Neverwylde (The Rim of the World Book 4) Read Free

into the stone. Even without any way to check the rock to verify Dox’s claim, they didn’t doubt him. The young man never made an assertion unless he was positively certain.
                “Then there could be sentient life here? In this climate?” Jules whispered.
                “Could those eye worms live in this type of extreme cold?” Fullgrath interrupted. “Or those clicker things?”
    Like the big weapons master, Kelen caught herself glancing around the floor. But at the same time, she realized Dox didn’t appear to be in distress. If anything approached them, or appeared about to threaten them, the young man would not be lying there with his head pillowed on his arms.
    “Doc?” Jules addressed the physician.
    The doctor shrugged. “I have no idea if those creatures are able to thrive in these conditions. Anything’s possible.”
    “Not clickers,” Dox commented. “Not eye worms. Howlers.”
    Cooter barked with laughter. “Boy’s got a way with words!”
    Kleesod spoke up. “Everything is in threes. This we know. But it does not necessarily mean that what is part of that three in one section is the same in another. We already see that.”
    “He is right,” Kyber continued. “We have seen how different this temple is. We know its design is not the same as the other temple. We cannot assume the creatures we battled at the other location are also in this locale.”
    Cooter snorted. “Oh, great. Three more somethings to discover.”
    “Well, from the sound of it, that howler keeps getting closer and louder. And judging by its vocalizations, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s sizeable.”
    Kelen concurred with Mellori. “If it is a large beast, then it’s possible it’s the dominant species in this region of the planet. The top of the food chain.”
    “And if that’s the case, and if our theory of three is still relevant, then there should be two other species of creatures it feeds on,” Sandow surmised.
    “The top of the food chain, huh?” Fullgrath glanced around at everyone sitting by the fire. “Then what does the bottom feeder feed on? I don’t see anything remotely edible around here, unless the little buggers dine on ice.”
    Tojun waved a hand for attention. “We need to discuss our way below.”
    “Shoot, gray boy.” Cooter crossed his legs and set his rifle across his lap.
    The Seneecian gave them a puzzled look. “Why do we agree that everything comes in threes, and yet we repeatedly refuse to follow it?”
    “What do you mean?” Jules asked.
    “All of this.” The man made a vague motion with his hand to include their surroundings. “We need to focus on the probable, not the possible. We have agreed that, overall, the species that ruled this planet did everything in threes, yes?”
    “It panned out over at the other temple,” Mellori agreed. “But that doesn’t mean this temple works the same way.”
    “Jules.” Kelen caught the ex-navigator’s attention. “That panel of lights, are the colors in threes?”
    It took the man a few moments to double-check. “Yeah,” he finally told them. “Three of each color.”
    “Just like the other panel,” she concluded. “I’m all for the sets of threes existing here, too.” She tossed Tojun a smile. “What else were you wanting to say?”
    He gave her a grin of thanks, his long canines winking in the firelight. “We know from the panel that there are chambers beneath us. Let us say the elevator is one way to get to the orange machinery room. If it is, there should be two more.”
    “I agree with you,” Sandow said. “There should be two more routes, but where?” He slapped the wall behind him. “Where are the other doorways?”
    An idea came to Kelen just as Kyber squeezed her hand and struggled to get to his feet. Without explaining what he was doing, he began tapping the wall as he slowly made his way down the corridor. Kelen managed to stand, went over to the wall on the other side of