Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13 The ground shook as Marcus had never felt before, as though hundreds of monsters were waking up in their underground caves, pounding the earth in fits of fury. Panicking, the guards let go of Marcus and Tata. Marcus ran to his father and clung to him, struggling to stay upright as the earth rose and fell like waves on a wild river. The top of the mountain had blown off, and from the jagged opening gushed an enormous billowing brown cloud. The cloud seemed to stretch into the heavens. Flames shot through the

smoke as jagged bolts of lightning ripped at the sky. People streamed out of the shops. Beggars rose to their feet. Slaves dropped their bundles of wood and water jugs. For a moment, nobody spoke. Nobody even seemed to be breathing. All eyes were on the mountain. But then came the shouts. "It's the end of the world!" "Why are the gods punishing us?" "Everyone must leave Pompeii!" Tata shouted. He started pulling Marcus through the crowd. But Festus called to his guards. "No! Stop those slaves!" Festus bellowed. The guards lunged for Marcus and Tata. But Tata held up his hand. "You must listen!" he boomed. Somehow his voice rose up over the roar of Vesuvius. To Marcus's shock, the guards did not move. They were just as scared as everyone else.

"If you want to live, you must leave now," Tata warned. He spoke not only to the guards but to the gathering crowd. "Get out of the city, and go as far away from the mountain as you can."

Just then a man stepped out of Festus's chariot. His fine toga swished around his powerful body. In his hand flashed the seal of a senator, one of the most powerful men in Pompeii. But it was not Festus that this man had come out to talk to. It was Tata. "What you say about the mountain," he demanded. "How do you know this?" Festus stepped up. "He is just—" The man silenced Festus with a wave of his hand. "Speak," he ordered Tata. Tata did not shrink back from the powerful man. He met his challenging gaze. "Sir, for years my master was the scientist Linus Selius. My son and I were on the mountain last night. We saw many signs that this disaster was coming. Soon it will be too late to escape with our lives." The man looked up on the mountain, at the boiling ash cloud that now filled the sky. The mountain's power seemed to be growing. It was now only a matter of time before this blanket of doom fell over the city.

"How much time do we have?" "A few hours at the most," Tata said. "The worst will come after the mountain runs out of power. I believe all of the gases and ash in the sky will come back down, and explode. A great wave of fire will sweep down over Pompeii." "Dear gods," the man whispered. A mask seemed to drop from his face, baring his fear. "Festus," he said. "We must warn the magistrates at once! We must order people to leave the city!" And before Festus could reply, the man had rushed off. With surprising speed, he sprinted across the Forum. He rushed past the guards and disappeared into the government building. "This is nonsense—" Festus bellowed. But his words were cut off by a loud whoosh from the sky just above them. Marcus looked up just in time to see a giant flaming fireball closing in on them. "Look out!" someone screamed. Tata grabbed Marcus and they dove for cover behind an enormous statue. And then — Kaboom!

The flaming boulder hit the street with a deafening explosion. Small shards of rock showered over Marcus and Tata. But the explosion had spared them. They struggled to their feet and made their way back to the street, where a crowd had formed. He heard gasps and wails of shock. As Tata and Marcus approached, one of Festus's guards turned around. "The master is dead," he announced. Marcus peered through the crowd. The boulder had left a shallow crater in the street. And in the center, lying in a broken heap, was Festus. Marcus looked away. He expected to feel happy. Festus was dead! But it turned out there was no pleasure in seeing anyone's broken body, not even the body of someone as hateful as Festus. Marcus looked up at the roiling cloud spewing from Vesuvius. And all he could feel was terror.