The Secret of Ashona (51 page)

Erec closed his eyes and imagined himself entering the dark room inside of his mind. It had been a while since he had been here, and he had almost forgotten how nice it was . . . how calm. It felt great to relax after worrying so much for so long. He didn’t want to leave this place, but at the same time he could not wait to see what the future showed him. He hoped he would see Trevor safe and sound, far away from the Shadow Prince.

So he entered the smaller room inside of the one that he was in. It was even darker, more peaceful. There was the box that contained all of his knowledge sitting on a table. He allowed himself to rest a hand on it and feel the warmth, excitement, and wonder that it contained. Once again, it gave him the feeling that everything would work out just fine. He hoped this time that the feeling would last after seeing Trevor’s fate. Erec pulled the soft cord that hung between the two windows and pulled the shades open to watch.

Trevor was alive—he was breathing, at least. But he was strapped down to a table, metal cones inserted into his head. His eyes were closed, and it was hard to tell if he was unconscious or just resting. But there was a look of agony on his face.

Baskania stood over Trevor’s body cackling with glee. “I have done it! I have found the answer that I have waited for my entire life!
The Final Magic.” He rubbed his hands together. “If I had only known all along how simple it was. It took a child, a very wise child, to be able to see the connections that I was missing all along.

“A toast!” He lifted a glass of purple liquid that looked to Erec like dragon blood. “A toast to my great future! And to the memories of Erec Rex—may he rest in peace. Thank you, Erec, for giving me such wonderful gifts when you were alive.”

Trevor began to stir. He opened his eyes, but when he saw Baskania, tears formed, and he shut them again tight.

“He wakes.” Baskania rubbed his hands together. “What a great opportunity to try out my new powers.” He reached in a pocket and withdrew a long silver knife, and in a second he slit Trevor’s throat. “Right through both carotids and jugulars.” He wiggled the knife a little more. “That should do the most damage.”

Trevor’s eyes flashed open in horror as blood spurted out. He was unable to speak, and in a moment he drooped and then lay on the table, dead.

“Now, let’s see if this works.” Baskania waved his hands in the air over Trevor’s body, and closed his eyes, murmuring.

Trevor’s body jerked, and then he opened his eyes. He was alive again, blood spurting more out of his neck now that his heart was beating. In a moment his eyes closed again, and he died.

“It worked! Starting life on my own. What a prize! I’m glad that we found you, Trevor. It was so easy, too.” Baskania
stared greedily at him as if he was about to devour him. “And once again . . .”

He waved his hands over Trevor’s body, eyes closed, and Trevor awoke from the dead again, with a start. This time as soon as the blood began to spurt from his neck, Trevor faded away and died.

Baskania laughed wildly. “Look at that! Bringing life to the dead! I can animate anything now!”

He waved his hands over Trevor again, awakening him only to die another instant death. It was obvious that Baskania had cut Trevor’s throat so he would die immediately, making his spell easier to test. He had no intention of saving Trevor at all.

Finally, Baskania dusted his hands together and left Trevor dead on the blood-soaked table.

Erec yanked the shades shut and stepped out of the rooms fast. He could not believe what he had seen. This was the worst situation of all. Trevor dead . . . Erec dead . . . and Baskania with the greatest power in the world. This could not happen.

“You can’t hide Trevor from Baskania. It won’t work.” Erec was panting, but could not tell Bethany the horrible details. “Baskania will find him, and everything will go wrong.”

“What else can we do, then? If I
don’t
hide Trevor then Baskania will get him too, right?”

Erec had not thought about that. What other options were there, aside from Bethany hiding her brother, or not hiding him at all? If Erec hid him, he would likely turn him over to Baskania before long—like he had seen in his other vision.

But then something occurred to him. What had happened to Trevor in his original vision? Erec had given him to Baskania, saying that he was worthless. And then in another later vision, Erec had proposed killing Trevor by throwing him into a trash compactor. Although that was horrible too, it at least was better than this. Baskania had not seemed to get the information from Trevor that he needed.

It was confusing, and Erec wanted to make sure he thought it out correctly. Baskania would find Trevor on his own, or Erec would bring Trevor there himself. Those were the only choices. The outcome seemed better for Trevor—and everybody—if Erec was the one to do it. At least he wasn’t lying dead in a pool of blood in that vision.

How was he supposed to tell Bethany that, though? And why would it even make a difference how Baskania found Trevor?

Bethany’s face was pale. “You’re supposed to bring him to Baskania yourself, aren’t you?”

“How did you know?”

“Look at your face. I don’t have to be a math genius to realize there are only three options here. And two of them—me hiding Trevor, or not hiding him—lead to the same thing.”

Erec nodded. “I just wish that I knew how to make this work out the best. If I turn Trevor in myself, Baskania doesn’t seem able to find the information he needs.”

“Could it be a time thing?” Bethany asked. “Maybe if you turn Trevor in, Baskania doesn’t keep him as long.”

Erec’s visions flooded his mind. “I don’t think that’s it. It could be other things. If you hide Trevor, then I’ll die too. I stay alive the other way.”

Bethany gasped. “Why didn’t you tell me that before? That settles everything. You have to take him there. If only we can figure out a way to keep him safe . . . somehow . . .”

A voice in Erec’s ear made him jump. “I have a way.”

Spartacus! Erec had not seen him in the room until now. “Have you been here this whole time?”

Bethany looked at him in surprise. “Me? Of course I have—what are you talking about?”

But Spartacus shook his head. “Nope. I had a little errand to run. All the way back to the Underworld. I hope you appreciate it.”

“What? Why would you go back there again?” The idea made Erec cringe.

“Who are you talking to?” Bethany shivered. “You’re acting weird.”

“I’m sorry. Spartacus is here.”

Bethany’s eyes flew open wide. “The ghost?” She wrapped her arms around herself. “Where is he?”

Erec did not know what it was that made ghosts so much scarier to people when they were invisible. “He’s right next to me . . . and he might have an idea.”

“Might?” Spartacus plunked a glass of water in front of Erec.

“Thanks.” Erec wondered how the ghost knew that his throat was dry . . . but then again Spartacus could read his mind. He picked up the glass to take a drink—

“No!”
Spartacus shouted. He ripped the cup from Erec’s hand before he took a sip.

Bethany watched in wonder as the glass appeared and jerked itself back to the table. “What’s going on?”

As if she could hear his answer, Spartacus said, “I’ll tell you what’s going on. I went all the way back to the Underworld and brought back water from the River Lethe. Took a lot of planning, too—I’ll tell you that.”

“How did you . . . ?”

“I had to bring two gold coins so the boatman would transport the cup across the river and back again. Be glad you didn’t have to see the River Lethe. You wouldn’t have been able to drink this stuff if you had.”

“So, what are we going to do with it?”

Spartacus waited a moment for Erec to put things together. “Trevor . . . ?”

A thought settled into Erec’s mind. “Oh! What a great idea!”

“What is going on?” Bethany was starting to look annoyed.

“This might be the answer.” Erec pointed to the cup. “Spartacus got it from the River Lethe in the Underworld. When you drink it you forget everything you ever knew.”

“Isn’t that what Ward drank?”

“Yeah. I had a sip too, when I was a spider. But if Trevor drinks it now . . .”

Bethany’s face lit up. “He wouldn’t know anything anymore. He might be useless to Baskania, then!”

“Exactly. Great thinking, Spartacus! This has to be the answer. It fits right in with me calling Trevor useless in my vision when I’m giving him to Baskania.”

“Thanks, Spartacus!” Bethany blew kisses to where he stood.

“Aw, shucks,” the spirit said. “Tell her it’s no problem.”

“Let’s go find him!” Bethany ran out of the library, Erec and Spartacus following behind.

Rosco was waiting outside the door. He joined them as they walked down the hallway. “Did she take it okay? Any ideas where we’re going to hide her brother?”

“I’m going to turn him over to Baskania.”

Rosco gave Erec a sideways glance. “Real funny. What are we going to do with him? And where is he?”

“Bethany’s brother is Trevor.”

Rosco’s eyebrows jumped to the top of his forehead. “Trevor? As in . . . your brother Trevor Rex?”

“Yeah. But he was originally Trevor Cleary.”

“No way . . .”

“I looked into the future. Trevor and I both die if I don’t bring him to Baskania myself. But we’re going to give Trevor the same stuff
to drink that Ward had, so he won’t be any help to Baskania. I think this is the only way.”

Rosco thought that over awhile. “It will look really good for you if you hand Trevor to the Shadow Prince. I’d play it up, and get all the credit you can. That will only help you later.”

Bethany found Trevor in the open aquarium where he liked to spend time. It was attached to the wing where they stayed, and had both closed containers of different types of fish, and open ones leading straight into the ocean. There was enough food in the boxes that plenty of ocean fish swam in and out. One whole wall of the room was glass, and its view of the ocean floor was magnificent.

Trevor stood before the glass wall, counting softly to himself.

Bethany ran up behind him and threw her arms around him, making Trevor jump. “It’s so good to see you!”

Trevor’s face turned red, and he stumbled, pushing away from her. “Um . . . yeah.” He looked around the room as if trying to think of something to say, but could not.

Trevor had always had a hard time communicating, but he had a lot going on under the surface. Now it was all starting to make sense. Trevor
was
special, but Erec never realized until now just how special he was. He was probably a math genius like Bethany and Pi. Maybe even smarter than they were, since he was the only one able to help Baskania figure out the Final Magic. Erec knew that Trevor liked patterns and codes, and that he thought he could predict things. But he was so quiet, never sharing his predictions with anyone, that it had seemed more like pretend than anything else.

Right now he didn’t look so bright at all, stammering and pink. He was more than a little confused about the sudden attention. Everybody was staring at him.

Bethany put a hand on his shoulder. “Do you remember hearing
about how I had a little brother? And how I was looking all over for him, but I didn’t know who he was?”

Trevor nodded silently.

“You’re him.”

He stood looking at her, as if she had announced that it was dinnertime, or what the weather would be that day. Erec wondered if what she had said had sunk in at all. But then Trevor slowly nodded.

Bethany threw her arms around him again, and this time Trevor let her stay that way for a while. “I’m so happy I found you,” she said.

“Me too.”

“What were you looking at in there?” Bethany left an arm around him as they turned to look through the glass.

Trevor pointed. “Those fish. The white ones.”

“They’re pretty. Do you like the way they look?”

“I like their patterns. I think they’re talking to each other that way.”

Bethany gazed at the fish a while, thinking about what he said. “I wish I could see it, Trev. But I bet they are. Someday will you teach me about the patterns?”

Trevor nodded.

Erec came up to him, holding the cup of water from the River Lethe. He felt horrible about letting Trevor drink it. All of his memories would be gone forever now. It seemed so unfair—but then again, all of this was unfair. And Trevor forgetting everything was better than Trevor dying in a pool of blood.

He wanted to give them another minute together before destroying everything, so he stood waiting. Nothing was said between Bethany and Trevor, but it was still meaningful somehow, just for the two of them standing there together, knowing.

Erec told him what he was going to do, because it just seemed right. “Things are going to be a little messy for a while, okay, Trevor?”
His stomach clenched. How would he ever be able to do this to his brother? But then again, how could he not? “Baskania knows you are Bethany’s brother—or he will soon. I have to give you this drink so you forget everything that you ever knew. It’s the only way to make it so you won’t be able to help Baskania. And it might protect you from him too. I’m the one who’s going to bring you to him. I want you to know that now, or I wouldn’t feel right doing it to you later. But when I looked into the future, it was worse if I didn’t do it this way.”

“It’s okay.” Trevor smiled bravely. “I know you would only protect me.”

That didn’t help. Erec’s hand holding the cup began to shake, slopping some of the water over the sides. How in the world was he supposed to lead his brother into the worst place in the world and hand him to someone who wanted to kill him? For a moment he thought he just wouldn’t do it . . . until he remembered the alternate visions of the future.

Tears formed in Erec’s eyes. Trevor put an arm around his brother. “Don’t feel bad, Erec. You’re doing the right thing.” He patted Erec’s shoulder. “I may forget who you are, but when everything is done again, can you tell me all your stories? I want to remember to love you.”

“I will.” Erec gave Trevor a hug, and then handed him the water. “Sorry about this, kid.”