The Adventure of a Lifetime (8 page)

Amber, after a moment's hesitation, chose to dive in. She descended into the water and swam farther and farther down. The cold wrapped around her skin. She shivered. She couldn't hear anything underwater, but she soon spotted Betty behind a clump of small rocks. Amber swam toward her and grabbed her cold hand. Betty wasn't that heavy and Amber was able to drag her along while she swam.

Amber soon made it to the poisonous grass. She lifted Betty onto the grass and then went onto it herself, fully aware of the poison that was in it. She didn't have any choice though. Betty would drown. With the grass, she would get minor itches. Unluckily, her boat drifted away before Amber could drag Betty back in and reach shore. They had only traveled half the length of the rapids, and without a boat, it would take double the time to reach the far shore. And then Doctor Sly would reach the portal first. Amber looked at Betty, lying lifeless, and pounded her until she was up and coughing. It felt good to beat someone up. Betty was the only real obstacle in Amber's way. She was the reason why everything was wrong. She was the wannabe, and Amber was the queen.

Now, if only they could somehow get off the poisonous grass and back into the water.

Then Amber remembered. Lumberjacks in the area often sent logs on the course of the river and met up with them on the other side. The river provided fast and easy transportation. There could be some logs coming their way right now. All they had to do was wait. On the poisonous grass, itching.

That's nice.

Amber sat cross-legged and watched the river, trying to be calm.
Inhale, exhale. Out and in. In and out. Inhale—

“I want to go home! I don't belong here!” Betty had come back to her senses. Amber sighed.

“Look, pretty soon, some logs are going to come our way, and then we're going to get to the portal.”

“I don't care about your stupid portal! I want to go home, Miss ‘I'm-so-cool-because-I'm-sarcastic-and-only-think-about-myself!'”

“What did you just call me?” Amber asked heatedly.

“A sarcastic and conceited heroine who's not even a hero,” Betty froze.

“I'll have you know I'm the kindest person you'll ever meet here. And do you think I even care about getting you back home? You stick with me one journey—then, you leave me alone. Got it?” Amber threatened.

Betty nodded and opened her mouth to say more, but when Amber looked at her angrily, she knew she had pushed it too far. Besides, Amber could toss her in the water right then and there, so it was best to shut up.

“Good,” Amber sighed, and then went back to watching the river.

And then the wood came, and Amber swam to it. The-fast moving current made it hard to reach, but Amber was a fast swimmer.

On the grass, Amber found two lone branches.

Betty wasn't sure what Amber was doing, but it looked like she had a plan.

“What are you doing?” Betty inquired.

“Well, since you're obviously not going to swim in the water, we're going to paddle across the river. We're each going to sit on one of the logs and paddle to shore with these branches,” Amber explained, handing a branch to Betty.

“Oh I get it!” Betty said. She hoped she didn't fall off the log, even though she planned on tying a vine around her waist like a seat belt.

“Great! I'll get on my log first,” Amber said. Amber placed the wood in the river and held it down. She then straddled the log and tied herself on with a vine.

Now it was Betty's turn. Branches in hand, Betty did the same as Amber had done. She used a vine like a seat belt, started paddling, and found out the current wasn't that strong. As they went farther downstream, the current slowed. The river wasn't so raging despite its name. Amber was a bit ahead of Betty, but not too far ahead. Everything was going well.

“Betty!” Amber hollered.

“What?” Betty cried.

“I think I see the shoreline!”

“Really?”

“Yeah!” Amber cried.

Soon Betty saw the shoreline too. Betty paddled faster and so did Amber. Amber reached the shoreline first and Betty was right behind her. Once they were safely on shore, they let their branches and pieces of wood drift away. In a moment of relief, the girls laughed and high-fived each other. But serious expressions quickly returned to their faces.

“Where do we go now?” Betty asked, worn out.

“The Vicious Volcano,” said Amber, stifling a yawn. “But I think we should rest first.”

Betty nodded in agreement.

“Well, in that case, let's go to Burmington,” Amber said.

It turned out that Burmington was a town about a mile away. As tired as both girls were, they still put one foot in front of the other until they made it to the edge of town.

“Now what?” Betty asked.

“I don't know,” Amber sighed. “Let's just ask around.”

Even though she knew it wasn't going to work, Betty was so tired that she trudged with Amber from door to door. Every once in a while, someone would answer the door, look at them, and shut the door. Betty was about to fall asleep right then and there, when they knocked at a door and someone answered.

It wasn't just anyone though. A familiar-looking woman, tall with dark skin and short black hair that was cut to her ears, looked at Betty and Amber from inside the house.

“Mrs. Asdern?” Betty exclaimed, pushing Amber out the way. “What are you doing here?”

“Betty? Oh, you poor thing! What are you doing here again? I thought you hated this place.”

“Excuse me?” Amber asked.

“Wait—again?” Betty asked. She was confused. She had never been to Amber's world before.

“Yes! Didn't you say you'd already been here?” Mrs. Asdern asked.
No, no, no, no.
What was Mrs. Asdern talking about? She had been like this yesterday too, in the car, driving Betty to school. She had been talking nonsense.

Then it dawned on her.

“Wait! That was what you were saying in the car. When I said ‘Amber,' I meant I was reading
Amber
the
Brave
. And that was why I was late, because I got so lost in my book…you thought I had just come back from Amber's world?”

“Well, you are Amber's biggest fan.”

“Aww, you're my biggest fan?” Amber mocked.

“No—well yeah, I am,” Betty said sheepishly. “But I didn't come here until Mrs. Shumpridge gave me the book.”

“Well, that doesn't matter now. Come in, come in,” Mrs. Asdern said.

It definitely wasn't a mansion, but it wasn't bad. The walls were an inviting pecan shade, and Betty and Amber sat down on an off-white couch to the right of the door.

Betty raised an eyebrow. “So you've been here before?”

Mrs. Asdern nodded. “A few times, actually. And when we were talking the other day, I felt like coming back. So I did.”

“Who are you?” Amber interrupted.

“Oh, I'm Mrs. Asdern, or you may know me as Sandra. Remember, I came here twenty-five years ago, the day
Amber
the
Brave
was first written. Ah, I used to love you and your books.”

“Wait, twenty-five years? Why haven't I grown? I mean, Betty told me about her world and my apparent book world, but it's still a lot to take in, you know?”

For once, nobody listened to Amber. Betty was busy talking to Mrs. Asdern, and soon they had disappeared into the kitchen, where smells of stew and apple pie wafted out.

Dinner came soon enough. The stew was delicious and warm. The apple pie was fresh and hot out of the oven. Altogether, dinner was so satisfying. It was the first good meal Betty had had since she got to Amber's world. Even Amber, who was more of a goopy-paste gal, enjoyed dinner.

Once they had eaten, they were tired, which can only be expected after a long day of raging rivers. Mrs. Asdern led them to a guest room and laid out two cots.

“How do you have all this stuff?” Betty asked.

“I bring as much as I can. You never know what you need,” Mrs. Asdern replied.

“But, how do you get back home?”

“Once you finish the first quest, you can come and go as you please,” Mrs. Asdern said. “Now go to sleep.”

But Amber couldn't. Ever since Betty had seen Mrs. Asdern, Amber felt left out, and more importantly, she felt as if they talked about her as if she wasn't there.
“Amber is like this,”
and
“All you have to do to succeed is this,”
and
“Don't worry, you'll be out of Amber-world soon.”

Amber couldn't go to sleep for some time, as she was still lost in her thoughts. But she did, and she was sure Betty had too.

***

Betty woke up, rubbing her eyes. Slowly, as if in a trance, she got up and walked over to a window. It was much nicer than Amber's windows, since it was made of glass.

Betty looked over at Amber, who was still sleeping. Slowly creeping out of the room, Betty rubbed her eyes and went downstairs.
I'll just find something to eat. For the road,
Betty thought.

“Hi, Betty.”

“Oh, Mrs. Asdern.” Betty blushed, feeling like an intruder for some reason. “Hi.”

“Here, let me get you some breakfast,” Mrs. Asdern said, getting out a box of pancake mix. “You know, it's pretty chilly out right now. You can wear my jacket.”

“But it won't fit me,” Betty said.

“True. Is there anything else that would help?”

“Maybe some extra food,” Betty said, hoping she wasn't too demanding.

Soon, Amber's purple backpack was full of fruits like peaches, oranges, grapes, bananas, pears, and apples. Vegetables like carrots and bottles of juice filled the backpack to the brim. Four protein bars stood in two side pockets.

“What are these called again?” Amber asked when she finally woke up and came downstairs. She poked at her pancakes. “And what is this?”

“They're pancakes,” Betty giggled. “And that's a fork.”

“Why do I have a fork? I can just use my hands,” Amber said, picking up the pancake and cramming it into her mouth. Betty laughed as Amber tried to swallow. Even Mrs. Asdern smiled as she firmly handed Amber the fork and a knife.

***

“You put a lot in my bag,” Amber complained.

“You can never be too cautious,” Betty said. “You know, I really liked being in Mrs. Asdern's house. It felt like home.”

“Yep,” Amber said, but it was far from home to her.

“Where to?” Betty asked.

“The Vicious Volcano,” Amber answered. She couldn't tell Betty she didn't like Mrs. Asdern. After all, she owed it to their hostess. After what happened with her grandmother, she couldn't be complaining. But still, it was different. They didn't include her, and sometimes they acted as if she wasn't there. And Amber knew she might be a book character, but that didn't mean she didn't have feelings.

With that, the girls took one last look at the house, gathered their belongings and headed outside once again. Outside, it was a beautiful day with a warm breeze. In Burmington, the flowers on the trees had already bloomed and bugs were buzzing around. Betty felt sort of sorry for herself, partly because she missed home and partly because she was on her way to a volcano.

“Is this volcano dormant or active?” Betty asked.

“Dormant,” Amber said.

“Then why is it the ‘Vicious Volcano'?” Betty asked.

“Well, long ago, like about a century ago, it actually was active. But over the years it became dormant as the amount of magma inside it got less and less,” Amber said.

“Science-y,” Betty said.

“I think the best way to cross the volcano is to fly across it,” Amber said.

“Why do we have to fly across it?” Betty asked.

“Well, I'm pretty sure flying will be easier and faster than hiking up the volcano. That's why we should use the arlyers,” Amber said.

“But the arlyers fell in the water. Right?” Betty pointed out.

“Oh, yeah, I forgot about that! Dang.” Amber looked at the ground with a downcast expression. “What now?”

But Betty was busy thinking about something Amber had said about the arlyers. “‘I heard they even return to you when you whistle.'”

“Whistle,” Betty commanded.

“What?” Amber asked, looking up.

“I said, ‘whistle.'”

“Why?”

“Just do it!”

Amber was taken aback by Betty's anger, and let out a low whistle. Two metallic balls came racing their way.

“Yes! They're back!” Amber exclaimed. “Wait, one problem. They didn't work when we were flying across the Broken Bridge.”

Even Betty couldn't figure out an answer to that. “Just try them out, maybe they'll work,” she finally said, knowing they wouldn't. Amber shrugged and clicked them open. She strapped them on her back, and started flying!

“How—” Betty said, amazed.

“They work!” Amber cried as she lowered herself down onto the ground. Betty was about to say something else about how the arlyers couldn't work, but then decided against it.

“Awesome! Well, let's fly to the volcano, cross it, and be done with this adventure!” In her mind, Betty was doubtful that crossing this obstacle with the arlyers would be so smooth. The other obstacles had been so hard to navigate. Hadn't she almost died in them? Well, they both involved water, in which she could drown. Maybe her luck would change with the volcano.

“C'mon Betty! Open your arlyers already!” Amber said.

Betty opened her arlyers and strapped them on her back. She joined Amber in the sky. They flew all the way to the volcano. The journey wasn't that long this time, probably because they were flying. Amber and Betty then hovered in midair, looked at each other, nodded, and then started to fly over the volcano. Suddenly though, the arlyers stopped working once again. Amber and Betty fell all the way to the bottom of the volcano, which felt like a drop of about twenty feet, according to Amber. The sun's warmth didn't reach them at the bottom of the volcano.

“I don't get it! Why did the arlyers work when we were just flying toward the volcano but not when we were crossing it? It's as if they have a mind of their own!” Betty cried in frustration.

Amber had no explanation for the arlyers' behavior.

After that, all was silent until Amber cried out “I found it!”

“What did you find?” Betty asked.

“I found a pattern in the rocks to get us out of here!” Amber said.

“What is it?” Betty eagerly asked.

“Well, we can rock-climb. There are so many tiny rocks surrounding us on the inside wall of the volcano! We can just rock climb to the top and from there we can walk down the side of the volcano!” Amber said. “You do know how to rock-climb, right, Betty?”

Betty knew how to rock-climb. There was a rock wall on her school playground. Of course the rocks were plastic on that wall, but still, could real rocks be much different?

“I know how to rock-climb,” Betty said.

“Great! Let's start!” Amber said.

Amber went first. She grasped two of the rocks and put her foot on another. She started climbing.

“C'mon Betty! This is really easy!” Amber said.

Well,
Betty thought,
at
least
it
isn't water.
She put one foot on a rock and then grasped two rocks with her bare hands. The rocks were rigid and Betty was sure she was going to get a bit scratched up. Betty lifted her left foot up onto a rock that was slightly farther up than the one that her right foot was on. Then she stretched her right arm to the next rock, lifted her right foot onto a higher stone, and reached her left arm up onto a higher rock. She put her left foot on a rock farther above the ground. And she continued that way, slowly rising up the inside wall of the volcano. She was climbing the inside wall of a volcano! Betty was so proud of herself that she looked up to make sure Amber could see her. But Betty couldn't see Amber. Where was she? Then Betty saw that Amber was standing on the top edge of the volcano, getting ready to jump off.

Except she didn't.

She just stood there like stone. Was Amber, of all people, afraid? Betty started climbing faster and faster so that she could find out. Betty was almost at the top edge of the volcano too.

Soon, Betty reached the edge. Her arms and legs ached.

“Why aren't you jumping Amber?” Betty asked. Then she looked down. The jump would be at least a mile.

“Oh, I see,” Betty said. She was shivering with fear now.

“What do we do?” Betty asked.

Amber did not answer.

“Amber?”

No answer.

“Arlyers,” Betty cried. “That's the way we can get out of here!”

“But they don't work,” Amber said quietly.

“But they worked when we were going toward the volcano, just not when we were crossing it. I think they only work when we're not crossing obstacles, since being able to cross over volcanoes in two seconds by flying seems too easy.” Betty announced. It was a total
a-ha
moment.

Amber looked back. She didn't want to be stuck in a volcano. She wanted Betty to get home. Using the arlyers was her only chance.

“Okay,” Amber said. As she whistled, the arlyers floated up.

Amber inched away from Betty. Betty inched away from Amber. They both needed enough space to open the arlyers. Once they did, they strapped them on their backs and—well, you know—started to fly.

Once they were in the air, Betty felt a sense of accomplishment. The third obstacle was over. Even though they were supposed to fly across, and instead ended up stuck in the volcano, they got out and hadn't seen Doctor Sly anywhere. They were still one step ahead.

Doctor Sly! What would happen once they do meet him? Betty felt a moment of panic and decided then that she had had enough of adventure stories. Over the past couple of days, she had gone on too many adventures. If she ever made it back to the real world, maybe she would take a break from reading the
Amber
series for a while. There were so many other books in the world. After mentally naming some that she might possibly like, Betty realized they had almost made it to the Mountains of the Old. They stood proud and tall, and she grew excited. They were almost there.

Betty could make out a hunched figure with a cane, close to the summit. He was probably Doctor Sly. He seemed to have a long coat that swished against his knees. He wore long black pants too, but he had old and worn canvas red shoes. He also had what seemed like a yellow tool belt that held many weapons, and Betty found herself thinking that it looked almost exactly like one her grandpa had worn years ago. Her grandpa had really loved building things too, and looking at the tool belt, she felt tears welling. She missed him so much. Amber and Betty landed on the mountaintop and ran to the portal. Doctor Sly was almost there, but he looked tired.