Fin slipped free of the celebration and made his way toward him. Being forgettable had a few advantages; sometimes folks preferred to open up to a stranger. And it looked like Ardent needed someone to talk to.
“You’ll find her, blood,” Fin said quietly, joining him.
Ardent sighed. “I don’t know that I will.”
Fin had never heard him sound so weary. “Why wouldn’t you?”
“Because she never found me.” Ardent shrugged. “Either she doesn’t want to, or something’s happened and she can’t.”
Fin thought about that. “Maybe she was just waiting for you to come back from Monerva. Maybe she didn’t want to interfere with what she knew had to happen there.”
Ardent laughed, but it was a hollow sound. “You mean she’s like Serth—already knowing the future and trying to make it so.”
“You can’t give up hope.” Fin almost laughed at the number of times he’d had to remind himself of the same thing.
It was so long before Ardent answered that Fin started to wonder if he’d been forgotten. “When I used the Map to find her, it was blank,” the wizard said. His voice was so devoid of emotion it caused a chill to scurry down Fin’s spine.
“What does that mean?” Fin asked.
Ardent squeezed the railing tightly. “I don’t know. But I promised her I’d scour the Stream for her, and I intend to do just that.” The wizard kicked aside the hem of his robe and strode toward his cabin.
For a moment, Fin stood staring at the indents Ardent’s fingers had left in the wooden railing.
“Ardent?” Fin called after him. One thing still bothered him.
The wizard turned, looking at him absently. “Hmm?”
“We still don’t know who the Master was, do we? Or why he was helping Serth?”
Ardent sighed. “No. If anything, we know even less of him now than we did at the start of all this.” He shook his head gravely as he rejoined Fin, staring out at the Stream. “But that, too, I intend to change. Before, I was willing to let it stay a mystery, to be one of those secrets the Stream alone gets to keep. Not anymore.”
“Serth called him an old friend,” Fin pointed out.
Ardent nodded, thinking about this for a moment before pushing back from the railing, determination spreading across his wrinkled features. “Then I suspect the Master may be an old friend of mine as well.”
Fin blinked. “Wait, what? You think you may know him?”
“The Master is clearly a wizard of great power,” Ardent explained. “A wizard of that caliber, and an old friend of Serth’s? I can only think of a few and they were all members of the Wizards of Meres, as were Serth, Annalessa, and I.
“There weren’t many others, as you can imagine.” Ardent continued. “Though what could have turned one of them into that, I cannot say. But we were all dedicated to exploring the mysteries of the Pirate Stream itself… and look what that did to Serth…” He trailed off into uncomfortable silence.
Fin stood for a moment, certain the old man had forgotten him. But just as he moved to slip away, Ardent sighed. “I have a feeling none of this is over.” He still stared across the water. “I will not make the mistake of assuming the Meressian Prophecy has ended this time.”
Fin gulped. There would be time enough to think about that, but not now. Not on this beautiful, sunlit day, when they’d beaten back the forces of evil and saved both Marrill’s world and the Pirate Stream. Today, that was something worth celebrating.
“Hey, Plus One,” Remy called behind him. “What are you doing up there all alone?”
“Yeah, Fin,” Marrill cried. “Get back here!”
Even Coll didn’t threaten to throw him in the brig for once.
Laughing, Fin took one last look around before running back to join them. From horizon to horizon, the Stream sparkled like diamonds in the sun. An endless sea of possibility. And now, he had his best friend here to sail it with him.
He couldn’t have wished for more.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Climbing the Wall of Monerva has been a long and spectacular journey. It took a strong team and a steady hand to help us reach the summit, and many more to keep us from falling right back down again.
Our deepest thanks to Deirdre Jones for never losing sight of us or letting us drop, no matter how high the Wall seemed or how fast we were slipping. A very special thank-you to the one and only Victoria Stapleton, who we have no doubt is a wizard of the highest order (if humbler than most wizards we know). Thanks also to Andrew Smith, Kristina Aven, Jenny Choy, Emilie Polster, Annie McDonnell, and everyone else at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and Orion Children’s Books for making sure we had all the necessary tools for the journey.
Of course, climbing is always easier if you can fly. We are eternally grateful to the wonderful Merrilee Heifetz, who seems to sprout wings every time we’re about to slip. Also to Sarah Nagel, Cecilia de la Campa, and the entire team at Writer’s House for their unerring support.
But for the imagination of Todd Harris and the steady hand of his wife, Rachel, we would be lost and blind to the wondrous creatures and places of the Stream. Red @ 28th provided a welcoming base camp, and our fellow mountaineers supplied necessary advice, wisdom, and friendship: Thanks to Kate Sullivan, Rose Brock, Sarah MacLean, Beth Revis, Diana Peterfreund, Ally Carter, the folks at Bat Cave, as well as all the folks at FDWNC, for their continued support and tolerance of many skipped lunch breaks. And of course, our wonderful families continue to encourage us in expeditions such as these, no matter how far we go or how distant it takes us.
Finally, but foremost, to our fearless readers. There are no fires without fuel, and no stories without hearts to burn in. Thank you for climbing with us. The view from the top of the Wall is so much sweeter with you by our sides!
Contents
COVER
TITLE PAGE
WELCOME
DEDICATION
MY FRIEND FIN
CHAPTER 1: The Message on the Stop Sign
CHAPTER 2: The Perpetual Stowaway
CHAPTER 3: Fangs, and Other Car Troubles
CHAPTER 4: Here There Be Pirates
CHAPTER 5: The Colloquy of Pickled Pate
CHAPTER 6: Lost Key, Found
CHAPTER 7: A Problem of Unusual Gravity
CHAPTER 8: Beyond This Point, Continuity Cannot Be Guaranteed
CHAPTER 9: Worst Roller-Coaster Ride Ever
CHAPTER 11: A Reunion (About Time)
CHAPTER 12: Things to Do While Wizards Save the World
CHAPTER 13: The Most Fun You’ll Ever Have Dangling from a Snail
CHAPTER 14: That One Dream Where You’re Falling
CHAPTER 15: And the Waves Came Crashing
CHAPTER 16: Emberfall
CHAPTER 17: Honestly, That Could Have Gone Better
CHAPTER 18: The City of Burning Ladders
CHAPTER 19: A New Ally (Flames Take His Name)
CHAPTER 20: Firefleers Fleeing the Fire Fleetly
CHAPTER 21: The King of Salt and Sand
CHAPTER 22: A Piece on the Game Board
CHAPTER 23: The Tower of the Wiverwanes
CHAPTER 24: Everything Wants
CHAPTER 25: DOWN… Down… down…
CHAPTER 26: The Syphon of Monerva
CHAPTER 27: The Reunion at Last
CHAPTER 28: Sunrise
CHAPTER 29: Lessons in Perspective
CHAPTER 30: The Legacy of the Salt Sand King
CHAPTER 31: Tied Together, Bound in Place
CHAPTER 32: The Iron Tide
CHAPTER 33: Full Circle
CHAPTER 34: Promises to Keep
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
COPYRIGHT
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the autho
r’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2015 by Carrie Ryan & John Parke Davis
Illustrations copyright © 2015 by Todd Harris
Cover art © 2015 by Todd Harris
Cover design by Sasha Illingworth and Jessica Kleinman
Cover © 2015 Hachette Book Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at permissions@hbgusa.com. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.
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First ebook edition: October 2015
ISBN 978-0-316-24083-3
E3