Chapter 16: Chapter 16: The Steam Pits

Chleo stared at the Pits. There were no distinct edges. The ground lay smooth until it didn’t, pockets of collapsed earth giving a rough outline. Steam hung in the perfumed air. The smell reminded her of Sugar Shoppe… if Mr. Mungow hosted a roast and had exploding, sticky molten sugar hidden under his floorboards.

She edged a few steps closer. The glow from the heated Dancing Lava reflected off the steam. Clumps of the precious liquid hovered, cooling as they waited for another steam blast to heat them and make them rise.

A few drifted down, too cool to stay aloft. They hit an invisible barrier and continued their fall in the opposite direction. She still couldn’t tell what made the lava rise and fall within the confines of the invisible boundary.

Clear liquid coated the ground at random within the danger zone the Lava back to its naturally state. Whoever discovered a way to walk through without dying would make a fortune.

The ground rumbled. A spray of soil and rock erupted off to the right. Seconds later, another blasted to their left, steam rushing up to the sky. Chleo and Dai dropped to a knee, Dai wobbling a bit unable to fully bend her leg, and covered their heads.

The sprinkle of returning debris landed farther up the field.

“That was quite the welcome,” Dai laughed, back to her cheerful self. Their chat over breakfast was all but forgotten.

“Are you sure this will work?” Mic asked from the bird.

Chleo grabbed her watch from her pocket. “Don’t worry, I’ve done this before.” She tried for a confident smile. It ended as a grimace.

Flipping the cover open, she clicked the watch crown. Half of the nob disappeared inside the case. Four gears popped out, one per side, each holding a clear cylinder at its center. Chleo closed the cover. Slowly, liquid seeped out of the tubes solidifying as it touched air. The Melting Metal shaped itself into four propellers the same size as the watch.

Chleo released the ring attaching the pocket watch to her belt. Around the surface lay grooves that she split apart creating four separate rings. She fit two on her left hand and two on her right. The main chain untwisted into four strings leading to each finger.

She pulled her goggles down and held the watch up, the engraved owl stared back between the propellers.

“For luck,” her mom had said when she’d asked. She hoped it held.

Chleo blew air through the propellers, kickstarting them. Once in motion, the internal gears worked to keep them going. The watch flew out of her hands pulling against the thin chains.

She worked it like a kite, allowing a bit of chain to un-spiral from each ring sending it in the direction she wanted. It flew away, working to break loose from the strings, assisting her in the task. With years of practice backing her, she flew the watch across the Pits.

With every explosion, she swerved, reacting as if the strings were an extension of herself. Halfway across, she lifted a thumb to spin the gear on her goggles. The world magnified. She worked the watch into one of the tallest trees, guiding it around the branch she’d used during her first adventure across the Pits.

Chleo hit the kill switch on one of the rings and saw her watch fall still. She tugged on the strings. They pulled tight, the watch caught in the tree.

Nodding, she reverted her goggles and pushed them onto her head. “You’re up, Mic,” she said as she took off the rings and clasped them back together.

“Right.” A metal arm shot from the floating ball and grabbed the newly formed ring. He zoomed to the top of a nearby tree and attached it around the trunk.

“Are you sure you can climb it?” she asked Dai, eyeing her leg.

“I should be fine,” she said, shooting her a small smile. “Scaling a tree is much easier than a cliff.”

Chleo was skeptical, but she nodded anyway. “The chain should be high enough. The steam will be warm but won’t scald. It’s the lava we’ll need to avoid.” Her hand reached up to touch the small burn on her shoulder. “It’s molten, and it sticks.”

Dai limped a couple of steps closer and rested a hand on her shoulder. Chleo forced herself not to flinch, the stories she’d heard in town still ringing in her ears. She turned her thoughts to fresh fish and borrowed sleeping bags instead. “We’ll be fine. Like you said, you’ve done this before.”

Chleo swallowed staring at the barely visible chain reaching across the Pits. Yes, but she never dreamed she’d do it again.

She stepped up to the tree and started to climb. For the first few branches, Chleo lingered ready to help Dai if her leg gave her trouble. It wasn’t needed. Dai danced up from branch to branch letting her injured limb dangle behind as the others did the work.

Chleo pulled herself to the top, a spike of confidence chasing away some of her fear. One look out at the purple glow reflecting off of the steam and it returned. She cleared her throat.

“Right, well.” She paused. She really didn’t want to do this. “The chain is strong enough to hold our weight but too small. It would cut our hands, so last time I used these.” She pulled a set of slings and rollers from her belt. “I used one for each limb, but there are two of us so…”

“One for our hands and one for our feet,” Dai finished for her, flashing a quick smile. She leaned against the tree’s trunk and left her lame leg to hang.

Chleo nodded attaching the rollers to the chain and let the slings hang down. “This loop here is the brake. I keep a hand on it at all times and only squeeze in a foot if I need to. If there’s a blast keep going. Only stop if you have to and remember avoid-”

“The lava.” Dai smiled at her. “It’ll be ok Chleo. We’ll be across before you know it.”

Chleo pressed her lips together trying to return the smile. Casting one last glance at Dai, she looped her hands through the first sling and held tight. She lifted a leg into the second sling and pushed off with the other.

The chain dipped above, her weight shooting the rollers across the metal. Within seconds, she was over the Pits, Dai racing after.

They reached the center with only a few distant explosions, their weight carrying them. The momentum took them another fourth of the way before they slowed. A blast erupted somewhere behind them. The chain rocked almost ripping the sling from Chleo’s hands.

“No, no, no,” she muttered as the disruption slowed her momentum further. It was too early. Eventually, she stopped then began slipping back toward Dai. “Oh, come on,” she complained, pulling her brake. They still had a third of the way to go.

She forced herself to breathe, taking turns to wipe her sweaty hands on her shirt. It would be fine. They were fine. Dirt and soil from a previous blast rained down on her. She closed her eyes and waited for it to pass. Rude… and right in the middle of her self pep talk, too. Shaking her head, she began to move.

She reached her free foot up to catch the brake. Holding it down she released the brake on her handhold and pushed it farther up the line, reapplying the handbrake when she stretched as far as she could. She released her foot and curled bringing the roller closer before pulling her foot again. Little by little, she began to shimmy across the chain like an inchworm. Dai mimicked her.

It was grueling work. Chleo liked to think she was fairly able. There weren’t many labor intensive jobs for a girl on Luna, much less a relo girl, to test herself, but she never had any trouble carrying crates full of apples from Ol’ Man Jimmy’s to the Shack or lifting the heavier gears into place for her larger projects, but this… this was making her rethink her assessment. Everything was shaking, her arms, her legs, the chain. The farther they went, the steeper it got, and worse, it never seemed to end.

Eventually, Chleo spotted the tree. They were almost there. Just a little farther, and they would make it. She could rest. They would be over and out and Chleo would never have to see the Pits again… and, she added with a happy realization, they’d do it without encountering a single bla-

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The ground erupted beneath her. She flinched, pulling the brakes. Steam swallowed her, hot and suffocating. Her lungs burned for air as glowing pieces of lava rushed up around her. It was a maelstrom of light and sound throwing her in a deadly kaleidoscope.

Then it was over, the pressure from below gone. Her lungs expanded drinking in the air. It was sweet and smokey, delicious. Her relief distracted her. Sweat built up by the temperature and nerves disrupted her grip. Her hands, exhausted from holding the unfamiliar position, loosened. The sling slipped from Chleo’s hand, her foot following. For the second time in two days, she fell.

Chleo thought she felt the hint of a leash around her waist. The ground raced toward her, and the phantom pressure built. It was familiar, but not from a leash. Mic. The realization hit her as she hit the ground, trying to roll with her momentum.

Chleo flipped and twisted grabbing at anything that would help slow her. Nothing worked as she slid closer to one of the pits. Her legs tipped over the edge first, her body following. Slick and sticky, cool lava slipped through her fingers, her arms the only part still outside of the hole, until they caught a root half exposed by erosion. She yanked to a stop. Gritting her teeth, she dangled over the crater.

“Mic,” she said, “a little help.”

“On it,” he said from somewhere behind her.

The phantom pressure returned. She used the extra leverage to pull her aching body up over the lip, flipping onto her back. Her vision danced. Black and purple warred as she collected her bearings. She turned her head to stare at the ball floating protectively above.

“We have to stop meeting like this,” she said.

“Stop falling to your death, and we’ll see.” Chleo wasn’t sure how he conveyed a smirk through his voice, but it worked.

She glanced toward the chain. Dai was almost to the tree, her lame leg working the brake. Good.

“Get up,” Mic’s voice rang out of the ball. “We have to move.”

But falling hurt, and the ground… well, wasn’t exactly comfortable, but it was better than trying to stand with the new collection of bruises she’d just earned. Just five more minutes wouldn’t hur—An explosion rocked near her.

“Yep, okay, I’m up.” She stumbled to her feet and launched into a sprint.

Adrenaline did incredible things to the human body, Will told her on a regular basis. She’d have to agree. A spray of soil rained down on her head. She jerked to the left, her foot narrowly missing a large gouge in the earth. Instead, it slipped on some dormant lava. She adjusted and managed to stay upright pushing herself faster.

The narrow walkways between holes were littered with the dormant liquid. In some places, it felt more like running on ice than grass. She forced her unsteady legs to keep pace.

Chleo could see beautiful, level, safe ground a couple dozen meters away. It was lava-free. It was crater-free. It was covered with D.I.M. agents. Chleo’s strides faltered. Another blast sounded behind her.

Staying wasn’t an option. They were going to arrest her.

“Mic,” she said as her pace slowed to a jog.

“I’m here,” the air in front of her said. He was invisible again. She wasn’t the only one who noticed the agents.

“I’m going to… be arrested-” she said between breathes.

“No,” he interrupted. “We’ll think of something.”

She shook her head, trying to ignore how tired she was. Talking while running was surprisingly difficult.

“You need to… help Dai.”

The agents were gathered to intercept Chleo, the tree all but forgotten. Dai was almost to the top. Chleo would stall. She would bite, kick, and fight to keep their attention. Dai and Mic could use it to get away. It wasn’t a great plan, but it would work.

“Chleo, I’m not leaving you.” He sounded hurt, like a puppy sent outside.

“Mic,” she bit out, “if you don’t, they’ll catch us both. One of us has to get away and get help.” She slowed to a stop, meters from safety. The agents paced the border like caged monkeys staring at a banana. “You helped me survive the river. The fall, the rocks, you guided me through both while she lay with her light fading.” She turned staring at the spot she imagined his bird was hovering. “It’s her turn.”

There was a pause. “Low blow, Chleo, low blow… Fine,” he said, “but no dying. I still have to teach you how to build a drone.”

Chleo hummed her agreement, not knowing if she was lying. After another hesitation, the air shifted in front of her as he flew away. She was alone.

An explosion blasted to her right. One of the bridges between craters crumbled into nothing. She needed to go. Chleo sprinted forward. It was time to leave the Pits.

The agents straightened, waiting for her to choose her last bridge. She ran to the closest, not wanting to risk any more time in the danger zone. It was thinner than others. There wasn’t much room to maneuver and led straight into the D.I.M. agents’ waiting arms. A part of the plan or not, dread filled her at the thought of an arrest.

The ground leveled. Craters shrank then disappeared. As she crossed the unspoken barrier, arms grabbed her from all sides. Two on her shoulders. A set around her middle. One agent grabbed for her neck. She bit him.

“Rat,” he yelled as she glimpsed red trailing down his thumb. Someone slapped her.

She fought, keeping their attention. They wrestled her down to her knees. Sneaking a look at the tree, she searched the branches. Empty. Not even her watch remained.

Chleo let a small smile find her face. Cabbage ears and oversized eyes wiped it away. The clownish man glowered down at her wiping blood off his thumb. The agent from the Shack, the man who’d checked her badge, his name circling in the middle of his gear at the same rate as her own, Rupert Miles.

“Some people want to speak with you,” he said pulling out his nightstick, “so I have to keep you alive and jaw intact.” He snapped it open. “They never said anything about the rest of you.”

Chleo’s breath caught. That didn’t sound promising. As the first strike landed, her eyes strayed to the branch where her watch once hung, an owl proudly stamped across its cover. She couldn’t help but think her luck had run out.

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