Fall

Piper

Piper almost pushed Reine into the water when it burbled. She didn’t even know if the murky substance below them could be called water anymore, thickened by algae and infested by mosquitos.

What was that? she nearly shrieked aloud.

Reine nudged her along. Another crocodile. Keep moving. The natives don’t pay mind to them, so neither should we.

Piper repressed her shaking nerves. She looked around to see if anyone noticed her scare, and found a questioning Finch.

Nodding subtly to say I’m alright, Piper kept her head low and continued along the bridge. Try as she might, her eyes always strayed to the spaces between the wooden planks. Water had always been harmless, helpful to her. Now it stared back with wild eyes, hiding its inhabitants.

It was disturbing. Piper started to doubt their decision of taking this route—even if it was the only dry one to Seine—but Finch had whispered he thought they were halfway there. If they went back now, it would take the same amount of time to finish the bridge.

They wolfed down the charcoal pork from the previous night, and stopped only when the current of people ebbed. No one arrested them, or even gave them a second glance.

The morning sun grew old, and gradually crept down its ladder to rest. It was a rare moment when Piper and Finch were the only travelers in sight, and they deigned whisper in Elben.

“How much farther until we see Seine? Have we passed it?” Piper murmured.

Finch’s boots clunked over the boards as he slowed. “I heard the saying once, ‘All roads lead to Seine.’ I think the bridges end at the capital.”

Piper nodded. “And then?”

Finch gave her a sidelong glance. “You’re the leader here, captain.”

They would go to an address over a decade old, and hope the original tenants were there. If not… Well, that was the end of Plan A.

We’re on our way to the city of our enemies, and don’t have a Plan B. Reine bit back a growl. Great. Just peachy.

Do you have any bright ideas? Piper asked the leopard. Because you never seem to be out of retorts.

Her fera muttered something foul, and then, I’ll think about it.

Piper walked a few more steps before Finch hissed. She turned around, and found he hadn’t moved. Was there something in the bog? She was afraid to peer in.

Finch, thankfully, pointed to the land opposite of them. “Look.”

Squinting, and then shading her face from then sunset, Piper saw a thin sliver of brightness on the bank. It was stuck in a mangrove tree.

No, it was growing on the tree. Paper-thin vines were spread across the bark like veins. Along these vines bloomed equally small leaves. They were transparent. As clear as glass.

Piper stared at the plant. When she craned her head back to Finch, he was already looking at her.

“You don’t think…” she said.

“I think we should find out.”

Piper glanced at the water separating them from the marsh bank. “What about crocodiles? Water snakes? Parasites?”

Finch tapped the bridge with his foot. “There’s a reason this thing doesn’t have railings. You can leave anytime.”

“I doubt that’s why it doesn’t have a railing.” Piper bit her lip. “I don’t like this.”

“You don’t have to,” Finch said. “But I’m not going to pass by something that could be a danger to our home.”

She could stay on the bridge and watch him swim to the other side, but to be honest with herself, she was curious too. The plant appeared to be vitrum, alive and well where it wasn’t supposed to grow. Had the East somehow replicated their treasured weapon?

Perhaps, Piper thought suddenly, that had been why the East had been secluded all these years. They were trying to perfect the art of vitrum that the North had a head start on.

She had to know for sure.

“Okay. You can lead this time.” Piper waved a hand to the water.

“No, no. Ladies first.” Finch smiled.

Piper bowed in mock-theatricality. “Age before beauty.”

“I think you’re older than me. So let’s rephrase that,” Finch said. “Heroes first.”

Piper pursed her lips. She was out of comebacks, and Reine was purposely silent.

“I’m not going first,” she finally said.

“I know. I just wanted to see how long it took for you to get mad.” He grinned, and jumped into the bog.

Ugh! Reine recoiled as the slime hit her. Finch had jumped too soon for them to get back.

Piper’s thoughts turned dark as she imagined ways to punish Finch. Her alea was even involved in the payback when Finch popped above the surface.

“It’s deep here, but no crocs so far.” Finch gave a toothy grin. Piper didn’t tell him there was bits of algae in it.

She scanned both sides of the bridge to be certain no one was watching, and slipped into the water. It was just as cold and slimy as she had assumed. Goosebumps immediately lifted on her body as she swam madly for the marsh bank. Piper imagined far below them, in the murky depths where even the sun’s rays couldn’t reach, a river monster waited for his dinner.

Reine was ahead of her, and shook like a dog on the marsh bank. I will smell like swamp forever, she mourned.

Piper felt cold and sticky as she came fully out of the water. When she tried to wipe the slime off her skin, it came off in layers. “Oh, lovely.”

Finch was kneeling at the mangrove tree, inching to his full height as he traced the clear vine. “It looks exactly like vitrum. It has to be it.” Chip, who had waited on a tree branch for them, fluttered to his shoulder.

Glad to know we didn’t have to cross the water in the first place, Reine grumbled. She groomed her paw, and spat the algae to the side.

Piper touched the vine in awe. “I’ve never seen it grow on a tree before. I thought they were like…”

“Mushrooms? Cooper compares them to it all the time,” Finch said. “I don’t know how they cultivated it here. Vitrum is only able to grow in the cold. At least, it used to.”

A glint of something bright caught Piper’s eyes. The last reflection of the sun. She turned, and gasped.

“What?” Finch spun with her to see beyond the mangrove tree.

Hanging from branches, clustered in roots, lay the vitrum plants of varying size. They glistened like living jewels. A queen’s purse spilled.

For yards and yards the wild vitrum grew, as dense as a glass forest. Piper covered her mouth.

“Oh Life,” Finch breathed.