(CONTINUED)
There was no sign of Challenger Green’s body. I assumed some security dados had removed it. They never showed the true result of a game to the people. They kept it all sanitized. Neat and clean. No bodies, no blood. Also missing were Veego and LaBerge. I figured they had run back to the castle and were packing for a quick getaway. I had a brief worry that they would try to jump into the flume on their own to get away from the wrath of the trustees. If what Veego told me was correct, the only safe way for non-Travelers to use the flumes was with a Traveler. I couldn’t imagine that Saint Dane would be willing to escort them back home. If Veego and LaBerge jumped into a flume, well, I didn’t want to think about what might happen. The idea of being trapped on Quillan was beyond horrible. There was nothing I could do about it just then anyway, so I tried not to stress about it.
Fourteen and I headed back to the castle. My plan was to get out of there, find Nevva, and get back with the revivers. After going through the hell of the Grand X, I wasn’t in any shape to fight my way out of there through some security dados. But if I had to, I would.
When we arrived back at the castle, we stepped into something I never expected.
The whole time I had been competing in the Grand X, the only clues I had as to what was happening outside in the city were the few angry comments that Veego had made. She told me that people were storming Blok stores and had trashed their gaming arcades. She told me that wagering on the competition was nonexistent. That was definitely good news, but I hadn’t seen it for myself. I had to take her word for it. What I found in the next few hours was that it was all true. In fact, Veego had underestimated the impact of the Grand X.
First we were greeted at the castle by the rest of the challengers. They treated me like a conquering hero. They enthusiastically clapped me on the back and congratulated me and said how I’d saved their lives. Unlike the false friendliness of the parties I had been to, this felt sincere. They were genuinely happy that I had won. Better still, there wasn’t a security dado in sight. I was told that before the Tato game had even begun, the security dados left the castle. They took every last vehicle, piled in, and took off. The challengers showed me that their loops were no longer active. Sure enough, I was able to pull mine off. This happy reunion wasn’t only about my victory over Challenger Green, it was a celebration of our new freedom. They were all itching to get out of there and back to their homes and their loved ones. But they stayed long enough to thank me.
Amid the celebration Fourteen approached me, put a gentle hand on my shoulder, and said, “Pendragon, you should come with me.”
“Why? What’s up?” I asked. I didn’t want to leave the party.
“You should see for yourself” was his answer.
I gave the challengers a final good-bye and quickly ran up the wide steps after Fourteen. He led me up to the second floor of the castle to a spot I hadn’t been before. It was a balcony over the main entrance, that looked down on the courtyard below.
“Why are we here?” I asked.
A familiar voice answered, “To protect you from your fans.”
I spun to see Nevva Winter standing just outside the doorway.
“Nevva!” I yelled. “I knew you’d be here!”
“I wasn’t the whole time,” she said. “I’m sorry. The trustees gathered to watch the Grand X together and they demanded I be there. I couldn’t get away until just now.”
I didn’t care. It was okay. I survived on my own.
“Is it true?” I asked. “Has the revival begun?”
“It’s incredible,” she said. “Everything is going exactly according to plan. Better. All the people needed was a little inspiration, and you gave it to them, Pendragon. They’ve taken up arms. This is the turning point for Quillan, and it’s all because of you.”
“It’s all because of the revivers,” I said. “I just lit the fuse.”
“You’re being modest,” she said. “Without you, none of this would be possible.”
It was an incredible feeling to know the fate of Quillan was about to change, and that I had a direct hand in making it happen.
“I want to see it,” I said. “I’m feeling kind of removed from the whole thing.”
Nevva chuckled and said, “You won’t be for long.”
Fourteen added, “They’re almost here.”
Nevva pointed out beyond the wall that surrounded the castle. I looked to see an impossible sight. Thousands of people streamed along the road through the forest, headed for the castle.
Nevva said, “They were watching the Grand X from beyond the gate. When you won, they couldn’t be stopped. The dados didn’t even try.”
I now understood why the dados had taken off. There was no way they could contain this many people.
“They want to see you, Pendragon,” Nevva said with a smile. “You’re going to have to say something to them.”
“What? I don’t know what to say to all those people!”
“You’ll think of something,” Nevva said.
The three of us stood there and watched as the huge crowd moved up the road, through the wall, and into the courtyard. This wasn’t an angry mob; they were happy and singing. They had begun the long process of taking back their lives, and they were starting with the castle, a symbol of the games. The courtyard filled quickly, though the multitude stretched back all the way into the woods. You’d think I’d be nervous about talking to a crowd like this, but I wasn’t. I was on top of the world. Fourteen set some kind of microphone in front of me. I’d never done anything like this before, but I was ready to give it a try.
I raised up my two hands, and the people cheered. What a feeling! They wouldn’t stop. I looked down on the people who were right below us and saw them looking up at me with joy. It was the single most incredible moment of my life.
After a few minutes I waved my arms for them to quiet down. It took a few minutes more, but they finally did. It was odd to be looking out over so many people and have it go absolutely quiet.
I leaned into the microphone. When I spoke, I heard my voice boom. “I’ve never spoken to so many people like this, so forgive me if I’m not very good at it,” I began. “Today is a day you will never forget. Not because I won the Grand X, but because when the history of Quillan is written, this day will be remembered as the day the fight began to win independence, and freedom.”
The people went nuts. Many waved red flags in honor of me. I wondered if this would become the new flag of Quillan. I quieted the crowd again and said, “There is a long road ahead. This is only the first step. But you will be able to tell your grandchildren that this was the day a new Quillan was born, and you were all part of it. The revival is here. It has begun. Take back your lives!”
The place went absolutely stupid. I raised my hands and waved, firing them up even more. Man, what a rush. I never thought I’d do anything even close to this, and I have to admit, I kind of liked it.
Nevva leaned into me and whispered, “We’d better go. There are people you have to see.”
I didn’t want to leave. Who would? I had thousands of people cheering for me like I was the greatest hero of all time. What the heck? I’d never gotten any credit for saving all those other territories. I deserved a little applause.
Nevva gently pulled me inside, but the crowd didn’t stop cheering. I was so excited I couldn’t talk fast enough.
“Did you see that?” I said. “They’re going nuts out there! It worked! They’re really going to do it! Quillan is going to be okay!”
While I blathered on, Nevva kept leading me away. “Yes, it is incredible, but if we don’t get out of here now, you’ll be crushed by all these well-wishers.”
Fourteen led us down into the bowels of the castle, where there was an underground tunnel, and a car waiting for us. Nevva got behind the wheel, and I got in on the passenger side.
“Come on!” I said to Fourteen. “You’re part of this too!”
“No,” he said. “My place is here.”
I got out of the car and stood by him. “There is no here anymore. You’re free.”
“There is no such thing as free to a dado,” Fourteen said. “I will remain with the other service dados.”
“Come on, Pendragon,” Nevva coaxed.
I gave Fourteen a hug. He wasn’t expecting that. He definitely didn’t know what to do.
“Thanks, man,” I said. “I wouldn’t have made it without you.”
He awkwardly patted me on the back. “Yes, you would have,” he said. “I am proud to have served you.”
It was weird being so emotional over a machine, but Fourteen had been the only voice of sanity I had to cling to at the castle. I was going to miss him.
“I hope we’ll see each other again,” I said. “Wear something different so I’ll recognize you. You guys kind of look the same.”
“I will remember that,” he said. “Good-bye, Pendragon. Good luck.”
I nodded and jumped in the car. Nevva hit the throttle, and we were on our way. We traveled through the tunnel for so long I knew we had to be outside the gates of the castle. The whole time I pumped Nevva for information. I wanted to know what was happening in Rune, and with the trustees and all over Quillan. The revival was under way and I wanted to hear what the game plan was. Nevva laughed and said I should wait for the official briefing. That was okay with me. I wanted to hear it from Tylee Magna anyway. Nevva had done her part. Together, we Travelers had sparked the revival. The rest was up to Tylee and the revivers.
We didn’t talk much the rest of the trip. I just sat there, replaying the incredible day in my head, from every game of the Grand X to the screaming masses. It was too amazing to believe. I didn’t want to forget a single detail.
The tunnel led us inside a building that looked to be an abandoned factory of some sort. Nevva knew exactly where she was going. We drove outside and onto the streets of Quillan. After a short distance Nevva sped us into a garage that led to yet another subterranean tunnel. It was incredible how there was a whole separate world below Rune. Finally we arrived at a large garage that seemed to be the former parking area for one of the abandoned malls, complete with faded white lines to designate parking spaces. Nevva led me through the empty space, into a building, and finally into an elevator. She didn’t join me.
“Aren’t you coming?” I asked.
“No,” she said. “The trustees don’t even know I’m gone. I’m not going to give up that job just yet. This is only the beginning of the revival. There’s a very long way to go.”
“Okay, but be careful,” I said. “And hurry.”
“Pendragon,” she said, “you were incredible. For a while there, I was afraid you weren’t going to pull it off.”
“Only for a while?” I asked. “I wasn’t so sure the whole time.”
“I had more faith in you than that,” she said. “I knew you would win. That’s the way it was meant to be.”
I nodded and said, “Hurry, okay.”
Nevva waved and the doors closed. The elevator started moving. I figured it must know where I was going because there weren’t any buttons inside. Without any little lights, I couldn’t tell if I was going up or down. I couldn’t wait to talk to Tylee and the others. I knew the revival had just begun, but my part in it was done. To me, this was a victory lap. A well-earned victory lap.
The elevator came to a stop, and the doors opened. With a big smile on my face I stepped out . . . and froze. I was in a bare room with a double door across from the elevator. To either side of the door were big silver letters that spelled out BLOK. I stopped smiling. What the hell was going on? I wasn’t with the revivers. This was the courtroom of the trustees of Blok.
The doors opposite me opened. I saw the room where I had been introduced to the trustees. It was empty. Eerily empty. Except for one person.
“I thought you’d never make it,” came a voice from inside. “But I guess you had to bask in the glory of your adoring public.”
I knew that voice. But it made no sense. It couldn’t be . . .
But it was. Stepping from the shadows of the darkened trustee room was a ghost. I knew it was a ghost because I saw him die. Yet there he stood . . . Challenger Green. I blinked. He didn’t go away. I blinked again. He smiled. He wasn’t a ghost. He had somehow survived the fall. He didn’t even look injured.
“I thought for sure you would have put it together when I wasn’t bothered by my injury,” he said, stomping his left foot hard on the ground. “But then again, you never were a very good detective.”
My ears rang. My palms started to sweat. I started to shake. I actually started to shake.
“No,” I said softly. “No way.”
“Oh, yes,” Green said. “Once again you have failed to grasp the obvious. You are right about one thing though. Things are indeed going exactly as planned. It’s just that the plans are a little different than you thought.”
Challenger Green started to melt and morph. I closed my eyes. I didn’t want to see it. I didn’t have to. I knew what was happening.
“Open your eyes, Pendragon,” Saint Dane said. “It’s time for you to see the new Quillan . . . the territory you helped create.”