Read Online The Pilgrims of Rayne by D.J. MacHale - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: D.J. MacHale
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ran to the doorway to see the train was jumping the tracks! If it was full of passengers, it would be a disaster.
Through the tortured sound of metal being twisted, the big train bucked and rocked, moments from flipping over.There was nothing I could do but watch through the open doorway. I flashed back to the disaster of the Hindenburg. Would this go down in history as a tragedy on that level? Was this my fault? Was my presence on First Earth going to be the cause of a new epic disaster?
I saw the wheels near me lift off the track as they flew by. I held my breath. The brakes shrieked. But then the wheels came crashing back down onto the track. It wasnât going over. Its forward movement was slowing. People werenât going to die. The train groaned to a stop. This was going to be a massive bottleneck that would mess up the subway system for who knew how long, but it wasnât going to be a disaster.
I had to get my head back together, fast. What should I do? Hide? Flume out of there? Run after Courtney? I took a deep breath to calm myself. The dado. I had to get rid of the dado, or what was left of it. The smell of hot oil and brake fluid filled the tunnel. I felt safe enough to poke my head out to survey the carnage. Looking both ways, I saw that the train had only three cars. Several yards to my right, the wheels of the engine were off the track. The other cars had somehow managed to stay gripped to the steel, but this train wasnât going anywhere. I figured the dado had gotten caught under the engineâs wheels, causing the derailing. Soon there would be all sorts of emergency people flooding the tunnel. Theyâd find a wreck, and a mysterious robot that would seem as if it had dropped in from another planet. There was nothing I could do about the wreck, but I had to hide the evidence of what had caused it.
Smoke filled the tunnel, burning my eyes. Nobody had left the train cars yet. They must have all been in shock. Or too afraid to move. I figured Iâd have a short window of opportunity. I moved as quickly as I could without tripping or bashing myself into something. I made my way toward the engine,while scanning the ground for any signs of the dado. I didnât see anything at first and had the fleeting thought that the robot had survived. I had no idea how strong the dado was. It was definitely solid enough to derail a train. Would it be strong enough to walk away after getting slammed like that?
I had only gotten a few feet when I saw, well, a few feet. Lying next to the track were the legs of the dado. It wasnât moving. It was done. I didnât appreciate just how done it was until I grabbed the feet and started to pull it back toward the gate. The dado was a lot lighter than I expected. Thatâs because I was only pulling half a dado. Yeah, gross. The robot had been cut in two at the waist. I dropped the legs, feeling all sorts of disgusted. I had to force myself to get a grip. This wasnât a person. It was a machine. It wasnât any more human than a toaster oven.
I looked under the engine to see the upper half. Okay, so maybe it was a lot more gruesome than seeing a toaster oven cut in half. But still. I couldnât let the fact that I wanted to puke stop me. I was already hearing the shouts of people coming from the subway station, calling to the passengers to see if they were okay. I had to move quickly. I grabbed the legs again and dragged them to the gate. As I pulled the legs along, I noticed again that the clothing was flimsy and rotted. The security dados on Quillan wore crisp, green uniforms. This clothing was so threadbare, it crumbled in my hands. I didnât have the time to try and guess what it might mean. There was no telling how much time I had to ditch my half friend.
I got the legs to the gate, shoved them inside, and ran back for the rest. Moving the upper half wasnât as easy. Not that it was heavier, but it felt more like moving a real
Through the tortured sound of metal being twisted, the big train bucked and rocked, moments from flipping over.There was nothing I could do but watch through the open doorway. I flashed back to the disaster of the Hindenburg. Would this go down in history as a tragedy on that level? Was this my fault? Was my presence on First Earth going to be the cause of a new epic disaster?
I saw the wheels near me lift off the track as they flew by. I held my breath. The brakes shrieked. But then the wheels came crashing back down onto the track. It wasnât going over. Its forward movement was slowing. People werenât going to die. The train groaned to a stop. This was going to be a massive bottleneck that would mess up the subway system for who knew how long, but it wasnât going to be a disaster.
I had to get my head back together, fast. What should I do? Hide? Flume out of there? Run after Courtney? I took a deep breath to calm myself. The dado. I had to get rid of the dado, or what was left of it. The smell of hot oil and brake fluid filled the tunnel. I felt safe enough to poke my head out to survey the carnage. Looking both ways, I saw that the train had only three cars. Several yards to my right, the wheels of the engine were off the track. The other cars had somehow managed to stay gripped to the steel, but this train wasnât going anywhere. I figured the dado had gotten caught under the engineâs wheels, causing the derailing. Soon there would be all sorts of emergency people flooding the tunnel. Theyâd find a wreck, and a mysterious robot that would seem as if it had dropped in from another planet. There was nothing I could do about the wreck, but I had to hide the evidence of what had caused it.
Smoke filled the tunnel, burning my eyes. Nobody had left the train cars yet. They must have all been in shock. Or too afraid to move. I figured Iâd have a short window of opportunity. I moved as quickly as I could without tripping or bashing myself into something. I made my way toward the engine,while scanning the ground for any signs of the dado. I didnât see anything at first and had the fleeting thought that the robot had survived. I had no idea how strong the dado was. It was definitely solid enough to derail a train. Would it be strong enough to walk away after getting slammed like that?
I had only gotten a few feet when I saw, well, a few feet. Lying next to the track were the legs of the dado. It wasnât moving. It was done. I didnât appreciate just how done it was until I grabbed the feet and started to pull it back toward the gate. The dado was a lot lighter than I expected. Thatâs because I was only pulling half a dado. Yeah, gross. The robot had been cut in two at the waist. I dropped the legs, feeling all sorts of disgusted. I had to force myself to get a grip. This wasnât a person. It was a machine. It wasnât any more human than a toaster oven.
I looked under the engine to see the upper half. Okay, so maybe it was a lot more gruesome than seeing a toaster oven cut in half. But still. I couldnât let the fact that I wanted to puke stop me. I was already hearing the shouts of people coming from the subway station, calling to the passengers to see if they were okay. I had to move quickly. I grabbed the legs again and dragged them to the gate. As I pulled the legs along, I noticed again that the clothing was flimsy and rotted. The security dados on Quillan wore crisp, green uniforms. This clothing was so threadbare, it crumbled in my hands. I didnât have the time to try and guess what it might mean. There was no telling how much time I had to ditch my half friend.
I got the legs to the gate, shoved them inside, and ran back for the rest. Moving the upper half wasnât as easy. Not that it was heavier, but it felt more like moving a real
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