The grove would have to be abandoned, along with everything else, and they would have to face whatever awaited them in the unknown world of the Flatlands.
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*** CHAPTER 29 THE INFERNO
Sir William had been feeling a growing unease as he and the others made their way through the inside of Atherton. There was a part of him that wanted to take Samuel and Isabel and leave these two men he'd never met before. It seemed to him with each passing step that he and the two children were being led deeper into disaster.
He stood in the dark opening to the Inferno and looked back where the Nubian had been, listening as they trailed off. "Wait a minute," he said, peering into the darkness where he could barely discern the outline of the two men. He held Samuel and Isabel on either side, one under each arm. "I'm responsible for these two, even if you aren't."
"There's no place for you out there," Vincent called, gesturing with his chin. "Only death awaits if you take them out of
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the Inferno. Even if you get past the Nubian on your own, then where will you go? This place was not meant for humans, and that way"--he pointed forcefully to the outside--"leads only to the laboratory. In case you've forgotten, the laboratory is in the Highlands, which is under water."
Sir William took his hand off Isabel's shoulder, scratching the beard that had grown fallow beneath his chin.
"It's the only way," said Samuel, looking up at his father. "I know you feel bad for leaving me--for leaving Mother--but there was nothing you could do. No one blames you, least of all me, and Vincent knows the way. We have to learn to trust him."
At that moment Sir William realized just how deep his guilt for being trapped in Mead's Hollow had weighed on him. Until then he hadn't really seen the connection between his protec-tiveness of the children and his guilt for having left his own son fatherless for so long.
"You're right, Samuel. I do feel terrible I haven't been there to protect you. But you're also right that there was nothing I could do about it." He looked up at Vincent and Dr. Kincaid who stood impatiently waiting. "But I still don't know how to trust either of you. This way you're taking us better not be some sort of trap."
Dr. Kincaid spoke before Vincent had the chance to. "Vincent has one duty, to protect the four of us at all cost. If anyone comes to great harm it will be him, of that you can be assured."
Sir William remained unsure, but he resigned himself to the path he would have to take.
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"Let's not assume my demise already," said Vincent. "I've made it through here with an old man in tow several times before. I believe we'll be fine, if you'll only listen and pay attention."
There were tentative nods from everyone as Vincent turned and disappeared into the darkness. "It's a small space, so use the walls to guide you and follow my voice," he called out loudly and with great authority. "There's only one way to go for a while. The first thing you're going to see are more fire bugs. You'll want to touch them because the way they drift and sway makes them look so drunk with happiness, so harmless. Don't give in-- don't touch ---but also, don't turn away. If you take your eyes off them you're likely to feel a shock you won't like."
Isabel breathed in shallow fits and starts because she knew what it would feel like if one of the fire bugs touched her. Though she wasn't crying, by the sounds she was making in the dark it seemed to Samuel that she was nearly hysterical.
"Stay right next to me," he said, holding her hand. She gripped his fingers so tightly it began to hurt, but he didn't say anything. The two followed Vincent's voice through the dark.
"Here's one now," he said, and sure enough, out of the dark came a tiny glowing blue light, swaying softly in the air. It seemed not to be aware of them as it came very near Vincent's face. The small creature created enough light that everyone could see Vincent's eyes and nose and lips. "You can be touched three times by a fire bug in an hour. Any more contact than that and your body will start to shut down."
"How do you know that?" asked Isabel, realizing that this
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meant she could only be electrocuted twice more and she might have to be carried out of the Inferno -- or maybe even die.
"Because I touched three of them on my first journey through here," said Vincent. "And it took me an entire day to recover. I felt then as I do now that if I'd touched another, it might have killed me."
Vincent blew softly into the air and the fire bug drifted off.
"You don't have to blow very hard to make them change course," said Vincent, moving again. "Just be careful you don't blow one into someone standing next to you."
"I wish I hadn't touched one," said Isabel. If Vincent could have seen her thick dark brows set low over her eyes he would have known just how upset she was with herself.
"You're the curious type, but maybe that's a mixed blessing. My guess is you're going to be very careful, aren't you, Isabel?"
Isabel had to admit to herself in the silence of her own fuming that Vincent was right. There was nothing that could make her voluntarily touch a fire bug ever again.
They walked on and soon blue fire bugs became more frequent, until somewhere along their journey they realized that they were no longer touching the walls for guidance. The light from the fire bugs was enough to illuminate the walls, the floor, the low ceiling. They were in what felt like an underground tube about the width of Vincent's outstretched arms. The ceiling was taller than the tallest among them--that being Sir William, at six feet--and the space had an unfamiliar feeling of being warm in a place that seemed as if it should be cold.
"Why is it warm in here?" asked Samuel. Isabel had let go
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of his hand and was now blowing fire bugs to the side. They were everywhere, hundreds of them swinging slowly back and forth in the darkness.
"We're getting closer," said Vincent. "It will get even warmer." He blew fire bugs to the left and to the right, clearing a path for the rest as best he could.
"Get used to moving the fire bugs aside," he said. "Soon there will be thousands in the air all around you. It's only your skin you need to worry about, so stay covered up but for your face."
Isabel let her hair fall down in front of her eyes so that only her nose stuck out from her hair.
The bugs grew thicker and the way was bathed in fluorescent blue light. Samuel smiled at Isabel and she gasped at how white his teeth and eyes were. "You look weird," she said.
"So do you," said Samuel. If it weren't for Isabel's nose, he might have thought he was looking at the back of her head.
"You're going to want to touch the Rivers of Fire," said Vincent. "Don't touch them."
Samuel turned more quickly than he should have, and when he did there was a fire bug directly in his path. It landed on his cheek and the electricity shot through his face, down his neck, through his chest, and down his legs. He could not move and felt as if his insides were being torn apart until Isabel, cool-headed in the moment, took a section of her long hair and batted the fire bug away.
"Ohhhhhhh! That itches SO badly!" he howled. Isabel continued to blow a wide path of bugs away from Samuel as he
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jumped up and down, itching furiously. It looked like he might scratch right though his skin as Sir William held him steady and tried to calm him. A full minute passed before Samuel seemed to be able to continue on.
"Only four more fire bugs can land on the two of us," said Isabel. Secretly, she felt a little better that she was no longer the only one who had been touched.
"Like I said," said Vincent, seeing that the excitement had died down, "you're going to want to touch the Rivers of Fire you're about to see. Don't."
Everyone seemed to catch their breath at the same time as they rounded a jagged corner. Trails of an orange substance ran leisurely along the floor of the tunnel. They were the width of a child's outstretched hand, and they moved like they were made of something a thousand times thicker than water.
"It's something very much like molten glass," said Dr. Kincaid. "If you touch it, it will set your finger on fire."
He looked back at Sir William, who wore a robe dangling to the floor. Everyone else wore trousers and long shirts, but the robe would be a problem. "Do you have anything on under that?" asked Dr. Kincaid. "You're going to drag it into the Rivers of Fire and set yourself aflame."
Sir William was nervous about disrobing, not so much because he didn't have very much on underneath but because it would expose him to the fire bugs. Still, he saw the folly of walking along a path cut through with streams of molten glass--whatever that was--and so he took the robe off. Beneath it he wore a shirt with no sleeves, boots, and
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something that looked like a towel wrapped around his waist. He was about to toss the robe behind him when Dr. Kincaid suggested otherwise.
"You'll never make it past the bugs like that," he said, and he was right. As they stood, dozens of fire bugs sat on everyone's clothing or hair. Sir William would never make it without the robe.
"Hike up the bottom and hold on tight," said Dr. Kincaid. "You must now watch the floor as well as the air. Don't step in the Rivers of Fire."
The three who had never been through the Inferno now became fully aware of an odd, new sound that repeated all around them: fffffzzzzzziiiip! fffffzzzzzziiiip! fffffzzzzzziiiip! Samuel and Isabel asked what it was.
"Watch the floor," said Vincent. "And you'll see."
They watched as fire bugs dropped into the orange liquid and the fffffzzzzzziiiip! sound burst into the air. The Rivers of Fire were alive with electricity and heat, fed by the falling bugs.
"Follow my lead," Vincent said. "The fire bugs will thin out some, but don't take this as a sign that we should let down our guard. There are fewer fire bugs for a reason." He didn't know how else to prepare them for what would come next without scaring them. He walked on, knowing that at any moment it would happen. And so it did.
They had come upon a place where numerous holes--about as wide across as Samuel's head--pierced the floor between the flowing streams of orange glass. In a flash, something long
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and skinny, about the width of a man's leg, shot furiously out of the hole. With a hissing sound, it opened its mouth and flicked a glowing blue tongue into the open air. There was a pop as a fire bug touched the tongue and disappeared.
The beastly creature stood erect for a moment, then began slowly moving down again, turning its slick head from side to side. Despite its eerie blue eyes, there was no sign that it had noticed the people who had entered its domain.
"Cave eel," mumbled Dr. Kincaid. He had never gotten used to seeing them and his voice was ghostly.
"What's a cave eel?" asked Samuel.
"It eats fire bugs by the thousands," said Vincent. "You only get to touch a cave eel once. It's a quick death."
"This place makes no sense," said Sir William, flabbergasted by the bizarre and seemingly useless nature of his surroundings.
"Oh, but it does make sense!" said Dr. Kincaid. "Every living thing needs energy, especially in Atherton. The union of fire bugs and cave eels creates untold energy in the form of electricity and heat. This power made Atherton grow and evolve. The eels and the fire bugs are like a perpetual engine, don't you see? Together they make the Rivers of Fire. And these molten rivers run through the inside of Atherton, just as blood runs through the inside of you."
"Doctor!" cried Vincent. Dr. Kincaid could become talkative at the most inopportune moments. "This is no time for a scientific conversation."
Another cave eel erupted into the open air, then another.
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They popped up about every ten seconds, then slowly crept back down again between the flowing orange liquid on the floor.
"You have to be kidding me," said Sir William. As if the horrific sight of cave eels weren't enough, Sir William was finally touched by a fire bug on an exposed ankle. Samuel brushed the robe along his legs and the bug was gone, but not until after Sir William let out a scream that nearly sounded like the Nubian. "I hate these bugs," he grumbled after the initial shock, trying desperately to remain calm for the sake of Samuel and Isabel.
"I know it seems impassable," said Vincent, trying to keep everyone's attention even as they were being electrocuted. "But you're wrong."
Vincent stepped out among the cave eel holes and waited. At the moment one shot up into the air next to him, Vincent moved along its side, careful not to touch it. "As long as you stay away from the holes and don't lose your nerve, everything will be fine."
With fire bugs in the air, Rivers of Fire at his feet, and holes that contained monsters with glowing blue tongues, Samuel thought it looked near impossible. "Dr. Harding was mad," he said. "Truly, truly mad."
Dr. Kincaid had the urge to explain how brilliant the Inferno was--that it really wasn't meant for people but that it had a marvelous purpose--but he held his tongue and followed Vincent's steps carefully. Vincent would guide Dr. Kincaid through the cavern first, then come back for the others.
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[Image: The cave eel creatures.]
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The cave eel bay, as it was called, was only a hundred feet long. It was very well lit from all the glowing tongues, fire bugs, and radiant glass running along the floor in channels. He followed Vincent across the bay and felt the swish of a cave eel only once, very near to his arm. Soon Dr. Kincaid was at the other side and Vincent came back through for the others.
"I think it would be best to carry them," he said to Sir William. Isabel and Samuel exchanged a look that said this was a very bad idea.
"We'll be fine," said Samuel. "Isabel, you go with Vincent, and we'll follow closely."
Sir William felt this was probably the only way, so he nodded his agreement. Vincent took Isabel's hand and they began moving across the bay. There were dozens of holes, and all around her the cave eels were shooting up in search of fire bugs. The heads were dark grey and formless, like balled-up fists with luminous eyes and gaping mouths. Isabel wondered what a cave eel would think if she stepped over the top of one of the black holes.
They had come very near the other side when one of the cave eels--one that had already darted out of its hole and slid halfway down--shot back up into the air. When it flicked out its tongue, it missed the fire bug it was aiming for. The bug zipped toward Isabel's ear without her notice, and when it landed the shock went through her head, down into her arm, and into Vincent's hand. The two were being electrocuted by one tiny bug, and neither of them could bat the bug away.
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Samuel saw what was happening and sprang forward, over the top of a black hole, and slapped Isabel in the side of the head before falling to the ground.
"Samuel, no!" cried Sir William. The bug was dislodged from Isabel's ear and danced off merrily as if nothing had happened. The cave eel from the hole that Samuel had just passed over shot up, barely missing him, but where Samuel lay on the floor of the tunnel left him in a very dangerous position. Samuel was snaked like an S around three of the holes, and his head was perilously close to one of the Rivers of Fire popping with electricity.
Dr. Kincaid hastened out into the bay and retrieved Isabel, carrying her to safety. But something about the way Samuel had moved over the hole had set off a reaction in the cave eel bay. All of the creatures came out at once, their tongues darting overhead madly and filling the space with what looked like a night sky full of blue candles, rising and falling in spasms of anger.
Vincent and Sir William carefully helped Samuel to his feet, blowing fire bugs to the side, and the three zigzagged their way the final few steps out of the cave eel bay.
"Is she all right?" asked Samuel. Sir William was on his knees hugging his boy mercilessly, telling him to please be more careful.
"I'm fine," said Isabel, though she was scratching her ear almost comically hard, her hair dancing around over her head with static electricity. They stood as a group looking back
over
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the frenetic lights of the Inferno, wondering how they'd ever made it across.
"We made it!" cried Dr. Kincaid. "We're no longer under Tabletop. We're under the Flatlands now. The rest of the way is quick and easy. Soon we'll be outside once again!"
Everyone smiled, elated at the prospect of escaping the inside of Atherton. Even Sir William finally seemed convinced that these two men could be trusted.
Vincent had moved ahead of the rest to scout their way. And it was this fact that made what happened next possible, for Vincent would have been watching the group carefully.
While no one was paying much attention, a fire bug danced out of the bay all alone and landed softly on Isabel's hand, and she felt something deep inside that made her think she was about to die. This time she did not convulse at the touch of the fire bug. She only went limp, barely breathing at the edge of the Inferno.
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*** CHAPTER 30 A THOUSAND CLEANERS
Within the throng of a thousand people living on Tabletop there were three who could not bring themselves to leave the grove. Nobody knew they had decided to stay, and with so much commotion it was easy to ignore the fact that these three were making preparations of their own.
Charles and Eliza, Isabel's parents, were two of the three. The other was Samuel's mother, Adele. The three of them had formed a tight bond over their common loss. None of the three had any interest in leaving the grove, because it was the only place where they felt Isabel and Samuel might return to, if they were to return at all.