“It’s just a pipe, but it’s sprung a leak. It’s no big deal,” Lin said.
This deep in the cave, the gold dust had thinned out, but it was still visible in the beam of my flashlight as we sailed beneath the leaky pipe. We were already so wet that I barely noticed as it rained down on us, but Vicky noticed more than just the water. She noticed something amazing.
“Whoa, would you look at that?” Vicky said. “Maybe it is a big deal.”
“What? I don’t see anything,” I said.
“Exactly,” Vicky said. “The leak in that pipe took all the golden mushroom dust out of the air.”
“Holy stromboli. She’s right!” Lin said.
The air was clean all around us, and my mind started filling with ideas of how we could fix our golden dust problem with something as simple as a sprinkler. It looked like we needed a bit of rain to get the mushroom dust under control.
As we continued down the river, the dust started to come back. The broken pipe had done a great job of cleaning the air from one direction; this dust was coming from somewhere else.
“Oh man. That didn’t last long. The sprinkler didn’t work after all,” Vicky said.
“Actually, I think it did. I also think we’re almost to the Fruity Stars Lab,” I said.
“How can you tell?” Vicky said. “Everything down here looks the same.”
“That looks different to me.” I pointed up ahead, but this time I didn’t need my flashlight. Golden rays of sunshine poured down through a hole in the ceiling of the cave. A hole that was created by a pack of tiny-raptors not long ago, seconds after twin Microsaurus rexes hatched from the largest egg I’d ever seen.
“That’s it!” Lin shouted. “That’s our way out! Land ho, Danny!”
“Ahoy, mateys. It’s time to set anchor and try our sea legs onshore once again. Guide us home, Captain,” Vicky said, joining in on Lin’s pirate speak. Even in the dark, I could see a little smile on Lin’s face at being called Captain.
Lin took charge again. She helped us as we row-row-rowed our way to the bank of the river, and the three of us and our trusty but still sick Microsaurs jumped on land again.
CHAPTER 8
SPRINKLER
It wasn’t easy, but eventually we all climbed out of the underground cave. By the time we reached the surface, all we could hear was coughing and sneezing. And I guess quite a few of the Microsaurs thought that coming to the Fruity Stars Lab was the best way to get help, because the place was surrounded. Squatty ankylosaurs, long-legged gallimimus, a couple of thick-skulled pachycephalosauruses, and more were hanging around, looking miserable with their runny noses and swollen pink eyes.
We didn’t waste any time. I started up the Expand-O-Matic as Lin and Vicky ran to the copper penny that worked as a reactor for the Carbonic Expansion Particles. I joined them on the penny, just as the CEPs began sprinkling down.
We expanded, then carefully tiptoed over to the barn-lab, where I hoped we’d find everything we needed.
“So, this should be pretty easy. We just need to make it rain in here, right?” Lin said.
“Yeah. I think so. But we need to be careful. We need it to rain, but we don’t really want to flood the place,” I said as I started to consider our options.
“Does Professor Penrod have an automatic sprinkling system? Our gardener installed one at our house, and it keeps things watered even when we’re on vacations out of the country,” Vicky said.
“No, but that might be something we should talk to him about. The Microterium could totally use a weather system,” I said.
“I don’t think we have time to make a whole weather system,” Lin said. She was right. We needed a quick fix now. I refocused, trying to keep things simple, which was always hard for me.
“So, a hose and a sprinkler, then. Would that work?” Vicky asked.
“Maybe, but the water drops would be pretty big for the tiny dinosaurs. Especially the young ones,” I said.
“The Shrink-A-Fier nozzle makes mist. Too bad we can’t use that,” Lin said.
“Yeah. That’s true. But I’m not sure taking that apart right now would be the best idea,” I said.
We all started digging through the barn-lab, looking for something to help. I climbed up a ladder and was digging through a box on a high shelf when Vicky shouted.
“Eureka! I found it!” She was holding a box marked Things that SQUIRT!
“It’s a good start,” I said. “But what’s inside?”
Vicky put the box on the floor, and she and Lin opened it up.
“No way! This is going to be SO SWEET!” Lin said as she pulled a huge water squirt cannon out of the box. “Dibs on this one.”
Vicky held up two matching water pistols. She spun them on her fingers like an Old West sharpshooter, and grinned. I jumped down from the ladder and pulled out a water cannon for myself.
“It’s got a nice-size tank. Good weight-to-strength ratio. Nice hand grip and an easy to refill opening,” I said. I looked at the end of my water cannon. “I think if we make a quick adjustment or two, this might just work.”
“YES! I knew it! Follow me,” Lin said as she ran out of the barn.
I grabbed a pair of pliers from the professor’s workbench and ran out the door. Lin was using a hose next to the big barn to fill her toy, while Vicky was practicing taking aim.
“Mine’s full. Who’s next?” Lin asked.
“Me,” Vicky said, and she started filling her pistols.
“Hey, Lin. Squirt me, will ya?” I asked.
“My pleasure,” Lin said. She squeezed her trigger and splattered my already-soaked shirt with a steady stream of water. “Gotcha!”
“Yup, just as I thought. Let me see your cannon,” I said.
I used the pliers to pinch the squirt nozzle of the cannon nearly closed.
“I wonder why Penrod has these things in the first place?” Lin asked. I handed her modified water cannon back to her.
“Who knows with the professor. He’s a surprise a minute,” I said. “Squirt me again.”
Lin smiled, took aim, and pulled the trigger. This time she sprayed me with a fine mist.
“Oh man,” Lin said. “You ruined it.”
“Nope. I improved it,” I said with a grin. “Now it’s an official golden-mushroom-dust remover.”
“Oh yeah. Sweet!” Lin said.
I modified Vicky’s pistols while she filled my squirt toy with water. After all of us were equipped with golden-mushroom-dust removers, we went back inside the barn-lab and tiptoed around the outside edges of the Microterium. With the three of us working together, it didn’t take long to cover every inch with mist. After we’d finished, we met back in the barn-lab, and I used the pliers to return Professor Penrod’s “Things that SQUIRT” toys back to their original working order.
Of course we had to try them out, so a small squirt fight broke out before we put the toys back in their box.
“So, do you think it worked?” Vicky asked.
“Only one way to find out. Let’s go back to the Microterium,” Lin said.
“Meet you on the metal step,” I said.
In a few seconds, the machine whirred to life, and the Carbonic Reduction Particles began to travel up the tube toward the showerhead. In a few more, we were once again the size of ants. Or better yet, the size of a Microsaur.
CHAPTER 9
THE MICROTERIUM PROVIDES
The air smelled wonderful when we returned to the Microterium, all fresh and new. Everything looked washed. Even the plastic PIBB blocks that made up the Fruity Stars Lab 3.0 were sparkling clean. And best yet, not a speck of the golden mushroom dust floated through the air.
“Well, it looks like we saved the day,” Vicky said. “I knew we could do it.”
Then, as if in answer to Vicky’s claim, Bruno and Zip-Zap sneezed in a goobery chorus. Then I heard something wheezing behind me and turned to see Honk-Honk making her way out of the forest. She looked just as bad as the re
st of the Microsaurs.
“Nothing is ever that simple in the Microterium,” I said with a sigh. “Looks like we still have work to do.”
Honk-Honk tried to honk, but she just sounded like a smashed kazoo. The big hadrosaur lumbered right next to Vicky and lowered her head for a hug. Honk-Honk made a cooing sound as Vicky rubbed her cheeks. She tried to honk again, but all that came out was a scratchy blat, followed by a cough.
“Does this one have a name?” Vicky asked as she hugged Honk-Honk’s wide nose.
“That’s Honk-Honk, but we might need to start calling her Wheeze-Wheeze. We’ve got to do something for them,” Lin said.
She was right. “It’s time to call for help,” I said as I pulled out my phone and called Professor Penrod. He answered right away.
“Hello, Danny, my boy,” he said. His smiling face made me feel a little better immediately.
“Hello, Professor. Where are you?” I said. I expected him to be outside, searching for Microsaurs, but he was inside a large building filled with people.
“We’re in the airport. Heading back to the Microterium. We should be there in an hour or two. Speaking of the Microterium, how are things going?” he asked.
I quickly told him everything. How we found Vicky in the Microterium, how she and Lin were forced to have a sleepover to make sure Vicky could keep a secret. We talked about the IMPA, which he loved by the way, and lastly about Frank-N-Spine and the golden mushroom dust, and how we’d figured out how to get rid of the dust, but that the Microsaurs were still sick.
“Oh my. What an adventure,” he said. He didn’t look the tiniest bit worried about the Microsaurs being sick, which also made me feel a little better.
“You can say that again,” I said.
“I would, but I think it’d be better this time if Dr. Carlyle took over,” he said, then passed the phone to Dr. Carlyle.
“Oh my. What an adventure,” she said, smiling. Bruno snuggled up behind me and sneezed down my back again. I wiped the back of my neck and saw the look on Dr. Carlyle’s face change. “Yikes. That doesn’t look good.”
“Doesn’t feel so great, either,” I said.
“So, this mushroom you said exploded. Can you explain it to me?” Dr. Carlyle said.
“I can do better than that. Hang on. I took a picture.” I found the picture on my phone and hit the SEND button to fire off a copy to Dr. Carlyle.
“Hmm. Well, I’ve certainly seen these before. But it is odd to see them from your tiny point of view. They are HUGE!” Dr. Carlyle said as she studied the picture. “And I see how this could cause serious problems.”
Lin pushed up next to me to see the camera phone. “I’ll say. Every Microsaur in the entire Microterium is just like Bruno here. Goobery and miserable.”
“These mushrooms can release a lot of spores into the air, and they can be pretty bad for birds and reptiles. Most of them will probably have some kind of allergic reaction. I’m guessing it’s having the same effect on the Microsaurs,” Dr. Carlyle said.
“Are the spores the golden dust stuff?” Vicky asked, squeezing her way into the conversation as well.
“Yes, and nice to meet you, Vicky. I’ve heard a lot about you already,” Dr. Carlyle said. “Welcome to the Microterium.”
“Oh my gosh, you’re so nice. Thank you. I love it here, and I have so many ideas on how to make it even better,” she said.
“Before we start redecorating the place,” Lin said, glaring at Vicky, “we need to help these sick Microsaurs. The only way I know how to fix a cold is a big bowl of chicken noodle soup and a long nap.”
“Well, those could both help. But we need something stronger than chicken noodle soup. What we really need is a good dose of Dr. Carlyle’s Miracle Fog,” Dr. Carlyle said.
“Where do we get that?” I asked.
“You don’t get it. You make it,” she said. “The good news is that everything you need to make my Miracle Fog is found in nature. The bad news is, I’m not sure what you have there in the Microterium.”
“I’m sure the Microterium will provide,” I heard Professor Penrod say off screen. “What do you need?”
“Well, we need some ginger root,” she said.
“There is plenty of it planted around Snow Lake. I love the stuff, and so do the ankylosaurs,” Professor Penrod explained, tilting the phone back.
“And we need some young and tender eucalyptus leaves,” she said.
“Oh my. There are tiny banzai eucalyptus trees surrounding Snow Lake as well. I planted them myself. Plenty of eucalyptus. In fact, I think it’s a favorite of the pterodactyls,” he said.
“Excellent. And I’m guessing you can find the third ingredient in Snow Lake itself. We need some blue algae,” Dr. Carlyle said.
“The lake is literally filled with it. And with pliosaurs, but that’s another discussion all together,” Professor Penrod said.
“Well, it looks like we’re heading to Snow Lake,” I said.
“Excellent. I’ll send the directions on how to prepare the fog before we get on the plane,” Dr. Carlyle said.
We all said our good-byes, and in a few seconds, my phone beeped, telling me the recipe for Dr. Carlyle’s Miracle Fog had arrived.
“Ooh, good. She sent pictures of the plants, too,” I said. Lin and Vicky studied the images along with me.
“What? These are really just plants,” Lin said. “Can you make medicine out of plants?”
“Sure. Like she said. Everything we need is right here in the Microterium,” I said.
“Great. Let’s go,” Vicky said. Bruno sneeze-cough-burped again. It sounded like an underwater volcano exploded. Then the poor puppyish Microsaur sat down in the wet grass and sighed.
I thought for a minute as I read through the ingredients and Dr. Carlyle’s notes on where we could find them. Honk-Honk walked around the side of the Fruity Stars Lab. She sneezed, then leaned against the building.
“All right. We need to work together, and we need to do it fast. We need a digger, a climber, and a swimmer,” I said. “Which one do you want?”
“I’ll climb,” Vicky said before Lin got a chance to claim it.
“I guess I’ll dig. I’ve been wet enough today,” Lin said.
“Okay. I’ll swim. The good news is that everything we need is right around Snow Lake. The bad news is that we have to run there. I don’t think the Microsaurs are up for the trip,” I said. Bruno yawned. He flumped over to the ground and fell asleep in the sunshine.
“Great. Let’s go!” Lin said. She took off running.
“Wait! Lin! It’s this way,” I said, pointing in the opposite direction.
Lin screeched to a halt, then started running back toward us. “I know that. I was just giving you a head start,” she said.
CHAPTER 10
SNOW LAKE
We made our way to Snow Lake. It was called that because it was the coldest lake in the Microterium. Professor Penrod built the lake right over the air condenser, an underground unit that helped keep the temperature in the Microterium at a constant temperature. But the real reason the lake was kept cold was because that is the temperature the pliosaurs liked best. A few degrees above freezing.
Great for pliosaurs, not so great for me.
“Okay, Lin,” I said as I tried to catch my breath. “Remember, the ginger plant is long and spiky with a thing that looks like a pinecone on top of it. Professor Penrod said it grows on the banks of Snow Lake, but it might be kind of hard to find. And we don’t need the leaves of the plant; we need a big chunk of the roots,” I said.
“Wait. I forgot a shovel. What am I supposed to dig with?” Lin asked.
“Uhh, I didn’t think of that. I guess with your hands?” I said.
“Awesome. Race ya!” Lin said, then started searching through the grass for the ginger plant.
“Hurry. Point me toward the eucalyptus,” Vicky asked. “I want to be back before Lin.”
“They grow on that little hill over there.�
�� I pointed behind us to a mound of earth topped with a thick forest of bluish-gray banzai trees. “We need the most tender, youngest eucalyptus leaves you can find.”
“No problem. I’m on it!” Vicky said. She was about to run, when I stopped her.
“Hang on, there might be a small problem. You’ll want to be super careful, because there are a few snippy Microsaurs that live in those trees, too.”
“I’m good with snippy. I got this. It sounds easy,” Vicky said.
“I’ve told you this before, but it’s true. Nothing is easy in the Microterium,” I warned. “Here, take this.”
“What is it?” she asked.
“It’s a device my dad invented. You put it in your ear, tap it to turn it on, and then just talk like normal. You’ll be able to talk to me and Lin from anywhere in the Microterium. It’s called an Invisible Communicator,” I explained.
“Cool,” Vicky said. She slipped the device in her ear, turned it on, and grinned. “Okay, now I’m ready.
“Be careful,” I said.
“I will. And don’t worry. I’m an excellent tree climber,” Vicky said. “Happy swimming.”
“Thanks,” I said as I left Vicky and ran toward Snow Lake.
I made it to the edge of the lake, peeled off my shoes, and dipped my toe in the lake. It sent a shiver from my foot all the way to the top of my head. Before diving in, I tapped on my Invisible Communicator.
“Can you two hear me?” I asked.
“I can,” Lin said. “I found a ginger plant and I’m already digging. I think I should have volunteered to swim. This thing is HUGE!”
“I haven’t started climbing trees yet. Still busy climbing the mountain,” Vicky said.
“Wait. Vicky has an Invisible Communicator? When did she get one? Now how am I going to tell you secrets, Danny?” Lin said.
Beware the Tiny-Spino Page 4