“Okay, Betty, I have a deal for you. If you promise not to get in my way, I…I guess you can come with me. It might be nice to have company and well, if there’s a possibility of getting killed, I can always send you first,” she laughed.
“Oh, thank you, Amber, thank you!” Betty was sure Amber was being sarcastic about the whole killing thing. At least, she hoped so.
Betty hugged Amber until Amber pushed her away with a powerful shove.
“Okay, kid. Back off and let’s read the map.”
Amber pulled out a fragile map, old and crumbly, hand-drawn in the finest ink.
“Well, let’s see!” Amber said, as she looked at the map. “This says the Portal to the Future is in the Mountains of the Old. We’re going to have to walk there, you know, unless my agency sends some new material.” Amber still sort of hoped she could make Betty scared enough to not come along, but the other girl just nodded. “Have you been to the Mountains of the Old?” Amber asked Betty.
“No,” Betty replied.
“Neither have I,” Amber said, half-smiling at Betty. “But anyway, I’ve heard only a few people visit and reach the top, and even then, they usually don’t return. Very contradictory, don’t you think, the Portal to the Future being in the Mountains of the Old?” Amber said, raising an eyebrow.
It was quiet for some time. Was Amber trying to scare her? She hadn’t looked like she was joking. Either way though, Betty was still going with Amber to battle crocodiles and save the world. This was her first and probably last chance at adventure, and she wasn’t going to waste it.
“Say, where do you come from?” Amber asked suddenly.
Betty forgot that Amber didn’t know about Betty’s world and said, “Plainfield.”
“Plainfield,” Amber repeated, clearly thinking. “Well, I’ve never been there before.”
Betty did not go into details about Plainfield because Amber probably wouldn’t understand the world that Betty came from. And it probably wouldn’t be half as exciting as some of the places Amber has visited.
“Well, you know, Plainfield sounds like a safe place. Where I live, it isn’t safe. Vultures are ready to eat your flesh. Vines are ready to tangle you in their grasp. You know, the usual.”
“Are you trying to scare me?” Betty asked knowingly.
“What! Of course not! Who do you think I am?” But Amber didn’t say anything frightening anymore.
“Well, to get to the Mountains of the Old, we have to cross a bridge, row down a river, and get across a volcano,” Amber said, desperately trying to keep her voice steady. Even though Amber made it sound like it was nothing, Betty knew that it wasn’t going to be that easy. It was never easy.
“Okay,” Betty said, and her tummy growled. “Amber, um, could we eat first?” Betty asked.
“I have some food in the kitchen. By the way, let me get you another pair of clothes. I don’t think pajamas will be able to withstand all that we’re going to go through,” Amber said disdainfully, staring down at the freaky girl with smiley-face lounge pants. She went inside the house, leaving the map and bag lying on the floor of the balcony. Reluctantly, Betty followed. She hadn’t had time to explore the kitchen, but she wasn’t going to underestimate it—after all, the rest of Amber’s house was pretty cool.
Once in the kitchen, Betty realized it was decorated like a rainforest. A green tablecloth covered a wide table that seated four, and what seemed to be like real tree branches covered the cabinets. A picture of a toucan was stuck on the wall.
“Wow, this is amazing!” Betty said, her mouth open in wonder.
Amber didn’t say anything but gave a small smile as she climbed on a white stepstool that had been hidden in the pantry. She pulled out some bread and a jar of red paste from the cupboard. She smeared the red paste on the long loaf of bread and then reached for her dagger, which was on the belt around her waist. She sliced the bread into two, put the two pieces on separate plates and carried them to the table.
Betty knew what was being served since she had read the first Amber book. The reddish paste was alligator jelly and the bread was, thankfully, just bread. Amber stuffed the bread with the paste in her mouth like she hadn’t eaten in years. Betty, however, closely inspected the food and then seeing how much Amber had liked it, she put some of it in her mouth too. It was disgusting, like, well, how you would expect alligator jelly on bread to taste, if you could even expect anything at all. Betty wasn’t going to complain—her comment might be insulting to Amber. However, there was awkward silence, and Betty felt like saying something.
“Um, it’s really good!” Betty finally blurted out. It was only a tiny lie, right? That couldn’t do much harm.
“Why don’t you eat some more,” Amber suggested. Uh-oh. Maybe it could.
“I’m full,” Betty lied. She was still hungry, but would rather eat one of her mom’s vegetable-loaded sandwiches instead of what she had just been served.
“You just ate one bite though. You said you were hungry,” Amber said.
“Well, yes I was. But that one bite was just so filling.” Betty then handed Amber the rest of her food.
“Oh, okay,” Amber said, and with that she stuffed the terrible bread with jelly in her mouth.
Once finished, Amber said, “I’m going upstairs.”
“I’ll come too,” Betty suggested, but then she felt the urge to throw up. It was the alligator jelly, as little as she had eaten. In the small kitchen it was easy to run to the sink. Betty pulled the handle, ready for the cool water. But none came. Now she really needed water. Fast. Betty ran outside. Her search for refreshing water was rewarded—she saw a well made of stone. It was no taller than she was. She reeled the bucket down and then back up, glad her grandma had a well, too, so she knew how to operate it. Dumping the water on her tongue, she relaxed.
Amber emerged giving Betty an odd look.
“What’s wrong, Amber?” Betty asked, wiping water dripping from her chin.
“Why are you dumping water on your face? Don’t people in Plainfield drink water out of glasses? Anyway, here are some clothes for the journey. Oh, and some shoes too.” Amber handed Betty a green shirt and camouflage pants similar to her own.
“Thanks, Amber,” Betty said. After she had changed into Amber’s clothes, the two girls headed to the balcony. Betty spent a minute taking in the wilderness air, staring at the dense, crowded forest with its drooping leaves, and weathered tree trunks. She had come to like Amber’s little hideout in the woods and was sad to leave, even though she was excited, not to mention a little nervous, about starting the journey. Still, Betty had been in a forest like this once. Maybe that was why she liked it. In the forest she had gone to though, her grandpa had kept telling jokes, with her grandma telling him to shut up and Betty’s dad interrupting each time his parents were on the verge of argument.
That was before Betty’s grandpa had died though.
“So, do you want to go now?” Amber asked, interrupting Betty’s thoughts. Leave? Now? Truth be told, Betty was scared. But she had to go now. After all, she had promised Amber. Would Amber really care if Betty joined her? Probably not. But Betty would care—yes, Betty would mind.
“S-sure,” replied Betty.
Suddenly, there was a knock on Amber’s door.
Amber gave Betty a questioning look, as if to say, Are any more people coming the way you did? Betty shook her head curiously. Amber went and opened the door.
A large cardboard box about half the size of Betty sat on the forest floor. It didn’t have a return address, or a sign of where it came from. Amber touched it with her pinky, as if testing it for an undetected sensor-activated explosion. Deeming it safe enough, she opened the box.
For a large box, it had small contents. Two metal balls rolled around the base of the box. A red button was worked into both of them. Betty reached for one curiously, but
Amber scooped them up and out of Betty’s reach. She set them on the forest floor, where they looked like a robot dog’s chew toy.
“What is that?” Betty finally asked.
“My arlyers,” Amber answered.
“Huh?” Betty questioned.
“My agency always sends me new technology to try out. These are my arlyers. They’re sort of like giant wings. Looks like they’ve made a mistake, though—they sent two instead of one. Well, that’s good for us,” Amber laughed.
“You might want to back away,” Amber said. Betty did as she was told and watched as Amber clicked the red button in the middle of one of the metal balls. Betty saw the ball expand into giant wings. They were probably both four feet in height and six feet in width. They were made of metal, these arlyers. Shiny metal. Betty circled the arlyers so she could observe them better. On the inside was a battery pack, and a green button and a bar were located by the straps. She didn’t touch them, afraid Amber wouldn’t want her too.
“This is so cool,” Betty finally breathed.
“Right? I heard they even return to you when you whistle. And since they sent two, we’re at an advantage. C’mon, pop open the other one, strap it on, and let’s get going,” Amber urged.
“Now?” Betty squeaked.
“Yes, now,” Amber said impatiently.
Chapter 9
“Wait! Not yet! I have so many things to ask you. What if we die before I get the chance?” Betty pleaded. Her stomach was in knots. She finally realized how dangerous this could be. What if she never saw her family again?
But she was with Amber. Amber was tough. She knew how to handle dangerous missions. She would keep them alive.
Right?
“Ask me one question. Then I’m leaving, and either you come with me or not.”
Betty tried to think of the one question she wanted answered really badly.
“Oh! I got it!” Betty paused. Any question, Amber had said. But would this question upset Amber? She didn’t want that, especially when Amber was taking her along on the adventure, too. Very gently, Betty asked, “Do you have any parents?” Betty asked. It was a question that Betty had never really gotten an answer to in the Amber series; a topic they hadn’t covered. All she knew was that they went to sea when Amber was young. Now that she was really with Amber, it felt like a good time to ask.
“Well, I don’t really know. My mom and dad went to sea and never came back. I don’t know if they’re dead or alive,” Amber said, apparently only knowing as much as Betty did. Of course, Betty thought. Lana Mungo was writing, and the only things Amber supposedly knew was what she had written. It was a bit sad though—not to know your past.
Betty realized that Amber didn’t know who she was. She thought she was a real person, yet Amber was really a character. Betty debated with herself—should she tell Amber who she was? But one glance at Amber sent all thoughts of saying anything flying from Betty’s head. Amber was tough. She was always ready to fight. If Betty told Amber the truth, her new friend might lose her concentration and break her arm.
Betty was not satisfied with Amber’s answer, but the young heroine had gone back to the arlyers. Amber took out two pairs of batteries from the box. She inserted one pair in the battery pack of her arlyers. After that, she put the other pair in Betty’s arlyers.
Both girls—Betty, rather reluctantly—strapped on the wings and soon they were ready to take off. The wings flew high into the air; Betty extended an arm to touch the clouds. She looked down—it was like being in an airplane. The forest was a sea of green; the houses beyond that were tiny specks. It was cold up in the sky; Betty shivered even though she was the one who lived in the windy city. Apparently she was wrong. Clutching onto the straps, she looked ahead. Amber was gaining speed. How was she doing that?
“Hey! Amber! Wait for me!” Betty yelled.
Amber yelled something to Betty that sounded like “lean mutton.”
Lean mutton? What does that mean? But then Betty looked at the inside of her wing harness and saw a green button. A-ha!
Betty started pressing the green button on her arlyers until her thumb hurt.
And soon it was a race to catch up with Amber. But no matter how many times Betty pushed the green button on her arlyers, she never got close. Suddenly Betty realized Amber was lowering herself. Now, how was she doing that? These arlyers really needed an instruction manual!
“How are you doing that?” Betty yelled.
“Bar!” Amber called, before she floated down and hit the ground. Betty was still hovering in the sky.
Bar? Betty thought, and she checked the arlyers’ wings until she found a yellow bar. Pressing down, Betty soon descended too. She hit the ground with a thump. They had landed in a village, just as Amber had said. Betty looked over at Amber, who was closing her arlyers. Betty took her arlyers off too, and closed them into the ball.
The village had large factories that each puffed green smoke. It smelled rancid, like a baby’s diaper. Betty took shallow breaths to avoid inhaling too much of the toxic air. And then there was the sound! The town looked deserted, yet the noise made her eardrums pound. A heavy clunk clunk and clank clank from the factories reached her ears. Ugh! It was annoying, but Betty couldn’t do anything except plug her ears. Even then, the noise was still loud. Not wanting to get lost, Betty looked for Amber, who was nowhere to be found!
Panic started to set in and Betty started running wildly, as fast as she could.
“Amber!” Betty shouted. Where had Amber gone?
After a few minutes of running, Betty was panting. Just as she felt too tired to run anymore, she reached something that wasn’t a factory. There were about a hundred yards of wet, dewy grass that stood between Betty and suburban style houses. Finally, something normal!
As she wandered toward the space, she saw there was a large oak tree with no leaves, yet its branches were dripping with rain. The whole place looked dreary; the sky was cloudy, and the machines made the place sound like a robot factory. Betty didn’t see any living people. Wait, there was someone under the oak tree standing with her hands on her hips, determined, looking around. Amber! Betty ran to join her.
“Oh, Betty,” Amber said once she noticed her. “I’ve been looking for you!”
“Where’d you go? I couldn’t find you anywhere! Why’d you run off?” Betty gasped. She wasn’t in the best of moods right now.
“Well, I was anxious to find the bridge. If you want to come with me on this journey, you gotta pay attention. I thought you were going to follow me.”
“Well, I didn’t see you go! You should have waited!” Betty half-whined.
“Sorry!” Amber said, as if that was going to make everything better.
“Well?” Betty asked after a minute.
“Well what?”
“Did you find any information about the bridge?” “Well, I found out that we have to just keep following the path.” Amber shrugged.
“That’s it? That’s all we have to do? Where’d you find that out?”
“Commoners,” Amber said, dismissing the subject with a wave of her hand. “C’mon!”
***
The two girls walked on the path for quite some time. They didn’t talk to each other along the way. Both were frustrated. Amber felt like she was babysitting. Betty felt she was a burden.
Soon, Amber and Betty reached their destination. The Broken Bridge lay ahead of them, half of it not even there and the other half, rickety and shaky, looked like it was about to collapse. Underneath the bridge lay the dark, murky depths of the Tentacle Sea. The sun had set and the hues of red, orange, and yellow made even the most horrible landscape look like a beautiful painted canvas.
“Can we use the arlyers to get across?” Betty asked.
“I guess we could. Good thinking, Betsy!” Amber said, smiling for the first time since they
had arrived in Ridgeway.
“It’s Betty,” Betty said, now a bit calmer too.
“Right, right, sorry.”
They both clicked the arlyers open and strapped them on their backs. A few minutes later Amber and Betty were in the sky. They were soaring through the air, as free as birds. Betty smiled at Amber, and Amber, surprising herself, smiled back.
Betty looked down. They were right above the bridge, the part where it became all crumbly and fragile. Whoever built it did not do a good job, Betty thought.
And then it happened. Right as they crossed over the sea, there was a rapid clicking noise and both pairs of arlyers collapsed in midair. Betty shot a quick glance of fear at Amber before they plummeted toward the water, their bodies frozen in shock. The arlyers curled into balls, splashed into the water, and gently floated out of sight. Meanwhile, Betty and Amber thrashed in the air, falling faster. Betty’s heart was pounding, her adrenaline was pumping, and she thought of the times she had wished for adventure. Just before Betty’s body crashed into the sea, she thought: Adventure is scary.
And then, she was immersed in water.
She was drowning.
If you’ve ever drowned, then you know what it feels like. Or maybe you don’t, because it’s much different in a book. In a book, anything could happen. You could perhaps swallow too much saltwater and die, you could knock your head on a rock and then die, unconscious, of course. And it’s all in the hands of the author.
And so, if the author is the type who likes to mix things up, you will probably die. However, if you get lucky, and have one of the few positive, happy-ending authors, you might live.
But right now, Betty couldn’t count on happy endings. She flailed in the water for as long as she could, but then she started sinking.
And then suddenly, just as she had started, she stopped sinking. She was being lifted up by two slimy, cold arms. And when she looked at what was saving her, she screamed. She saw a creature that was white, but tinged pink. It had two long tentacles and eight shorter arms, all thrashing wildly. The two long arms were wrapped around Betty, encasing her body. Finally, Betty dared to look up at the creature’s face. Two giant yellow bloodshot eyes, the size of volleyballs, pierced her with a gaze the likes of which she had never wanted to see. Even unmathematical Betty knew this equation: eight arms + two tentacles + two humongous eyes = one giant squid, about twenty feet long. What was Lana Mungo thinking? Betty stared at the squid, frozen with fear and shock. She was only a quarter of the size of one of his arms. The squid didn’t make a move to go underwater, so she guessed he could stay above the water’s surface longer than she expected. Either way, a giant squid meant death. (So maybe Lana Mungo wasn’t one of those happy-ending authors.) Betty tried wriggling out of the squid’s grasp, but its suction power was too strong.
The Adventure of a Lifetime Page 5
