Cloud Riders (34 page)
Authors: Don Hurst
"I know."
"Mate, we're kind of getting close to Vile Extinction, don't you know."
"How long have I been out of it?” Paul asked the wizard liquid inside him. He struggled to overcome his mind's insistence on tuning into the throbbing ache consuming his body. “You hurting in there?"
"Nice of you to ask. Your pain is your pain."
"Did Sister Badd Vicki go back to Vile Extinction?"
"Of course."
"You don't feel pain?"
"I could if I so choose. But, why? Personally, my imagined-life refuses pain. Try concentrating on your mission."
"Easy for you to say,” Paul moaned. He sucked in air through his clamped teeth. “You? The light?"
"That is a lovely thing, is it not? Comes in handy at times. But I must ask for your focus. Sister Badd was your creation, not mine. You are full of surprises, Paul. It is not nice to fool the plan master."
"You're nuts!” Paul's voice exploded. “I didn't—"
"Maybe? Maybe we deal with the parallel-imagined-life of Vile Extinction. That would mean Link Traver will have his imagined-life in play. It grows curiouser and curiouser. I have been trumped, my king lost, their puck scored, their touchdown, their bases loaded homerun—"
"A winning basket swish!” Paul yelled at his inner tormenter. “What in heaven's name has all this got to do with anything?"
"What happened to your pain?"
Paul laughed, astounded. Focus changed everything. Reshape didn't dominate his parallel-imagined-life, he did. Ahead of him the spinning disk of Vile Extinction dipped just enough to allow Paul to catch a glimpse of her. She disappeared the moment she put her edge fully toward him.
"I see you, Vile!” Paul called. “Nice trick sending your daughter. I won't be caught off guard again. You can put that on one of your moons and moon yourself with it."
"Yeah,” Will said, causing Paul to flinch, having forgotten his best sky buddy's presence.
"Dear tiny boys, you are but insignificant specks to be absorbed as I move through you to your precious Earth solar system,” Vile taunted. “I want both of you out of my way simply as a favor to you. I am your friend.” The artificial sweetness of her voice increased her malice. “One can wish a friend out of harm's way, tiny lads."
"Isn't going to work, Vile!” Paul warned. He patted his front pocket to ensure his pebble hadn't escaped. He breathed a sigh of relief. “Will and I have weapons, given to us by others who said they were our friends and then tried to ruin us."
"But I am your true friend, Paul Winsome. Only I am your friend. The others lied.” She laughed a witch's mirth, trying to disguise it as an angel's offering of adoration. “Friends come and go, but a Vile Extinction friendship is a permanent blessing. I say again, I am your friend."
Link Traver's voice held no false sweetness. “Then get on with it! Kill them!"
"Have you wondered why, if our death is so important to Link, he does not do it himself?” Maken asked Paul.
Paul smiled. “Why don't you do it yourself, Link Traver?"
"Yeah,” Will said, and turned to Paul. “Shouldn't we try to get one of them on our side, sort of?"
"You interfere, Paul Winsome?” Link barked. “So the wee boy specks think they can defeat me and a whole solar system all by their miniscule selves? You believe two little molecules can overcome both of us? I have picked up your television and radio signals and know there is such a thing as a game called good cop, bad cop. Well, dear specks, consider me bad cop. By the way, what's a cop?"
"Authority keepers of the law. Sometimes one policeman is nice and another is bad, to trick people they think are crooks into confessing.” Paul wrinkled his brow. Would a wormhole understand? Did it matter? He faced his foe in partnership with Wizard Maken Fairchild and his next words came from that partnership. “Do you have skills beyond sucking up a flat, cranky solar system, Link? What else have you done that is of any note?"
"I am the only connection between Shadow Gobbler and Milky Way universes. One day birds and clouds will travel between these universes. Vile surmised this, for her presence is based upon her desire to be a part of that experience. Your death is based on her desire. Willis Dinker's death is based on her desire. My suck is natural, a part of me at first creation. I don't kill you because...I am your friend,” Link said, seemingly unaware ‘I am your friend’ usually was articulated in a more friendly voice.
Paul's rapture with the moment increased to a bliss only imagination could furnish. “Could it be your sucking plan is all you've got? Are you listening, Vile?"
"Yeah,” Will contributed.
"I listen,” the spinning flatness assured. She tipped, allowing Paul to see her. “And what, boy Paul Winsome, is your plan? Does your plan provide you with more than words? Perhaps Link Traver's draw is no greater than your pitiful effort to block me. Oh, yes. I listen."
Paul's shrugged. What must be done will be done. “Okay, Maken. Our next move seems obvious. How do we use the pebble and the tuning fork?"
"I thought you read the instructions."
"Maybe, I'm thinking, they have to work together, mate,” Will suggested. “Like maybe we're supposed to shove the rock into the fork and sort of use it like a slingshot."
Will's idea suffered from the fork having no sling to fling the rock. Paul waited for some more ideas from the wizard juice. None came. What did his dad say? ‘Whenever considering how to use a tool, first consider its purpose.'
"I don't think a tuning fork is meant to act like anything other than what it's meant for. The only thing I can think of is it's meant to vibrate, and if I haven't blown it completely, I think there's only one possible answer."
"Best not keep it a secret, mate. Like this Vile thing is getting closer, don't you know. I feel her heat. And look at Link's walls."
Paul stared and panic threatened to take over. The walls were now waves of motion, pulling Vile Extinction toward them at an increased speed, the solar system turning sideways in an in-your-face threat. Paul shoved a hand into his trouser front pocket and yanked out the white pebble. He stared at it and tried to remember what the tiny scribbles looked like in the expanded eyepiece in the weapon's warehouse microscope. He remembered.
UNIVERSE SAVING ROCK. OWNER, PAUL WINSOME. PLEASE CARRY ROCK INTO VILE EXTINCTION AND STRIKE WITH TOOL. THANK YOU.
He pushed his hand toward Will, the little rock in his palm. “Take out the tuning fork and hit the pebble. It's the only thing that makes sense. Hurry!"
Will shoved his hand into a pocket and jerked it out holding the highly polished white fork, and lost hold of it. His reflexes took over and he caught the fork before it could fall out of reach. Triumphantly, he raised the tuning fork and pointed it at Vile Extinction.
"Go home, Vile,” Paul called.
"Whoa, Paul,” Link Traver said, laughing. “Is that a fork your partner holds? And you hold a little bitty stone? Against me and a whole solar system?” Mirth filled his voice. “That's your weapon? You folks going to play Vile and me a tune? A little bitty tune? Welcome to the Earth solar system, Vile Extinction. Thank you, Link Traver. Please go fetch some more solar systems. Oh, I can hear the music now."
"Hole, you're a bully!” Paul shouted. “I don't much like bullies. Now, Will!"
Will brought the tuning fork down hard against the pebble in Paul's hand. The pebble shattered into a fine dust, the tuning fork vibrated a high-pitched buzz rippling the fine powder into waves of white mist.
Link Traver laughed so hard he vibrated, his mirth shaking his walls, as Vile Extinction issued a sigh of relief.
Will used both hands to hold onto the pulsating buzz of the fork. “Mate, the fork is slipping! Can't hold it much longer I'm thinking!"
The fine dust flew out of Paul's hand in outward bound currents, riding on the fork's ringing sound waves.
"The time has come to let go, Paul. Your piece of the puzzle is in place,” Maken said in a reassuring voice. “Same with Willis. Job well done,” he said, pride in his voice.
"Maken says, let go of the fork, Will!” Paul shouted.
Will opened his fingers and the fork flew from his hand. It soared, its high-pitched reverberation a piercing sound more violent moment by moment. Dust and fork flew into Link's undulating side. The dust exploded in a phosphorescent white flash as the tuning fork's sound thundered, causing a Link-quake. The outer walls of the wormhole trembled.
"Oh, no!” Link Traver groaned. “What have you done?"
Paul clamped his eyelids shut and pushed a finger into each ear.
"Good idea, for sure!” Will said and did the same.
Link Traver's walls vibrated, convulsed, and squeezed in on themselves.
A solar system tremor produced a tidal wave of tremors across Vile Extinction's flat surface. Planets shook and their volcanoes erupted. Moons trembled, her suns flashed like eyes opened wide in horror, trying to expand beyond their two-dimensional prison.
Paul catapulted backward, watching the fireworks through his closed eyelids, the sounds pounding through his finger sound barriers. Will grasped his arm and flew with him.
Squeezing his eyelids into small slits, Paul watched the ululating wormhole reverse Vile Extinction's direction and push her back toward Shadow Gobbler Universe. The departing solar system lit up like a massive sparkler. Brilliant, dazzling bursts flared and pushed away from Paul. He pulsed from the buffeting and his body twisted like a rag doll in a hurricane. The departing suns flashed in a disappearing lightshow, a solar system Frisbee tossed out like a digested meal.
Bits and pieces shuddered off Link Traver, and he moaned. The wormhole disintegrated.
A wave of darkness attacked Paul. Several moments passed before he opened his eyes to the light of a beautiful cloud-riding day.
He pried Will's hand from his arm. “We're out, Will. Vile Extinction has returned to her universe and Link Traver is no more. We won!"
"Yeah,” Will said. “Mate, think everyone's safe, like? Can Holly and me return to England, I'm thinking? We like been away for over five years for sure, and I need a break from this cloud riding thing."
"Will. I'm not sure I could have done it without you.” Paul concentrated on the wizard juice inside his body. “Did I do what I was supposed to? Are you still inside me?"
"My liquid wizard is only on loan. Sorry."
Paul felt sick, as a tiny elephant the size of a peanut pushed out of his mouth, grew into elephant bigness, raised his trunk and laughed triumphantly. “
Thruumpttttpt
!"
"Want me to try to wrap my trunk around you two? Want a hug from good old Reshape?"
"You've got to be kidding,” Paul said.
Reshape became an elephant-sized rainbow-colored cloud leopard running in place and going nowhere.
"So Maken is gone,” Paul said. “Reshape, are you for real? Why are you changing shapes? Kid Badd is gone."
"Blimey! I'd like to know that too, for sure,” Will called out. “You sure are strange, don't you know. Changing all the time. I'm betting you're pulling on us, I'm thinking like for sure."
"If I changed shape as often as you use unnecessary words, Willis, I would be further distorted, for sure, don't you think?” Reshape laughed in a strange leopard mirth perhaps familiar to other leopards.
"Why keep changing now?” Paul demanded. “And Sister Badd is gone too. So what excuse do you have now?"
"Habit?” The leopard shrugged as its feet became a blur. “Can you not allow a guy his fun?” Reshape became a pink cheetah, and then a dragon zooming ahead and looking back as fire dripped from its long smoking mouth. “Like some heat?"
"Is that it, Reshape? Trip over?"
The dragon pushed out his two wings, together as long as a football field, twisted them sideways and gave one pull like oars digging into water. The dragon's words faded as Paul watched him disappear into the distance. “Nothing is ever over."
Blanch came to collect Will. Holly rode her. “This time I'll drive,” Holly said. “England. Okay?"
"Yeah.” He twisted toward Paul. “Goodbye, mate."
Paul waved and watched Blanch Bunch carry Will off into the distant horizon. He took a deep breath. “I don't even have his address.” However, another realization overtook him. He fell toward Earth without a ride. His intake of air increased without the relief of exhaling.
"May I assist, Captain?"
The cloud unicorn maneuvered below Paul and caught him with a gentleness he had come to expect from his cloud rides.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Cotton Rayon Textile the First.
“
"That's quite the title, Textile the First.” Paul looked at its head and grinned. His horn seemed undersized. “How come your horn is..?"
"Shut up. You may be the captain, but I am your ship. I shall answer all your questions before you ask them, Captain. I rule the sky! It is I who inherited the throne from all who went before me. None survived the great winds of the storm of the age, a storm generated by your destruction of the wormhole known as Dink Tavern."
"Link Traver,” Paul corrected his insolent cloud ride. “I also—"
"Destroyed the universe known as File Extension..."
"The solar system called Vile Extinction. Can't you get your facts right?"
"I shall not put up with your impertinence, Captain. I will not carry you if you do not allow me to answer your questions before you ask them. Yes, I am male and female. Put another way, I am female and male. Yes, your sister and your cat are on the way back to Earth on other rides I created out of spare body parts. Yes, I am not Reshape. Yes, my horn is small because I used portions of it to create rides for your sister Victim and your cat Ices.
"Vicki and Isno. Vicki Sue Winsome and Isno Gravity. Do you know my name?"
"I don't answer questions before I ask them, Pale.
"Paul. Winsome."
"Middle name is Hurry."
"It's Harry! My father's name,” Paul shouted toward the small horned head.
"Harry Vicki Winsome."