Raven Rise by D.J. MacHale

Author:D.J. MacHale
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, pdf
Publisher: Aladdin
Published: 2008-06-11T16:00:00+00:00

SECOND EARTH

(CONTINUED)

The three stood on the opposite corner, staring at the mysterious structure. It looked to Mark like a library. There were high arches and heavy marble columns. Wide marble stairs led up from the sidewalk to the many entrances.

“I’ve seen this before,” Patrick announced.

Mark and Courtney shot him a surprised glance. “Where?” they said in unison.

“Third Earth. Everything changed, remember? When I went to the gate, instead of the underground complex I found this. The flume was inside.”

“So this thing is going to last for three thousand years?” Courtney said in awe.

“It wasn’t the exact same,” Patrick pointed out. “I guess changes were made over the years, and it was crumbling, but it was essentially the same structure.”

“What is it?” Mark asked.

“I don’t know,” Patrick answered. “All I cared about was getting to the flume.”

“Look at the flags,” Mark announced. “Obviously this is all about the Ravinian cult. Maybe it’s headquarters.”

“We gotta check this out,” Courtney said, and walked toward the strange new building.

All three walked closer with trepidation, while scanning around for any Ravinian red shirts. The street was busy with people, but not crowded. If somebody was looking for them, they’d be seen. They walked up the marble stairs to a long row of glass doors that was the entrance. Courtney tried a door to find…it was open.

“This doesn’t change anything,” she said. “We still have to flume out of here. Whatever this is, we’ll have a better shot of getting to the flume here than sneaking into Naymeer’s house back in Stony Brook.”

Patrick and Mark nodded in agreement. Courtney pulled the door open and stepped inside. Just inside the entrance was a large open area with a marble floor.

“Slick,” Courtney said, impressed.

Fresh flowers in vases were placed along the walls. The star symbol was prominent on the wall to the right, a portrait of Naymeer faced it on the wall to the left. Directly ahead was an archway that led farther into the building.

“Doesn’t seem like anybody’s here,” Mark commented.

Courtney walked to the archway to find a wide set of stairs leading straight down. She stood on top and stared toward the bottom. There was no clue as to what they might find below.

“What are the chances of this being some fancy new subway station?” she asked over her shoulder to the others.

“No chance,” Mark answered.

“I didn’t think so.”

The three started down slowly, shoulder to shoulder. With each step they saw more of the floor below. It seemed to be one big room. A few more steps down revealed a long row of green theater-style seats that stretched out to either side, facing away from them. It was followed by another row and another and another. A wide center aisle separated the seats into two halves. Left and right.

“This is no subway station,” Courtney muttered.

“It looks like a big theater,” Mark replied.

The room was huge. There looked to be enough seating for several hundred people. The rows of seats all faced the same direction. When they reached the bottom, Courtney saw why.

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