Eve of the Emperor Penguin Page 3

  “What took you so long?” Annie asked when he got out of the chopper.

  Jack just shook his head.

  “Have a safe trip back to the station, Pete!” called Nancy. “See you later!”

  Pete waved from the window. Then the chopper blades started rotating again. The chopper lifted off the ground and thundered away.

  Jack didn’t feel like a happy camper anymore. Walking through the cold, thin air, he looked at the snowmobiles parked near the hut.

  “We don’t know how to drive snowmobiles!” Jack whispered to Annie. “We haven’t trained for anything, including altitude sickness!”

  “That’s okay. If we get in trouble, we can use the wand,” said Annie.

  “No, we can’t,” said Jack. “We can’t use the wand just for ourselves. Plus, we haven’t tried our hardest yet.”

  “This way, gang,” called Nancy. She was ushering everyone into the small orange building.

  Jack and Annie followed the group inside. The one-room hut had plastic chairs, a small heater, axes, jugs of water, and shelves with boxes of trail mix.

  “Have a seat and help yourself to some of the best water in the world,” Nancy said. “It comes from melted glacier ice.”

  Everyone sat on the plastic chairs. Lucy, Kim, Tony, and Ali poured water into tin cups and lowered their masks to drink. Jack was thirsty, but he shook his head no at Annie. He was afraid for them to show their faces.

  “Before we take off, I want to warn you again about the snowmobiles,” said Nancy. “No matter how much training you’ve had, you must be very careful. On your ride up to the crater, remember to drive sideways so if the snowmobile slips and rolls over, your leg won’t get crushed.”

  Everyone nodded.

  How do you drive sideways? Jack wondered in a panic.

  “Don’t be afraid to go fast, and don’t lock up the brakes,” said Nancy. “Locking your brakes can spell disaster.”

  “And watch out for lava bombs,” said Ali, the biologist.

  “Lava bombs?” Jack piped. He quickly cleared his throat and deepened his voice. “Excuse me. Lava bombs?”

  “Lava that spits from the crater,” said Ali.

  “Spits?” repeated Jack.

  “Like oatmeal that bubbles and spatters out of the pot,” said Lucy, the space scientist.

  “Except these bombs aren’t made of oatmeal,” said Ali. “They’re blobs of fiery hot liquid rock. Some of them can be as big as a car. They burn deep holes in the ice and snow.”

  “If they hit you …,” said Tony, chuckling. “Well, just think about it.”

  Jack didn’t want to think about it.

  “Seriously, it’s pretty neat,” said Nancy. “For millions of years, hot gas and lava have carved deep, hidden places beneath the surface ice of these slopes—caverns and towers. No one knows all the secrets of Mount Erebus.”

  Nancy took a last sip of water and put her cup down. “Okay, guys, you have a few hours to do your experiments and get your stories. Then Pete will come back for us. Let’s go!”

  As Jack stood up to go, he almost fell over. The room was spinning. He closed his eyes, but that only made it worse. After the others had filed out the door, Jack sat back down on his chair. I’ll just stay here for a second, he thought, his heart pounding.

  “You okay?” said Annie, coming back into the hut.

  “I’m dizzy,” said Jack, trying to catch his breath. “I think I’ve got altitude sickness.”

  “I don’t feel so great, either,” said Annie. “Try taking off your mask and goggles so you can breathe better.” She helped Jack lift off his mask and goggles. “Does that help?”

  “Yeah, a little…” Jack took a deep breath. “But we need lots of help.”

  “What do you mean?” said Annie.

  “Help getting over altitude sickness,” said Jack, “help driving snowmobiles, help dodging lava bombs, help finding an ancient crown … and what is that, anyway—an ancient crown?”

  Nancy poked her head back into the hut. “What’s up, guys? You coming?”

  “Yikes,” said Annie.

  Jack quickly tried to put his goggles and mask back on. But it was too late.

  “What—what are you—who are you?” Nancy sputtered. “You’re not a journalist! You’re a kid!”

  “Don’t worry,” said Annie in a deep voice. “He’s my son.”

  “What?” said Nancy.

  “He is,” said Annie. “I often take him on my assignments.”

  “You what?” said Nancy.

  “Annie, give it up,” said Jack. “We’re caught.”

  “Oh, okay,” said Annie. She pushed up her goggles and pulled down her mask. “I’m Annie, and he’s Jack. We’re sister and brother.”

  “I’m going to have a heart attack!” said Nancy. “What are you kids doing here?”

  “We were looking for …” Annie stopped. “Um …” Jack knew even Annie couldn’t explain their mission to save Merlin to Nancy.

  “This is unbelievable!” said Nancy. “I’ve got to get you two back to the station! Your parents must be frantic. I can’t believe this!”

  “No, no, it’s our fault. No one will blame you,” said Jack.

  But Nancy was pulling out a small radio. “Come in, Pete. Come in.”

  The radio crackled and popped. Then Pete’s voice came through. “Hear you, Nancy,” he said.

  “Pete, you need to get the chopper back here quick and pick up two of my group. They’re just little kids!”

  Not so little, thought Jack.

  “Repeat that, Nancy,” said Pete.

  “Two little kids came with the group!” Nancy shouted. “I didn’t know they were kids—oh, it’s too hard to explain! Can you come back right away, please?”

  “Sure thing,” said Pete. “You head up with the others. I’ll pick up the kids.”

  “Thanks. They’ll be here at the hut, waiting for you to take them back,” said Nancy. “Over and out.”

  Nancy put away her radio and looked at Jack and Annie. “I don’t know how you two got past me.”

  “We’re sorry,” said Annie.

  “This is unbelievable!” said Nancy.

  Jack couldn’t believe it, either. How did they mess up so badly?

  “I’m so sorry I brought you here,” said Nancy.

  “No, no, it’s our fault,” Jack said again.

  “It’s mine, all mine, oh …,” said Nancy. She seemed near tears. “You’re just little kids.”

  Not so little! thought Jack again. Gee!

  A snowmobile rumbled outside, its engine warming up.

  “Oh, dear,” said Nancy. “I’ve got to lead the group up a safe route to the crater, or they’ll be in trouble. But Pete should be back here in just a few minutes. Will you be okay by yourselves till then?”

  “We’ll be fine, don’t worry,” said Annie.

  “Good,” said Nancy. “Here, sweeties.” She poured some water into two cups and gave them to Jack and Annie. “Drink.” While they drank the water, Nancy spread a blanket on the floor and turned on the small heater.

  “Lie down here,” she said. “Just rest.” She patted the blanket.

  Jack and Annie lay down. Nancy covered them with another blanket. “If you get thirsty, drink more water,” she said.

  “Thanks,” said Annie. Jack was too embarrassed to say anything. He felt like a preschool kid being put down for a nap.

  “Okay!” Nancy said with a big sigh. “You kids nearly gave me a heart attack,” she repeated half to herself as she left the hut.

  “Sorry,” said Jack.

  But Nancy was gone.

  Soon the roar and rumble of the snowmobiles filled the air as Nancy led the scientists and journalists up the mountain.

  “We really messed up our mission this time,” said Jack, lying under the blanket.

  “And we were doing so well, too,” said Annie. She sat up. “Can I see Morgan’s rhyme, please?”

  Jack pulled the
rhyme out of his pocket and handed it to Annie.

  “Okay,” said Annie. She read aloud:

  … then all fall down,

  Till you come to the Cave of the Ancient Crown.

  “I wonder if this counts as falling down?” asked Annie. She put the rhyme into her pocket.

  “I don’t think so,” said Jack. “I don’t know what that means. And there’s no ‘Ancient Crown’ in Antarctica. It’s all science and research and rules and helicopters and snowmobiles… It’s the real world…” His voice trailed off.

  “Well, I know one thing: I don’t want to waste time lying around here,” said Annie. She threw off the blanket and stood up. “At least I can take a few pictures while we wait for Pete.”

  “You really feel like doing that?” said Jack.

  “Not really, but I’m going to try,” said Annie.

  “I don’t think you should,” said Jack.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon,” said Annie. “Maybe I’ll see an ancient crown.”

  “Yeah, sure,” said Jack.

  Annie put on her goggles and ski mask and headed outside.

  Jack reached into his pack and pulled out their book. He took off his glove and looked up ancient crown in the index. He wasn’t surprised to find it wasn’t there.

  Jack put the book back in his pack and took out his notebook. He read over his notes:

  Jack’s hand was cold, so he put his glove back on. He put away his notebook, and then laid his head back down and closed his eyes. He just wanted to sleep. The warmth from the small heater felt good. The sound of the snowmobiles was fading into the distance. As he started to fall asleep, the words of his notes ran through his mind: Go slow… Stay with others… Cracks in ice…

  Oh, no! thought Jack. He sat straight up. He tossed off the blanket. He threw on his pack and rushed out of the hut.

  The wind was blowing the snow into icy clouds. Jack pulled up his ski mask and lowered his goggles. “Annie!” he shouted.

  “What?” Her voice came from the distance.

  Jack caught sight of her. She was aiming her camera up the slope at the smoking crater of the mountain.

  “You have to come back now!” he shouted, walking toward her. “You shouldn’t be walking around by yourself!”

  “Okay, okay.” Annie put her camera in her pocket.

  “Come on,” said Jack. He took Annie’s hand. They held on to each other and walked through the blowing snow, toward the hut. “Remember Nancy’s rules?” said Jack. “There are deep cracks in—AHHH!”

  Before Jack could finish, the ground beneath him gave way and he and Annie crashed through a thin layer of snow hiding a deep crack in the ice.

  Jack and Annie landed on an icy ledge. Clumps of snow fell on top of them. Silence filled the air. A thin shaft of light came from the opening they had fallen through. It was at least ten feet above them.

  “You okay?” Jack said.

  “I think so,” said Annie.

  They both sat up slowly. Annie peered over the edge of the ledge. “Uh-oh,” she said. “Look.”

  Jack looked. He and Annie were on the ledge of a ravine that plunged thousands of feet down into darkness.

  “This must be one of those hidden places in the mountain Nancy talked about,” said Jack, “the ones made by the lava and hot gases.”

  “It’s incredible,” said Annie. She reached into her pocket for her camera.

  As soon as Annie moved, Jack heard the ice crack. “Don’t move!” he said.

  Annie froze.

  “Forget pictures,” said Jack. “We’re facing serious danger here. If we move, the ice might break under us and we’ll fall thousands of feet.”

  “Got it,” said Annie. She took a deep breath. “Maybe we should use the wand.”

  “We can’t,” said Jack. “The wand won’t work. We can only use it for the good of others, not just ourselves.”

  “Darn,” said Annie.

  They were both still for a moment, listening to the immense silence around them.

  “Okay,” said Annie. “The way I see it, if we don’t use the wand, we’ll be stuck here forever. Soon we’ll make the wrong move and fall.”

  “Right,” said Jack.

  “So we’ll never find the secret of happiness for Merlin,” said Annie. “Merlin will fade away completely from sorrow. And Camelot will lose his magic forever.”

  “Right,” said Jack.

  “So maybe in this case, rescuing ourselves isn’t just our good,” said Annie. “Our good is also the good of others, like Merlin.”

  “Good thinking,” said Jack. “Let’s try it.” He carefully twisted around and took off his backpack. Then he very slowly reached inside and pulled out the Wand of Dianthus.

  “Okay. Five words …,” Jack whispered. “I guess I’ll just wish for it to save you and me and Merlin. Hey, why didn’t we make that wish a long time ago?”

  “We couldn’t,” said Annie. “We hadn’t tried our hardest yet.”

  “Right. Get ready …,” said Jack. He closed his eyes, held up the gleaming silver wand, and said:

  “SAVE ANNIE, MERLIN, AND ME!”

  Jack waited a moment. Then he opened his eyes and looked around. “What happened?” he said.

  “Nothing,” said Annie.

  “So I guess it didn’t work,” said Jack. He turned to put the wand away. “I guess the rules must—”

  CRACK! The ice broke! The ledge gave way!

  “AHHH!” called Jack and Annie as they fell through the twilight, down through darkness,

  down,

  down,

  down,

  down into blackness.

  Clutching the wand, Jack lay in the pitch-dark. He pushed up his goggles, but he still couldn’t see anything.

  “You there?” It was Annie’s voice.

  “Yes,” said Jack.

  “You okay?”

  “Yes. But we’re really in trouble now,” said Jack. “We fell way down into a dark hole, and the wand doesn’t work.” He struggled to sit up.

  “Well, maybe we should try again,” said Annie.

  “What’s the point?” said Jack. “We’ll never get out of here now.”

  Jack and Annie were silent for a moment.

  “Hey—we’re moving!” Annie said.

  “Moving?” said Jack. They were moving. The ice under them was gliding silently and smoothly through the darkness.

  “What’s happening?” said Jack.

  “Maybe we’re not in a hole,” said Annie. “Look, there’s light ahead.”

  In the distance they saw a glimmer of light. As they kept moving, the light grew brighter. It grew brighter and brighter, until they slipped out of a dark tunnel into dazzling light.

  Now Jack could see they were lying on a slab of ice, floating down a narrow river.

  “We’re on an ice raft!” said Annie.

  “What’s happening?” said Jack again.

  “I don’t know,” said Annie. “But I think maybe the wand did work.”

  The ice raft floated through light and shadow, past tall frozen cliffs. Then it glided toward an archway in one of the cliff walls.

  “Where are we going?” asked Jack.

  The raft floated through the archway into a gigantic cavern. The cavern was like a huge icy cathedral. Its walls shone as if they were covered with silver.

  “Ohhh,” whispered Annie.

  “What is this place?” said Jack.

  “I don’t know. But now I’m sure the wand worked,” said Annie.

  The ice raft kept floating along a thin river inside the cavern, past icy archways and jagged ledges. Jack felt as if they were being watched. He thought he heard whispering and breathing.

  “Look!” said Annie. She pointed to one of the cave openings. Standing on the ledge outside the cave entrance were two penguins. They looked just like the emperor penguins Jack and Annie had seen earlier.

  Jack and Annie stood up so they could see better. As their
raft floated toward the ledge, the penguin in front stepped back into the cave. The other didn’t move.

  “Oh, man!” said Jack.

  The penguin wore a glittering crown.

  “The ancient crown,” Jack whispered. “We found it!”

  Annie didn’t say anything. She just smiled as the ice raft floated straight toward the emperor penguin. It hit the ledge with a gentle bump.

  “Hi,” Annie said simply.

  The penguin made deep murmuring sounds. He didn’t speak in human speech. But somehow Jack and Annie could understand every word: Welcome to the Cave of the Ancient Crown.

  Annie bowed. The penguin had such dignity, Jack bowed, too.

  The emperor spoke again: Come. He beckoned with his wing, then turned.

  Annie stepped off the ice raft onto the ledge and followed the emperor into the cave. Jack put the Wand of Dianthus into his pack. He hoisted the pack onto his back and tried to balance his weight so he could step from the raft to the ledge.

  “Hurry!” said Annie, poking her head out of the cave.

  “I’m coming!” said Jack. He leapt from the raft onto the ledge, then hurried into the cave.

  The Cave of the Ancient Crown was sparkling. Icicles hung everywhere. Pillars of ice glimmered with blue light. From behind a row of ice pillars came the sound of music—strange music, unlike any Jack had ever heard before. It sounded like the music of a thousand icicle wind chimes.

  The emperor led Jack and Annie around the pillars.

  “Oh, wow,” said Annie.

  Penguin couples were dancing to the strange music on a glittering ice rink. Pink and blue lights spilled over the dancers as they gracefully glided and turned. Some penguins danced silently with their eyes closed. Others touched beaks. A group of baby penguins danced together, hopping and sliding on the ice.

  “How—how could this be happening?” stammered Jack.

  “Don’t ask,” whispered Annie. “It’s magic.”

  A murmur went through the ballroom as the penguins began to notice Jack and Annie. Though the strange music kept playing, all the dancers came to a stop. None of the penguins seemed alarmed, though. They all looked at their visitors with calm, friendly faces.