The Earth shook. The shelf turned to reveal...
A closed door.
James nodded. “Not to worry. It is as I expected.”
“Yes,” Pyros said. “We have been banished from the Dark World. Meaning that whatever portals we used before to get into the Dark World won’t work.”
“Now what? So much for your great grand plan,” Daniel remarked. “What do we do now? We betrayed Matt. I am feeling so awful.”
Archer shook his head. “This is so disappointing. It can’t end like this. I feel like I want to disappear and never return. We have failed in everything – to save the Scavenger, to save Matt and now to save the Dark World. Is this -”
James rolled his eyes. “Stop being so dramatic. Just shut up and sit down. I am equally concerned about Matt, the Scavenger and the Dark World. I have been listening to all of your garbage so far. Now, just listen to what I have planned.”
Once everyone was seated, James said, “I was expecting that all the portals to the Dark World would be inaccessible. You just spoke about the hidden trick up our sleeve, Archer, unknowingly. Repeat your words.”
Archer frowned but answered, “It can’t end like this. I feel like I want to disappear and never return. We -”
“Disappear and never return,” James said. “Where do you do that?”
Daniel shrugged. “How do I know?”
“Come on, think about it!” James exclaimed. “Where do you disappear and never return? A mythical place. A taboo associated with it. Insanity told me!” James’s mind travelled back to Insanity, a man who had helped them win against the Skull Warrior but who had sacrificed himself in the war.
Daniel and Archer got the answer at the same time.
“THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE!”
James grinned. “Exactly. We will enter the Bermuda Triangle and will get sucked into the Dark World from there. As per our plan, the Scavenger will be waiting for us. While Osay will think we are banished to Earth, we will be in the Dark World, planning our next moves.”
Daniel and Archer were at a loss for words. They just kept looking at each other and then at James and Pyros.
Archer looked sheepish. “I accept that I couldn’t have thought of such a brilliant plan. I am sorry, James.”
“Not at all, buddy,” James said, “Had I been in your place, I would have been similarly anguished. Matt is so important to us.”
Daniel spoke. “I am not going to apologize, James. While I appreciate you for your brilliance, I would prefer to choose my ego, which has got hurt since you did not involve me in making the plan.”
There was momentary silence, and everyone burst into laughter.
“But how do we reach the Bermuda Triangle?” Archer said, “As far as I know, it’s about four thousand miles away from London. A taxi won’t do.”
James nodded. “By now, our parents must have alerted the police about our absence. So we can neither take an aeroplane, nor a taxi, nor a helicopter, or anything. It’s also dangerous for us to lurk around here. In case we are caught, our parents will lock us down, and all hopes of going to the Dark World to rescue Matt are over.”
“Can you create a portal?” Archer asked Pyros.
Pyros replied, “Nope. Creating a portal requires magic, and any use of magic will alert Osay. He will sense it.”
Pyros paused and put his hand in his coat pocket. “But don’t worry. The solution... is this.”
He took out a blank page, and with a strange-looking curved pen, he drew a circle and pointed at it. “Here. We’ll go right through this tunnel.” Pyros started writing the latitude and longitude of the Bermuda Triangle inside the circle.
“What? Looks like stress has taken a toll on you.” Archer shook his head. “You’ve gone nuts.”
Pyros ignored him. He held the paper in both hands and started rotating his hands in a circular motion. Archer and Daniel were giving Pyros amused looks.
Suddenly, the paper tore, and the circle converted into a ring-like thing that started expanding. Everyone backed off.
“What is that?” Daniel asked in a shocked tone.
Pyros said, “Long time ago, while experimenting with a new magic, I had made a deep underground tunnel that can connect two points on Earth. No one except me knows about this. There is no residual trace of this magic anywhere, so Osay can’t sense it. But, this tunnel can be used only once. It will shrink and vanish within minutes. Good that I could finally use it today.”
The ring now stopped expanding, and a doorway opened inside it, revealing a black tunnel lined with something that resembled steel.
“Let’s go,” Pyros said. “Follow me. Quick, before it closes down.”
Everyone rushed inside the tunnel, and the door closed. All of a sudden, the floor moved.
“We are accelerating at just a few hundred times slower than the speed of light.” Pyros smiled. “Which is quite fast. You can’t feel it, but you’re moving faster than many electrons. Soon, we will reach the Bermuda Triangle.”
After just a few seconds, the doorway opened, and everyone was thrown out into a stormy sky with thunder and lightning. It was raining heavily.
A small capsule had formed around the group. Ropes came from nowhere and strapped everyone to wooden seats inside the capsule.
They were falling downwards. On the sea below, a whirlpool emerged, its maw opening like a snake about to swallow its prey.
The whirlpool approached. The children closed their eyes in fear. Pyros looked calm.
The capsule flew right into the whirlpool.
6
Daniel woke up.
He sat up straight. The walls of the capsule surrounded him.
The capsule...
In a flash, it came back to him.
Daniel’s friends surrounded him. Archer and James were drowsy. They were moving their hands incoherently, trying to regain their consciousness. Pyros was fiddling away at the walls and muttering to himself.
“How did it happen?” Pyros asked no one in particular. “The trajectory was perfect – the angle,
