The Orb of Kandra Read online

CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

  The London School for the Future-Sighted was just as impressive as the School for Seers on the inside, but in a completely different way. First of all, the architecture was extremely old, giving it the feel of a medieval castle. The main hallway was hexagonal, with an enormous stone pillar in the middle stretching from the ground floor all the way to the top. The only way in which it was similar to their own beloved school was that it was filled with busy students hurrying from class to class.

  Samuel hooked his arm through Michael’s as they walked. “What are they feeding you on that farm? You look half starved. Come on, let’s get some proper food in you. They’ve just started shipping in pineapples. Have you ever tried them? They’re extremely sweet and juicy.”

  Samuel guided Michael toward a banquet hall. Oliver, Esther, and Ralph followed. The room was absurdly long and very narrow, with a single table stretching along the entire length of it and two wooden benches either side. It was so long, in fact, that it disappeared into the shadows. And coming from the far end, though too far away to even see, a string quartet played a sorrowful tune. The notes echoed through the huge, cavernous room.

  “You get violins at dinner?” Esther remarked, as she took her seat on the bench.

  Ralph sat beside her, glancing about him. “Where’s the belt to clip in?”

  Michael frowned. “Clip in? Why on earth would you need to clip in?”

  “Never mind,” Ralph replied.

  “Things are a little different at your school,” Oliver explained.

  No sooner had the words left his lips than a platter of roast hog suddenly appeared in the middle of the table. Esther jumped a mile.

  “Where did that come from?” she said.

  A second later, the platter was joined by a silver bowl filled with mashed potatoes, a porcelain gravy boat, and a shallow dish filled with dark red cranberries.

  Oliver was stunned and looked about himself for any clue as to where the food had materialized from. But there was no explanation. He was left none the wiser.

  “Please, help yourselves,” Samuel said.

  Oliver wasn’t going to say no. Even if the food had appeared out of thin air, his stomach was rumbling too much to resist. In fact, he couldn’t even remember the last time he’d eaten, and since they’d traveled through time—leaving Boston at night and reaching England at dawn—it could easily have been an entire day!

  Ralph didn’t need telling twice, either. He went straight for the potatoes, scooping a huge glob onto his plate.

  Opposite them, Samuel and Michael helped themselves to hearty servings, and Michael’s eyes looked wide with delight.

  Only Esther didn’t move.

  “Are you okay?” Oliver asked her.

  “Still feeling a little sick from all the traveling,” she replied.

  Michael looked at her with concern. “Is the food not to your liking? Is it very different to what you’re used to?”

  Oliver thought of the purple pancakes and neon jellies they’d eaten at the School for Seers. It was indeed quite different from this rather traditional English meal.

  “This is perfect,” he said, politely.

  They all began to chow down on the food. All except for Esther, who took just small nibbles.

  “So where are you all from?” Samuel asked.

  Oliver’s mouth was too full of food to speak. He looked at Ralph, whose cheeks were bulging.

  “They go to Professor Amethyst’s school,” Michael answered on their behalf.

  “Do they really?” Samuel exclaimed. “How exciting!”

  “So you know about us?” Esther asked. “You know there are other schools?”

  Samuel gave her a smile that made angry heat rise into Oliver’s cheeks.

  “We know about Professor Amethyst’s school, yes,” he explained. “He is the greatest seer to have ever lived, after all.”

  “And what about the Obsidians?” Oliver asked abruptly, trying to force Sam’s gaze away from Esther.

  Michael and Samuel looked at each other. “No, I’ve not heard of them.”

  “They’ve stolen our power source,” Oliver explained. “The Orb of Kandra. Without it, Professor Amethyst is in danger and his school may collapse.”

  “That’s why I brought them here,” Michael said to Samuel. “I thought if we summoned Sister Judith, she’d be able to help.”

  Samuel pulled a face. “Yes, she’ll know what to do, but you know what she’s like about being interrupted during her celestial prayers.”

  Michael nodded gravely. “I do. But it’s the only way.”

  Oliver swallowed his mouthful of hog. “Please. We need all the help we can get. If this Sister Judith person can help us, I’d be very grateful if you summoned her.”

  Michael and Samuel looked at each other. Finally, Samuel sighed.

  “You’re right. Come on. Let’s go and call her now.”

  They pushed up from the table, leaving plates of half-eaten food, and hurried from the banquet hall. The stone corridors of the school were very cold and the only light came from wall sconces with burning torches inside them. The windows were little more than small slits, letting in the chill of the outside world.

  The boys led them to a spiral wooden staircase.

  “It’s a long way up to the bell tower,” Michael explained.

  They began their ascent, climbing, climbing, climbing. By the time they reached the top, Oliver’s legs ached.

  The room they now stood in was circular. All around the walls were gaps where windows ought to be. In the middle was a huge bell.

  “We need to ring this to summon Sister Judith,” Michael explained. “Everyone, cover your ears.”

  They all did as he said. Suddenly, Oliver heard a toll so loud it vibrated through his legs.

  When his teeth stopped chattering, he looked about. In the corner of the room there now stood a woman in a long gray cloak. She looked like a nun. It was very creepy.

  “You summoned me?” she asked with piercing gray eyes like a hawk, taking in one child after the next.

  Her face was lined with deep wrinkles. She had a fierce aura about her, but there was kindness there, too. She seemed like the sort of person who was firm yet fair.

  Michael gestured to Oliver. “Go on. Tell her what’s happening.”

  Oliver felt quite intimidated in the presence of this woman. He felt his throat grow sticky.

  “We’re from Professor Amethyst’s School for Seers,” he said. “The Orb of Kandra that powers our school has been stolen. Without it, the school will collapse.”

  The woman watched him intently. A long silence followed. Oliver gulped, feeling like perhaps interrupting her celestial prayers had been a terrible idea after all.

  Finally, she spoke.

  “There is one thing that can help,” she said. “The vision well.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY THREE

  “The what?” Oliver asked.

  “The vision well,” she repeated in a commanding voice. “It shows all things. Shows you what you desire to know. But seeing into it is not something to undertake lightly. It will change you. Possibly forever. And only the worthy are allowed to see the secrets it contains.”

  Oliver gulped. He could feel Esther and Ralph beside him tense up.

  “How do we know if we’re worthy?” Esther asked.

  Sister Judith turned her piercing stare toward Esther. “I will need to look into your minds and call upon the celestial powers to tell me whether you are worthy enough.”

  “We’ll do it,” Ralph said decisively.

  Oliver nodded his agreement.

  Esther stood up taller. “Yes. We’ll do it.”

  “Very well,” Sister Judith said.

  She advanced on Esther first and pressed her hand against her forehead. She began to mutter under her breath, speaking in a language that Oliver could not decipher. He watched with curiosity as the divine woman worked.

  Then she removed her hand from Es
ther and let it flop to her side. Her expression was morose.

  “You cannot enter the well.”

  Esther pouted. “Why not?”

  Sister Judith pursed her lips. Oliver could see the cogs in her mind turning. He wondered why.

  “You already know why,” the woman said. “You’ve been told.”

  Esther blanched and stepped back, retreating into the shadows as if needing to hide. Oliver frowned. He wondered what the cryptic message meant. It clearly resonated with Esther by her reaction. He decided that once the Orb was found, he would question her about it. But for now, he had to focus on the task at hand.

  Sister Judith moved next to Ralph. She placed a hand on his forehead. Once again, she began to mutter a strange language under her breath. Then she drew back, a look of disappointment on her face.

  “I’m not worthy either?” Ralph asked.

  She shook her head. “I’m sorry, young seer. Your powers are too weak.”

  Ralph exhaled a sigh and pointed at himself. “No surprise there. I’m the worst student, after all. “

  Finally, the head teacher turned to Oliver. She brought her hand up to his forehead.

  He felt the strange coolness of her skin. It almost felt like a pulse was coming from her fingertips into his head.

  Then a sudden pain jabbed him right between the eyes. Oliver winced and Sister Judith withdrew her hand as if she’d felt the pain as well. Her eyes went as round as full moons.

  “Your specialism is atomic,” she said. “But you are a cobalt-bromine mix.”

  “Yes,” Oliver said, nodding.

  Samuel and Michael gasped.

  “Then the vision well is for you,” Sister Judith told him. “It will show you its secrets. You are worthy.”

  Oliver was stunned. He wanted to know what. What was so special about him that he’d been granted access to the vision well? But he had no chance. Because suddenly, the room changed all around them.

  Oliver blinked in surprise as a new room came into focus. They were now standing in a dank basement with the sound of dripping coming from the distance. The bell tower was gone. Sister Judith was gone too. Instead, a waist-high stone wall built into a circle stood before them.

  Oliver gasped. “The vision well.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR

  Chris marched along the alleyway, his new cronies following him. He felt brilliant. More powerful than ever. He’d well and truly put Malcolm in his place. The boy was striding along with an expression like he’d sucked a lemon.

  But when he reached the end of the alleyway Oliver had run, he stopped and looked around. The path went in two different directions.

  “Where do we go now?” he demanded.

  “There!” the ginger-haired girl who’d umpired his duel with Malcolm said suddenly.

  She rushed forward and picked something up from the floor. It looked like a hair clip. A girl’s hair clip. One that clearly had not been invented in the era they currently stood.

  “It’s one of theirs,” the ginger-haired girl said. “They must have gone this way.”

  Chris nodded, pleased with her skills of deduction. “What’s your name?”

  “Madeleine.”

  “Okay, Madeleine. Keep your eyes peeled. You can be our tracker.”

  Madeleine smiled, clearly proud of the role she’d been given.

  They began marching along the streets. London was a dive, Chris thought. And it smelled. It was dirty and polluted and all the people crowding the streets looked like hobos. What a horrible city to live in.

  When they reached the end of the street, Chris looked to Madeleine.

  “Well? Where next?” he asked.

  She floundered. “I don’t know. There aren’t any more clues.”

  Chris saw the fear in her eyes and smirked. He loved putting people on edge.

  Just then, something caught his eye. It looked like a glimmer. He frowned and went over to inspect it. Everyone followed him obediently.

  “What is that?” he said, pointing at the strange shape on the ground. It looked like a footprint.

  Silence came from behind. He turned and glared at everyone.

  “Well? Someone answer me!”

  Malcolm stepped forward. He looked very sheepish following his battle with Chris. His timidity made Chris feel even more powerful.

  “We can’t see anything,” Malcolm said.

  Chris glowered. “What are you, blind or something? It’s right there. A footprint, I think. Yes, look, there’s more, leading off that way.”

  Malcolm shuffled from one foot to the next. When he spoke, it was a mumble. “It must be your powers.”

  “What?” Chris demanded, unable to hear him.

  “I said, it must be your powers. Something unique to you.”

  Chris paused to let that sink in. “Oh…. You mean because I’m an awesome nuclear seer I’m better than you? I can see things you can’t? Like X-ray vision?”

  Malcolm sucked his cheeks in. Chris could tell he wanted to say no, but he wasn’t dumb enough to challenge him again.

  “Yes,” he said, sighing.

  Chris grinned, delighted.

  Madeleine spoke up. “I wonder if it’s Oliver’s trail,” she said. “There’s a connection between you two, after all. That’s why Mistress Obsidian wanted you. Perhaps your powers can help track him.”

  If they were indeed footprints that led him to Oliver that would be so satisfying! A trail of breadcrumbs he’d accidentally dropped for them to follow.

  “Let’s follow them and find out,” Chris said, his excitement swelling.

  He marched onward. His crew followed behind like obedient little sheep. Chris could hardly temper the excitement in his stomach. He had his powers now and was starting to be able to control them. He had a nuclear specialism, which was apparently so dangerous it had been banned. And he was leader. There was only one thing he needed to complete this perfect picture: Oliver’s dead body lying limply in his arms. He just couldn’t wait.

  The footprints brought them all the way to the banks of the Thames. It was even smellier here, Chris thought. He wrinkled his nose with disgust.

  Just then, a man in rags lurched out of the shadows. He was extremely filthy, his clothes little more than rags that were draped over his bony figure.

  He lunged at Madeleine, grabbing her round the neck with one arm, while the other hand held a knife up to her throat.

  “Empty your pockets!” the man yelled. “All of you. Or the girl gets it.”

  Madeleine’s eyes were wide with fear.

  “Get off her!” Chris bellowed.

  He cast out with his powers. A jet of something acidic sprayed from his wrists straight into the man’s eyes. The man let go of Madeleine and clutched his face, staggering, screaming in agony.

  “My eyes!” he cried.

  He staggered about haphazardly. Then he lost his footing and slipped into the river. He thrashed in the water.

  Chris began to laugh. The rest of the Obsidians did too. They watched until the man disappeared beneath the dark waters.

  Chris turned to Madeleine. “Are you okay?”

  She nodded and straightened out her uniform. “I’m fine. Thanks for jumping in there. He took me by surprise.”

  Chris looked sharply at the rest of his gang. “Next time someone starts on us, feel free to do something, all right? Don’t leave all the hard work up to me.”

  They nodded, looking like they’d been put in their place. Chris felt a surge of power. He had them in the palm of his hand now.

  They carried on, following the curve of the river and the glowing footprints that Chris could see alongside it. As they went, the houses got bigger. They were still built directly up to the road but the distances between them seemed to grow. Chris got the impression they were in a wealthier part of London than before.

  The glowing footprints turned off the main road and up a side street. Chris beckoned for his gang to follow him.

  They follo
wed the footprints all the way up to a large manor house. It had a short door and a shiny, solid-gold knocker. Through the windows came bright yellow light and the sounds of merriment. It seemed like there was a party going on inside.

  “Are we here?” Madeleine asked.

  Chris nodded. “This is where the footprints stop.”

  Malcolm tiptoed closer and looked at the name plaque beside the door. Then he turned back suddenly, a look of sheer surprise on his face.

  “What?” Chris demanded.

  “The name. On the plaque,” Malcolm said. “The person whose house this is.”

  “Well?” Chris prompted, growing more irritated. “Spill. Whose house is it?”

  Malcolm began to smile. “According to the plaque, it’s Isaac Newton’s.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE

  Oliver peered into the vision well. It seemed to go down a very long way. It was pitch-black and he could not even see the water at the bottom.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” Esther asked, peering from the gloomy hole back to him.

  He nodded. He was certain. “It’s the only way to save the school.”

  Esther reached out and rubbed his arm tenderly. “We’ll be here waiting for you.”

  Oliver stepped up onto the brick wall surrounding the well. He paused for a moment to steady his nerves. Then he jumped.

  Immediately, Oliver was plunged into the pitch-black darkness. His hair swooshed all over the place as wind roared in his ears. He was falling very quickly, quick enough to make his stomach turn. His heart beat a mile a minute.

  Then he hit the ice-cold water.

  Oliver was expecting to stop there. But he did not. He kept falling, beneath the surface and downward, plunging ever further into the depths.

  Oliver’s heart rate quickened even more. The water was in his ears, his nose. He felt like he was choking on it. He tried to remain calm, to force his mind to accept that this was just a vision and not reality. That, just like his seer test in Professor Amethyst’s office, it was a highly realistic hallucination. But that didn’t stop his hands from trembling. The thought of drowning was terrifying.