The Reality Bug (33 page)

Note to self: Avoid hitting things.

Zetlin turned his zip and chased after her. I had to go too, or I'd lose them. I dropped my heel and felt the front of the zip lift up. I was now pointed to the ceiling.

“Hobey-ho,” I said under my breath, and twisted the throttle. The zip bucked forward and I shot into the air. The ride was incredible. It turned easily and I quickly got used to the throttle and brake. The foot pedal was a little trickier. I couldn't keep the zip level at first, and it was making me seasick. But after playing with it for a while, I was able to level out. Man, I would love to have one of these for real. Too bad it was just a fantasy vehicle.

I saw Zetlin and Loor hovering together ahead of me and quickly joined them. The three of us floated there among the giant gears, fifty feet in the air.

“Are you two all right?” Zetlin asked.

“I'm good,” I said.

“I am as well,” Loor said.

“Then let's keep moving.”

He was about to throttle up when Loor said, “But I cannot swim.”

“You won't have to,” Zetlin answered.

We then heard another roar coming from deeper in the machine room. We all looked down to where we had come from, but saw nothing. The Reality Bug wasn't down there.

It was up with us.

“There it is!” Zetlin shouted.

From far back among the gears and cogs, I saw a shadow swoop up from below. I only got a glimpse of it, but what I saw I won't forget. It had the head of a bird, with a long, sharp beak. Its body looked human, with a wide, strong chest. Its legs were birdlike as well. And it had wings. Huge, black wings, like a bat.

The Reality Bug was airborne.

We all turned and pushed the zip vehicles forward. We flew in formation, with Zetlin in the lead and Loor and me together behind him. Zetlin led us on a wild ride through the incredible machinery. I guess he wanted to lose the flying Reality Bug, but Loor and I had a heck of a time trying to keep up. He flew low to the ground, under some steel beams. He then took a sharp right and led us through a narrow corridor. We had to fly single file because it wasn't wide enough for two across. We then shot out of the corridor and climbed steeply until we were near the ceiling. From up there, the round gears below us looked like curved, steel mountains.

It was amazing that we were able to keep up with him, but the zips were easy to handle. I think part of it was because these were fantasy vehicles, and in our minds we knew we had to fly them, so we did.

We were fast approaching the far wall of the machine room. There was a square opening that glowed with bright, white light.

“We're going to the glacier!” Zetlin called back.

I figured the next room in this incredible building was going to be the snowy ice field where we raced Zetlin in slick-shot. That was good; we were getting closer to the jungle.

But then a shadow appeared far off to our left and in front of us. All of our crazy stunt flying was a waste. The Reality Bug had found its own route and was racing us to the opening. We were on a collision course. We were headed straight for the opening; the bird was coming from far to our left. We had to beat it. All three of us throttled up. The freakish, giant bird sped closer. I tried to calculate who would get to the opening first. Either way, it would be close. The three of us were side by side going flat out. I squeezed the throttle, hoping it would make the zip go faster. This was totally dangerous. There was no way we could pull out going this fast. We were either going to escape, or crash right into the Reality Bug. It all depended on who got to the opening first.

A second later the three of us flashed into the white light. We had made it. The bird flew right past the opening. There was no way it could have made the sharp turn going that fast. It was going to have to circle around and hit it square on. We were going to need those few seconds to gain some ground.

We now found ourselves speeding high over the icy racecourse. Zetlin didn't try any hot, evasive maneuvers this time. I think he simply wanted speed. That was cool by me. Speed was good. I didn't even look around to see if the Reality Bug—bird had made it into the ice world. This was all about getting across this frozen wasteland as fast as possible. It was a flat-out race.

After a minute Zetlin motioned that he was going down. He dipped his nose and shot for what looked like a sheer wall of ice. We had reached the far side of the ice room. But I didn't see any openings. We had to trust that Zetlin knew where he was going. I didn't think he wanted to splat against the ice like a bug on a windshield.

On the snow below, I saw a winged shadow. The bug was behind us and moving up fast.

“There!” Loor shouted.

I saw it too. There was an opening cut into the ice. It was our doorway to the next room.

“We've got to go underwater!” Zetlin shouted back to us. “I doubt the bird can follow us.”

What made him think that? From what I'd seen, the Reality Bug could do anything it wanted. Still, maybe the extra few seconds it took to transform into something else would give us the edge we needed.

But Loor couldn't swim.

“Loor?” I shouted.

“Do not worry,” she said. “I will make it.”

She was going to have to be incredibly brave. I knew she would be. Zetlin shot into the ice tunnel with us right behind. We sped through the short tunnel, blasted out the far side and entered pitch black. There was nothing to see but the series of colorful globes hanging in the air that marked the racecourse.

“Crouch down low before you hit the water,” Zetlin ordered. “Don't slow down. Keep breathing.” He then dropped the nose of his zip and shot for the water.

We followed him blindly. Man, I was scared. For Loor, and for me, too. I didn't know what to expect when we hit the water. Was it going to be so jarring that I'd get ripped off the zip? Should I really keep breathing? Should I wet my pants? I crouched down low inside the clear nose cone and gritted my teeth. The water came up fast. Zetlin hit with a splash. Two seconds later Loor and I hit too.

It was a jolt, but nothing I couldn't handle. The pointed nose cone must have absorbed most of the shock. Better still, I could breathe. The helmet must have had something to do with that.

I glanced to Loor to see she was charging along right next to me. She was incredible.

It was easy to see Zetlin because the moment we hit the water, our headlights came on. The water rippled over the top of my nose cone, making the whole vehicle shiver. Turning was only slightly tougher than in the air. That must have had something to do with the water resistance. Still, we were moving fast.

I heard a huge splash in the water behind us. There was only one thing that could have made that sound. The Reality Bug was now wet. I wondered if the bird creature also went underwater, or had the bug mutated itself into something sharklike. I had to shake that image out of my head.

Our trip underwater didn't last long. Up ahead I saw the vague outline of another square opening. Zetlin aimed his zip toward it and we steered for Zetlin. Seconds later we blasted through the opening …

And out into the air high over the jungle. I glanced back at the opening to see it was a square of water. Nothing poured out, just like the strange round opening Loor and I had gone through when we first arrived. It was impossible, yet there it was. I noticed that my clothes weren't even wet. Unbelievable.

Zetlin gunned his zip and beat it for the jungle floor. I didn't want to run into any more of those vine-shooting plants, but it was better to get lost in the jungle than to be flying wide open for the Reality Bug to see us.

Zetlin flew his zip right for the deck. He leveled out a few feet above the jungle floor, speeding along a path. Loor was right behind him and I was right behind Loor. We were moving fast. I kept my eye on her back, looking for any movement that would warn me when the next turn was coming. We were on the home stretch. Soon we'd be at the entrance to the Barbican and home free.

After a few minutes of jungle jumping, Zetlin slowed down as he approached the far wall of the building. We had been racing for a while now, and my heart was thumping like crazy. Zetlin stopped his zip, jumped off, and ran up to a control panel that was built into the wall. He opened up the cover and started hitting buttons.

“Why don't we fly the zips out of here?” I asked.

“They don't work outside the Barbican,” Zetlin answered. “We've got to go to position two so we can walk out.”

He hit a few more buttons, and the building started to shake. I heard the far-off sound of screeching metal and could imagine the massive gears starting to turn. I could only hope they'd turn fast enough so we could get down and out of here before the bug found us. The building rumbled and started to move.

“It won't be long,” Zetlin assured us.

We heard a tortured squealing sound, as if metal were being torn apart. A second later the building stopped moving.

“What happened?” Loor asked.

Zetlin went right back to the controls. He furiously hit a few keys, but nothing changed.

“I don't understand,” he announced nervously. “All the indicators say we should be moving.”

“When we were back in the machine room,” I said, “there was a horrible sound. Could the Reality Bug have messed with the machinery?”

We then heard a piercing shriek come from deep within the jungle. We all looked up.

“I don't know,” Zetlin said. “But the Barbican isn't moving. If it doesn't go vertical, we can't get out.”

A
nother shrill squeal echoed through the jungle.

It was so loud that it felt like needles to the brain. A flock of colorful birds took flight not far behind us. We then heard the sound of crashing, crunching trees. Whatever the Reality Bug had changed into, it was big.

And it was coming.

“This can't be the only way out of here!” I complained.

“There is one other way,” Zetlin said. “It is an emergency corridor, but I have never used it.”

“I think now would be a good time to give it a shot,” I said quickly.

More crashing trees. Closer this time. I could hear the tearing and crunching of plants as the Reality Bug moved through the jungle, looking for us. Hunting for us.

“Where is this exit?” Loor asked.

“Back in the machine room,” was Zetlin's answer.

“Machine room?” I shouted. “Why didn't we use it when we were there?”

“Because I didn't know the Reality Bug was capable of sabotaging the Barbican” was Zetlin's logical answer.

“Okay, no problem,” I said, trying to keep calm. “We gotta get back there.”

That's when we saw it. Crashing through the tropical trees only yards away came a terrifying sight. The Reality Bug had transformed itself into, well, into some kind of green bug. It had multiple, tarantula-style legs, a long scaly body, and a massive head with pincers that snapped in front of its red, fleshy mouth. And it had grown. This beast now towered over us like we were in some kind of Japanese monster movie.

When it appeared through the trees it stopped, reared its head and let out another one of those painful shrieks.

“We are in the wrong place,” Loor announced, and gunned her zip. She shot into the air, making sure to keep out of reach of the monster bug.

But she didn't get far. No sooner had she taken off than the bug turned its head toward her and shot out a clear, ropelike cord from its mouth.

“Loor!” I shouted, but it was too late. The thread caught the back of her zip in midflight and held her there like a kite at the end of a string. Loor gunned the throttle, trying to shake it, but the filament held firm. I saw that it was reeling Loor in like a fish on the line. The pincers around its mouth snapped in anticipation. The spider had caught its prey and was ready to feed.

“I'm gonna bail her out,” I shouted, and was about to fly up and get her off her zip and onto mine. But Zetlin was quicker. He shot off the ground and throttled up to full speed. I thought he was going way too fast to stop right next to Loor, but that wasn't his plan. He aimed his zip halfway between the struggling Loor and the giant bug, blasting into the taut filament, snapping it in half. Totally smart move. Loor sped forward as if propelled from a slingshot.

“Yes!” I shouted, and instantly wished I hadn't. I was now alone, with the Reality Bug looming over me. Oops. I might as well have shouted: “Here I am! Come and get me!” It was time to go. I turned hard, to my left to stay as far away from the beast as possible, and throttled up. Out of the corner of my eye I saw it turn toward me and shoot out another cord. I quickly pushed my toe down, making the zip dive. The cord shot right over my shoulder, barely missing me. By the time the big bug reloaded, I was gone. A quick look over my shoulder showed me that it was scrambling back the way it had come, following the wide trail it had already cut through the jungle.

The race was back on.

I retreated in the direction of the water portal and soon caught up with Loor and Zetlin.

“Nice move,” I shouted at Zetlin.

“I am very good,” he answered.

He
was
good. Not modest, but good.

“Follow me back to the machine room,” he announced, and throttled up. Loor and I gunned our zips and settled in behind him. I was confident we would make it. The Reality Bug was getting bigger and that meant it was slower. If we kept the pedal to the metal, we'd beat it to the machine room and get out of there with no problem.

Or so I thought.

The big liquid square that was the portal to the water room appeared in the distance. The three of us were flying toward it at full speed. In a few seconds we'd hit the water and be on our way. Zetlin turned back to us and shouted, “You two okay?”

We both nodded.

“Don't slow down. We can beat this thing,” he added with confidence.