CHAPTER THIRTY

Rhipicera femorata

‘There’s Gerard!’ Novak let out a little cry and leant towards the wall of monitors. Darkus saw a bedroom. The butler was rising and going about the business of getting dressed. ‘Darkus, I can’t leave him here,’ she said. ‘Can we bring him with us?’

Darkus nodded. ‘Yes, although I’ve no idea how we’re going to get out of here.’

‘I think I’ve got that covered,’ Motty said. ‘There’s a beautiful helicopter out there, a Sikorsky S-92. They’re the best in the business, two hundred million dollars apiece.’

‘Can you fly that thing?’ Uncle Max asked, impressed.

Motty shrugged. ‘How different can it be from a plane?’

‘Don’t you need a key?’ Virginia asked.

‘No, cars start with keys, not helicopters.’ Motty chuckled. ‘If the doors have a locking system I’ll bet one of those will open them.’ She pointed to a rack of keys on the wall.

‘Motty will go outside and commandeer our escape vehicle.’ Uncle Max said, and Motty nodded.

‘I’m staying here,’ Bertolt said, stepping up to the desk of buttons and switches. ‘My leg would only slow me down, and I can help by communicating what I see on the screens – and I can control all the doors from here.’

‘What do those buttons do?’ Darkus asked.

‘This is power, I think.’ Bertolt waved at a grid of switches. ‘These are the lights, and this is the climate control system.’

‘The what?’

‘Look – here are the different domes, and this counter shows the oxygen percentage in the air. This is a thermostat for the whole Biome, but there’s also one for each dome, and I think this is a sprinkler system for watering the plants.’

Darkus’s mind was racing. ‘OK, this is what we are going to do. Bertolt will open all the doors between the beetle farm and freedom. Then find a way to turn the heating down in the big dome, right down, as cold as you can make it.’

Bertolt nodded. ‘I’m sure I can do that.’

‘And the oxygen, you need to bring it down to a normal level.’

‘20.95 per cent?’

‘Yes.’ Darkus nodded.

‘But why?’ Virginia asked. ‘We’ll lose our superpowers, and we may need them in a fight.’

‘Yes but if we have superpowers, then so does everyone else. If we dial the oxygen down to a normal level, it will give us a fighting chance, because beetles like it warm and oxygen-rich. Less oxygen and a colder temperature will slow down Lucretia Cutter and Lenka.’

‘Speaking of the bug bloke . . .’ Emma Lamb pointed. ‘Look.’

On one of the monitors, they could see Dr Lenka in a room full of giant emerald-green tiger beetles. He grabbed one of the largest beetles around the head and was strapping a muzzle over its jaws. They all watched, transfixed, as he lifted a bizarre-looking clear bubble with eight transparent tubes, like octopus tentacles, from a row of similar devices on the wall. He fixed it to the beetle’s head and plugged the tentacles into the beetle’s spiracles. A bag below the bubble helmet expanded.

‘What is that?’ Darkus said.

‘I believe . . .’ Uncle Max paused, ‘it’s an oxygen mask. The only thing I’ve ever seen that looked vaguely like it is a First World War horses’ gas mask.’

Dr Lenka leapt up on to the beetle’s back and with a whip that he held in his right hand he harried the beetle out of view.

‘He’s riding a giant beetle, like a stallion,’ Virginia said.

‘There he goes.’ Bertolt pointed at a different monitor. The tiger beetle was fast, speeding down a corridor, nimbly running upstairs.

‘The trapdoor’s opening.’ Emma Lamb pointed.

They all watched, spellbound, as Dr Lenka fled the Biome on the back of a giant tiger beetle wearing an oxygen mask.

‘Now I’ve seen everything.’ Uncle Max shook his head. ‘Well, at least we don’t have to worry about him eating us.’

‘What happened to make him . . .’ Emma searched for the words, ‘I mean how did he get like that? You know, half beetle.’

‘He pupated himself, hoping to please Mater,’ Novak explained. ‘He introduced the DNA of a carrion beetle into his own body and experienced metamorphosis.’

‘A carrion beetle?’ Darkus gasped.

Novak nodded. ‘That’s why he eats flesh.’

‘Wait.’ Darkus looked at Novak. ‘Do you know which beetle DNA Lucretia Cutter has?’

She nodded. ‘Titan.’

‘I knew it.’ Darkus was pleased that he’d guessed correctly.

‘And what about you?’ Virginia asked. ‘Do you know what beetle DNA you have?’

‘You are half beetle?’ Emma Lamb’s eyes grew wide. ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t know. You look so normal.’

‘Rhipicera femorata,’ Novak replied. ‘The feather-horned beetle.’

‘But you don’t have horns,’ Virginia said.

‘Actually,’ Novak tipped her head, so her chin touched her chest and her silver hair fell over her face, ‘I do.’ She lifted her antennae, and then her head, rolling back her human eyes and opening her compound ones.

‘Whoa!’ Darkus stared at Novak’s flagellate antennae, as silver and delicate as the finest lace hair, fanning out and twitching as they tasted the air.

‘You’re beautiful!’ Bertolt whispered, stepping forward and taking Novak’s hands.

‘That is seriously cool!’ Virginia shook her head in disbelief. ‘Can you do things? Can you see things? I mean, what is it like? Does it hurt to do the eye-rolling thing? I mean, how does that even work? Can you fly? Do you have elytra?’ She craned her neck to try and look at Novak’s back.

‘Virginia!’ Bertolt’s sharp bark silenced her. ‘Don’t be so rude.’

‘Sorry.’ Virginia looked shamefaced and bobbed her head apologetically. ‘But you are totally awesome, Novak.’

‘Thanks.’ Novak smiled bashfully and turned to Darkus. ‘I did what you said. I’ve been trying to build up my beetle senses. But it’s still very new, because I’ve covered it up for so long.’

Darkus stepped forward awkwardly, ‘You shouldn’t ever hide who you are. You’re brilliant.’

Novak’s smile grew into a wide beam. ‘Oh, thank you.’

‘Ahem,’ Uncle Max coughed politely, ‘Novak, you are lovely, but time is of the essence. Motty’s going for the chopper, Bertolt will stay here and man the screens. Darkus, what do you want us to do?’

‘I want to stay here with Bertolt,’ Emma said. ‘I can see everything that is happening from here, which will help when it comes to writing up this crazy story. Also, if Motty’s going to fire up the helicopter, I can help Bertolt get outside when we’re ready to go.’

Darkus nodded. ‘Good. Uncle Max, you come with me and Virginia.’

‘I’m coming with you. Your father will be wherever Mater is,’ Novak said, her silver antennae turning towards Darkus. ‘I can’t let you fight Mater alone, but I need to find Gerard first.’

Darkus dipped his head. ‘OK, Bertolt, keep your eyes peeled for Dad on the screens. Let me know where he is and we’ll head straight for him.’

‘Got it.’ Bertolt nodded.

Darkus let out a deep breath. ‘OK, good luck, everyone.’