Six glanced down at the chimp. He paused for a moment, caught off-guard, before asking, ‘Why are you holding a fish?’
‘Long story,’ Bobo replied.
‘What’s the last thing you remember before you came through the mirror?’ Holiday asked.
‘I can’t speak for Seal here, but I was attending a charity fundraiser,’ said Dan. He smiled. ‘One does what one can for the less advantaged.’
‘Just answer the question,’ said Six.
‘Yes, sorry,’ Dan said. ‘I had just handed over my donation, when a circle of red light appeared in front of me. Before I could react, it had pulled me through.’
‘What about you, Goldilocks?’ Six asked. ‘What happened to you?’
‘Well, I was on the phone to Tina, talking about how Suzanne and Corey just, like, bailed from Sam’s birthday party last night, and I was all, like, “It’s a total scandal,” and she was, like, “I know!” and I was all, like, “Tell me about it”.’
‘I think what Mr Six is asking, Seal, dear, is, what happened in the immediate moment before you arrived at the fairground?’ said Dan.
‘Oh,’ said Seal. ‘What you said. Red circle. Pulled inside. Blah, blah, blah.’
‘Thank you, Mr Nice,’ Holiday said. ‘Six hasn’t really mastered talking to teenagers.’
‘Please, call me Dan.’ He took Holiday’s hand and kissed it lightly. ‘And I’m delighted to assist you in any way I can.’
‘An’ I thought that guy couldn’t get any smarmier,’ Bobo muttered, pulling a disgusted face.
Six stepped between Holiday and Dan, splitting them up. ‘You can assist me in the interview room. There’s a lot more I’d like you to explain.’
‘Want me to come?’ Seal asked.
‘No,’ said Six, firmly. ‘Definitely not. Go with Rex. He’ll help you get settled in until we figure out what to do with you. You can stay in the room next to his.’
‘OMG, you hear that?’ Seal chirped. She tightened her grip on Rex’s arm. ‘We’re going to be, like, neighbours!’
Rex forced a smile. ‘Yay,’ he said, quietly. ‘I, like, totally can’t wait.’
CHAPTER 7
NEXT MORNING, REX ROLLED OUT OF BED, wiping the crusts of sleep from his eyes. He yawned, stretched, thought about going back to sleep, then finally stood up.
It had taken a little longer than he’d expected to get Seal settled in. He’d shown her the room next to his, and Providence Agents had brought blankets and pillows for the bed. They’d also given her a TV, DVD player, games console and books to try to keep her occupied. None of it had worked.
The knocking had started on Rex’s door just two minutes after he got back to his room. He opened the door to find Seal grinning back at him. She’d asked him how he was doing. He had told her he was fine.
She’d asked what his favourite colour was.
He’d said he didn’t know.
She’d asked if he’d wanted to hang out.
He’d said it was really late, and that they should both be going to sleep.
She took the hint then, and slunk off back to her room. One minute and seventeen seconds later, there was another knock at the door, followed by another barrage of questions from the blonde-haired girl.
The knocking and the questions finally stopped around four o’clock in the morning. Rex had tried to sleep then, but he kept expecting another knock at the door, so he hadn’t been able to settle properly.
It was nine o’clock now, and Rex felt as if he’d been punched in the head by an angry Evo. His eyes felt puffy and his mouth was dry. He staggered and felt his way around the room until he found his mobile phone. Hopefully Noah was finding his half of the Mirror Pack easier to deal with.
‘Hello?’ Noah sounded out of breath.
‘Hey, Noah. What’s happening?’
‘I can’t find Mandy,’ Noah told him. ‘She … he … it … whatever, keeps changing colour to match the walls. One minute she’s there, next minute, poof, gone.’
‘That sounds bad,’ Rex said.
‘Bad, are you kidding? It’s like the best game of hide-and-seek ever.’
‘Oh. Cool,’ replied Rex. ‘How’s the mutt doing?’
‘Biowoof ? He’s doing great. He, uh, pees on the carpet a little bit more than I expected, but I figure he’ll grow out of that.’
‘Don’t count on it,’ Rex said. ‘Just look at Bobo.’
‘True,’ Noah said. ‘But a damp carpet’s still a whole lot better than dealing with Biowulf and the rest of The Pack.’
‘No arguments from me,’ Rex said.
‘You think we’ve seen the last of Van Kleiss?’
‘Don’t ask me,’ Rex said. ‘But as swaps go, right now I’d say we’ve definitely got the better side of the deal.’
The friends chatted for a while longer, then said their goodbyes. Rex yawned and stretched again and set about getting dressed. If he could get out of his room quickly enough, maybe there was a chance he could get some time to himself before Seal clamped onto him again.
But he wasn’t going to count on it.
Rex stood in the Petting Zoo, with Dr Holiday and Agent Six by his side. Amazingly, he had managed to get out of the room without Seal spotting him. As he made his way to breakfast, though, Six had intercepted him and led him down to the Zoo. Rex could feel his stomach rumbling as he watched Dan Nice approach a savage Evo animal.
The creature looked like a sabre-toothed tiger that had somehow become merged with custard. It had the body of a big cat, but its skin hung down in gloopy strands from its back. It oozed down onto the grassy floor of the Petting Zoo, and formed a pool at the animal’s feet.
‘What’s he doing?’ Rex asked. ‘That thing can get pretty wild.’
‘He’s trying to cure it,’ Holiday explained, keeping her voice low so as not to startle the creature. ‘He says he can absorb its nanites.’
‘Can’t be done,’ Rex said. ‘I tried, remember? This one’s an Incurable.’
‘We’ll see,’ said Six.
All three of them watched on as Dan laid his hands – the flesh one and the foam one – on the Evo’s head. The animal tensed and let out a low, menacing snarl, but it didn’t pull back. There was a sound, like the chirping of a thousand insects, and then –
WHOOSH!
The Evo transformed in a flash. One moment it was a custard-cat, the next, it was just a cat. It miaowed softly, rubbed its nose against Dan’s human hand, then jumped up into his arms.
‘Did you see that?’ Holiday cried. ‘That was incredible!’
‘Impressive,’ said Six, grudgingly.
‘Thank you, Doctor, Mr Six,’ Dan smiled. ‘It was my pleasure.’
‘Yeah, I could probably have done that,’ Rex said under his breath, ‘eventually.’
‘I have absolutely no doubt about it, young Rex,’ Dan said. ‘I have no doubt whatsoever that you could. I just thought I’d do what I could to lighten your load. I hope you don’t mind.’
‘Uh, no,’ Rex replied. ‘You go right ahead, lightening the load or, or, whatever.’
Dan flashed him a grateful smile, then went back to playing with the cat.
‘You checked in on Seal this morning?’ Six asked.
Rex shook his head. ‘Not yet.’
‘Well,’ said Six, raising an eyebrow, ‘no time like the present.’
Rex paused outside the door to Seal’s room, his hand raised and ready to knock. He felt bad. The girl was nice, and she was friendly, and he had no reason to dislike her. It was just the way she kept going on and on and didn’t leave him alone that was starting to bother him. And now, here he was, about to knock on her door and make it all start over again.
‘Hey, what ya doin’?’ asked Bobo, shuffling along the corridor.
‘Checking on Seal,’ Rex sighed. ‘Dan Nice is down in the Petting Zoo.’
‘They’ve locked him up down there?’ Bobo asked. ‘I mean, the guy’s a slimeball, but even he don’t
deserve the Petting Zoo.’
‘He’s not locked up, he’s curing the Evos,’ Rex explained. ‘Even the incurable ones,’ he added, quietly.
‘Ain’t that your job?’
Rex faked a smile. ‘He’s just helping out, that’s all.’
Bobo shook his head. ‘I don’t trust him. Or any of them. There’s somethin’ fishy about them. It’s like they say, if somethin’s too good to be true, then it probably is.’
‘Give me these guys over the real Pack any day,’ Rex replied. ‘They don’t worry me nearly as much.’ He knocked on the door and was surprised when it swung open.
The room was in near darkness. Rex stepped inside, with Bobo at his heels. It took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the gloom; then they saw Seal.
She was sitting on the end of her bed, her knees up to her chest, her arms wrapped around them. Her hair, which had looked so neat and tidy yesterday, now hung down over her face like a curtain.
‘Seal?’ Rex asked, as he slowly approached the girl. She didn’t reply, and it was clear that there was something very, very wrong.
‘They don’t worry you, huh, kid?’ Bobo snorted. ‘Maybe now’s a good time to start.’
CHAPTER 8
VAN KLEISS STARED at his reflection in a mirror, and the reflection stared back. He reached up with his golden claw and pressed it against the one his mirror image wore. The glass was solid. There was no way through without breaking it.
On his left and right, Biowulf and Skalamander were tapping more mirrors, checking for portals hidden within the shiny surfaces. The area they were in was almost completely dark, but the thousands of mirrored surfaces that filled the space seemed to give off their own faint glow. It was enough that they could see their reflections in the glass, but no more.
KRICK.
Another mirror cracked at Skalamander’s touch. It was the fifteenth one in as many minutes. This time Van Kleiss only barely managed to contain his temper.
‘Be careful,’ he warned. ‘Any one of these could lead back to Earth. Break that one and we could be stuck here forever in … in … wherever it is we are.’
‘Yeah, Skally, you’re such a klutz sometimes,’ said Breach.
The others turned to look at her, stunned into silence for just a moment. It was Van Kleiss who finally spoke. ‘What did you say?’ he asked.
Breach brushed her hair back over her ears. ‘Just, like, how Skalamander’s always breaking stuff. Like you said.’
Biowulf eyed her suspiciously. ‘Why are you talking? You don’t usually talk. Not like that, at least.’
Breach shrugged with all four of her arms. ‘Maybe I just, like, never had anything to say to you guys before,’ she said. ‘I mean, it’s not like we’ve exactly got much in common, right?’
Van Kleiss stroked his chin, deep in thought. ‘An interesting development,’ he said. ‘Breach’s entire personality seems to be altering.’
‘It’s like she’s becoming the opposite of how she was,’ Biowulf agreed.
‘Yes, an opposite,’ Van Kleiss realised. ‘A mirror image, you might say.’
‘Ew, check out my hair,’ Breach whined. ‘It’s totally rank. Does anyone have, like, a gallon of shampoo?’
‘She was less tiring before,’ Biowulf growled. ‘Let me shut her up.’
‘Not yet,’ Van Kleiss told him.
‘Breach, come here.’ Breach stopped fiddling with her hair and strolled over. ‘Dude, can I just say, I love that jacket?’ she said. ‘I’ve wanted to say that for a while, but you know, the whole being-quiet thing meant I couldn’t. But I’m totally over that now, and that jacket is –’
‘Silence,’ Van Kleiss seethed. ‘Just because you haven’t spoken in a while, doesn’t mean you have to make up for it now.’
‘No, but I was just –’
‘Ah!’ Van Kleiss snapped.
‘Yeah, but I was going to say –’
‘Ah!’ He mimed holding his mouth closed.
There was a pause. Breach bit her lip, as if trying to hold her own mouth closed. She couldn’t contain herself for long.
‘I meant –’
‘Silence!’ Van Kleiss roared. The word seemed to reflect around the vast space, bouncing off every mirror. That did the trick. Finally, Breach stopped talking. ‘Now,’ Van Kleiss said, taking a breath to help him contain his temper. ‘I want you to try getting us out of here. Make another portal.’
‘I tried when we got here,’ Breach muttered. ‘Total washout, remember?’
‘Then try again,’ Van Kleiss hissed. ‘If at first you don’t succeed …’
Breach sighed loudly. ‘Whatever,’ she said, but she did as she was told. As she raised her arms, a shimmering circle of red light began to appear in front of her.
‘That’s it,’ Van Kleiss said, as encouragingly as he could. ‘It’s working. Keep going.’
But even as the villain spoke, the portal started to change shape. It stretched and wobbled in the air. The round outline stretched at the top, becoming egg-shaped. Then the bottom began to fold upwards to the centre, even as the red glow fizzled out.
‘No,’ Van Kleiss roared. ‘No, no, no!’
With a final pop, the portal vanished. Breach’s arms fell to her sides.
‘You idiot,’ Van Kleiss spat. ‘You’re supposed to be able to make portals, that’s what you do. That’s your entire purpose!’
‘Like, I tried to –’
‘You failed, that’s all that matters,’ the villain roared. ‘If you can’t produce a portal when we need a portal, then tell me, Breach, what good are you?’
Breach didn’t answer. Suddenly, she didn’t feel like speaking. Her shoulders slumped and her hair fell down over her eyes. Silently, she went back to checking the mirrors, hoping that one of them would lead the way back home.
CHAPTER 9
REX STOOD AT THE BACK of the room, watching nervously as Dr Holiday examined Seal. The girl was still sitting with her head hung down, but in the last few seconds she had pushed her hair back over her ears. That was a start, at least.
‘Seal, can you hear me?’ Holiday asked. ‘Rex is worried about you. He thinks you might be … having problems. Are you having problems, Seal?’
The girl slowly raised her eyes until they met Dr Holiday’s. Then she nodded her head, just once.
‘What sort of problems are you having?’ Holiday asked, kindly. ‘Maybe I can help.’
This was why he liked the doc, Rex thought. She was smart, funny, and she knew what to do in an emergency. And she looked great in those boots.
Seal’s lips moved silently. Holiday leaned in closer. ‘What did you say?’ she asked.
‘I d-don’t know,’ Seal whispered. ‘I feel strange.’
‘That’s OK,’ said Holiday, brightly. ‘We’re pretty used to strange around here, aren’t we, Rex?’
‘We’re all about strange here,’ Rex replied. ‘Hey, for all I know, Strange is my middle name.’
Seal looked up at him. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.
Breach’s mouth pulled down into a miserable sneer. She was feeling worse with every second that passed. Van Kleiss was still furious at her, and Biowulf and Skalamander weren’t paying her any attention.
For a few moments she had felt something she had never felt in her life before. She had felt … happy, as if some great weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
But now the weight was back, and it was gradually getting heavier.
Seal felt her mood lightening. Dr Holiday was easy to talk to, and Rex was just, like, totally awesome!
The sadness she had felt had come on suddenly. It had overwhelmed her in the night, making her feel as if everything was a pointless waste of time, and that everyone in the world hated and despised her. She had never felt that way before, and she really hoped she never would again.
‘Mandy? Mandy, where are you?’ asked Noah, as he searched his kitchen for the chameleon. He was sure he’d seen it sneak in t
here, but now it was nowhere to be –
‘No, don’t eat the coffee!’ Noah cried, as he finally spotted the lizard. It was standing on the kitchen counter, using its long tongue to lick coffee granules from inside a jar. The jar had been full just a few minutes ago. Now, it was almost completely empty.
Mandy’s already bulging eyes seemed to bulge wider. The chameleon’s colour went from pale blue to bright yellow, then cycled through red, orange, purple and half a dozen other colours Noah couldn’t even name.
With a sudden boing, the lizard leapt up onto her feet. She scrabbled down onto the kitchen floor and began running in circles, around and around and around.
‘Oh, great,’ Noah groaned. ‘A lizard on a caffeine rush. Just what I need!’
A short, sudden sound made Van Kleiss pause, his hand pressed against yet another mirror. He listened until the sound came again – a deep, snuffling snore from somewhere behind him.
Van Kleiss turned and scowled through the gloom. There, resting against a mirror, was Skalamander. His yellow eyes were closed over and there was even more drool than usual around his twisted mouth.
Asleep. He was asleep on the job!
A red mist of rage descended behind Van Kleiss’ eyes. He stomped across to the snoring Skalamander and kicked him hard in the ribs. The lizard-like Evo opened his eyes and sat up with a start.
‘I’m aware that you need your beauty sleep,’ Van Kleiss growled. ‘But trust me, now is not a good time!’
Skalamander looked around, as if trying to figure out what had just happened. This only made Van Kleiss more angry.
‘Get up,’ he seethed. ‘Get up and get searching!’
Skalamander clambered quickly to his feet and shambled over to the closest mirror, working as fast as he could.
A whole world away, back at Noah’s, Mandy was gradually slowing to a stop. She completed a few more circuits of the kitchen floor, before slouching down beneath the table and turning the colour of the lino.
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