Tent World

Chapter Seven--The Mighty Luxor

The light, flickering from the torch carried by the two boys, cast shadows across the steps, and it gave Cheryl renewed courage. Wendy pushed passed her and ascended the stairs easily. Cheryl watched and marveled at her sister's confidence, but at the same time, she was embarrassed, afraid that her fear was showing.

Slowly, she felt her own composure return, and hugging the wall, she forced her feet from one step to the next. Shortly, she stood on the platform, breathing heavily.

"I'm glad that's over!" Cheryl exclaimed. She leaned against the wall, not trusting her legs.

"I felt the same way when I climbed it," Johnny said, smiling warmly. "You're not from here, are you?"

"No," Cheryl said. "You aren't either, are you?"

"No." He smiled again, and creases formed at the edge of his brown eyes, and a single dimple appeared on his right cheek.

Cheryl felt a sudden liking for him. He looked her age, and even in the flickering light of the torch, she saw a face she believed she could trust. "I'm Cheryl, and this is my sister, Wendy," she said, pointing toward her sister. "Where are you from?"

"My brother and I are from Los Angeles, California," Roy said. Shorter than his brother, he looked more like Wendy's age. His untrained brown hair fell over his forehead and into his eyes.

"Well, at least we're from the same planet," Cheryl said.

"That's not all," Wendy said excitedly. "Don't you see?"

"See what?" Roy asked.

"We were brought here for a reason," Wendy said.

"I hadn't thought of that," Johnny said. "I guess I thought it was a cosmic thing. You know, a rip in the space-time continuum."

"This isn't Star Trek," Cheryl observed.

"Someone wants us here," Wendy said.

"Maybe, Wendy. Maybe not," Cheryl said and deliberately turned away from her sister. "Johnny, tell me, how did you get here?"

"I don't know, and it doesn't make sense," Johnny said. "We were at a shopping mall when an earthquake hit."

"Yeah," Roy interrupted, "the buildings started collapsing, so we ran into the parking garage."

"We thought it would be safer, but it started to collapse, too," Johnny said. "I thought we'd had it. Dust filled the air, and we started coughing."

"It was amazing," Roy said. "When the dust cleared, we were in a forest, and that's it." He finished his story with a shrug.

"Well, that's it, except we walked awhile before we were found by the cliff dwellers," Johnny added. "How did you get here?"

Cheryl told how she and her sister had run into the laundry room during a storm, and when they opened the door, they found themselves standing in a forest.

"I don't understand what's going on," Johnny said after listening carefully.

"I do," Wendy said, "if you'd just listen."

"She thinks she has all the answers," Cheryl said with a sniff. "You should have heard her when she came back the first time."

"The first time?" Johnny asked with surprise. "You've been here before?"