7 Rivers of Fire

Chapter 7 RIVERS OF FIRE The two soldiers climbed into the front of the truck. Jack and Annie sat in back. Cruz started the engine. The truck turned onto a back road. Then it sped away from the Giant Tortoise Center. Annie looked at Jack. "We've got this," she said in a low voice. Jack wasn't so sure. He leaned forward. "Sirs, can you explain our part in this mission?" he said. "A small group of giant tortoises live on the southwest side of the Blue Hill volcano. We thought they were safe," said Pinto. "Until yesterday." "What happened yesterday?" asked Jack. "The lava river split into two streams," said Pinto. "One of them is now flowing toward the home ground of the Blue Hill tortoises." Annie nodded. "That's bad," she said.

"Yes, but there were earlier airlifts today," said Cruz. "Hopefully, our team has rescued them all." "But there could be stragglers," said Pinto. "And this is the last chance to help them escape," said Cruz. Jack's expert self was very alarmed. "Gentlemen, it's absolutely vital we save every last one," he said. "The tortoises of Blue Hill are extremely rare. Reports say ninety-eight percent of their population has disappeared in the last one hundred eighty years. We can't afford to lose any of them." "Understood," said Pinto. Jack sat back in his seat and took a deep breath. Right now, his fear for the tortoises was greater than any fear of an active volcano. He nodded to Annie. "We've got this," he said. "Read Morgan's rhyme," she whispered. "Why?" asked Jack. As an expert, he'd given little thought to Morgan's rhyme. He hadn't felt they'd needed it. "To make sure we're doing the right thing," said Annie. "We are," said Jack confidently. But just to please Annie, he pulled out the rhyme. As they read it

together, Annie pointed to the third section: But the expert to find, The one to admire, Is the one you must save From a river of fire. "No problem," Jack said in her ear. "Morgan's talking about the giant tortoises. They're obviously the true experts. They're the experts at being giant tortoises. It's all falling into place." "Right. But read this part," said Annie. She pointed to the last section. Jack read to himself: Be honest and gentle. No need to be smart. Just look eye to eye And talk heart to heart. "That's super-important," Annie whispered to Jack. Jack nodded. Those lines were nice. But as an expert, he certainly didn't find them "super-important." He tucked the rhyme back into his pocket.

The truck headed along the road beside the ocean and passed the few shops. Then it bounced over a long sandy road. The road ended at a small airstrip. A military helicopter was waiting. "There's our chopper," said Cruz. "A chopper ride! Wow!" said Annie. "That's our first—" Jack held up his hand to stop her. "That's our favorite way to travel," Annie said, correcting herself. Cruz parked near the runway. "It will get us there quickly. We'll be on the volcano in ten or fifteen minutes." "Good. The sooner the better," said Jack. His expert self was unafraid of taking his first chopper ride. The four of them climbed out of the truck and hurried to the runway. The helicopter's cockpit had four seats. Jack and Annie climbed into the seats behind the two pilots. Cruz handed them helmets, and they strapped them on.

"How does this chopper transport tortoises?" Jack asked. "We have crates in the cargo section," said Cruz. A moment later, the blades started to swirl. With a roar, the helicopter lifted off the ground. It rocked from side to side, then headed into the sky. Annie grinned at Jack. "Yikes!" she mouthed. Jack gave her a thumbs-up. The helicopter flew over flat, rocky land dotted with bushes and other plants. Pinto pointed to a distant dome-shaped volcano with sloping sides. "That's it!" he shouted above the roar of the chopper blades. A cloud of steam rose from the top of Blue Hill. Red-hot lava bubbled down the sides. "WHOA!" said Annie. Jack tapped his finger against his mouth, reminding her to act cool. But his heart pounded as the chopper drew closer. The volcanic eruption looked terrifying. Jack could see the two fiery streams that had split from the lava river. Lava was also oozing from cracks in the slope. Patches of grass were catching fire. Smoke filled the air.

The helicopter started to land on a lower part of the volcano. The surface was rough and craggy from ancient lava flows. Through the smoke, Jack saw black rocks of all sizes, tall grass, and thick clumps of bright-yellow and apple-green cactus plants. "Good tortoise food—prickly pear cactus," Jack shouted to Pinto and Cruz. "They like the yellow lava cactus, too," shouted Annie. "It only grows on the volcanoes of the Galápagos." "That's where we should begin our search!" shouted Jack. "Understood," shouted Pinto.