Black Water

by D. J. MacHale

  “Ahh!”

  I rolled away fast. When I got the guts to look back, I nearly retched. Lying on the dirt floor in front of the crack in the wall was a pile of bones. Human bones. I had seen enough horror movies to recognize people bones when I saw them. I couldn’t tell how many victims these bones belonged to, and I wasn’t about to do inventory, but I’m guessing they were the remains of about six poor souls. They must have been there for a while, because there was nothing left of them but bones, and raggy clothes like I was wearing. Their clothes actually looked a little better than mine, but I wasn’t about to make a swap. Ick.

  I began to question whether the opening in the rock was the way out, or the path to a gruesome death that would land me back on this pile. I saw crudely fashioned stairs, leading up. They looked to have been carved out of the root material that snaked through the rock. Better, I saw a faint hint of light coming from above. Light was good. I decided to take my chances. I gingerly stepped over the bones because the idea of stepping on something and hearing a crack would have pushed me over the edge into gak-dom. With a quick hop I was over, and slid through the opening in the rocks.

  The steps were narrow and steep and wound around like a spiral staircase. I could smell fresh air coming from above, so my confidence grew. I really, really wanted to be out of here. This place was starting to feel more like a crypt than a gate to the flumes. After climbing for a few minutes, I got to the top of the crude stairs and found myself in a dark space. I couldn’t see the walls, and the ceiling was so low I couldn’t stand. What now?

  A few feet away I saw a thin sliver of light shining through what looked like more hanging vines. This had to be the way out. I stayed on my knees for fear of bonking my head and crawled toward the light. It was growing cooler, as if fresh air were only a few feet away. I found myself squeezing through a narrow passageway that at first gave me claustrophobia, but the urge to get the heck out was stronger. I picked up the pace, and a few seconds later the final veil of vegetation was pushed aside and I was hit with bright sunlight. I was out! I squeezed myself through, ready to be free of the dark tunnel and get my first look at the territory of Eelong.

  I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t this.

  Eelong was totally, absolutely, beautiful. I found myself about twenty yards from the edge of a cliff, looking out over a green, tropical forest. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything so awesome. I walked closer to the edge, on ground that was thick with grass so soft I probably didn’t need the lame-o shoes. The view spread out before me was absolutely stunning. As far as I could see there was nothing but forest. The canopy of trees below was so dense, you couldn’t see the ground. There were no structures, no roads, no towers, no sign at all of civilization. Just forest. A flock of birds that looked like pelicans soared by beneath me. They were bright yellow with brilliant red heads.

  As dramatic as this was, there was another sight that made the view even more spectacular. Eelong didn’t have a sun. At least not in the way we think of a sun. The sky was blue, just like at home. There were even clouds. But rather than a ball in the sky, there was a wide band of light, stretching from one horizon all the way across to the opposite, like a rainbow. It was directly overhead, and I wondered if it would move across the sky as the day wore on. It was hot, too. Jungle hot. This band of brilliant light gave off heat like a tropical sun.

  Looking to either side, I found myself on a wide outcropping that must have been at least a couple of hundred yards above the forest below. But it was hard to judge, since I couldn’t see the ground through the dense trees. Far to my right I saw a waterfall shoot from near the top of the rock and cascade down through the tree canopy below. I couldn’t see where it landed, though. The trees were too thick.

  And the smell. It was sweet, but not icky sweet like when you walk into a flower shop. Whatever flowers grew on Eelong, they had a faint smell that reminded me of lemons. To my left I saw some low, scrubby trees that were covered with deep blue flowers. I walked over to this bushy tree and took a deep whiff. Oh yeah, this is where the smell came from.

  One word came to mind as I surveyed Eelong: “paradise.”

  The view was so breathtaking, I had completely forgotten to see where I had come from. That was important because the little tunnel I had crawled through was the gate to the flume. A quick look at my Traveler ring confirmed it. The gray stone in the center was glowing slightly. When in doubt, this ring would always lead me to the flume, so long as I was in the neighborhood. So I turned around to take a mental picture of where the gate was hidden.

  What I saw made me catch my breath. I instantly knew that I wouldn’t have any trouble finding the gate again. That’s because looming up in front of me was the hugest tree I had ever seen. I’m not talking big. I mean immense. Colossal. Impossible. The trunk at the base must have been thirty yards across. Did you ever see a picture of those trees in California that have a tunnel cut through the base you could drive a car through? Well, if there were a tunnel cut into the base of this tree, you could drive a dozen eighteen-wheelers through, side by side, and still have room for a couple of Hummers. It was like a skyscraper covered with bark. Looking up, the branches didn’t even begin for about fifty yards up. Then the tree spread out into a canopy that could shade Yankee Stadium. I don’t know why, but being next to giant things like that makes my palms sweat, and they were definitely sweating. That’s how awesome it was.

  I looked to the base of the tree and saw the small opening that I had crawled out of. It was so small compared to this monster tree that if I hadn’t known it was there, I’d have missed it. Sure enough, carved in the bark just above the opening was the star symbol that marked it as a gate to the flume. Unbelievable. Now the hanging vines in the cavern below made sense. They were the root system of this immense tree. I walked along the base, running my hand across the rough bark. You could live in this tree . . . with all of your friends and their families, and still have room for a Keebler cookie factory. I took a step back, looked up, and laughed. The impossible kept proving itself to be possible. What was I going to see next?

  The answer came quickly, and it wasn’t a good one.

  I felt something hit the back of my leg. I looked down and instantly wished I hadn’t, because lying on the ground next to my leg was an arm. A bloody, human arm. I quickly looked up to the direction it came from and felt like the wind was knocked out of me. If the big tree hadn’t been there to catch me, I would have fallen back on my butt.

  Standing ten yards away from me was a beast. It was like nothing I had ever seen before. The first thing I thought of was . . . dinosaur. It stood upright on two legs, with a long, thick tail that whipped back and forth angrily. It looked to be around seven feet tall, with powerful arms and hands that were three-finger talons. Same with its feet. Its entire body was bright green, like a lizard, with scales covering it. But what I couldn’t take my eyes off of was its head. It was reptilian with a snoutlike nose. It had bright green hair that swept back from its forehead and fell halfway down its back. But most hideous was its mouth. It looked like a shark mouth, with multiple rows of sharp teeth that were all about tearing flesh.

  And that’s exactly what it was doing, because clasped in its jaws was another human arm. Blood ran into the beast’s mouth and down its chin. If I hadn’t been so scared, I would have gotten sick. We held eye contact. I could feel this monster sizing me up. Its eyes were red, and angry. Without looking away, it closed its jaws, crunching the arm like a dry twig. The sound made my stomach turn. The monster flipped out a green tongue and sucked the shattered arm into its mouth. One gulp later, the arm was gone. Swallowed. Bone and all. Gross. It turned back to me as its mouth twisted into a bloody grin.

  I was next on the menu.

  Welcome to Eelong.

  JOURNAL #16

  (CONTINUED)

  EELONG

  It was a quig.

  It had to be. Every territory had its own quigs that prowled the flumes.
They were somehow put there by Saint Dane, but I hadn’t figured out how that worked yet. On Denduron they were prehistoric-looking bears. On Cloral they were killer sharks. Zadaa had snakes, and Second Earth had vicious dogs. Veelox was strangely quig free, but I think that’s because Saint Dane was already done with that territory by the time I showed up. Now it was looking like the quigs on Eelong were mutant, dinosaur-looking reptiles. I knew that’s how it was looking, because I was looking at one. One thing was certain—it was a meat eater. Human meat. The bloody arm at my feet was proof of that. I didn’t want to know where the rest of the body might be.

  The beast locked its red eyes on me and drew back its lips, revealing yet another row of pointed teeth. Swell. Its long green hair spiked out, like an angry cat. It hissed, and I got a whiff of something nasty. It was sending out a disgusting scent that smelled like rotten fish. This thing was going to pounce, and it was going to hurt. I was totally defenseless. Worse, the giant tree was behind me. It was like being trapped in a dead end. I took a tentative step to my right. The beast mirrored my move. I took a step back to my left. So did the beast. I felt like I was playing basketball and this monster was playing defense. Only it didn’t want to steal the ball. It wanted to steal my head.

  That’s when I saw a flicker of movement to my left. I looked quickly, afraid that another quig might be circling in. But what I saw was my salvation. Poking its head out from the hole at the base of the tree was a person! At least I thought it was a person. The guy had straggly hair and a long beard. I only saw him for an instant, because he popped his head back into the hole like a scared turtle. He must have poked his nose out, saw the quig, and changed his mind about coming out. Good thinking. I wished I had done the same. But seeing him reminded me that I had an escape route. The trick would be to get to the hole before the quig got to me.

  The two of us stood facing each other like gunslingers. I hoped he didn’t realize that I didn’t have a gun and wasn’t prepared to sling anything. I knew that if I bolted for the hole, the thing would leap at me and it would be all over except for the chewing. All I needed was a couple of seconds for a head start. But how?

  An idea came to me. A hideous idea. If I hadn’t been so desperate, there was no way I would have been able to pull it off. But if there is one thing I’ve learned since becoming a Traveler, self-preservation is a pretty strong motivator. Without taking another second to talk myself out of it, I slowly bent my knees and reached for the ground. I saw the hair on the back of the beast grow higher. It was waiting to see what I was going to do. I cautiously picked up the bloody arm that lay at my feet. I know, how gross can you get? I grabbed it by the elbow trying not to think about what it was. When I touched it, I almost gagged, because it was still warm. Whoever it belonged to had been using it not long before. I had to push that thought away or I’d have lost my lunch . . . and probably my life along with it. As soon as I picked up the arm, the rotten smell from the beast grew stronger. I think the sight of the bloody arm was getting it psyched, like blood in the water to a shark. That was okay. It meant I had a chance. I slowly stood back up and held the dismembered arm out to my side. The beast’s red eyes followed it like it was some tasty morsel. Gross.

  The next few seconds were critical. It was going to mean the difference between buying me the time I’d need to get to safety, and total failure, which meant it would eat me and then get the arm anyway. It all depended on how stupid this quig was. I waved the arm, tantalizing it. The beast stayed focused on it. The horrible smell grew stronger. Oh yeah, it wanted the arm, all right. I reared back and flung it off to my right.

  The beast went for it. The instant it moved, I bolted for the hole like a base runner stealing second when the pitcher went into his windup. I could only hope the quig would keep going for the arm and not decide I was more interesting. I didn’t stop to look back because every second counted. I ran for the hole and dove inside headfirst. I hit the ground and scrambled to crawl inside. I thought I had made it, when I heard a bellowing howl from outside and felt a burning sensation on my leg. The beast was back and it had me by the ankle! It was too big to follow me inside, but that wouldn’t matter if it pulled me back out. I kicked for all I was worth and felt its sharp talons rake across my skin. But there was no way I was giving up. He was going to have to work for his supper. With one hard kick, I yanked my leg free of its grip. I was loose! I tried to bend my leg and get it inside, but couldn’t. A quick look back showed me that one of the quig’s talons had caught in the braided twine that held my cloth boot on. It still had me!

  I frantically wriggled my foot, trying to pull it out of the boot. I actually cursed myself for doing such a good job tying the twine with half hitches and square knots I learned in Boy Scouts. Why did I have to do such a good job? I expected to feel the pain of the monster’s jaws clamp down on my leg at any second, biting me like some giant Buffalo wing. But that didn’t stop me from squirming to get away. Then suddenly I felt something snap. It wasn’t my leg, I’m glad to say. The beast’s claw must have severed the twine because my foot slipped out of the cloth shoe. I quickly tucked my knees up to my chest to keep my feet out of reach. Looking back, I saw the long, green scaly arm of the monster reaching inside the hole, groping to get at me. His sharp talons whipped back and forth blindly, finding nothing but air and a few dangling vines. He was pretty charged up. The rotten-fish smell got so bad it made me gag. But he had lost. With a final bellow of frustration, the beast pulled his arm out and gave up. I suppose he went back and got the bloody arm as a consolation prize.

  I lay inside the dark space, breathing hard, trying to get my head back together. Now that I was safe, the reality of what had happened finally hit me. I had picked up a human arm and used it as bait to save me from getting eaten. How disgusting was that? I looked down at my leg and saw three long scrapes that ran from my knee to my ankle. I gingerly touched them and found that, luckily, they weren’t very deep. They would just sting for a while. Eelong was shaping up to be a nasty place.

  I had to figure another way out of this tree. I wasn’t about to stick my head out of that hole. For all I knew, Little Godzilla was waiting outside, munching his arm snack and waiting me out. As much as I wanted to flume out of there, that wasn’t an option either. I had to get away from this tree, away from the quigs, and find Gunny. So I got on my hands and knees and started to crawl around, pushing my way through the dangling vines, looking for another escape route. I figured there had to be one. If not, where did the guy come from who poked his head out of the hole? He hadn’t been down in the flume cavern when I was there. And for that matter, who was that guy?

  I passed by the hole that led down to the flume and continued crawling with one hand out in front in case I hit a dead end. But that dead end never came. I kept crawling deeper and deeper into the tree. What I first thought was a small space was actually a tunnel that brought me into the very core of this behemoth tree. As I crawled along, I saw that it was actually getting lighter. Of course, that didn’t make sense, but when did something silly like “making sense” matter? I soon felt confident enough that I no longer held my hand out in front of me. Up ahead I saw light at the end of the tunnel. Literally. I hadn’t been crawling for that long, so there was no way I had gone all the way through to the other side of the tree. It was way too big for that. But I didn’t stop to wonder what to expect; I’d see for myself soon enough.

  When I reached the mouth of the tunnel, I crawled out and stood up to view an incredible sight. The tree was hollow. Or at least, this part of it was. I found myself in a huge space that had been carved out of the core of the immense tree. I was kidding before about being able to live in this tree along with cookie-making elves, but this room proved it was possible. The walls were made of, well, of wood. Duh. Light came in through cracks that ran up and down and all around, like veins. I’m not sure if the hollowing out was natural, or done by hand. If it was by hand, then it had to have been done a long time ago, because ever
ything looked aged, with bits of green moss growing everywhere. Looking straight up was like looking into the mouth of the flume. There was no ceiling. For all I knew, this tree was hollow all the way to the top. I saw multiple levels and ledges that led to other tunnels, like the one I just crawled out of. I wasn’t sure how you got from one level to the next. I suppose you could climb the vines that clung to the walls . . . if you were Spider-Man.

  Now that I was safe from the quig outside, I began to wonder who the people of Eelong were. Going by the look of that hairy guy who poked his head out of the hole, they didn’t exactly seem to be a race of advanced mathematicians. I figured they were a primitive, tribal society who lived in these incredible trees. If they were more advanced than that, they certainly didn’t prove it with the clothes they made. Besides, I had yet to see any sign of tools or buildings or anything else you’d expect to see from a society that had advanced beyond the Stone Age. I was beginning to think I would have to deal with cavemen. Or treemen.

  “Hello?” I called out, my voice echoing. “Anybody here?” All I got back was the gentle groaning of the tree. I glanced around, trying to figure which tunnel I’d take to find another way out . . . when I was shoved from behind with such force, it nearly knocked me off my feet.

  I spun quickly and came face-to-face with the guy who’d peeked out of the hole before. He was short, probably no more than five feet tall. His hair was long and tangled. So was his beard. In fact, I think his head hair was tangled up in his beard hair. Not a good look. His skin was white and filthy, and he wore the same kind of rags that I had on. The guy was crouched down low and breathing heavily. A line of drool ran from his mouth and through his gnarly beard. He may have looked human, but he was acting more like a wild animal.