02 The End Is Near

Chapter 02 The End Is Near Jack opened his eyes. He pushed his glasses into place. Morgan was gone. And so were Jack’s jeans, T-shirt, sneakers, and backpack. Instead, he had on a white tunic with a belt, sandals that laced up, and a leather bag. He looked at Annie. She was dressed the same way. Morgan had made them look just like kids in an ancient Roman town. “ I guess this is what Morgan meant, ” said Jack, “ when she said she’d help us blend in. ”

“ I feel like Cinderella, ” said Annie. “ I like these clothes. ” “ Yeah, ” said Jack, although he felt a little as if he was wearing a dress. Annie looked out the window. “ It’s pretty here, ” she said. Jack looked with her. They had landed in a grove of trees. On one side of the grove rose a gentle-looking mountain. On the other, a town sparkled in the sunlight. “ I wonder where we are, ” said Jack. He opened the book about Roman times. He read aloud:

Almost 2, 000 years ago, on August 24, A. D. 79, the seaside town of Pompeii (pom-PAY) was a typical Roman town. Many Romans went there on their vacation. They built large houses called villas and planted groves of olive trees along the slopes of a mountain called Mount Vesuvius (vuh-SOO-vee-us). Annie kept looking out the window as Jack pulled out his notebook and pencil. He wrote: Vacation in Pompeii August 24, A. D. 79 houses called villas Jack looked out the window again. “ It does look like a nice place to go on vacation, ” he said. “ We must have landed in one of the olive groves, ” said Annie.

“ Yeah, and that town must be Pompeii, ” said Jack. He looked in the opposite direction. “ And that mountain must be Mount Vesuvius. ” Annie shivered. “ That name sounds scary, ” she said. “ Really?” said Jack. “ Not to me. ” He looked down at his notes. “ Hey! Did you feel that?” said Annie. “ What?” Jack looked up. “ The ground shook. I heard it rumble, too, ” said Annie. Jack frowned. “ I think you were just dreaming again, ” he said. “ No, I wasn’t, ” said Annie. “ Something feels wrong about this place. I really think we should go home now. ”

“ Are you nuts?” said Jack. “ We have to find that lost story for Morgan. Besides, I’ve always wanted to see a Roman town. ” He threw his notebook and the Roman book into his leather bag. Then he went down the rope ladder. “ Come on! ” he called when he stepped onto the ground. Annie just stared down at him. “ Don’t be chicken, ” he said. He pushed his glasses into place. “ Come on. It’ll be fun. ” Annie still didn’t move. What’s wrong with her? Jack wondered. Usually I’m the worried one. “ Come on, ” he pleaded. “ We can’t let Morgan down. ” Annie let out a big sigh. “ Okay, but we’d better find that story fast, ” she said. Finally she climbed down the rope ladder.

The sun was bright and hot as they took off between the olive trees. With Mount Vesuvius at their backs, they headed for the town of Pompeii. “ That’s weird, ” said Annie. “ I don’t hear any birds. ” She was right. The grove was strangely silent.