"Hey, put me down!" Jamie demanded. "I'll take them on one foot."
"Not today," Romy said and burst out the window, flapping her wings. "I promised your brother I'd look after you, and that's what I'll do."
"I don't need looking after. PUT ME DOWN!"
Romy flew over the city, leaving the tavern behind. Her heart hammered, and Jamie felt heavy across her shoulder, and the girl's fingers dug into her. Romy was used to flying through the caverns of Hell, and the sight of so many human houses below spun her head. The wind whipped her face, and Jamie was screaming. Flapping her wings with all her might, Romy saw grobblers racing below, tossing fireballs from their palms.
Damn! Romy thought. These were no usual grobblers. Dry Bones must have taught them magic. One fireball flew so close to them, Romy felt the heat against her. The fireball's tail of sparks sizzled against them, and Romy heard Jamie scream.
"You okay, Jamie?" Romy asked.
"Put me down!" The girl was kicking.
"I'm going to have to, soon. You weigh more than a bloody rhinoceros. I think you've gained even more weight from yesterday."
Another fireball came flying their way, and Romy flew sideways, narrowly missing it. The fireball made a sound like a storm, so loud Romy thought it would deafen her. She glanced over her shoulder. The grobblers were far now, running through the streets, and soon Romy flew out of Queenpool and saw trees below.
"I think we shook them off," she said to Jamie, panting. It was hard work, flying so fast, carrying Jamie, dodging fireballs. She had no strength left. "We're going down."
She began to descend into the forest. Romy was too tired and dizzy for a proper landing. She crashed through the forest canopy, then hit the ground, scraping her knees.
"Ouch," she said and placed Jamie down. She stretched and rubbed her muscles.
"Ouch indeed," Jamie said. "You put me down on some rocks, you nitwit."
Romy looked at Jamie, chewing her lip. The girl's face was pale and sweaty. She needed rest and convalescing; fleeing into the forest could not be good for the mortal. In the Rose's Thorn, they had found shelter and could have recuperated. More importantly, Neev knew to find them in the inn. What if Neev returned, Scruff and Cobweb in tow, and met the grobblers?
Romy shook her head. At the beginning, this adventure was carefree, even fun at times, but now things were so horrible. Nobody was around to protect her now—no brutish Scruff with his mace, no Neev with his magic, no Cobweb with her arrows, and even Jamie's blade was out of commission until the girl healed. What would Romy do? She had never been on an adventure until now. Back in Hell, she had spent two centuries torturing sinners, and that was all she knew. How would she survive in this world?
"I don't know what to do," she said to Jamie, voice trembling. The fear had vanished when it was time to act, when the adrenaline had flooded her, but now it returned full force. She felt tears gather in her eyes. "What will we do, Jamie?"
Jamie snorted so loudly, her breath blew back strands of her hair. "Are we going to have a weepy moment here, where we cry and hug, and tell each other it'll be all right? Come on, Romy. You're a demon, for Pete's sake. Try being a little more fierce, a little less weepy. What will we do? We're going to find the other Bullies, that's what. We need to be together now, and we certainly don't want them returning to that inn. So let's track them."
Romy squared her shoulders and wiped her tears with her fists. "How will we find them?"
Jamie sat up, leaning on her elbows, and winced when she moved her wounded leg off some rocks. "Scruff and Cobweb were heading north, and I bet Neev did, too. Let's follow and see if you can pick up the scent."
Romy moaned. "Am I going to have to carry you again? My arms hurt, my wings hurt, and my brain hurts." She was suddenly embarrassed by showing her tears. "I might be weepy, but I'm not the one who got wounded in a fight." It was a mean thing to say, she knew; but hey, she was a demon, she was supposed to be mean.
Jamie's face flushed. "Well, I might have gotten wounded that day, but I broke three of Dry Bones' bones, and you only snapped two."
"I broke three too," Romy lied.
"You liar."
"Not lying." Romy felt it best to change the subject. "When I was flying, I saw a nearby farm. Let's go buy you a wheelbarrow. Then I can wheel you around."
Jamie's face got even redder, and she curled her hands into fists. "I won't be wheeled around like a sack of turnips."
"Well, I'm not carrying you, and you'd use up too much energy limping around. Now I'm going to help you walk a bit, just until we find a wheelbarrow."
Romy helped Jamie to her feet, the girl wincing and cursing. Jamie slung her arms around Romy's neck, and together they walked slowly, Romy grunting, Jamie hopping on her good leg. They moved through the forest, glancing around for grobblers, until they reached the farm Romy had descried from the air. A few wheelbarrows stood in fields of oats, full of sheaves. Sparrows stood atop the wheelbarrows, but Romy forced herself onward, trying to ignore the monstrous birds.
The farmer was plowing the fields with his daughters. Romy paid him a silver coin—their last one—for a wheelbarrow. She helped Jamie sit inside the wheelbarrow, then began to wheel her across the farm. The wheelbarrow creaked and bumped, its wheel rusty and wobbly. The sparrows watched them as if shocked, and Romy supposed they made a comical sight. She had to laugh out loud. Jamie raised an eyebrow, but it felt good to laugh.
Maybe things will be okay, she thought. Maybe I can take care of things. I fled the grobblers, I found a wheelbarrow for Jamie, I'm taking charge. And even the sun is shining today.
Soon Romy wheeled Jamie out of the farm, the wheelbarrow wobbling and creaking like an old man, and Romy found the road through the forest, the road Scruff and Cobweb had taken, the road Neev now followed. I'm going to find them, Romy told herself. Soon we'll be together and safe.
"Is it really wise to take the main road?" Jamie asked as they went along. With every pebble, the wheelbarrow bumped, making her curse. "With all these grobblers about, I wonder if we should travel between the trees."
Romy shook her head. "The wheelbarrow won't roll there, and I might not detect Neev's scent." Romy had to stop every few steps, get on all fours, and sniff the ground like a hound.
Jamie sighed. "This is going to take a while."
They kept moving down the road until evening fell, and Romy shivered. Shadows moved between the trees, the branches creaked, and clouds covered the stars. Monsters might lurk in the dark, and whenever an owl hooted, Romy started.
Once more, she was afraid.
* * * * *
Scruff sat alone in the dungeon, chained to the wall, despair like ice in his belly. He blinked to fight back tears, but one escaped his eye anyway, and he tasted it on his lips. He had not felt such grief since Burrfield burned five years ago.
What were the grobblers doing to Cobweb? Would they take her to Dry Bones? Scruff couldn't stand the thought of the skeleton hurting her, and he howled in the darkness, tugging at his chains. He had never felt like this toward a girl. He loved Cobweb—her eyes, her smile, her kind heart. Damn Dry Bones!
He yanked his chains again. They clasped his wrists behind his back, bound to the wall. No matter how many times he pulled, or how hard, the metal would not break. He lowered his head, wanting to die.
When he heard a distant sound, he perked up. There—he heard it again. It was Cobweb yelping in pain.
Rage filled Scruff, more rage than he'd ever felt, rage he never knew was in him. Cobweb! The sound of her pained cry ached through him. He howled and tugged, and the metal chains creaked. Cobweb yelped again, and Scruff screamed, and with a snap, his chains broke off the stone wall.
His hands were still chained behind his back, but the chains dangled behind him now, instead of connecting to the wall. Scruff crashed into the dungeon door, bursting into the stairwell. The rage burned, and he howled as he raced upstairs, the chains clanking behind him. He was so blinded with f
ury, he barely noticed the grobblers racing down toward him.
He slammed into the grobblers, knocking them aside, and kept rushing up the spiraling stairwell. The grobblers recovered and tried to follow, but the trailing chains slammed against their legs, tripping them. They fell downstairs, screeching.
Scruff kept running up the stairwell, following Cobweb's cries, traveling farther and farther up the tower. Finally he crashed through a door at the tower top.
He saw Dry Bones inside, dressed in a deep purple robe. Cobweb sat in a chair by the window, her wrists still bound, and Dry Bones was trying to force a potion into her mouth. The label on the vial read "Love Potion". Scruff stood panting, for a second just staring, confused. He didn't know if he should kill Dry Bones, grab Cobweb, or turn to face the grobblers racing behind him. Dry Bones too froze and dropped the potion. It crashed against the floor, splattering pink droplets.
For a moment the three froze, and then Cobweb wiped some of the potion off her lip. Did she swallow anything? Scruff thought. God, did she swallow the love potion? She looked at him with pleading eyes, teary blue eyes, the most beautiful eyes he'd ever seen.
Dry Bones raised his hands and began mumbling a spell.
Scruff spun around, lashing the chains. Dry Bones leaped aside, and the chains missed his skull, but slammed against his shoulder. "Damn you!" the skeleton cried as grobblers burst into the room.
Scruff turned to stare at the grobblers. The creatures stood with claws glinting, drool dripping down their fangs, their eyes red with bloodlust. Scruff stared at them, panting, sweat dripping down his back. Both he and Cobweb still had their hands chained; they could not win this.
"I told you to kill the oaf!" Dry Bones yelled at the grobblers, his shoulder bashed.
"We'll kill him now, Master," said the lead grobbler, its right half a blond woman with pale skin, its left half a twisted creature rotting away. It raised its claws and advanced toward Scruff.
Scruff knew he was going to die. He just wished he could hold Cobweb's hand one more time. The memory of that one time she held his hand, as they walked through the muddy forest, was the best moment of his life. If nothing else, that made my life worthwhile.
The grobblers took another step forward, and Scruff winced.
"Wait!" Cobweb cried, cheeks flushed. "Stop dis."
The grobblers paused, tongues lolling, drool dripping.
Cobweb turned to Dry Bones. "Why awe you d-doing dis?" she asked. Her eyes were haunted, her clothes were torn, and her skin was ashy, but she was so beautiful, Scruff thought he'd die. He stood watching her, his breath aching in his lungs, his skull feeling ready to burst.
The skeleton looked at Cobweb, clutching his crushed shoulder. He shrugged the other shoulder. "Because I like you, Cobweb. You're hot."
Cobweb took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "So t-t-take me. I'ww dwink youw potion. Just wet Scwuff go."
"No!" Scruff cried, his insides twisting, and tried to rush toward her, but the grobblers stepped between them. They grabbed him, their claws digging, and Scruff felt such fury, he wanted to smash the whole tower to the ground.
Dry Bones laughed, a sound like clanking bones. "No deal, Cobweb. I'm going to kill Scruff, and his brother, and his sister. I'm even going to kill that demon girl who tags along with you guys. I vowed long ago to destroy the Thistles. I killed the two parents, and for a long time, I planned my revenge against the children. And soon my revenge against the Thistles, the family that turned me into this skeleton, will be complete. Soon I will destroy the Thistles for good. The whole plan is rather brilliant. Allow me to explain. First I plan to—"
Suddenly, as Dry Bones prattled on, and as everyone was getting rather bored with his speech, a flow of lava burst into the room. The lava slammed into Dry Bones, knocking him against the wall, sizzling against him.
"Will you villains never learn?" Neev said, stepping into the room on goat hoofs, shaking drops of lava off his hands. "Never spend so much time explaining your plans."
Everything started to happen so fast, Scruff barely knew what was going on.
Dry Bones, alive but screaming in pain, pushed himself up. Neev tossed a key toward Scruff, then summoned a fireball. Shaking off the grobblers who clutched him, Scruff twisted around to grab the key.
One grobbler hit him, knocking him back. Scruff cursed. The key clanged against the floor somewhere. For a moment Scruff was dizzy, and he heard spells being cast, felt the heat of fireballs and lightning. The grobbler clawed his arm, and Scruff screamed. Magic crackling around him, he rushed headfirst forward, slamming into the grobbler, knocking it back. Another grobbler reached toward him, and he spun around, slamming his chains against it.
He didn't even have time to look at Cobweb.
"Get the key!" Neev shouted, battling Dry Bones with forcefields and fireballs. His jinxes swapped with each spell—he sprouted monkey ears, then a giraffe's neck, then a lion's mane, then a lemur tail. "Unlock your shackles!" The light and sound filled the tower, shaking it.
Head spinning, arm burning, Scruff spotted the key. He dived down and grabbed it. Got it!
A grobbler punched his face. The key fell.
Scruff howled and kicked, and his leg hit the grobbler's head, snapping its neck. He kicked again, but another grobbler slashed his thigh, and Scruff shouted.
"I got da k-key!" came Cobweb's voice, and Scruff breathed in relief, partly because she caught the key, mostly because she still lived. He felt her hands behind him, unlocking his chains.
His arms were free.
Now Scruff could really fight. Around him, fire burned and lightning flew. He glimpsed Neev and Dry Bones, both encased in glowing forcefields, casting their spells. Scruff spared them only a glance, then began to throw punches. The grobblers lunged at him, and Scruff's fists flew, soon bleeding. Pain filled him, but his fury was so great, it drowned the pain. He felt blood dripping, and knew he couldn't keep this up for long.
Cobweb too was fighting. She had grabbed a candelabrum and was using it as a weapon, smashing grobblers. Luckily, the grobblers did not try to kill her; they still had orders to keep her alive. Nevertheless, a shard of Dry Bones' magical darts flew into her leg, and she cried out.
Dry Bones tossed a fireball at Neev, who now sported elephant ears. The young warlock's forcefield finally failed, sizzling away. A second fireball flew. Neev ducked, and the fireball flew over his head, hitting a tapestry. The tapestry caught fire, and the flames moved to the rug, then consumed the table and chairs.
"Out of the tower!" Scruff cried.
The grobblers were already fleeing downstairs. The others followed, even Dry Bones. As the fire burned, they all clanked round and round the spiraling staircase, fleeing, brushing sparks off their clothes. Scruff could almost laugh. A moment ago, they were fighting; now they were running in circles, Neev's elephant ears flapping, Dry Bones holding up the hems of his robes.
They raced outside the tower, then stood in the forest clearing by the hill. For a moment they all panted, and Scruff looked them over. Cobweb's leg was bleeding. Neev had burn marks on his arm. Dry Bones had a smashed shoulder and some burned bones. The grobblers were bruised and battered. They all stood, breathing heavily, the tower burning behind them. For a moment, the only sound was the fire and their deep breathing.
Then they heard trundling, snapping branches, and a battle cry.
They turned to face the source of the sound. A wheelbarrow came rolling down the hill, fast as a galloping horse, and crashed into the grobblers. Jamie was inside, swinging her sword, knocking grobblers aside.
"Jamie!" Scruff said, shocked, rubbing his eyes.
"And me too," came a cry, and Romy swooped down from the treetops, wings unfurled, pitchfork glinting. She stabbed a grobbler, then stood with eyes blazing, pitchfork raised and bloody.
Scruff grabbed a fallen branch, and Cobweb took a knife from Jamie. The five Bullies were together again, standing back to back, snarling.
Yeah! S
cruff thought. A few grobblers remained, but Scruff felt ready to face anything. Right now, we can defeat anyone.
Dry Bones, apparently, reached the same conclusion. With a quick spell, he teleported away.
"Damn it!" Romy said and sighed. "He just keeps doing that."
The last few grobblers fled into the forest. Romy thrust her pitchfork into the ground, Jamie grinned, and Neev sat down with an exhausted grunt.
Scruff looked at Cobweb. She looked back with huge, haunted eyes. For a moment they only stared at each other. Then Scruff rushed toward her and embraced her, and before he knew it, he was kissing her, a deep kiss, his hands in her hair.
It felt even better than the time she held his hand.
Chapter Twenty
Growth Spurt
Romy was looking at Scruff and Cobweb kissing, her eyes wide in wonder, her mouth agape.
"Romy," Jamie said from her wheelbarrow, trying to give her brother some privacy, "can you help me into the tower? There's something I'm looking for." The fire was dying off, and Jamie thought the tower might hold just what she needed.
Romy blinked and shook her head wildly, as if trying to clear it of thoughts. She coughed and looked away from the kissing couple, turning to face Jamie.
"What are you looking for?" Suddenly the demon gasped. "Ooh, are you looking for some cards, so that we can play again?"
Jamie groaned. "No cards. But maybe if you help me, I'll play tic-tac-toe with you later."
Romy nodded excitedly, tail wagging, hair of flame raising sparks. "Deal! Let's go."
Romy helped Jamie to her feet, and the girls entered the tower. The top chamber still burned, but the lower chamber was safe, a shadowy room with brick walls and a dirt floor. Shelves covered the walls, brimming with spellbooks, geodes, crystals, roots, jars, and potions. On one shelf, Jamie saw Scruff's mace and Cobweb's bow and arrows, but she didn't care about those now; she'd come back for them later. As Romy watched, Jamie nodded and began rummaging through the potions, limping, her leg aching.
"Come on, where are you...," she muttered, rifling through the clutter. She found many useless potions: "Invisibility Potion", "Immortality Potion", "Super Strength Potion", and a host of others. Jamie tossed them over her shoulder, muttering. Finally she found what she was looking for, a bottle labeled "Healing Potion".
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