“Mewmewmew,” said Kitten.

Simber’s face brightened. “So he doesn’t need to brrreathe either.” He turned to Captain Ahab. “What about you?”

“Aye. Whither lives the briny beast, so too live I.”

Simber rolled his eyes. “Okay, so that’s a yes forrr you and yourrr imaginarrry whale. You both need to brrreathe to surrrvive.”

“Aye,” said the captain.

Alex bit his lip and looked down, thinking of Spike, who, like Ms. Octavia, had definitely been breathing.

Simber frowned, still looking at Ahab. After a while, he said in a quiet voice, “That’s quite trrroubling, indeed.” He flew off toward the water that covered the volcano, flying low, as if it would bring back his comrade.

Alex leaned over toward Lani, wanting to make sure he wasn’t mistaking what Simber was saying. “He’s asking because of Florence, right?”

“I guess so,” Lani said. She moved over so that Samheed could join them. “So far, it seems like all the statues except Ahab can stay alive without breathing. I think he was trying to guess if Florence could possibly be alive.”

“But apparently there’s no rule,” Alex said, pondering. “Some breathe, some don’t.”

“Unless you account for the fact that Florence and Ahab are human statues. Ahab needs to breathe. Ms. Octavia needs to breathe, but she’s not a statue, she’s a . . . a creature, I guess.”

“Like Spike,” Alex murmured.

“Who?”

“Never mind.”

“Anyway, the point is that Ahab is a statue who needs to breathe. And the other statues who don’t need to breathe, like Simber and Kitten and Fox, are not human.”

Alex looked at Lani with alarm. “Oh. So is Florence like Ahab? Or like Simber?”

“I hope she’s like Simber,” Lani said. “But I’m afraid she might be like Ahab.” She turned toward him. “So now there’s a question that Simber probably wants to ask you. But since you’re both being ridiculous, he can’t get up the nerve to be all vulnerable or whatever. So I’ll ask it for him: If we can rescue Florence, and if she’s dead, do you think you can bring her back to life?”

Alex didn’t know. He grew intensely thoughtful, not noticing that the others had gathered now too, some in the shadows, to hear his answer.

He knew he could re-create the world of Artimé if it disappeared. He could put statues and creatures to “sleep,” and the restore spell would bring them back to life. But what if they died? Could they die? He’d never seen a creature or statue die. Well, except for Gremily, but she didn’t die, she disappeared, which wasn’t the same. But Alex was quite certain that the whale he’d brought to life was on its last gasp before he put her to sleep, so he was pretty sure that creatures could die. But what about Florence? And if she could die, would the live spell work on her to bring her back to life? And if it would work on Florence, would it work on anything or anyone who had died?

At last he rubbed his temples and said, “If Florence is not a breathing statue, then she should be just fine no matter how long she is underwater. However, I think that if a statue or creature relies on breath to live, they must also be capable of dying. So if Florence is a breathing statue, I’m sure she is dead now.”

He was quiet for a moment as that assessment sank in. “I also think, as with humans, if creatures or statues die, their death is final. There is no spell that would bring anyone who breathes back from death—not human, statue, or creature. Or we would most certainly have used it by now.”

Aaron Strikes a Deal

My goal,” Aaron said as dessert was being served, “is to be rid of the Unwanteds once and for all. However—and this may sound a bit shocking, but I hope you’ll give me a chance to explain—as much as I despise the Unwanteds and their devious, dangerous ways, I admit I rather like the world they’ve constructed. I’d hate to see it go to waste. Think about it—just because we are accustomed to living with so little here in Quill doesn’t mean we have to continue to do so. It seems a waste to destroy their mansion and fountains when ours are falling apart and water is scarce. Winning wars and taking over territories should come with rewards, don’t you think?”

He looked around at the skeptical faces, but he wasn’t worried. He guessed that they, like him, had been secretly curious about the way things worked in Artimé. “Before I tell you what’s in it for you, I want you to know it’s okay if you’d like to think about it, and you may of course say no if you are not at all interested. But my plan for our mutual reward is to split the magical property four ways. Not equally, quite, but you would each get a small portion of Artimé if you were to commit to helping me.”

Eva looked hard at a spot on the table.

“I count five of us,” Gondoleery said.

Aaron looked around, confused. “No,” he said. “You, Liam, Strang, and me. Four.”

Gondoleery leaned forward. “What about Eva? Is she a ghost? Don’t you see her sitting next to you?”

“Who?” Aaron asked, looking first to the wrong side, and then at Eva. “Oh, you mean Secretary? Well, I’ll take her with me, of course. She’ll be allowed to live in the mansion in one of my rooms.”

Gondoleery frowned and picked her teeth.

Liam picked up the questioning. “I realize I don’t really have much of a choice to make, since it’s either this or back to the Ancients Sector, but I’d like to say that I’m in favor of this plan.” He glanced at Eva, but she remained still, not looking at him.