Hope's Ruin

17 | Shadow Of Death

Erin stood atop the mighty scaffold, her eyes locked on the horizon, at the rising sun, and the vast expanse that stretched before them. Colourful feathers littered the ground. They bunched around the roots of the wooden structure and drifted aimlessly on a swirling wind.

Marshall sat with his feet dangling from the edge, his forehead wrinkled in concern.

Neither had spoken to Pepper for the last hour. Instead, they're trooped up the dangerous hillside, cocooned in silence and shadow.

Pepper looked to the horizon, too. Number Twelve's quad bike trail tore down the other side of BootHill and vanished into The Great Wastes. Without Pluto, and with dwindling water supplied, they'd be marooned here. Destined to die of thirst or heat stroke or both.

Pepper looked at Erin and wondered what the girl was thinking. She couldn't go after Twelve on foot. That was suicide.

"We shouldn't have kept it," Erin said. "The doll's head. The last trace of Number Eight."

Pepper nodded. "Why did you?"

"I found it," Marshall told her. "The cursed thing was rolling around the courtyard after the battle. Wisps of black vapour leaked from its eyes and mouth but it seemed trapped, confused, locked inside the head somehow. Its teeth gnashed against the cobbles as words of pure hatred spat into the air. I thought it was about to attack. Somehow reawaken Eight or her army. So, I grabbed it. Panicked. Marched it into the barn and threw it into that box."

"I helped him with the locks," Erin explained.

"Why didn't you destroy it?"

"How?"

"With what?"

"Number Five vapourised most of the evil inside Eight by sacrificing herself," Erin explained. "Sure, we could try to smash the doll's head, slice it open somehow, but the risk of letting that spirit free was too dangerous."

Pepper looked away. "And now she's out in the world."

Erin clicked her knuckles. "Yeah."

"Inside Number Twelve," Pepper added.

"Maybe," Erin countered. "We don't know that for sure."

No-one spoke for a moment.

The sun cut a line across the horizon.

"We should make camp," Marshall said, jumping down from the scaffold and crawling beneath the wooden structure. "Under here. Come on."

The sun swept across the world like a glimmering scimitar.

Pepper stared at the ceiling of her bedroom. Glow-in-the-dark stars surrounded her Death Star lampshade. A poster of a DeLoren occupied one wall. The Large Hadron Collider on another. Mom's face appeared out of the gloom. 'Get some sleep, Pep. Big day tomorrow.' She nuzzled her face into the pillow. 'I'm scared.' Mom nodded. 'It's a great school,' she said. 'You'll make new friends in no time. And have excellent adventures.' Pepper sniffed. "What if I don't? What if they hate me?' Mom frowned. 'No-one's going to hate you, Pep. You're kind, and funny, and smart.' Pepper smiled. 'Everyone is going to love you.'

Erin kept hold of the pistol as she and Marshall huddled together beneath the scaffold and tried to get some sleep.

Pepper stared through a swarming heat haze at Pluto and the glinting silver robot strapped to its back. Even with his power off, she hoped Flake would be okay. She doubted the heat would have much bearing on his wires and fixing. He had survived for goodness knows how long out in The Great Wastes all alone. Even so, her heart ached for her friend.