closely, she could see metal tubing and blocks of pumice in each room, like giant versions of the air-stones in the aquarium at school.
Lady Naomi stopped walking and drummed her fingers against her thigh. She padded from one glass room to the next, peering inside. Amelia followed behind, still dragging Grawk in his containment field, and Charlie by her side. So they were all together when Lady Naomi found Len trapped inside a pulsating bubble behind one of the pillars.
He was hunched into a ball, his antennae retracted, and the space inside the bubble was gradually filling up with foaming green mucus as he tried desperately to protect himself.
When Lady Naomi spoke, her voice jarred after so much silence. âItâs a trap, isnât it?â
There was no noise anywhere. No movement. No sign or clue to suggest why Lady Naomi would say such a thing.
Amelia looked around the chamber wildly. Nothing! But Len was still bubbling away with that vicious, frightened slime â¦
âWhat â?â Charlie started.
âRun,â said Lady Naomi very quietly.
Before Amelia could even register the word, a jet of black tar hit Lady Naomi in the face and knocked her backward. As she hit the ground, there was another flash of movement â but so fast, Amelia couldnât tell from what direction â and Lady Naomi began slowly drifting upwards, her entire body enclosed in a transparent containment sphere, just like Grawkâs and Lenâs.
Charlie darted forward to grab the guiding string dangling from the bottom of the bubble. Half a second later, he was floating helplessly next to Lady Naomi in a bubble of his own. He screamed in rage, but Amelia heard only the faintest muffled noise.
Amelia stood frozen, her mind blank with terror, as Grawk leapt inside his bubble. Amelia could hear only the dim echo of his bark. He glared at something behind her, his ears flat against his head. On pure instinct, she dived in the opposite direction, finding cover behind one of the great stone pillars.
Panting, she looked back. The place she had been the instant before was now occupied by a huge, empty bubble.
What do I do? she screamed silently.
She couldnât see Lady Naomi or Charlie from here, not without sticking her head out from behind the pillar. Looking one way, she could see the very edge of Lenâs containment field. The other way, nothing. She looked up.
Her heart almost stopped beating. Tucked behind one of the sloping arches in the ceiling was another containment field. It bobbed like a balloon, and inside was â
Mum. Amelia wanted to cry, but pinched herself hard on the leg instead. Think!
She scanned the rest of the ceiling. It was a mass of shadows and hiding places, each archway in the vault creating another deep hollow. Each one, for all she knew, housed another containment field, keeping another person prisoner. Maybe her dad was up there by now â¦
Then, like something oily and impossible from a nightmare, she saw a body slip out of the shadows and slither weightlessly across the ceiling. Long black legs swivelled in their hips at angles that should have dislocated them. A tail moved sinuously in time with a long neck. A narrow head kept its eyes fixed continuously on Amelia.
Krskn, Amelia thought.
He seemed to flow toward her, as though gravity couldnât touch him. She watched him walk lazily down a pillar, the claws of his back legs gripping to the stone, his body upright as though standing on the flat ground. He reached the floor, and walked over to Amelia without so much as blinking.
She stared at his lizard-like body. The black rippling skin wasnât scaly, but matte like velvet, and very soft-looking. Like a salamander. His eyes were deep red, wide open, and snake-ish. From nose to tail, he was long and elegant, but he had broad shoulders, a deep chest, and both his hands and feet were clawed. He opened his mouth and a tongue flickered out between sharp, white
Lady Naomi stopped walking and drummed her fingers against her thigh. She padded from one glass room to the next, peering inside. Amelia followed behind, still dragging Grawk in his containment field, and Charlie by her side. So they were all together when Lady Naomi found Len trapped inside a pulsating bubble behind one of the pillars.
He was hunched into a ball, his antennae retracted, and the space inside the bubble was gradually filling up with foaming green mucus as he tried desperately to protect himself.
When Lady Naomi spoke, her voice jarred after so much silence. âItâs a trap, isnât it?â
There was no noise anywhere. No movement. No sign or clue to suggest why Lady Naomi would say such a thing.
Amelia looked around the chamber wildly. Nothing! But Len was still bubbling away with that vicious, frightened slime â¦
âWhat â?â Charlie started.
âRun,â said Lady Naomi very quietly.
Before Amelia could even register the word, a jet of black tar hit Lady Naomi in the face and knocked her backward. As she hit the ground, there was another flash of movement â but so fast, Amelia couldnât tell from what direction â and Lady Naomi began slowly drifting upwards, her entire body enclosed in a transparent containment sphere, just like Grawkâs and Lenâs.
Charlie darted forward to grab the guiding string dangling from the bottom of the bubble. Half a second later, he was floating helplessly next to Lady Naomi in a bubble of his own. He screamed in rage, but Amelia heard only the faintest muffled noise.
Amelia stood frozen, her mind blank with terror, as Grawk leapt inside his bubble. Amelia could hear only the dim echo of his bark. He glared at something behind her, his ears flat against his head. On pure instinct, she dived in the opposite direction, finding cover behind one of the great stone pillars.
Panting, she looked back. The place she had been the instant before was now occupied by a huge, empty bubble.
What do I do? she screamed silently.
She couldnât see Lady Naomi or Charlie from here, not without sticking her head out from behind the pillar. Looking one way, she could see the very edge of Lenâs containment field. The other way, nothing. She looked up.
Her heart almost stopped beating. Tucked behind one of the sloping arches in the ceiling was another containment field. It bobbed like a balloon, and inside was â
Mum. Amelia wanted to cry, but pinched herself hard on the leg instead. Think!
She scanned the rest of the ceiling. It was a mass of shadows and hiding places, each archway in the vault creating another deep hollow. Each one, for all she knew, housed another containment field, keeping another person prisoner. Maybe her dad was up there by now â¦
Then, like something oily and impossible from a nightmare, she saw a body slip out of the shadows and slither weightlessly across the ceiling. Long black legs swivelled in their hips at angles that should have dislocated them. A tail moved sinuously in time with a long neck. A narrow head kept its eyes fixed continuously on Amelia.
Krskn, Amelia thought.
He seemed to flow toward her, as though gravity couldnât touch him. She watched him walk lazily down a pillar, the claws of his back legs gripping to the stone, his body upright as though standing on the flat ground. He reached the floor, and walked over to Amelia without so much as blinking.
She stared at his lizard-like body. The black rippling skin wasnât scaly, but matte like velvet, and very soft-looking. Like a salamander. His eyes were deep red, wide open, and snake-ish. From nose to tail, he was long and elegant, but he had broad shoulders, a deep chest, and both his hands and feet were clawed. He opened his mouth and a tongue flickered out between sharp, white
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