The competition bore on. Pillar after pillar, Tile after Tile and slot after slot, Albert, Birdie, and Leroy began to match it all up.
Argon was so confused that once, Albert saw the three of them down in the waves below, fighting like a trio of angry cats. They had no idea what to do, and hadn’t matched a single Tile—hadn’t even tried.
Hydra had matched five Tiles when Tussy shouted the one-minute mark—at least they could rest easy knowing they wouldn’t have to start over. They didn’t have to worry about Argon either—they had all but given up.
As the crowd began to count down from ten, Albert held up the last Tile they had in hand, a pink squiggle. Leroy motioned that the pillar they stood on shared the same marking. By now, the pillars had slowed to carousel-like speeds.
“You do the honors,” Albert said, and handed Leroy the Tile.
Leroy slammed it down into the slot on their pillar.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
“Hydra wins by a landslide!” Tussy shouted, just as the clock ran out.
The crowd went wild. Their cheers were louder than Albert had ever heard in the Pit, in all his past competitions. Birdie and Leroy wrapped Albert in a hug, and the three of them joined in the cheers with their hearts racing wild.
They’d actually done it. They’d earned ten points, which meant . . . Hydra was in the lead, 35–34. By one point, they were finally beating Argon on the leaderboard.
As the pillars slowed to a stop, and the water and wind died down and the creatures disappeared, Albert caught his dad’s face in the crowd.
Professor Flynn practically glowed with pride. He smiled at Albert, and in that moment, everything else faded away.
I knew you could do it, kiddo, Albert imagined his dad saying.
It made Albert happier, and prouder, than any win ever could.
Lunch that afternoon was the best meal Albert had enjoyed so far this term. He sat beside Tussy as she went on and on about the day’s competition. The other Balance Keepers at the table were all leaning forward, eyes wide, ecstatic about the news.
“It’s about time you guys showed Argon who you really are,” one of the Pure girls, Cecily, said. She had light blue eyes and dark hair, and Leroy couldn’t look at her without turning as red as a beet. “How did you win, anyway?”
Today, the Whimzies had served chocolate cake for dessert, topped with strawberries and cream. A great way to celebrate Hydra’s win, and as Albert looked at his friends, he knew exactly how they’d pulled it off.
“We worked as a team,” Albert said. Birdie smiled and patted him on the arm.
“We stopped focusing on winning and starting focusing on using all our skills to get the job done. But Leroy was the real hero today,” Birdie said. She nudged Leroy. “Right, Leroy?”
“Cake,” Leroy mumbled, eyes going wide as he looked at Cecily and then looked away just as fast. “Good cake.”
Everyone laughed.
The conversation went on. Professor Flynn stood up to lead the Core song as lunch came to an end. The song was half over, and Albert’s heart was swelling with pride for his team.
That was when the ground shook. It started as a tiny tremble, like maybe the Core was shivering.
But then, all at once, a shock wave ripped through Lake Hall. The water swelled, causing a few of the docks to almost capsize. People screamed. Plates fell from tables and glasses shattered. The lights flickered until all the blue flames went out. The room was in complete and total darkness, save for the blue brightness coming from the companion creatures’ dock. Farnsworth’s eyes were two bright beams of cool, calm blue, the only thing besides Albert’s friends that kept Albert from running in fear in that moment. With a tremor so intense, the origin of the shock wave couldn’t have been that far away from where they were sitting right now. What was happening to the Core?
The tremors continued for more than a minute, an eternity for such things. Great rocks fell from the ceiling, barely missing the dock the Professors sat on.
Finally, the shock wave stopped, but the screaming didn’t, not until Professor Flynn stood up and shouted, “SILENCE!”
His voice was so loud, so full of order, that everyone shut his or her mouth at once.
Farnsworth turned his eyes to Professor Flynn, bathing him in a blue spotlight. Everyone in the Core watched him, waiting for a command.
Albert was shaking, and Birdie was, too. Leroy was frozen still, cake crumbs all over his face. But Professor Flynn looked calm, cool, and collected.
“Everyone, take a moment to look around you,” Professor Flynn said. “Look at the person to your left, and to your right.”
Birdie reached out and took Albert’s and Leroy’s hands, and held on tight. All around Lake Hall, people were doing the same, some with arms wrapped around one another, some holding hands. A few people had even begun to cry, and some of them had bumps and bruises, a few nasty cuts. Hoyt had scurried under his table to hide, and was using Slink and Mo as a protective barrier on either side of him.
“Are you guys okay?” Albert asked his friends.
Birdie and Leroy were both pale as the moon. They nodded without saying a word.
Professor Flynn continued on. “These are your friends, your family, and we are all here to face this together. Everything is going to be all right.”
He waited for another moment, allowing people to seek comfort in the silence before he spoke again. Albert’s heart was still racing, his head wobbling from the shock wave. What had happened? Was this the Imbalance, or something else? A terrible thought came to his mind. What if the shock wave also happened on the surface? He thought of his family, and his skin felt clammy all over.
“Apprentices, please escort the Balance Keepers back to their dorms. Core workers, escort any of the injured to the hospital wing, then return to your barracks. Professors, meet me in my office, please.”
He clapped his hands, and everyone did exactly as he said.
More turtles arrived than normal, carting everyone back to dry land within a matter of seconds. Once on the other side, Albert, Leroy, and Birdie followed Trey in a single-file line, the Pure students going with them.
Everyone was quiet the whole time, voices hardly rising above a whisper.
The tunnel back to the Main Chamber had been hit pretty hard. Torches had fallen from the walls. Some large boulders had crashed from the ceiling, and a stalagmite had cracked in half. They had to take turns helping one another over the wreckage.
“There’s nothing to worry about,” Trey said, as he led the terrified students along.
“Nothing to worry about?” Hoyt shrieked. “We almost died back there!”
“You’re a Balance Keeper, Mr. Jackson,” Trey said, turning to look Hoyt right in the eye. Hoyt cowered and shook like a dog. He started inching backward like he wanted to hide behind Slink and Mo.
Trey turned to address the rest of the group. “You must be brave, if not for your own sake, then for everyone else’s. Everything is fine. It was a minor tremor. Now let’s move along. Keep up, students.” He turned and continued down the hall.
Albert followed. Trey was trying to cover something up, he knew it. It was what a good leader needed to do, in that moment, but that didn’t stop Albert from shaking. What had happened to cause the shock wave? Was it going to happen again?
Had anyone been hurt? Had anyone (he was afraid even to think about it) died? Again, he thought of his family and everyone in California. Had they felt it on the surface?
They came out into the Main Chamber. A giant roar erupted, and Jadar swooped down from the rafters, landing in front of Birdie with his leathery wings outspread.
Some students—Hoyt included—screamed and dove out of the way. Faced with real fear, the guy was becoming a real scaredy-cat. Albert just shook his head.
Birdie rushed forward and hugged Jadar’s neck.
“I’m okay,” she said. “I’m okay! Are you?”
Jadar practically purred with relief.
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“Miss Howell,” Trey said, a warning in his voice as he stood off to the side, eyebrows raised. “Please remind your Guildacker to keep his voice down. He’s scaring the students.”
“He’s sorry.” Birdie patted Jadar’s head. She looked down at Albert and Leroy. “I’ll see you guys as soon as we’re allowed to, okay?”
Albert and Leroy nodded, then waved as Jadar took to the sky, soaring down the tunnel toward Treefare. Tussy took the girls in that direction, while Trey escorted the boys down their tunnel to Cedarfell.
When they got there, Albert’s stomach lurched. Some of the trees had cracked in half, their great boughs like shattered limbs. Massive stones had fallen from the ceiling, crushing hammocks and tents like they were nothing but bugs. Acorns littered the floor, and all of them had cracked in half. Their fizzy liquid had spilled like blood.
“Stay here until an announcement is made,” Trey said. “Anyone who leaves without permission will lose their Balance Keepers status immediately.”
He looked pointedly at Albert before he turned on his heel and marched from the forest, slamming the door to Cedarfell behind him.
“What’s he so worked up about?” Hoyt said. He marched forward and started ordering kids around. “Let’s get this mess cleaned up, boys!”
One of the Belltroll First Units, Elliot, barked out a laugh. “Now you’re going to act all big and brave? If I remember correctly, you practically peed yourself when that shock wave happened, Hoyt!”
Some of the guys laughed and circled around the two boys.
“What did you just say to me?” Hoyt growled.
The two of them started a war of words, and Albert tugged Leroy along down the path into the woods. He couldn’t take Hoyt’s nagging voice right now. He needed some peace and quiet. Some normalcy. They sat down at the campfire, and a few of the other boys joined. Slink got a fire started. Albert was surprised not to see him lingering by Hoyt’s side as usual.
“That was intense,” Leroy muttered, as he and Albert sat down at the fire pit.
“It felt like the Core was ripped apart,” Albert said.
“Hydra!” a voice called from behind them.
Leroy and Albert turned to see Petra rushing toward them. He held a tiny box in his hands, and he was breathless, as if he’d just run halfway across the Core.
“Petra—you’re not supposed to be here—” Albert started to say.
“Can I speak to you in private for a second?” Petra asked.
Albert and Leroy joined him off to the side, behind a fallen tree. Its leafy canopy was splayed across the forest floor like a wall.
“There’s no way for me to say this without upsetting you guys,” Petra said, looking at his toes. “I heard what you said in the Library the other night. I saw everything about the Book of Bad Tiles.”
“You what?” Leroy gasped.
Albert sighed. “I wondered if someone was sneaking around. Was that you I saw lurking in the shadows, when I was on top of the rock wall?”
Petra shook his head. “Nope, I don’t know who that was. I didn’t get there until you were by the shelves.”
So there had been someone else in the Library that night. Albert knew it. He just had to figure out who it was.
Petra continued. “Look, I’m sorry for spying, but I’ve always wanted to know what the Core Hunt was all about. I followed you guys, and I was going to see if you wanted help looking for the box of Tiles, and then . . .” His words trailed off as he held out the tiny box in his hands. “When the tremor happened, I was in the Library. Lucinda ran out, and I sort of snuck into her shop and took these.”
“You stole from Lucinda?” Leroy asked. His jaw dropped.
“Petra, what got into you?” Albert added.
“Of course I didn’t steal them!” Petra looked taken aback. “I left a handful of Medallions on her desk. I’d been saving up to buy some extra stuff for the float, but this was worth it.”
He pressed the box into Albert’s hands. Albert raised an eyebrow, and Petra nodded eagerly. Albert opened the lid on the box.
One yellow Tile sat inside. Its symbol was simple, a circle with a dot in the center, like an eyeball.
“This is a Homing Tile,” Leroy gasped.
Petra nodded. “I already hid the other one in the box with the Book of Bad Tiles. Now you can catch the owner in the act!”
Albert stared at the yellow Tile. He scooped it up and held it out to Leroy. “It was your plan. You can wear the Tile.”
Leroy grinned and slipped it over his head. It landed with a clink over his Synapse Tile. “Thanks, Petra.”
Petra nodded, then took a step closer and lowered his voice. “You guys said you can’t trust anyone. But you can trust me. You are the only friends I have in the Core, and I would never do anything to jeopardize that.” He rocked back and forth on his heels. “Plus, I’m your biggest fan.”
Albert chuckled and clapped Petra on the back. “We’re a fan of you too, Petra. Thanks for getting the Tiles for us. We’ll let you know if they detect anything.”
“I’ve got to go see if the Professors need me now.” Petra grinned, then turned and scurried away into the woods.
Albert and Leroy joined the other boys back at the fire.
All the boys traded theories about the shock wave, but no one seemed to know what had caused it. What had happened to the Core?
The question stuck in Albert’s mind, even as free time passed, and Trey didn’t return. Soon the red birds of Cedarfell began to sing their evening song.
Albert returned to his tent and began flipping through the Black Book, but he couldn’t focus on studying Tile symbols. All he could picture was the Core, falling apart from the inside out. Gone forever.
A half hour later, the loudspeaker clicked on. Albert perked up—maybe his question about what had happened would finally be answered.
Professor Flynn’s voice rang through the loudspeaker, covered up by a film of static. “Balance Keepers, please report to the training Pit at once. There’s been some damage. Please proceed with caution.”
Albert could hear the hint of fear in his dad’s voice.
Whatever had happened to the Pit, it wasn’t good.
Eleven minutes later, Albert sat beside Birdie and Leroy on the spectators’ bleachers, looking down into the Pit. Or at least, what used to be the Pit.
It was now a pile of rubble, dust still hovering in the air. The edges had crumbled into the middle, making the entire thing look as if it had swallowed itself whole. There were strange, oozing globs of colorful goo pouring from the Pit’s sides (what was left of them), so that it looked like it was bleeding.
The Core maintenance men were already there with blueprints and tools, trying to decipher what had happened and how the Pit had been destroyed like a giant foot stomped down on it. Professor Bigglesby hadn’t been around much this term, but he was here now, clearly concerned. He stood with the maintenance men, and was using some sort of oversized copper binoculars to peer down into the rubble.
“The Pit has never been damaged like this before,” Professor Flynn said. The MegaHorn made his voice loud, but without the Pit’s depths, there was no echo. It was oddly disconcerting. “And while we’re still working on figuring out what caused the shock wave earlier, our engineers have determined that the quake wouldn’t have caused this level of destruction on its own. Someone used the chaos of the shock wave as cover-up for destroying the Pit. This was no amateur prank, no random act.”
Professor Asante sat beside him in her wheelchair, dark eyes scanning the crowd of Balance Keepers. She whispered something into Professor Flynn’s ear, and he nodded.
“We suspect someone knowingly vandalized the Pit to disrupt the training of our Balance Keepers, to prevent us from having the capability to protect the Realms.”
Farnsworth growled angrily, as if he would protect the Core all by himself if he could.
A murmur spread through the bleachers. Albert sat still a
nd silent, taking it all in. But his stomach felt sour as if he might be sick, and he clutched Farnsworth so tightly the poor dog’s eye lights went out.
Professor Flynn held up a steady hand.
“In the Core, we are family. If any of you have any knowledge, any information or evidence about who might be behind this, I urge you now to come forward, for your and everyone’s safety. If you yourself have contributed to this chaos, I urge to you confess; we have seen enough destruction.”
Heads moved back and forth as people looked at one another with questions in their eyes.
“Now is the time,” Professor Asante said. “Come forward.”
“This is bad,” Birdie whispered. She groaned and put her head into her hands.
“The Book of Bad Tiles,” Albert whispered back. “We have to tell my dad. I can feel it, guys. Whoever owns that is the one who did this.”
Just then, Trey slipped away from the edge of the crowd and disappeared into the shadows, then out the door of the Pit.
“It’s him, isn’t it?” Leroy whispered back. “It’s Trey. That’s why he’s been acting so weird. Following us. Glaring all the time. He knows we know.”
And suddenly it hit Albert.
The minty smell that always accompanied the strange shadow. It had been on Trey when they’d spoken the other day, just here in the Pit. He gasped. “It could be!”
“Don’t jump to conclusions,” Birdie warned. “He’s an Apprentice! There’s no way he’d do something like this. Besides, isn’t he our friend?”
Albert shook his head. “Not anymore. Not since we came back this term.”
“Let’s just stop and think for a second,” Birdie said. “We can’t just accuse a person without solid evidence. And I still don’t think Trey would ever do anything like that. He’d never betray the Core. It’s his entire life.”
After a few more moments of waiting, the Professors nodded, obviously disappointed that no one had come forward, but resigned to moving on.
“From now on, everyone will be required to move in a buddy system. No more lone walkers in the Core,” Professor Asante said.