noticed a large shadow approaching from the Earth side.
“What’s that?” he asked.
“Something big,” the Headmaster replied.
The thing that cast the shadow drew closer and closer until it fell through the Anomaly and into the Nether.
It can’t be…, Charlie thought. It’s a humpback whale!
The great creature plummeted down, writhing and twisting desperately through the air until it finally crashed into the ruins of an old plane in a tremendous explosion of steel and blubber.
“That poor thing!” Brooke said, clutching her chest.
“It’s unfortunate, but it happens,” the Headmaster replied. “Most sea creatures sense the Anomaly and avoid it, but occasionally one will get trapped. I would have opened a portal beneath it and allowed it to fall back into Earth’s ocean, but you can’t portal anywhere near the Anomaly—hence the need for the Guardian boat.” She gestured toward their odd little craft. “It’s an unconventional way to get here, to be sure, but it’s also, amazingly, the safest. Without it, you’d have to portal into the 5th Ring and fight your way here through Class-5 monsters, as I did earlier. Not pleasant.”
“Definitely not,” Violet agreed.
“So the Anomaly is why the Bermuda Triangle gets such a bad rap?” Theodore said. “Why radar goes funky here, why so many people get lost and disappear. The mystery is solved!”
“Indeed it is, Mr. Dagget. The Anomaly allows things to cross from Earth into the Nether.”
“Yeah,” Charlie said. “And I’m guessing it also does the reverse: allow things to cross from the Nether into Earth. Things like monsters. Things like the Named.”
The Headmaster nodded. “That’s correct, Mr. Benjamin. It would…if it weren’t protected by the Guardian.”
“Where is it? The Guardian, I mean.”
“Come,” the Headmaster replied. “I’ll show you.”
The Guardian wasn’t at all what Charlie expected.
Weak and fragile, it was the size of a child, with wide, watery eyes and translucent orange skin that revealed pulsing blue veins beneath. Its mouth was small, like a baby’s, full of tiny, white teeth that shined like little pearls. It crossed its long, spindly arms over its thin chest and shivered, wheezing asthmatically.
“Hold me,” it said in a whispery voice. “I’m cold.”
The Guardian lived in the captain’s quarters of a ruined warship. Even though the BT Graveyard was a spooky place, someone (probably the Headmaster herself) had tried to brighten this little area up. There were pillows scattered about and pictures of warm, exotic locales—Charlie recognized Hawaii as one of them. A chessboard sat on the floor next to the Guardian’s bed, which was actually just a pile of blankets, and a game was in progress. Somehow, the effort to make the place look more cheerful had exactly the opposite effect: Charlie thought he’d never seen something so sad and lonely.
“Won’t you hold me?” the Guardian asked again. “I would like to be held.”
“It’s so little,” Violet said, walking toward the frail creature, arms outstretched. She desperately wanted to hug it and comfort it.
“It’s dying, Ms. Sweet,” the Headmaster said. “And if you touch it, you’ll kill it.”
Violet stopped, but it clearly took an enormous amount of willpower. There was just something about the frail being, something almost supernatural, that made you want to take it into your arms and protect it.
“Hold me,” the Guardian pleaded. “Please…make me warm.”
“That’s enough, Hank,” the Headmaster gently scolded. “You know they can’t touch you. None of us can.”
“Hank?” Theodore said with a laugh. “The Guardian’s name is Hank?”
“I don’t know what its actual name is,” the Headmaster replied. “I’m not even sure it has one. But I used to have a dog named Hank that I liked very much, so…”
She shrugged, as if that said it all.
“You look kind,” the Guardian whispered, turning to
“What’s that?” he asked.
“Something big,” the Headmaster replied.
The thing that cast the shadow drew closer and closer until it fell through the Anomaly and into the Nether.
It can’t be…, Charlie thought. It’s a humpback whale!
The great creature plummeted down, writhing and twisting desperately through the air until it finally crashed into the ruins of an old plane in a tremendous explosion of steel and blubber.
“That poor thing!” Brooke said, clutching her chest.
“It’s unfortunate, but it happens,” the Headmaster replied. “Most sea creatures sense the Anomaly and avoid it, but occasionally one will get trapped. I would have opened a portal beneath it and allowed it to fall back into Earth’s ocean, but you can’t portal anywhere near the Anomaly—hence the need for the Guardian boat.” She gestured toward their odd little craft. “It’s an unconventional way to get here, to be sure, but it’s also, amazingly, the safest. Without it, you’d have to portal into the 5th Ring and fight your way here through Class-5 monsters, as I did earlier. Not pleasant.”
“Definitely not,” Violet agreed.
“So the Anomaly is why the Bermuda Triangle gets such a bad rap?” Theodore said. “Why radar goes funky here, why so many people get lost and disappear. The mystery is solved!”
“Indeed it is, Mr. Dagget. The Anomaly allows things to cross from Earth into the Nether.”
“Yeah,” Charlie said. “And I’m guessing it also does the reverse: allow things to cross from the Nether into Earth. Things like monsters. Things like the Named.”
The Headmaster nodded. “That’s correct, Mr. Benjamin. It would…if it weren’t protected by the Guardian.”
“Where is it? The Guardian, I mean.”
“Come,” the Headmaster replied. “I’ll show you.”
The Guardian wasn’t at all what Charlie expected.
Weak and fragile, it was the size of a child, with wide, watery eyes and translucent orange skin that revealed pulsing blue veins beneath. Its mouth was small, like a baby’s, full of tiny, white teeth that shined like little pearls. It crossed its long, spindly arms over its thin chest and shivered, wheezing asthmatically.
“Hold me,” it said in a whispery voice. “I’m cold.”
The Guardian lived in the captain’s quarters of a ruined warship. Even though the BT Graveyard was a spooky place, someone (probably the Headmaster herself) had tried to brighten this little area up. There were pillows scattered about and pictures of warm, exotic locales—Charlie recognized Hawaii as one of them. A chessboard sat on the floor next to the Guardian’s bed, which was actually just a pile of blankets, and a game was in progress. Somehow, the effort to make the place look more cheerful had exactly the opposite effect: Charlie thought he’d never seen something so sad and lonely.
“Won’t you hold me?” the Guardian asked again. “I would like to be held.”
“It’s so little,” Violet said, walking toward the frail creature, arms outstretched. She desperately wanted to hug it and comfort it.
“It’s dying, Ms. Sweet,” the Headmaster said. “And if you touch it, you’ll kill it.”
Violet stopped, but it clearly took an enormous amount of willpower. There was just something about the frail being, something almost supernatural, that made you want to take it into your arms and protect it.
“Hold me,” the Guardian pleaded. “Please…make me warm.”
“That’s enough, Hank,” the Headmaster gently scolded. “You know they can’t touch you. None of us can.”
“Hank?” Theodore said with a laugh. “The Guardian’s name is Hank?”
“I don’t know what its actual name is,” the Headmaster replied. “I’m not even sure it has one. But I used to have a dog named Hank that I liked very much, so…”
She shrugged, as if that said it all.
“You look kind,” the Guardian whispered, turning to
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