“Not really,” Dev admitted as he glanced at the balloon operator. “It pretty much goes with the wind. Once we’re over the crater, we’ll cut the burners and pull this cord. It’ll let the air out so we can land. Then we’ll run for it.”
Sage began to rock back and forth from one foot to the other. “I didn’t think we had a chance, but now I think we do.”
Mari bit her lower lip. Russell seemed to shrug with his eyebrows. “Either we win or we don’t,” he said. “No big deal.”
Sage didn’t say anything; she just scowled.
NGORONGORO CRATER
Ngorongoro is an extinct caldera volcano. Extinct means it is no longer active and will not erupt. A caldera is a specific type of volcano where the center collapses after an eruption, leaving a sunken pit with high walls. Ngorongoro is the world’s largest unbroken crater that is not filled with water. It measures about 11 miles across for a total of 102 square miles. That’s about the size of Orlando, Florida. Ngorongoro is 2,000 feet deep.
As if that isn’t amazing enough, there are more species living in the crater than in any other space that size. The walls are dense with lush trees, a perfect hideout for leopards. There are swamps for hippos, flamingo-filled lakes, and stretches of grassland that host cheetahs, lions, zebras, elephants, gazelles, buffalos, and more. The Maasai, one of the local tribes, also graze their cattle in the crater.
While many of the birds migrate, including the famous flamingos, most of the animals live there year-round. For some species, the lack of new bloodlines can be unhealthy. Recently, the crater has been home to over sixty lions, but drought and disease cause their numbers to fluctuate. In the late 1960s, illness took the lion total from over 75 down to 12.
As the balloon rose to the top of the crater, they all could see it: The Wild Life banner lit by the midmorning sun. Bull Gordon stood at its base. It wasn’t very far, about the distance of a relay sprint. There was a line on the ground that marked the finish, the end. “We all have to cross,” Sage said. “It doesn’t count until the whole team is on the other side of that line.”
“Burners are off,” Dev said as the operator yanked a cord. “Get ready to land!”
Mari spotted Team Purple touching down. Team Red hit the ground right after. They all scrambled out of the baskets, flag in sight. Taking deep breaths and long strides, the quickest team members crossed the line.
Mari ran as fast as she could. She didn’t want to let her friends down. She watched as Sage, then Russell, then Dev crossed the finish line. But three of Team Purple’s members were right there with them. Only Mari and the last girl from the purple team were still running. They crossed the line neck and neck. It seemed they had tied.
“What do we do now? Team Purple should win,” Eliza demanded. “We were in first place going into the last challenge.”
“That’s true,” Bull Gordon said, tapping the scar on his chin. “But we are not done yet. Remember, you’ve only completed part one of the last clue. It’s time for part two.” He paused and let the contestants gather their thoughts. “Now locate your ancams and review your four photos. The team who explains how all four species are connected and types in their answer first will win.”
The next thing Mari knew, Dev had placed the device in her hand.
“I can’t type fast,” she claimed. “Someone do it for me.”
Russell snatched the ancam away. “Go,” he prompted.
Mari bit her lip.
“Fast, Mari,” Sage reminded.
“So, the hyena hunts lion cubs and lions stalk the zebras that graze on the grass,” Mari said. “There are lots of other ways, but that’s the—”
Russell had turned away. Dev and Sage had already given their nods of approval, and their ancam had landed in Bull Gordon’s open hand.
When Russell returned to the group, Mari looked at him with admiration. “Video games,” he said, wiggling his thumbs.
Meanwhile, Javier and a number of clipboard-carrying race organizers were huddled around Bull Gordon, who held his arm out at full length so they all could see the answer on the screen.
Eliza scurried forward and forced Team Purple’s ancam into Bull’s other hand. As the race host tucked both devices in his pocket, Mari saw a sly smile tug at the corner of Javier’s mouth.
Her chest went tight, and Bull Gordon stepped forward.
“Congratulations to the winners of The Wild Life, Team Red,” Bull Gordon announced.
The rest of the team exploded. Mari stood still, amazed.
It was a race, and they had won it. She had done her part.
Javier rushed up and simultaneously hugged them all. “I really hoped you’d win,” he admitted, his usually mellow demeanor replaced with glee. “You guys had a lot going for you.”
Next, Bull Gordon approached the happy four. “Rather ingenious, including a plant as one of your four photos,” he stated. “That makes the connection of all the species much easier, looping in your grazing herbivores like that.”
“It was all Mari,” Sage said, placing a hand on Mari’s shoulder and pulling her close. “She is a real wildlife genius.”
“But it took all of us to win,” Mari objected. “It took the whole team.”
“Yes,” Bull agreed, looking her in the eye. “It always does.”
The boys were too excited to have really heard her. They were in their own tiny huddle, chanting, “A million dollars, a million dollars!” The other hot air balloons were starting to land, and the contestants all wanted to hear about the final showdown.
The guys from Team Green rushed to congratulate Russell, as if they would always be the best of friends. Eliza had cornered Sage by the refreshment table, and Mari could only imagine where that conversation was headed.
While she had her chance, Mari made her way back to the rim of the crater. The tight feeling in her chest seemed to be gone, and she wasn’t sure anything had replaced it. She raised her binoculars and took in the sights, without a clue or a finish line to worry about. Following the rising of the sun, Jeeps had entered the crater floor, filled with tourists on safari—people who had traveled to see nature up close. Some had come to see the formidable predators. Others hoped to glimpse the stouthearted black rhino before its numbers dwindled even more. Still others hoped to spot a dazzling herd of zebra stripes, a lanky cheetah with its speed, or a secretive leopard sprawled in the crook of an acacia tree. Mari couldn’t choose which she loved best. She had come to see them all.
One by one, her teammates came and sat next to her. It was hard to believe they had not known one another a month before, but amazing to think about all that they had accomplished. Later, there would be a chance to call home, enjoy a victory dinner, and say their inevitably awkward good-byes. But for now, they all sat together and were filled with awe. From the Amazon to the Great Barrier Reef, to the Arctic Ocean and now here in the African savanna, they had covered a lot of ground during this race. They had found adventure and hidden strengths and friendship. But most of all, they had shared the wonder of seeing so much of the wild, wild world. Mari hoped that somehow, they might get to see even more.
KRISTIN EARHART grew up riding horses, pestering her cat, and reading books about amazing animals. These days, she lives with her husband and son in Brooklyn, New York, and writes books of her own. She still loves animals. But now, when she pesters her cat, the surly cat pesters back.
Text copyright © 2016 by Kristin Earhart
Illustrations copyright © 2016 by Scholastic Inc.
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance
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First printing 2016
Cover art by Erwin Madrid
Cover design by Yaffa Jaskoll
e-ISBN 978-0-545-77382-9
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