by N. C. Reed
Suddenly Monusuol moved away, leaving Donna and her mother alone.
Heading toward Chip Douglas.
*****
Chip fought down the urge to panic, and the almost overwhelming need to look toward the blue orb of light. If he looked, Monusuol would look. If the monster recognized the trap before it was sprung, then he would run away, and all of this would have been for nothing, and the beast would be loose.
Oh please, little ball of light, do your thing, and do it quick, the scared teen thought to himself, mentally trying to urge the trap to close shut around the monster. And do it quickly.
“Stay back,” he told his mom, hearing her walking behind him. “All I need to do is keep him focused on me and inside the trap. Don't make it harder.”
Stacey stopped, looking at her son's back in amazement. He sounded so calm, almost detached. Where was he finding the courage to do this. She held back, her instincts warring with each other. Her maternal drive demanding that she go to her son and help him, protect him, while her rational side warned her to heed what Chip was saying, and not make his job any harder.
In front of her, Chip was also wondering where he was getting his courage. He sure didn't feel brave, with his knees trembling, threatening to fold beneath him. All he knew was that this was his fault. The other adults had been right about that. He was the one who found the book, and the spell, and he was the one who had brought it to the others. And convinced them to try it.
All for a stupid dog, the thought came to him unbidden. He had loved Waldo as much as any of the gang had, but he realized, standing here looking at what he had done, that no dog was worth the trouble and risk he had brought to his family, his friends, and his town.
We should have left well enough alone, he realized. Well, it was too late now. All he could do was try and make things right.
And this was all he could think of. Distracting the monster, and willing himself not to look at the small blue orb still growing inside the wood.
How long would it take to work?
*****
Chuck looked at the orb wondering the same thing his son was. He realized what Chip was doing, and was very proud of his son. He was also scared out of his mind with worry that his young son would suffer for his bravery.
But Chuck and the others were helpless to assist him now. If they attracted the beast's attention, then he would see the orb, and know that he was inside a trap. Monusuol had seen such traps before, after all. Had been victim of them before. If he realized what was happening before the orb was ready, then he would flee, and their trap would fail.
Chuck realized that his son recognized the same thing. He also was beginning to realize that Chip blamed himself for everything that had happened, and was assuming responsibility for making it right. Even while scared silly for his son's safety, Chuck couldn't help but feel immense pride in his son. Chuck doubted that he would have been so responsible himself at that age.
Watching the events play out in front of him, Chuck silently urged the orb to hurry, even though he knew that it wouldn't do any good. It did make him feel better, though. A little.
*****
Chip tried to get a look at the orb from the corner of his eye, but couldn't see it. He didn't dare look at it directly. He turned his attention to Monusuol instead, holding up a hand in front of him.
“That's far enough!” he called in a loud, stern voice. Surprisingly, the beast stopped.
There's no way that should have worked, Chip thought to himself.
“You don't belong here,” he said forcefully, looking the beast in the eyes. “You were called here by mistake. My mistake. I know I made you mad, but it wasn't on purpose. There's no place for you here, Monusuol, and no way you can stay. You have to go back where you came from.”
The giant beast cocked his head to the side, obviously recognizing his own name.
I wonder if that's good or bad? Chip thought.
*****
Monusuol heard the man-beast call his name in it's own language, and stopped. He had seen others, long ago, holding a hand up in that fashion, and calling him by name. Those occasions had never worked out well for him. Seeing it again, here, made him hesitate.
How did this puny human know his name? Why was it standing before him instead of fleeing in horror? What did this human know that gave him the courage of a knight of old?
This human was pathetically small, the beast noted. Wouldn't even make a good snack. Yet he dared stand before Monusuol with his hand raised, calling the beast by name. Suspicion tugged at the corner of the monster's mind. When things shouldn't be, but where, there was usually danger.
The small man-thing was speaking again.
*****
“You can't stay here!” Chip called strongly. He had no idea if the thing could understand him, but it didn't matter, as long as he could keep his attention.
“You have to go!” Chip said firmly. “I'm sorry I brought you here, but I did something stupid, that's all. I wanted something that I wasn't supposed to have, and, well, I messed up. You're a mistake, Monusuol, and that's all there is to it. You have to go!”
*****
Monusuol heard his name again, and took a step back. Not out of fear, of course. But from confusion. This human, small as it was and with no armor or weapons, should be running in fear, screaming loudly for help.
But it wasn't. And that bothered Monusuol. Things that should be but were not. Things that should not be, but were. Too many things out of the norm. Was there something wrong? Some danger he had overlooked? Or was it simply because of the changes in this realm since his last visit.
A visit that had ended with his being banished to another plane. One without goats to feast upon. Or humans to prey upon.
Monusuol wasn't stupid. Despite his anger and aggravation, he hesitated, trying to understand what was so different about this place, this time, that it caused his instincts to make him cautious.
That hesitation would cost him.
*****
Chip realized that Monusuol was hesitating, and almost yelled in triumph. That was all he needed. He just needed Monusuol to stay dumb and hesitant a little bit longer. . . .
The orb suddenly began to pulse, it's blue light streaming in and out like a strobe light at a dance party. There was a slight hum audible with that pulse, and Chip watched the monster turn his head to see what was making the noise.
Chip was looking right at the monster when it realized what was happening. The look of confusion turned to one of surprise, and then of anger. The monster roared in rage, turning back to face the puny human before him.
Only to find the puny human gone.
Monusuol was left alone with the orb.
*****
Chip had fled the instant Monusuol's eyes had left him, running as quietly as he could back into the woods where his mother was waiting. Reaching her, he turned to look back.
As long as he lived, Chip would remember what followed.
*****
The orb pulsed brighter, larger, and the hum grew louder. Monusuol hesitated only a few seconds before he turned to run.
It was enough.
The orb lashed out suddenly, no longer pulsing. Instead it had grown to the size of the picture window at the library. A tentacle of blue light from the orb reached out and wrapped itself around the leg of the the fleeing Monusuol, tripping the beast and bringing him crashing to the forest floor. Then, slowly but steadily, the tentacle began to drag Monusuol toward the orb.
Bellowing in rage, Monusuol grabbed at anything within his reach, searching for something, anything, to anchor himself to. Anything that would help him resist the pull of the orb.
There was nothing. Rocks, small trees, even the dirt itself were dragged right along with him toward the rift that the orb held open for him. Screaming in impotent fury, Monusuol was steadily pulled to the opening between the planes. His roars shattered the night, and the human's covered their ears as the sound threatened to b
urst their ear drums.
But it changed nothing. The orb was far stronger than the monster, and there was nothing Monusuol could do to fight it.
As Chip watched, it seemed as if the rift and the orb ate the beast, slowly consuming the screaming monster and erasing him from their world.
The last he saw of the monster was a hand/claw reaching out desperately from the rift, searching for a handhold, a last second reprieve from the doom he knew was coming.
There was none to be found. The hand slowly disappeared from sight, dragged into the rift along with the rest of the beast. The orb stayed for a few seconds, as if searching for more like Monusuol, then flashed once, illuminating the woods brighter than any full moon ever would. With a sound similar to a low flying plane streaking overhead, it slammed shut, leaving the woods in darkness once more.
The trap had worked. Monusuol was gone.
*****
Chuck and Alfred used flashlights to round up everyone. The two men made sure than no sign was left of what had happened here in the woods, save for the goat carcass. Both looked at it, then used leaves to cover it after dragging it far from any trail. Scavengers would do the rest of the work for them, and what was left would return to the earth, as was natural.
There was silence among the group for several minutes. Then, as if someone had turned on a tap somewhere, everyone wanted to talk at once.
“What were you thinking!”
“Why couldn't you be quiet!”
“This was your fault!”
“Who made all that noise!”
Chip sat down on a nearby rock, listening to everyone try to talk at once. He was so tired. His legs were almost too weak to hold him up at this point. He realized too that he was drenched in sweat. He covered his face in his hands for a few moments, trying to rub off the tired. He felt, rather than heard, someone walk up to him, and looked up to see Donna standing over him.
“Thank you,” she said softly. Chip didn't ask what for.
“You're welcome,” he smiled weakly.
“My stupid mom almost got us all killed,” Donna grumped, sitting heavily beside him.
“No, I almost did that,” Chip sighed. “This was all my fault, Donna. I played around with something I didn't know anything about, and we almost died because of it.”
“We all helped you, Chip,” Donna told him.
“More like I talked you into it,” Chip shook his head. “I have to be honest, Donna. This was my fault. I caused this.”
“Well, it's over now,” Donna sighed, leaning on him a little. “We can go home.”
“I heard that,” Donny's voice came to them from the dark as he, Angie and Alvin walked up to join them. Behind the trio, the adults were almost arguing. Again.
“I think we may have ruined our parent's friendship with each other,” Alvin noted sourly.
“It does seem that way,” Angie admitted. “But their 'friendship' was apparently based on the same stuff that let us bring that thing here. Maybe it's best if they do go their separate ways, you know?”
“Something else I did,” Chip nodded mournfully. “If I hadn't brought that stupid book to you guys, then none of this would have happened.”
“Oh, stop it,” Angie hit his shoulder. “You're such a martyr. We all agreed to try and get Waldo back, Chip.”
“That's right,” Alvin nodded. “We all should have known better, Chip. Not just you. We all messed up.”
“I wonder what's going to happen over there,” Donny said aloud, nodding in the direction of their assembled parents.
*****
“What do you mean, we're through?” Valina demanded, looking at Chuck angrily.
“I'm not telling any of you what you can or can't do,” Chuck raised a hand to ward off any more retorts. “I'm telling you that Stacey and I are done. Finished.”
“Damn straight,” Stacey nodded, anger in her voice.
“If this is about what we said before,” Alvin started, but Chuck cut him off.
“You mean about how this was all my fault, and my son's, and that it was my problem to deal with, and you didn't want your children around Chip anymore?” he demanded, his own anger coming to the fore. “If that's what you mean, then yes, that's got a lot to do with it.”
“We've been working together for years,” Stacey's anger was even more evident. “Every time one of you needed something, you came running to Chuck, wanting his help. The first time, the very first time that something bad happens, you dump it all into his lap, and abandon him! Friends like that we can do without, thanks very much!”
The others had enough shame to look away at that, hit hard by their friends' anger. Belinda was the first to speak up.
“Look, I'm sorry,” she said. “I shouldn't. . .I mean, I was scared, that's all. But we can't stop! I depend on our arts for my business!”
“So do we,” Alfred and Valina spoke almost in one voice, and Kat nodded her own agreement.
“Well, you better either learn to do without it, or learn to do it yourselves,” Chuck warned them all. “No one sits in my own home and lays the blame for a five person incantation on my son's shoulders. Did I know what he was doing? No, or I would have stopped him. Did I leave my books where he could find them? I admit that I did. He had never shown an interest in them. He's a teen-age boy, so any book that doesn't have the word 'comic' as part of it usually doesn't interest him.”
“This was all over that dog,” Stacey pointed out, managing to keep her anger more in check this time. “All of them wanted that dog back, and worked together to try and make that happen. More importantly, they worked together to correct the mistake they made. We should all be proud of all five of them.” The others nodded.
“But that doesn't change how you turned on us at the drop of a hat,” she continued. “All of you,” she glared at Kat, who had, until now, been possibly her best friend. “So far as I'm concerned, that means you'll do it again, even when one of you is to blame for something going bad. And that's not going to happen!” Her tone indicated that as far as she was concerned, the conversation was over.
“Stacey, I'm sorry,” Kat said earnestly. “Please, don't do this. Either of you,” she looked at Chuck.
“As far as I'm concerned, it's already done,” Chuck told her. His voice wasn't unkind, but it was firm. “I decided this last night, to be honest. I'm not willing to risk all of you turning on me again. The next time it might be something much worse. Something that we can't fix.” He paused for a moment before continuing.
“And, I realized that maybe we shouldn't be doing this anyway,” he admitted. “I didn't see the harm in it at first, and to be honest I still don't, as far as anything we've ever done. But a simple thing can easily turn into something bad. Or worse. So I'm done. Finished. You guys can keep on if you want to,” he told them. “But I'm out. We're out,” he added, indicating Stacey.
“So what are we supposed to do, then?” Valina asked bitterly. “You're abandoning us!”
“Just like you did us,” Stacey nodded, and Valina had the grace to look embarrassed.
“We can stand here all night and argue, but it's not going to change,” Chuck said finally. “And it's late. Not to mention that all the noise, and light, may have attracted notice. I've got a teen-age son to get home. One that I'm very proud of,” he said firmly. “You should all be proud as well. They've done something remarkable tonight. I doubt we could have done this at their age.” He turned to walk toward his son.
“We're going home.”
Chapter Eight
It was subdued 'gang' that gathered in front of the high school the next Monday. Their parents, as a group, were on the outs in a major way. Chip's mom and dad were adamant in their declaration that they were through, and the entire next day spent trying to convince them otherwise had failed.
That left the remaining parents arguing among themselves over who was more to blame for the loss of Chuck and Stacey and their knowledge and experience. By Monday morning, wh
en the kids assembled as usual for their morning 'conference', most of their parents were not on speaking terms any longer.
This had led to a brief period, lasting about ten minutes, where each parent or set of parents had informed their child or children they were no longer allowed to associate with the others. Not a single one had agreed to that. Chip's parents were the exception, telling Chip only that things were tense between the former friends, and to use his own judgment. They had added that it might not be a good idea to visit his friends at home for a few days to allow things to settle down, but otherwise, to carry on as he desired.
And he was, of course, grounded for life. Or maybe just graduation. Stacey hadn't made up her mind yet. The rest had endured similar punishments, but had flatly refused to stop associating with each other. The parents were angry, but there wasn't much they could do about it other than be angry.
“Well,” Angie said as the five sat down on and around their bench.
“Yeah, that about sums it up,” Donna nodded, sighing.
Everyone around them was talking about the sounds and lights from Saturday night. The five of them tried to act like they weren't aware of anything.
“I'm sorry, guys,” Chip sighed.
“Stop apologizing,” Angie ordered. “It's not as if our parents are acting like grown-ups, now is it?”
“Mine sure aren't,” Alvin said miserably. He was grounded from his online gaming until further notice. That was almost as bad as anything he could imagine.
“Our mom sure ain't,” Donny agreed.
“Yeah, mine too, neither,” Angie snorted, getting a laugh out of them at last with her bad grammar.
“Well, since I'm grounded until I graduate college I guess I should be mad at my parents, but. . .considering what I did, I can't complain,” Chip told them. “It could be worse.”
“At least your parents are acting like parents,” Donna snorted. “My mom is acting like a teenage girl who didn't get the prom dress she wanted.”
