The Pillars of Ponderay (14 page)

“I
know I saw someone go back here, guys,” Albert said, as he and his friends walked down the final row of bookshelves. They had all been empty so far, and Albert was starting to feel like a fool for ninja-rolling around the darkened corners with Leroy.

“There isn't anyone in here except for us,” Birdie said, reaching out to catch Leroy as he tripped over his own feet.

Leroy brushed himself off and straightened his shoulders and hat like nothing had happened. “Dudes, if there was anyone here but us, Farnsworth would've barked. Right, buddy?”

Farnsworth yipped, his little tail wagging as he walked in front of them, a fearless leader.

“You're probably right,” Albert said. “But I can't shake the feeling that someone's been spying on us. And what's up with Trey lately? He seems like he hates us now.”

“He helped you the other day, by telling you about Professor Asante's office,” Birdie replied.

Albert thought on that. “Yeah, but he also didn't think to warn us that she might be in there waiting to catch us!”

Leroy nodded. “Statistically speaking, we should have thought of that ourselves.”

They reached the end of the last row of shelves. And that was when Albert smelled it.

Mint and cloves.

He'd smelled the minty scent before, in the hallway outside of Professor Asante's office. And the first night he'd come back to the Core. And again, just now. Albert shelved that into his mental library for further investigation.

“If I were a box of Tiles,” Birdie said, plucking a book from the shelf, “where would I hide?”

Albert yawned and stretched his arms and his neck, staring up at the tops of the shelves. Just then, Farnsworth decided to mimic Albert, stretching his little furry back so that his eyes shone into the rafters of the room.

A glint of something silver caught Albert's eye.

“Look!” Albert pointed. “There's something up there! On the top shelf, in between those two big books!”

“No way,” Birdie gasped, scooting in closer to Albert so she could see where he was pointing. She squinted hard. “I think there
is
something!”

Leroy yawned. “I'd love to help out and all, but if it requires climbing up a super-old, super-rickety bookshelf that's 57.07 feet high, then no way. You two go ahead. I'll stay here with Farnsworth and stand guard.”

Birdie tapped the bill of Leroy's hat. “You're coming, Memory Boy, and that's final.”

Seven minutes later, Albert, Birdie, and Leroy reached the top of the bookshelf. They had all almost fallen not once, but twice, catching their boots on the corners of old books. Leroy was whining like a toddler, but Albert loved it. The climb made him feel alive, and he lived for the thrill of the chase. He stopped climbing when he reached the shelf on which he'd seen the flash of silver.

Dust filled his nostrils as he reached up, stretching to try and grab what was hidden there.

“Can you get it?” Birdie asked.

“I'm not tall enough. I could maybe use the Stretch symbol—” Albert suggested, but Leroy stopped him.

“It's time to be a man and use what my mama gave me.” He nodded down at his long arms as he clutched the shelf. “These babies were made for this moment.”

Albert shrugged, then scooted aside so Leroy could do his thing. It took a few tries. There was a book in the way, a heavy old one that tumbled over the edge of the
shelf, narrowly missing Farnsworth as it crashed onto the ground far below.

“Sorry!” Albert, Birdie, and Leroy called down.

Farnsworth growled and immediately started to gnaw on the book.

Finally, Leroy yelped. “Got something!”

His legs were shaking, and he was only holding on to the shelf with one hand, but Albert was filled with pride, watching his friend do something so dangerous. Slowly, Leroy removed an old, wooden box from the topmost shelf.

“Careful!” Birdie warned. “Don't drop it.”

Leroy winced. “Someone take it, or I'm totally gonna!”

Albert reached out, snagging the box just in time. It was covered in dust, and he sneezed, but refused to drop it.

They headed back to the ground slowly. It was dangerous work, but Albert gave himself a little help with a Balance symbol and his Master Tile.

His feet touched the ground. Birdie and Leroy landed beside him, and Albert set the box on the floor between them.

“A little light, Farnsworth?” Albert asked. He couldn't wait to see what Tiles were inside. Birdie and Leroy were going to have a blast using them in the Pit.

The dog shone his high beams onto it. When they all looked down, their eyes widened.

It wasn't the box they were expecting it to be.

This box was old oak with silver accents, something that was probably beautiful once. But half of it was blackened, almost as if a part of it had been burned in a fire.

“What the heck is that?” Leroy gulped.

“It's definitely not the box Trey was holding,” Birdie added.

“There's only one way to find out,” Albert said, as he reached down, slowly. “Let's open it.”

His fingers shook as he lifted the tiny locking mechanism on the box. It popped open, and the lid rose without a sound.

A small leather journal sat inside. It was soft, supple leather, black as oil. Albert lifted it out carefully. The box was old, covered in dust when they'd found it. But the journal looked fresh, almost as if someone had opened it recently.

“Should we read it?” Albert asked. His voice was a whisper, and he didn't quite know why.

“Of course we should,” Birdie said, nodding. “There's
loads
of secrets in journals. One time, I read my mom's journal. It was hidden in her nightstand, and I found out that . . .”

“Birdie.” Leroy cut her off. “This isn't social hour.”

Albert couldn't explain why. But he felt a strange sense of darkness blooming in his chest as he held the journal. He flipped open to the first page.

It was full of Tile symbols, much like the Black Book.

But these symbols were very, very strange indeed.

“This one shows you how to silence a person, even if they're screaming at the top of their lungs,” Leroy pointed out. The symbol was a hand covering a mouth.

“And this one,” Birdie said, tapping a symbol that looked like a handheld mirror, “will fool someone into thinking you look like their most trusted friend.”

Albert pointed at another symbol, one that gave its user the ability to lie with perfect ease. Suddenly his stomach lurched.

These weren't normal Core powers. These were useful things, very useful, but only to someone with a certain type of wickedness in their heart.

He dropped the journal back into the box and slammed the lid shut.

“These are bad symbols,” Albert whispered. “Can't you feel it?”

It was like the air around them had grown cold, like they were sitting in the bottom of the training Pit.

Birdie shivered, then pointed at the box. “Who does it belong to?”

No one answered, because no one knew.

“We should destroy it,” Leroy said. “I don't want that journal falling into the wrong hands. Could you imagine if someone like Hoyt found it?”

“That's true,” Albert said. “But most Balance Keepers
can only do what their Tile allows them to do.”

Birdie gasped. “Unless they have one like yours, Albert. Just imagine the possibilities. That could be really, really bad.” Her eyes were wide with fear.

Albert knew it was possible, and suddenly a memory resurfaced in his mind. Last term, when they'd found the Black Book, there had been a page torn out of the back. Did it have something to do with this journal? Could the person who ripped out the page in the Black Book also be the person who owned this journal? And could that person actually have a second Master Tile?

Albert shivered at the very thought of it.

The Professors hadn't seen a Master Tile in centuries. Surely, if they had, they would've said something to Albert. It wasn't a big secret. Everyone in the Core knew about his Tile. Everyone was amazed by it.

“I don't believe there's someone out there who'd want to use these horrible symbols,” Albert said. He motioned to the black box.

“Except for the person who set up the Imbalances,” Leroy whispered.

His words hit Albert right in the gut. Had they just come across evidence that could help the Professors discover their enemy? Then another thought occurred to Albert, one that he felt guilty just thinking, let alone saying aloud. “What if one of the
Professors
was the one who created the Imbalance? Think about it. They're the
most talented people in the Core. They know everything about the Realms.”

Birdie shifted from one foot to another. “I don't think so, Albert. They defend the Core.”

“But it's the perfect cover,” Leroy said. “No one would suspect them.”

Birdie held up a hand. “We're jumping to conclusions. Right now, we need to focus on this Book of Bad Tiles.”

“Birdie's right,” Albert said. “The book exists. Someone wrote these things in it. Someone knows how to use them. Hey, maybe we could even catch them in the act and save the day.”

Albert had meant it as a joke, but suddenly Leroy stiffened. “We could,” he whispered.

Leroy and Birdie leaned in to hear his plan.

Leroy explained that there was a pair of special Tiles in Lucinda's shop. They were Homing Tiles, sold at a very high price. One Tile was to be worn around someone's neck at all times. The other Tile was to be hidden with whatever someone wanted to track. When the Homing Tile sensed the object or person moving location, it would alert the Tile that was around the wearer's neck.

It was the perfect plan. From what Leroy had gathered, no one had come to check out those top-shelf books in months. If motion was detected, it was likely it would be the owner of the blackened box retrieving their secret treasure.

“I can start playing more Tiles competitions again,”
Leroy suggested. “We all know I'll win, and we could save up enough coins to buy the Homing Tiles from the shop.”

“That's brilliant, Leroy!” Birdie clapped her hands. “Albert, what do you think?”

Albert shuddered. The right thing to do would be to take the box to his dad's office. He could feel it. But with all of the trouble going on inside the Core, maybe handing over this box would just cause more stress for the Professors. Albert remembered the Path Hider's warning, from their first day back.

Trust no one.

Albert trusted his dad, wholeheartedly. But he didn't want to bog Professor Flynn down with more troubles.

“We can try the Homing Tiles,” Albert decided. “But if anything else goes wrong, we should turn the box in.”

“This is like a total sting operation!” Birdie giggled.

“A what?” Leroy's eyes were wide.

“You know, like those cop shows, where they set up the criminal and catch him in the act.”

They fantasized about saving the day, outsmarting the person causing all of the Imbalances. Leroy climbed back to the top of the bookshelf, dust dancing around him, and put the box with the Book of Bad Tiles back where they'd found it. He even covered it up in dust again, so it looked like no one had touched it.

“We'll get the Homing Tiles soon,” Leroy promised. “And we'll settle this once and for all. Imagine going into the Realm and settling the Imbalance, then catching this
guy in the act when we get back. We'd be heroes for sure, dudes.”

They laughed as they headed from the shelves with smiles on their faces and hope in their hearts.

They didn't know that someone had seen everything, watching from the shadows in silence.

Farnsworth led the way back, with his little paws padding on the hard floor. They'd barely made it out of the Library when shouts rang out from the hallway. The double doors burst open, and Balance Keepers sprinted inside.

It was Hoyt, Slink, and Mo. Hoyt held the box over his head, laughing as a few other teams chased him, trying to steal it before he reached home base. But Argon made it, winning the Core Hunt. Another thing to raise Hoyt's ego. It was so big by now, Albert wouldn't be surprised if it burst.

Hydra stuck around as the Apprentices came back and announced Argon winner. Everyone left, ready to get a few hours of sleep before the Pit tomorrow.

On their way back through the Main Chamber, Albert stopped to glance up at the countdown clock.

The glowing number
36
shone down on him, as red as blood.

T
he next day, it seemed that luck was finally on Hydra's side. When they arrived in the Pit and rode their platform down, everything looked as it normally had in the days before. It was the same towering ten pillars, same freezing-cold water and dangerous hurricane-worthy wind.

Professor Asante was present for this competition, sitting on the edge of the Pit in her wheelchair, a notebook in her lap, a pen poised and ready to scribble furiously. There was a massive crowd today. It seemed that every Pure and worker in the Core had come to watch the competition. Albert swallowed a lump in his throat.

Even his dad was there watching, which made Albert happy. As long as Professor Flynn wasn't in Ponderay,
he was safe. Trey sat beside him. As was usual lately, Trey was furiously flipping through a stack of papers.
What's all that about?
Albert wondered. Petra was in the very front row, and today he was wearing a blue shirt to match Hydra's, though it looked like he'd written the logo himself. Farnsworth raced across the edge of the Pit and leaped into Petra's lap.

Tussy sat beside Petra, and when she saw Hydra arrive, she stood and walked to the edge of the Pit. Albert noticed that her shoulder was bandaged. Her hair was messy in that just-been-to-the-beach sort of way that girls always seemed to covet. Albert had a feeling the state of Tussy's hair wasn't a fashion statement, though, and he was right.

“Balance Keepers—as you know, since Professor Asante injured her leg, Professor Flynn and I have been entering Ponderay in her place, seeking to learn more about the Means to Restore Balance.” Tussy lowered the MegaHorn, as if her arm needed a rest from just holding it up. She took a deep breath and continued.

“Early this morning, we made it farther than Professor Asante did.” Tussy shot a quick glance at Professor Asante and quickly added, “Though we couldn't have made it this far without her efforts before us.”

Professor Asante nodded and Tussy continued.

“This morning, we made it across the Silver Sea and summited two of the Pillars.”

There was a gasp in the crowd. Albert shared a look with Birdie and Leroy. No wonder Tussy was tired. And his
dad
had actually been on
top
of the Ten Pillars? He suddenly had an image of his dad's sparkling green jacket flying out behind him like a cape in the winds of Ponderay. It was a funny and scary image at the same time.

“Professor Flynn and I further confirmed something Professor Asante and the Watchers had suspected—the Tiles on top of the Pillars are marked. The two we found each had a different symbol than the rectangle Professor Asante found—we are now confident that each of the ten Tiles has a different symbol.” She held up one of the Pit Tiles, which now had a blue triangle on it, then quickly lowered it, again like she hardly had strength to hold it up. Professor Flynn took over.

“On a hunch, Tussy and I traded two of the Tiles in their Pillar slots, and we think we felt the rotations of the Pillars slow just a bit. That's all we were able to do, though, before the creatures became so aggressive we thought it best to turn back. The work is too much, and far too dangerous, for only two people.”

Leroy leaned over to Albert. “Maybe them switching up two Tiles is why the tremors off the coast of California have calmed this morning.”

Albert nodded, eager for them to go on.

“We are now assuming,” his dad continued, “that each Tile is marked with a symbol that somehow matches
each Pillar, and that correctly placing each Tile in its appropriate Pillar will stop the spinning. We believe this matching of Tile and Pillars is the Means to Restore Balance.”

There was a murmur in the crowd, a collective sigh of relief. Albert felt a weight off his own shoulders—at least now they knew what they'd have to do if they entered Ponderay.

“Your challenge today, Balance Keepers, is to gather the Tiles on top of each pillar and put them into the matching slots, eventually stopping the spinning. The team who matches the most Tiles with pillars will win, earning ten points. We've marked each Tile, as well as each Pillar. However, since we still don't know how the Ten Pillars are marked, we're not telling you how we've marked these Pit pillars. You'll need your best observation skills in Ponderay to figure that out—it would be wise to start using those skills now.” Professor Flynn took a deep breath. Albert could tell he, too, was exhausted from his time in the Realm. He knew from last term that Professors' and Apprentices' bodies weren't fit to handle too much time in the Realms. They were both bound to the Core, and as a result, lost a great deal of their strength once they entered the Realms.

“As Professor Asante, Tussy, and I have discovered, the conditions in Ponderay are brutal—time will be of the essence. You'll have seven minutes to collectively
match at least five Tiles today. If you fail, the Pit and the clock will reset, and you'll begin again.”

“How is that helpful?!” Birdie asked under her breath, loud enough for Albert to hear. “They'll completely exhaust us!”

Albert just shrugged. It looked like they better get used to being exhausted.

Tussy, who had sat down, handed Professor Flynn her whistle. He took another deep breath, brought the whistle to his lips, and blew it. The competition began.

Water filled the Pit, and Albert had the sinking suspicion that the Core creatures were already beneath the surface, ready and waiting to stop any Balance Keeper from completing their task. Normally, Albert took the lead. But this wasn't just about strength or skill. Today, this was about logic.

Birdie was already on it. “I say we gather the Tiles and then put them in different pillars and hope it works out.”

. . . Or maybe Birdie
wasn't
on it.

“That'll take forever,” Albert said. “We've only got seven minutes. Leroy, you're our Boy Einstein. What's your plan?”

“I know exactly how to start,” Leroy said, a huge grin on his face. He wiped off his glasses as water splashed around them in the wind. “The pillars have very, very tiny marks, on their sides, here at the bottom, in colors
and shapes. I saw them before the pillars started spinning, right when we got here. It'll be difficult now to decipher the marks at the speed those pillars are moving. But we can do it.”

Birdie and Albert just stared at Leroy. Not a minute into the challenge and he'd already figured out the system for matching Tiles—unbelievable! Albert wondered why he himself hadn't decided to just picture the Synapse symbol 100 percent of the time so he could share Leroy's mad mental skills. He made a note to use that symbol more often. For now, he sprang into action.

“I say we do what we did the other day. Use Birdie's Water Tile and my Master Tile to get up to speed, and allow Leroy to see the colored markings on the sides of the pillars. Sound like a plan?”

“Yes! And then we can all climb up and match the colored Tiles to their correct pillars!” Birdie exclaimed. She put her arms around the boys' shoulders. “You two ready to rock this?”

Leroy nodded. “I thought you'd never ask.”

Albert looked at the clock. A minute had already passed. It was time to speed things up.

They set to work, swimming up to top speed, Albert with his Master Tile and the water droplet symbol in his mind, Birdie with her natural Water Tile abilities. They did exactly what they'd done the last time they were in the Pit. Albert swam on one side, and Birdie swam on
the other, with Leroy in the middle. They were like a pod of dolphins racing as fast as their fins could take them.

They were almost close enough to a pillar for Leroy to make out the marking when a fin appeared in the waves. It was a Hammerfin, and the creature chased Hydra round and round the Pit. They lost almost a full minute trying to avoid the giant creature. Finally, the Hammerfin seemed to lose interest and they got back to swimming as fast as they could go in hopes of deciphering which symbols were on each pillar.

“Go, Hydra, go!” Petra cheered from above. Some people joined in with him, while others rooted for Argon. Farnsworth howled, and Albert saw a familiar flash of blue as his dog's eyes lit up.

Focus, Albert.
Instead of launching Leroy onto a pillar like last time, when Hydra got close enough, Leroy simply looked for the colored marking on the pillars' stony side.

The first pillar was a yellow triangle.

The second was a blue rhombus, and the third was a purple circle.

On and on Albert and Birdie swam, carrying Leroy to each pillar so he could decipher and remember their individual marks. Leroy plotted them on a map in his mind.

“I love your Synapse Tile!” Birdie shouted to Leroy, as Tussy yelled
five minutes left.

Suddenly, there was a flash of color, and Birdie yelped.

“I think a Lightning Ray just got me! I can't feel my left foot!”

Her speed slowed a little, and Albert was forced to take on more of the weight. The disruption distracted him and he looked around to see what Argon was doing.
Where was Hoyt? How far ahead were they? Had Argon figured out how the pillars were marked yet?

But Albert silenced his mind and told himself this was about Hydra, not the other team. Today, he committed to focusing
only
on the task and his teammates. Nothing else mattered.

By the time Tussy had yelled out
four minutes left
, Leroy had managed to note down all of the colored markings on the pillars.

“Time to climb!” Albert shouted to his friends.

They treaded water as the pillars spun by. Hoyt, Slink, and Mo were blurs at the top of the pillars as they passed at breakneck speeds.

Albert and Birdie took off with Leroy in the middle again, and launched him onto a pillar. Then they started the climb.

Albert's hands and feet seemed to know what to do on their own. They found all the right holds, and in record time, he'd summited the first pillar.

“Three minutes left!” Tussy shouted.

We're running out of time!
Albert thought. Nerves seeped their way into his system, but he shook them off and
hauled himself up and onto the top of his pillar. He rose to a crouch. The wind blasted him in the face, and threatened to knock him overboard. But he wouldn't let it.

Today, Hydra was going to win.

Across from him, Birdie summited, and Leroy soon after. They all looked at one another.

“Grab a Tile!” Albert shouted.

They all grabbed the Tiles from their pillars. Across from Albert, Hoyt climbed on top of a pillar and grabbed a Tile of his own. He held it in the air and waved it around, a look of pure elation in his eyes. Then his face fell as he realized he had no idea what to do with the Tile—Argon still hadn't figured out how the pillars were marked. Albert smiled.

He turned to where Birdie was crouched on a pillar across from him.

He closed his eyes and pictured Hoyt's Speed Tile, and when he opened his eyes, Albert didn't hesitate. He rose to his feet, sprinted across the top of his pillar in two strides, and leaped, landing on Birdie's.

“Now let's get to Leroy!” Albert shouted.

He grabbed Birdie's hand, and with all the determination they could muster, the two of them leaped. They rolled to a stop on Albert's pillar, then rose to their feet and leaped again, landing on Leroy's.

Hydra was back together again, and they had three Tiles.

“Now what?” Birdie asked Leroy.

“We'll match the corresponding Tiles to their pillars. Let's see what we've got.”

They all crouched down together and braced themselves on hands and knees to help stay balanced against the raging winds. Their Tiles were marked. One of the Tiles was a blue rhombus.

“I know exactly which pillar that is!” Leroy said. He tapped his head and grinned like a champion. “It's three pillars to our right!”

Together, Hydra stood, linking arms like they had seen Argon do the last time in the Pit.

They readied themselves to leap, when a splash sounded from below. A Hammerfin, larger than they'd seen so far, leaped from the waves.

“Jump!” Albert screamed.

On the count of three, they leaped. The Hammerfin annihilated the pillar they'd just been on. They barely made it onto the next pillar. Leroy tumbled overboard, and it took quick reflexes, and a quick thought of the Strength symbol, for Albert to keep his friend from falling.

Birdie helped haul Leroy back up.

“Thanks, guys,” Leroy said. “You ready to leap?”

“Ready,” Albert and Birdie said.

They checked to make sure their Tiles were still tucked safely into their waistbands. Then they grabbed one another's hands and leaped.

Leroy called out when to jump, and they followed his orders, jumping far and wide until they had made it to the pillar that had the blue rhombus marking on its side.

“You're sure it's this one?” Birdie asked.

Leroy nodded. “Sure as sugar, dudes.”

“What does that even mean?” Albert asked, but Leroy shook his head. Birdie pulled out the Tile from that pillar's slot—it was a red heart—and then Leroy slammed the blue rhombus-marked Tile into the slot.

Ding!

“
One
Tile for Hydra!” Tussy shouted into the MegaHorn. Somewhere in the crowd, Farnsworth howled with pride. Petra shouted another cheer, and Professor Flynn stood up and fist-bumped the air.

That was all Hydra needed. They'd figured out the markings and now they were going to win. Albert almost didn't notice it—but as soon as they'd placed their Tile into its slot, the spinning pillars slowed. It was hardly a change, just a tiny drop in the wind, but it was there.

The competition bore on. Pillar after pillar, Tile after Tile and slot after slot, Albert, Birdie, and Leroy began to match it all up.

Argon was so confused that once, Albert saw the three of them down in the waves below, fighting like a trio of angry cats. They had no idea what to do, and hadn't matched a single Tile—hadn't even tried.