Brave Story - Miyuki Miyabe [361]
“Yeah. But, we still have to let it go.” The black bird didn’t fly so well. First it slammed into the railing, then it came to rest on the laundry pole where it strutted and fretted for a while. Katchan leaned out and swiped at the bird with his hand, knocking it into the air. At last, the little black bird took wing and sped off into the night.
“That all you wanted?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Wataru felt a great weight lift off his chest. He took a deep breath, smelling the familiar smells of Katchan’s room.
“Wataru…” Katchan began, sniffling.
“Thanks. I-I gotta go back.”
Somewhere, far down the Corridor of Light, a bell was ringing.
“Go back? Back where? What’s happened to you?”
I’m sorry, I can’t say anymore. Wataru felt his resolve strengthen anew. I have to get back to explain everything to Katchan, to tell him the story of all my adventures in Vision.
“I’ll be back soon, promise. Wait for me.”
Wataru stepped back toward the corridor. Katchan reached out to grab him, but then the strength left his arm and his hand dropped. “Wataru!”
Wataru could hear Katchan calling for him all the way back down the corridor.
Back at the sigil, back in the crystal city. Wataru was alone again.
Time to go meet Mitsuru.
Chapter 54
The Last Fight
Wataru walked on through the crystalline collage of all the towns and villages he had seen in Vision. Eventually he came upon a vast ruin that stretched as far as the eye could see.
The Imperial Capital of Solebria.
There was no mistaking the crumbled city wall and the flattened houses. Everything was fashioned from the same crystal, making the broken pillars and the stripped roofs more otherworldly. In a way, the cityscape was even more beautiful than anything he had seen thus far.
If the shapes had been abstract, it would have truly been a work of art. As it was, Wataru lacked the words to express the irony of the view, but he could taste it like a bitter tang in the back of his throat. He hadn’t been able to properly process the destruction of the real Solebria—the wounds were still too fresh in his mind. Though the translucent crystal rubble neutralized the feeling of tragedy, it could not lessen the rage, fear, and sadness he continued to feel.
He wondered what Meena and Kee Keema were doing. Did they make it safely to the Isle of Dragon? Had the south been warned about the demonkin invasion?
Wataru lowered his eyes and ran. He ran and ran and ran until something large and looming blocked his path. He had been going so fast he nearly collided with it. He caught his breath and looked up.
It was a large gate. It looked like the front gates to the Crystal Palace. Here, in this precise model of Solebria, the gates to the Imperial Palace stood impossibly unblemished.
For a moment, Wataru recalled the Porta Nectere. These gates were far smaller than the real thing.
The intricate crest carved in the middle of each door was most likely that of the Imperial Family. It looked kind of like a star chart with all the paths of the celestial bodies. Also included were a sword and shield, a night and dragon, and above it all, a single crown.
Wataru pushed and pulled at the doors, but they wouldn’t budge. A dead end.
He looked around, but saw nothing resembling a way out through the sparkling sea of rubble surrounding him. If he couldn’t get through the double doors, he wouldn’t be going any farther.
He contemplated climbing the gate, but soon gave up the idea. It was far too slippery for him to get a good grip.
How am I supposed to get beyond this point?
Scratching his head and walking in circles, Wataru felt his anger and frustration grow. He gave the door a swift kick.
Ouch! That hurt. Wataru looked down at his throbbing foot and saw the faint outline of a pattern or diagram on the ground. It vaguely resembled the Corridor of Light star sigil he had seen many times before. But this pattern was only about half the size of a manhole.
Wataru looked around and found others—he counted five in all. They were all laid out