by A. L. Knorr
Pouring the heat on to give as much steam as possible, I gathered myself to sprint. Body tense, I eyed my target, then took off, fire detonating in every joint. Taking the narrow steps at high speed and feeling them shake beneath my pounding foot falls, I loosed a cry as the steps at the top dropped. The gap between the last step and the chime grew by the millisecond.
I met the falling steps and took the last one with a giant leap and a powerful detonation. I flew toward the chime, hand outstretched, grabbed it, then plummeted toward the floor. My stomach lurched as I fell, then bounced as I cushioned my landing and dropped into a roll. I popped up and landed on my feet, breathless but triumphant.
I brought the chime to my hip and it went spinning to join its fellows.
A low arch appeared in the cathedral wall, an unseen light source glowing from within. Ducking my head to pass through, I emerged in a primitive throne room.
An old wooden bench overgrown with vines circled the deteriorating wall, facing a pedestal in the center. Over the pedestal hovered my prize, another chime. A glass bell-shaped lid sat over top of it. I went to the pedestal and took the handle to remove the dome. My eyesight faded and turned red. When I let go, my vision returned.
Stepping back, I examined the pedestal more closely. Vines twisted and gnarled up its sides, but between the leaves I could make out something metallic. The leaves and vines came away easily, littering the floor with greenery. Removing the plants revealed flippy panels with riddles on the underside, just like the ones in the forge. Below each panel was a series of dials with numbers and letters on them.
I sighed, hoping I wouldn’t have to solve all the riddles in order to get at the chime. There were five panels altogether.
Homing in on one panel, I counted eight dials beneath it. Each dial ran through the numbers from 0 to 9 and the alphabet from a to z.
The riddle read: I conduct electricity and heat like a boss. Over time, I grow green as moss.
If I’d been as digital as this game, a eureka bubble would have appeared over my head.
“Thank you, Basil, for making me memorize the properties of metals until I was blue in the face,” I said as I rotated the dials one by one to the atomic number 29. Following that, I rotated the dials to spell copper.
The moment I put the r into place, the sound of a crack echoed through the room. A spiderweb fracture appeared in the glass over the chime.
Moving to the next panel, I flipped the panel to read: I am necessary for all life, including batteries.
This answer also had eight dials. I’d already used copper as an answer, so I doubted it would be required twice, but just to check, I set the dials to 29 and copper. Nothing happened. Lithium wasn’t necessary for all life and it was too long anyway, but cobalt would fit. I wracked my brains for the atomic number. Cobalt wasn’t a metal I had focused on as much as others, but the answer eventually came into my mind and I ran the dials into place.
Another crack appeared in the glass.
If all these questions were about metals, then I might be through this challenge faster than expected. Cracking my knuckles, I moved to the next question. This one had eleven dials. The question read: I am beloved by astronauts, but depleted by stars.
Aluminum and titanium were both used in space-craft manufacture, but while aluminum fit the dials with an atomic number of 13, titanium didn’t fit and didn’t have anything to do with stars. Beryllium was a possible option, but with an atomic number of 4, it didn’t fit the dials either. Since no other metal came to mind, I turned the dials to read 04 beryllium, and grinned when another crack appeared.
Two riddles to go.
The answers to both flew from my fingers with ease. The first (I am noble) and the second (I make rainbows) might be difficult for the average person to answer, but not for someone who’d been working closely with platinum and bismuth for a whole school year.
As I entered the last letter, the glass shattered apart. I grabbed the chime and put it into my pocket. It flew up to rotate beside its three fellows.
Kanvar’s stick had had five little holes in it. I had four chimes, so one left to go.
Nothing changed about the room, but the sound of echoey footfalls started low and grew loud. A man’s legs appeared beyond the arch.
He ducked under to pass through and when he emerged and stood up straight, my neck creaked looking up at him.
He was huge. Broad, muscular, and wearing a cape with a hood. The hood was up and obscured his face completely. All I could see of his features was the tip of a black beard, the rest was swallowed in shadow.
He wore a tunic, a thick leather belt, and gloves that went halfway to his elbows. A pouch hung from his belt. dangling along one thick thigh. Tall black pirate boots came up to his knees.
He folded his hands in front of his belt buckle and looked at me, or at least, pointed his hooded face in my direction.
“Hello,” I said, butterflies swirling in my gut.
“What are you doing here?” His deep voice reverberated.
“I’m looking for something,” I replied, wishing those brass knuckles hadn’t vanished.
The man hadn’t made any offensive moves but his presence was aggressive and more than a little sinister. I hoped I wouldn’t have to fight this character. I had no weapons, and neither did he, at least none that I could see, so that had to be a good sign.
He lifted one gloved hand toward the pouch at his side and produced the last chime. “Is this what you’re looking for?”
I gulped. “Yes.”
The chime disappeared back into the pouch and he resumed his relaxed stance. “Tell me my name and I’ll give it to you.”
I gave a start and my mind began to scamper back through the game. Why would I know this character’s name? There had to have been a clue somewhere along the way that I had missed, perhaps back in the cathedral? The forge had closed but the cathedral was still accessible, only I’d have to go around the hooded man. I didn’t want to try that if I didn’t have to.
“Can you give me a clue?”
“No name. No prize,” the giant rumbled.
I walked slowly toward him, heading a little off-kilter, just to see how he’d react. His shoulders and the black hole of his face kept square to me, turning as I walked to his right, and turning back when I headed to his left.
“What’s my name?” he repeated.
“Adam?” I guessed, taking a few steps closer.
The hooded figure threw his head back and laughed. Some light penetrated his hood and I caught the glint of an eye and a row of straight, white teeth. His laughter faded and as he straightened and closed his mouth, all that remained in view was the tip of his beard. I saw nothing that triggered any memory. He didn’t look like either of the game-makers, even Davazlar, but maybe it was worth a guess. If I made him laugh then maybe I’d catch another glimpse of his features.
“Demir Davazlar,” I ventured.
The hooded man didn’t laugh this time. His voice was a glower. “Are you making fun of me?”
“No.” I replied hastily, eyes on the pouch.
If I couldn’t think of his name, then maybe I could snatch the chime out of the pouch. I was only six feet away now. Peering up into the stranger’s face only gave me a black hole. He had to throw his head back for me to see any detail at all.
I thought of a name that I’d always found amusing, maybe it would make the character laugh again, give me a better look at his face.
“Mortimer?”
He lifted a gloved finger and cocked his head. “You are wasting my time. Do you know my name, or not?”
I came to stand within reach of him, my body tensed to jump back or duck if he took a swing at me. If I kept guessing, I’d soon be in trouble. I needed to go back and scour for the clue I’d missed.
“If you wouldn’t mind stepping to the side,” I said, politely, “I’d like to get by.”
The figure bent at the waist, bringing his black hole of a face almos
t level with mine. He raised his hands to his waist and fisted them there. “Make me move, little girl.”
I was startled by a sudden idea. Little, popping detonations flew along my arm as I snaked out a hand. Grabbing the back of his hood, I yanked.
He gave a startled roar and I jumped back, lifting my hands in a fighting stance. His hood fell back, revealing a handsome pirate face. Thick black hair, high cheekbones, tanned skin, that black beard and … eyes the color of cinnamon bark.
He cocked a fist back to hammer me.
“Kanvar!” I yelled.
The figure paused, his fist in the air, then he vanished with a faint ‘pop.’ His cloak and clothing, gloves and boots, landed in a lumpy heap. Beneath the cape, something moved.
Heart thumping, I yanked the cloak away.
The little boy version of Kanvar huddled there. He was crouched in a ball, wearing that same dirty loincloth. He looked up at me with a sad face, those big eyes shining with tears.
I fumbled in the heap for the pouch and retrieved the final chime. The moment my fingers touched it, Kanvar’s face transformed and he got to his feet. The chimes in the corner of my vision swept forward to hang in the air before us. Kanvar produced the stick, and we arranged the chimes on the stick in order of the smallest to the largest.
“You fixed my toy!” Kanvar danced in place with a child’s glee. “Do you want to hear its music?”
“Absolutely,” I replied, smiling at the digital boy who looked almost but not quite real.
Kanvar ran a finger along the chimes, making them knock against one another. The sound of wind chimes came and the boy dissolved away.
The fire-gym came into view as the digital background faded. Lifting the visor off my face, I blinked around, adjusting to a drearier atmosphere than the one I’d just left.
I could see the steps and platforms I’d walked on during the game as well as the honeycomb pattern in the floor, the octagonal cylinder and the pitch spindle, but all the other details had been the result of the computer.
Guzelköy approached, hand out for the visor. I handed it to him and held out one hand, then the other, as he removed the dots.
“Well done, Ms. Cagney. Dr. Price and Headmaster Chaplin will escort you to the professor’s lounge where you can clean up and rest. Who would you like to go next?”
“Eira Nygaard.” Her name came out of my mouth before I even stopped to think about it. The anticipation of waiting for one’s turn to arrive was worse than the actual games themselves. After this morning’s painful interaction, I wanted to spare Eira that small discomfort. If Guzelköy had asked me why her, I couldn’t have explained it.
But the game-maker didn’t ask for an explanation. Just said, “Very good.”
He escorted me to the door where Dr. Price was waiting.
I thanked Guzelköy and sent a wave up to Davazlar, whose huge hulking shape was visible through the window of the first observation pod. He lifted a hand in response.
Two challenges down. Would I make it through this round to see the third?
Twenty-One
Half-Time
“Ready?” Cecily poked her head into my room as I finished trading my slippers for sneakers. I joined her in the hall, seeing the backs of Peter and Harriet as they headed for the stairwell.
“Are you nervous?” I asked as I twisted my hair into a low bun and wrapped an elastic around it. Cecily had been the final Arcturus competitor, so we hadn’t had a chance to chat yet.
“Not really. I don’t expect I’ll have made it to the next round to be perfectly honest. All that metals trivia did me in—it’s never been my favorite subject. It was a fun game, though. The effects were amazing. What a great investment for Arcturus, or Fireth—”
“Don’t say it,” I snapped. “Sorry, I don’t mean to snap. Just a little on edge.”
“Fair,” Cecily replied. “I would be too in your position.”
I considered whether I wanted her to elaborate on what she saw as my position, but we’d reached the lobby where students were gathering. The game-makers had moved us out of the lecture hall and into the big lounge area in the foyer to announce the results of the quest. Maybe they preferred the more casual atmosphere. They had erected an easel in front of the fireplace upon which rested an oversized pad of paper.
Basil and Dr. Price leaned against the wall near a front window, while Babs and Mr. Bunting stood behind the couches. Serenamen, Kristoff and Liu had taken one sofa while Eira sat cross-legged on an ottoman. Harriet and Peter occupied a loveseat facing the window so Cecily and I took the two wingback chairs in front of Basil and Christy. I sent Tomio a smile where he sat on the stairs.
“Morning, everyone,” Guzelköy began.
A few of us muttered a reply.
“The results of the quest have been tallied. As you know, both time and tactics were important for this game. Each task was assigned a value in points, against which you were given a grade. The grades you were assigned resulted in either time being knocked off or time being added. Just like the first game, an Arcturus competitor was pitted against an unknown Firethorne competitor. We’ll reveal those first.”
Davazlar lifted the first page off the pad to reveal the list of competitors.
Though we could read them all for ourselves, Guzelköy read them out loud.
“Harriet Ashby went up against Serenamen Hall. Peter Toft against Kristoff Skau. Saxony Cagney against Liu Xiaotian and Cecily Price against Eira Nygaard.”
I glanced at Liu, who winked at me. I looked away. Coming from her, the gesture nettled me. It would be very satisfying to wipe the smug look off her face. If Liu and I had been at the same school, I didn’t think we’d be friends. The thought drew my eye to someone I thought could have been a friend under other circumstances. Eira’s eyes were on the game-makers, her hands folded neatly in her lap, her doll features serene.
“On to the results.” Guzelköy produced a thick black marker from a pocket inside his coat and handed it to Davazlar.
“Harriet finished with a total time of three hours, four minutes.”
Davazlar scratched out the times next to Harriet’s name, looking oddly charming scribbling on a pad of paper like a preschool teacher.
“Serenamen Hall finished slightly ahead of Harriet—”
There was an intake of breath.
“But lost points in the bat cave and closed out at three hours and twelve minutes.”
There was a sigh of disappointment from the kids on the Firethorne couch. Peter took Harriet’s hand and lifted it into the air. She yanked it down, blushing but smiling.
“Peter Toft finished with no time added or removed at three hours and eleven minutes,” Guzelköy continued. “While Kristoff Skau finished slightly behind that, but had time knocked off for his excellent handling of the mirrors. His final time was three hours and seven minutes. Congratulations, Mr. Skau.”
The Firethorne kids applauded. This time Harriet took Peter’s hand to comfort him.
“Next we have Saxony Cagney, who, thanks to performing very well at metals, knocked five minutes off her time. She finished at two hours and forty-nine minutes.”
There was a smattering of applause.
“Liu Xiaotian gave us a record-breaking performance but took penalties in the mirror challenge for a final time of two hours and fifty-three minutes.”
Liu gave a hiss and I covered my mouth to hide a smile. She’d had a better time than me, but thanks to spending so much time on metals this past year, I’d edged her out.
“And, finally. Cecily Price took a penalty in the bat cave to finish at three hours, thirteen minutes. While Eira Nygaard gained points in the forge to complete the quest at three hours, eleven minutes.”
So, Cecily was out and Eira was in.
A collective breath eased the tension in the room and the defeated shifted in their seats, no doubt wanting to get back to their summer holidays. The victors were still, hoping for details about the next challenge.
>
“Well done. Even those who were disqualified performed well.” Guzelköy said. “For the third round, we have finalists Harriet Ashby, Eira Nygaard, Saxony Cagney, and Kristoff Skau. The rest of you are dismissed, unless you want to stick around and hear about the next challenge.”
Liu got up from the sofa like someone had pressed an ejection button. With her nose in the air, she disappeared down Victory Hall. No one else moved.
Unbothered by Liu’s rude departure, Guzelköy crossed his arms. “The details of the next challenge are mostly finalized, all that remains is to build it. It will run in five days and will be an escape room.”
I pressed my lips together as my nerves twanged. I’d never been a fan of enclosed spaces. The escape room craze had exploded without any participation or appreciation from me. Now I regretted never having done one with my friends. I wasn’t entirely clear on what it entailed, but I had time to do some research.
“We’ll have two identical rooms constructed. You will begin at the same time as your competitor. Whoever escapes first, wins. Very simple. The title is: What Waits for No One.”
He let that sink in before continuing. “You’ll notice laborers and craftsmen coming in and out of the school over the next couple of days. We’ve advised them to use only the fire-gym entrance so they won’t be in your way, and we’d appreciate it if you would stay out of theirs. Speaking to you is a breach of their contract and will result in their immediate dismissal.”
We agreed not to speak to their construction team, and were released.
Part Three
Unexpected Outcomes
Twenty-Two
A Blast From the Past
I had just finished drying off after a shower and was wrangling my hair up into a topknot when a knock came at the door. I was in underwear and a tank top so I hollered that I’d be right there, grabbed a pair of jeans and wiggled into them. I zipped up my fly and opened the door to find Dr. Price with a take-away cup of coffee in her hand.
