Cave Canem

Beth climbed out of the Imagination Station. The motor whirred as she stepped back. The machine disappeared.

Beth looked around. She was in a garden villa. A small fountain bubbled nearby. Mount Vesuvius belched out smoke in the distance. “I’m in the right place,” she said.

She coughed. The air was sour and ashy. Her lungs felt as if they were burning.

She put a hand to her chest and touched soft fabric. She was wearing a green Roman dress and leather sandals.

A dog barked nearby. Beth turned just as a white dog, jaws open, lunged at her.

Beth cried out. She took a step backward. She raised her arms to shield her face.

The dog leaped on its hind legs. Then it suddenly yelped. It had reached the end of its chain. The dog tumbled back.

Beth sighed in relief. “Are you all right?” she asked.

The dog stood up and wagged its tail.

“Cave canem,” she said, practicing her Latin for “beware of dog.”

Then Beth saw something unusual in the grass. “A cowboy hat and a saddlebag!” she said to the dog. “In first-century Rome?”

The dog chomped on the hat as if to answer. It shook the hat and gave a playful growl.

Beth felt sorry for the dog. It was trapped. The volcano would surely kill it.

“Easy now,” she said. She took a step closer.

The dog wagged its tail.

She moved close enough to pat its head.

The dog licked her hand.

“Good doggie,” Beth whispered. “Please don’t bite me.”

Beth took off the dog’s collar and chain. She dropped them in the grass.

Suddenly the dog grabbed the hat in its mouth. It bolted out of the garden.

“You’re welcome,” she called after it.

Beth wondered if Patrick was in the house. She went to the front door. It was slightly ajar. “Patrick,” she called.

No one answered.

She called a few more times. But she heard only the sound of her echo. Patrick must be somewhere else, she thought. She went back to the fountain. She picked up the saddlebag. Patrick might need this, she thought.

Beth left the villa grounds and followed a path downhill. She walked a few hundred yards. Then she came to a fork in the road.

To the left or the right? Which way did Patrick take? she wondered.

Patrick and Junius ran to the Forum.

Patrick slowed when he reached the center of the lawn. Few people remained. He studied the buildings.

“Which one has the treasury?” he asked Junius.

Junius pointed to one of the largest buildings. It had more than a dozen white columns in front. “It’s inside and under guard,” Junius said.

Patrick took a step toward the temple.

KABOOM!

The ground rolled. Patrick felt as if he were on a lurching ship. He staggered but managed to stay standing.

Patrick’s stomach turned. He felt ill. He leaned against an empty pillar.

Patrick looked toward the mountain. The peak had blown off. Black smoke and fire spouted from its mouth. Rocks the size of baseballs hurled through the air. Melted rock spilled down the mountainsides.

Patrick felt wave after wave of heat.

Junius stood beside Patrick. “Look at that!” he said.

The ground kept shaking. Patrick looked in front of him. The columns on a small temple cracked and collapsed. The roof toppled and fell to the ground.

People screamed and ran.

“We have to find Cosmus,” Patrick said.

Junius smiled. His eyes were bright —even joyous.

“Let’s go,” Junius said. He rushed toward the temple of Jupiter.

How long before the lava spills over the city? Patrick wondered. He also wondered about the Imagination Station. Would it appear in time to rescue him?

Beth headed toward the city. A layer of ash covered the road. She took a step. A small cloud of gray puffed up under her feet.

KABOOM!

The ground jerked sideways. Beth stumbled sideways. She fell.

The ash blew into her face as she hit the ground. She groaned. Her side hurt.

She pushed herself up on her elbows. Her breaths came in wheezy gasps.

Plop!

A hot ball of rock landed a few inches from her hand.

She gasped and rolled away from it.

Another ball of fire hit near her feet.

The sky was raining fire!