Free

Cressida

I help Iris to her feet and we start making our way towards the marble gateway that has materialised out of nowhere at the edge of the field. Surely, surely, after all the tests, this must be the way to Orbis. We've only taken a few steps, however, when we realise Sky isn't following us. We look back to see her standing where we started, watching us unhappily.

"What's the matter with you?" I snap. Iris squeezes my hand warningly, but I refuse to pay attention the the guilt deep within me when I see the hurt on Sky's face. Iris's face is still pale and I can feel her pulse in her wrist, slow and weak, although it's getting stronger by the second. I can't seem to get the picture of Sky pointing the wand at her out of my head, her eyes narrowed and cold. In that fleeting second, she looked just like she had when we first met her, when she used her magic against us without a shred of remorse.

It's hard to believe that was only a day ago. It feels like a million years have passed since I ran away from my father's castle. Maybe it was stupid of me, but I had really began to trust Sky. That new person; the kind, broken girl who had told us so many stories about herself, who had helped talk me back to reality when I couldn't handle the ghostly visions in my test... She had felt like a friend. I thought we were going to overcome the adversities together, all three of us.

The reminder that I was wrong curdles inside me.

"I can't see it," says Sky now. The glimmer of hope that had danced in her eyes before has been blown out. Her words are listless, monotonous. "I failed the test. I can't get through."

"Maybe if I-" began Iris.

"Magic won't work," says Sky miserably. "Not this time."

The guilt in me heightens. What is she going to do now? Is she trapped in this lonely, endless field forever? As far as I can tell, the way back to our old kingdom has closed too. We're stuck in some kind of purgatory between realms.

"Oh, for God's sake," I growl. "Hold on to Iris. Maybe we can pull you through with us."

Sky's eyes widen with surprise. She hesitates, then walks towards us and takes Iris's free hand. Then we walk towards the gateway together.

I reach out as we draw nearer, trying to pull the gates open, but my fingers close on empty air, and we walk straight through the gates as though they aren't there at all. We're surrounded momentarily by the blinding white dazzle of mist, just like the one we jumped through to get here in the first place. I prepare myself to fall down into the fog, but instead the mist clears and we're suddenly somewhere else.

We seem to be on the edge of a wood, but it would be impossible to mistake it for King Klaudius's kingdom. The bark of the trees is lined with sparkling silver, and the leaves shimmer golden in the sunlight. I look behind me and the view takes my breath away: we're standing at the top of an impossibly high hill, and sloping below us is a patchwork of villages and countryside; lakes, rivers, even palaces and castles. They stretch as far as the eye can see, and looming on the horizon I see mountains standing proudly, blue in the distance, a line of them curving round the kingdom like a wall defending a fort.

Orbis is even more incredible then I imagined.

"It's beautiful," Iris says softly beside me, turning around to see the view better. She lets go of my hand and stands up on her own, only ever so slightly unsteady. She's recovering quickly, and I wonder if it's anything to do with her newly gained magic. She looks back at the trees and points her finger at them, and a swirl of golden leaves are whisked from their branches and spiral around us. She laughs, delighted, then looks at Sky, the happiness fading from her eyes.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she says to her, remorsefully. "I wasn't thinking."

Sky shrugs and stares at the ground. "It's yours now," she answers quietly. "Do whatever you want with it."