By me, with art by Sam Messerly.
Click here to read the first chapter.
“They’re following us,” I said in a whisper.
“I don’t think you have to whisper,” Colander said. “They don’t seem to care very much if you can hear them.”
“But they are invisible,” I said. “It looks like they don’t want to be seen.”
I was trying not to stare out at the magically self-trampling fields, given that I was driving. I tried accelerating, but the invisible monsters accelerated, too—their noisy charge getting even louder as they plowed through the corn faster. Furbud was making urgent grunting noises, as if trying to tell us something.
“What do we do?” I said again, still whispering. “We’re leading them right to Warbell. I mean, is that good or bad?”
“We need to find out before we throw Warbell to the wolves, don’t you think?” Colander said. “Or in this case, before we throw him to those who walk behind the rows. That sounds even worse.”
“Yeah, I agree,” I said. “I don’t understand half of what was written in that journal, but it seemed pretty honest—or drunk. Often that’s the same thing.”
“Well, you could just drive to Port Lollard instead of First Pumpkin, and lead them on a wild goose chase,” Colander said.
“Yeah, assuming they don’t just jump out of the shadows and eat us!” I said. “Besides, I already told the dino authorities where Warbell is when I talked to the big orange guy. Unless this is another splinter group or something.”
“True,” Colander said. “Maybe they are just trying to keep an eye on you. At any rate, we can’t have them following you around if we can do something about it. I’m going to try something crazy.”
“What?” I said as she started to open her window. “What are you doing? You aren’t going to jump out, are you?”
Colander leaned out the window and gestured emphatically at the invisible monsters in the field.
“Furbud!” she shouted. “Go get them!”
Somehow, the overgrown furry pachyderm understood and veered off into the field with a mighty trumpet. Instinctively I punched the gas, putting distance between ourselves and the conflict. In the rearview mirror I saw something emerge from Furbud’s shoulders, and moments later the evening sky was lit up by domes of spreading green fire that crackled and spat. In the light I saw that the skin on Furbud’s shoulders had stretched and formed into organic cannons covered with fur.
Furbud began firing again, and the resultant gouts of green reached for the sky. In the chaos I saw shadowy beasts emerging, horrific monstrous roars rising in the green firelight. Then I locked my eyes on the road and drove and floored it, the continuing horrific lightshow receding in the distance.