Out of This World by Chris Wooding

Author:Chris Wooding
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.

“Whoa,” said Mazzy, her gaze traveling upward. “This has to be the place.”

One by one, they stepped into the enormous hall, tiny figures in the gloomy, silent emptiness. Thin shafts of dazzling white light sliced down from slit windows high above. In the center of the room was a wide circular pedestal, a few feet high, made of black metal. There was another, much smaller pedestal nearby. At the far end were two huge statues of robed and hooded Drax, their faces hidden, hands invisible inside their oversized sleeves. Between them was a gate of the same metal as the pedestal, covered with strange writings, so large you could have sailed an aircraft carrier through it.

“Whatever Gradius was looking for, it’s in here,” Mazzy said confidently. “I can feel it.”

“I hope so,” said Jack. “’Cause I don’t see any other way out, and that gate doesn’t look like it’s going to open anytime soon.” He frowned. “Maybe we missed him,” he said uncertainly. He wasn’t sure he’d cope well with the disappointment if that was the case.

“Let’s have a look around before we get despondent, huh?” said Mazzy. She headed straight for the central pedestal, and the others trailed after her. On closer inspection, there were panels and buttons around the edge of the pedestal. Mazzy pressed a few buttons, but nothing happened. She pressed some more, just in case.

“It’s not working,” Thomas observed helpfully, peering over her shoulder.

“We’ll soon see about that,” Mazzy said, and gave it a hefty kick. There was a hiccuping sound from inside the pedestal and then a hum of power as the machine woke up. “There!”

“Is that how you usually fix things?” Jack asked.

“Never fails,” said Mazzy, limping away.

“Your toe all right?”

“Fine,” she said through gritted teeth, blinking back tears.

Suddenly the chamber filled with light. They stared in amazement as constellations appeared out of the gloom. Clusters of stars speckled the air above the pedestal, with colorful gas clouds of red and green and yellow draped among them.

“Oooh!” said Thomas.

“It’s a star map,” Mazzy gasped, her eyes sparkling.

Jack walked around the pedestal. Scattered among the stars were planets, turning slowly in place. One was smooth and yellow-white-pinkish, a sandy desert planet; another was a lush blue green, almost completely covered in ocean.

He spotted one that looked familiar. “Hey! I think that one’s Earth! I can see America!”

“The twelve planets of the Nexus,” Mazzy said. “These are the planets that the Elders placed rift gates on to connect them together.”

“What’s that little symbol floating next to Earth?” Jack asked, pointing to a small red sign that looked like an angry Space Invader.

“Pretty sure that’s the intergalactic symbol for cooties,” Mazzy said.

“Earth does not have cooties!” Jack said, offended.

Mazzy shrugged. “Symbol says different. Face it, you’ve been quarantined for so long that even an extinct alien race didn’t want to visit.”

Jack grumbled sourly as he trudged around the star map. He wasn’t even particularly fond of Earth, but he still felt the need to defend it. It was his home, after all.

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