2015 Young Explorer's Adventure Guide Page 35

  “Why’d it eat our sheep and Constable Duncan?”

  “I suppose it was hungry.”

  “Where’s Papa?”

  Rory shoved the feed bucket towards her. “Ya ask too many questions. Go feed the chickens. Papa will be back soon.”

  “Where’d he go?”

  “Had to take Constable Duncan’s remains to town, dinna he? Now ya get to feeding the chickens or I’ll skelp ya till ya can’t sit on yer bum for a week.”

  “Ya ain’t Papa or Mama. Ya can’t touch me.”

  Rory smacked her. Kenna recoiled, dropping the feed bucket and holding her stinging cheek and fighting back tears.

  “I’m in charge while Papa is gone. He told us to feed the animals and then lock ourselves inside . . .” Rory paused and glanced over his shoulder and then back at Kenna. “This morning we found another set of footprints and another sheep’s bones.”

  Kenna bit her lip and knelt beside the spilled feed, scooping it back into the bucket, refusing to look at him. She marched across the yard, squeezing between sheep, only pausing at Rufus. She swept her fingers across the smooth bronze of his face.

  “Oh, Rufus.”

  His midsection exposed, the gears and pistons mangled, riddled with teeth marks. She kissed the nose of her dog and hurried towards the chickens before Rory could take another swipe at her.

  …………………………

  Rufus littered the table. Rory pounded a twisted gear flat causing the whole table to bounce. Kenna held the lamp close so Rory could inspect the gear. He reached in and clicked the gear into place.

  Rory tapped the mechanism inside. It swung back and forth, back and forth. Cogs turned. Kenna exhaled and chewed at her fingernails. Rory fixed another crudely pounded piece of metal over the ragged hole of the belly. Rufus’s eyes flickered then blazed yellow.

  “Help me lift him,” Rory said.

  Kenna circled her arms around the chest and head of the clockwork dog. Together they lifted and set Rufus on the floor. A paw twitched. Then the others. The dog’s mouth worked and he whimpered.

  Kenna knelt beside Rufus, patting his head. “It’s okay, boy. Rory fixed ya up good.” Rufus rolled over and with a thump and grate, sat up. “Good boy, Rufus. Good boy.” Kenna wrapped her arms around the dog and kissed him soundly. The dog wagged his tail.

  Tap. Tap. Tap. Something rapped on the door. Rufus turned with a growl, knocking a chair to the floor with his tail. Rory held a finger to his lips and tip-toed to the window craning his head to see who or what was at the door. His face flooded with relief. He unlatched the lock and opened the door. The flutter of wings rustled and squeaked as the copper messenger pigeon flew round the kitchen, spiraling down to the table. It landed with a click of its tiny claws on the table and folded its wings. It hopped to the edge of the table and cooed till Rory picked it up. He pressed the button and a compartment opened releasing a small scroll of paper.

  “What’s it say?” Kenna grabbed for it.

  Rory swatted her hands away. “Give me a minute.” He angled it towards the light. “It’s to Mama.” His hands fell to his sides, his face grew ashen.

  “What’s it say?”

  “Papa’s been arrested. They think he killed Finlay and Constable Duncan. Deputy Clacher’s taking him to Glasgow on the first train in the morning . . . to wait trial for murder.”

  “Papa dinna murder anybody.”

  “They do na know that, do they? They was already suspecting him ‘cause of Guthrie and Finlay and he shows up with a bag of Constable Duncan’s bones.”

  “I know what to do,” Kenna said.

  “What?” Rory asked.

  “We need to catch one of those creatures to prove Papa didn’t do it.”

  …………………………

  The wide footprints disappeared near the ravine. At its edge where the earth sloped into a sea of moss-covered trees and boulders, lumps of grass and heather cradled bones and fur of small animals. Kenna knew the eaten animals by the color of their fur entwined in crushed bones: the gray of a squirrel, the black and white of a raccoon, and the red of a fox.

  She stared long and hard at the largest pile. These were not the bones of squirrels, foxes, raccoons, nor even sheep. These bones were human. From the bits of cloth and hat and hair and pipe, it was Finlay.

  “We should take him to town,” Kenna said.

  “No, they’d think Papa killed him too.”

  Taking hold of tree limbs and boulders, they descended to the narrow ravine floor. Kenna kept within inches of Rory, fingering his shirt to keep steady and brave. He didn’t even yell at her when she bumped into him when he came to a sudden stop. She recoiled and rubbed her nose. Rory gasped. Kenna stole a peek around him.

  “Crivens,” she whispered. A shiny metal tube like an airship cabin with wings of metal stuck out of the churned earth. A swath of broken trees a couple hundred feet long cut up the ravine where the strange ship had plummeted to the ground. One of the ship’s wings tilted towards the sky, near severed from it. “How’d an airship get here? There’s no balloon.”

  “It is na like any airship I’ve e’er seen.”

  Kenna looked up at the sky almost expecting to see another strange airship fall from the sky. When nothing fell, she settled onto a spongy lump of moss.

  Rory looked her up and down. “What ya doing?”

  “Waiting. Expect they’re like wolves, only coming out of their den to feed at night. We’ll get it to chase us, just like we planned.”

  …………………………

  The blackness glowed with faint blue light. A door at the end of the ship opened. Kenna sucked in a breath and gripped Rory’s arm. Two forms lumbered from the doorway spouting shrill squeaks and clicks. They’d eaten their sheep – she was sure.

  The creatures walked around the ship fiddling about in the holes with their fingered claws. Their skin gleamed black and their arms were long, just as Rory had said. She imagined their wide mouths opening like snakes and devouring her sheep and Constable Duncan and Finlay. Imagined them grinding up their prey in their gullets and spitting out the bits they didn’t fancy.

  A long time passed before one of the creatures went back inside the ship, leaving the one. Rory gave a nod and chucked a stone at the creature. The rock skidded across the wing and dropped beside the creature. It bent and plucked the stone from the ground. It turned slowly towards the trees and brush. It popped the stone into its mouth, swallowed it, and turned its attentions back to ship.

  Rory threw another stone striking the creature in the back of the head. It jerked around.

  “Run,” Rory whispered. The creature took a couple steps towards them. “Baaaah, Baaaah, Baaaah,” Rory made his best sheep sound. “Go.” Rory shoved Kenna up the hill. “Now, Kenna.”

  The creature ran towards them. Kenna and Rory scrambled up the steep slope, grabbing at roots and branches for handholds. Breaking from the trees, they raced across the hillside. Rory was just a step behind. The creature thundered twenty paces behind him. The plan was working! Kenna’s heart thumped, her breaths, quick and light.

  Her foot caught on a nub of grass, sending her sprawling. Kenna fell hard, her teeth clicked together, her bones jolted with the force of the fall, her palms covered in thistle. She screamed.

  Rory grabbed her by the back of her smock and dress, pulling her upright. He wrapped his arm around her back and under her arm, supporting her weight till she found her feet again. Light exploded from behind, hitting the ground beside Rory. Too close. Her stomach soured and she thought she’d sick up.

  “We’re almost there,” Rory huffed. “We need to move faster. It’s gaining.”

  “I can na.”

  Rory near lifted her from the ground, dragging her when her feet floundered. “Catch him with the machine . . . ya can do this . . . just like it’s a sheep.”

  “Aye.”

  They bolted into the sheep corral. Rory headed up the ramp leading to the second story of
the barn. The creature paused, raising its head and letting out a shrill cry. Kenna squeezed between the crack of barn doors and pulled them closed.

  She slammed her hand against the button on the sheep dipping and shearing machine. With a gurgle and rasp, the machine belched to life, a plume of smoke puffed out of the stack. Gripping the handle, she spun the wheel operating the picking arm. Rory darted into the barn, down the ramp leading to the shearer and dipper. The creature lunged towards him, swiping with its long arms and fingered claws. It tossed another burst of lightning. Rory ducked. The electricity flew past and hit the barn wall, leaving a black mark.

  “Kenna!” Rory screamed, running out of ramp.

  Kenna moved the gripping arm. Papa had let her practice all summer, even on some actual sheep at shearing time. He’d even let her dip them in the insecticide. But Rory had held the sheep still. Catching a moving target wasn’t easy.

  The creature went for him again. Rory ducked and scrambled between the guardrails. The creature bent, reaching its long arms in the space between the rails and catching Rory’s foot. It worked up Rory’s leg, reeling him in like a fish.

  Kenna lowered the claw over its head. She yanked the lever down and spun another wheel, clamping the tines tight. The creature, so focused on Rory, noticed too late the vice clamping round its head. The creature flailed, batting at the tines and arm. Kenna turned the wheel counter-clockwise, lifting the creature off its feet. The picking arm flexed under its weight.

  Rory grabbed the cricket bat and smacked the creature in the head five times. The creature went limp. Rory lowered the bat, poked it and jumped away.

  “Did ya kill it?” Kenna asked.

  “I do na think so. Dinna turn to a puddle-o-goo, did it?” He poked it again, just to be sure. “Get the rope.”

  …………………………

  Fog blanketed the valley, hiding town. By the time the sun rose and burned away the fog, the first train to Glasgow would be long gone with Papa.

  Kenna insisted that every last inch of rope on the farm be used to restrain the creature. A harnessed Rufus pulled the cocooned creature towards town, tilling the muddy road behind. Rufus trotted along, his wagging tail squeaking, when, for what seemed like the hundredth time, he drifted towards the edge of the road.

  “Stand . . . come,” Rory said. Rufus flopped to the ground, his tail still wagging. “Dumb dog.” Rory kicked him. Kenna punched Rory in the shoulder.

  “Do na kick him.”

  “He’s not working right.”

  “Ye’re the one who fixed him.” Kenna patted Rufus on the head. “Rufus,” she said with a melodic lilt in her voice. “Come.”

  Rufus’s ears swiveled and he got to his feet. He crossed back to the middle of the road. The creature, at last awake, struggled. Its cry echoed in the early morning air.

  “It’ll wake everyone in town.” Kenna clamped her hands over her ears.

  “Good. They’ll know Papa is no murderer.”

  They chased Rufus down after another jaunt off the road to herd a rabbit before reaching the outskirts of town where the woolen mill’s machines sat quiet. It wouldn’t be long before steam puffed from its stacks and the looms rattled.

  The creature’s shrieks brought bleary-eyed faces to windows that turned sour at the sight and sound of them. Rufus trotted into the village green and flopped down.

  “Find Papa,” Kenna said. Rufus barred his teeth and growled. “Rufus . . . find Papa.” Rufus lay in the grass, framing his head with his paws. “Come . . . away to me . . . sit . . . down . . . hold . . .” Kenna tried each command. She knelt beside Rufus and patted his head. He let out a half-hearted growl. “Find Papa,” she whispered.

  Rory tugged on her shoulder. “It’s no use, he’s broken. We gotta get to Papa before he’s taken.”

  “It’s eating the rope,” Kenna said. Some of the creature’s teeth poked out from the rope. It struggled something fierce against its restraints. Rufus jumped to his feet and turned on the bound creature. He barked and peered up at Kenna, wagging his tail. “Good boy. Find Papa.”

  Rufus led them to the jail. Kenna threw open the door, making Deputy Clacher jump as he slurped up his beans and bite of egg.

  “What is it?” he asked. The creature let out a long, loud shriek. They all clamped hands over ears. “What in the name of all that is holy have ya got?”

  “Please, sir, let my Papa go. This is what’s eating the sheep and people.” Kenna smiled her best smile.

  “I do na know what ya—”

  Rufus bolted past Kenna, knocking her down, and through the door, bumping Deputy Clacher back into the kitchen. The creature wailed as it thumped over the threshold and bounced against walls. Rory helped Kenna up and they chased after. Rufus stood on his back paws, the others pressed against the jail cell bars. Papa set down the remains of his breakfast and approached Rufus. “Sit.”

  Rufus sat.

  “Papa,” Kenna rushed to her father, squeezing her face between the bars. Papa knelt and touched his forehead to hers. Tears spilt down her cheeks.

  “It’s okay.” He kissed her head and stroked her dirt-stained cheeks.

  “Let him go.” Rory faced Deputy Clacher. “This is the creature that ate—”

  “I can’t hardly see what animal ye’ve got, but, yer Papa already said ya shot the animal to death . . . said it turned to liquid when it died. So, this isn’t the same animal is it?”

  “No, sir, but it’s just like the one that ate Constable Duncan. I promise. We saw it. We found them in the ravine. There’s one more of them besides this one. They’re living in a tube like an airship with wings and no balloon.”

  Deputy Clacher squatted beside the creature and touched one of its sharp teeth poking out of the rope. “That’s quite a story ye’re telling. And maybe it’s true, but I’ve a signed order from the judge to transport your Papa to Glasgow. Killing a constable is a very serious offense.”

  “Ye’re not listening. Papa dinna kill nobody. The creature ate them and then spat the bones and stuff it dinna like back out. That’s what it does. It eats squirrels and rabbits and raccoons and our sheep. And it eats people who try and stop it!” Kenna shouted.

  A distant shriek sounded from outside. The cocooned creature shrieked back. Screams from villagers followed. A man darted inside, breathless. “There’s something . . . animal . . . monster. It ate MacLeod when he poked his head out the door.”

  “See!” Kenna shouted. “Let my Papa go!”

  Deputy Clacher grabbed his electro-gun and rushed out the door and down the street before the echo of her shout faded. The creature let out another earsplitting cry.

  “Kenna, Rory, ya’ve got to go hide. Now–”

  Kenna reached her arms through the bars, grabbing for her Papa. “I won’t leave ya, Papa.”

  Papa wrapped his arms around her. “Another creature is coming to get this one and it’s very mad. Ya go with Rory–”

  “I’m not leaving.”

  “Kenna.”

  “No.”

  Papa kissed her again on the forehead and peered above her. “Rory.” Papa gave a silent nod.

  Rory grabbed Kenna round the waist and yanked her from her hold on the bars. The creature drowned her cries. It shrieked till Rory’s knees buckled and he dropped Kenna to cover his ears. Its call was answered.

  Deputy Clacher zoomed past the window, chased by the creature shooting at him. Lightning flashed from the creature. Clacher dropped to the ground. Then it had him. With its long, sharp fingers, the creature lifted Deputy Clacher up. Its mouth ratcheted open, making space, and then swallowed Deputy Clacher, keys, buttons, and everything down to his boots.

  “Lock the door!” Papa shouted. “Hide upstairs.”

  Kenna looked to her Papa and to Rory. She mustered her courage. “Rufus, go home!” she called. Rufus’s ears twisted back and forth. His head cocked to the side. “Home!”

  Rufus gave a hearty bark and dashed out the door, the screechin
g creature dragging behind. The hunting creature, with bulging belly and gurgling and grinding sounds arising from it, lumbered after Rufus. The weight of Deputy Clacher in its belly slowed it down.

  “Lock the door and hide! This isn’t a game,” Papa said.

  “We have to fix it. We can’t let them eat everyone.” Kenna blew Papa a kiss and rushed out the door with Rory.

  But Rufus, once free of the jail loped down half a block then ran in circles, chasing his own tail. “Rufus . . . steady,” Kenna called. She came as close as she dared, leaving a space between her and the creature. The dog slowed and then sat on his haunches. “Away to me,” she called, ordering him towards her. Rufus barked twice and growled at the approaching creature. “Home. Go home.”

  Rufus wagged his tail and circled round a fountain topped with a bronze statue of a sheep before tearing down the street. Rufus disappeared in the thick fog, the bound creature wailing behind in its tangle of ropes.

  The creature in pursuit charged the crowd, snapping its teeth. Its claws tore the air in fury. Kenna and Rory skirted around the men and creature, keeping close to the houses and shops.

  The creature stopped and its jaw ratcheted open, regurgitating the leftovers of Deputy Clacher, a slimy mass of broken bones, and buttons, and keys. It wailed once again. Lightning swirled round its hands and it threw it into the group of men then disappeared into the fog.

  Rory and Kenna crept past the fight, keeping close to the shops and houses. They passed by the Black Bull, the clockmaker, the tailor’s shops, and reached the outermost edge of town by the woolen mill. Behind them, the fog glowed with sizzling light. Shouts and screams blared. She hoped the creature had fallen, not another person.

  Kenna and Rory, safely beyond the fight, took to running. Rory skidded to a stop. A mound of empty rope lay on the road. He cast a wary glance into the fog, and picked up the end of the rope where the creature had broken free of Rufus’s harness.