Dex ran up the stairs as fast as her legs would carry her. She reached the screaming Soranna and gave her a shove to get her moving.

“Run!” Dex shouted. “Across the bridge!”

Garret’s head appeared over the edge of the stone walkway. “What is going—” At the sight of the thing, he swore. “Get behind me! I’ll handle this.”

“No!” Dex said, reaching a level with Alice. “Run!”

Alice had been pulling on her threads: the Swarm for protection and Spike to give her the strength to rip the ant-thing off the tower. As Dex passed her, though, she saw the head of another of the ant-things emerge around the curve of the tower, then another. There was a whole herd of them in pursuit. She heard Garret swear again.

“Keep going!” he shouted. “Get across!”

Dex hustled Soranna up onto the bridge, and Alice backpedaled up the last few steps just as the ant-thing reached them. Its tail whipped forward, and Alice ducked, the pincers clacking over her head. It lunged at her again, but she sidestepped and gave it a shove with all of Spike’s strength. The thing staggered, but its rear legs remained stuck to the tower.

More ants were swarming over the stairway and clinging to the tower wall. Alice backed onto the bridge, and risked a glance over her shoulder. Dex and Soranna had not yet caught up to Ellen and Isaac, who were almost halfway across the bridge. Garret had turned back, darkness gathering around his hands like black smoke.

Another ant-thing reared up in front of her, tail swiping. This time Alice avoided the pincers and got her hands around the tail itself, hauling back and yanking the creature off its feet. All eight legs writhed as it tried to right itself, but she didn’t give it a chance to get up. Swinging it by the tail like a rock on a string, she gave it a mighty heave off the edge of the bridge and watched it fall twisting into the abyss.

Garret came up beside her as more creatures climbed onto the bridge, clinging to the sides like ants crossing a stick.

“Go on,” he said. “Catch up with the others.”

“I can help—”

“I’ll handle it,” Garret said. As Alice watched, he slashed one hand through the air, and a thin curtain of shadow struck the leading creature and sliced clean through it. The two twitching halves collapsed on the walkway, oozing something black and vile, and slowly slid over the side. But the other creatures continued their advance. Garret raised his hands in front of his face, like a boxer, and barked a laugh.