by John Purcell
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The water in the storm drain had slowed to a trickle, and we were back at Bim’s ladder at 10:44 AM. Up at Ryesong Elementary, the kids were lining up to come in from recess. If all had gone well, Luma, Bim and Dogan would be nearing Blessed Savior now.
At 10:52, we heard voices from above. The manhole in the floor of the maintenance tunnel was still uncovered. When I looked up from the foot of the ladder, I could see the brick walls glowing with a familiar light. Bim had his own Glorb.
And then Luma’s face appeared, peering down at me from above. When she saw me, she broke into a huge smile, crying, “Teo!”
I felt an odd sensation in my stomach again, as I’d had night before last. I could make no sense of it.
She descended the ladder so quickly I feared for her safety. As she neared the bottom, I stepped back. Skipping the last few rungs, she leapt to the ground and threw her arms around me. “I’m so happy to see you!”
I waited a moment, then gently pushed her away.
When Dogan reached the bottom of the ladder, he surveyed the storm drain in wonder, saying, “Whoa! This place is really…big!”
Bim came down last and walked over to me. “It’s probably a good idea to close the manhole.”
I went up the ladder and pulled the cover into place. When I came back down, Dogan said, “We closed the other manhole, too, but we had to leave the cinderblocks where they were.”
I said, “That’s okay.”
Luma frowned. “But what if someone finds it? Won’t they weld it shut or something? How will we get back in?”
I should have expected Luma to hit on the truth.
It seemed as good a time as any. I said, “I think you and Dogan should turn around and go back to school. It’s much too dangerous Outside, I understand that now.”
Luma took a step back, in shock. “What?”
Dogan blinked at me. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No, I’m not. Moto and I could have been killed any number of times yesterday.”
“You can’t die, you aren’t even alive!”
“I mean you and Luma could have been killed, had you been with us.”
Luma had her hands on her hips. “How do you know?”
“There are dangers everywhere. Alligators, pythons, robots, storms, floods, you name it.”
Dogan said, “Big deal. I’m not afraid.”
I looked at Luma. “I can’t be sure I can protect you.”
Her eyes were glittering. “Oh yeah? Well, I can’t be sure I can protect you! Who’s been looking out for you at school all this time, punching out morons like Dogan?”
Dogan said, “Hey!” but she kept right on going.
“You’ve got a lot of nerve trying to send me back! I won’t do it! We all have to stick together and look out for each other! That’s the only way we’re going to make it, and that’s the way it’s going to be! So get that through your thick skull!”
Dogan said, “That goes double for me!”
I looked at Bim.
He said, “There’s no stopping her, Teo, and we need Dogan.”
I hadn’t really wanted to leave Luma behind in the first place.
I said, “All right, then, we stick together.”
Luma beamed at me. “That’s more like it! So what’s the plan?”
“We’re going to Washington, DC in a lifeboat, to see Cassius. He might be able to tell us where Dogan’s father is. We have to walk west for a mile or so to get to the boat.”
Bim said, “And we have to get to get there before the rains come.”
“Right. Let’s get going.”
Given the size of the storm drain, Bim’s Glorb illuminated it well, allowing us to see about 10 yards ahead. We set off for the lifeboat, walking in silence. Moto trotted by my side, staying close. Luma and Dogan tried not to let it show, but the reality of what we were doing was sinking in.
Three quarters of the way to the lifeboat, Moto began to growl. I stopped, saying, “Hush, Moto.”
Luma and Dogan stopped, as well, giving me puzzled looks.
Bim said, “Uh oh…”
The sound was faint at first, a sort of scrabbling noise coming from the darkness ahead. A moment later, a small creature appeared. About two feet in length, it scuttled along, low to the ground. It stopped a few yards away, its little eyes glowing green in the light of the Glorb. It was a baby alligator.
Luma squatted down, saying, “Oh, look! It’s so cute!”
I pulled her back to her feet. This particular alligator had stopped, but the scrabbling noise continued, growing louder. It was the sound of baby alligator claws scraping the floor of the storm drain. I remembered the hundreds of alligator eggs we’d found the day before.
Bim tapped my arm. “We have to get to a ladder. The closest one is back this way.”
I tried not to frighten Luma and Dogan. “We should turn around now and get to a ladder. There may be more than one of them.”
A second baby alligator appeared, then a third, then a fourth. These didn’t stop, charging straight at us. The first one joined them.
Moto sprang, hands unfolded, and caught the tail of the closest one, which was about to bite Luma’s ankle. She used it to sweep away two others that were headed for Dogan. Seven more baby alligators appeared.
We turned and ran for the ladder. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Moto grab another one by its throat and shake it violently. I might have tried to stop her, except that Dogan had chosen to make a stand. He was doing his best to stomp on the alligator’s heads as they swarmed him, failing to understand that the situation was hopeless. A dozen more baby alligators had appeared, and still the scrabbling sound was growing louder.
I yelled, “Dogan!”
He called to me over his shoulder. “Run for the ladder! I’ll hold them off!”
Luma stopped to look back. She screamed, “Dogan, you idiot! Run!”
I gave Luma a gentle shove. “You run, I’ll get him!”
As I sprinted towards Dogan, I could see that Moto being overwhelmed. She was up on her hind legs with her arms raised high, an alligator tail in each hand. Two other babies had clamped onto her ankles, and the ones she was holding snapped at her as they dangled. She spun them over her head and sent them flying. Then five more piled on and she went over backwards.
I ran past Dogan and turned, ramming his stomach and throwing him over my shoulder.
He cried, “Cut it out!” but made no effort to break free. I checked on Moto. She was completely covered with baby alligators.
By now, a great number of them had streamed past us, and they were closing on Bim and Luma. There was no sign of any ladder up ahead.
I caught up with them, dropped Dogan onto his feet, scooped up Luma in my arms, and sped away.
Dogan cried, “Hey, what’s the big idea?”
I called over my shoulder, “Keep running! I’ll come back for you!”
By then, of course, it might be too late.
Bim would be all right. The baby alligators were racing right past him, as if he weren’t there.
Luma screamed at me. “Put me down! You can’t leave Dogan behind!”
“I have no choice!”
Just then, the alley cats arrived, 50 or more, pouring out of a side tunnel to the east and flying down the storm drain toward us. They stampeded between our legs, interested in one thing only: newly-hatched alligators.
I stopped running and turned, setting Luma down. We watched as the alley cats scattered in all directions, pouncing on baby alligators and tearing into their soft underbellies, too hungry to bother toying with them. Many cats were killing two or three, preparing for a feast.
Dogan came running up to us, saying, “Man oh man, I thought I was a goner!”
As cats stripped the alligators off o
f Moto, she jumped to her feet. Grabbing the nearest alligator by the throat, she shook it to death and tossed it aside.
I reached her just as she grabbed another one. “Moto, stop. There’s no need.”
She looked around and realized that the battle was over. The sound of scrabbling claws was quickly being replaced by the sound of chewing. She tossed the alligator to a nearby alley cat, who killed it and threw it onto the pile.
When we rejoined our friends, Luma bawled me out. “What’s the matter, Teo, are you deaf? I told you, we all stick together, the four of us!”
I had nothing to say in my own defense. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have left Dogan behind.”
“Not good enough!” She thrust out her hand, extending her little finger. “Pinkie swear!”
I wrapped my pinkie around hers.
She said, “Wait, you have to say it!”
I said, “I promise that the four of us will stick together, no matter what.”
Luma pulled her pinkie free, sealing the pact. “That’s better! Now, where’s this stupid boat?”
