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I won, he told her. Mom, I don t understand. I m coming Saturday at midnight.
You can t.
Of course I can. The blasting formula is brewing under my bed. There s a Port-O-Door in the west
wing. You ll be out soon.
June laughed with red eyes. I ve been so stupid. I was so focused on getting out of here I put you in
danger. Blasting solution under your bed. What if it got kicked over? Get rid of it, Erec. Forget saving
me. It can t be done. June squeezed her eyes shut tight.
But what about little Zoey, Trevor and Nell, and the twins?
Tears poured from June s eyes, and she couldn t stop.
Mom, I m getting you out. You can t stop me.
June looked around in fear. Please, Erec. Don t. I knew it would be difficult for you to get through the
dungeons, but I just found out exactly how hard it would be. I should have figured King Pluto would have
more than guards, bronze ghosts, and silver ghosts patrolling here, but that s all I ever saw. I just found
out it s much worse.
How much worse?
June took a deep breath. He has destroyers. Her voice fell to a whisper. And shadow demons.
She looked so alone. Erec wished he were with her. What are destroyers?
Hideous stone monsters that kill people.
And shadow demons?
June glanced around her room. I happen to know a lot about shadow demons. They can look like
anything, but they like to take the shape of the person they re with. It s like looking in a mirror. They can
read your worst fears like a brochure of your soul. Your doubts and misguided desires guide them into
your mind. They talk to you, reason, make sense, but they connect with your shadow side. They loosen
your resolve, steer you the wrong way. And when they win you over, they devour you, and you die. Any
other questions? June flopped back in her bed and put her arm over her eyes.
Well, said Erec, I just won t let them get to me. I m pretty stubborn, you know.
June chuckled under her arm. So am I. Forget it.
No, really. I m sure if I was prepared I could beat the shadow demons. I m not letting you rot in there.
Don t forget the destroyers, Erec. You d be lucky to get far enough to see a shadow demon.
There has to be a way to get through them, Erec said. What can destroy stone? A jackhammer? A
sandblaster?
There is a trick, but it can t be safe.
What is it?
I don t know. I don t want you to get foolish ideas and try to come in here. You can help me better
there. Win the next two contests. Become king and then get me out. She waved him away.
What if I don t win? There s no guarantee.
You have a good chance. I ve seen you in tough situations. You usually know how to react.
Good. Then I should be able to get you out of there. All I need is a little stubbornness.
June rolled over and sat up. Stubborn you are. Do you really think I ll let you come here and risk your
life?
It s not really your choice, is it? The formula is ready tomorrow night. I m figuring out how to do it. I
need a mother, and so do my brothers and sisters.
Erec, you could die.
I ll be fine, Mom. I ve learned a lot here. I ve rescued kids from swamp gas, fought a minotaur. I even
used King Pluto s scepter to save everyone from a huge boulder. I can do it.
June covered her face with her hands. Your life is more important than you know.
Got it covered, Mom.
Bethany sat with Melody, Jack, and Oscar at lunch. Jack and Melody were in a surprisingly good mood
for having just lost the Sea Search.
Melody said she d stay for the fifth contest, or as long as you and I are in, said Bethany.
You were the only two who really won the fourth contest, said Jack. You guys have my bet.
We re down to seventeen, Bethany said. Our odds are 17.647 percent that s three out of
seventeen. Not too bad.
Oscar shook his head. Put your seat belts on. You have stiff competition.
We ll see about that. Erec smiled. Things were going great. Why shouldn t he win the contests and
blast his mother out of her dungeon? He beat Balor underwater and broke his remote control. Nothing
would stop him now. Not even destroyers and shadow demons. Which reminded him, he had to find out
more about what they could do.
After lunch, Erec and Bethany walked to the library. Are you sure you want to go into Pluto s
dungeons? Bethany said. They sound dangerous.
I can t let my mother rot in that place. I just need to learn about destroyers and shadow demons. There
has to be a way to get by them.
A wide spiral staircase ran up the many levels of the library tower. A librarian with wide granny glasses
was happy to point them to the third floor, where the books on beasts were kept. But the books must
stay here.
They browsed through subheadings such as Misunderstood Monsters and The Strange Animals of
Upper Earth until they found the section labeled Dungeon Creatures. They carried armfuls of books to
a table. Bethany picked up The Total Loser s Guide to Escaping Dungeons.
There are sections about different famous dungeons. Listen: The outer dungeons in King Pluto s castles
are famous for their acid rock walls. They melt whatever they touch, including flesh.
Erec took a breath. Do the walls close in on people?
No. But this says destroyers live in them, and they come out of the walls.
She flipped pages. Port-O-Doors will only go into the outer dungeons. Most prisoners are in the inner
dungeons. The doors could open in the middle of an acid rock wall, or even into a destroyer s nook or a
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