Chapter 19

chapter nineteen I'm bent over, hands on my knees, trying to stop my heart from exploding. Unfortunately, the horror doesn't stop. "What is it, Seabiscuit?" Globlet calls. I turn. Seabiscuit has lifted one finger and is pointing down the road. I see a cloud of dust on the horizon, then— Wracksaw has found us. I can't believe it.

"No, no," I stammer out. "No! We're so close! We have come too far to just get killed in a stupid, cheap, other-dimensional tourist trap!" We're overpowered and outnumbered. Quint's conjurer's cannon is busted, and the Louisville Slicer is back in the human dimension—we don't even have weapons. I glance away from Wracksaw, down the main road toward the Hidden City. The direction we were going— until we decided to stop here, because of... Thrull. I can almost feel the statue looming over me. Taunting me. "I estimate four minutes," Quint says. "Until the enemy is here." I turn, scanning the site for... what? A last-minute jumbo cannon, hidden away? An army of carapaces coming to our rescue? 101 Wracksaw-hating dalmatians? There's nothing. What would June and Dirk do? What would Rover do?

该页暂无翻译

"Guys, why the long faces?" Globlet says. "I mean, Jack, you just happen to have a very long face... But come on, we can do this!" I can't believe that Globlet is now the one rallying us. She plops onto the ground, which is made of what looks like black sand. Globlet uses a finger to start tracing out a plan, and each new line reveals some new color. When she's finished, the ground is a series of green, orange, yellow, pink, and turquoise zigzags. I'm trying to follow what Globlet is suggesting, but it's sort of a blur and I don't really think that's my fault. "Classic pincer maneuver to begin. Jack, you spin around eleven times, then double back for the statue. That's the key, obviously—and that's also the trap. Because while you're on spin number nine, Seabiscuit begins jogging in place. Quint, your bowling shoes will be essential. Dumb question, but I have to ask—" We're all carrying. Get out of jail free cards. Yes, guys, stay with me

I look to Quint and, for maybe the first time ever, I see that he does not immediately comprehend something. Seabiscuit seems to get it, though, index finger bobbing up and down slowly, like she's in agreement with every detail of Globlet's plan. Stargrove just sways back and forth. "So..." Globlet says, clapping her hands, a cloud of colors puffing out. Seabiscuit sneezes. "What do you think?" I think it is time for you to die.

Wracksaw enters Warrior's Way atop his horribly altered strayfur. It's as big as a horse, with ill-fitting, misshapen legs. I do a double take when I realize that one leg appears to be on backward. It causes me to shiver, and to think back to the carcass pile in Wracksaw's fortress's laboratory. I gulp. He looks very much in command, relaxed and comfortable. But as his strayfur slows to a stop, I notice two of Wracksaw's armacles intertwined, fidgeting— and I get the sense that he's trying really hard to look like a boss monster—albeit one that's mutated, half- melted, and disfigured. I remember Thrull treating Wracksaw like nothing but a minion, coolly striding away once he'd gotten what he'd wanted. And I remember the tantrum that followed. Must have really done a number to Wracksaw's already fragile ego. High in the air, trailing behind him like a storm cloud, are hundreds, maybe thousands of strayfurs. They move at short, sharp angles, staying aloft, ready to attack at any moment. Beside him, Eye-Bulb suddenly perks up. "I see it! The hand vehicle camouflaged with racing stripes! I found it, sir! And now, to find the boy..."