Rivers of Fire (Atherton, Book 2) by Patrick Carman Read Free Book Online Page A

There was a mad dash toward the closed doors as Tyler lifted one end of the timber and dropped it into place. Then he darted to the other end of the timber, hefting it into the air with all his might as the crowd outside barreled forward and crashed into the doors. One of the doors began to swing open, but Tyler pushed hard against the beam of wood and wedged it tightly, locking himself inside.
    He could hear the sound of angry voices outside, but it was muffled from where he stood, and this gave him a small measure of satisfaction. He backed away from the doors, so very hungry and tired, and walked unsteadily into the courtyard until he could hear the voices no more.
    ***
    And so it was that while Sir Emerik, Lord Phineus, Samuel, and Isabel descended into Mead's Hollow, a fourth village sprang
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    up on Atherton. On the far side of the Highlands, as far away from the other villages of Tabletop as could be managed, there came into existence the Village of Horses. The village was comprised of all the people from the Highlands along with the horses that could be found outside of the House of Power. When the last of the horses leaped for the edge, the Highlands were a full five feet below Tabletop.
    An hour later dawn was about to break on Atherton. Everyone in the Village of Horses stood at the edge looking down at their old home, filled with dread as they considered the day that lay before them. The Highlands were almost twenty feet beneath them now, and they could actually see them moving down ever so slowly, a gurgling, grinding noise coming from under their feet.
    There was something at once beautiful and terrible about seeing their home collapse. It was a lonely place to look at in the coming light of morning, deep shadows casting over a once superior realm. And yet the House of Power had never before been seen from above, and it was a magnificent thing to behold with its gleaming white stone walls and green gardens, its rising turrets and winding staircases. From above it had the appearance of a magical, stately place being overcome by an evil darkness.
    "What will become of us?" asked Gill of no one in particular.
    "That all depends on the choices we make," said Horace, who stood nearby. "It's a brand-new day, a chance to set things right."
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    Gill scanned the line of trees that surrounded the Highlands. They had once stood high and mighty around him--forty feet or more--but soon he would be staring down at their tops. He turned to say something to Horace and saw that he had moved off and was staring toward the far edge of Atherton with a troubled look on his face.
    Horace's closest allies, Gill among them, approached him as a group. "What is it?" asked Gill, gazing as Horace did toward the edge of the world. "What do you see?"
    Horace knew what might be coming. They had talked at length in the night of what was to happen next, of how the people would need to be told of the coming danger, and of what each of Horace's men must do. He turned to his men and spoke with fear in his voice, echoing the words he'd heard Maude say in the Village of Rabbits.
    "We must all unite against the one foe. It's our only chance."
    The Cleaners.
    "Get some horses ready," said Horace. "It's time."
    ***
    When morning came to Atherton it felt as if a new world was being lit for the first time. All the changes that had come before seemed to rush into the one charged moment of dawn. From every vantage point, the same message was clear and sharp as a knife.
    Atherton was not the place it had once been.
    Briney and Maude, the keepers of the inn, stood motionless
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    and silent in the Village of Rabbits, staring at the line of trees where cliffs had once risen into the sky. The Highlands lay dark and wide against the rising sun, and it felt like much of what had made this secret place so powerful had fallen away along with its descent. "I miss the cliffs," said Briney, putting an arm around his wife. "It was a place to put my back against where