“You are kidding, right?” I suddenly felt sick. How could I have been such a fool? “You mean that everything Carl did or said had only one objective, and that was to gather information from us and transmit it back to the Company?”
“It would seem so.” He lowered his voice, trying to be gentle—he knew I’d cared about Carl. “The man had absolutely no conscience and sold everything he gleaned to the highest bidder. Most of his clandestine meetings were to pass the information on—others, like today’s meeting in the library were, well, they were for personal reasons as well, just like you thought.”
When I remained silent he went on, “I was trying to gather some info on that new contact of his when I witnessed that little fiasco in the library. From the way you were all behaving, I knew something besides this business with Carl was wrong. I wasn’t far behind you when you ran from the library. I saw that you were all headed for home as fast as you could go which was great, until I spotted that agent following you. That worried me.”
“I’d already picked up a message about the bus being down and I knew you’d all be on foot, but you’re pretty sharp kids. I knew you’d take the shortest way home. I’ve got several safe-houses throughout the city, which are located on the most convenient or shortest routes to the building—just in case I ever need one. You were all headed for the short-cut that would take you right past my favorite. So I took a little short-cut of my own and waited for you with some old friends. I was worried about the recent influx of phantoms along your route. The only way I could come up with to help without exposing myself was to, well, give you some kind of weapons that might increase your chances of getting there alive.” He chuckled. “Old Duke and Charley had the time of their lives helping me out. From there, I headed back to the apartments so I could get there ahead of you and scope out the place for trouble.”
“Did you know the Company was coming for us?” I asked curiously.
“No, I didn’t have time to hook up with my people before all hell broke loose. Fact is, if your friend Rainor hadn’t shown up when he did, we’d all have been in a heap of trouble.”
“So, you think Rainor is legitimate, then?”
“I really don’t know what’s going on here, but I do know how to read people and I think that Rainor’s intentions are honorable. I’m not so sure about the people he’s working for. What I do know is that this is the first chance I’ve had to get information directly from a reliable source. This man is very determined to convince you and your friends to go with him, and he’s headed directly to his home base.” He gave me a look of real concern. “I really do hate to involve you kids, but I’m afraid that this is the only way. Right now, I think the best thing is for us to go along with him and just wait and see what happens.”
I shivered— maybe from the cold, or maybe it was the anxiety of dealing with everything going on. Ben took my cold hands in his and helped me up from the rock again and as he did so, he managed to press my body against the front of his—he was so not an old man!
“Now, how about if you try to get a little rest?” he said as he reluctantly released me.
“In the morning, I’ll ‘fess up to my real nature and identity so that everyone has an explanation for my sudden revival and you won’t have to go around trying to protect my identity anymore. How’s that sound?”
“Sounds good to me. I hate secrets.” I sighed in relief as I straightened my rumbled shirt. “Thanks,” I added before heading back to camp and the hammock waiting for me.
Chapter Eleven
Dusty’s persistent snarls of warning jerked me from the shallow sleep I’d finally fallen into.
“Easy, girl,” whispered Jennie from the other side of the tent.
“What in the world are they?” gasped Kelly. “Are they dangerous?”
“I don’t know, but I really don’t think I want to find out,” I answered as I reached for the dog’s collar to keep her for lunging for the small invader as it hopped within reach. Totally unafraid of us and the dog, it sat back on its hunches and wiggled long fuzzy ears at us. It might even have been cute, except for the two-inch long fangs at each side of its mouth and the sharp claws adorning the tiny paws. The creature had a leathery purple hide that sparkled with chips of light from the sprinkling of gem-like warts that covered its body.
“Don’t be afraid. It’s okay, girls,” assured Rainor’s whispered voice. “We call them sparkles, and they’re harmless.” He laughed softly when one of them pounced on a large bug scuttling across the ground between the hammocks. “Mostly, they eat insects and fruit—and suffer from an extreme case of curiosity. They’re as common on this world as squirrels on yours, and it’s not unknown for them to come snooping around a camp looking for handouts.”
Rainor took a step under the tent, as if intending to shoo the sparkles—and was pushed aside by the arrival of a creature the size of a St. Bernard. There was a slurp and its long tongue snaked out and snagged the nearest sparkle. It gulped and swallowed.
“Ripppttt! Rippitt!” the creature declared loudly as it innocently fluttered the long eye-lashes covering its huge, bulbous eyes at us expectantly.
“Ohh! That was sooo disgusting!” wailed Kelly.
I felt my own stomach do a flip-flop, but then everything had to eat something.
“What is that thing?” I demanded of Rainor. “And tell me it does not eat people—or dogs!” I pulled Dusty closer to me to keep her away from the new arrival.
“Good girl,” I reassured the dog. “Stay here.”
“Oh, I think we’re pretty safe.” Rainor laughed as he patted the large green and white spotted creature on the head. “They’re called froggs and they’re actually fairly intelligent, maybe on the level of your dog. Unfortunately, they do have a special appetite for the sparkles when they can catch one, but mostly they eat fish and bugs. Some folks let them stay around their homes or farms as pets and to keep some of the varmints down.” The frogg leaned close to Rainor and nudged his leg as if he knew him. “This one has been hanging around my camp for several months now.” He reached down and scratched its ugly head between the big eyes. “I named him Ralph.”
“Ralph?” laughed Kelly.
“Sure, why not?” Rainor grinned at her.
“Okay, Ralph it is,” I grinned back as I released the dog to investigate. Straightening up, I stretched and wandered from under the tent to study the pale golden sky overhead and the thick haze of clouds tumbling along ahead of a gentle breeze.
“Seeing as everyone is awake now, I guess we better get things together and get moving.” I carried my pack to a large rock at the edge of last night’s bonfire and began rummaging through it for the various toiletries I needed to make myself ready for the day.
“You’ll find a small stream and some privacy over behind that pair of boulders,” Rainor called as he began adding fuel to the coals in the fire-pit.
“Thanks.” I let my eyes wander across the camp, making brief eye-contact with Ben before following Kelly and Jennie to the sandy path Rainor had indicated. Behind me I heard the rattle of tarps and equipment as the men began breaking camp.
We returned a short while later to find a breakfast of hot coffee and the ever-present food bars waiting for us. The warmer temperatures of under-world had inspired us to change from our heavy, long-sleeved shirts to T-shirts and pack away our jackets, but we had nothing to replace the jeans. We hadn’t expected a sudden change in climate when we’d originally packed our bags.
“We’ll need to hit the trail as soon as possible if we’re going to reach White Rock City before dark,” Rainor declared before swallowing the last bite of the food bar he was chewing on.
“That sounds good to me, but,” drawled Ben. He took another swallow of his coffee before finishing his sentence, “it seems that I owe you all an explanation.” He proceeded to relate pretty much the same tale as he’d told me the night before, except for his opinions and insight into Rainor’s mission.
“So
what you’re telling us is that you were tracking Carl all this time, trying to get a lead on his connections?” asked Jake incredulously.
“And this old man thing is a disguise and you are really how old?” Jennie looked at him like he’d just grown a second head.
“Well, let me answer the best I can. Yes, we did acquire a couple of Carl’s contacts and even gained some valuable information from them, and, twenty-four.” He grinned at us. “I’m twenty-four years old and, as Halie surmised, I’m a morph and able to change my appearance at will. However, the process is not instantaneous and it will take me a few days to regain my original good looks.”
There were several snickers but they quickly faded as we each considered all the implications of what Ben had just revealed.
“Okay, I have a couple of questions for you.” Rainor broke the awkward silence, his brow creased in a deep frown. “I would like to have a little better understanding of why you’ve chosen to come on this mission with us. Do you intend to sabotage it, or are you truly along for the sake of gathering legitimate information?”
Ben’s face got a very stern, serious look to it and he studied the Tereus agent for a long moment before replying. “It is crucial to the well-being of the population of both Tereus and Earth that I discover a course which will allow both worlds to continue to exist with the best possible quality of life for all.”
“I agree.” Rainor slipped his arms into the straps of his pack and turned in the direction of the path. “I think it’s time we got moving.” Taking hold of a second pack he had filled with supplies, he tossed it at the frogg. “Here Ralph, make yourself useful.”
I heard several surprised intakes of breath as the pack flew through the air toward the over-sized frog’s head. But instead of being struck by the heavy missile, Ralph’s big mouth popped open and he gulped, swallowing the pack.
“Rrrippittt!” he exclaimed as he hopped onto the trail behind Rainor.
“Why did you do that?” Kelly managed to get past her surprise.
Rainor laughed. “Sorry, I should have warned you. Froggs are frequently used to carry parcels and can even be instructed to a certain degree. They can be kind of handy when you need some extra supplies toted.”
We all cast doubtful looks his way but kept our comments to ourselves as we started moving along the trail.
Much to Kelly’s delight, the tide was out. Darting from one shallow puddle of seawater to the next, she began collecting handfuls of the colorful seashells scattered about in the wet sand.
I was relieved when the small inlet that had hosted the lovesick sea serpents the night before proved to be a mere trickle this morning and easily waded through. The gentle breeze, the calls of seabirds and the exotic beauty of the scenery surrounding us on all sides added to the ambiance of the day.
Deciding not to let my sister have all the fun, I rolled the legs of my jeans up in a vain attempt to keep them dry and waded into the shallow water. It was fun to feel the soft sand between my toes and the cool water lapping over my feet. The beach was covered in fine, silvery sand and it was easy enough to make our way around the clusters of rocks thrusting through the sand at irregular intervals.
The landward side of our trail continued to be strewn with mounds of the large purple boulders and small clumps of black-trunked, sharp-angled trees that were scattered between the mounds.
Noisy black and white sea gulls ignored the trail of people and went about their business of darting around from beach to ocean in their never-ending search for food. I couldn’t help laughing at some odd little birds that kept bobbing into sight. Flitting from the cover of the brush under the trees, they chattered to each other as they darted between the clusters of rocks, and I was seriously relieved that we hadn’t encountered any large animals or phantoms all morning.
“Hey, this is as much fun as a day at the beach at home,” laughed Kelly as she splashed to my side. “In fact, it’s better, ‘cause there are no other people to spoil all the fun.”
“Kelly’s right, I could get used to this,” agreed Jennie. “Now if there was just a little more sunlight, I could work on my tan.” She pulled the ends of her shirt up and tied it halter-style. “Sure is getting warm, though. Wish we’d known we were headed this way when we left the apartments, we could have brought clothes that were a little cooler.”
“How far do you think we’ve come?” asked Kelly. “Do you have any idea where he’s taking us?”
I couldn’t help laughing at my sister’s enthusiasm—it was nice to see her smiling again. “Well, I’m guessing, but I think we’ve only gone a couple of miles so far, and all I know about our destination is that we’re headed for this White Rock City where Rainor intends to get a few answers from his superiors before we decide whether we want to help them out or not.”
The sun had risen high in the sky when Rainor called us to a halt at the edge of an unusually large cluster of rocks thrusting through the sand in the shallow water at the edge of the beach.
“Okay, we’ll be heading inland from here on. We’re going to make a stop at a little village not far from here. There are some folk living there that I need to speak with. Hopefully they can give me a little insight into what’s happening at the palace right now.”
“That sounds okay to me,” answered Ben. “Just how fa”
Whatever he was going to ask was lost when the dog went insane, barking and snarling at the boulders on the landward side. She repeatedly ran at the rocks and circled back again with her hackles raised and teeth bared.
“Dusty! Come here, girl!” I couldn’t see what had set her off but I wasn’t taking any chances. “Everybody take cover!” I warned, but my street-smart friends were already ducking into the scant shelter offered by the rocks.
“Rainor! What’s going on?” demanded Ben as he peered around the side of nearby boulder. His weapon was in hand and ready.
“I don’t know.” Rainor leaned from the cover of a pile of rocks a short distance away.
Jake’s head appeared beside him as he leaned out to make eye contact with me. “Halie, do you think you can send the dog into those rocks to flush whatever is in there?”
“No way!” I tightened my grip on Dusty’s collar to keep her from doing just that. “You go chase it out! I’m not letting my dog get eaten by some hungry ghoul!”
“Damn! We can’t just hide here indefinitely!” Rainor cussed and stood, preparing to walk out into the open, but Jake grabbed his arm to stop him.
“Wait, let me see if I can give them a little nudge.”
I watched as Jake moved to the front of the rocks. Bracing himself against them, he closed his eyes. A moment later, the smaller rubble lying across a rock formation at the landside edge of the beach began to quiver and shake. In moments, even the largest of the boulders in the pile was vibrating and the smaller rocks had begun tumbling to the sand.
The ghouls hiding in the rocks erupted in a wave of warty flesh and wooly hides. Shouting and grunting, they waved sticks and threw stones as they hobbled into the open. The whole attack would have been funny except for the fierce determination etched on their misshapen faces.
It took a few minutes but I finally spotted Kelly and Jennie hiding in the cover of a large pile of rocks not far behind me. Satisfied that they were safe, at least for the moment, I returned my attention to the creatures staggering toward us. They ranged from huge, hump-backed monsters with snaggled teeth to things with human faces and bodies that flopped along the ground on flippers. Darting along between all of them were a half-dozen of the Skorks Rainor and I had seen on the beach last night. There were only about a dozen of the ghouls, plus their entourage of goblins, but it was plain that they intended to do as much harm as possible.
Rainor and Ben opened fire on the pack of ghouls closing on us and two dropped to the ground and lay quivering.
Reluctantly, I released my grip on Dusty’s collar and drew the sword from its sheath. “Stay close to me, girl,” I whispered, hopin
g the dog would mind.
When one of the ghouls waddled within striking distance, I stepped from behind the rocks and onto the open beach to give myself some room to swing the sword. I drew the sword back and waited, but before the ghoul could reach me, Dusty launched herself at its feet, snapping and biting. When the ghoul tried to kick her, she locked her jaws around its thick ankle and sank her teeth in. Furious, she began twisting and growling as if she intended to rip it from its leg.
Howling in pain, the ghoul revealed a mouthful of jagged teeth as it tried to reach the creature attacking it.
“Oh, no, you don’t!” I lunged, stabbing the point of the blade into the ghoul’s throat.
Eyes running with yellow puss refocused on me and a gurgling sound rose from the ghoul’s ruined throat even as it reached with four-inch long claws for my face. They barely brushed the ends of my hair before the arm went limp.
When it still didn’t fall, I stepped to one side and drew my sword back, intending to stab it again but, like a windup toy that had run down, the ghoul’s legs began to wobble and the body to sway. Dusty tightened her grip on the ankle she was still chewing on and used her weight to drag the ghoul’s leg from under it.
The limp body crumbled to the ground and the head rolled back until it was hanging by a thin strip of skin at the base of its skull. The heart continued to pump blood from the gaping wound for several moments longer before it stopped beating.
“Leave it, Dusty!” I ordered when she returned to savage the body. I was reaching for her collar when she whined and jerked her head back. Shaking her head, she spit the mottled red and black blood from her mouth before moving away from the dying creature.
It occurred to me that the ghoul’s blood could have been toxic, but I wasn’t given time to think about it. Two more of the ghouls were closing in on me—one was the flipper-man and the other looked almost human, except for his furry, wolfish snout full of teeth. Apparently unafraid of the snarling dog that had returned to guard me, they circled closer.
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