left Richard and found my way to the flume and tried to travel to Ibara myself, but the flume wouldn’t let me. My only other choice was to come here.” Patrick was getting worked up. “This is where the two of you came when you left Third Earth. It was the only place I could think of coming. What is wrong with the flume? Why can’t we contact Ibara? Where is Pendragon?”
Courtney took a deep breath. She knew that what she was about to tell Patrick wouldn’t make him feel any better, but he had to know. She filled him in quickly about what happened on Ibara and the dado battle for Rayne. For Veelox. She told him about the origin of dados on First Earth and Mark’s Forge technology. She ended the story by telling him how Bobby had destroyed the flume on Ibara, trapping himself and Saint Dane…which was probably why Ibara was cut off.
Mark listened without adding anything until the end, when he told Patrick how he had given his Traveler ring to Nevva Winter in exchange for his parents’ life. He said he thought it wouldn’t matter because he would still be able to communicate with Bobby through Dodger’s ring, but Dodger’s ring didn’t work-just as Patrick’s ring didn’t work.
Patrick listened to it all, his shoulders growing heavier with each new revelation. “Why won’t the rings work?” he asked.
“They do work,” Courtney corrected. “They just won’t let us contact Bobby on Ibara.”
Mark said, “The real mystery is why Nevva wanted the ring. I can’t help but think it has something to do with the events that led up to those changes on Third Earth.”
“Gee, you think?” Courtney asked with a trace of sarcasm.
“I’ll tell you what I think,” Mark announced, standing up. “I think it’s finally time.”
“For what?” Courtney asked.
“For the event we’ve been fearing from the very beginning. Everything points to it.”
“To what?” Patrick asked, confused.
“Third Earth has changed. Again. Patrick, you ran into some guys who were trying to destroy all evidence of specific events that happened during the first part of the twenty-first century. Second Earth. That can’t be a coincidence.”
“My god…,” Courtney whispered, the realization hitting her.
“Yeah,” Mark said. “Whatever happened on Second Earth must have led to the horrible changes on Third Earth.”
“So it’s finally here,” Courtney gasped.
“Yeah,” Mark agreed. “The battle for Second Earth.”
“It’s on, Courtney,” Mark said with finality. “We’ve got to go home.”
“But we can’t use the flume without a Traveler,” Courtney countered.
Mark looked at Patrick. “Good thing we’ve got one.”
Mark called another family meeting in his parents’ suite at the hotel. That family included Dodger and Courtney. He and Courtney laid out all that Patrick had told them. Every last disturbing detail. He said how he still wanted his parents to stay on First Earth, not only because of the danger with Nevva, but to stay in touch with KEM. There was still the hope of scuttling the dados. Dodger would be their guide to the past. Mark added that they would all get a good night’s sleep, if possible, and then leave first thing in the morning for the flume. Mark had it all figured out, except for one thing: In spite of all that he had been through, in his mother’s eyes he was still her little boy. Hearing what he was about to jump back into, no matter how logical it might seem, was too much for her. She started to cry.
“Why?” she asked. “Why is this happening and why are you the ones responsible for stopping it? Can’t we just call the police? Or the president? Or… or… somebody!”
Mark sat down next to his mom and put his arm around her. It was the kind of loving gesture his mom had offered him countless times in the past. Things were different now. It was Mark’s turn to be strong.
“I don’t know, Mom,” he answered sincerely. “I don’t know anything, except that we’ve been given the job to help the Travelers stop Saint Dane. We don’t have a whole lot of choices here.”
Mark’s dad added, “I still want to go with you.”
“I know, Dad,” Mark replied. “You can’t.”
Mr. Dimond nodded. He knew.
Nobody slept much that night. Patrick bunked in with Mark in Gunny’s room, resting fitfully on the easy chair. He and Mark shared stories, mostly about Bobby Pendragon. By the time they nodded off, Patrick felt as if he had a much better picture of the lead Traveler. Mark felt as if he had made another friend and ally. He knew that he and Courtney were going to need all the friends they could get.
The next morning everyone went to the Dimonds’ suite to enjoy a feast of a breakfast that Dodger had ordered from the hotel’s kitchen. There were heaping trays of scrambled eggs, pastries, bacon, potatoes, pancakes, and fruit. “Can’t jump through time on an empty stomach” was his reasoning. Mark knew he was right. He had no idea what they would find on Second Earth and when they might eat again. In spite of the fact that nobody had much of an appetite, they ate. It wasn’t a celebratory feast like the one they had enjoyed on their final night aboard the Queen Mary. To Courtney it felt more like a pregame meal. Butterflies were flying wild. Nobody said much. Their minds were elsewhere.
When they were finished, Dodger excused himself, saying, “I’ll let you all say your good-byes.” He shook Patrick’s hand, and then Mark’s, promising, “I’ll take good care of your folks.” Mark replied with a nod.
Dodger then stood in front of Courtney and gave her a mischievous smile, holding out his arms for a hug. “You know something?” he quipped. “For a skirt, you ain’t too shabby.”
Courtney replied, “That’s dame to you, pal.”
They both laughed and hugged. “Thanks, Dodge,” Courtney whispered in his ear. “Gunny chose well. You were spectacular.”
“I was, wasn’t I?” Dodger quipped. He pulled away from Courtney, quickly pushing aside a tear. “Take care of yourself now, would you, sister? If you ever get back here again, you know where to find me.”
“I’m sure you’ll be running the hotel by then,” Courtney said with a smile.
“Hey, I run it now!” The bellhop tipped his cap, backed away, and left after giving them all one final, “Good luck.”
“We should go,” Mark announced.
Patrick shook hands with the Dimonds, saying, “Someday you’ll know how much those two kids have been through.”
“I’m not so sure I want to,” Mrs. Dimond replied.
Courtney hugged both the Dimonds. “Don’t worry about us. Worry about messing up KEM.”
Mark stood in front of his parents. Nobody quite knew what tosay.
“Shouldn’t you pack something?” Mrs. Dimond asked. “No, Mom. We can’t bring things between territories, remember?” Mrs. Dimond nodded quickly. She hadn’t. Mr. Dimond said, “I feel as if I’m sending my only son off to war.”
Mark shrugged, but said nothing. The truth was, that’s exactly what was happening.
“We’ll be in touch if we can. Try not to worry. And watch your backs. We still don’t know what Nevva is up to.”
“We will, son.” Mr. Dimond hugged Mark.
Mark then gave his mother a big hug. She was crying.
“I want to see you again” was all she could get out.
“You will,” Mark answered with authority. “I promise.”
They traveled to the flume in silence, taking a cab north to the subway station that held the gate. They descended the stairs to the station and walked quickly to the far end of the platform. Luckily, it wasn’t busy, so they wouldn’t have to worry about being seen when they climbed down onto the tracks to make their way to the flume. Before they descended, Patrick stopped and looked around at the First Earth subway stop.
“There was something strange,” he declared. “On Third Earth.”
“More strange than what you’ve already told us?” Courtney asked.
Patrick looked around, his mind trying to grasp a fleeting idea. “It was at the gate. I knew it would be different from what I was used to, since all Third Earth was different. But the changes to the gate were just… odd.”
