Hirth came forward, shoved a pad of paper and a pen into Zachary's hand, and then quickly retreated to a tolerable distance once again. “Write this down,” he ordered. “Continue on the road you’re now on. Six miles from here it will branch into five different roads, numbered one through five. At the branch point you’ll find a wooden beam, sticking out from a booth. The beam is twenty yards due west of an old-fashioned well, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding it. On this wooden beam you’ll find a ping-pong ball.”
“Did you say a ping-pong ball?” said Jenna in disbelief.
“Yes I did. You really should pay closer attention,” scolded Hirth once again. “Where was I? Oh yes. Inside the ball you’ll find a small piece of paper with the number of the road you’ll need to take.”
“Why don’t you just tell us the road we need to take now?” asked Jenna from the passenger’s seat. Directions inside a ping-pong ball? It reminded her of a fortune cookie. It seemed more than just a little odd.
“Because the local portal appears in one of five locations each day, but we never know which one. Once we know, this information is imbedded in the ball, which is then placed on the wooden beam—using magic, of course. That’s just how it’s done. Since your imagination is too limited to even use magic, I would suggest not spending time criticizing how we do things here. I don’t have to be this nice,” he finished.
This nice? thought Jenna. Was he kidding?
But of course he wasn’t, she realized. He wasn’t the type to ever kid—about anything.
“Yeah,” she said sarcastically. “You’ve been super friendly. I’ve never met anyone with a bigger, um— ” she hesitated and made a show of staring at the throbbing organ beating away inside Hirth’s chest. “Heart,” she finished.
“Should I go on or do you want to waste more time asking questions?”
“Go on, go on,” said Jenna unhappily.
“One of the five roads has a very low bridge—an overpass—running over it that is too low for this vehicle to pass beneath. If this happens to be the road to which the ball directs you, lower the vehicle’s airplane and continue.”
The vehicle's airplane? Both listeners were confused but knew better than to interrupt. Not with the fungus growing stronger every second. Zachary continued scribbling everything the man said furiously on the pad.
“Whichever of the five roads the message in the ball directs you to, the portal will be inside a building you’ll find on the right side of the road, eight miles from the branch-point. The door responds to verbal commands, just like the ground vehicle. When you have said today's correct passwords the door will open automatically. The passwords needed to enter the building are the four words you can make, without any rearrangements, from the letters that you find in there.”
Hirth stopped abruptly. “That’s all. Now get going and get off our world. This has been most unpleasant.”
“But wait," said Zachary, totally confused about the passwords. “I don't understand what you mean by— ”
“I said that’s all!” interrupted Hirth with finality. “I’ve told you everything you need to know.” He handed Zachary a watch. “You now have forty-two minutes,” he announced. “Now leave!”
Zachary pulled up his pant leg and noted uneasily that the fungus had been making obvious progress even in the short time since he had last looked. He took a deep breath. “Before we go, can you tell us what happened to our parents? What this is all about?”
Hirth blinked in disbelief. “Have I failed to make myself understood? Even if you leave immediately you’ll be fortunate to escape Orum in time. You can’t afford to waste a single second.”
“Since we’re the ones infected, why don’t you let us worry about that,” insisted Zachary. His parents had reported failing to learn what was happening to them. If he and his sister were to have any chance of staying alive and rescuing them, they would have to learn exactly what they were up against, no matter what the cost.
“Look,” said Zachary. “You want us off your world and we want us off your world. So tell us what you know really fast and we’ll leave. Everyone will be happy.”
Hirth folded his arms against his repulsive chest with an expression that made it clear he would not say a single additional word to the two humans.
“We really can’t help you,” said Wyland, and unlike the bitter tone of his taller companion, his tone was almost apologetic. “But I can tell you this: your parents are still alive. And there is a small chance you can find them. And finally, there is an explanation for all of this.”
“Once again, Wyland,” snapped Hirth, “You are wasting time. These beings are far too stupid and unimaginative to have any hope of finding their parents.”
Zachary’s hands balled up into fists. Hirth thought he was so superior. It was maddening. Hirth was so . . . arrogant. Was this how Zachary came across to others? It was a troubling thought. No, he decided. He may have been confident, but he was friendly and cheerful most of the time. This Hirth was rude and unpleasant at all times.
“We’ll see who is stupid and unimaginative!” hissed Zachary, unable to contain his rage any longer. “If there is a way to find them, we’ll figure it out,” he insisted. “I promise you that.”
“No,” said Hirth. “You will flunk miserably.” He turned to Wyland. “Let’s go,” he said.
Zachary still wasn’t ready to give up. Why wouldn’t the man tell them what he knew? Or let Wyland tell them? What was the big secret? Their parents had obviously run into the same problem, having talked to numerous aliens, most likely with the help of a language transformer, without getting any answers. “Can you at least tell us—”
“Enough!” barked Hirth. “This conversation is over.” With that, he turned and strode briskly away, pulling his reluctant companion with him.
Zachary’s face turned red with fury but he knew they would get nothing further from this man and they couldn’t afford to waste another second. “Go forward along this road as fast as possible,” he said quickly to the car. It immediately began moving forward. Driving a voice-controlled car would have been very cool if not for the horrible circumstances they were in.
“Do you know what I liked about Hirth?” asked Jenna.
Zachary shook his head. “No, what?”
“Absolutely nothing,” she said impishly. “He was pretty much a complete and total jerk.”
Zachary smiled. At least Jenna had kept her sense of humor, despite being infected with a fungus that would soon root them in the ground of this world forever.
After driving for a few minutes they saw a sharp bend in the road ahead. “Reduce speed to thirty miles per hour,” said Zachary hurriedly, knowing they’d never make the turn at their current speed. The car began slowing immediately.
The road beyond the bend was hidden from view by a large farmhouse. As they approached the bend another car shot around it from the opposite direction and came into view.
The car was in their lane. And it was headed straight for them.
Zachary and Jenna had only an instant to brace themselves for a bone-crushing impact they could do nothing to avoid.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Hole in One
With an ear-piercing screech of its tires the oncoming car swerved violently to their left, avoiding a head-on collision by mere centimeters and shattering their side mirror as it whistled by.
“Stupid Hog!” shouted the transparent driver to Zachary through an open window as he passed.
Zachary's blood boiled in rage. This reckless driver had been in his lane, not the other way around. This maniac had almost killed them all by not controlling his car and he had the nerve to call Zachary a stupid hog.
Zachary had had more than enough of these transparent people. He stuck his head out of the window. But just as he opened his mouth to yell, “Reckless idiot!” at the other driver at the top of his lungs, he heard Jenna beside him yell, “Immediate stop!” as loudly as she could.
T
he car slammed on its breaks to carry out Jenna’s order and both passengers were thrown into their seatbelts and shoulder restraints with great force.
And not a moment too soon.
As they rounded the bend a massive hog, the size of a large hippo, appeared in front of them, completely blocking the road. It was just as transparent—and disgusting—as the men they had met. But as hard as the car was braking they were still traveling too fast.
The car continued screeching to a halt, so close now that the monstrous pig filled up the entire windshield.
And then, miraculously, the car stopped. Just inches from the gigantic hog.
The disgustingly transparent animal considered them, bored, gave them a snort, and then lazily continued on its way across the street.
If Jenna hadn't called a stop when she did they would have definitely crashed into the massive pig, possibly killing them, certainly destroying the car and any chance they had to leave this world before falling victim to the Anchor Fungus.
“How did you know to stop the car?” said Zachary, his heart still racing madly.
“Well,” said Jenna, “the people here are very literal, right? So when the driver yelled out, stupid hog, I realized he wasn’t trying to insult you. He was trying to warn you. Warn you that a stupid hog had wandered into the road. That's why the driver was in our lane—he had to swerve to avoid the hog.”
Zachary whistled. That was quick thinking on Jenna’s part. He had let his temper get the best of him—and not for the first time. But on this journey, unlike back at home, his life could well depend upon his ability to control this temper.
As they started to move again, Zachary took one last look at the animal they had almost hit. “I’ve heard of road hogs before,” he joked, “but I always thought that this was just a figure of speech.” He turned to his sister. “Good job, Jenna. See, I knew you might come in handy. Let this be a valuable lesson for you: never doubt your brother.”
Jenna rolled her eyes, but it did feel great to have actually been a help, especially after Zack had saved her from getting hit by Hirth’s car. Was the Omega-wave generator working? She did feel stronger and her thoughts did seem to be coming faster and more clearly. In fact, she felt terrific. What a discovery her parents had made. If only they could get back home so they could give it to the world.
A few minutes later they came to the branch-point in the road, just as Hirth had said. They were making good time. Zachary estimated that they would get to the portal with five or ten minutes to spare.
They quickly spotted the booth the man had told them about, sitting near an old-fashioned red brick well, complete with a wood bucket and crank, as promised. Protruding from the booth, about three feet off the ground, was a beam of wood with a small indentation at the end. A ping-pong ball was sitting in the indentation. It was on Jenna's side.
Zachary had the car park itself beside the ball so his sister could grab it without getting out. Jenna reached out eagerly for the ball, but before her fingers had closed around it her hand brushed against it and knocked it from its perch.
The ball bounced, almost falling into the well, which would have been disastrous. Jenna bolted from the car after it. It began rolling down a slight incline by the side of the street. She almost had it. Almost. She reached.
The ball disappeared down a hole.
“No!” she shrieked. It couldn't be.
She had been so close. She knelt down to examine the hole and Zachary joined her a second later. What kind of hole was this and what could it possibly be doing here? It was concrete, as big around as a soda can, and it went straight down for fifteen or twenty feet. The odds against the ball rolling into this small opening were astronomical.
“How could I be so clumsy?” she groaned.
Zachary frowned deeply. They were in big trouble. How was it possible for their luck to be this bad? They sat by the hole and stared down at the ball resting at the bottom, far below, mocking them. It was the ultimate torture. The ball was right under their noses, but it might as well have been a thousand miles away.
And without the information inside the ball, they were as good as fungus food.
CHAPTER NINE
Blocked
Zachary was furious with the universe for playing such a dirty trick on them. He felt like screaming at the top of his lungs, but instead forced himself to take several deep breaths, determined not to lose his temper again like he had in the car. He looked at the watch Hirth had given him. “We'd better go, Jen. We still might get lucky and guess the right road. We have a one in five chance,” he said with as much hope as he could manage.
Jenna had never felt so bad. Maybe she deserved to be turned into a human fungus. She had helped them avoid the giant hog, but now she had gone and pulled an idiotic move like fumbling the ping-pong ball. They were going to suffer a fate worse than death and it was all her fault. She lowered her head and began to sob. All the fear and emotion she had kept bottled up came out at once. The tears cascaded down her face and onto the pavement.
Zachary felt bad for his sister. Given what had happened they were working together as a team, but even when they were at each other’s throats he hated to see Jenna so upset that she cried. Maybe he could say something to help.
“It's okay, Jen,” he said gently, watching the tears fall from her face.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
“It wasn't your fault. I mean, yeah, you were super clumsy and all, but it was just really bad luck that the ball fell into that tiny opening.”
His attempt to comfort her didn’t help. In fact, if anything her sobbing got stronger. He replayed what he had said in his mind. Maybe he should have left out the “yeah, you were super clumsy,” part. That probably wasn’t helpful. He had finally found something he stunk at: being supportive. Lifting his sister up rather than tearing her down.
Drip-drip. Drip-drip. Drip-drip.
He shook his head helplessly. Jenna’s tears were falling onto the pavement even faster now, forming a tiny stream that inched forward toward the hated hole.
Zachary bolted upright.
Toward the hole.
“That's it!” he shouted. “Jen, you've done it! We still have a chance.” Without waiting for a response he rose and raced over to the well, turning the crank furiously to lower the bucket. He was rewarded seconds later by the sound of the bucket splashing down far below.
“Yessss!” he shouted happily. The well had plenty of water. He waited for the bucket to fill and then hurriedly cranked it back up.
Jenna stopped crying and watched in confusion as her brother raced around like a lunatic. He sprinted back carrying the bucket, ignoring the water splashing him as he ran. He knelt down and gently began pouring the water into the concrete hole.
And then Jenna understood. Of course.
Just as Zachary had hoped, the ball floated on top of the rising column of water. He continued pouring slowly as the ball rose, closer and closer to the top.
“It’s a good thing you’re so weak and emotional,” he said to his sister. “Because your crying gave me the idea.”
Jenna glared at him and shook her head.
“What?” he said defensively. “I was just telling you that you helped us. You’re not stupid enough to take that the wrong way, are you?”
Right after these words left his mouth, Zachary cursed himself. Wow, beating his sister down had become such a reflex that he could barely control himself. And until their discussion before leaving home, he wouldn’t have even realized he was doing it.
While he had been thinking, he continued to pour water into the hole, and the ball finally floated to the very top, easily accessible to their fingers. Zachary grabbed it and anxiously broke it open. Inside was a small piece of paper with the number three written on it.
They ran to the car and quickly instructed it to take road three at maximum speed. Zachary looked at his watch. “I think we’re still going to make it.”
Jenna couldn’t have
been more relieved. By mishandling the ball she had nearly cost them everything. “Any idea of what this is all about?” she asked her brother. If she could help him figure things out, even in a small way, maybe she could redeem herself.
Zachary shook his head.
“How did Hirth and Wyland know we were looking for Mom and Dad?” said Jenna.
“I don’t know,” replied Zachary. “Maybe they saw them come through the portal, too. Maybe when they saw us, they just figured the adult humans must have been our parents.”
“Maybe,” said Jenna. “But they were pretty certain. Maybe they know there’s a portal in the kitchen of the Lane family.”
Zachary frowned. Neither explanation was very good. “Maybe we should start at the beginning. What do we know? We know a portal appeared and swallowed Mom and Dad. Since we haven’t exactly heard about portals before, we have to assume this hasn’t ever happened on Earth.”
“Or at least not very often.”
“Right. So the first question is, what caused it to appear? It could just be some weird natural event that we don’t know about that happens when conditions are just right. Like a tornado. Nobody causes it; it just happens.”
“Maybe. But I doubt it. I think this one was created on purpose.”
Zachary frowned. “You’re probably right. I mean, what are the odds that it would appear exactly underneath Mom and Dad? A billion to one?”
“You don’t think Dad had something to do with this, do you?” said Jenna. Their father worked on some far-out stuff like black holes and ten-dimensional space.
Zachary thought about it for a second. “Nah,” he said. “I asked him once if he thought we’d ever invent a way to travel between worlds without using a spaceship. He said that with or without a spaceship, it would be a very long time before we figured out how to travel such great distances—if ever. And if he was responsible, he would have told us—I mean he would have had the Mimic Bird tell us—so we’d know what we were up against.”
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