Journey to Rainbow Island (30 page)

R
OMEO AWAKENED IN A DARK PLACE
. After a moment of disorientation, his heart sank: he was still in the lair of the obsidigon on Baggul Island. He remembered that a locked, rusty gate and a four-ton dragon stood between him and freedom, and his mood grew as gloomy as the inky blackness of the cave.

What was that?
he thought to himself as he heard scuffling sounds in the distance. For the first time, the thought occurred to him that he might not be the only living creature in his cavernous prison. Now fully awake, he strained to hear any unusual noises. As he sat listening, he quietly groped in the dark for a large rock. Just in case.

There it is again!
he thought, the same soft scuffling noise—like something moving across the cave floor, low to the ground. The unsettling part was that Romeo felt like whatever was out there was circling him; he heard the sound
several times, but from different directions. Was he being hunted?

The sound was very close now—no more than ten feet away. He got to his feet in case he had to run; he had a general idea where to go to avoid hitting his head again. He stood crouched like a coiled spring, the heavy rock resting in his hand.

“Romeo, it's me!” said a deep voice, just a couple of feet in front of him. Completely startled, he shuffled backward several feet and almost fell down.

“Who's there?” yelled Romeo, the deep boom of his voice compensating for the fear in his heart.

“It's me,” said the voice, just as Romeo felt something land on his right shoulder.

“Ah!” he yelped, startled by the feel of something cold on his body. He swiped at the creature with his hand and fell backward, hitting the hard, rock-strewn ground. He scrambled backward on his hands, trying to get away from whatever was stalking him.

“Romeo, what are you doing? It's me, Magic!”

“Magic? You nearly scared me to death! I thought you were a cave shade here to drag me off to the underworld! Why didn't you announce yourself?”

“Romeo, my night vision is very good, but I can't see in pitch darkness like this,” Magic said. “I had to make sure it was you, and I couldn't be sure without getting close. It is so good to find you, Romeo. We have all been so worried about you!”

“It's a relief to see you too, Magic—though you nearly scared me to death,” added Romeo, his heart still pounding like a drum in his chest. “But how did you find me? Who told you I was here?” Romeo was in shock that the little frog could find his way to Baggul Island and discover exactly where on this forsaken rock he was being held.

Magic explained that he had come with Metatron and Suparna, having heard rumors that Hobaling was here. “We flew for two days straight from Darqendia and arrived here around midnight. Suparna circled the island several times, and just when we were about to give up on finding any signs of Hobaling, I spotted a faint light coming from high on a cliff—it was coming from Hobaling's grotto. So Suparna landed along the cliffs about a hundred feet above this cave. I was able to climb down from above and find the cave entrance. First I searched Hobaling's grotto, but I didn't see any signs of you or the Seven Sacred Crystals. Then I looked on the other side of the cave, and after getting past the sleeping obsidigon, I followed the passage until I came to the locked gate. I knew then that I was probably in the right place.”

“As great as it is to see you, Magic, it doesn't change the fact that there is no way out of here. I am stuck.”

“Have you forgotten the light, Romeo?” Magic asked.

“What do you mean, Magic? There is no light here.”

“Do you still have your purple crystal heart? The one Yu-ning gave you that day before you were kidnapped from Rainbow Island?”

Romeo put his hand against his chest and felt the small, round crystal hanging from its silk thread underneath his shirt. “Well, yes, I still have it.”

“Then use it, Romeo,” urged Magic.

Romeo reached into his shirt and pulled out Yu-ning's purple crystal heart. He had all but forgotten about the
crystal since he had been abducted. As he removed it from his shirt, it glowed ever so faintly. This gave him hope, which caused the heart to glow even more.

“Yes, Romeo, that's it. Your belief is making the crystal glow!”

Romeo stood up as the purple crystal illuminated the entire cavern in soft, pulsating purple and lavender light. Romeo smiled at Magic, as if seeing the frog for the very first time.

“You are full of surprises, you crazy frog . . . I have an idea, Magic; follow me.”

Romeo walked to the center of the large cavernous chamber, toward the cleft where the stream ran downhill. As they followed the stream deeper into the cave, it began to pick up speed, skipping and bouncing off rocks. The passage here was narrow, and it headed downward at an increasingly sharp angle. As they continued downward, they could hear the sound of rushing water. Not of a stream, but of a river. They picked up their pace as the lights from the purple crystal revealed the path forward.

“There, Magic, do you see it? The stream disappears down there.” They approached the place where the stream disappeared, and Romeo had to stop abruptly. Just before him was a gaping hole, across which he could not jump. The stream fell into the chasm, and below him, in the darkness, was the unmistakable sound of running water. He held the purple crystal over the chasm, but he could not see to the bottom.

He picked up a fist-sized rock, dropped it in, and counted out loud—“One pink dolphin, two pink dolphin, three pink dolphin—” until he heard a faint splash. He remembered a lesson from his math instructor: it takes 1.7 seconds to fall
50 feet. Or was it 7.1 seconds to fall 500 feet? He couldn't remember. In either case, he calculated, the drop was far. Should he risk the jump? Though the water was rushing loudly and sounded deep, how could he know for sure? What if he jumped, only to land in a few shallow feet of water? He certainly wouldn't get far on a broken leg—or worse.

He could either spend another night in the cave, or try to make his way down to the underground river. He and Magic backed away from the chasm and decided to go back to the main chamber to discuss their options. As they did, Romeo held the crystal heart aloft, and noticed that they weren't alone. There were bones and old clothes scattered about; he had not been the first prisoner to occupy the cave. The others had been less fortunate, though: as he scanned the cave, he saw several skeletons. Many looked ancient, wearing old clothing from the Third Age some 300 years before.

Immediately he knew what to do. He told Magic to return to Suparna and Metatron: at first light, they were to watch for him along the cliffs, where the rocks met the sea. “I am confident that the river below leads to the ocean. I will find my way down to the river through the chasm, and ride the current to where it leads to the open sea.” Sensing concern on Magic's face, he added, “Don't worry, Magic. I am the best swimmer on Rainbow Island—I will be fine.” He wished he were as confident as he sounded.

Magic and Romeo walked quietly back toward the exit of the cave, stopping at the turn in the passage, just before the rusty gate. They peered around the corner and didn't see the obsidigon. Magic slipped through the bars and gave a quick wave goodbye as he slinked back down the passage toward the cavern's opening. Romeo waited for a long time, listening
for signs of trouble, but heard none. It seemed that Magic had been able to make his escape. By the looks of the light down the passageway, he guessed that dawn was still an hour away. That would give him just enough time to get ready for his big plunge.

He moved back to the main chamber of the cave and scrambled from one skeleton to the next, gathering waistcoats, breeches, shirts, and other items of clothing. He made a large pile, then set to work tying the pieces together, end to end, to make his descent rope. He would take his chances in the chasm and hope that the river headed out to the nearby sea and freedom.

When he had tied together all the garments he could find, he dragged the makeshift rope toward the large hole. He tied one end of the rope around a nearby stalagmite, gathered the rest of the rope, and set it just next to the lip of the chasm. Making sure that his feet were not entangled, he gently pushed the mound of clothing over the edge. It made a quiet whooshing sound as it fell.

Romeo waited for the splash of water. It never came.

What now? He sat on the edge of the chasm, his heart racing, hands sweaty, and mouth dry. He took several deep breaths, wiped his hands on his pants, and gripped the rope tightly.

“Here goes,” he said. He wrapped his feet around the rope, just as he had been taught in climbing class on the Emerald Cliffs of Rainbow Island. But this wasn't the Emerald Cliffs, and Romeo wasn't wearing a safety harness. He turned onto his stomach and edged himself over the side of the chasm, gaining purchase with his feet on an outcropping below. He gently swung himself away from the rocks until he was
dangling in the air. He began to descend, slowly but surely. It was easier going than he had imagined, but he was in complete darkness and didn't want to bump into the jagged walls. He was wary of removing his crystal heart necklace, as he was afraid it would fall off on the way down.

Hand over hand he descended. Finally, he could feel the large knot he had tied just three feet from the end of the rope, another trick he'd learned in climbing class. The water was louder now, but still a long way off. As he swung there in midair, trying to decide what to do next, his decision was made for him—the friable cloth rope gave out. With an inauspicious snap, Romeo was in free fall and found himself upside down.

He twisted in midair, trying to right himself so his feet hit the water first. He closed his eyes and waited for impact, not wanting to see what might be awaiting him. Just as he righted himself, his feet hit the water hard, and he was engulfed by cold, fresh water. He braced for the jarring impact of hitting bottom, but his feet found no purchase. Down he went, like a stone, tumbling and turning in the turbulent water. He fought to free himself from the heavy weight of his rope, which had felt so light, but which now encircled his waist, heavy and deadly.

Try as he might, Romeo could not untangle himself from the billowing clothing that surrounded him. He could tell that his time was almost up, and he gave one last lunge for the surface. His hand punched the surface of the water, and just as he was about to break the surface for a breath of air, the water-laden cloth rope began to drag him down again.

He kicked with all his might, but he knew that his energy would soon be gone. In that moment, he had the strangest
vision: Yu-ning was playing tag with him on the beach. He could almost smell the chalkiness of the dry sand and the salty balm of the water and hear the sound of Yu-ning's feet slapping against the sandy shore, running just out of his reach.

He could see her; she was just in front of him. If only he could touch her! Then he would be able to breathe. As he began to lose consciousness, a soft purple light began to glow all around him, and he thought perhaps he was leaving this world and beginning his journey to the next. And then all became calm, and he wasn't frightened anymore. He was on the beach with Yu-ning, running on the wet sand, a soft, purple light flowing all around him, growing brighter and brighter.

Y
U-NING RAN DOWN the steel stairs of the old vessel, flight after flight, until she was on the bottom level of the boat. On her way down she passed passenger room after passenger room. Some doors were cracked open, and inside she saw people sitting in darkened, silent rooms.

She ran down a long hallway with dim lights flickering on the walls. She made two right turns and came to a door with a steel plate that said “Engine Room.” The compartment was closed, and there was a small round window in the door. She stood on her tiptoes and peered through; the captain was sitting in a chair, holding a cup. He had a white mustache and white curly hair. He was round and heavy.