Chapter Twenty-Nine
Something Amiss
“Heave!” Sara encouraged her sister. “Heave!”
“Oh, I’m heaving, believe me!” Maria replied. “Don’t you recognize good old fashioned heaving when you see it?”
The two of them were awkwardly ascending the service ladder, attempting to escape from the crumbling chamber as quickly as they could. Evelyn was also on the ladder, and though she had reacquired a small amount of her wherewithal, she was hardly at full strength.
She was helping a little bit with the climb, but she needed a great deal of aid from the sisters, and it was all she could do just to hang onto Sara’s shoulders. If she did fall, it seemed reasonable that such a drop into the fiery carnage below would result in nothing short of doom… and she would most likely take her young companions down with her.
There was no easy way for them to exit the place. However, the sisters were extremely motivated to escape from the rampaging monster beneath them, which was in the process of smashing the place to smithereens. If a giant, bellowing dragon couldn’t inspire you to get moving, it was safe to say that nothing could.
With Sara leading the way and Maria bringing up the rear, they awkwardly push-pulled Evelyn up the ladder, while the curator contributed somewhat by weakly assisting, though these efforts did little to help. She was still thoroughly rattled by the effects of Pan Gu. Her senses were scrambled, and her motor skills were scattered to the four corners of her befuddled mind.
Maria and Sara both glanced down. They had managed to climb a good ways up the ladder, and their arms and shoulders were burning with the exertion of hauling Evelyn up the steep ascent. Fortunately, the curator was not a heavy person, but the added weight was still quite noticeable. Below them, the sisters could see the monster bashing and thrashing and smashing its surroundings, tearing apart the stronghold of the Black Hats.
The beast’s strength and intensity had only continued to increase after it had awoken. It was becoming more violent and powerful with each passing second. No longer was it only emitting smoke from its nostrils, but it was also spitting fire from its mouth, haphazardly lighting things ablaze, with nary a thought for consequence.
Its gargantuan tail swept about as it reversed its position, taking out machinery and support columns as if the appendage were a wrecking ball. Claws tore through steel like a hot knife through warm butter, shredding it into metallic ribbons.
Its voice had gained volume as its fury increased. Between snorts of flame and smoke, it bellowed with such ferocity that the sisters felt their bones shake, creating a weird, tingling sensation inside their bodies.
Sara’s eyes bulged as she observed this unparalleled destruction. She once more compelled her sister to heave. “Put your back into it, Maria! Evelyn, I know you’re not feeling well, but you’ve really got to help us out!”
“I’m heaving, I’m heaving!” Maria panted, pushing against Evelyn with all of her might.
“Keep going, we’re almost there,” Sara called.
Between grunts of exertion, Maria told her sister, “I assure you, I have no plans to stop and let this monster gobble us up.”
After much climbing and hauling, and the results of what was nearly a superhuman effort, the trio reached the highest rungs. Once there, Sara could see that the top of the ladder terminated in a round hatch that was above her. She reached up with one hand, placing her palm against its surface. With a grunt, she shoved against the hatch, and it flew open with a bong!
Immediately, Sara could feel air against her face that was drastically cooler than the hot atmosphere of the chamber below, which had been heated by the vast amounts of machinery, the spotlights, and (most alarmingly of all), the fiery breath of Pan Gu. It was a wonderful, refreshing feeling, and it filled her with hope.
“Okay, let’s get out of here!” Sara shouted.
She climbed out first, and then helped Maria lift Evelyn up the service ladder. Once the three of them had emerged, they found themselves at the ground level of the museum, where they had earlier been touring with the rest of the group.
However, there was nobody to be seen… had they evacuated when the building started shaking? Even here, away from Pan Gu’s terrible wrath, the effects could be felt. The building was bucking and shaking, and the monster’s bellows, though more distant, could still be heard.
“Whew! We made it,” Sara sighed.
She was dog-tired from the struggle up the ladder, but with the last of her strength, she slammed the hatch closed. With that done, the roars of Pan Gu became somewhat muffled, and the barrier between the humans and beast was a welcome one. Exhausted, she plopped to the floor with an oof, resting in a tangle of limbs.
Maria did likewise, crashing to the floor beside her sister, her chest rising and falling with rapid breaths. “We’re safe,” she mumbled, her voice filled with relief and fatigue. “Gears and sprockets... We’re safe.”
Evelyn had fallen to the floor beside the sisters, her arms and legs limp like wet noodles. She was murmuring to herself and weakly pointing toward the massive skylights of the ceiling. “Clouds,” she murmured.
“Yes, they’re clouds,” Maria agreed, in what she hoped was a soothing voice. She turned her head toward Sara and asked, “Do you think she’ll be alright?”
“I think she just needs some rest. She’s certainly better off than if we had left her down in that chamber with Pan Gu.”
Now that the danger had passed, and the sisters had a moment to catch their breath, they examined their surroundings. The hatch they had emerged from was in an unlit alcove of the museum.
Now they could understand how Ebenezer had reached the stronghold below – he must have ditched the tour group, slinked away to this location, and used the cover of the dim lighting to pop the hatch and descend the service ladder. That was how he had beaten Evelyn and the sisters to the chamber, while they were traversing the hidden passageway that began in the curator’s office.
For a few moments, the sisters could do nothing but stay on their backs, trying to regain their breath. As they did so, they marveled at how lucky they were to have escaped unharmed. They were still trying to comprehend what they had just witnessed; to process all the craziness that had been unleashed in such a short period of time.
Finally, Sara spoke. “I guess we had better get out of here and figure out where everybody is, huh?”
“Sure, why not? We need to find Neil and Jack and tell them about what Jasper and Ebenezer have gotten up to. This is a certified disaster,” Maria said.
They rose up, and with a combined effort, they got Evelyn on her feet, supporting her by throwing her arms over their shoulders. Bearing most of her weight, the sisters were able to steer Evelyn about as she shuffled her feet on the floor, mumbling to herself and humming.
They searched their surroundings, trying to get their bearings. Clearly, they were on the first floor of the museum, for they recognized the skylights above, though the exhibits that were immediately present were unfamiliar to them.
“Okay, back this way. I recognize this room up ahead. You see? It’s the room with all those Chinese artifacts,” Maria said.
“Oh, yeah, I see. I recognize that area. That’s the barrier that you almost tripped over, isn’t it?”
“No, that can’t be it. There’s no statue there.”
“Oh, no? Then what’s that?” Sara asked, pointing with her free hand.
Maria looked, and instantly recognized the object her sister was pointing at. It was a stone sphere, intricately detailed with patterns. Maria knew what it was. It was the Flower of Life, as Evelyn had explained to them earlier.
But that made no sense. The Flower of Life was part of the larger statue… and there was no Guardian Lion.
“This… can’t be right. Where is it?” Maria asked. She was utterly baffled, convinced that they were somehow mistaken. Had they become so thoroughly disoriented? “Something’s not right. Something’s amiss…”
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