by Ally Condie
“Time to go,” Opal squeaked.
“Right behind you.”
They slithered back out through the hole and replaced the flap. Opal glanced around quickly, but the marina was empty. She was about to head across the parking lot when Tyler snapped his fingers.
“One more thing!” He reached back into his bag and removed a rectangle of dyed canvas—aquamarine in color, with some kind of blackish blob in the middle. “Remember all those flags in the Torchbearer vault? Well, I found this bad boy in the Torchbearer office. In the bottom of that bureau.”
Opal bit her bottom lip. “Um. Cool?”
“Hold up. I’ve got it upside down. Now do you see it?”
For a second, Opal felt like she was failing a Rorschach test. But then … “Oh.”
The central blob now looked an awful lot like the Beast, only sitting back on its hind paws. Opal realized the background color of the flag matched the glowing algae Tyler had used once to communicate with it.
Tyler’s voice grew excited as he eyed the fabric. “Maybe Torchbearers used this to signal the Beast. I mean, they couldn’t always have had fresh algae lying around. You think they might’ve run it up on the houseboat? Or flew it on the platform over the Rift?”
Opal frowned. “Do you think it was to summon the Beast, or keep it away?”
Tyler blinked.
“I’m sure you’ll figure it out, Beastmaster.” Opal giggled. “Come on, we should be waiting at the car when your dad comes out. I’m definitely hitching a ride home.”
As she turned, something flitted at the edge of her vision.
Opal glanced back at the wreck.
Under the tarp, two golden orbs glowed.
Opal gasped.
The circles vanished.
Something rattled inside the wreck, then a splash sounded.
Opal was left gaping at the rippling seawater, trying not to panic.
13
NICO
“Okay Dad, we’re going!”
Nico had one hand on the doorknob. Emma slipped into her backpack straps, trying to act like this getaway attempt was totally normal. Logan was already outside, having stayed out of Nico’s way as much as possible in the tight quarters of the ranger cabin. They’d barely exchanged five words all last night. Emma had been left to fill in the conversation gap. Even her relentless cheeriness had faltered by the end of the evening.
Now we have to bail. They didn’t want Warren Holland tagging along.
Nico’s father looked up from his breakfast of steak and eggs. The three young Torchbearers had quietly bulldozed through bowls of cereal, anxious to get down to business. What business, exactly, Nico didn’t really know, but their return flight was first thing the following morning, so they didn’t have time to waste.
“Wait,” Warren said gruffly, wiping his mouth. “Nico, it’s only seven o’clock. Where do you think you’re headed?”
“Old Faithful!” Emma said cheerily. “I want to see it go off, and the next eruption is in thirty minutes or so.”
Nico’s dad had managed to secure a two-room cottage on the north bank of the Firehole River. The sturdy log cabin was tucked into a glade of lofty mountain hemlocks, only a ten-minute walk to Upper Geyser Basin and Old Faithful itself.
Warren scratched his beard. “Well … I was planning to stop by the field office and visit the education center. While I’m here I can compare Wyoming climate stats to what we have in the Washington database. Plus, they’ve been logging owl territorial patterns for years, and that kind of data could be relevant to—”
“Great,” Nico blurted. “We can do our thing while you do yours, then meet up for lunch.” He held his breath, hoping the lucky break held. His father would never be described as an overly protective parent—Nico had prepared more meals for himself than he could count—but Nico hadn’t been sure they could get away clean. He and Emma wanted to poke around for more than just peculiar eruptions.
And Logan. Don’t forget that jerk is here for the entire trip.
Nico was still furious about it.
Warren sat quietly for a moment, frowning. Then he nodded slowly. “Follow the dirt trail out back until it links up with the geyser basin walkway. That leads all the way down to Old Faithful. There might be a crowd by the main attractions, even during the holiday, so stick together. Under no circumstances are you to leave the marked footpaths. People have died in this park. This whole area is a geothermal minefield. Understood?”
Nico nodded swiftly, then shot out the door before his father could say more.
“Come on,” he hissed at Emma as she hurried to keep up. “Don’t let him reconsider!”
Nico zoomed past Logan, into a beaten grass field surrounding the cabin. He didn’t slow until he reached the densely packed forest beyond. A crunchy layer of snow coated the ground, leaving clear footprints as they hustled through the trees, down a natural trail, and onto a wide pathway leading to the geyser viewing area. From this side of the river, the park buildings nearest to Old Faithful were still out of sight.
“Slow down,” Logan grumbled.
“Keep up,” Nico clapped back. “Or don’t. I couldn’t care less.”
“What a beautiful morning!” Emma said brightly. She began to whistle.
The path weaved through a cluster of low, wide pools north of the main attraction site. Emma stopped to snap pics.
“That one’s called Aurum Geyser,” Nico said, reading from a handout he’d downloaded to his phone. A small vent to the side began to bubble.
“Oh, we’re in luck!” Emma crowed. “Kaboom coming!”
Moments later the geyser erupted, shooting a fountain of water twenty-five feet skyward.
Nico stopped fuming about Logan for a second to take in nature’s majesty. His jaw dropped as the water kept rising, driving twice as high into the air. The stream turned black, then yellow, before clearing again just before the geyser ceased its roar.
Nico’s gaze shot to Emma, then dropped to his phone.
“What was that?” Logan said.
“Maybe what we came for,” Emma whispered.
“That’s 100 percent not normal.” Nico was scrolling furiously. “Aurum Geyser isn’t known for spewing different colors, and I think it went longer than usual.”
“Come on, I wanna see the big fella.” Emma tugged on Nico’s arm until he continued down the walkway.
Logan laughed delightedly as he trailed them. “They get bigger?”
Nico shot a glare over his shoulder. “Dude, did you do any research?”
“I figured you’d be all over this dirt-water stuff. I had other things to do.”
Nico whipped his head back around. Tune out the idiot.
They hurried down the trail toward Old Faithful, reaching a wide section that overlooked a frothing, roiling pool. The liquid swirled brown and yellow, and a horrid rotten-egg stench was wafting from its surface. Nico felt his pulse begin to race. Just like the pond on our island.
“I know that smell,” Emma moaned. “Is this one supposed to reek like a fart?”
Nico shook his head, glancing at his screen. “This is Doublet Pool. It’s usually clear, or tinged blue. Something weird is definitely happening underground.”
An explosive sound thundered from somewhere around the next bend. Nico jogged ahead to a viewing area that encircled a shallow, rust-colored pool. Towers of boiling water were firing in rapid succession, creating loud, echoing coughs. As Logan and Emma drew even with Nico, the jets turned yellow, slimy green, then a putrid brownish purple. Nico was trying to pull up his phone’s camera when the eruptions ceased abruptly, like they’d been turned off by a wall switch.
Emma gave Nico an anxious look. “Okay, was that normal?”
Nico shook his head grimly. “Nope. And guess where we are.”
Logan swallowed. “I’ll bite: this is Pump Geyser, isn’t it?”
Nico nodded curtly, then read from his phone. “ ‘Pump Geyser is a cone feature located
in Yellowstone National Park—’ Hold on a sec. Okay, here we go. ‘A small boil builds to a heavy doming of water, which triggers eruptions up to fifteen feet high.’ ” Nico skipped ahead. “Says here that the geyser got its name because it sounds like an old mechanical pump. It’s supposed to cycle up again after a few seconds.”
Yet they watched for nearly a full minute, and nothing happened. The geyser had gone silent. Frustrated, Emma made a hurry-up gesture with her hand. “Were the colors at least right?”
Nico looked up. “Not even close. Too many, and too much.”
Logan crossed his arms. “Fine. But what does it mean to us?”
Nico ignored him. Mostly because he didn’t have a good answer to give.
Emma chewed her lip as the geyser began thumping again. “How big is this problem?”
Nico ground his teeth at being forced to agree with Logan about anything. He spun on the older boy. “Your photo made it seem like there was a Torchbearer connection here, and these eruptions match what we saw in Still Cove before Halloween. But … I mean …” Nico threw up his hands. “Great. Super. Wonderful. Now what?”
“I didn’t promise anything,” Logan fired back. “You read the inscription, too.”
Nico forced a bitter laugh, prodding Emma with an elbow. “You’re not going to believe this, but Logan isn’t taking responsibility. Stunning, right?”
But Emma wasn’t listening. She was staring. Not at the geyser in front of them, but beyond it, at a line of trees bordering the walkway complex. Her fists were clenched, and she wasn’t blinking.
“Emma? What’s so—”
“Nico, look.”
The intensity in her voice got his attention. He turned and tried to match Emma’s gaze, even lining up his shoulders with hers. A low whistle escaped Nico’s lips.
Facing the geyser head-on, Nico noticed a pair of giant evergreens in the tree line behind it that rose to either side of the boiling vent, like primordial bookends. When the geyser finally erupted again, its massive jet of black liquid rose directly between the forest sentinels.
The similarity was unmistakable.
They were staring at the scene stamped onto Thomas Nantes’ coin.
“There it is,” Nico breathed.
“Wow,” Logan said.
“Let’s go!” Emma shouted.
Nico’s gaze rocketed to her. “Huh?”
Emma grabbed him by the sleeve. “Nico, the trees are a perfect match, but Roman Hale took his picture from the opposite angle. Meaning he and Thomas Nantes were standing on the other side of those trees. Trust me on this, it’s what I do! I think there’s something back there!”
“But, my … my dad.” Nico couldn’t think clearly. “He said not to …”
Emma tilted her head. “We’ve been playing him all along, Nico.”
“What’s the matter, Holland?” Logan’s dark eyes glittered. “Afraid?”
Nico bit back a mouthful of bile. “Come on, Emma. Let’s find a way across these rocks.”
Looking left, then right, they crept off the footpath, picking a careful route across uneven stony ground. After several heart-stopping minutes—Nico was sure someone would sound the alarm at any moment—they reached tree line and stood directly between the towering twin pines. A threadbare game trail ran between them, cutting sharply left before plunging downhill.
“There’s a natural path,” Nico stated.
“So let’s follow it,” Logan snapped. “Duh.”
Jaw clenched, Nico took the lead again, scrambling down the muddy decline until it leveled into a boulder field. The trail reached a narrow clearing no wider than twenty feet across. Then it disappeared.
Nico paused, examining the rocks surrounding them. He let out an exasperated growl.
“Dead end?” Logan asked.
“Maybe we missed something,” Emma suggested.
Nico punched his thigh. “How is that possible? This is the only route possible behind those trees.” But then a set of boulders to his right caught his eye. A gap two feet high and three across lurked at the base of the rocks.
On the left-hand stone, something twinkled in the sunlight.
Nico moved closer, realized something was etched into the granite.
A torch.
Jackpot.
“In there!” Nico squealed, pointing at the pitch-black hole in the ground.
The opening was dark and thoroughly uninviting. Cold air flowed from its lightless mouth, whiffs of sulfur souring the stale current. Nico would’ve bet his life savings that Torchbearer secrets were hidden inside that fissure. He was also certain of another thing—that he really, really didn’t want to go in there.
Emma shivered from head to foot. “Um, you guys first.”
Logan didn’t move.
Nico sniffed. Rubbed his nose. Then he dropped to his knees and crawled inside.
The gap was claustrophobically tight for roughly ten feet, then plummeted steeply, widening into a natural chute that dropped into the all-encompassing gloom. Nico powered his phone light and slip-slid down into the dark maw. Please don’t be a geyser at the bottom. When his sneakers touched level stone again, Nico felt more than saw that he’d entered a much larger chamber. His hip jostled a stack of wood and he aimed the light.
Torches.
Emma and Logan crashed down behind him as Nico grabbed a pair of weathered brands. He pulled a lighter from Emma’s bag, sparked the wheel, and ignited the torches, handing one to her.
“Thanks, I’ll get my own,” Logan said sarcastically.
Nico hid a nasty smile.
The cave was huge, like an underground amphitheater. Their thin circles of light didn’t reach the far wall. Nico’s heart thudded. He swung his torch slowly, scanning the cavernous space. He spied a blacker smear of darkness ahead and cautiously moved forward.
The floor sloped downward slightly, like a shallow bowl. A dark hole gaped in the center of the room, breathing up cold air from unknown depths.
Emma crept to its edge and peered down. The drop appeared bottomless. Nothing reflected from the gap’s smooth sides.
“Emma,” Nico warned. “Not too close. That’s a one-way ticket straight to oblivion.”
“It’s just an empty well.” She turned to him, eyes shining in the torchlight. “But maybe it was something else once. Like another Darkdeep?”
Nico tried to calm his nerves. “Could just be a mineshaft. We haven’t confirmed that this is a Torchbearer place.”
Logan scoffed. “Dude, there was a torch carved on the boulder outside. What else do you need?”
“More,” Nico said curtly. “Lots of people use torches.”
Emma’s gaze slid over Nico’s shoulder. She pointed a shaky finger. “How about that, Nico?”
He spun. And his heart nearly stopped.
Another passage had been cut through the chamber’s far wall. Two words were carved into the archway directly above it.
ACCIPERE VICTUS.
Accept to Overcome. The Torchbearer motto.
Logan giggled a little hysterically. “I’d call that pretty good evidence, huh?”
“Yeah,” Nico said in a strangled voice. “I guess so.”
Emma put a hand on Nico’s shoulder and squeezed. “Do you know what this means? There were other Torchbearers! People that had nothing to do with Timbers, or Still Cove. We’re not alone!”
“Maybe. Or maybe Logan’s grandfather came here and carved that himself for some reason.” Nico swallowed. “But Emma, if you’re right, you know what else it means?”
She blinked at him. “What?”
“Why have more Torchbearers unless there are other Rifts?”
Even in the torchlight, Nico saw Emma pale. For once Logan remained silent.
Nico snorted. “Exactly.”
Logan scuffed his shoe on the stone floor, kicking up a cloud of dust. He turned and aimed his torch behind him, revealing their three lines of footprints across the cavern. “This place hasn’t bee
n visited in years. If there’s another group of Torchbearers around, where did they go? Why haven’t they ever contacted us?”
Nico ground his teeth in frustration. “Decent questions. Let’s look for answers.”
Emma burst into a tiny laugh. “We’re freaking amazing at investigating things though, huh? We found another secret Torchbearer place. Opal and Tyler are going to flip out!”
Logan cleared his throat. “We need to see what’s down the next tunnel.”
“That we do.” Emma’s voice betrayed her nerves.
No choice.
“Okay, then,” Nico said. “Come on.”
The second passageway was wide and short, leading to a spherical chamber no bigger than a garage. Its walls were smooth and mostly blank, except for a smattering of niches bored into the stone at an equal depth of about six inches. They appeared at varying heights and were unevenly spaced around the room. The trio spread out, examining the holes. Nico couldn’t make heads or tails of them.
Logan’s voice broke the silence. “There’s another tunnel!”
He was completely out of view. Nico realized Logan had stepped behind a lip of rock at the other end of the chamber. He and Emma moved around the outcropping, into a narrow, rough-hewn passage that might have been a natural fissure.
“One more stroll?” Emma said to Nico, her voice thrumming with excitement.
“Okay. But if this cave network goes any deeper, we’re turning back. I do not want to get lost down here.”
Logan shuddered, his torch wobbling in his hand. “We agree on that much, Holland. These’ll burn out eventually, and phone batteries don’t last forever.”
Nico nodded pointlessly in the gloom, fighting to keep his arms from trembling. The thought of blundering around aimlessly that deep underground felt like spiders crawling down his spine. Get going, then get out. He pushed ahead once more.
The ragged tunnel made three sharp turns as it steadily dropped. Slowly, a sound was building—a churning, splashing racket Nico found strangely familiar.
The passage exited onto a broad shelf overlooking a dark, flickering cavern.
Something sizzled below.