To Fall is to Die

Chapter Twenty-One (Isa)

The tower was right there. The very tower of her dreams. Sure, they had been forced to leave Lydia behind, but they had reached it, and now all of her dreams and wishes would come true.

Faze looked stunned, and she couldn't blame him. She hadn't expected Lydia to turn here, at the last moment. His blue eyes were filled with grief, and something else too that she couldn't find a name for. They had lost their techy, but maybe the team leader and strategist would be enough to prevail.

Isa stopped running as they reached the foot of the tower, looking for a way up. Several ladders scaled its gold edged sides, one of iron, one of wood, and one of crystal. A message was carved into the wall, inlaid on a block of brick similar to the one they had seen previously. Again, it was in a mysterious code. This message was a lot smaller and spanned over several bricks.

"There is is cipher," Faze pointed out, picking up a scroll from the ground. His gaze shifted between the cipher and the message as he tried to translate it.

"What does it say?" Isa rubbed some of the dirt off the message, trying to make it clearer. She couldn't help but reflect that if Lydia was here, she would been able to use some bit of technology to clear off the dirt or even to translate this message faster.

After what seemed like forever, Faze cleared his throat, his gaze worried as he started to recite. "Greetings, travelers of three. You have reached the famed site of the bell tower, but now there is something you must know. Only one person can retrieve the fortune that comes from ringing the bell. This fortune can't be divided among your group, it is one person's and one person's alone. Each ladder leads is a different path. One is shorter than the others, one is longer. Only one person can go on each ladder. Choose wisely."

Isa gritted her teeth, looking down at the message. She had known that there would have to be sacrifices, but she hadn't been anticipating this. Wasn't the Cup supposed to be about teamwork? Clearly though, she had been wrong. She remembered Lydia's gaze when they had left her behind. Had that really been necessary?

But then she thought of her sister, of Becca. Of the girl who had so much potential but was stuck watching her days dwindle in a hospital bed. There was only one cure, and another sacrifice would have to be made to get the cure. Determination filled Isa's gaze and she looked up.

"I choose iron." Isa walked over to the ladder and stood in front of it, looking up at its span. While it was dark and gray, it was also sturdy and supportive. A good choice.

"Isa..." Faze mumbled, but turned away from her and dropped the cipher to the ground. His eyes filling with a fire of their own, he chose wooden ladder. Simple and durable, yet wood could rot and bend.

Isa set her hands on the edges of the ladder, ready. She thought that she heard Faze whisper good luck, but it could have just been the wind. She had already begun her climb.

~

Isa had broken into a good sweat by the time she had reached the top. It appeared as though she had chosen the right ladder after all, as no one else was on the small balcony on which the solitary bell hang. She could see both the tops of the wood and crystal ladders, but no face appeared over them. The iron ladder was the farthest from the bell and the crystal the closest, but she had still arrived first. All it would take was a few steps past those ladders and she would reach the bell. The messenger of death, or so it seemed. Dark gray, mystical, a wish-granter.

Even though her heart was relishing this moment, her hands hated her. Red and blistering, they pulsed with pain, but that was the price to pay for this happiness. Caught up in the moment, she placed her aching hands on the stone rail and looked out over the clouds.

How far she had come in the last few days. She could hardly see the starting point of the race, but she knew that it wasn't too far off. The clouds were beautiful, appearing to be splattered in a soft pink paint. She wondered how she had ever missed this much beauty.

Remembering what she had come for, Isa turned and made her way over to the bell. Her hand stretched forward, reaching for the rope that would bring her great fortune...