The Orb of Kandra Read online

  But they’d also left the dark army of rogue seers in a bitter battle with Sister Judith and the students from the London School of the Future-Sighted. Oliver prayed they be okay. That they understood why he, Esther, and Ralph had had to take that one opportunity to dive through the portal.

  Now certain there was no one pursuing them, Oliver glanced around. They were in a room that was peculiarly empty. Black marble floor. Dark tiled walls. And it was clearly enormous because their voices seemed to echo on forever.

  Suddenly, Oliver realized. Though it appeared different every time he entered, Oliver was certain they were back at the School for Seers. Even though it was technically a void, he’d recognize Professor Amethyst’s office anywhere.

  “We’re in the sixth dimension!” he exclaimed. He jumped to his feet. “Quick, hand me the Orb.”

  Esther passed the Orb of Kandra to Oliver. She was completely dark, no light glowing in her at all.

  “We need to find the plinth!” he cried, cradling it.

  They ran, heading into the blackness.

  Then Oliver saw it, glittering in the distance. The empty pedestal upon which the Orb of Kandra belonged. He ran up to it.

  He held the Orb out and slowly he let go.

  Oliver held his breath, hoping, praying they’d gotten her home in time. The Orb floated there, a few centimeters above the plinth, right where she belonged. Then suddenly, a light at her center began to flicker.

  “She’s okay…” Oliver said with a gasp.

  The flickering light grew stronger and brighter.

  “I don’t believe it!” Oliver cried, realizing that the Orb was coming back to life. “We did it. We really did it.”

  Esther and Ralph started to jump up and down, cheering with joy. The shaking around them ceased. The Orb of Kandra returned to her full beauty, radiating a brilliant, beautiful, bright white light.

  At that moment, a voice floated through the darkness. A familiar voice that Oliver knew so well. The voice of Professor Amethyst.

  “Oliver Blue. I knew you would not let me down.”

  All around Oliver, Esther, and Ralph, colors began to melt down the walls like paint. The black void transformed into the main atrium of the School for Seers. They were back, standing beside the kapoc tree.

  And all was calm.

  CHAPTER FIFTY TWO

  Oliver caught a flash of butterscotch. Then suddenly, Hazel came into view beside him. Her gray eyes sparkled with joy.

  “I’m so happy to see you,” she exclaimed.

  “Hazel,” he replied, emotion making his voice crack. He’d really thought he’d never see her again.

  She looked him in the eye.

  “You did it!” she cried. “You saved the school!”

  “I guess so,” Oliver replied, though his mind was spinning.

  Everything had happened so quickly. The fight with Chris. The time vortex. His clothes were still soaked.

  “Why so glum?” Hazel cried as she threw her arms around him. “You did it!”

  “I guess so,” Oliver replied in a daze.

  Then over her shoulder he caught sight of two more familiar faces. One was pale in complexion, the other dark.

  “Simon! Walter!” Oliver called out.

  The two boys hurried over and threw their arms around Hazel and Oliver. Then Ralph and Esther came over and joined the huddle.

  It felt so great to be reunited again. Oliver would happily let this moment last forever.

  “What’s that smell?” Walter said.

  They drew out of the embrace.

  “That would be the River Thames,” Ralph said, looking down at his soaked clothes. “It’s pretty smelly.”

  Hazel was polite enough to ignore the smell. “So are you back for good?” she asked Oliver and Esther.

  “If Professor Amethyst hasn’t expelled me for running off,” Esther replied, her cheeks growing pink.

  Oliver pondered the question himself. He had no idea where he stood at the moment, whether he was a part of the school or not. “If he’ll let me back,” he added.

  “Of course he will,” Walter said. “You’re one of us!”

  Oliver smiled, feeling so welcome and included in the group.

  Hazel linked arms with him. “Come on, there’s going to be a party in the hall. A celebration.”

  “Food,” Simon said in his posh English accent. “Merriment. It will be most splendid.”

  Walter slapped Oliver on the back. “Then maybe after you’ve eaten we could play a game of switchit?”

  Oliver laughed. As much as he’d love to play switchit with Walter again, he was beyond exhausted.

  “Maybe after a long night in the sleep pod,” he said. “We’ve been awake for… well, I think it’s been forty-eight hours now.”

  His head spun just thinking of it. Two days, and yet at the same time, thousands of years. What a journey they’d been on!

  The group headed into the hall. At once, the sound of applause sounded out. Oliver gasped, looking around at all the teachers and students cheering for them. He felt a swell of pride.

  Music began to play. Oliver noticed then that there were tables covered in the School for Seers’ amazing spread of crazy foods. The party commenced.

  Professor Amethyst came over to him and placed a firm hand on his shoulder.

  “Oliver Blue, I knew you wouldn’t let me down.”

  Oliver looked up into his wise eyes. There was a nagging feeling in his stomach. “What happened after we left though? To Sister Judith and the students from the London School for the Future-Sighted? Are they okay?”

  Professor Amethyst smiled kindly. “The light prevails in that particular battle. You chose the correct portal and in doing so, closed it up. That allowed Sister Judith and the other celestial mothers to spread rumors amongst the dark army that you’d escaped through a portal. They found the decoy on the banks. It led them straight back to the depths from which they came. But tell me. How did you know which one to choose?”

  “It was Newton, actually,” Oliver said. “He gave me a tincture of a liquid that would help me see the magic. Esther glowed yellow. So did the portal. I figured if she was good, then the yellow door must be good as well.”

  Professor Amethyst smiled. “How very wise. And you helped him too of course. Showing him the Obsidian knife gave him the last piece of the puzzle. Thanks to you he and the Alchemists Guild discovered many amazing things we seers use today. Their published work is well over one million words!”

  “I thought Newton’s alchemy work never saw the light of day,” Oliver replied.

  “Not in the human world,” Professor Amethyst said with a chuckle. “But in the seer world, their books are bestsellers.”

  Oliver allowed himself a small smile. He was relieved and somewhat placated to know everyone was okay. But there was one thought still worrying him. “Tell me. What about Chris? What happens to my brother?”

  In spite of everything Chris had put him through, Oliver still wished no harm to him. If he allowed himself even an inch of hatred toward Chris then that would be letting in a bit of the dark side he needed to fight.

  “That remains to be seen,” the headmaster replied. “He took the mark of the Obsidians. He swallowed dark matter. He belongs to them. His future is very uncertain.”

  Oliver nodded gravely. “So those aren’t seer powers she gave him? It doesn’t work that way.”

  Professor Amethyst gave a noncommittal bob of the head. “You’re only half right. The powers Chris took in are seer powers. The nuclear specialism. It is a type that was banished. It’s far too dangerous. Extremely volatile. They’re powers that belong in the dark world, not in a human boy.”

  The tone of his voice was very somber. Oliver did not need to ask for clarification to know that whatever Chris had done to himself, it was very bad.

  “And how was my friend Newton?” Professor Amethyst asked.

  “He was a great help,” Oliver explained. “This alchemy
recipe helped us to find where the Orb of Kandra was hidden. And his spyglass showed us the portal in the end. We’d never have succeeded without him.” He gestured to Ralph and Esther, including them in his comment. Then he pulled out the amulet, which was searing hot now in his palm. “And also this. It showed us the way out of a crisis at the last moment.”

  A smile spread across Professor Amethyst’s lips. “I suppose you won’t have much need for that anymore?”

  Oliver frowned. “Why not?”

  “Because you’re coming back to the School for Seers, of course,” Professor Amethyst said.

  Oliver’s mouth gaped open. “Really? I can come back for good?”

  “Of course!” the professor said. “A seer like you must be trained. So, what do you say? Will you come back?”

  Oliver nodded vigorously. “Of course. Of course.”

  Then he suddenly remembered his quest to find his parents. He’d had to abandon it because of the Orb of Kandra. But he was still desperate to know where they were. To find Maggie and Teddy. To meet them face to face.

  “There is one thing, though,” Oliver said to Professor Amethyst. “I want to find my parents.”

  Professor Amethyst nodded. “I understand. We’ll help you with your search. When the time is right, you may of course leave to find them.”

  Oliver felt a swell of excitement. The headmaster would help him in his quest to find his parents? It was like a dream!

  He took off the amulet and handed it back to Professor Amethyst. “In which case, you’re right. I shan’t be needing this anymore.”

  Professor Amethyst squeezed his shoulder. “It’s good to have you home, Oliver Blue.”

  Oliver left the professor and went over to his group of friends, who were all dancing with abandon to the music. Hazel spun him, then Walter ruffled his hair. Simon grabbed his hand, raising it into the air like he was a boxer who’d just won in the ring, while Ralph clapped him on the back several times.

  That’s when Oliver realized Esther was not among them. He glanced about, looking for her.

  When he finally caught sight of her he realized she did not appear to be enjoying the party one bit. She was stood at the side of the hall holding a drink, taking just the smallest of sips. Oliver noticed her skin looked paler since they’d come back to the School for Seers.

  Concern leapt into his chest.

  “Excuse me one moment,” he said, leaving his group.

  He approached Esther. She looked up as he drew closer.

  “Oliver,” she said, smiling thinly. Her voice sounded weak, like she was exhausted and struggling to stay awake.

  Oliver rested his back against the wall beside her.

  “What’s up?” he asked. “You don’t seem to be in the celebrating mood.”

  Esther shook her head. “Nothing. Just … processing everything.”

  But Oliver could tell that wasn’t it. He knew Esther well enough by now. She was hiding something. In fact, she’d had something on her mind the second she’d arrived in Boston.

  He nudged her with his shoulder. “Please, Esther. Whatever it is, you can tell me.”

  She held his gaze for a long moment. Then finally she nodded, slowly.

  “Okay. But not here. Let’s get some privacy.”

  *

  Esther and Oliver strolled slowly through the gardens of the School for Seers. It was the site of their first date. So much had happened since then. Oliver felt like a completely different person.

  He glanced over at Esther. Her expression was drawn. She clearly had something on her mind.

  “You didn’t ask me to come here for a date, did you?” Oliver asked.

  His stomach swirled with anguish. The anticipation was unbearable.

  “Let’s sit,” Esther said, gesturing to a collection of tree stumps.

  They both sat down. Esther reached out and took Oliver’s hands. She looked into his eyes earnestly.

  “When I first showed up in Boston, you asked me why I’d left the school.”

  Oliver nodded. “Yes.”

  “I lied to you about why.”

  He felt his chest sink. It had been too good to be true, really, that Esther would have sacrificed her life at the School for Seers because she loved him.

  “Oh…” he said sadly.

  Esther squeezed his hand. “Not like that. Don’t be silly. I still followed you because I wanted to be with you. But that was because… because I wanted to spend my last months with you.”

  Oliver’s head snapped up. “What do you mean, last months?”

  The sudden change in course from what he’d been expecting her to say took him by surprise. What was Esther talking about?

  “I’m dying, Oliver.”

  CHAPTER FIFTY THREE

  In that moment, Oliver felt like the whole world was falling in on him. “No you’re not.”

  Esther gave him a sad look. “I am, Oliver. I’m sorry. Professor Amethyst diagnosed me after we came back from Germany.”

  “With what?” Oliver exclaimed. Emotion threatened to take over. It seemed to be tightening around his neck.

  “A type of time travel sickness.”

  Oliver shook his head again. “Well then that’s okay. Time travel sickness is curable. I’ve had it before and I’m fine now.” He just didn’t want to believe what he was hearing. “And you saw Ralph when he first reached us. He bounced back right away.”

  “Oliver, listen,” Esther said more firmly. “This isn’t like usual time travel sickness. What I have is a very rare type. And it’s fatal.”

  Oliver thought back to all the moments in their adventure. Esther’s references to nausea. Her lack of appetite. Her headaches. Her weak swimming. Even her distrust of Professor Amethyst. It had all been related to her diagnosis of incurable time travel sickness.

  “Sister Judith,” Oliver said with a gasp. “That’s what she saw when she looked into your mind? That’s why you couldn’t enter the vision well? Because you’re … you’re…”

  He couldn’t bring himself to say the D word.

  But Esther nodded sadly and finished his sentence for him. “…Dying.”

  Finally, the truth dawned on Oliver. It was real. Esther really was dying.

  Grief stabbed him through the chest. This wasn’t fair! Why Esther? After all the bad things he’d experienced in his life, why was the best thing he’d ever found going to be taken away from him?

  Suddenly, he remembered the compass. There was one dial on it that had never moved; the one pointing at the boy and girl. Professor Nightingale said the image symbolized friendship. First love. And if the compass showed him the future, then his future was with Esther!

  He stood suddenly, dropping her hand.

  “Oliver,” Esther said, her voice strained. “Where are you going?”

  “I’m going to speak to Professor Amethyst. There has to be a way to save you.”

  Tears sparkled in Esther’s eyes. “There’s not. I’ve already spoken to him. You have to accept this. I’m going to die.”

  “No,” Oliver said, shaking his head with resolution. “You’re not. I won’t let you.”

  CHAPTER FIFTY FOUR

  Oliver marched into Professor Amethyst’s office. The man already appeared to be waiting for him because the decor he’d chosen was the one he’d used when Oliver had taken his test—a worn leather sofa and battered coffee table. A pot of tea was already boiled with two cups laid out beside it.

  “She’s spoken to you?” the headmaster said, turning from his desk to look over at Oliver.

  Oliver nodded and swallowed the painful lump in his throat. “Yes. Esther told me she’s dying. That her sickness is incurable. But it’s not, is it?”

  The professor gestured to the couch. “Please, Oliver. Take a seat.”

  Reluctantly, Oliver did as he was told. All he wanted was for Professor Amethyst to tell him how to save Esther. But he would have to go through the motions before the headmaster provided any details.r />
  The old man sat in the seat opposite him, tugging up his suit pant legs as he did. He poured the tea, handing Oliver a cup. Oliver took the cup and saucer and rested them in his lap. He was far too focused on Esther to drink tea.

  Professor Amethyst took a long sip. “I understand you’ve been through a lot these past couple of days,” he said, finally, resting his cup onto the coffee table. “And you have learned about some of the tools for seers.”

  Oliver nodded. “The compass. The amulet. And the vision well.”

  “And…?” the head master prompted.

  Oliver pondered for a moment. Then he remembered. “Oh. The Obsidian knife.”

  Professor Amethyst nodded. “In the correct hands, like Newton’s, a seer invention can be used for extraordinary good. But that power can also be greatly abused. In the wrong hands, a seer invention can have devastating consequences.”

  Oliver grew impatient. “Please, Professor, can we talk about Esther? There has to be a way to save her.”

  The headmaster smiled. “I’m building up to that. Patience, dear boy.” He took another sip of tea. “There is, indeed, a way to save Miss Valentini.”

  Oliver sat up straighter. His heart leapt. “What is it? I’ll do anything.”

  Professor Amethyst’s tone was very grave. “It is extremely dangerous. You will need to go back in time and find a very precious item belonging to seers. A wonderful invention. One of the best. It, and only it, can save Esther’s life.”

  Oliver stood. “I’ll go. Right now. Open a portal for me and I’ll step through it.”

  Professor Amethyst remained seated. He glanced up at the boy. “It will be a very dangerous journey. And I must warn you, Oliver, it is extremely unlikely you will succeed. There is no way back, no wormhole I can create for you to return through. You’ll need to find one there, which is nearly impossible. It’s a one-way journey.”

  “There’s no such thing as impossible,” Oliver replied.