Chapter Thirteen
The outer door stayed closed while the lock cycled—but it stayed closed so long Art began to fear it had malfunctioned. In his mind, he could hear alarms ringing in the control room and see a ’keeps platoon hurrying into pods and zipping through the Core toward him. But just when he was about to give up and try to get to another lock, the door slid aside, a puff of un-reclaimed air forming sparkling ice crystals around him. More poor maintenance, he thought. He pulled himself and Lorn into the chamber beyond—they barely fit—and hit the red button next to the inner door. The outer door slid shut, and air filled the chamber, bringing with it the sound of pumps.
It seemed to take forever for the lock to cycle. Art didn’t waste the time. “Crawlspacers!” he said. “If you’re l
