In the Partridge room, Fabe sat on one of the benches with his face buried in his hands.

"You all right, Fabe?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said, not lifting his head. "Just a little sick."

Marylea didn't look much worse for wear, though she had a small cut on her upper lip.

"We got bounced around a little," she explained.

I felt a stab of guilt. If the room wasn't padded, she wouldn't have gotten away with only a cut lip.

"Have a good rest," I said. "I'm going to check on the Loki."

I left the airship and skirted the sides, scanning for signs of damage. Gaping puncture holes as wide as a church door were present in walls of the engine room. I could shimmy into the engine room if I wanted.

Then I heard an ominous gurgling sound in the background, and panic shot through me like lightning.

I dashed to the port side of the ship. Sure enough, there was a hole the size of a basketball in the bottom of our water reserve tank, and water was spilling out. A pool had already formed below.

"Help!" I cried. "I need help!"

I tore my Caval off and tried to shove it up the hole. All that did was splinter the sides and make the hole bigger.

When the others arrived, the frantic attempts to plug the leak began. Keenan, too, shed his Caval and pushed it up against mine. But the water current was too strong for the bunched-up fabric to hold. The silky material absorbed as much water as it could, but all it really did was filter the water gushing out and dumping it into the growing pool below.

"It's no use," said Fabe. "I'll grab buckets."

Fabe and Keenan dashed off to grab buckets while Marylea and I struggled to hold the Cavals up.

The boys returned, and we got a half bucket-full before the water tapered off.

"Is that all the water we've got?" asked Fabe. "We're dead meat."

"We'll find a water source," said Keenan. "There are several streams and rivers nearby."

The water in the bucket and our water bags would last us - what - one day? I drew a deep breath to calm my building frustration. With every ticking second, chances of getting Tem back were slimming.

"I'll go inspect the rest of the ship," I said.

I found more puncture marks in the hull and control room, each large enough for a man of Keenan's size to crawl through. It was so agonizing, I felt a scream building up inside me.

That frustration slowly turned into panic when I realized we were miles away from the Keeper Core with no mode of transport.

"Trout crackers," I muttered under my breath.

"I assume the profanities mean the Loki isn't looking too good," said Keenan, who came around the corner.

"We can't fly this anymore than we can sprout wings," I said. "Cursed Partridge."

Keenan put his hands on his hips and exhaled. "Guess this means we're walking."

"I don't know how to get us to the Core," I said. My voice broke, and I realized I was close to tears.

"We have maps. We'll get there."

My throat burned. "What if we get there too late?"

"We won't."

The bad news slowly, eventually, began to sink in. What if we got to the Core and the Keeper told us Tem was gone? Forever?

I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"We'll be fine," Keenan said softly. "We have you to lead us."

I blinked and saw a fat tear fall to the soil. It splattered and dyed the soil black.

If he said another nice thing to me I might stab myself.

I brushed my tears away and flicked them to the floor as if they were poison. Then I pushed my chin up and fixed my gaze on Keenan's ocean blue eyes. Although they were mostly swimming with fear, there was still room for something else, something I now recognized as affection. How had I been so blind? I pulled my gaze away and rested it on his shoulder. "We'll need supplies," I said. "I'll go scour the hull and see what food survived the crash."

"I'll look for nearby towns on the maps," said Keenan. He gathered a few maps under his arm and sat on the grass by a flat rock. Then he spread the maps across the rock and began to study them.

"I'll go with Ash and cook up something mean. I mustn't be the only hungry one here," said Fabe. I nodded. Food was the last thing on my mind, but we needed the energy.

Marylea was quiet. She sat on a rock and stared at the airship hugging herself.

I gestured for Fabe to go ahead. Then I went up to Marylea, touched her shoulder, and asked quietly, "Something wrong?"

She looked at me as if breaking out of a trance. "Ash. It's just - the ship breaking down means we're - I -" She sighed. "The trip will be prolonged." She shot a quick glance at Keenan, who was deep into his maps. She shook her head. "Sorry, I'm just being silly. There are bigger things." She smiled. "How can I help?"

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

I felt sorry for how awkward it must be for her to be on a voyage with someone she clearly still loved, but also hated. I racked my mind for something to keep her busy. "You could gather water bags and fill them with the water we have."

"I'm on it." She smiled, and I sensed gratitude. She walked ahead of me to join Fabe in the hull. I followed after her, crawling through a gaping hole made by the Partridge's beak.

After our supplies were gathered, we convened around Keenan to decide our next direction.

"I have good news and bad news," he said, his face grave. "There is no known settlement nearby."

"And the good news?" I asked. Stars knew we needed some right now.

"I have heard of rumors of a dwelling in Mount Dagger. Mount Dagger is that mountain over there." Keenan pointed at a mountain in the distance, shaped like an upturned dagger made of jagged, cut glass. It looked to be a couple days' hike away. "We have just enough supplies to get there, but I'll plan a route by a lake, just in case."

"How credible are these rumors?" asked Fabe.

"'Legend' would be a more accurate term."

Fabe closed his eyes. "Could be worse."

"Mhm," said Marylea. Her eyes were perpetually directed at the ground.

I rocked on my heels, trying to burn off the frustration bubbling in me, and hoped to the Stars that Marylea's mother hadn't missed a part about a deadline.

"Lead the way," I said.

***

The trees and bushes hung with plump fruit, teasing us with food we didn't dare touch. My throat was parched, my stomach protesting with a passion. I pulled a sweet roll from my backpack and nibbled on it, which seemed to sate it a little bit, though not much. I realized too late it was a bad idea, for my mouth was now drier than ever. I wished I could open my mouth and absorb the dense moisture in the air.

"Sorry guys," said Marylea, as she trudged alongside me. "I would shape a buffet if I could, but my powers don't work outside Aragonia."

"Don't worry about it," I said through a mouthful of sweet roll crumbs. I looked up at Mt. Dagger, which seemed to move further and further away.

"The lake should be coming up anytime now," said Keenan. His Caval, still soaked from being used to clog the water leak, was slung from his backpack and left a drip trail behind him. He wore a gray body-hugging top and pants. I shivered slightly in just my cotton suit, my wet Caval also strapped to my backpack. Fabe looked in his own element in a breezy tunic and half-pants. Marylea, dressed in black overalls that made her hair pop, walked with her eyes to the ground, trying not to look ahead at her ex-beau.

The damp forest was full of sounds: the rustle of leaves, dry leaves and twigs cracking under our feet, birds twittering away above us.

Then another sound joined in: the sound of laughing women.

"Did you hear that?" Keenan hissed. We stopped dead in our tracks, ears craned to listen. The womanly voices began singing a song in a chirpy language we didn't understand. It sounded like a flock of songbirds were facing off.

"I thought there was no settlement nearby," I whispered.

Keenan's voice was low and suspicious. "There isn't."

"Perhaps your map was outdated," said Fabe.

"It's not."

Then we heard splashing. My dry throat cried for charity. I pictured crisp, clear water, and it was all I could do not to charge towards the sound.

"That might be the lake we were hoping for," I said. "Worth checking out?"

Marylea shook her empty water bag. "My water bag says yes. We can hide in the bushes to see what's going on."

We crept towards the sounds, treading lightly as possible. The forest subsided into a very bright clearing. We knelt behind a thick bush and waited for our eyes to adjust.

There was indeed a lake in the clearing. It was wide, and sunlight danced off its crested surface like water imps. Our attention was quickly averted from the water, however, to the women that frolicked in it. It wasn't that they were clad in bikinis woven from water weeds, or that they were all stunning. It was the fact that, in place of legs, they had swishing green tails.

"Mermaids," I whispered under my breath.

"Frickin' hell," said Marylea. "No one told me fairy tale creatures roamed the Realm."

"They don't," I said. "I've never heard of mermaids in the Realm." I looked at Keenan. "Have you?"

The royal historian shook his head, equally perplexed. "Something tells me we should avoid them."

I nodded. "Agreed."

"But we need water," said Fabe. His eyes carried a certain sparkle. "Perhaps we should try talking to them."

Fabe was always a sucker for beautiful women. I fought the temptation to roll my eyes.

"I don't think that's a good –" My breath caught. "Fabe, stop!"

Fabe jumped over the shrub and walked into the clearing, waving. "Hey, you girls friendly?"

I growled.

Then the most astonishing thing happened: Keenan jumped over the shrub and joined Fabe in the trek towards the lake.

I cast a shocked glance at Marylea, who returned the expression. She rolled her eyes as if to say, "Men."

But something didn't add up. Keenan, the most sensible human being I'd ever encountered, wouldn't walk up to a troupe of fantasy creatures right after he had warned us about them.

"Should we follow them?" whispered Marylea. Her eyes were wide with surprise. Then I realized her eyes looked so much like Tem's, with the same streaks of orange, brown and green. I never noticed before, but now that I did, I felt a punch in my gut.

"We should lay low," I said, crouching lower. "See what happens."

Fabe and Keenan reached the mermaids by the shore of the lake. The mermaids welcomed the two boys with cries of joy and gleaming smiles. They did not stop their chirrupy singing.

I rocked on my heels, perplexed. Something was off. Keenan swayed as he stood by the shore. He leaned forward, his palm on a rock.

"He's not himself," I whispered.

"Who?"

"Keenan."

Then I noticed Fabe was swaying, too. He wore a wide, cheesy grin and his eyes seemed glazed over.

It fell into place. Panic hit me like a sledgehammer.

"They're in a trance," I said. "It's the song."

Marylea looked at me with alarm. "Frick! What should we -"

She never finished her sentence. There was a loud splash, and both boys were gone. I glanced back to see their feet disappear into the dark depths of the lake. The mermaids clapped their hands and shrieked with glee before diving after the boys.

"Shit!" Marylea cried.

"Wait, Lea –"

Marylea ignored my cries and jumped right into the clearing.

The mermaids heard her profanity and the rustling of the bushes and turned around. In a flash, their beautiful faces morphed into scaly faces that resembled the freak offspring of a snake and a weasel. They gnashed sharp fangs at Marylea, dove into the lake, and in seconds, reemerged bearing tridents and harpoons.

I pulled my sword from its sheath and jumped out after Marylea.

"Stay away from her!" I cried, pointing my sword at them.

The mermaids saw my sword and hesitated a little. One of them, a blonde ash-skinned mermaid, hissed, "Leave ussss. We do not wish to harm fellow women." A forked tongue flicked from her perfect lips. They held their ground, glaring at us with warning.

Marylea was frantic. "Ash, the boys – they'll drown!"

"Your boyssss won't drown," hissed the blonde mermaid. "We like to keep them alive. For some time, anywayssss." She tossed her head up to the sky and screeched with glee.

I pulled Marylea back by her shoulder. The mermaids glared at us."They don't have gills," I whispered to Marylea. "That means they need air - an airlock is below. I don't think the mermaid is lying. Keenan and Fabe won't drown."

"How can you be so sure?" Marylea asked. Tears clouded her eyes. I eased her back into the forest. She looked at the mermaids with alarm, and back at me. I saw the torment in her eyes. Fear for the boy she loved.

I wasn't sure. What I was sure about, however, was that we would be dead if we took on the mermaids now. Then there really would be no one to save the boys.

The mermaids' glare followed us as we went, unblinking.

Hidden behind shrubbery, I whispered, "We're outnumbered, Lea. We need a plan."

Marylea's eyes were swollen like they'd been stung by bees. "They'll live?"

"Yes, Lea," I said. "Even if it kills us."