Read Online Spirits of Ash and Foam by Greg Weisman - Free Book Online Page B

sudden, discomforting rush of vertigo. He was afraid of losing his balance and tumbling forward. He grabbed for the edge of the wall, but his hand passed through; there was no way to anchor himself. He caught a glimpse of the streetlamp clicking on below before yanking himself back inside—mostly through sheer force of will. “Okay, I didn’t like that!”
    â€œWalls are harder than doors?” Rain asked.
    â€œNo, going through felt the same. But I was hanging off the edge there, and I nearly fell.”
    Rain turned to Charlie. “He nearly fell.”
    Charlie frowned and shook his head. “Wait a minute. This is exactly what I’ve always wondered about in movies. Ghosts can move through walls, so how come they don’t drop down through the floor? I mean, is he even standing on the floor?”
    Both ’Bastian and Rain instantly looked down. Then Rain abruptly sprung off the bed into a low crouch to study ’Bastian’s feet. She let out a tiny gasp. “He’s not. He’s sort of floating. I mean he’s near the floor, but one foot’s a bit above it and the other’s a little ways … in it!”
    Charlie smiled and even made a fist, as if he had just scored a point. “So the floor. It’s really just a habit!”
    Rain turned to a stunned ’Bastian. “It’s like when you were in the water yesterday. You just stood there. Upright. Like you were on a platform or something that wasn’t there at all.”
    â€œThat’s right,” Bastian remembered. “I could even feel the water moving through me. And when I wanted to sink down or float up, I just … did.”
    â€œSee, he can control it,” Charlie said, almost as if he had heard the dead old man’s words. “’Bastian, try to sink down through the floor. Just concentrate and see if you can.”
    Now even ’Bastian had caught the bug of the kids’ excitement. He took another breathless breath and tried to focus on DOWN . And …
    â€œIt’s working,” Rain called out. “He’s sliding right through the floor!”
    â€œI knew it!” Charlie whisper-shouted.
    â€™Bastian allowed himself to pass all the way down and into the currently deserted lobby of the Nitaino. He wondered—if he kept going, would he pass right through the Earth itself to the other side? But just shy of the lobby floor, he was brought up short by a tug he recognized.
    Seconds later, Rain turned to Charlie. “He’s back.”
    â€œI couldn’t go very far,”’Bastian told her. “The zemi . I’m still tied to it. Can’t seem to move more than ten yards or so away from it. In any direction.”
    â€œWhat about up?” Charlie asked.
    Rain stared at him. Now it really did seem like Charlie was listening in.
    Charlie stared back. “He tried down. See if he can go up. You know, see if he can fly.”
    â€œWell,” Rain said, “he just came up from the lobby.”
    Charlie considered this. “Is that the same thing? I mean, I’m asking. I’m not sure.”
    Rain turned to ’Bastian, who squinted his eyes and thought UP .
    This was tougher going. He rose four feet or so off the floor, feeling the whole time like he was swimming through molasses. After considerable mental effort, his head poked through Rain’s ceiling, past a layer of insulation, and through the floor of his own old room.
    Below, Rain watched his progress. She could still see him from about the waist down, and it suddenly registered that her Papa’s upper half was in his room. His room, which was soon to be her room. She’d have to tell him— ask him— soon. He sank back down. Soon, but not right now.
    â€œUp is harder,” he said as he descended to the floor.
    She turned to Charlie to bring him up to speed. “Up is harder. And he’s still tied to the zemi.