Sona and Glic held hands and recited a rhyme:
Insects and ivy, no time to waste,
Back to your places with utmost haste!
There was a whizz of activity as, with blurring speed, the ivy returned to its normal growth and the insects departed, leaving the floundering men in the tumbled-down tent. The other two men ran to it when they saw the struggling shapes beneath the crumpled canvas.
“We’re being eaten alive!” the men inside screamed. The other two worked to pull them out from under the collapsed tent.
Elsewhere, Trom surveyed the wheels of a huge tipper-truck. Croga and Gorum were baffled by the black rubber rings that held the body of the trunk so far off the ground.
“They’re full of ordinary air,” Mulligan explained. “These trucks can’t travel very far without the wheels fully inflated. They’d just plough deep into the ground!”
The leader of the Shamrogues smiled and looked at Croga. “Your department, I think?” he said with a gleam in his eye. “I think you know what’s required!”
It was time for another chant. Croga concentrated.
At these wheels, I have to stare,
Empty them of useful air!
There was a hissing as the air began to escape from the tyres and the monster truck started sinking lower to the ground. Then Croga turned her attention to the other vehicles. Mulligan and the Shamrogues watched as all the wheels quickly deflated.
At the tent, the group of men stood in animated discussion.
“Cripes!” one of them swore. “We were crawling alive with insects. Honestly! Look!” He showed them his bare arms where he had almost scratched away the skin. In the dim lamplight there was not an insect in sight. They had vanished.
“And the tent was smothered in ivy…” another attempted. “There was absolutely no escape.”
The beam of a torch was cast on the canvas. There was not even a leaf to be seen on its surface.
“A likely story,” the senior man quipped. “First we had the other trio of twits and their story of bats and little men. And now you lot with your nightmares of insects and deranged ivy! Have you been drinking? Because if you were, I’ll…”
“No, really, honestly, cross our hearts,” they protested, although beginning to doubt their own words. But then what they had experienced was unbelievable.
“Since the night is nearly over,” the senior foreman said, “we might as well spend it in the open together. That way, I can keep a watch on things here.”
Kang and Aroo, seeing the men settle down once more, began to swing on the lamps’ cables.
“Blast!” the foreman groaned. “Now the lights are on the blink. There’ll be no rest for any of us at all!”
Chapter Nine
Magical Dawn
The Shamrogues and Mulligan withdrew to the warmth of the cave, while Kang and Aroo kept the workmen on their toes. It provided an opportunity to have a rest as they awaited the arrival of dawn. So far things had gone more or less according to plan. They had caused magical mayhem and disrupted their enemies’ despicable scheme.
Gorum studied Mulligan, who had re-assumed his natural size and was sipping a mug of steaming hot tea, tiny vapour droplets forming along the length of his thick red moustache. He appeared contented with his night’s work. From the brim of his bush hat, the plastic flies swung and wobbled. They reminded the blue creature of how the bats had hovered at the entrance to the tent.
“Mulligan,” Gorum said. “When we came here first with the children, you were asked what the flies on your hat were for. Your answer ‘to keep the flying corks away’ has since intrigued me. I hope you don’t mind me asking you what that meant.”
In the silence of the cavern, with only the occasional crackle from the glowing fire, all attention was directed on the man who now wore a broad grin.
“Ah!” Mulligan exclaimed. “I was wondering when someone would ask me about that. But it’s all really very simple.” He drank the contents of his mug in one long gulp and wiped his whiskers with the back of his hand.
Molag’s high-pitched shriek could be heard as she and her followers waited to be allowed past the willow screen concealing the mouth of the cave.
Not wanting Mulligan to be disturbed, Glic craftily nodded at the entrance. He moved his head forward and then to one side. As he did so, the screen floated out slightly and then followed his command by sliding sideways. Bats poured in and flitted down the narrow passageway to their sleeping places in the cavernous ceiling beyond. Molag waited until last. She majestically beat her webbed wings and remained suspended in front of Mulligan and the Shamrogues.
“We’ve completed our part. The last pieces of the task lie with you. We wish you well.” Then she went to join her kin.
The screen replaced, Mulligan took up where he had left off. “I once used to be a member of some very elite society. In other words I was, during a certain part of my life, quite wealthy in money terms, that is. This led me to be invited to many so-called important parties. And that’s when the corks flew in my life – from loads and loads of champagne bottles. And with each and every flying cork, a piece of my life was being frittered away. Finally, it had to stop or it would have stopped me. That’s why I moved to the great outback and learned to live properly, and at peace with the world with the Aborigines of Australia. So the hat serves to remind me of those times.”
The big man flicked at one of the plastic flies. It broke from its string mooring and whizzed in the direction of the entrance.
“Another dawn is arriving to drive the night away,” Trom declared. “We must finish what we set out to do.”
Gorum pondered for a moment. “Since Molag is a creature of the darkness, we will have to make our own way to Oak Glade.”
“We’ll transport ourselves with magic,” Sona suggested. “The long rest gave us lots of time to build up our powers.”
There was a hush as each Shamrogue thought of what the little pink creature had said, and they became conscious of the surge of energy that rippled through them. They flexed and stretched like athletes preparing for an important event. Mulligan remained sitting on his carved stone seat and rested his chin in the palms of his hands.
“I don’t think I can do much to help stop the McNamaras if you shrink me to your size,” he said. “And I can’t just go charging at them and demand they stop their dirty work. It might be best if I stay here and let you go and perform your magic on them.”
“I’m sure we can think of some way for you to be part of things,” Gorum said.
The others exchanged fleeting glances and then looked to their leader inquiringly.
Trom tugged thoughtfully at an eyebrow. “So as not to waste any more precious seconds, and to preserve our magic ability, let’s try something that should not drain us too much. Hurry, climb up onto Mulligan’s shoulders.”
“Great!” Glic exclaimed. “All aboard…all aboard!”
“This is absurd,” Croga was beginning to grumble.
Trom looked sternly at the yellow creature. “No need to be hasty. I haven’t finished my instructions.”
The Shamrogues stood precariously on the big man’s shoulders. Arms outstretched, they balanced like tightrope walkers.
“Right!” Trom continued. “Join hands and form a circle around Mulligan’s neck.” The leader began the loop by hanging from the big man’s beard with one hand and grabbing one of Gorum’s hands with the other.
There was a moment of tension as the chain was formed; Croga tried and almost fell twice, but she was finally helped by Mulligan himself, although he wondered what was going to happen next. He could never be sure when the Shamrogues were around. And now they were around his neck!
“Harump! Concentrate on Oak Glade,” Trom commanded.
Suddenly Mulligan began to feel as though his head was spinning on his shoulders in a hazy mixture of dazzling colours. Then it seemed as though he was hurtling through a tunnel glowing with luminous white light, and he th
ought his body was being wrenched away from the very earth itself. Twisting, turning and whizzing, with the Shamrogues clinging on, he was soon rolling in an expanse of tufted moss that broke his fall. He shook his head and stared around. Oak Glade!
They had arrived in the nick of time and had just concealed themselves in a thicket when the McNamaras’ jeep screeched to a halt in the centre of the clearing.
The dawn was grey, and a wavering mist like woven cobwebs floated half a metre from the dew-laden ground. Sabina cut through it and strode to where the gang of remaining workmen sat shivering on a fallen tree trunk. Colin was close behind his sister, and the eerie vapour seemed to clutch at him as he plodded over the damp surface. The overhead lamps cast little light in the shadowy forest.
Sabina, hands on her hips, feet splayed solidly, faced the weary men and scowled. “You feeble-minded idiots, what’s been going on here? And where are the other three?”
The foreman climbed from the trunk and blinked. “The lights,” he said, shading his eyes with a hand. “They’ve been going on and off all night long. Amazing!”
The young woman stared at him. “Have you gone mad? I just asked you a question and you’re going on about the blasted lights.”
The foreman’s second-in-command, eager for promotion, stepped forward. “There’s been strange things happening here, Miss. We got no sleep, and the three others ran off screaming something about bats and being chased. Then the tent mysteriously fell down and these others swore they had been covered in insects and that the tent was covered in ivy. I think all the fresh air went to their heads. But I’ve been trying to convince this lot that there’s absolutely nothing to be worried about.”
Then Colin spotted the flat tyres on the trucks. He trudged over, hands dug deeply into his pockets, and leaned close to one of the big wheels to have a look. It slowly dawned on him that all the tyres had no air left in them! He performed a little nervous dance as he called Sabina.
“Sis…ohhhoo…si-isss,” he whined. “I think we have problems. Come over here!”
Sabina, who was about to give the remaining workmen an earful, turned on her heel and glared at her brother. “Whaaat?!”
“The wheels!” he pointed. “They’re all completely flat.” Colin shrugged his scrawny shoulders.
His sister stomped over, closely followed by the bewildered workmen. They all peered in utter astonishment at the deflated tyres.
“Who…?” Sabina demanded. She glowered at the workers.
Tired, confused eyes answered her, but nobody said anything.
“It’s sabotage then,” she concluded. “Those other three deserters must have done this. No wonder they were running. And you morons let them go because you believe in gobbledygook. Foreman, get the footpump out of the back of my car and get these stupid tyres pumped up.”
“But, Miss…” he moaned. “I’d never be able to…” Sabina looked icily at him. That was enough. “I’ll get right on to it now, Miss.” He slowly walked away.
“Well?” Sabina blazed. “What are you all waiting for? We have to get this job accomplished with only the five of you. Me and my brother will see that you earn your money. Now, get started!”
The workmen went to their various tasks. One took up a sharp, broad-bladed axe. Two prepared dangerous looking chainsaws. Another climbed up into the cab of a big bulldozer and started the engine, which sputtered and belched black smoke from the exhaust funnel on its bonnet. Meanwhile, the foreman became red-faced from his exertions with the foot pump, which were getting him absolutely nowhere.
Sabina opened the door of her jeep and leaned in to pull back the sliding sun-roof. Then she stepped inside and the top half of her body appeared over the roof of the car as she stood on the front seats. From her elevated position, she could oversee the complete clearing. Like the starter of a race or a tank commander, she raised an arm and then swiftly brought it down to point at the most magnificent and the oldest oak tree in the entire forest. Colin leaned lazily against the front of the vehicle and chewed at the stubby bitten nails of his right hand.
“Smash that monstrosity down!” Sabina yelled, and ordered the bulldozer driver forward.
As the dozer spewed dense smoke and clanked into gear, the snarling sound of chainsaws ripped through the air as the men revved them into life. The other man lifted the heavy axe and swung it in a testing arc. The foreman ceased his task and propped himself against the big wheel he was working on. He rubbed his brow with his sleeve and watched, fascinated, for the destruction to begin.
Mulligan was despondent. “No!” he croaked. “Please! Not that one. What are we going to do?”
The rumbling machine tore up the earth and threw out clouds of dust that mingled with the mist.
The big man pulled on the brim of his bush hat and dragged it down over his eyes. It was all too much for him to watch. “Dollopin’ dinosaurs! how can we hope to tackle such a monster of a machine? And I wouldn’t stand a chance against those men out there.”
The Shamrogues peeped through the foliage of the thicket. Things were getting serious, and some action was required fast.
They saw the bulldozer trundle closer and closer to its victim, with the men, armed with the tools for lopping tree limbs, following in its wake. Sabina shouted commands all the time. “Faster, you lazy wimps! Topple that tree and get finished with it. There are lots more to be seen to.”
Trom looked at Mulligan. The giant of a man was so distressed that he sat on the ground and buried his face in his knees.
Then there was the most horrific sound of splintering wood and groaning timber. The Shamrogues gazed aghast as the bulldozer’s front blade pushed grudgingly at the base of the great oak tree. But the tree resisted this first onslaught and remained upright.
There was another terrified noise that pierced the clearing. It came from high up. It sounded like frightened squirrels chattering. And it came from the top of the oak under attack. Kang and Aroo had been hiding there. The pair were screaming in alarm as the tree shook and creaked.
The bulldozer reversed with a grinding of gears. The machine retreated a few metres and stopped. The other men stood poised, chainsaws and axe at the ready.
The Shamrogues were so stunned by the sight that they could hardly think what to do. What could be of more importance? Their friends the squirrels or the ancient oak tree?
But there were no further opportunities to consider. The engine in the dozer roared mightily and the machine burst forward for a second time. This attack was filled with more power and the driver directed the full thrust of the bulldozer a little higher up the trunk.
Kang and Aroo darted crazily around the canopy of the doomed oak as it shrieked in agony and began to slowly topple. Oak Glade was filled with all the terrible sounds that attend destruction – groaning, creaking, splintering, rasping, chattering, revving, crying, screaming. The forest was in uproar at the violent assault on its oldest inhabitant.
“Jump…jump!” Kang’s voice could be heard shouting to Aroo. But his timid mate was very frightened. He scrambled to her side. They would be together no matter what happened!
The tree seemed to hang suspended as it trembled. The bulldozer gave a final heave, and the roots splintered and gave away. The dozer pulled back, and the men cheered as the oak tumbled to the forest floor with a heart-rending symphony of breaking boughs. It was too late!
“Ohhh,” Mulligan moaned in dismay. “What have they done? Dollopin’ dinosaurs!”
Sona shook herself from the shock of the sight she had just witnessed. “What did you say about dinosaurs?” she coaxed Mulligan. “Tell me. Please tell me!”
The big man, tears in his eyes, looked at the tiny creature. “We could do with the help of a Glyptodon,” he said. “They were armoured mammals, like huge armadillos, with a thick solid domed covering. Their mace-shaped tail was used in battle. These beasts were three metres long and very formidable. But, like so many other great animals, they disappeared a long, long ti
me ago. I wish we had one with us now. It’d soon sort this flippin’ lot out!”
Sona glanced at Trom. He had been taking everything the big man said into consideration. And action needed to be taken immediately, as the bulldozer was about to make an assault on another tree. Meanwhile, the workmen were preparing to start cutting boughs and branches of the fallen tree away.
The leader of the Shamrogues was studying the situation and arriving at speedy conclusions. First, there was the mighty oak tree to be dealt with. He quickly waved his hands in its direction. Just as one of the workmen was about to carve into the bark, the tree secretly became petrified along its full length and turned to stone.
The snarling whirring teeth of the chainsaw came into contact with the oak and there was immediately a dazzling array of sparks and screeches as it bounced off the stony surface. The workman was almost thrown to the ground with the recoil.
Sabina McNamara roared at him, “Operate that chainsaw properly, you stupid idiot. And you other two get sawing and hacking as well!”
They all started with a new determination, but they were wasting their time, so hard was the petrified tree.
“This is useless!” one of them called back. “These tools are totally worthless. We could do with some decent machinery.”
Sabina, still standing in the jeep, nearly went berserk. “That’s just typical,” she roared. “Blame the tools. It’s always the same. Now get on with the job or I’ll see to it that you never find work around here again!”
Then the leader of the Shamrogues turned his attention elsewhere. An extremely large boulder was visible at the edge of the clearing. He waved his hands again and chanted softly:
And now ‘tis you we really want,
Change into a Glyptodon!
There was a thunderous sound as the boulder changed shape and gradually came to life. A fearsome animal emerged. It slowly peered around and flicked its massive multi-spiked tail. Pawing the ground, the Glyptodon spotted the bulldozer and thought it was an enemy. With a deafening bellow, the huge animal began a lumbering charge for the dozer.
The Shamrogues Page 7