Chapter 3

3 The shaking stopped. Everything was still. And everyone was frozen! Except for Violet, Pablo, and Aria. Aria's glasses swung from one of her ears. Her mouth hung open. "What just happened?" she asked. "I told you," replied Violet. "We opened a portal. That's how we get to the Maker Maze." Aria fixed her glasses and closed her mouth. "Is that it?" She pointed toward the table near Mr. Eng. Next to Max's cage was a rack of tubes.

They were glowing inside a circle of fuzzy purple light. Violet, Pablo, and Aria tiptoed over. "How are we going to fit through there?" asked Aria. Violet leaned in for a look. BIZZAP! Before she could answer, Violet was shrunk down to the size of a pea and sucked through one of the tubes!

"Where did she go?" Aria squeaked. "I'll show you," said Pablo with a smile. He took her hand and leaned forward. BIZZAP! They both shrunk and were squeezed through the purple portal. Pablo and Aria landed butt-first on the floor of the Maker Maze. "Achooooo!" Violet greeted them with a sneeze. "What took you guys so long?" she joked. "Bless you…," Aria said slowly. Her eyes sparkled as she stood up and dusted herself off. "You weren't kidding. This is amazing! I've never seen anything like it before. What is this stuff?" The room was filled with all types of science equipment. Colorful liquids bubbled inside flasks on a lab table. Across from the flasks were rows of different kinds of plants. One of them had flower buds that looked like eyeballs! Nearby, crystals floated in clear boxes, and bugs buzzed around in

jars. Next to a long hallway lined with doors was a giant microscope. "Welcome to the Maker Maze!" said Violet with open arms.

All of a sudden, the trio heard a soft hum coming from the long hallway. It sounded far away. But it was getting closer and closer. And louder and louder… "What is that?" asked Aria with a shaky voice. Suddenly, a voice shouted, "GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Heading toward them at full speed was a robot! It blasted down the hallway on a single wheel with its arms and claws stretched up over its round head. The Makers jumped to the side just in time. POW! The robot crashed into a wall and exploded. All that remained was a pile of metal on the floor. A small stream of smoke floated toward the ceiling. Dr. Crisp blew into the room. Her rainbow hair was even more wild than usual.

"Is…everyone…okay?" she asked, trying to catch her breath. "We're okay, Dr. Crisp. That was a close one!" Violet replied.