by Daco
Electromancer scanned the city. All was as it should be. No terrifying beams of electricity, no deadly fires, no power outages. She knew it was just the calm before the apocalypse.
It was now almost midnight, so few were on the streets. A lone pedestrian casually walking her dog happened to look up and spot Electromancer. Sensing the danger, the woman began sprinting for her home. Electromancer wondered if the woman would be any safer indoors.
A fleet of police cars drove up, followed by an emergency crew from the fire department. Electromancer recognized Chief Constable Pete Petaud, who was responsible for logistics. So the Chief had believed Gladys.
Electromancer waited, hovering at the top of Big Benny. The clock struck midnight. Electromancer flew into the sky, ascending higher and higher in the atmosphere to see if she could detect anything heading toward town and intercept it before it came near. She saw nothing. She headed back to the tower, but as she neared the clock, she felt a strange pull of energy, as if the fabric of the sky were bending and contorting. She didn’t have to see the bolt of energy heading straight at her; she felt it. This was nothing like anything she’d ever experienced.
A highly charged force of energy became visible on the horizon. It was blood red and came, not in a single bolt, but in a large undulating wave that was shaped like a spider’s web. Red Web energy—pure electromagnetic energy and the most destructive force in the world! Electromancer shuddered. She’d heard her father speak of Red Web electromagnetic force. He’d said that no one had ever produced this before, that it was only theoretical. Or it had been until Momo had somehow gotten possession of the Electromite. Now, here it was, flying toward her and her city.
“Run!” Electromancer shouted to the police and firefighters in her crystalline voice so that all the town could hear her. But where would they go? Where would anyone in the city go?
There must’ve been more people on the streets than she thought, more people awake in their homes. Screams and cries for help soon filled the air.
Electromancer bravely started to fly toward Red Web to keep it from reaching town, not knowing what to expect, not knowing how to fight the energy. Nothing had stopped her before. But as she neared the boundary of the web, she felt as if she’d run into a reinforced concrete wall. The force of the collision threw her sideways and sent her tumbling through the sky.
She had to do something, fast. But what? She regained her bearings and flew to Big Benny at the speed of light. With all her might, she heaved a bolt of electrical charge toward Red Web, but it only consumed her electricity. Worse, it seemed to thrive on her energy, increasing the web’s volume and intensity.
Momo was using her own powers against her!
Red Web continued toward Big Benny like a tidal wave that was gaining strength. There was one saving grace—it didn’t move as fast as Electromancer, so at least speed was on her side. Still, Red Web was unstoppable no matter how many bolts of electricity Electromancer threw at it. When Red Web reached Big Benny, it abruptly stopped its forward progress as though it knew its target. The web hovered above Big Benny as though positioning itself, as though it were able to direct its lines of energy with the utmost precision. It was like a huge, hideous blanket. Then it dropped, forming a net around the entire clock tower, glowing and pulsating a deadly crimson as its energy began coiling more tightly. The tower’s internal clockwork began to rattle under the overwhelming pressure.
Electromancer thought back to her father’s research. How would Mickey have dissipated this energy source? In a flash, Electromancer flew to The Mick and went into the generator room, where she redirected the energy of the town—the entire region—directly toward her body, absorbing voltage and amperes hundreds of thousands of times more powerful than an amount that would’ve electrocuted any living creature. The energy concentrated within her, and she returned to the clock tower. Below her, the entire city was in the throes of a blackout, the result of her stealing the city’s electricity. But she had no choice. Gradually, the lights began to flicker on again.
She hurled an enormous bolt at Red Web, hopeful that the power would interfere with its electromagnetic frequency, but Red Web only gobbled up the electricity like a ravenous adolescent who hadn’t eaten lunch. Electromancer noticed a flicker, however, and a slight fading of Red Web’s scarlet hue. Why? On instinct, she returned to The Mick and commandeered the replenishing electricity, and from the distance, she hurled bolt after bolt of lightning at Red Web. When she returned to Big Benny, she saw that she’d managed to leach out all of Red Web’s color, and it now glowed electric white. Much of its force seemed to have dissipated. She reached for the web, intent on hurling it out into space, but the moment her hands made contact, Red Web glowed bright red again. With all her might, she began fighting, trying to pull Red Web upward, but its outer curtain acted like molecular supersonic glue. She tried to pull herself free of it, but it was no use. She attempted to weaken its grip by shooting out her own bolts of electricity, but this also failed. The electrical particles she released only merged with Red Web’s magnetic force, growing and spinning a more massive and inescapable curtain that formed tighter coils. She was losing the battle, had already lost.
“Father,” she said weakly. “Sigfred.”
Electromancer managed to turn her head toward the horizon, sensing that there was something. Blue Arrow darted across the sky, but she knew that this was her fight, not his, that it was her powers that had to fight Momo, and that Blue Arrow couldn’t—Red Web would immediately absorb his vapor, and he would die.
Blue Arrow loaded his bow. He was going to shoot an arrow at Red Web and try to pierce the electromagnetic fabric.
“Don’t do it!” Electromancer shouted, her voice carrying across the sky.
Blue Arrow ignored her. He was about to deliver the shot that would be fatal, not to Red Web, but to himself. With the power she had left, Electromancer shot a bolt at Blue Arrow, sending him tumbling toward earth and away from the deadly Red Web. She watched as he fell. To her relief, he righted himself before he reached the ground.
Out of nowhere, another burst of energy shot toward her, even brighter than the web that was holding her prisoner. When this new force of energy was almost upon her, it spread its tentacles like a hideous squid and merged with Red Web, imprisoning Electromancer in a massive cocoon. The last thing that Electromancer saw before the cocoon obscured her vision was Blue Arrow racing toward her, firing a flaming arrow at Red Web, and being struck by a burst of crimson energy that jolted him back. There was an explosion, and then his blue vapor dissipated into thin air as if he’d never existed.
NO! Was he dead?
Electromancer crackled with an electric anger more powerful than any she’d ever felt, but her rage only seemed to strengthen Red Web. Her platinum heart felt as if it were melting, as if it would simply liquefy and drip from her being. Would her broken heart nourish this odious web, too?
A new force of energy arrived and compressed Red Web into a small mass. Then, like a rubber band, the compressed mass of energy stretched, recoiled, and boomeranged back through the sky in the direction that it had come, taking her prisoner.
Chapter 23
Somewhere outside Kensington City ...
Mayor Baumgartner slowly sank to the bottom of the corn silo, almost suffocating in the corn. Thankfully, there was just enough air for him to breathe, at least for now. As he considered his predicament, wondering how he’d gotten into this mess—and whether he’d ever get out—he suddenly realized where he’d gone wrong. He’d failed to appreciate Alexa Manchester for whom she was, had tried to use her beauty and brains and money for his own political gain. The woman had accepted his proposal. Why hadn’t he fallen in love with her rather than used her? She was one of a kind. The Mayor was overcome with feelings of guilt and foreboding—Biggie Bitterman was going to kidnap Alexa and deliver her to Momo. All because of his greed and cowardice.
He sank farther down into the corn, his head subme
rged in the grain. The sweet smell, the consistency of the grain against his skin, was soothing.
The Mayor stuck out his tongue and tasted a kernel. It was delicious, like heaven, better than anything Chef Yon Yurdlemon had ever cooked up. He sucked the corn inside his mouth and began to chew. Then he chewed more kernels, and even more, until he felt a strange sensation come over him. His legs were elongating, and his arms were beginning to grow attachments, or so it seemed. Was he hallucinating? Were these the first signs of death by suffocation? Soon, however, he felt as if he had a new set of limbs—fingerless and toeless, but limbs nonetheless. And another strange thing—he knew how to use them.
The Mayor continued eating until the top of his head emerged from the pile of corn. He had another realization—there were eyes on the top of his head in addition to the eyes he’d always had. He ate more corn, digging his body out until he was able to free his limbs and make his way to the top of the stack of grain. His body felt light as a feather, and he had a new spring in his step. He crouched down. From the eyes on the top of his head, he could see the silo’s ceiling. But when he opened the eyes on the front of his head, he saw not only the inside walls of the silo but also his body.
What? Could this be real? The knock on his head must be playing tricks on his mind, because he looked like a grasshopper—a giant green-armored grasshopper, wings and all.
The Mayor let out a yelp and then spit out a vile black substance that smacked into the silo wall and sizzled. My God, what had come over him? He shook his head, trying with all his mental energy to force this horror from his mind. But it wouldn’t go away. Every time he opened his eyes and looked at himself, all he saw was grasshopper. A grasshopper dressed in a pair of men’s slacks and expensive loafers.
“I’ll kill that Montgomery Manchester,” he cried, thinking of that fateful day in the garden when the bugs had descended upon him. “He did this! It’s all his fault.” He began to swear, and then he began to cry, and soon he was crying hysterically and swearing at the same time.
Then he stopped crying and stopped swearing, because this wasn’t getting him anywhere. He stood from his crouched position and balanced on all fours. He practiced bending his grasshopper legs. He walked to the edge of the silo, placed a palm on the steel wall, and found that he had suction in his hands. He practiced bending and leaping in small stages, and when he felt ready, he sprang with all his might and spread his arms and wings. Miraculously, he could leap and fly. A few practice tries later, and he’d managed to leap to the ceiling inside of the silo, where he landed upside down, his feet and hands easily sticking to the metallic ceiling. He crawled to the door, opened it, and found himself outside of the silo and resting on top of it. He checked to see if anyone was around. To his relief, no one was present. Night had fallen, and so he had the cover of darkness to spare him from humiliation.
Maybe if he could just get home and tuck himself inside of his bed, all of this would go away. He definitely wasn’t going back to the hospital. They’d never let him out.
Mayor Bobby Baumgartner hopped along the meadows until he reached the road that led to the Sugar Express Train Depot. A street light was burning and humming. The noise irritated him. He glanced up at the lamp and released black spit at it. The moment the bile made contact with the light, electrical sparks flew, and the bulb exploded into hundreds of tiny fragments. The Mayor quickly leaped out of the way.
“Stupid thing,” The Mayor said, hiccupping. He’d have to see about having the city engineers check all the lights when he got back to work.
The Mayor continued down the road, and though he couldn’t see the Sugar Express yet, he seemed to have wind sensors that could detect the delicious smell of gardenias, which were coming from the depot’s general direction. The temptation was irresistible. In a flying leap, he crossed the street and was soon inside the gardens where the ladies from WEEDs had just planted their new flowers. After having his fill, his stomach ached, and so he found a corner and lay down to comfort himself. He’d only rest awhile and then continue on home.
When he awoke, it was the next morning.
“Tied one on, did you, Mayor Baumgartner?” Zero said, standing above The Mayor and grinning like the devil himself. “And you’re always preaching at me about my drinking habits. Shame on you!”
“What are you doing here, Zero?” The Mayor asked, sitting up. He quickly looked down at his body. He was wearing a pair of slacks, his shoes, and nothing else. Mercifully, he was back to normal. There was no sign that just a short time earlier, he’d been a nasty, foul-smelling insect. Whatever they’d fed him at the hospital must’ve been laced.
“Those WEEDs women will be here any minute. If I’m not on time, they can be real mean.” Zero grinned. “But now that I have the pardon in my pocket, I can stand this for a while longer.”
“What time is it?” The Mayor asked.
“About seven thirty in the morning.”
“Do you have a car?”
“That’s a laugh. What happened to you, Mayor?”
“I was abducted by Biggie Bitterman and dumped here. I’ve got to go see Chief Constable Pete Petaud.”
“You haven’t turned Bitterman in yet?”
“No, I haven’t turned him in yet. I told you, Bitterman took me at gunpoint from the hospital.”
“In front of your men?”
“You ask too many questions, you know that, Zero? Yes. In front of my men. He was disguised as a doctor. I’ve got to get out of here.”
“You could use the tractor over there.”
The Mayor stood. What choice did he have? He couldn’t afford to be seen like this. He picked up a hat and scrounged around for something to put on to cover has bare torso. Luckily, he found an old checkered red-and-white work shirt that fit. He looked like he was dressed in an old tablecloth from an Italian restaurant, but it was better than the alternative.
“You ever drive a tractor, Mayor?”
“As a matter of fact, no. You?”
“You promise not to tell those ladies? I grew up on a farm.”
“Let’s go. You can drive me home.”
On the way back, Zero explained what had occurred yesterday when Red Web attacked.
“Are you sure that there were no casualties?” The Mayor asked.
“That’s right, Mayor. Big Benny doesn’t even have a scratch on it. But that Electromancer, it got her. I saw it all on the news.”
The Mayor shook in fear and anger. If Zero hadn’t been there, he would’ve spat. “This has gone way too far. Momo has to be stopped. My administration will not tolerate terror and destruction. I’ll get Chief Constable Pete Petaud on the job. I’ll call out the national military if I have to.”
Zero hit the gas, and the two of them sailed down the road at top speed, passing the van carrying the WEEDs women. “Only thing is Mayor, I don’t think a couple guns are going to defeat that Red Web. You should have seen it. And there’s another problem. You were the one who sold Momo the Electromite. So that seems to be tolerating terror and destruction. And it would seem to argue against getting the authorities involved. You and I are both at risk, Mayor. We could go to prison for the rest of our lives, or worse.”
The Mayor pondered this. Zero was right. He would have to solve this problem another way. Good. It would give him a chance to prove himself worthy to Alexa Manchester. To win her back.
Chapter 24
At Momo’s lair ...
With arms folded over his chest and a plate of veal saltimbocca and baked ziti on a tray beside him, Momo sat back in his office chair watching the Britannia National News and waiting. Biggie Bitterman stood near the door, his arms also crossed, but in military fashion, as if standing guard. Momo had allowed Bitterman to join him in acknowledgment of the little man’s good works. No matter that Bitterman had botched Alexa Manchester’s kidnapping. On the day that Alexa Manchester was playing golf with her Uncle Montgomery, The Mayor, and those lovely Dowdy twins, Bitterman had snuck into
The Mick and found Mickey Manchester’s prototype ceramic casing. Once Professor Slipter had the prototype, he was able to stabilize the Electromite and use it to create Red Web.
Understandably, BNN’s coverage had focused ad nauseum on the midnight attack of Big Benny in Kensington City. As usual, the reporters and pundits had gotten the facts all wrong. Accounts of the attack were not what interested Momo, though. He was waiting for something else.
At long last, the manikin-faced anchorman made the announcement that Momo had been waiting for. Momo leaned forward in anticipation. Montgomery Manchester appeared on the screen in a prerecorded press conference.
Just as Manchester was greeting the media, Momo’s door flew open, and Professor Slipter hurried inside uninvited. Bitterman glared at Professor Slipter and shook his head in warning, but Professor Slipter ignored him.
“Sir, may I have a moment of your time?” Professor Slipter asked.
“Quiet, you fool!” Momo said “Can’t you see that I’m busy? With all your blathering, I can’t hear a thing.”
Momo turned up the volume on the television. When Professor Slipter started to speak again, Bitterman grabbed Professor Slipter’s arm and held a finger to his own lips. Professor Slipter’s shoulders slumped in frustration. Satisfied that there would be no more interruptions, Momo turned his attention back to the screen.
Montgomery Manchester stood before the cameras, his face full of concern and distress. “Two nights ago, my niece, Alexa Manchester, went missing. We’re asking anyone who knows anything about her whereabouts to come forward. We’re offering a million in reward money to anyone who can provide information leading to the recovery of my dear niece. The Kensington City police tell me that there is one lead—her former butler, a man named Sigfred Sawyer, who has also gone missing. It might be that this Sawyer character is a disgruntled employee who has tried to harm my niece as revenge for his termination. If anyone has seen either of them, please call this number.”
