Etherworld by Claudia Gabel Read Free Book Online Page A

know at school—Zoe Morgan—probably would have said the same thing if she were here. From what I know of her, she and Claire are a lot alike. Fearless and bold.
    â€œYou’re so weird, Claire,” Wyatt says, shaking his head.
    She nudges him and smiles. “If by ‘weird’ you mean ‘awesome,’ then I agree.”
    â€œOnce the trigger is detonated, head for the firewall, and an emergency portal will open,” my dad says, his urgent tone cutting through Claire and Wyatt’s banter. “And don’t forget, the minute you step into the Escape, your brain activity will be monitored through your wristbands.”
    â€œWhat about the autotimer?” I ask. “Will that pull us back if we’re at risk of being overly stimulated?”
    â€œI hope so,” he says.
    â€œAnd what if we miss? Or what if we throw the bomb at the wrong target?” Claire asks.
    â€œThe second the bomb makes contact, even if it doesn’t hit the trigger, Orexis will be able to determine your exact location,” he replies. “So be very careful.”
    I force a grin and nod, trying not to show my nervousness. My dad turns back toward the wall and begins pressing the squares of light, alternating blue and white, as if tapping a sequential code.
    Josh grabs my hand, reminding me that he’s right next to me.
    There’s a sudden brightness, and the sweet smell of pine trees fills the air. I hear something that sounds like white noise, so loud that I want to cover my ears. I squint into the light and realize that my dad’s shadow is blocking the portal of the tunnel. But I know one thing. It’s not white noise that I’m hearing.
    It’s the sound of rushing water.
    My dad exits the portal, dropping down into the other world. I leap after him, following him into the bright light and landing on my back in a pile of soft, moist grass. But instead of pulling myself up, I begin to tumble, my stomach filled with a giggly energy as I roll down a gentle hillside that’s covered in Elusion’s signature fairy dust. I stop at the bottom and lie still, my eyes closed. All the problems and desperation that just minutes earlier were so overwhelming now seem inconsequential.
    Why am I here?
    I open my fist and admire the small translucent ball. I hold it up to the indigo sun, the colors spinning like a kaleidoscope. I know the beauty is deceptive and that this object has some kind of purpose, but I can’t remember what it is.
    I stretch out and run my legs and arms over the soft purple grass as if I’m making an angel in the snow. It feels so good to be back in Elusion.
    It’s only when I hear voices—the sound of my own tribe—that I’m motivated to pick up my head and look around. I’m feet away from a river, which is pulsating with a raucous stream of tangerine water. A row of single-seat kayaks is lined up alongside the bank.
    â€œAwesome!” Claire says, running over to one of them. Her blond hair is flowing around her shoulders; the blueberry-colored sun is radiating above her head. Her healthy skin is illuminated with a tan, and her ratty Etherworld clothes have been replaced with a yellow life vest and bikini bottoms.
    And her eyes? I finally get to see that they’re a beautiful shade of green.
    She waves me over. “Grab a kayak!”
    I think I’ve been to this Escape before, with Patrick, before my dad’s so-called accident. My memory is still fuzzy, but I remember him wanting do a heart-pounding, death-defying kayak ride down the rapids, while I was more into hiking.
    But now all I can think about is getting into the rough water and seeing where the current takes me. A surge of adrenaline pumps through me, and I feel capable of anything. I check my wristband to see if it has to do with my ExSet level, but the keypad doesn’t respond to my touch.
    But I’m not bothered by the broken keypad. Maybe this