Shantago III: The Rock of Tahguhl

by Penn, Nicholas

  “Yes, there is one here today that has ulterior plans. He doesn’t care about you, the toggle; he only wants one thing, and that’s to complete his own selfish agenda!”

  The crowd spoke many slanderous chants following this stunning accusation. Who is it? Kill him! Off with his head! Hang him! Lock him up! These were just a few of the grumbles being tossed around the already cackling and aggravated lynch mob. Krylon smiled as he made one simple gesture, pointing his finger with indictment at the king of the toggles.

  Shantago sat up from his throne with a scowl that could bury a thousand souls. “My servants, please calm down! I do not know what Krylon is speaking of. I am not a traitor!” Shantago snarled at General Krylon as he continued. “Let’s see if we can sort this out peacefully. Krylon, please explain yourself.”

  General Krylon spoke with sharp-edged words like a dragon as he said to the unruly crowd. “I have knowledge of Shantago’s strategy. He doesn’t want the toggles to conquer the world. That was never in the cards!” Krylon laughed. “No, not at all. Instead, his intentions all along have been to go back to the Toggle Forest and bring the queen back from beyond the grave. He doesn’t care about toggles, or even how many toggles die in order to save his already ill-fated queen! You, my friends, are nothing to him. In his eyes, you are just another speck of dust!”

  General Krylon had the crowd leaning his way when he put Shantago on the spot. “Well, answer, you ungrateful disgust! Are all of these accusations true?”

  Shantago gazed down at each and every one of the toggles’ faces before answering. “Yes, it’s true that I want to bring back the queen.” The crowd grew even more enraged once the facts were revealed.

  Krylon’s plan was unfolding perfectly. The general shouted out madly at the furious array of toggles: “The true king should be Negassa! It’s only fair to make him king of the toggles since Shantago was the monster who stabbed his father in the back and took his kingdom right out from under him. I suggest an eye for an eye, and a toggle for a toggle!”

  The crowd began to chant one name: “Negassa! Negassa!” as Krylon continued.

  “I think it’s time that we take a little survey. Who wants to follow Shantago back to the Toggle Forest to rescue his dead queen?” The crowd booed at the general’s gracious offer. “Or, who wants to stand with Negassa–and my military knowledge, of course–to finish what we’ve started by conquering the world?”

  The crowd erupted with a simultaneous and boisterous chant. “Yes! Yes! Yes!”

  “Looks like another win for the good guys.”

  General Krylon gave the order to strip Shantago of his majestic maroon-and-silver robe, and banish him back to the Toggle Forest. One of the toggles shouted shrewdly at Shantago as they removed his royal garments. “Boo! Go back to where you belong, the forest of lies, and the woods of despair. You don’t deserve to be our king any longer. Boo to you!”

  As he turned to leave, Shantago gave one last heartfelt speech to the crowd. “Let me make one thing clear.” He laughed, but just for a moment, as his eyebrows wrinkled and his mouth tightened ever so wickedly. “It was never about you, the toggle. No, I’ve always had my own agenda. I’ve only ever wanted what’s best. Restore balance to the toggle kingdom. Destroy the adversary. Just like the Book of Knowledge and Wisdom says to. Then, and only then, will I have my queen!”

  Shantago took a deep breath before he blasted his former servants. “Everyone of you played as pawns in my skilled game of war. So before I go, I just wanted to say thank you to all of my gophers. Thank you to all of my snakes, my pigeons, my pheasants, and to all of my sheep.”

  Shantago ended his last words with a devilish grin, followed by a maddening scowl directed at General Krylon. “Sheep never seem to realize when there’s a wolf lurking around. See? The wolf is always knocking on the door, stalking his prey, and when you least expect it––he strikes. Once I bring back the queen, with the powers of the Rock of Tahguhl, each and every one of you sheep will pay––with your lives. Ta-ta for now, it won’t be long until my return; that I promise!”

  Shantago left the podium and headed down the road towards the forest, with a flock of ravens following close behind. Tonight’s entire crowd earnestly chanted for their new king. “Hail to the king!” Negassa warmly embraced all of his new subjects as General Krylon hid, engulfed in the shadows, thoroughly enjoying his new and triumphant victory.

  Paul the Ball

  Jordan spent the night shivering, quiet, and hidden, buried under some dumpster trash. As the morning broke, Jordan’s condition worsened. His fever spiked to dangerous levels as his body continued spreading the poison that was savagely consuming him.

  Jordan’s face had begun to drop on his right side, a form of temporary paralysis, he assumed, stemming from his current condition. He also had little white crustaceans growing around each ear. Jordan was worried that this was a form of leprosy starting to infect his body.

  His hair was turning white as snow. Red-and-blue spots, like bruises, covered his entire body. He assumed it was only a matter of time now before the change would be complete.

  Jordan’s mind was starting to unravel a bit, as one can only handle so much. With all of the shivers and shakes that physically tormented him the whole night, Jordan felt deflated and empty. While climbing out of the dumpster, Jordan found a Spalding basketball that had been mostly flattened. The shape of the ball resembled that of a taco shell and it seemed like it was smiling back at him, so Jordan decided to make conversation.

  “You know, you and I have a lot in common.” Jordan gawked at the ball, which didn’t respond. “I once had a neighbor named Mr. Spalding. He was an all right guy, I suppose.” Jordan put his hands all over the ball, trying to remember the name of his past acquaintance. “I’ve got it. I’m pretty sure his name was Chuck. You know, now that I think about it, he wasn’t much of a talker either.”

  Several minutes went by as Jordan carried the ball with him down the streets and through the town. “It won’t be long now. I can feel the change happening within my body. Slowly, I am turning into the very thing that I despise the most.” Jordan didn’t want to discuss his sudden metamorphosis, but felt it might help to get all of the despair off his chest. “Yes, and by the way, may I call you Paul? Yes, Paul, I will soon be one of them; a monster, a brute, an ogre, the great diablo himself.”

  Jordan held the ball close to his face as he spoke a little quieter now. “Paul, if I were you, I’d run from here. I would get as far away as you can, because it’s not going to be if, but when, I explode. I will be the picture of what mutant monstrosity really is. I will be a freak, grotesque and appalling, just like the rest of them.” After finishing his discussion with Paul, Jordan’s brow dropped. He kicked the ball as far as he could, which landed in a pile of debris. Jordan stopped walking, turned back to the ball, and yelled at him with remorse, “Sorry, Paul, but you can thank me later! See, I am already becoming a monster!”

  With his bum leg dragging behind him, Jordan soon made his way towards the center of town, which was left a disaster. His jaw dropped once he realized what this part of town used to be. He couldn’t believe the havoc that went on, all at the hands of those murderous destructors.

  It took a moment for him to gather his thoughts as his eyes focused in on all of the massive damage at hand. “Great, it looks like there was a party here last night and I wasn’t invited.” He started picking up some miscellaneous food for his breakfast that was scattered and left to rot, such as toggle berries and boggle boe-nonos. “Well, it’s not filet mignon, but it’s not exactly mud either.”

  Soon after, Jordan ran across something that stunned him. “What’s this?” Jordan exclaimed. “It looks like that snake, the prince of darkness, has shed his skin.”

  Jordan picked up Shantago’s royal robe and put one arm through the sleeve. “Rags that were meant for a king,” Jordan proclaimed as he put the other arm in. “What do you know, a perfect fit.”

  Jorda
n hobbled on over to a nearby storefront to see his reflection. As he walked closer, Jordan noticed that both of his eyes had now changed to a volcanic red, which frightened him terribly. “So this is how it ends? I now look like”––he paused for a moment, and with a tear in his eye he said––“I now look like the evil one incarnated.” He tried to run away from the frightening window of torments, but again his bad leg prevented a fast escape.

  Jordan immediately jerked open his knapsack and pulled out a pistol. “I’m going to end this while I still have the power to.” He placed the gun inside his crusty ear as he heard the chamber go round. “Goodbye, world.” Jordan paused for a second before muttering the words, “I’m sorry, Piper. I tried so hard to do the right thing, and I wear my regret like a number on my soul.” Jordan closed his eyes and pulled the trigger tight as the gun clicked. Silence filled the calm air, and after a few moments, Jordan opened his reddening eyes. He’d forgotten to insert the magazine clip.

  Jordan’s body fell to the ground. He hit his knees while intensely crying. After a few terrible moments, he looked up towards the sky and asked, “Why does it have to be this way? At least let me die with my dignity.”

  Just then, Jordan heard a voice. “Hey, Jordan, is that you?” Jordan stood, glaring around at who might be calling out his name. After a moment of not seeing anyone, Jordan thought that his mind was starting to falter. “Great, now I’m going crazy. What’s next?”

  After being further disgusted he said, “I can’t even kill myself.” Jordan had reached his lowest point. All he could do was laugh at the situation. He laughed and cried, all at the same time. After wiping away his tears, Jordan felt much better. Suddenly, he remembered where he was headed just before his embarrassing ill-fated attempt to commit suicide. He was on his way to the university.

  Jordan heard the voice again, but this time it was further away. “Hey, Jordan, I’m up here! Come on up, I’m on the second floor. It’s safe, I promise.” Jordan recognized the voice as an old acquaintance of his. His adrenaline started pumping once again as he scurried up to a building that was just off campus. Right before he entered, a voice in his head told him to be hesitant and cautious. An eerie feeling overwhelmed him, making him come to a sudden stop. Learning from his past failures, this time he loaded a clip in his pistol before continuing.

  There was a part of Jordan that still felt human; it was his heart. Jordan somehow believed that he was responsible for the death of Jenna, so he wanted to meet her father face to face and tell him personally that he was sorry. I just hope Dr. Scottie Sheffield is an understanding man, Jordan thought as he climbed each stair, dragging his debilitated right leg behind.

  Jordan questioned if he still had enough wits about him to explain all the events of that night. He also wondered what kind of condition he would find Dr. Sheffield in once they’d met up. Only a few more steps to go and Jordan would know the answers to all of his perplexing questions.

  Teamwork

  “So what’s our next step going to be?” Matt asked Nick while loading his gun. The whole team was starting to get rather restless just hanging out. Matt pointed his gun at Aaron for a second before zeroing in on a pop can and then placing it in his holster. He laughed as he said, “Out of sight, out of mind, brother.”

  “It’s getting rather difficult to just sit here and wait, now that everyone out there is dead.” Matt was referring to the all-night assault that they’d just been part of. Nick, who seemed like he was deciding on what to do next, flipped a coin, and then nodded his head okay. “Well, I guess we need to go out and look for the boy, wouldn’t you agree?”

  Matt set down on a bucket, and while chewing a wad of tobacco he said, “That’s what I hoped you’d say. By the way, why were you so hard on him, and why did you tell him all that nonsense about toggles? You know he’s in too deep now not to believe.”

  Everyone on the team saw that something was definitely bothering Nick. That’s when he said, “Well, I just thought that the more Jordan didn’t know, the better off he would be. He’s never been the type who could handle the full scoop, if you catch my drift. I fear that some people just can’t handle the truth.”

  The team all agreed they should retreat to the Toggle Forest. Grant said with a stern voice, “Let’s load up what we can and head on out. It will be breaking dark sooner than we would like, I assure you of that.”

  Aaron said with a gruff voice, “I know that looking for him will put us behind, but he’s one of us, so. . ..”

  The team loaded up all the ammo they could carry on their backs and headed towards the Willoughby Woods forest. “Do you think the boy can survive the forest, especially with all the creatures that live in it?” Grant asked Nick this as they walked the already beaten path.

  Nick replied, “Not especially. That’s why it’s important to find him––and the sooner, the better. If we don’t hurry, he’ll be eaten alive.”

  Aaron spoke up and said, “There’s no way he can survive out there all alone at night. He would be committing suicide for sure.” They all shook their heads as Nick looked on with frustration.

  As they were walking out of Willoughby, Aaron decided to play a little trick on Matt. These were the same shenanigans Aaron had pulled on him ever since they were little tykes. All of the gags start out differently, as they usually were designed to frame Matt for something that he clearly didn’t do. The tomfoolery generally came to an end once Aaron said in an overly exaggerated way, “Matt, you looked at it wrong,” making him look and feel like a stooge. Also, if Aaron, or sometimes Nick, broke something out of frustration, they would each look at Matt and say the upsetting punch line: “Matt, you looked at it wrong.” Only this time the practical joke would end in a different way––this time Matt anticipated Aaron’s devious plan.

  Off in the distance, they saw a small automotive garage that seemed untouched by the recent destruction that had beset this small town. “See, Matt, that building over there? Somehow it managed to survive the battle without a scratch. I bet their insurance company is thanking their lucky stars tonight.”

  Before Aaron could finish the gag, Matt tripped Aaron, pushing him to the ground. He then tossed a grenade towards the abandoned building. Just as the grenade went through the broken window it went off, blowing the building to kingdom come.

  Bricks rocketed into the sky and glass shattered recklessly in the air as Matt turned to his brother, declaring in a sly voice, “Let me guess, I looked at it wrong? I’ll make a note of it for next time.” Matt had a diabolical smirk on his face as Aaron stood up, dusting off his knees.

  Aaron didn’t say anything while brushing off his arm. No, instead he remained quiet for a spell––at least until he could come up with another way to get back at his brother. Yes, vengeance always did run in the family.

  The Tables have Turned

  “Jordan, it’s so nice to see you again. Just come on in and make yourself comfortable.” Jordan smiled at Scottie’s hospitality as he was warmly greeted in the classroom. “How have you been these last few days, anyway?”

  Jordan didn’t answer as he glanced around at his surroundings for a moment, just to take it all in. There was an old-fashioned chalkboard that covered one side of the wall. The other walls consisted of some miscellaneous items, such as the periodic table, a large picture of Einstein, and some science posters. Around thirty desks or so filled the classroom. Off towards the back of the room sat a table with smoking beakers and potions. They were intensely bubbling on a gas-powered Bunsen burner. Lastly, Jordan noticed two syringes lying on Scottie’s desk. One was marked L and the other one D.

  Jordan observed Scottie very carefully as he had a seat in one of the student’s desks. “So, I see that you survived yesterday’s vicious attack.” Jordan just nodded his head yes, as that evil feeling he had kept rearing its ugly head. He placed his hand gently on his pistol, just in case.

  He noticed right away that something wasn’t right with Scottie Sheffield. Oddly enoug
h, Jordan realized right away that Scottie was dressed up in his Sunday best, which consisted of a speckled bow tie, colorful suspenders, a gold pocket watch with chain dangling, and pressed slacks, all the way down to his brown penny loafers.

  As Scottie continued to speak, Jordan noticed a huge gaping wound on his left side, which was still bleeding through to his white shirt. “Scottie, you’re hurt!” Jordan examined the laceration just before Scottie turned to hide the obvious. “I think you might need to wrap it with more bandages. Perhaps gauze might also help stop the bleeding.”

  “Yes, I know,” the doctor said gruffly. “It’s bled all morning.” Scottie seemed a bit frustrated as he continued. “The incident happened yesterday, right after the great explosion that rocked the town. I still can’t decide if it is a curse or a blessing that I survived.”

  Dr. Sheffield spun around in his chair and faced the wall as he continued. “I immediately felt sick afterwards.” He paused for a moment. “So I did a lot of reading and I came up with a temporary solution for the pain.” Scottie spun back around as he pointed at the two large syringes lying there in front of him. “You know I have the key to life and death sitting there on the table.” Jordan seemed amazed as he suddenly understood what the syringes marked L and D were for.

  After a few minutes of chitchat, Jordan built up the courage to talk to him about his daughter. Jordan figured that it was now or never, since everyone’s time felt limited. “Scottie, there’s something that we need to discuss, and it’s concerning your daughter Jenna.” Jordan paused for several seconds.

  Scottie gritted his teeth and nodded his head as he said, “I doubt it’s anything good, but go ahead. That girl always did live on the edge.”

  Jordan looked Scottie in the eye as he took a deep breath, preparing to give him the horrible news. “There’s no use beating around the bush; Jenna’s dead.”