“
Ha! You make me angry! You
must be punished!” The giant rose to his feet.
Dr. Stine listened to the
giant’s feet plod across the chamber. More laughter rose from the
giant’s throat when a bell chimed. The giant returned to the
opening of the pit and hoisted a golden bell into the air. He rang
it several times and laughed again. The shrill sound of the bell
echoed into the pit and ricocheted off of the walls.
“
Wake up, little people!
They like to eat brains! You’ll see!” the giant said.
Dr. Stine gasped when a
tiny, old man emerged from one of the holes in the pit’s wall. The
old man stood no higher than the length of Dr. Stine’s pinky
finger. He wore a golden crown, a mildew-covered, red robe, and a
diamond pendant around his neck. A ladder of wrinkles creased the
little king’s forehead. White, bushy eyebrows arched above his
deep, blue eyes. When he exhaled a loud whistle, Dr. Stine covered
his ears.
More tiny people emerged
from countless holes in the walls of the deep pit. Some of them
wore elegant robes, and Dr. Stine knew they belonged to the upper
class. Others donned torn rags and dirty sandals, and he understood
that they were peasants. All of them wielded sharp daggers and
knives. Whenever Dr. Stine glanced at a different section of the
wall, he found more miniature humans staring at him. Their faces
displayed rage and hatred. Many of them slobbered as split dripped
from their lips and down to their chins. Dr. Stine could hear
hunger pangs rumble in their little bellies.
“
You can’t escape! Little
people are everywhere! You’ll feel pain!” the giant said. He stared
down into the pit with anticipation. Dr. Stine detected excitement
in his voice.
“
I’m sorry that my
hovercraft crashed and caught your forest on fire. I’m begging you
to please have mercy and set me free. My friend needs me and she’ll
die if you keep me here and let…
them
…attack me,” Dr. Stine
said. He hoped the giant could feel pity.
“
You’re a fool! You’ll
never be free!” the giant said. He rang the bell three more
times.
“
Angelique! Razor! Someone
please help me!” Dr. Stine yelled.
The little people jumped
from the ledges and clung to Dr. Stine’s robe. They flocked across
his arms, legs, and chest like an army of ants. He tried to swat
them off with his hands, but more little people emerged from nooks
and crannies and replaced the ones who dropped to the floor. The
king of the little people ascended the nape of his neck, crawled to
his left jaw, and propelled himself up to Dr. Stine’s chin. One of
his relatives, a silver-haired, old lady, jumped from a crevice in
the wall and latched onto Dr. Stine’s left earlobe. He listened to
the giant laugh. His captor pounded his fist on the floor while
hundreds of tiny people swarmed across Dr. Stine’s body. He felt
them bite his legs, stab his knees and calves, and crawl up his
legs. When they tried to force their way into his ear canals and
nostrils, he attempted to pluck them from the orifices with his
fingers. Dr. Stine felt his pulse throb in his wrists. His heart
thudded under his sternum. A dizzy spell seized him and a fuzzy
sensation rushed through his brain. He succumbed, slipped into
darkness, and tumbled onto a stack of human bones.
“
Eat him from the inside
out! Devour his brains and intestines!” the giant
roared.
The little people cheered
as they stood on top of Dr. Stine. They heaved their weapons into
the air and danced. Then they decided to obey the giant’s commands.
They swarmed toward his ears and nose. They pried his mouth open
and admired his tongue and throat. It was time to make Dr. Stine
pay for causing the forest fire! It was time to make him understand
his role in the food chain! It was time to enjoy dinner!
***
Angelique fell through a
thick layer of dirt, rocks, and tree roots. She choked on soil and
felt like she’d suffocate if she didn’t breathe oxygen soon.
Insects crawled across her face while her feet found open air. She
tumbled to a stone floor while earthworms and dirt surrounded her.
She wiped her eyes, vomited a mix of dirt and stomach acid, and got
to her feet. As she gasped for air, she discovered that she really
could
see in the dark.
The fairy’s voice resonated
in her mind:
But you must be quick. The spell fades
quickly.
She stood in the arched
tunnel of a labyrinth and glanced to her left. Deep inside, she
knew Razor and Dr. Stine were waiting for her in that direction.
She walked quickly across the wet, algae-covered floor and realized
that they’d wasted precious time in The Enchanted Forest of Sorrow.
She paused long enough to peel the cloth of her dress away from her
breasts and her mechanical heart. The red numbers on the display
revealed that she’d go into cardiac arrest in 40 hours, 10 minutes,
and 8 seconds.
“
We should be arriving at
Mount Zahn right now,” she said.
After walking for about
thirty minutes, Angelique followed the tunnel into a large vault.
Flames flickered from the tips of several torches, which protruded
from the stone walls of a crypt. Three tombs lined the eastern
wall, directly across from three more on the western side.
Angelique realized that she was standing in the cellar of a
mausoleum.
Nearby, she heard the
yip-yip-yip
of Razor’s frantic barking. Angelique ran to the
other side of the crypt and found a narrow staircase. She climbed
the stairs and entered another large chamber. Four crypts were
evenly spaced in the center of the room. On the northern side of
the room, an open gate provided access to the cemetery. Angelique
gasped when she noticed a wall of fire just outside the door. Large
flames flowed through the metal grate of the tomb’s window and
blackened the stone walls. Flakes of ash, propelled by a brisk
wind, swirled in the stagnant air. She raced to the open door,
dodged the flames as best she could, and stumbled into the
cemetery.
Angelique looked on in
horror as a giant boar charged toward Razor. Her dog fled from the
beast and dodged its sharp tusks. Razor hid behind the trunk of an
oak tree and opened his mouth wide. A surge of black oil spilled
from Razor’s mouth and covered the ground. The wild boar’s feet
slipped in the oil and the beast fell to the ground with a loud
THUD! When the boar tried to get up and attack Razor again, the dog
exhaled a plume of fire at the oil and set it ablaze. The giant pig
squealed and screamed as Razor’s barbeque incinerated it. After the
beast fell silent, the aroma of burnt flesh lingered in the air.
Angelique ran away from the mausoleum, picked up her dog, and
hugged him.
Razor grunted and licked
her face. His wet nose nudged her cheek. He wagged his tail and
barked at her. Even though he was a robot, she knew he’d been
afraid.
“
Where’s Dr. Stine, Razor?
Do you know where he is?” she asked.
After she placed Razor on
the ground, he trotted toward the eastern side of the cemetery and
found a gap in the fence. Angelique followed him. When Razor
started running toward the opening of a cave, which was east of the
cemetery, Angelique broke into a sprint to keep up with him. Razor
didn’t hesitate to enter the cave, despite the overwhelming
darkness. Angelique realized that the fairy’s spell was still in
effect. But she knew she’d have to be quick. She knew the spell
would fade quickly.
Angelique guided Razor into
the darkness. Water dripped from stalactites and into pools of
water near their feet. Razor and Angelique worried about rust when
drops of water landed on them. When Razor accidentally crashed into
the side of a wall, the loud noise caused a flock of bats to emerge
from their roosting spot and soar in the air. The sound of their
flapping wings and high-pitched screeches echoed throughout the
cave.
After hiking for fifteen
minutes, Angelique and Razor noticed a large chamber at the end of
the passageway. Flames flickered at the tips of torches, providing
dim light. Razor growled and Angelique gasped when they heard
voices emanating from the area.
“
You’re a fool! You’ll
never be free!” a deep voice yelled.
“
Angelique! Razor! Someone
please help me!” Dr. Stine begged.
Angelique gasped when she
heard a bird’s wings flapping next to her. She spun on her heels
and laughed. The wide, yellow eyes of Stanley stared at her. She
glanced at his talons and realized that he’d found Dr. Stine’s
scepter and brought it to her. She took the scepter and patted
Stanley on his head. He hooted, continued to flap his wings, and
followed her and Razor toward the illuminated chamber.
They hid behind a large
stalagmite and watched a three-eyed, hairy giant peer down into a
deep pit. They watched the giant pound his fists on the floor while
he smiled and enjoyed himself. A growl rattled in the back of
Razor’s throat. Stanley’s talons clicked in the air. Angelique
directed her anger into Dr. Stine’s scepter. She was amazed when it
started to glow. Dr. Stine was the only one who’d ever conjured
magic from the weapon. And Angelique had always been told that only
members of his family could wield the scepter’s powers.
“
Eat him from the inside
out! Devour his brains and intestines!” the giant
roared.
Angelique emerged from
behind the stalagmite and aimed the tip of the scepter at the
three-eyed giant. Razor growled near her feet while Stanley hovered
in the air next to her. Angelique sang the lyrics she’d learned
from the fairy earlier. The giant glanced over his shoulder and
roared. He got to his feet, snatched a double-edged sword from a
weapon rack, and plodded toward them.
“
Ah, more flesh for my
feast! I’ll enjoy a buffet tonight!” the giant said.
Stanley darted through the
air and clawed the giant’s eyes with his sharp talons. Blood oozed
from the left eye and center eye, but the eye on the right was
unscathed. The giant punched Stanley with his free hand, which
caused the owl to retreat. Razor snarled and barked at the giant
while a compartment opened in his chest. A grappling hook shot
forth from the opening and caused a chain to wrap around the
giant’s feet before the hook latched into a narrow groove. The
giant stumbled forward, tripped, and fell face-first onto the
ground. Angelique approached the fallen giant and aimed the tip of
the scepter at his forehead. She said: “Beg for your life and I
might spare you.”
“
I’ll never beg! I’m too
proud! I’ll use your bones at toothpicks!” the giant
said.
Angelique pressed the tip
of the scepter against the giant’s forehead. He screamed in agony
as electricity pulsed from the weapon and flowed through his body.
Gradually, his body solidified into a gold statue. Razor’s
grappling hook released the giant’s feet, recoiled, and returned to
the compartment in the dog’s chest. Stanley shook his head, hooted
to let them know he wasn’t injured, and landed on the outstretched
arm of Angelique’s free hand. They approached the pit together and
peered into its depths.
Angelique screamed when she
noticed the little people. They tried to crawl inside of Dr.
Stine’s mouth. They tried to dig their way into his ear canals. She
noticed tiny legs protruding from the left nostril of Dr. Stine’s
nose. She aimed the scepter at Dr. Stine and watched yellow light
radiate from the weapon, spiral into the pit, and surround Dr.
Stine’s body. The little people screamed in agony as the
electricity zapped them. They retreated from Dr. Stine’s orifices
and fled toward crevices and holes in the pit’s walls.
Dr. Stine stirred and rose
to his feet. He rubbed his eyes and popped his knuckles. When he
glanced up to see if the giant was watching him, he smiled.
Angelique found a long piece of rope and dropped it down to him.
Angelique held the rope with her hands after she placed the scepter
on the floor. Razor helped her by chomping into the rope with his
sharp teeth. Together, they pulled and tugged on the rope until Dr.
Stine emerged from the pit and joined them next to the golden
statue of the fallen giant.
“
How did that happen?” Dr.
Stine asked. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead.
Angelique plucked the
scepter off of the floor and handed it to him. She grinned while
his eyes darted back and forth from the scepter to the giant’s
statue. His face went pale.
“
We need to get to Xavier’s
castle on Cadaver Island. We’re wasting time,” she said.
After they emerged from the
cave, they followed a narrow path, which bordered a small mountain
range and the edge of the forest. At the end of the path, the
crumbling statues of two warriors stood guard at the entrance of
the Calypso Desert. Angelique pulled her dress away from her
mechanical heart and glanced at the red, flashing numbers on the
display. She’d go into cardiac arrest in 39 hours, 25 minutes, and
27 seconds.
Dr. Stine glanced at the
display and frowned. He strolled away from the edge of the forest
and approached the swirling sands of the desert. Angelique,
Stanley, and Razor followed him. They knew it would be difficult to
reach Cadaver Island before time elapsed.
A horned viper slithered
across a sand dune in front of Dr. Stine, Angelique, and Razor as
they strolled across a southwestern ridge in the Calypso Desert.
They’d been walking for nearly an hour since their departure from
The Enchanted Forest of Sorrow. Strong gusts of hot wind blew sand
in their faces, causing them to shield their eyes and walk with
their heads down. Stanley flapped his wings and hovered nearby.
Sometimes he’d fly ahead of them and scan the area for hazards. He
hooted and landed on Dr. Stine’s shoulder when he noticed the
horned viper. Dr. Stine would’ve stepped on it if he hadn’t been
paying attention. He threw a rock at the snake and watched it
slither behind three cacti.