by P. J. Hoover
They looked at each other. Benjamin already had his right hand on the Emerald Tablet. Heidi looked at Benjamin then placed her hand next to his. Slowly the rest placed their hands on the Tablet—first Andy, then Iva, then finally Gary. The moment all five hands made contact, the brilliant green light began to pulse, first gradually, then quickly. Benjamin tried to lift his hand, but found he couldn’t move it; it felt as though his hand had been melded to the Tablet. And then he felt it—the thoughts of his companions in his mind. He felt their strengths and weaknesses, felt their emotions. And then he could feel his own mind spread out, flowing through the minds of those around him. It was as though they had become one mind, one entity. But no sooner than the bond had started, it stopped, and the green light held steady.
“Was that kind of weird, or was it just me?” Benjamin heard Andy’s thoughts.
Andy was right. It was kind of weird. Kind of really weird.
“The formation of the Alliance is complete,” the Tablet spoke. “You are given the task of restoring the balance of Lemuria and Atlantis. If you do not succeed, then no one shall.”
“But how?” Benjamin asked. Talk about receiving an impossible homework assignment. This one had to beat all known records.
“You must find the three keys of the hunter and bring them together. When the keys are joined, the answers to all your questions will be given.” The light from the Tablet blinked out.
“Wait,” Benjamin said, grabbing the side of the tablet. “What do you mean? What am I supposed to do?”
Nothing happened. The Tablet was still, and the green light was gone. Benjamin stepped back in despair.
“Well, that wasn’t very helpful,” Andy said. “What keys? What hunter? Don’t you think it could have been a little more specific?”
“Maybe you should try to see if you can get it to talk some more,” Heidi suggested to Benjamin. He felt her thought before she said it. Weird.
He leaned back over the Tablet, and once again gently rested his hands on the green crystal, but it remained lifeless. Why wouldn’t it talk anymore? He felt like picking it up and throwing it against the wall, but managed to hold his frustration back. They stared at it for a while longer, and then Benjamin turned and began to walk away.
“Where are you going?” Iva asked.
“You heard the Tablet,” Benjamin said. “Obviously there’s some sort of cryptic treasure hunt we have to go on. I guess we better start looking for some keys.”
CHAPTER 9
Hunters Don’t Use Keys
When they left the ruling hall, the rain was coming down like a monsoon. They ran up Mu Way to the school, no one even bothering to try to say anything about the Emerald Tablet, or about the treasure hunt, or about the newly formed alliance. It wasn’t until they returned to school, found a dehydrating chamber, and decided to grab dinner that anyone mentioned it.
“Benjamin, what was that thing talking about?” Andy asked once they all sat down. They huddled close, and Andy lowered his voice. “I mean, you’ve been my best friend for like forever, not some champion who’s going to save the world.”
“Yeah, I’m not sure I quite understand how you’re going to single handedly protect all of mankind,” Gary agreed.
“Trust me, you guys, I’m as confused as the rest of you,” Benjamin said. “But I know one thing the tablet was very specific about. It’s not just me. We’re all in this together. Remember the Alliance? It said we were all bonded together to search for the truth, and I believe it. When we had our hands on the Tablet, I swear I felt like all of our minds were joined together. It felt like we were all one person.”
“It wasn’t just you,” Iva said. “I felt the same way. I can still feel it a little bit now.”
“There was some really special type of telepathy going on,” Heidi said. “It was totally different than how I normally feel. I can pretty much read people’s thoughts and emotions, but with the Alliance, I felt like our minds were actually meshed together. And even now I can sense each of you in the back of my mind, even when I try to block you out.”
“I bet you can’t read my mind.”
Heidi’s head whipped over as Ryan Jordan, the kid who thought they were on Mars, butted into the conversation. He sat down next to them with Jonathan Sheehan, the same kid who’d beat Iva to the telegnostic question, in tow. Benjamin noticed Iva glared at him again.
“Of course I can read your mind,” Heidi replied.
“And stop listening to our conversation,” Benjamin snapped. Now was not the right time for an interruption.
“What are you guys talking about that’s so secretive?” Ryan asked.
“Yeah, really,” Jonathan added. “We haven’t even been here a whole day yet. What could you possibly be whispering about?”
“It’s actually none of your business,” Benjamin replied.
“No need to get so touchy about it,” Ryan said. “Keep your secrets if you want to. All I was saying is that there’s no way she could read my mind. My parents can’t even break though my mind shields.”
“They can too,” Heidi replied. “I can read your mind enough to know you’re lying about that.”
“I am not,” Ryan said.
“Whatever. Anyway, all you’re thinking about is that Iva is pretty and you’re trying to impress her because you want to ask her out,” Heidi continued.
Benjamin and Andy busted out laughing as Ryan’s face changed from white to pink to red.
“I was not!” he exclaimed. “I so totally was not thinking that. You’re just making things up to act like you can read minds.”
“I just read ‘em as I see ‘em,” Heidi replied.
“Yeah, well just stay out of my mind,” Ryan said and turned away.
“Yeah, well just stop eavesdropping on our conversations,” Benjamin replied, still laughing.
Heidi shrugged and turned back to the others. “He’s the one who challenged me in the first place.”
“So does he really think I’m pretty?” Iva asked.
“Of course,” Heidi replied. “Every guy in here thinks you’re pretty. Especially Andy.”
Andy immediately stopped laughing, flushing down to his neck. But Benjamin laughed all the harder.
“So how are we supposed to get food?” Andy asked. “I’m starving.”
Benjamin noticed the abrupt change in conversation and shared a quick, conspiratorial smile with Heidi.
“Did somebody request food?” A thin sheet of metal appeared on the table in front of each of them, listing a variety of food choices.
Andy blinked and looked down at the menu. “Did you just talk?”
“Yes, I will be taking your order for your meal,” the menu answered.
“Are there any vegetarian options?” Iva asked. “I’m a strict vegetarian.”
Her menu shimmered and changed.
“A vegetarian—like you don’t eat meat?” Andy asked.
“Is there any other kind?” Iva asked.
“Do you eat fish?” Andy asked.
“No. No animal flesh,” Iva replied.
“Chicken. What about chicken?” Andy persisted.
Iva didn’t reply.
“I’ll just have a hamburger,” Benjamin announced.
“Make that two,” Andy said.
“Three,” Gary added.
Heidi shrugged. “I think I’ll go ahead and get the hamburger too.”
Iva scowled. “I’ll take the tofu.”
Within a minute, steaming food appeared in front of them.
“That’s pretty cool,” Andy said in awe. “Where’d it come from?”
“It must be teleported here from elsewhere,” Gary replied. “There’s really no other logical explanation.”
“So why did that doorman…or doormen…or whatever, Hexer, say it was a pleasure to meet you again?” Andy asked, steering the conversation back to the incident with the Emerald Tablet.
“Actually what he said was that it was a pleasure t
o see you again,” Iva corrected.
“Either way, what’s that supposed to mean?” Gary asked.
“Maybe he saw us arriving at school this morning,” Benjamin said.
“No,” Gary said. “I don’t think that guy, or guys, have left that room in a very long time.”
“Must get kind of boring with only yourself to keep you company,” Andy said.
“Maybe for you,” Heidi said, “but I think anybody would be delighted to be in my company for an extended period of time. Even myself.”
Andy laughed. “I’m sure that’s true, but I mean, come on. How many games of chess can someone really play? Especially if you know what the other person is thinking.”
“It wasn’t chess,” Gary said quickly. “It was Chaturanga, the oldest ancestor of chess known to man.”
“Whatever, Gary,” Andy said.
“Well anyway, I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by the comment,” Benjamin said. “It was probably just a passing remark.”
Andy shrugged, but let the subject drop.
“So what do we do next?” Heidi asked.
“Well, I guess we need to figure out what these keys are that we’re supposed to find,” Benjamin replied. “And that’s where I’m hoping for suggestions.”
“Are you guys trying to figure out what to do for the rest of the night?” Ryan asked, leaning over again in an attempt to rejoin the conversation.
“Seriously, how many hints do you need?” Andy asked. “Whatever we decide to do, it’s not gonna include you.”
Ryan’s face hardened, but he and Jonathan apparently got the hint because they stood up.
“Well maybe we can get together some other time,” Ryan replied, looking directly at Iva and not at Andy.
“Yeah, maybe,” Iva replied, and her face reddened the smallest amount.
“And stop eavesdropping,” Benjamin added as they walked away.
“Man, those guys don’t take a hint,” Andy said. “Couldn’t they see we were busy?”
“I think you made that pretty clear,” Heidi said, shaking her head. “Could you have been any ruder?”
“Whatever,” Benjamin said. “What’s our plan?”
Gary spoke first. “We should probably look in the library to see if we can find any information about the keys there.”
“I was thinking we could do a search on our classroom sheaves,” Heidi said. “Proteus did say they were like our Internet connection to the world.”
“Maybe we could ask around,” Andy suggested, “You know, like spies.”
“Who would we ask?” Benjamin said. “The only person we know is Proteus Ajax.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” Andy said, looking upward as he thought. “Proteus Ajax may know something.”
“I was just kidding,” Benjamin said. “We don’t need to ask anybody anything.”
“I bet Proteus knows a lot of what goes on around this school,” Heidi said.
“Don’t ask Proteus anything,” Benjamin replied again. He didn’t think Proteus—or anyone for that matter—should be told about what the Emerald Tablet had said.
“Do you think our parents would know anything?” Gary suggested. “We could ask them.”
“I don’t think we should involve our parents in this just yet,” Andy said. “They’d think we should tell a teacher and not mess in matters of good versus evil. You know how parents can be.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Benjamin replied. “Okay, why doesn’t Gary start looking around in the library, Heidi and I can work on the sheaves, and Andy, why don’t you and Iva ask around and see if you can find out anything.” He tried not to smile as he suggested it. “But be casual. I don’t want anyone knowing what we’re up to.”
“Casual is my middle name,” Andy said. “No one will have any idea.”
They quickly ate and headed off for their assigned tasks. Gary headed to the main library on the fifth floor. Benjamin and Heidi decided to stay in the dining hall. And Andy announced he and Iva were going to start by spying on Proteus Ajax.
Benjamin and Heidi pulled out their classroom sheaves and expanded them.
“What should we search on?” Heidi asked.
“I don’t know. Why don’t we just keep trying different things? Maybe we’ll get a hit eventually,” Benjamin suggested.
Heidi thought for a moment. “Maybe there’s some sort of gate hunters have to open or something. You know, to get to some sort of hunting ground.”
“That doesn’t seem right,” Benjamin replied. “How about keys that open a safe where weapons are kept?”
“My idea sounded better than that,” Heidi said.
“Heidi, do you need help with something?”
Benjamin looked up to see a scary, wrinkled face leaning over the table.
“Oh, hi, Leena.” Heidi smiled at her. “Yeah, we were just doing some research.”
“But we don’t need any help,” Benjamin added quickly.
“Wait a minute Benjamin,” Heidi told him inaudibly.
“Have you heard about anything strange going on, Leena?” Heidi asked.
“Who in the world is this woman, Heidi?” Benjamin irritably thought back. What was she thinking? Hadn’t they just agreed not to tell anyone about anything?
“She’s just a woman who works in the girl’s dorms,” Heidi replied.
“Strange?” Leena creased her forehead. “Like what?”
“Anything about keys or hunters?” Heidi asked.
“Heidi!” Benjamin had heard enough. “We need to get back to work, and we don’t need anyone’s help.”
The scary woman, Leena, glared at him in response. “Heidi and I were having a conversation.” She then turned back to Heidi. “If you have anything you want to talk about, come by. I’m always around.” She cast a final look at Benjamin, and then walked away.
“Why did you do that?” Benjamin asked Heidi. “I can’t believe you did that.”
“Benjamin, she’s just a cleaning lady. It’s no big deal. And since she works here, she probably hears a lot,” Heidi replied.
“Just don’t say anything else to her,” Benjamin replied.
They sat there for close to two hours, testing ideas out on each other, using their sheaves to try to find any information they could on keys or a hunter. But nothing the sheaves returned made any sense. Benjamin began to wonder if the whole thing had been a joke. Keys of the Hunter. What kind of stupid riddle was that anyway?
“So, did you guys have any luck?” Benjamin asked Iva, Gary, and Andy when they got back.
“Nothing,” Gary said. “I found absolutely nothing.” He thought for a moment, and his eyes sort of glazed over. “But you should have seen all the books they have. And that was just the main library. There are a bunch of other specialized libraries, and that’s not even counting the library connected to the Ruling Hall.”
“Sounds exciting.” Andy grimaced as he said it.
“It was,” Gary said. “I can’t wait to go back. So how about you guys? Did you find anything?”
“Not on the hunter and key thing, but we did find out that Proteus Ajax has a girlfriend who actually happens to be our teleportation teacher,” Andy said. “And she’s totally hot,” he added secretly to Benjamin.
Benjamin smiled but then realized by the way Heidi rolled her eyes that she’d overheard also. Did she always listen in?
“How do you know that?” Gary asked.
“Well, we saw them together, talking,” Andy replied. “They were in a teacher’s lounge, and they were holding hands. Her name’s Asia Philippa.”
“And did I mention she’s totally hot?” he added silently.
“So you got nothing on the keys?” Heidi asked.
Andy shook his head. “No. Nothing.”
“Good detective work,” Heidi smirked in reply.
CHAPTER 10
Telekinetically Speaking
Benjamin probably should have felt more nervous walking into Teleki
nesis, his first class of summer school. But years of making frog legs wiggle in science class gave him confidence. But then a balding, black man teleported into the classroom, and telekinesis as Benjamin knew it was gone forever. The teacher looked them over, his eyes narrowing more with every second which went by.
“My name is Pantheros Pavlos, and one thing I will not tolerate is goofing around. You may overhear some of the older students calling me ‘The Panther’ behind my back. That is not a behavior I would encourage you to mimic. You may refer to me as Pantheros if you would like, or Mr. Pavlos if you feel you must.”
Benjamin tried not to squirm in his seat. He dared to shoot a sideways glance over to Andy, but Andy’s eyes were glued to The Panther.
“As this is beginner Telekinesis, I do not expect much of you,” The Panther continued. “If you’re too good, you’ll be stuck with me in years to come. That is not a recommendation to hide your abilities; I will know if you are, and you will be sorry.” The Panther laced his fingers, and turned his palms outward, cracking his knuckles. “Now, where should we begin?”
Ryan Jordan raised his hand. “How about with a demonstration?”
“That was a rhetorical question, Mr. Jordan,” The Panther said. “I certainly do not need suggestions on how to teach. But since you asked…”
The Panther looked at the students, and their frozen faces looked back. And then every chair in the room lifted into the air. Benjamin looked at Andy, and couldn’t hold back the wide smile that broke onto his face; Andy grinned back. Benjamin looked over to Gary and saw his hands clenching the sides of his chair. Gary gave a nervous laugh. The chairs kept lifting, higher and higher, until they all hovered near the ceiling.
“Is this the kind of demonstration you were looking for, Mr. Jordan?” The Panther asked. Ryan, pale faced and shaking, held onto his chair for dear life.
“Um, yes, this is fine, Mr. Pavlos,” Ryan called down.
“Okay, then.” The chairs and students descended to the floor, settling down with barely a sound. Benjamin jumped up and started applauding, followed quickly by Andy, and then the remainder of the class.
