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seat.
    The lift came to a gentle halt.
    There was a soft ding and the
doors opened.

— Chapter Five —
No Electronics Beyond this Point
    A stone corridor greeted them, lit by torches hanging from the walls.
It seemed to go on forever, the light and dancing shadows slowly
fading in the distance, ending in ominous blackness.
    Ben and Charlie lifted their
shoulder straps and stumbled out of the lift. The doors closed behind
them and an instant later, they heard the lift depart.
    Everything was silent except the
soft burning of the torches and each other’s breathing, which
sounded like two Darth Vaders – such was the echo.
    Ben stood there, motionless,
seemingly hypnotised by the torches. Charlie did the exact opposite.
He started pacing back and forth, huffing and puffing like he’d
run a marathon.
    “Deep breaths, Charlie, deep breaths,” he kept repeating.
    Ben watched him for a moment,
torn between amusement and impatience.
    “Whenever you’re
ready, I need your help to work out where we are and what’s
going on.”
    Charlie kept his manic pacing.
“Where we are? That’s easy. We’re so far below the
Earth’s surface we should be dead – crushed by the
pressure or boiled to a crisp.”
    Ben raised a hand. “It is
rather warm here, isn’t it?”
    “Let’s try to ignore
the unexplained miracle of our continued existence,” Charlie
said, ploughing on at a million miles an hour. “What is this
place? How does it even exist? I have so many questions circling my
head I can’t think!”
    Ben grabbed Charlie by the
shoulders and pinned him against the wall.
    “Would a slap help?”
    Charlie took a deep breath.
“You’re right, I’m sorry. I need to calm down.”
    Ben released him and gave him a
pat on the shoulder.
    “Let’s start at the
top with the most important issue:
    why did the guards try to stop us
coming down here? Is this because the receptionist recognised my
surname?”
    “Is that really the most
important issue? What about the fact that we’re trapped a mile
underneath the earth?” Charlie asked, already struggling to
stay calm.
    “One thing at a time.”
    Charlie took a deep breath. “The
receptionist must know your parents.”
    Ben wished he could have asked
her, but it was too late now.
    “What do you make of this
'Royal Institute of Magic’?” Ben asked.
    “Normally an institute is
an organisation founded for particular work, such as education or
research,” Charlie said. “But an institute for magic?”
    Ben nodded. “Magic tricks,
illusions achieved through the sleight of hand.”
    Charlie gave him a quizzical
look. “Why would an institution like that build something like
this?”
    “We’ll soon find
out.”
    Their conversation was
interrupted by a noise from behind, making them both jump.
    It was the soft ding of the lift.
    They exchanged alarmed looks and
Ben cursed. Why had they dallied? They could flee down the corridor,
but they had no idea where they were going and almost anyone could
outrun Charlie. Ben grit his teeth. Whatever happened, they weren’t
going back, not when they’d got this far.
    The lift opened, but it wasn’t
the guards.
    A dozen men and women strode out,
chatting amongst themselves. Ben and Charlie flattened themselves
against the passageway as they walked by, giving the boys no more
than a passing glance.
    “What happened to the
guards?” Charlie asked, once everyone had passed.
    Ben was wondering the same thing.
    “Let’s follow these
people before they get away.”
    Charlie gave a longing look at
the open lift. With a puff of his cheeks he turned his back on the
quick way out and set off with Ben down the tunnel.
    The stone passage had a vaulted
ceiling, creating a rounded tunnel like a miniature version of the
Underground. Occasionally the corridor turned and they would
momentarily lose sight of the people in front, but their echoing
voices were always present. Ben was so intent on following their
target that he was only dimly aware