D. J MacHale

"They came from the sky parachuting out of military helicopters to invade Tucker Pierce's idyllic hometown on Pemberwick Island, Maine. They call themselves SYLO and they are a secret branch of the U.S. Navy. SYLO's commander, Captain Granger, informs Pemberwick residents that the island has been hit by a lethal virus and must be quarantined. Now Pemberwick is cut off from the outside world. Tucker believes there's more to SYLO's story. He was on...

It was just your typical, run-of-the-mill scout field trip-that is, until Kit spotted an object from space plummeting to Earth. A short story from Guys Read: Other Worlds, edited by Jon Scieszka.

Fourteen-year-old Bobby Pendragon, having learned he is a Traveler--someone who can ride "flumes" through time and space, is soon off to the alternative dimension of Denduron where he teams up with Loor, a girl his age from the warrior-territory of Zadaa, in an attempt to save the gentle Milago people from slavery.

Bobby finds himself in the territory of Cloral, a world entirely covered by water, which is nearing a huge disaster. He learns that it is up to him to help rid the area of marauders and locate the legendary lost land of Faar, which may hold the key to Cloral's survival.

Just as Bobby Pendragon thinks he understands his purpose as a Traveler, to protect the territories of Halla from the evil Saint Dane, his is faced with the choice of whether or not to save the inhabitants of Eelong. Helping them would require moving items between territories which is forbidden.

Eight boys and girls compete for a spot on the space voyage that will search for a source to solve Earth's energy crisis.

"When supernatural phenomenon start following Marcus O'Mara around, he discovers a key that leads to The Library, a place where all the stories of the living and dead are kept that will help him and his friends solve a terrifying mystery"--

While Pendragon is trapped on Ibara, Alder returns to Denduron and reluctantly goes into battle again, and other Travelers face obstacles of various sorts, Saint Dane gains the power he seeks on Second Earth and makes his push to destroy and rebuild Halla.

With more questions than answers about Saint Dane, Bobby travels to the territory of Quillan and is forced to play games where only the winner survives.

Once again, Tucker Pierce and friends must fight for their lives against the better-equipped SYLO, and they will risk nearly everything to keep each other safe the battle's climax nears.