Ship of Souls

try to find out what’s up with Nyla. “Keem’s not such a bad guy, you know.”
    Nyla says nothing. We’re in a narrow tunnel that only has a thin stream of water running down its center. Nyla slides down the tunnel wall until she’s crouched on the dry part. She sticks out her foot and pins a bloated plastic bag that’s slowly floating by on the slimy water. “What are you—his cheerleader?”
    “No! I just wondered what happened to change your mind about him. You two seemed pretty tight before.”
    Nyla sighs. She doesn’t seem to have the strength to act fierce anymore. “It’s always that way with guys. Things start out fine and then…”
    “Then what?”
    She shrugs. “Things change—that’s what.”
    “Maybe you just haven’t met the right guy yet,” I say hopefully.
    Nyla gives a tired laugh. “Maybe.” She shakes her foot and sets the bag free. We both watch as it floats away. “Maybe there is no Mr. Right. Not for me.”
    I really don’t know what to say to that, so I ask for some chips instead. We eat in silence for a while, and then I suggest that we try to get some rest. Nyla tips her head back against the hard tunnel wall and closes her eyes, ending our conversation. I drift off, too, and wake a few hours later when I feel a strange fluttering inside my chest. Wake up, D. We must proceed across the river . The ship awaits .
    I shake Nyla gently until she wakes up. Then I go looking for Keem. He’s stretched out in a short, dry tunnel that’s filled with the soft light of dawn. In the distance, through a rusty grate, I can see the Statue of Liberty out in the river. We’ve come a long way from the park. We outran the nether beings and we’re close to fulfilling Nuru’s mission. I have to admit, I feel pretty proud of myself—and my friends. Then my good feeling disappears and I think about how much I’ll miss the city—and Nyla and Keem—when I’m gone.
    Keem mumbles something in his sleep, and I remember Nuru’s message. “Wake up, Keem. We’ve got to keep going.”
    To my surprise, Keem sits up and looks completely alert. “Give me a few minutes,” he says in a gruff voice.
    “For what?” I ask, but before Keem can answer, Nyla calls me over to her.
    “Give him some privacy,” she says. “He probably wants to pray.”
    I follow Nyla away from the mouth of the tunnel but glance back over my shoulder and see Keem on his knees. He takes up some of the dust on the floor of the dry tunnel and rubs it over his hands and forearms. I want to keep watching but decide I’d better find my own private corner and handle my business. After I’m done I say a quick prayer of my own.
    A few minutes later, we gather in the main sewage tunnel and try to decide on the best way to cross the river. Nuru’s light burns bright in the palm of my hand, but I make a fist to shield Billy from the glare.
    “So where is this ship docked?” Nyla asks.
    “Docked?”
    “Are we heading to a pier or something?” asks Keem.
    I look at him and take a deep breath. “The ship is with the dead,” I explain.
    Keem frowns. “And where are the dead?”
    “Underground?” I don’t mean it to come out like a question, but I’m not really sure that’s the right answer. Nuru doesn’t correct me, though.
    Keem rolls his eyes as if to say, “Of course.” Then he lays out his plan. “I say we find a way out of here, take the train into the city, and then find another way underground once we get there.”
    “We can’t do that,” I say.
    “Why not?” asks Nyla.
    “Billy can’t go outside the way we can. We’d have to wait until dark, and even then he couldn’t ride the train with us.”
    “Maybe he could stay underground and meet us there,” Nyla suggests.
    I shake my head. “He doesn’t know the way. Only Nuru does.” An awkward silence settles between us. “Look, you guys—I couldn’t have made it this far without you, but maybe it’s time for you to go back.”
    “You’re ditching us for that ghost?” Keem asks, indignant.
    “We have to stay down here—you don’t. Maybe we can find a manhole or something and you can go back to the real world.”
    “I’m not leaving you down here by yourself, D,” Nyla says, determined.
    “I’m not alone—I have Nuru and Billy.”
    “Well, I’m not going anywhere with him.” Nyla nods in Keem’s direction and folds her arms across her chest.
    I’m not sure what to say to that, but there’s no time to think because Billy