The Hunt for Dark Infinity (The 13th Reality #2) Read Free Page A

look. It was a two-inch wide, red plastic suction cup. Attached to the back of the cup was a thin, silvery metal rod bent at a ninety-degree angle. The L-shaped rod was about the size of Tick’s index finger. Tick clasped the cup in one hand, then flicked the tip of the rod with his finger. The small rod spun so fast the metal became a circular blur of silver.
    Sofia flicked the rod again, watching it twirl. “Spinner. Master George is so brilliant when he names things.”
    “I wonder if it’s from Chu Industries,” Tick said. “Does it say that anywhere?”
    Sofia stopped the spinning rod and looked closer. “I don’t see anything.”
    “What do you think it does?” Paul asked.
    Tick pointed back down the stairs. “Master George said to attach it to a blank wall—let’s try the one in the dining room.”
    “Let’s go,” Sofia said, already on the move.
     
     
     
     
     
     

Chapter
4
    ~
     
    The Wretched Boy
     

    T he Spinner’s suction cup stuck to the middle of the wall with a simple push; the bent end of the “L” pointed toward the floor and swayed back and forth until it finally came to a rest.
    “What now?” Tick asked.
    “Spin it,” Paul said.
    Sofia leaned forward and flicked the rod to make it spin, then stepped back. Without a word, the three of them quickly moved all the way to the other side of the room, pressing against the wall to watch. You couldn’t be too careful when it came to gadgets sent from Master George.
    Strangely, the spinning metal rod didn’t slow at all, instead going so fast it appeared as a perfect circle of shimmering silver. A slight hum filled the room, like the soft sound of a ceiling fan. After several seconds, Tick’s eyes started to water as they tried to focus on something. Anything. Then the Spinner changed.
    A red light flared from the tip of the metal rod, instantly creating a much larger circle that took up most of the wall, a hazy, flat disk of redness. Sofia gasped; Paul let out his usual, “Dude.” Tick could only stare.
    “How’s it making a perfect circle?” Paul asked.
    Sofia answered. “It must be shooting out some kind of scaled laser.”
    “Ooh, like a light saber,” Paul said.
    “But—” Tick stopped.
    The red color faded from the projected, spinning disk, replaced by a large image of Master George, dressed in his dark suit, standing in front of a fireplace, staring out at them; he caressed Muffintops the cat in his arms. The picture quality was perfect—as good as any theater—it was just . . . round.
    “My fondest greetings to the three of you,” Master George said. The sound of his voice seemed to come from everywhere at once, though slightly warbled. Tick couldn’t help but wonder what kind of speaker could have such power and still be so small—they certainly hadn’t noticed anything when they studied the Spinner a few minutes earlier.
    Master George held out a hand. “Don’t attempt to reply—I assure you it will be a waste of your breath. This is only a recording, you see. Quite nice, don’t you think? The Spinner comes in handy when you get a bit depressed and want to watch an old black-and-white. It’s one of my favorite things. Although, it’s a bit difficult to use when you’re in a forest—particularly when you’re being chased by wolves . . .”
    Tick exchanged a look with Sofia, both of them trying to hold in a laugh.
    “Oh, dear, I’ve already gone off on a tangent,” Master George said, clearing his throat and growing very serious. “My apologies. There is a point, you see, to my sending you this Spinner. I must show you footage of something very frightening—something you must see and prepare yourselves to study with the greatest vigor. I want you to remember two words— entropy and fragmentation. These two things serve as our greatest challenge when studying the Realities; they are also the source of much heartache.”
    Master George paused, looking past the camera or whatever was recording