

  him an extra fifteen feet or so, but he did not want to get

  anywhere near that mouth.

  There were no apparent trails leading out of the clearing,

  but the undergrowth was not heavy, so he chose a direction

  and set off. After a while, he became used to how his

  body would vanish whenever he paused, then reappear as he

  continued walking. His first priority was to find a landmark

  or a vantage point that would allow him to get his bearings.

  For all he knew, each step was carrying him farther from the

  main house

  He came across a pair of deer. They paused and looked

  toward him. He held still, vanishing from sight. After a

  moment they bounded away. Had they caught his scent?

  Farther along he glimpsed a great black owl roosting in a

  tree. The feathery head swiveled toward him, round eyes

  staring. Seth had never known owls could be so large or so

  black. Even as he stood motionless and invisible, the golden

  eyes seemed to stare into his. In that instant, Seth realized

  he had not consumed any milk. It was a new day, and he had

  slept. He could not see the true forms of any of the magical

  creatures. The owl could be anything. The deer could have

  been anything.

  He thought back to Olloch. Had the demon really

  looked as much like a statue as it had seemed to him? Or was

  that another illusion?


  Seth backed away from the owl, eyeing the large bird as

  he distanced himself and circled around it. The dark owl did

  not turn, but the head pivoted, golden eyes trained on Seth

  until he passed out of sight.

  Before long, Seth came to an unusual path. Once it had

  been a wide road paved with flagstones, though now it was

  choked with weeds and slender young trees. Many of the

  paving stones were out of place or hidden beneath vegetation,

  but plenty were visible to help him follow the road.

  Seth had never seen a paved path at Fablehaven, and even

  though the road was in disrepair, he decided that following

  an old road was probably safer than roaming aimlessly

  through the forest.

  The path was not level, and many of the lichen-covered

  flagstones were crooked and loose, forcing Seth to watch his

  step or risk turning an ankle. At one point he stopped as a

  long snake slithered through the weeds. He held his breath,

  unsure whether it was really a snake or something more dangerous

  in disguise. The serpent did not appear to notice him.

  Seth passed the decaying remnants of a humble cabin

  not far off the path to one side. Two walls and a stone chimney

  remained partially intact. Farther along he spotted the

  jumbled remnants of a smaller shelter, splintered and rotten

  beyond recognition. It might have once been a shack or a

  lean-to.

  He passed a few more ruins of crude shelters before the

  road led him into an open area, where he stood facing an

  impressive manor, surprisingly undamaged compared to the

  road and the other dwellings he had passed. The manor was

  three stones tall, with four large pillars in the front. White

  walls were now gray, and all the windows were covered by

  heavy green shutters. Flowering vines twisted around the pillars

  and climbed the walls. The road formed a circular driveway

  in front of the manor, doubling back on itself.

  Seth remembered hearing about an abandoned mansion

  somewhere on the property. It had once been the main

  house at Fablehaven, and the center of a community, of

  which the dilapidated shelters were probably remnants. He

  could not recall ever hearing why the mansion had been

  abandoned.

  Given his current situation, one detail about the manor

  stood out above the rest. It occupied high ground. He suspected

  that from the roof he would be able to get his

  bearings.

  Did he dare risk entering the house? Normally he would