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The Rusty Ruins

A few blank s stared down on thelass had long since shattered, any wood had rotted, and nothing rerip of invading vegetation Looking down at the black, eht of descending to peer into one

The two friends slid between the ruined buildings, riding high and silent as if not to disturb the ghosts of the dead city Below theether between the loo walls Whatever had destroyed this city, the people had tried to escape it Tally remembered from her last school trip to the ruins that their cars couldn’t hover They just rolled along on rubber wheels The Rusties had been stuck down in these streets like a horde of rats trapped in a burning maze

"Uh, Shay, you’re pretty sure our boards aren’t suddenly going to conk out, right?" she called softly

"Don’t worry Whoever built this city loved to waste uy called Rusty discovered the sported jagged spurs offro-dead animal She remembered that the Rusties didn’t use hoverstruts; every building was squat, crude, anddown

And soeThe Rusties didn’t put their factories underground, and they all worked together like bees in a hive instead of at hoest dorer even than Garbo Mansion

Seeing theht, the ruins felt much more real to Tally On school trips, the teachers always made the Rusties out to be so stupid You al trees to clear land, burning oil for heat and power, setting the atht she could i cars to escape the cruht from this untenable pile of metal and stone

Shay’s voice pulled Tally fro"

Shay cruised to the edge of the buildings, then out over the trees

"Are you sure we can - "

"Look down"

Below, Tally saw h the trees

"The ruins are er than they let on," Shay said "They just keep that part of the city standing for school trips and oes on forever"

"With lots of metal?"

"Yeah Tons Don’t worry, I’ve flown all over the place"

Tally sed, keeping an eye out for signs of ruin below, glad that Shay was ed fro spine that rose and fell like a frozen wave It led away from them, off into the darkness

"Here it is"

"Okay, but what is it?" Tally asked

"It’s called a roller coaster Remember, I told you I’d show you one"

"It’s pretty But what’s it for?"

"For having fun"

"No way"

"Yeah, way Apparently, the Rusties did have soround cars to it and go as fast as they could Up, down, around in circles Like hoverboarding, without hovering

And they made it out of souess"

Tally frowned She’d only igling to escape on that last, horrible day Not having fun

"Let’s do it," Shay said "Let’s roller coaster"

"How?"

"On your board" Shay turned to Tally and said seriously, "But you’ve got to go fast It’s dangerous unless you’re really "

"Why?"

"You’ll see"

Shay turned away and sped down the roller coaster, flying just above the track Tally sighed and leaned hard after her At least the thing was reat ride It was like a hoverboard course ht, banked turns, sharp cli drops, even loops that took Tally upside down, her crash bracelets activating to keep her on board It was aood shape it was in The Rustiesspecial, just as Shay had said

The track went o on its own On the roller coaster, hoverboarding really was like being a bird

It wound around in a wide, slow arc, circling back tohere they’d started The final approach began with a huge climb

"Take this part fast!" Shay shouted over her shoulder as she zoo up the spindly track She could see the ruins in the distance: broken, black spires against the trees And behind theht have been the sea

Thiswas really high!

She heard a scream of pleasure as she reached the top Shay had disappeared Tally leaned forward to speed up

Suddenly, the board dropped out fro her flying through midair The track below her had disappeared