The Pillars of Ponderay (9 page)

It was only then that Slink and Mo noticed their teammate. They ran over and helped load Hoyt onto the orange platform.

Birdie and Leroy joined Albert on their own platform. As it started to rise, Albert looked into the crowd. Professor Flynn stood up to leave, and the two of them locked eyes. Professor Flynn nodded once. There was pride in his eyes for what his son had done. Albert nodded back, and Professor Flynn disappeared into the crowd.

Albert turned to his teammates. “I'm sorry, guys. We would have won if I hadn't dove down for Hoyt.”

Leroy clapped him on the back. “You made the right choice, dude.”

Birdie nodded. “I'm not so sure he would've done the same for you, Albert. What you did was really something.”

Their platform reached the top, and Hydra stepped off.

“We should go to the Library and win some rounds of Tiles,” Leroy said as he wrung out his baseball cap. “That will cheer us all up.”

Slink and Mo helped carry Hoyt away. Tussy went
with them, and the crowd followed. Even almost conscious, Hoyt was the celebrity of the Pit. Albert half wondered if the guy was faking it. Still, Albert had to admit to himself that jerk or not, Hoyt was solid competition this term.

He had started to follow his friends out of the Pit when a hand closed over his shoulder, pulling him to a stop.

He whirled around, eyes wide. It was Trey. Albert thought he'd left with Professor Flynn.

“A quick word, Albert?” Trey raised a brow.

“Uh, sure.” Albert motioned for his friends to go on without him. Birdie didn't look like she wanted to leave, but Leroy whined about playing Tiles and pulled her along.

Albert turned back to Trey.

Trey rubbed his chin, a strange look in his dark eyes. Almost like he was in pain. And wow, he looked exhausted. He pulled Albert deeper into the shadows of the Pit room. “I shouldn't be doing this. Your father would have to fire me as an Apprentice if he knew, but technically, since I'm no longer training you . . .”

Albert was dying to know what Trey was so worked up about. Maybe he would explain what was going on with him lately, why he seemed so frazzled.

Trey sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I overhead Tussy talking during lunch the other day. She said Professor Asante is pretty much assuming at this point
that Argon will become Ponderay First Unit.”

Argon was already way ahead, with twenty-three points to Hydra's sixteen. It wasn't looking good.

“So you're saying me and my team have to up our game if we stand a chance of regaining Asante's confidence,” Albert whispered.

Trey nodded. “You've now got less than six days to pull ahead.”

Albert gulped. “We're doing our best.”

“Try harder,” Trey said. He turned to leave, but seemed to think better of it, and stopped. “A hint, Albert, if you want to get ahead? Professor Asante's study is often empty at night. The key isn't hard to find, if one looks high enough.”

With that, Trey turned on his heel and marched away, carrying with him the scent of something strangely familiar, spicy and sweet all at once. But Albert was too curious about what Trey had said to take much notice.

A
fter lunch, Albert, Birdie, and Leroy went down to the hospital wing to check on Hoyt.

“I don't see why we're wasting our time,” Birdie grumbled as they signed their names on the check-in sheet for visitors. “He's not going to say thanks to you or anything, Albert.”

Albert laughed. “I wasn't expecting that. And besides, I
might
have been hoping to catch a glimpse of the news on the surface while we're down here.”

“Oh, that makes sense,” Leroy said. He scribbled his name onto the sheet. “I was wondering if you'd gotten a concussion, too.”

They all laughed, but with a glare from the cyclops nurse, Albert and his friends quieted down.

The hospital was emptier than it had been last term. Albert guessed the Pures training for other Realms weren't being worked as hard as they were for Ponderay. The Pit was always dangerous, and Albert was thankful that he hadn't yet ended up in one of these beds.

One girl on the left was having her arm stitched up. A boy to her right held an ice pack to his face. He smiled and waved as Albert and his friends passed.

The very last bed on the right was occupied, and the curtains were drawn.

“That must be him,” Birdie whispered.

Albert peeked around the curtains. Sure enough, Hoyt was inside, sound asleep. He was surrounded by piles of plush white pillows, and there was a get-well-soon balloon beside his bed.
He looks all right
, Albert thought. Hoyt suddenly opened his eyes and sat up. Albert ducked away just in time.

“Nurse!” Hoyt shouted from behind the curtains. “I need another blanket! And bring me something to eat!”

The cyclops nurse rushed past Albert and his friends, grumbling about Hoyt being perfectly fine.

“He's totally milking it,” Birdie said.

“Milking what?” Leroy asked.

“It's an
expression
, Leroy,” Birdie said, and the two of them began to banter.

Albert tuned them out. His attention was on the tiny, old-fashioned television in the corner of the room. He
motioned for his friends to follow, and they all sat down in front of the TV.

Leroy positioned the bunny-ear antennas and started it up. He flicked through channel after channel, trying to find something besides black-and-white fuzz. Albert remembered being in here last term, when Birdie had been injured in the Pit. The three of them had settled down in front of this very screen to watch piles of ash cover up New York City.

Today, Albert's stomach filled with lead as the screen flickered to life, and the news report on California began.

There was a woman on screen, huddled beneath an umbrella that had seen better days. It was upturned so the wires stuck out all over the place like a dead bug's legs.

“Turn it up,” Albert said, and Leroy cranked the dial so they could hear the woman's voice.

“I'm standing an hour from the coast in Los Angeles, in front of the entrance to Disneyland,”
the woman shouted into a soaking wet microphone.
“What is normally the happiest place on earth is now a ghost town. Vacationers have fled the park in fear of the oncoming hurricane.”

“Hurricane?” Albert said. “My dad was right. It's getting worse by the second.”

“Maybe you should try and call your mom,” Birdie suggested.

The screen showed a glimpse of Disneyland. The rides
were shut down, and the main street with all the shops was closed. The cobblestones were covered in at least six inches of water. It ran like a river down the middle of the road.

“Reports are coming in all around. The highways are packed with evacuees, but where can they go? Hotels are shutting down. Gas stations are running out of gas. It's as if the apocalypse has come. . . .”

The image changed, showing a highway with a line of honking cars. It was pouring rain, and the sky was so dark it almost looked like night, but the clock in the corner of the screen said it was only noon in California. The screen switched to show a place called La Jolla Shores. Its rocky cliffs could barely be seen through the torrential downpour. A lifeguard stand tumbled over into the sand, and a flock of wet seagulls huddled beneath it in hopes of shelter from the storm. There were marinas with sailboats' masts cracked in half, and giant yachts that had capsized.

The screen went back to the reporter, who now looked like someone was spraying her in the face with a fire hose.
“It's estimated that by nightfall, wind speeds will have reached one hundred thirty miles per . . .”

Suddenly a gust of wind ripped the umbrella away from her. It flew through the air and smacked into the camera.

The screen flickered. Then it went black.

“
Omigosh
,” Birdie gasped.

“Whoa,” Leroy said. “What just happened?”

“The Imbalance happened,” Albert said. “And it's only going to get worse.”

Dread filled him as he stared at the empty screen.

N
ormally Albert wasn't a desperate person.

He excelled at lots of things (unless you counted school). Growing up, he'd
loved
the forest outside of Herman, and hiking, climbing, and running. These were things Albert just knew how to do.

So when he came to the Core the first time, well, it simply clicked for Albert. After he had figured out his Master Tile, of course.

But so far, this term was different.

Albert knew just how intense it could be inside the real Realms. And if Hoyt and his cronies got to be the ones to enter Ponderay, things probably wouldn't bode well for the fate of the world above. After seeing the news report, Albert's only thought was that it was time
to work harder. Really put everything out there, so that when the end results came, Albert would know he'd done his absolute best to win.

When darkness fell in the boys' dorm, Albert and Leroy tiptoed past the scattering mess of tents and hammocks. Farnsworth and his flashlight eyes led the way.

They snuck out the door with ease, locking it behind them as they disappeared into the dimly lit tunnel beyond.

“We'll have to be quick,” Albert whispered to Leroy as they walked. They stuck to the shadows on the edges of the wall, just in case someone came around.

They passed the statue of Frog Man, and even though Albert and Leroy had seen it a million times, the thing still made them shiver and hasten their pace.

“Birdie's meeting us in the Main Chamber,” Albert whispered to Leroy.

There was a
creeeeak
ing noise behind them.

Albert and Leroy dove into the shadows and Farnsworth shut off his high beams. They waited as footsteps came closer.

An itch prickled Albert's nose, but he didn't dare move to scratch it.

The footsteps were almost upon them. Albert was about to turn to Leroy and tell him to run, when a person shuffled into view.

It was only a Core Cleaner, sweeping the floors. Albert and Leroy waited as she cleaned up, and when she was
on her way, they both relaxed.

“I thought it was a Professor!” Leroy whispered. “We would've been busted for sure.”

“Yeah.” Albert nodded. “Let's hope Birdie hasn't been spotted.”

They made it to the Main Chamber without any more incidents, and Birdie was waiting for them as planned.

“Let's go!” Albert stage-whispered, waving Birdie over. She was wearing all black, and she even had gloves on her hands.

“What do you think we're doing, Birdie? Robbing a bank?” Leroy muffled a laugh.

Birdie punched him in the shoulder, and he almost toppled over the railing of the bridge. Albert caught him just in time.

“It's just a precaution,” Birdie whispered. “Let's move, boys.”

Being out in the middle of the night was scary. The blue flames were dim, some of them completely melted away to purple embers, and there were strange, long shadows on the walls.

Leroy took the lead, using his Synapse Tile to navigate to Professor Asante's office.

They made it to the end of a wide tunnel, and there stood the door, old and wooden, just waiting for them to go inside.

There had to be tons of books in there, loads of secret information about Ponderay that couldn't be found in the
actual Library. All Albert had to do was get Leroy inside. He'd be able to skim through any book in seconds, and maybe they'd have a chance in the Pit tomorrow.

“Trey said the key was up high,” Albert whispered. “Farnsworth, a little light, please?”

Farnsworth wagged his tail and looked up, illuminating the ceiling in bright light.

And there it was.

An old brass key, dangling from a hook above the doorway, so high that only Professor Asante herself would be able to reach it.

“There's no way we'll be able to get that thing,” Birdie said, shaking her head.

But Albert wasn't worried. He smiled, then reached up to grab his Master Tile from around his neck. “You're forgetting I have this.”

“Then get on with it.” Birdie nudged him. “The longer we stay here, the more chance we have of getting caught.”

“Impressive reasoning skills,” Leroy said, smiling.

“Okay, give me a second.” Albert closed his eyes and pictured the Black Book. Hundreds of pages, thousands and thousands of Tile symbols.

What would he use for this?

It came to him, the only clear image in his mind. The Weightlessness Tile, the same one he'd used in Calderon last term to cross the swamp.

Albert focused on it, and soon he was floating a few inches off the ground.

“It never gets old.” Birdie clapped her hands lightly.

Albert had to really concentrate to get himself to rise higher and higher. He was still rusty, but after one failed try that ended up with a squished tail and an apology to Farnsworth, Albert floated to the ceiling and snatched the key.

He landed softly, then inserted the key in the lock. It clicked open easily. A minty smell wafted its way down the hall, alerting Albert's senses. The door swung inward with a creak, and Birdie and Leroy shuffled inside. Albert went last, but not before stopping to cast a glance over his shoulder.

In the darkness, a shadow moved. Something that looked tall and thin and human.

The shadow turned and started heading toward Albert.

Albert practically dove inside the dark office, taking the key. He shut the door behind him, quickly locked it, then paused to catch his breath.

“Wow,” he heard his friends say.

Albert looked up, and his own jaw dropped.

They were standing in the middle of a massive cavern, the walls lined with old wooden bookshelves. The desk in the middle of the room was piled high with stacks and stacks of paper.

But that wasn't the coolest part.

There was a thick black curtain taking up an entire wall. A cool blue glow peeked out from the edge of the curtain. Albert was
dying
to know what was behind it.

He took a step forward, eyes wide.

“What do you think it is?” Albert asked.

“I can sense water,” Birdie said. “But I'm not sure.”

“A good guess, Miss Howell,” a voice called out from the darkest corner of the room.

Leroy screamed like a banshee. Albert and Birdie bumped heads, and Farnsworth growled, his fur standing on end. His eyes flashed a brilliant blue, illuminating the source of the voice.

There was a squealing sound, and Professor Asante emerged from the darkness. Albert gasped. She was in a
wheelchair.
The spokes glittered blue in the light of Farnsworth's eyes, and as Albert looked closer, he realized Professor Asante's leg was broken. It was wrapped in a thick white cast, and stuck out in front of her like a tree branch. What had happened to her inside Ponderay?

“What are you three doing in my office in the middle of the night?” Professor Asante asked. She raised an eyebrow.

“We're burned toast, dudes,” Leroy groaned.

Albert was sure truer words had never been said.