“Go on,” I tell them.
They swoop down on the food in a mad frenzy. It’s gone in seconds.
Rishi smiles at me. I forgot how much I missed her smile, like there’s an infinite well of happiness inside of her. I forgot how good I feel just being in her company.
“Why are they like this?” I ask Rishi.
“The way Madra tells it,” she says, “it’s too dangerous for them to go out. There’s some bad juju on the land. It wants the avianas to join her side. The avianas won’t, so the creature is starving them out. They call it—”
An involuntary shiver passes over me. “The Devourer.”
“Yes,” Madra says, flying around us until she lands on the dais. “That is the creature who’s ravaged these lands for her own power. That is the creature you seek, isn’t it?”
“It is.” There’s something about Madra that makes me want to stand perfectly still. Nova was right. There’s something about their eyes.
“Are the others okay?” Rishi asks.
Madra turns to the statue of El Cielo and bows her head. My mom does that with the statue of La Mama when she’s asking for strength to deal with three daughters. Madra shuts her eyes and mouths a silent rezo.
When she finally turns to me, her shoulders sag with defeat. “I beg you. Nothing is worth journeying to the Devourer. Her cruelness has conquered many souls across Los Lagos. Those who refuse her remain hidden, scavenging to live. You will only find death.”
“I have to,” I say. “She has my family.”
Madra is quiet for a bit. She takes to pacing again, then comes to a stop in front of me. “What do you know of these lands, bruja?”
I shake my head. “Only the notes in my family’s Book of Cantos. My friend has our map. Can you let him go? We mean you no harm.”
“He will be released when I give the word. Men are not allowed in the Caves of Night.”
“What about this guy?” Rishi says, pointing to El Cielo. “He looks like he has all the man parts.”
“Rishi,” I say through gritted teeth.
Madra actually smiles. “The Deos are more than male or female. They are both and neither at the same time. They are the creators and destroyers of the worlds. Tell me, Alejandra Mortiz, what does your witch book say of my kind?”
Now that the food is gone, the birds have returned to their nests, but their eyes are still cast down at us. So much for a speedy getaway.
“There’s a story about the daughters of El Cielo,” I say, like I’m reciting from a history textbook. “He was Deo of all the Skies. The avianas were made to protect the riches of the world from being stolen. But they failed and were banished from the mortal realm.”
“Failed,” Madra repeats. “I did. I let a man whisper in my ear. I let him into the caves. I let him have the treasures of El Cielo. For that, my curse is to never change. Never age, never die. But not my sisters. They can grow old and sick and hungry. I do the best I can, but the land around us is dying. I can only hunt so much without the saberskins coming for us.”
“What about the others you were talking about?” Rishi asks. She turns to me and elaborates. “There are these tribes that live underground and refuse to give their lands to the Devourer.”
“There are few tribes of creatures left who still fight,” Madra says. “The rest of the land is filled with ghosts and others who gave up long ago. If you continue on your path, you may lose more than your life.”
“I’m the reason my family was taken,” I say. “I have to make things right. No matter what happens to me.”
“Why don’t you come with us, Madra?” Rishi suggests. “Alex is going to free her family, and you can free your lands.”
Madra shakes her head. “My duty is to my people. Their survival is all I live for.”
“But, Madra!”
I take Rishi’s hand to pull her away from the aviana. “Rishi, drop it. Let’s just take Nova and go.”
A sharp whistle pierces the air. Madra turns away from the statue of El Cielo and to the right, where a group of avianas hold Nova by the wrists. A dirty cloth has been shoved in his mouth.
“What are you doing?” I start to run to him, but Madra’s wings expand and push me onto the ground.
The avianas bring Nova forward. His eyes widen when he sees me. Then he frowns when he sees Rishi. He shakes his head and screams through his gag. The avianas speak in sharp cries back and forth.
“Madra, please,” I say.
Madra puffs up her chest. Her face is inches from mine. “Do not plead with me for a boy who does not know the meaning of honor. If you would plead, plead for yourself, Alex Mortiz.”
“What happened?” I start to step forward, but Madra’s wing knocks me back again.
“I have allowed you into our home,” she says, her body shaking with anger. “I have saved you from death. I have made an exception to keep this man in our caves.”
The avianas empty Nova’s pockets. Dozens of glittering crystals and gold fall at his feet.
Madra’s black eyes are endless. She grabs my shoulders with her clawed hands. “But I cannot abide thieves!”
19
Sana, sana, the body endures.
Cura, cura, the soul of the pure.
—Healing Canto, Book of Cantos
The avianas grab the three of us in their talons and throw us into the one of the highest nests. Dried leaves and branches are woven into a makeshift mattress, and a fire burns in a stone bowl.
“What did you do?” I punch Nova’s chest.
He grabs my wrists to pull me off him. “How was I supposed to know the gems weren’t up for grabs?”
I yank my hands free from his hold. I point my index finger, like the barrel of a gun, at his face. “You just ruined everything! How are we supposed to get out of these caves? They could have helped us.”
He turns away from me and sits on the makeshift mattress. “How? A bunch of starving birds are going to storm the labyrinth with us?”
“You’re the one who told me not to touch shiny things. But you think with your pockets, don’t you?”
“I didn’t think they’d see me take a few gems in a cave full of them!”
“Shut up, Nova. You’re not even sorry.” I kick a stone away from us. It flies off the side of the nest. We listen to it fall, hitting the sides of the caves like a penny in an empty jar. I count ten seconds before it lands.