WHILE THEY ABSORBED THE view of Elantya, Vic wondered if Gwen was trying to concoct some rational explanation. Vic wasn’t usually so overloaded with amazement, but his own mind was whirling so fast the thoughts didn’t have time to form words, much less sentences.
This island was the coolest place he’d ever seen. He only wished his father could be there with them. Vic was fairly certain Dr. Pierce was all right — after all, the two cousins had been the ones sucked into a strange new world! — but by now his dad must be awfully worried.
His thoughts ricocheted to another question. Had his father expected this to happen? He was always talking about his important experiments, and he’d set up a crystal array very similar to the one here in Rubicas’s lab. Just before the solarium flooded with retina-searing light, his dad had called out, “Kyara.” Had he been trying to do something with the crystals, an experiment that had sent Vic and Gwen here?
Though concentrating in school was difficult for him, Vic had a sharp mind and could synthesize bits and pieces of what he had learned — snippets from speeches, phrases from textbooks, remembered experiences — to create plausible explanations. A self-proclaimed “gadgetologist,” Vic used his uncanny intuition to figure out how things worked. He flew by the seat of his pants and often saw connections before anyone else did. When a subject truly interested him, he could teach himself things, too. He had even learned to play the guitar without taking lessons.
Of course, his unorthodox approach landed him in trouble when he leapt before he looked, trusting his instincts. Many teachers despaired of helping him, or even getting him to sit still. In math class he often lost points because he couldn’t show in writing the exact steps by which he reached the correct answer. He just “knew” it.
Gwen teased him about the way his mind bounced from one thing to another, but Vic did not see his supposed “attention deficit disorder” as a weakness. He had read a college-level psychology textbook in which the author theorized that hyperfocus and distractibility were survival traits for hunters in the wild. And both Cap and Rip Pierce had assured Vic that he was endowed with “untamed genius,” much like Albert Einstein, who had himself flunked math. Not a bad comparison, he supposed.
If he and Gwen had somehow managed to land themselves next door to Oz, then Vic would have to gather as much information as he could. Maybe his mind could fit the puzzle pieces together and find a way home … or bring his father here to Elantya.
When they descended the spiral staircase and returned to the chamber, bearded Rubicas and his apprentice were crouched beside a blackened crystal, studying it, rearranging the fragments. The once-glittering gems now looked like lumps of charcoal.
Vic gestured with his chin to the two men. “So, uh, are these guys mad scientists, or what?”
“They are certainly not mad,” Lyssandra said. “Master Rubicas is one of the wisest sages in all of Elantya.”
Overhearing them, Orpheon flashed the elfin girl a wolfish grin. “And how would you describe me?”
Lyssandra blushed, turning away from him. “Orpheon, apprentice to Sage Rubicas, is beginning his fourth level apprenticeship at the Citadel.”
Sage Rubicas bobbed his head absently. “Mmm. He is one of the most brilliant sages in training that we have. Orpheon achieved the highest level of apprenticeship in less than two years, and I may soon promote him to journeysage. I do not know what I would do without him.”
The younger man gave the sage a nod of thanks, and Vic could tell by Orpheon’s smug expression that he had no doubt as to his status in the fourth level… whatever that was.
“What’s the Citadel?” Gwen asked. “Some sort of training program?”
Rubicas answered, “It is a place of learning, a center of knowledge and enlightenment.”
Vic grimaced. “Oh. You mean a school?”
Lyssandra brushed her fingertips along his forearm, tasting his knowledge and memories. She laughed. “Oh, no! Schools like those are for little children. The Citadel is entirely voluntary, a place of growth and enrichment.”
“More like a university, then?” Gwen asked.
Lyssandra touched her fingertips to Gwen’s hand and read the thought in her mind. “Closer… but not precisely. Those who study at the Citadel stay as long as they choose in order to reach their desired level of knowledge. A novice may work to attain the rank of apprentice, journeysage, neosage, sage, or master sage. I am a second-level apprentice in Translation and Diplomacy. Perhaps you do not have a similar concept for —”
“Surely that can wait,” Rubicas interrupted, still fixated on the problem they posed. “We wish to clarify the method by which Gwenya and Viccus came to be here at all. How did the crystal door open? We cannot be certain what allowed you to pass through.”
“Um, what door?” Vic looked around.
“The crystal door that Orpheon and I were hoping to create. We were using the rarest and most potent type of aja crystal, brought here from Afirik in hopes of establishing a new crystal door in the center of Elantya. If all had gone as planned, we would have brought a Key sage directly from Chian. Regrettably, the crystals all caught fire at once and poured out multicolored smoke, so we were unable to open a door after all. But you two appeared. Hmm, so something did go right, did it not?”
“And something went wrong, too.” Orpheon pointed to the scorch marks on the marble floor. “Those were very valuable crystals.”
“Yes,” Rubicas mused. “Still, there must be a Key. What was it that allowed these children to pass through? Hmm. Something on the other side?”
Vic was about to point out that at fourteen they weren’t exactly children, when Gwen said, “Maybe my uncle’s crystals and mirrors tapped into your complex array here and leapfrogged us into the middle of your experiment.”
Orpheon gave Gwen a slow smile. “Or perhaps it was your xyridium medallions?”
Rubicas nodded. “It may also be related to the star aja crystals, which we had never tried for this purpose before.”
“In other words, it could have been a thousand things,” Vic said.
Gwen’s shoulders slumped. “You can send us back home, can’t you?”
“Perhaps,” Rubicas said. “If we could recreate the conditions. Hmm.”
Orpheon shook his head. “These were the only star crystals we had, and now they are ruined. Few other sages around the city have star aja, but we have been anticipating a new shipment for some time. The trading vessel has not yet arrived. It was due to bring both the star aja and a new instructor from Afirik four days ago.”
“Can’t we use some other kind of crystal?” Gwen persisted.
Rubicas blinked his inscrutable gray eyes. “If the door opened only because of the star aja…”
“Then we must wait until our shipment arrives,” Orpheon finished.
“If, however, the power surge came from the crystals arranged by your own sage —”
“My father,” Vic corrected.
Rubicas continued as if he hadn’t heard him, “If he linked with the crystals in this world to open a new and unexpected door, then we must re-create the experiment. Do you think he will try again on his side?”
“He won’t give up on us,” Vic said stubbornly.