“Ready?” Matt said.
“Let’s do this,” Corey said. Ruby and Jia both nodded, while Marta simply looked expectantly up at Matt.
“Everybody hold on to me.”
They all crowded in and grasped Matt’s hands and arms and shoulders, intertwining themselves. He started to dissolve himself, then slowly moved that same energy through everyone else. It was a chain reaction, a domino effect. Once he had the process started, he could keep it moving to anyone physically connected to him.
“Whoa,” Corey said. “This feels super weird.”
Ruby squirmed a little. “It tickles! I feel like I’m turning to sand!”
“It’s okay,” Matt said. “Just hold on. I won’t let go.”
Matt dissolved himself and everyone with him.
Alfred Nobel stood in his yard for a long time, gently stroking the rabbit while staring at the place where his niece had disappeared. Finally, he released the rabbit in the yard and went inside.
29Gathering the Troops
It wasn’t easy, carrying four extra people in a disassembled state. It was like swimming with heavy clothes on plus a backpack full of books. But Matt knew things were only going to get heavier. His load was only going to increase. So he held tight and pushed on.
He traveled to China on the day that he had first arrived in the Forbidden City. He found Blossom sitting in the moat around the walls of the city. Matt pulled himself together, releasing the others as he did. Corey, Ruby, Jia, and Marta all took shape as they spilled from Matt’s grasp, like water taking the shape of its container.
“Whoa,” Corey said as soon as he was fully formed. “That was so weird.”
Ruby shook her hands and stomped her feet. “Gah! I feel like my whole body is asleep!”
Jia stretched her fingers and shook her head. Only Marta seemed unfazed by the journey.
“I’m going to go get Gaga, Haha, and Uncle Chuck,” Matt said. “You three wait here.”
“Shouldn’t we come with you?” Jia asked.
“No. It will be easier if I’m by myself. I promise it will be fine. I’ll be back in no time at all.”
Matt dissolved himself again. He traveled to the moment just before he and Jia returned to the house from their time with the emperor at his observatory. He entered the house and saw Belamie and Albert sitting together, whispering. Matt knew they were conspiring to get the compass from him, but he couldn’t worry about that right now. His mission was only to get Gaga and Haha and Uncle Chuck. He knew now that it hadn’t been Captain Vincent who made them disappear. Matt had done it. It hadn’t made sense to him at the time, but it did now. He could see the bigger picture. He had fit together more pieces of the puzzle.
Gaga was sitting in a chair, drinking tea. Haha and Uncle Chuck were playing chess. He gave a silent apology for the scare he was about to give them.
Matt spread his cells between his grandparents and uncle and began the process of atomically disassembling them all. He could feel he was low on energy. It would take him longer this time, and then he worried, even when he got them all disassembled, would he be able to pull them all back together?
Gaga noticed first. “My face is tingling,” she said, patting at her cheeks. “I think that treatment they gave me is irritating my skin.”
“Funny,” Haha said. “My face is tingling too.” He rubbed at his jaw.
“My foot’s asleep,” Uncle Chuck said as he tapped his foot.
Haha turned and looked at Gaga. “Gloria!” He stood and knocked over the chess table.
“Oh, Henry!” Gaga cried. “Your face is melting!”
Belamie and Albert rushed over. “What’s happening?” Belamie asked.
“Help!” Haha cried, holding up his fading hand. “I’m disappearing!”
“Albert, hold on to them!” Belamie grabbed Gaga and Haha while Albert grasped on to Uncle Chuck’s fading leg. He crashed into a table, knocked over a porcelain pitcher, and the rush of movement further drained Matt’s energy. He didn’t know how he was going to be able to finish this.
And then Matt came in. The past Matt. Present-Matt could feel his presence. It gave him an odd boost of energy, like his past cells were recharging his present cells.
“No!” past-Matt shouted while the invisible Matt started to work more quickly.
“Oh!” Gaga said. “I feel so strange!” Matt disassembled all of Gaga and went on to Haha.
“I guess this is really it this time,” Haha said.
“Uncle Chuck!” past-Matt called. “Don’t go!”
“It’s okay, Matty,” Uncle Chuck said calmly. “I’m just going to the next adventure. You gotta stay and finish this one.” He dissolved and disappeared.
Matt watched his past self clutch at his head and start to shake. He saw the flickering, like a lightbulb, just like Jia said. He felt a bit sorry for himself but also knew this was necessary. He had to hit rock bottom before he could fully fall apart.
Matt carried his grandparents and uncle with him back to Blossom. He touched down and released them from his hold. Their cells spilled onto the floor and reformed. All three of them gasped and fell to their hands and knees.
“Whoa,” Corey said as Matt appeared next to him. “That really was no time at all. You were gone for, like, less than a minute.”
“What just happened?” Haha said, getting to his feet.
“Did we die?” Gaga asked.
“Matty, is that you?” Uncle Chuck said.
“Oh, Mateo!” Gaga said. “How did you get here? I thought you and Jia were having some secret meeting with the emperor?”
“We did,” Jia said.
“Fast meeting,” Haha said. “Did you learn any secrets?”
“A few,” Matt said.
“I feel like I’m missing something,” Uncle Chuck said. “What am I missing?”
“Who are all these children?” Gaga said, looking at Corey and Ruby and Marta. And then her eyes widened. Matt could see the fog lifting from her memory as she took in Corey and Ruby.
Gaga gasped and covered her mouth. “Oh . . . oh!” She swept Corey and Ruby into a hug. “Corey! Ruby! You’re okay! You’re here!” She grabbed each of them
