Jack James and the Tribe of the Teddy Bear (42 page)

He was alive. Not a scratch on him. Unfortunately, the same was true for Davos. The slithery, elongated beings followed Ben through the demolished wall and a tremendous gasp rolled through the collection of witnesses. Ben noticed the crowd had swelled even larger. Children and retirees, young couples with their families and teenagers grouped together, many of them thumbing frantically at their smart phones, holding them up to get pictures and video of the action. Nearly all of them, even the police, stopped and stood still, stunned at the winged serpents.

Ben felt the same bewilderment. Davos was
not
a man. When Jack had told him, he simply couldn’t or wouldn’t allow himself to believe. Now, after having seen Davos break apart into hundreds of angry airborne serpents, he had to accept it. What was this thing called a Nagas? His scientific mind craved understanding.

There was no time.

The creatures gathered in a dense cluster, lowering into place and creating Davos’ recognizable form. They fused into one smooth surface, losing all pigmentation. Scales melted into flawless skin. Wings became a silken, gray suit. Necks became long bunches of thick, pitch-dark hair. When Davos finished his transformation, he lowered his stare at Ben and showed off a top row of sharpened fangs.

Ben gathered himself and took a deep breath. He imagined his attack. In an instant the O/A shot an electric indigo beam on a direct course toward Davos.

The evil being lifted his hands, forming his blazing orb. He deflected Ben’s energy beam and bellowed with laughter. He moved toward Ben and stopped when it seemed an orange lightning bolt had landed in front of him. It was Pud, displaying more bravery than should have been possible to cram into such a tiny body.

Ben heard shrieks. People, especially children and women, screamed for Pud to be careful. They also yelled at Davos, warning him to not hurt the little guy. Without thinking, Ben found himself one of them.

“Don’t touch him!”

Davos released another flare. It exploded near Pud, throwing him skyward. He crashed to the ground in a heap. People became enraged. Youngsters began storming the compound, streaming in through the broken gate. Davos held his glowing charm in front of his lips and, with a quick puff, sent a shower of sparks their way. The gatecrashers threw themselves on their stomachs to avoid getting cooked. Terrified, they crawled toward the fence. Davos narrowed his glare and readied for another barrage.

Ben knew he had to stop it. He placed his palm on the O/A, concentrating. Promptly, the device sent a shower of light, hitting Davos on the side of his face. He staggered. His fiery talisman faded. He held his jaw like a boxer who’d absorbed a knockout punch.

“You need to increase the power much higher if you wish to destroy me!” his laughter thundered across Young’s Bay.

Ben knew Davos was correct. He had to switch to a greater fluctuation level. He swallowed hard and pressed the interface until he saw the number
2
on the screen. The O/A shook and chirped with renewed violence. He felt it tugging at his consciousness, dragging him into a dream state. He fought to remain alert, blinking, rattling his head.

Davos lifted his hand. His radiant talisman floated above his open palm, its shine further enhancing his paleness.

“NO!” Ben screamed. The O/A discharged another intense beam. It hit Davos hard and hurled him backward a few feet, though he regained balance quickly.

“Better,” he scowled. “Still not enough.”

Ben’s mind raced. He decided he had no other choice but to push his invention to its maximum. He cupped the machine, holding his hand on the interface until the setting read
10
.

Immediately he felt the O/A inundating his mind as the topography of North Point changed. Flatland became rolling hills. Cars, trucks, police cruisers and emergency vehicles rocked like ships on a stormy sea. Ben fell flat, wondering how he would possibly gain control of his invention. He noticed the river, heavy waves crashing against the seawall, threatening to overtake the compound. In the distance, he saw even the bridge had been affected by the O/A’s might. Its suspension cables swayed, a giant swing set with dozens of unwitting motorists as passengers. Ben cringed, thinking the structure would collapse.

Davos stumbled, wide-eyed. Determined, he got on his knees and pummeled Ben’s shield, magenta flashes commingling in the air with each blow. Ben felt himself crumbling, unable to sustain the level of focus the O/A required. The relentless demands on his psyche were taking their toll. The thoughts came too quickly, layering over and over until his stomach convulsed. It was too much—too much to think, too much to comprehend. Under the mental barrage, his command of the O/A slipped away.

Each of the Archer Savage buildings rumbled at its foundation, dust and debris dropping from the rooftops. Ben noticed someone through the scarred concrete—Lily. The O/A gave him the enhanced senses to see his daughter, then his wife, rubble falling on them both. Right then he understood he had to turn down his machine. His failure to control it was putting his own family in peril. Again.

Fortunately the device responded to his request, dialing down on its own. He sighed. The fluctuation level diminished and the ground stopped quaking. Feeling weak, he sagged to his knees.

“So the great inventor cannot control his own machine!” Davos’ sneer slithered across his face. “Now witness the power of Essinis!”

He lifted his hands. The flaming orb took shape, glowing redder and brighter than ever. He addressed the mass of gawkers beyond the security fence.

“I am a signal for the rise of a new hierarchy in the cosmos!” he cast his scorn at Ben. “And you shall never defeat us!”

He emphasized his statement with a swift, blazing volley, surrounding Ben in a torrent of flames. Ben felt the soft grass beneath his knees turn scorched and brittle. Smoke and embers and charred earth tossed about his face. He thought his body had become ash, yet the O/A’s protection gave him refuge from the blistering onslaught. Tenuously, though. Back on the lowest power setting, it seemed the machine wouldn’t keep him safe much longer, and he didn’t want to risk turning it up again just to save himself.

When Davos ended the inferno, Ben collapsed, thankful for the respite. However, Davos ceased his devilish deluge only long enough to catch his breath. He glared at Ben. No pupils, no eye color at all. It gave Ben shivers despite being a roasted marshmallow.

Davos sent another blast. The O/A held on, though it felt even weaker. After the attack, Ben knew he’d have to increase the power—slightly. He pressed the device.

FIFTY-SIX

“HEY, BOYS!” CAPTAIN KIMBO’S voice cracked higher than a teenager at his first prom. “Look at us! We’re flyin’ on the back of a dragon, boys! Can you believe it!”

Jack grinned from ear to ear. He couldn’t deny the sense of power. The great reptile was at their command, though she actually seemed happy to help. Takota acted a little less expressive. Jack saw in his face a foreboding. He sensed something, a glimpse of some other place not so happy and carefree.

The captain continued his celebration. “Wait ‘till they get a load of us! Just wait! All those doubters! They’re gonna eat crow, I tell ya’! I can’t wait to see their faces!”

He wanted to join the captain’s fun. Why not? Not every day does a boy get to pilot a dragon. She glided with ease, cutting through the sky. However, Takota’s long face tempered the mood. Jack tried to get his protector’s attention. Takota remained locked on the land and river below, searching. The wind tossed a hank of hair in his eyes. He didn’t brush it away. His concentration remained unbroken.

Soon, Jack would understand why.

Queenie followed the shoreline as it changed from ragged hills to a large, low flatland. Jack noticed the familiar geography.

“North Point,” he announced.

Takota nodded. “Archer Savage Industries isn’t far.”

They said nothing else. Even the captain calmed his high spirits. Jack got those same old butterflies again, only this time, they had friends.

When Queenie reached a break in the trees, Jack got a better view of the level stretch of land, flanking the river with a long, ancient pier and a rocky shoreline. Near the dock, he noticed a menacing series of large, gray concrete structures. Archer Savage’s compound. He blinked in amazement. A tremendous crowd filled the vast open lot, a sea of people and cars clogging the area. And more were coming.

“Would you look at that!” the captain was aglow. “It’s the whole town of Willow down there! I couldn’t’ve asked for a bigger audience!”

“What are all those people doing?” Jack had to ask. Then an unearthly vermilion spark drew his attention.

“Down there! Go!” Takota commanded. Queenie dipped her right wing, sending them into a rapid descent.

Jack cinched his grip, feeling the wrenching G-forces in his bowels. The world became a blur for those few seconds. All at the same time, he felt the most exhilarated and the most frightened he’d ever been.

When Queenie leveled her flight, his jubilance evaporated, leaving behind only the terror. The flash had come from Davos, and his vile aggression seemed to be aimed at one person—Jack’s dad.

Queenie raced toward the attacker. Davos seemed not to notice. He raised his arms and his fireball ignited. The dragon dove harder, piercing the wind. Davos’ destructive blaze penetrated the shield surrounding Ben, scattering material brighter than the sun in every direction. Rocks and scorching debris pelted the dragon like buckshot. She remained focused, not showing the least bit of pain, intent on a curved, oblong object in the highflying rubble.

As the thing emerged from the dust, Jack noticed a familiar, purple luster.

“The O/A!”
he shouted.

Though he knew he wouldn’t be able to reach it, he tried anyway. His heart sank. Missed by a mile. Not Queenie, though. She stretched and used her long, slender tongue as a grappling hook, clutching the machine tight. Promptly, she reeled it into her mouth and cradled it in her jaws.

The dragon spread her wings and landed on surprisingly springy legs. Jack slid down her side and sprinted to retrieve his dad’s invention from her massive mouth.

“Thank you,” he said. She winked at him, then turned her attention to Davos. He backed off, palpable bewilderment on his unblemished face. Jack hurried to his dad, Takota keeping pace. Battered and broken and wearing clothes way too big for him, Ben writhed in the charred grass. Jack knelt down, afraid to touch him.

“Hey, Willow!” the captain stayed between Queenie’s wings and yelled at the dazed faces. “See? I was right! Queenie exists! I told ya’ so! Whatcha think about me now, huh? Do ya’ still think old Captain Kimbo’s crazy?”

The O/A began to fluctuate in Jack’s hand. He watched the internal lights, the myriad geometric shapes playing endless games of hide-and-seek. It seemed to ease Ben’s pain somehow. Jack brought it closer, touching his dad’s shoulder.

Takota nudged him and pointed. “Watch out!”

A quick burst of Davos’ lightning slammed the dragon, sending her sliding backward and out of control. She lurched toward Jack and Takota as they huddled over Ben. Just before they were crushed, Queenie dug her talons into the dirt and managed to stop.

“Hey! Watch it, buddy!” Kimbo struggled to keep balanced on her back. He patted Queenie’s ridged spine. “Get ‘em, girl!”

Heaving, she opened wide and released a flurry of searing magma toward Davos. Jack hoped it would mean the end for the evil being. Somehow, though, Davos managed to get off a shot of his own before the dragon’s flames reached him. The two competing columns of fiery energy intertwined, battling in midflight. At first, it seemed the dragon had the advantage, her blazing breath encompassing the apparently weaker power stream. Then Davos gritted his perfect teeth. His red orb surged, enveloping Queenie’s inferno and thrusting her straight at Jack, his dad, and his protector.

The O/A’s force field returned, this time more defined, deeper in color. Jack crouched and watched the dragon slide over them, scraping its talons along the sparkling, semitransparent shield. The captain yelled something indecipherable. Queenie staggered, pushed to the dock by Davos’ devastating force.

Women, small children, even men howled in dismay when Davos overpowered Queenie. With Kimbo on her back, she toppled across the old wooden pier, breaking through rotted boards and dropping to the river below.

Over the dragon’s desperate wails and the captain’s constant screams, over the deafening roar of the battling flames and the shrieks of the bystanders, Jack heard Amelia calling his name. Then he saw her sprinting toward him.

“Amelia!” he thrust his arms open. She passed through the O/A’s defensive membrane. He clutched her and didn’t want to let go, though he had to. “You need to stay back,” he told her. “It’s too dangerous for you here!”

“I’m not going anywhere!” she insisted. “Jack, they have your mom and Lily,” she pointed to the largest building in the compound, where some kind of battering ram had punched through the wall. “In there!”

“What about Ayita?” Takota demanded. “Where is she?”

Amelia shook her head, still pointing.

Takota snapped toward the complex and his eyes grew big. Then they narrowed when he fixed on Davos. Jack saw Takota’s muscles flex under his irregular-patterned coat.

Davos twisted and fixed on Takota. The little animal raced toward him, switching directions every two steps in order to throw off the evil being’s lethal aim. Davos seemed to be having a hard time locking on his target. He tried throwing a flaming whip anyway.

The long, fiery lash cut a charred scar in the manicured lawn. The shot’s aim was true—only a half-second too late. Takota had been standing in that very spot, yet with his supernatural reflexes, scurried off, positioning himself closer to Davos. It was clear the Nagas harbored concern. Again, his orb whipped a blazing beam. Again, it missed.

Takota threw his body horizontally, striking Davos and causing him to lose control over his powerful sphere. When they hit the ground, Takota had him straddled, a predator over its prey.

Davos shattered into dozens of black, winged creatures. They clawed out from under Takota and swirled in the sky, blocking the sun for a bleak moment. The shadowy swarm flew to safety, then gathered near the ground again, reforming Davos’ human veneer.

Takota brushed the dust and grass from his fur, taking rapid steps toward his foe. Davos reached his hand and drew his sphere off the grass into a hovering position near his fingertips.

He held up his palm. “Wait! Before you come any closer. Don’t you want to see one of your friends?”

He clapped. In the center of the compound, emergency lights began flashing. A large, metal door lifted open, exposing four men rolling out a well-armored safe. They wore padded jackets and trousers, thick, fingerless gloves and hardened helmets. They pushed the vault on a wheeled cart, halting steps from Davos.

“Maybe you’ve grown strong enough to defeat me, maybe you haven’t,” his voice crackled. “I’m not going to take the chance. That’s why I have HIM!”