The Three Furies (Erec Rex) (39 page)

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us every night of our lives. They are relatives of the sphinx. Look like lions, only a lot bigger. They have huge mouths with long, sharp teeth, and their face looks kinda human. Their tails are spiny and spiked, and they use them like a club. But I can handle them . . . don't worry." Kyron's voice didn't sound as sure as his boast.

Plus, Erec wondered how many manticores Kyron could handle at once. He took a breath, tried to get a grip. "Do you remember the MONSTER race? There was a fake minotaur in it, and a real one showed up later in the party. They have the head and body of a bull, and their lower half is like a human giant. Minotaurs are nasty, but I took that one out--luckily I got a cloudy thought that told me to stab it in the eye with a glass shard. Sounds awful, but it was the only way. . . ." He shuddered at the memory. Was Baskania's fortress really filled with evil spirits like this? They would be crazy to walk into this place. "I know what. Maybe we could break a window up high to get inside."

Lalalalal shook his head. "Nope. I flew into a few to check that out for you--you can thank me for that one. Not pleasant, I'll let you know--and did that 'dumb bird flying into a window' bit. You'd be surprised how many times that's not a mistake. Birds like to see if they can get in and nip a few valuables. But those windows are extra strong. Magic strong. You'll never break in or out that way."

There went their only chance, Erec thought. Should they just land and see what would happen for Bethany's sake? "Hey, guys. This is way too risky. I'm going to go alone. You can all wait here for me. Sound okay?"

"Not a chance, cap'n," Griffin growled. "I'm at yer side the whole way. Made a promise to yer mother, I did. So don't ask again."

Backing him up, Kyron held out his sword. "We're in this together. I'm not afraid of the creatures there--at least not the ones I've heard of."

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Jam's voice was more faint. "As always, I'm sticking with you, young sir. But I think we should look at this logically. There are certain . . . enemies that may not be a problem for you, Erec. The ghosts, for example. Ghosts cannot harm you, isn't that correct? And your Amulet of Virtues should shield you as well."

"True." Erec had found out that ghosts could not hurt him. They could not even touch him. This had something to do with his lineage, his mother had said. "But how many of those undead things are ghosts?"

"The specters and spirit warriors are ghosts," Jam said. "Spirit warriors are more of the plain variety, they come from humans who have passed on. They would probably be people that Baskania had killed in the past, and now he's keeping them on as part of his army. Specters are a nastier sort. Pure evil, and vicious, I'm afraid. Like a spirit gone wrong. But the shadow demons are not ghosts. I don't know about the Vetalas and zombies. . . ."

Lalalalal was clearing its throat loudly.

"Yes, Lala?"

It sighed. "They're not ghosts, either of 'em. A zombie is a dead body that has been activated back into life. Those things have no soul, and they're not the brightest either. That's why the Vetalas tell them what to do. Vetalas occupy the bodies of the dead, but they're something else altogether."

"Wait a minute!" Erec rooted through his backpack and found the clump of wolfsbane he had brought with him. "This will protect us from the wenwolves. My dog, Wolfboy, is a wenwolf--he turns into a huge wolf when there is a full moon. And it should keep the werewolves away too." Seeing the others look more hopeful, he went on. "The shadow demons can't hurt us if we walk right through them. Believe me, it's not as easy as it sounds. But I know I can do that. Once you all see me, you'll be past its control. Kyron and Griffin

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could probably handle the manticores, lions, tigers, and minotaurs. And the specters and spirit warriors can't bother me--but might hurt you all. What does that leave?"

"The Vetalas and the zombies." Jack sounded excited. "That's it."

"Doesn't sound quite as bad now," Melody agreed.

"Lalalalal?" Jam said. "Do you know any way to get past Vetalas or zombies?"

"Of course I do. But I'm afraid it won't be easy. You see, laughter will stop the Vetalas in their tracks. If you're truly fearless, and laugh at them, they will shy away from you. But it has to be true laughter, not forced. If you're not really laughing from the heart, the thing will close in for the kill."

"That's it?" Jack grinned. "No problem at all! Now that I know I only have to laugh, it'll be easy for me."

"No, it won't," Erec said. "Lala's right. I thought it would be a cinch to walk right through the shadow demon, because I knew in advance about it. Those things control your mind. If you have to be completely fearless to laugh, then none of us will be able to. They'll scare us to death, and our laughs won't be real enough, and we'll die."

Kyron shrugged. "At least we can try, right? I guess if even one of us can do it, that might throw them off."

"What about the zombies?" Erec asked. "What will stop them?"

"Oh, nothing," Lalalalal said. "Once they get going they just follow directions until they've done what they're told. They'll never quit trying."

"So," Jack said thoughtfully, "if one of us was able to laugh before the Vetalas told the zombies to kill us, we might survive? That is, if the specters and spirit warriors don't get us?"

The thought sounded so ridiculous that Erec almost laughed right then.

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"Good thing you brought that wolfsbane," Jack said. "What other things did you take with you?"

Erec dug through his backpack. "Here's the wolfsbane." He pulled it out. "And this"--he grabbed a vial--"is the most important thing. Dragon's blood, to free Bethany from the Draw spell she's under."

Everyone stared at the vial in shock. Erec knew it sounded disgusting, but after all they had just heard he was surprised at their reaction to the vial.

Until he looked at his hand. It was empty.

He gasped. Now what would they do? This was the only way to rescue her! Where did the blood go? The outside of the vial looked clean enough.

Then he saw a label on the side of the vial. It read laughter.

"What?" His jaw dropped. He had completely forgotten. This was the vial of laughter he grabbed from Hecate Jekyll's storeroom. He dropped it into his lap and rooted through his backpack. "Here it is!" The vial of dragon blood was still full.

"You scared me, Erec," Melody said.

"Tell me about it. That's about all I brought, except this MagicLight, a little money, and this . . ." He took out a glass jar. "Nitrowisherine! This is an explosive, but when you set it off it grants you a wish. Well, it works most of the time, anyway. I already tried wishing to rescue Bethany and it didn't work. So this may help or not."

Jam pulled more items out of his backpack than Erec could believe fit into it, including snacks, remedies, tools, and things he couldn't identify. "I'm not sure if any of this will be of use. But if anyone needs a bandage or towel please let me know."

Erec held the laughter vial a while as he put his things away. "Do you suppose . . . Wait a minute. This could be just what we need."

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Jack stared at it. "An empty vial?"

"It's laughter. A vial of pure laughter."

There was a silence, then everyone started talking at once.

"Perfect, Erec!" Melody gave him a hug. "We'll use it on the Vetalas! If they hear the laughter before they give orders to the zombies, we're home free!"

Erec thought they would be far from home free. But at least it was a place to start.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE Mind Reader Extraordinaire

HE MOON WAS high when Lalalalal grew to full size on the beach. With a little struggling and a hand from Griffin, all six of them climbed onto the mynaraptor's back. Erec held the vial of laughter in one hand, and each of them carried some of the wolfsbane.

The mynaraptor made a strange noise that sounded like an engine starting and stopping, again and again.

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"What's that?" Erec asked. "It sounds like it's out of gas."

"Methinks the thing is clearing its throat, cap'n. Maybe it has something it wants to say."

"Lala? You want to talk? Get straight to the point, okay?"

Lalalalal's voice was louder and fuller now that it was bigger. "I have a suggestion for you all. Unless you're all counting on landing in the middle of those beasts, you might want me to alight directly on a low roof I saw. It's dark enough that if we come around from the back, maybe none of them will notice us. Too bad you don't have any music with you. That would help calm some of the animals down, help a little."

"I can make music," Melody volunteered. "It's my gift from birth." She slid two fingers together and a light, lovely melody drifted into the air.

"Perfect," Erec said, then rushed to add, "but we can live without it if you decide to get off here and wait. It's your last chance, everyone."

"I'm coming, Erec. I have a good feeling about this. The Fates said we can do it, so let's go!"

They lifted into the air, bouncing higher with each beat of Lalalalal's huge wings until they blurred in a whir of motion. Erec, sitting in front, grabbed a handful of huge feathers to hang on to. Someone screamed behind him as they soared toward the moon--he was pretty sure it was Griffin. Riding so high was terrifying, with much less to hold on to than riding a dragon, but also amazingly beautiful, to watch the stars disappear and reappear as they rose through the clouds. Ripples of light danced on the black water beneath them. Erec tried not to think what would happen if one of them slipped and fell in.

Baskania's fortress really did look like a rogue castle gone bad, complete with black iron spikes on the turrets, carved images of

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terrifying creatures, and crooked Gothic peaks. Even the towers had towers jutting out of them, all of them pointed and foreboding.

As they closed in, masses of beings became visible outside. They looked terrifying even from a distance.

Lalalalal swerved in from the back, dropping straight down out of a low cloud onto a flat section of roof close to the ground. The bird skidded a bit, then stopped so fast that all of them tumbled, hanging on by handfuls of feathers.

As soon as they dropped onto the roof, Lalalalal shifted back to its small size and perched on Griffin's shoulder. From their vantage point, they could see the creatures below, some drifting aimlessly and others walking in groups. Sickly gray human-shaped beasts marched in rows around the huge building in an endless parade.

"Those must be the zombies," Jack whispered.

"Maybe we should stay up here awhile and get our bearings," Jam said.

"I don't think so," Erec said. "Even if the other things can't see us, the shadow demons will know we're here soon."

"But you said you could walk through them," Kyron said. "Then they can't hurt us."

"Yes. The shadow demons might not hurt us, but they will warn everyone else that we're here. I think we better catch them unprepared."

They all lay side by side, peeking over the edge of the roof. The sight was truly horrifying. Up close, the zombie troops were the worst sight Erec had ever laid eyes on. Flesh hung off of their half-exposed skeletons, and sharp fangs jutted from their bloodred mouths. But worst of all were their eyes, which glowed bone-white, with no iris or pupils at all. They made a loud hiss as they marched by, but did not speak.

Even the manticores and minotaurs, both of which would attack

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anything that moved, stayed clear of the zombies. When one of them did drift too close, however, a buzz of activity erupted. The victim disappeared fast as the zombies clustered around it, ravenously ripping it apart with their fangs and claws.

Nobody made a sound, but Erec was pretty sure they all were wondering where the Vetalas were. The spirit warriors were easy to identify as the translucent human-shaped beings roaming around with real rifles in their grasp. And the glowing white things whipping through the air like see-through sheets in the wind were likely the specters.

Suddenly, Erec heard voices from below.

"Something is wrong, Master Vetu." The voice echoed deep and clear. "I can sense it, but I don't know yet what it is. Maybe the Shadow Prince needs us."

The voice that responded sounded exactly the same, although slightly sarcastic. "Thank you, shadow demon. I appreciate your mental acuity, but I must remind you again that you are not allowed to form yourself in
my
appearance or use my voice while you are here. I wouldn't want to confuse the zombies as to who their master was. Anyhow, be sure to tell me when you figure out what the problem is."

"Of course, Master Vetu," a voice squeaked back, now sounding more like a squirrel that breathed in helium. "Anytime, anytime."

Out of the shadows a figure appeared in a long black cloak. Erec jumped when he saw what was inside its hood and heard Melody and Jack gasp at his sides. Three rotting heads were stacked atop one another. The eye sockets of each were deeply sunken, and the eyes themselves glowed bright red. It raised its hand, and two more cloaked creatures emerged and bowed.

Master Vetu spoke, the mouth in his middle head moving. "The shadow demon spoke of problems. I don't want to wait until it's too late to find out what's wrong. Let's stand guard by the front entrance,