The Pillars of Ponderay

by Lindsay Cummings

  “Got it.” Birdie laughed like a maniac and dove into the water.

  “She’s crazier than that Guildacker of hers!” Leroy shouted. “See you on the other side, bro.”

  He and Albert separated and dove into the waves. For Birdie and Albert, it wasn’t impossible to navigate the tough waters. But Leroy was struggling. Albert could hear him shouting, see him fighting the waves.

  Albert’s heart sank.

  No amount of points was worth endangering his best friend. Albert grabbed Birdie’s hand. They both turned back, then each stretched out a hand to Leroy.

  Poor Leroy looked like a wet rat, his hair stuck to his face, his glasses askew. “Just leave me to drown, huh, dudes?”

  “Hey, we came back!” Albert said. “Hang on to us!”

  Leroy held on tight to both Albert and Birdie. Together, they used the power of their Tiles. With the natural swimmer’s strength that came with Birdie’s Water Tile, and the power of the Master Tile, they were able to haul Leroy across the angry waves.

  They were almost to the spinning circle of pillars. Albert reached out, thinking he’d be able to just grab one and hang on for a wild ride. But suddenly the pillars changed their direction. A massive wave slapped Albert in the face.

  “What the heck?” Birdie yelled. “What’s going on?”

  “I think they’re mirroring the Realm,” Albert realized.

  Leroy nodded. “Like the Pit knows the Ten Pillars have switched directions. Let’s try again.”

  They started swimming again.

  Hoyt laughed from somewhere above. He’d already managed, somehow, to start the climb. Slink and Mo were still in the water, splashing about as they, too, tried to grab a hold and start the climb.

  “The pillars are moving faster than yesterday!” Albert said. “How did Hoyt get onto one so fast?”

  Leroy chewed on his lip while they all treaded water, fighting to stay afloat. “Can you swim, like, dolphin-fast?”

  Birdie’s eyes lit up. “Heck, yeah.”

  Albert thought on it, then smiled. “I can manage it, if I use Speed and Water at once.”

  Leroy explained his reasoning. “We’ve got to move in the same direction as the pillars are spinning. Get close enough that we can reach out and grab ahold, once we’re at a good-enough speed alongside the pillars.”

  “That’s genius, Memory Boy!” Birdie shouted. “Let’s move on three.”

  Albert pictured both symbols in his mind, merging together.

  “One,” Leroy said. (Albert pictured the Water symbol.)

  “Two . . .” (Albert pictured Hoyt’s Speed symbol.)

  “SWIM!” Leroy shouted.

  Albert and Birdie took off, toting Leroy along between them in a Superman position. Albert could feel the water running across his body at top speed, forming bubbles against his skin.

  Faster and faster they swam, passing Slink and Mo not once, but twice. The wind was on Albert’s face. He let out an excited cry, but it was cut short when he saw Hoyt way overhead, waving a Tile in the air.

  He can’t win today. He just can’t!

  “That’s . . . fast . . . enouuuuuugh!” Leroy shouted, water spraying him in the face.

  Albert and Birdie exchanged glances.

  “Leroy first!” Albert shouted.

  Birdie nodded, and they swam closer to the pillars, the wind and waves picking up. “Get ready.”

  Leroy was spitting water and trying to see clearly, but he nodded like he understood.

  They angled him closer, and as a pillar swept by, they gave Leroy a good shove. Albert imagined the Strength symbol to give Leroy some extra oomph.

  It was like slow motion, watching Leroy stretch his arms, trying to grab a hold as a pillar spun by. His fingers stretched. His glasses were coated in water droplets, and his mouth was set in a hard line. The pillar was close enough that Leroy was able to grab a hold. The pillar carried him away like a floating buoy.

  Albert had to trust his friend to find the strength to start the climb.

  “Let’s move!” Albert shouted to Birdie.

  They started their swim again, chasing the pillars like dolphins in an ocean storm. In seconds, they’d picked up enough speed to catch onto pillars of their own, and from there, it was everyone for themselves.

  The second Albert was on his pillar, he traded the Water symbol for Strength, and started scurrying his way up.

  Today he was running on more than the desire to beat Hoyt for himself. He wanted it for his friends, for the bet he’d made on their behalf, for the safety of the surface world and Ponderay below.

  He wanted it more than anything in the entire Core.

  He reached the top and grabbed a Tile. A bell sounded, announcing one point for Hydra.

  Now I just have to jump to another pillar while this thing is moving.

  Albert looked up. Across from him, Slink grabbed a Tile. The bell clanged, a point for Argon.

  On and on it went. Clang after clang, point after point, until all ten Tiles were taken. The Pit calmed, but the pillars didn’t stop spinning entirely.

  “It’s time for Round Two!” Hoyt shouted from across the Pit. He leaped from a pillar, did a front flip, and landed in the waves beside Slink and Mo.

  Albert joined Birdie and Leroy, and they compared Tiles.

  “I got three,” Albert said. Birdie held up one, and Leroy held up another.

  “That’s five for us!” Leroy said.

  Birdie squealed with excitement. “That means Argon has the other five. We’re tied! We still have a chance to win this!”

  Albert felt the familiar buzz of adrenaline that came from being one step closer to winning. But the competition wasn’t over yet. They still had to beat Argon in the second round.

  He turned and looked across the Pit, past the spinning pillars. “We’re tied!” Albert shouted to Argon. “Forget about a new set of Tiles. Whoever plugs in their five Tiles first is the winner!”

  “You’re going down, Hydra!” Hoyt shouted.

  The second half of the competition began.

  Both teams dove into the waves. Hydra swam with a fury they hadn’t before. Albert and Birdie held Leroy in between them, and in a matter of seconds, they’d managed to fling him onto a pillar.

  Suddenly, the direction changed again.

  “Hang on, Leroy!” Albert shouted.

  Leroy’s fingertips were white, but somehow, he managed to keep his grip even as the momentum from the direction change threw him around like a rag doll.

  Albert and Birdie avoided the tidal wave that came toward them. They separated, and Albert’s heart was pounding like a jackhammer by the time he hauled himself onto his pillar. He climbed, breathlessly, toward the top, and with one final burst of energy, pulled himself up. But he couldn’t get to his feet. Not with the wind, and not with how fast the pillars were spinning.

  Even Hoyt was having trouble. He tried to make the leap from one pillar to another, but the wind knocked him off course, and he was catapulted into the side of the Pit.

  Albert closed his eyes and perched on top of his pillar like a bird. But he couldn’t think of a single Tile symbol that would help him here—Speed, Strength, Balance. Nothing would help him defeat the wind.

  He tried to jump anyway. All that he accomplished was getting a fat bloody lip and a big splash into the waters below.

  The fight went on.

  Thirty minutes passed.

  The teams were neck and neck. Hydra and Argon had each plugged three Tiles into slots.

  Somehow, doing the same pattern over and over again, Albert, Birdie, and Leroy were keeping a steady scoring pace. They were working as an efficient team, but if they wanted to win, they’d have to really pull ahead.

  They’d have to do something crazy.

  Clang! Albert looked up and saw Mo plug a fourth Tile in place.

  “We’re not moving fast enough!” Albert shouted to Birdie as they swim in circles, trying to launch Leroy onto another pil
lar again. “If they plug in their fifth Tile before us, they win!”

  “What are we supposed to do, sprout fins or wings?” Birdie shouted.

  “I don’t even know if that’s possible!” Albert shouted back.

  They launched Leroy onto his pillar, and Birdie shot ahead and grabbed on, too.

  “I’ll stay here with him and we’ll work on this Tile together,” Birdie shouted as they sped away.

  Albert found his own pillar. He was exhausted. Albert climbed with everything he had, using Strength, but his mind was growing weak now. His limbs were trembling like leaves, and he just couldn’t stay focused on the Master Tile symbols.

  “Give up now, Flynn!” Hoyt shouted from his perch on a pillar.

  It gave Albert just enough fury to climb up, plug in Hydra’s fourth Tile, and slide back down into the water.

  Now they were even again. Albert dove into the waves where Birdie and Leroy were waiting, the Tile still in Leroy’s hand.

  “Come on!” Birdie cried out.

  “We’ll finish this together!” Leroy shouted.

  But Albert had other ideas. He had the Master Tile, and the power to finish this before Argon could. “Give me the last Tile!” Albert shouted. “I can do it!”

  Birdie looked nervous, but she tossed it to him. He caught it and tucked it in his waistband.

  He tried to swim fast. He pictured the water droplet in his mind, but it kept flickering, like those times the power started to go out in his mom’s apartment, and the TV screen wouldn’t keep a clear picture.

  No. I can’t give up now, Albert thought. I have to win. He clenched his teeth so hard he accidentally bit his tongue and tasted blood. His hands were throbbing from gripping the pillars so tight, and his lip was swollen beyond belief.

  Albert was just able to get his Master Tile to harness the power of the water droplet, when he saw a flash of orange overhead. He looked up as Hoyt, Slink, and Mo stood on the tops of three pillars. They were all holding hands, using one another for support.

  Albert gasped as they leaped as one unit.

  And landed, somehow, on three separate pillars.

  They stooped down, and Hoyt plugged in the final Tile for Argon.

  Clang!

  The pillars suddenly stopped spinning. The wind died down, and the water began to disappear, draining into the bottom of the Pit.

  Albert gasped, all of the strength going out of him, as he saw the glowing leaderboard overhead, on the rocky side of the Pit.

  Hydra had nine points.

  Argon had ten.

  Hoyt’s team had won, and Hydra had lost the bet.

  Five minutes later, the Pit was back to normal, and Hydra and Argon made their way out. Everyone was so exhausted that Argon hadn’t even celebrated with their usual whoops and hollers.

  “Remember our bet” was all Hoyt said to Albert as the two teams separated.

  Albert nodded, lost in his thoughts, as Argon took the pathway down from the Pit and faded away into darkness.

  Albert was shocked, not because of the loss, but because Argon had done something Hydra hadn’t. They’d figured out how to work as a real team with the way they’d linked up arms and done the final steps together. Hydra had worked together in the water, but not on the pillars. With their victory today, Argon had proven themselves worthy of defeating the Pit, fair and square, no lying or cheating necessary.

  Albert left the Pit in a daze, with Birdie and Leroy hot on his heels. Farnsworth didn’t even run. His ears dragged across the dusty floor, and his eye lights were dimmer than a dying candle.

  Hydra didn’t speak, not even after they’d all gone to their dorms, changed clothes, and met back up in the Main Chamber.

  It was Petra who found them, sitting silently on the edge of the Ponderay stream, staring at the glowing numbers on the clock. Time was nearly up.

  “Come on,” Petra said. He forced Hydra onto their feet. “You need a morale boost.”

  The group headed to Petra’s secret float room, where they helped him patch together a few final touches on the Guildacker. Farnsworth perched on top of the float, gnawing on one of his favorite blue bones.

  “I just don’t get it!” Birdie was saying. “We’ve done everything we could’ve done last year. How are they beating us?” She slammed her fist on the Guildacker’s head, and a gold coin fell off, clattering to a stop on the stone floor far below.

  “Oops, sorry, Petra!” Birdie climbed down and scooped up the coin.

  “No worries,” Petra called from the wing. “The parade isn’t for a few days. I’ve got time to fix things.”

  He was lacing together more of that crazy moss, wearing thick black gloves so it wouldn’t affect his skin. Leroy was glaring at the moss like he wanted to stab it. Apparently, he still hadn’t forgiven it for his balloon hand last term. Birdie was back on top of the Guildacker, and she suddenly groaned and punched its head. The misplaced coin wasn’t sticking. Leroy noticed her struggle to fix it, and climbed up to her. He patiently showed her how to do it the right way.

  It struck Albert, as he watched his friends working together from below, that he loved these people, and he didn’t blame them for losing today. That was when something sparked to life in Albert’s mind.

  Something that hadn’t really hit him yet.

  “They’re good,” Albert said. “Apparently, even better than us.”

  “Don’t say that! You’re just panicked,” Birdie gasped, but Albert was as cool as a cucumber. He’d come to terms with the loss. He’d sat there in silence for hours, analyzing what had happened. And now he knew.

  “It’s true, guys.” Albert leaned forward onto his knees and sighed. “We did a good job today. Really good, and we all know it. And we were good last term. Great, actually.”

  “The best,” Birdie and Leroy said together, and Petra nodded along.

  “But not this term,” Albert said. “Things have changed. Hoyt might be a pig-faced jerk, but his team’s got skill. They’ve improved a lot. Maybe, if we can forget about trying to beat them and just focus on doing the best we can as a team, playing to our strengths like we did in Calderon, maybe it’ll make a difference.”

  It made perfect sense. In the Pit, all Albert had been doing was stress, stress, and stress some more. To him, it was about proving a point. Beating Hoyt’s team just so he could be a winner.

  But that wasn’t the way it should be.

  Being a Balance Keeper was about bravery and having heart, working together as a team, even when it seemed impossible to win or keep going. It wasn’t about pride. It was about teamwork.

  “Maybe we just need to start fresh,” Albert said. “Let’s go to the Pit tomorrow and forget about winning. Let’s just have some fun and enjoy being Balance Keepers.”

  “Albert’s right,” Petra squeaked. His face was covered in oil and sweat, but his smile was as bright as ever. “You guys need to stop worrying so much. Just have fun. I’d do anything to be a Balance Keeper.”

  “I’d do anything to be such a good sculptor.” Leroy smiled, popping the last of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich into his mouth.

  Petra put the finishing touches on the Guildacker’s wings. They glowed magnificently. It was so realistic that Albert almost thought the float might fly away into the Main Chamber.

  “Yeah, you’re amazing Petra,” Albert added, and Birdie also sang his praises.

  “Thanks, guys.” Petra’s face instantly grew red. But he recovered quickly. “So, I love hanging out with you guys and all, but if I were you, I’d go get some rest. You’re going to need it toni—I mean tomorrow,” he quickly corrected. His face grew red all over again.

  “Do you know something we don’t, Petra?” Albert asked. Petra had that mischievous gleam in his eyes.

  “Nope! Don’t know anything!” Petra gave them a quick thumbs-up, then disappeared beneath the float to work on the gears. “See you later!”

  Albert shrugged. Maybe Petra was as weird as he’d always
been and they’d just gotten used to him. It made Albert smile.

  Farnsworth led the way back, scurrying across the Main Chamber. Even with today’s loss, and the impending doom of Ponderay, Albert noticed a change in the Core. Everyone was gearing up for the big Float Parade. The Core workers were on towering, wobbly copper ladders, stringing lights and garlands across the chandelier and the steaming pipes overhead. It was a welcome distraction to everything going on in the Imbalanced Realm.

  Even the CoreFish was out tonight, giving kids free rides on its back in the streams below, making clicking noises like a happy dolphin. Overhead, Jadar soared across the crowd, screeching with glee as he chased a giant purple butterfly.

  “He’s adorable,” Birdie sighed, watching her companion as they crossed over a bridge.

  “Adorable? More like adoraNOT,” Leroy yelped.

  CHAPTER 18

  The Core Hunt

  That night Albert finally got the good sleep he’d been so desperate for. His eyes closed as soon as his head hit the pillow. He had no dreams, just blissful, beautiful sleep . . . and it was soon ruined by the bright beam of a flashlight right over Albert’s face.

  “Farnsworth,” he groaned, putting his arm over his eyes.

  “I’m not your dog, weirdo!” a boy’s voice said. Someone nudged Albert’s shoulder. “Get up!”

  Albert opened his eyes, and saw that Jack was standing over him. He was wearing all black, and he had camo paint on his face, making him look like some kind of soldier.

  “What time is it?” Albert said, wiping the sleep from his eyes.

  Across from him, a dark-haired Pure guy who Albert remembered was training for Belltroll last term, Rick, was waking up Leroy.

  “It’s time for the best tradition of the season,” Jack said, hauling Albert out of bed.

  “I thought the Float Parade wasn’t for another couple of days,” Albert said.

  Jack smiled, his eyes bright like he knew a secret. “That’s a great tradition, but this one is secret. Usually, it’s for Pure Balance Keepers only. But since you and your team came all this way, you get to join in the fun.”

  “And,” Rick said, arms crossed over his chest, “it’s dangerous.”