Land of Nod, The Child (Land of Nod Trilogy Book 3)

by Hoover, Gary

  The king pushed with his swords, and the sudden force shoved Jeff backward. He tried to maintain his balance as he took several stumbling steps back but eventually lost his battle with gravity and ended up sitting on the stone floor. Pheerion Rex rushed forward and brought both swords down. Jeff rolled desperately, escaping just in time.

  The swords impacted the floor with tremendous force and shattered the thick stone in the spots they had contacted. Jeff continued to roll to gain some more distance then scrambled to his feet.

  Jeff looked at the damage to the floor and realized how powerful the pheerion was. The only reason I’m still alive is because of my own abilities.

  Jeff saw the red spot beneath the pheerion’s armor glowing more intensely than it had before.

  Chapter 99:

  Pheerion Rex came at Jeff with a manic flurry of swings. Jeff managed to block each one as he backed away, but the blades were getting closer with each swing. He began to feel it was just a matter of time before the pheerion’s swordsmanship overcame his clumsy defensive swats.

  Out of his peripheral vision, he saw his back was nearly against the wall. He was breathing heavily and felt nearly completely overwhelmed.

  Then Pheerion Rex stopped his attack.

  His unfeeling eyes stared into Jeff’s, and the red spot on his chest glowed brightly.

  Jeff carefully reached behind him and felt the cloth of one of the large targets between him and the stone wall. Behind Pheerion Rex on the opposite side of the room, Jeff saw that a large number of pheerions had gathered. He’s just trying to extend the show.

  Jeff wrapped his fingers around a clump of the cloth target, yanked, and as he felt it start to break free of its supporting hooks, he jumped to his left. He ran around behind his opponent before the pheerion had a chance to react. The cloth began to fall over Pheerion Rex, but to Jeff’s great dismay, it fell in slow motion – while it seemed Pheerion Rex was on Jeff’s time.

  However, Pheerion Rex was taken enough by surprise that he was indecisive regarding which direction to go, and he became enveloped in the cloth. Jeff rushed in and pummeled the lump under the cloth with repeated, violent swings of his bat.

  He wasn’t sure how much damage he was doing through the thick cloth and armor, but it was satisfying just to get some hits in after spending most of the fight on the defensive. He took as many swings as he could and hoped the lump would slump and stop moving, but instead, it writhed violently.

  Jeff had an idea and fished in the pouch on his belt, but as soon as he backed off the pressure, Pheerion Rex was able to slash the cloth and erupt out of it. Jeff brought his bat back up in a defensive position and the king came at him more aggressively than he had before. Jeff did his best to block the flying blades, but they were a blur. He was nearly running backwards blocking swing after swing. He blocked one from the right aimed at his head, but then the left came up at him.

  He swung down just in time to block it, but the impact was so powerful that it lifted Jeff off the ground. His bat flew up into the air, and he and it twisted and flew backward. He felt the bat fly out of his hand then he slammed onto the floor. He heard the bat rattle to the ground a few feet away. He was on his belly with his head to the side watching Pheerion Rex slowly approach. His hand went to the leather pouch on his belt as the king leaned toward him sneering – savoring the victory and preparing to deliver a theatrical finish to his unarmed opponent.

  Pheerion Rex raised his arms and stretched them out to his sides. He projected an image of size and strength to the gathered pheerions who watched silently. Rasp tried to run toward Jeff, but several other pheerions grabbed him and held him back.

  Pheerion Rex leered down at his helpless opponent and moved slowly toward him as Jeff writhed and moaned on the ground.

  Then Jeff jumped up and thrust his right hand toward Pheerion Rex’s chest. John’s vibro-blade sliced through the armor, and Jeff reached in and extracted the locket from the glowing spot. Jeff then pushed himself quickly away as Pheerion Rex brought a blade toward his head, but it came in slow motion so Jeff was able to escape easily. He dropped the blade and locket in his pouch and picked up his bat.

  He charged the king and swung his bat as hard as he could manage. Pheerion Rex’s body folded around the bat as it struck his side, and then he rose into the air and flew twenty feet until he slammed into the stone wall. He slid down the wall and fell limply to the floor.

  Chapter 100:

  Jeff ran to his father as the pheerions – including Rasp – rushed toward the limp body of Pheerion Rex. Jeff had an idea what was coming. He didn’t want to watch… but he couldn’t completely avoid looking. He saw a head being passed around then quickly averted his eyes.

  “How do I get you out of here?” Jeff asked as he held up the locket.

  “There’s a slot toward the center of that panel,” Dr. Browning said as he pointed.

  Jeff rushed to the panel and ran his eyes over it until he found an appropriately shaped opening. He popped the locket into the slot and felt a satisfying click then heard whirring as the panel came to life. He looked back over his shoulder.

  “Now turn the red lever from twelve-o’clock to three-o’clock.”

  Jeff ran his hand over the panel until he found the red lever. He grasped it, rotated it and heard a sound. He looked over his shoulder, and the blue cone changed from a solid, transparent blue to what appeared to be a swirl of blue strings snaking around the shape.

  “Good, good! Now turn the blue lever from six o’clock to nine o’clock,” his father instructed.

  Jeff found and turned the blue lever, and the cone completely disappeared.

  He and his father ran toward one another and hugged. Tears streamed down both of their faces as Dr. Browning kissed Jeff on the top of his head.

  “Jeff, Jeff I was afraid I’d never see you again,” he said with a quivering voice. “Thank you. It’s so good to see you.”

  They hugged for a while more, and then Jeff started to squirm. His father pulled back and looked him in the eye. “I’m a child. I played with things I didn’t understand. You’ve saved me.”

  “Do you think you can get us out of here,” Jeff asked.

  “I believe I can.”

  Jeff tensed as he saw Rasp approach accompanied by three other pheerions. His hand went to his bat as he realized he wasn’t quite sure he knew where he and Rasp stood with the others.

  “We owe you largest gratitude,” Rasp said.

  “Is everything… good?” Jeff asked.

  “We are excellent!” Rasp exclaimed enthusiastically and Jeff thought he could almost recognize a smile. Rasp looked over Jeff’s shoulder toward Dr. Browning.

  “Oh, I’m sorry. This is my father, Dr. Jeffry Browning. Dad, this is General Rasp.”

  Rasp had spent enough time with humans to know to extend his hand. Dr. Browning shook it and smiled.

  “Is the battle over?” Jeff asked.

  “Word izzz spreading fast. I’m sure the fighting hazz stopped or will very soon.”

  “How will you choose a new king?” Jeff asked.

  Rasp looked at him with a confused expression. “New king? We do not need a new king. We will go back to tribezzz standing for themselvezzz.”

  Jeff nodded.

  “We will have a magnificent feast in celebration. Will you join us?” Rasp asked.

  Jeff looked at his father. “What will we have to do to leave?”

  Dr. Browning thought for a few moments. “I believe if we choose to… we can leave nearly immediately.”

  “I’m sorry General,” Jeff said. “In some ways, I’d like to stay for the celebration, but if it’s possible to go home, I’d like to go back and see my mother.”

  “Of course, I understand completely.”

  Jeff turned to his father. “How do we go home?”

  Chapter 101:

  Dr. Browning pointed to the control panel of the device that had held him prisoner. “We did it. Pheerion Rex and I
were able to create this device to send me to the mate in my office back home. But when I stepped in, he changed the settings and reversed it to hold me prisoner.” His face fell as he recounted the betrayal. “After he had me prisoner, he used some of the technologies we had developed to create weapon systems, and I was powerless to stop him.”

  Dr. Browning paused as he seemed to realize he was getting off the more immediate topic. “But I think it will work. We just need the key to adjust the settings.” He held out his hand, and Jeff dropped the locket into it. Dr. Browning opened the locket and registered surprise when he saw his own face, instead of Jeff’s, looking back at him. “This is yours.”

  Jeff nodded.

  “But isn’t this the one you took from Pheerion Rex?”

  Jeff nodded again. “It’s a long story.”

  Dr. Browning stared at the locket. “I actually feel like I’ve experienced it with you. But the details are hazy… like it was a dream.”

  He took Jeff’s shoulder and steered him away so they could have some privacy. “Do you know where the other locket is?”

  Jeff nodded. “It uh…” He looked at Rasp and felt a little guilty that he couldn’t be completely open in front of him, but there was too much at stake. “It’s secure.”

  “How long have you been here?” his father asked.

  Jeff thought for a moment. “About five weeks.”

  Dr. Browning looked into the distance as he did some mental calculations. “Good. Good! That means it will only seem like you’ve been gone for a little over an hour and a half. Your mother may not have even noticed you were gone yet.”

  That was a big relief to Jeff. He had been thinking about her ever since he had been gone, and he didn’t want her to worry.

  “Let’s not take any foreign technology back with us,” Dr. Browning said with his eyes on Jeff’s gun.

  “Is it okay if I bring the belt?” Jeff asked. “A friend gave it to me.”

  “I think that should be okay.”

  Jeff put the gun on a small table then pulled his magnifying viewer, illumination device and a few other items out of his pouch.

  “General?” Jeff said looking at Rasp.

  “Yes?”

  “Can you do me a favor and make sure Nahima gets this?” he asked as he dropped the vibro-blade in Rasp’s hand. “And give her this message: ‘If we can’t forgive the monsters in others, we’ll just feed the one in ourselves.’ Do you think you can remember that?”

  “I will do azzzz you ask.”

  Dr. Browning inserted the locket into the slot on the panel and began adjusting dials and pushing buttons. He motioned to Rasp who stepped closer in response.

  “When we’re ready,” Dr. Browning said. “I’d like you to pull this lever.”

  Rasp nodded. “I can do that.”

  Dr. Browning made a point of pulling the locket out of the slot and dropping it in his pocket before taking Jeff’s hand and leading him to the platform.

  Jeff would have shaken the hand off if the situation had been different, but he allowed his father that indulgence for the moment.

  The two of them stepped onto the platform and turned back toward Rasp.

  Jeff looked up at his father and then over at Rasp. His stomach was doing somersaults.

  “Go ahead and pull it,” Dr. Browning said.

  Chapter 102:

  Jeff saw swirling darting specks of light in what otherwise seemed to be blackness. He looked down at his feet but couldn’t see them. Instead, he saw his legs stretched into long twisting ribbons. For a moment, he thought he saw the blurry shape of an elongated dinosaur but decided his mind was playing tricks.

  He looked up and saw himself rising through the toroid in his father’s office. The office was dark except for some light coming in from under the door and the eerie blue glow of the device.

  The two of them climbed over the edge of the toroid, and Dr. Browning immediately went to the control panel of the device. He dropped to his knees and yanked wires and circuits out of the panel. “That should disable it,” he said. “I’ll tear the whole thing down tomorrow. Let’s go find your mother.”

  Jeff couldn’t remember him ever looking happier.

  “Come on,” Jeff said with a smile of his own. He opened the door, walked to the railing and looked down.

  “Mom?” he shouted.

  “Jeff? How’d you get up there? I thought you were at one of your friend’s houses.”

  “I have someone with me,” Jeff said as he began to descend the stairs.

  “I didn’t have any plans for dinner,” his mother said. “Would you and your friend like to go get a pizza?”

  “You don’t have any idea how much I’d LOVE that.” He rounded the corner and saw his mother. She was sitting on the couch reading a magazine. She had a puzzled expression when she saw Jeff’s odd clothing.

  Then her hand went to her mouth as Jeff’s father rounded the corner. She leapt to her feet and ran to him. The two embraced and tears streamed down their faces.

  “How… where… ” his mother stammered.

  “It’s really quite a story,” Jeff Sr. said with a smile and then a wink at Jeff.

  “Let’s get that pizza. We can talk on the way,” Jeff said.

  His father looked at him. “We’ve got to get your shoulder taken care of before we do anything else.”

  Jeff looked at the dark blood stain on his pheerion tunic and cringed. He thought for a few moments. “It can wait until after pizza.”