Wheels (40 page)

“Dad! Please, I’m part of this planet. We have to give them a chance. A year, well, almost a year without cobaca froot could make all the difference. After that, it would be up to them whether to harvest or not. All we have to do is burn down one warehouse.”

“Nooooo, nooooo,” moaned the Tsendi kneeling in front of McKenzie’s father.

“Then we must do it quickly,” said Principal Provost. “I can not promise how much longer the disruption field will last.”

“There will be guards posted outside the warehouse,” said Abacis.

“They’ll kill you before they allow you to burn their precious cobaca froot!” said Wells. “Abacis, how can you allow this to happen to your own people?”

“Quiet, old human!” Abacis looked at Principal Provost. “He is correct, however. We cannot do this alone. If you could free some of my Tsendi from that…that…?”

McKenzie looked at the tsoot pit. When whatever Principal Provost had done to it wore off, Mallos and the other Tsendi would be free. “Principal Provost, we need to get all of Abacis’ followers out of there before—”

Just then, Mallos, who’d been frozen in the act of falling, tumbled to the ground. There was no immediate uproar, of course. The Tsendi in the pit had no idea what had happened; it was as if time had never stopped. Except for Mallos, that is. Mallos had seen something right before he’d been shoved. Now he began to roar!

“OW!” cried Hayes. 

McKenzie turned in time to see Wells take off. Worse, he’d somehow turned around and kicked Hayes in the most unfortunate of spots. McKenzie winced, but there was no time to feel sorry for him. Wells was heading toward the tsoot pit.

“Time to leave,” said Principal Provost. “I’ll weave us to the cave.”

“I will not abandon my Tsendi,” said Abacis.

“Have it your way. Get your Tsendi to the cave, enter through the water.”

“They will not—”

“Trust me!” Principal Provost said. “You MUST persuade them to enter through the water. The cave angles after only a short way; it is invisible from the shore. I will particle-weave that portion into solid ground. You need only be in the water a short time.”

A-BA-CIS!!!! Mallos was now screaming at the top of his Tsendi lungs.

“Hurry,” cried McKenzie.

As soon as your Tsendi are through, I will send out a wave. One so large, even Wells will be afraid to enter.”

Screams and curses filled the air. The Tsendi had begun to fight. Abacis grabbed the spears, which still smelled oddly sweet from their brief stint as large purple flowers, and headed into the tsoot pit. “I will do my best,” he shouted and was gone.

B.R. Provost closed his eyes. Within seconds, the molecules of air in front of him began to transform.

With Hayes’ assistance, as well as his new spear, McKenzie’s dad prodded the Tsendi guards into the portal. McKenzie turned to take one last look at the tsoot pit. Mallos stood in the center, surrounded in chaos, staring at McKenzie with a look of pure hatred. As she gazed back, McKenzie experienced a moment of pure fear. Tucking a curl firmly behind her ear, she turned and took off into the portal.

Chapter 49

FBI TRANSCRIPT 21204

Agent Wink Krumm and H.G. Wells
Thursday, June 11th

WELLS
: Do I look older to you?

KRUMM
: A bit weathered, perhaps.

WELLS
: I’m beginning to feel my age. It’s that girl’s fault. Margaret or McKenzie—whatever her name is. She did this to me.

KRUMM
: Poison?

WELLS
: My planet—she forced me to leave my planet!

KRUMM
: I could help if you’d promise to get me those items I asked for.

WELLS
: What items?

KRUMM
: My phone, my personal log, and your sister’s diary. You’re still on good terms with the Wu family?

WELLS
: They kidnapped me!

KRUMM
: Yes, yes, I know. I was there…
remember?

WELLS
: You weren’t on Circanthos.

KRUMM
: No, no—when you came through the portal.

WELLS
: Ah, yes, the portal. My publisher says my manuscript is brilliant. The public will eat up the H.G. Wells angle—the mystery, the intrigue…Oh dear!

KRUMM
: What?

WELLS
: I’m beginning to fade. Growing old is awful! Anywho, I’ll see what I can do about your diary, Krumm. In the future, however, I suggest you take better care of your things.

***

REUNIONS

Thursday, March 19th

“
Y
ou’ve brought friends.”

“Professor!” Principal Provost was practically grinning from ear to ear at the old Circanthian. McKenzie had never seen him look so…alien! “I’m so pleased you made it back.” He rolled over and gave the Circanthian a hug.

“Well I…” The old Circanthian looked as if he were going to cry. “I never knew you cared. I may have to stick around a bit longer.”

They must be very good friends, thought McKenzie. Weird though, her dad was rolling his eyes, almost as if he found their reunion annoying. What was that about?

The cave was filled with Circanthians, everyone from the Last Gathering, from the look of it. A game of tsoot was in high gear. Though the pit appeared to have been rewoven with much more accuracy.

McKenzie would have loved to join in but the game had already begun. Besides, she was exhausted. Overwhelmingly so. Instead of participating, she was sitting off by herself, quietly observing.

She had assumed the Circanthian version of tsoot would have been more mellow. But this was not the case. Circanthians bounded into each other with abandon, sending rival team members bouncing across the pit, and frequently out of it. One of them bounced right into McKenzie, and without an, “I’m sorry” or anything, rolled back in.

Watching them play made McKenzie long to be home playing basketball. She could almost smell the burnt rubber.

In addition to reweaving the tsoot pit, the Circanthians had transformed the stalagmites, leaving the floor of the cave smooth, while scattering a few tables and even some fountains about. It looked almost cozy.

“James, would you mind guarding the Tsendi? Hayes, if you don’t mind, assist him. We have more company arriving.” Principal Provost looked around as if taking note of the changes his fellow Circanthians had made. “I’ll need to do a bit more remodeling,” he muttered, then rolled over by the water where, McKenzie hoped, he would soon begin weaving a solid surface for Abacis and his followers.

“Nice to see you again, Professor,” said James Wu, speaking to the old Circanthian. Apparently, everyone knew him—everyone except McKenzie. The Professor, as they called him, looked to be about the same age as Pietas. He was very round, from the tip of his round head to his round body, on top of his round Circanthian appendage. With his bushy white mustache, crinkly eyes, and tweed coat, he was almost comical looking. “McKenzie, come meet your great-great grandfather, Professor Petré Revolvos.”

Huh?

McKenzie’s great-great grandfather’s eyes twinkled mischievously. Though his hair was white, it was quite thick. Upon closer inspection, McKenzie could tell he’d once been what Grandma Mir would call “a looker.”

“Grandpa Revolvos, if you don’t mind. All those ‘greats’ are so tedious and sure to go straight to my head.” McKenzie reached out to take his hand and found herself pulled into an enormous bear hug.

“So you’re the one everyone’s talking about.” He leaned back to take a better look.

McKenzie took a better look too—and that’s when it hit her.
My great-great grandfather has a—
“Holy snaps!”

“A roticolar,” said Revolvos. “Yes, McKenzie, I’m Circanthian. Which, I might add, as are you…at least, partially Circanthian. By the way, my dear, Pietas was worried about you.”

“Pietas!” McKenzie scanned the crowd. Pietas was sitting at a small table away from the tsoot pit with three older-looking Circanthians. She looked over at the sound of her name and waved.

McKenzie pointed to Hayes, smiled and waved back. Then she turned to her great-great grandfather and everything began to spin.
Circanthian? I’m Circanthian?
She looked at Hayes, expecting him to reach over and pinch her. When that didn’t happen, she began shaking her head, as if this would somehow put all the pieces back into place.

Principal Provost and her dad were on Circanthos, they’d rescued her from Wells and his Tsendi, and now they were all back in the cave. Then, besides meeting her great-great grandfather, who was Circanthian, and apparently, alive… McKenzie paused to ponder this last part. Her great-great grandfather was ALIVE! So was her great-great-great uncle. Anyway… There was her dad acting like some sort of macho warrior-type, instead of a nerdy inventor, guarding three Tsendi with an oversized pitchfork, while taking time to point out that McKenzie was being rude.

“My great-great grandfather—Geezits!” Now the room was really beginning to spin.

“I think Mac is gonna be sick,” said Hayes.

“I am not going to be sick!” she snapped. “I just need a moment.” McKenzie turned around and rolled over to the first empty corner she could find.

“McKenzie Georgianna Wu!”

“Easy, James,” said her great-great grandfather. “The girl needs a moment to process all of this.”

McKenzie tried to empty her mind. When that wouldn’t work, she allowed the thoughts to come. She was Circanthian—part Circanthian, anyway. That was weird! But it did explain things. Only…McKenzie sighed, it really didn’t change things. She was supposed to save the Circanthians, but all she’d done was make a bigger mess of things. Wells was free and a war was raging back at the Tsendi outpost. McKenzie said a silent prayer that Abacis and his men would make it back to the cave. Abacis was no fool; he would not fight a battle he could not win. At least, she hoped so.

If they could burn down the warehouse, the Tsendi might have a chance to heal. Only, by now, Wells had probably doubled the guard—
Wait! That’s it! Abacis had said there were guards outside the warehouse. Outside, not in. Even if there were guards inside, there wouldn’t be many.
McKenzie could hardly contain her excitement. She sat a while longer thinking and working out the details. She would not tell anyone her plan until Abacis arrived.

A few feet away, Hayes was having this strange, grownup-kind-of conversation with her dad about the Circanthian language, of all things! While her great-great grandfather kept interrupting, correcting Hayes, then going off on some tangent about what it was like to speak English in England, and then have to learn an entirely different English in America, and how one species could have so many different languages, and how confusing, yet interesting, it all was. And her dad—she’d never seen him look happier!

McKenzie shuddered. The guilt and fear came so fast it left her breathless…and feeling so small. The exact opposite of the hero she’d felt like only seconds ago. Until that moment, she hadn’t known if she would tell her dad about her part in the car accident. Now she was sure. In order to live with herself, she would have to tell him the truth.

The Circanthians were laughing and playing tsoot, unconcerned, it seemed, that there was only a small cave of them left in the entire universe. McKenzie shook her head. And, she was one of them. Weird. And then, she thought of something—the orb! Grandma Mir’s orb was a model of Circanthos. McKenzie could picture it as clear as day. The alien professor, her great-great grandfather, had married Julianne.

McKenzie was still silently chuckling to herself when she noticed it—silence.

She turned in time to see Abacis racing across water woven into a solid, blue surface. He was followed by ten, twenty…and soon, at least forty other Tsendi.

McKenzie took a deep breath. Time to reveal her plan.

Chapter 50

Excerpt from the personal log of Agent Wink Krumm

Friday, March 20th
Just outside Avondale

Nothing today. A few local yokels showed up. Morons in uniforms. I quickly informed them they should stick to their own territory, as the FBI had this road covered.

No reinforcements, yet, from headquarters. Though I’ve been informed they want me back in the office tomorrow afternoon if nothing “significant” happens.

SIGNIFICANT? Really????

No doubt about it. I should never have trusted Wickersheim. As soon as I leave, he’ll be out here taking credit for my find. Only, I’m NOT Leaving—Not until I see the whites of their alien eyes!

***

DISAPPEARING TRICKS

Thursday, March 19th

“
H
ow many guards?”

Mallos began counting on his fingers. “One, two…uh? One each corner, one each side and seven in the forest.”

“FIFTEEN! You call that security. Post fifteen more and another twenty-five around my quarters. Abacis will be back, mark my word. He’s planning something big or he would have returned sooner. Perhaps we should post a few inside?”

Mallos leaned closer. “Let me,” he said, practically drooling.

“Right. Never mind.” Wells lit his torch and prepared to enter the warehouse. Before he went in, however, he turned and thrust the torch under Mallos’ nose.

Mallos jumped back and let out a yelp.

“Tell me again, Mallos, how did forty-three Tsendi escape?”

Mallos rubbed his nose, looking somewhat dumbfounded and decidedly more humble. His Tsendi face contorted into several different, most unpleasing expressions, as he tried to come up with another way to explain what he’d already explained several times, in a way that would, somehow, please his Advitor.

Wells allowed himself a slight smile. “I’ll expect a thorough accounting when I come out. Remember, forty-three Tsendi are out there waiting to make their move. Allow Abacis to outsmart you again, and it will be a long, long, time before you see your beloved cobaca froot!”