Chapter 21

chapter twenty-one The thin smoke that follows the explosion drifts through the mall. It's like a fog that hangs over the Mallusk, amplifying the eerie silence that follows. As that fog clears, the advancing enemy comes into full view. And it is not a nice view. This isn't just one division or one single squad of Thrull's army, like the swarming Howlers or the raging Mortar Monsters. This is more. Much more. And Thrull himself is leading this assault... We can't see him yet, but we can hear him. His every word is a thunderous boom that echoes across the steel train graveyard beyond...

Hearing Savior has arrived Hearing Thrull's voice again—not via some awful vision or a cryptic note wrapped in a nightmare but here, in the flesh—gets my adrenaline stampeding. Thrull's voice booms. "This day, the boy Jack Sullivan will die! This day, the creature called Drooler will die! But I will allow the rest of you to live! You will have the honor of aiding in the Tower's construction." The citizens of Mallusk City are frozen. At first, I think it's fear that keeps them from fleeing. But it's worse than that: they're listening. Considering. Processing Thrull's vile proclamations and promises. I gulp. If he offers free pizza, we're done for.

"Now come!" he urges. "Join me in ushering in the new age of Rezzoch Above us, below us, the monsters look from Ghazt to Johnny Steve and then back to Ghazt. And then, all at once, they cast their votes... The monsters throw their ballot balls over the sides! The balls tumble into the Victory Geyser's huge, funnel- shaped tub, pinging, ponging, then finally swirling down into the hole at its base. My friends step beside me. The Victory Geyser lights up. A rainbow of pulsing colors as the ballots are counted. BOOM! Another monstrous artillery blast rocks the mall. And another... But despite the explosive assault, no one takes their eyes off the geyser. It counts and counts, and then— DING! A sound like a giant toaster popping. Suddenly, blue light flickers. A sort of hologram appears, projected onto the side of the geyser. It's that TV host, Harvey Cool Hair. "Ohmygosh!" June squeaks. "It's him!" "He's not real!" I say. "But still!"

Announcing the winner of this year's late teen star. He's hot. He's cool. He is Johnny, Steve. "No!" Evie cries. The change happens instantly—the fastest transfer of power in election history. The electrified defenses surrounding Evie and Ghazt's Food Court fortress spark once, then power down. The gates open with a heavy clang. Evie and Ghazt are in control no longer. The loot— and Drooler—now belongs to Johnny Steve. "We did it!" June shouts. But any triumphant feelings are cut short as Ghazt leaps off the Food Court, over the Victory Geyser, and lands nearly on top of me. His hide is heaving and his eyes are alight with fury as he stalks toward me. "I should have killed you for

real," he snarls. "I still can..." "And that power can still power. The power to command a skeleton army and that power can still be yours," Evie says softly —almost timidly. "You just need to take it... Take it from Thrull." Ghazt looks around: at the hundreds of monsters who did not vote for him, at the Slicer in my Cosmic Hand, and at the three zombies I control. Then he hits me. But it's only his shoulder, slamming into mine as he smashes past me, pushing through the sea of monsters. He lashes out with his rat paw, slicing a huge "Vote for Ghazt" banner in two. The torn pieces drift to the floor. Evie and I hold a long look, then she follows him. "OK," Johnny Steve says. "Now, as your mayor—"

Thrull's voice booms from beyond the walls of the mall. "Do we agree on terms? Will you serve me, and live to see Rezzoch come to this land?" Johnny Steve quickly wades through the monsters— his electorate, his voters, the community he is now responsible for. We follow him to a large outdoor terrace, overlooking the train graveyard behind. He peeks his head out and shouts, "NO DEAL, THRULL!" The monsters cheer. "I'm sorry! I don't think I heard you!" Thrull's voice booms. "He didn't expect that, did he?" Johnny Steve says, raising his arms in a V for victory. "NO, I AM SERIOUS! I CANNOT HEAR YOU AT THIS DISTANCE!" Thrull says. Oh. "Try this," June says, tossing Johnny Steve a Rockin' Ruby's karaoke boom box. He flips the on switch, then once more—