Dormia (46 page)

Alfonso nodded. "Help me load the crossbow," he yelled. "The cord is very stiff." Indeed, it was wound so tightly that both Bilblox and Resuza had to help Alfonso pull it back and snap it into the crossbow's trigger mechanism. Alfonso then
took out a green-tipped arrow and loaded it. The general lit the arrow, and it began to sizzle. "Okay," Alfonso said to himself. "Nice and easy." He looked up at the night sky, concentrated on a single star, and then allowed himself to see all of the other stars around it. Bam! He was in the hypnogogic state. He peered out of the sled and out through the darkness toward the distant city wall of Somnos. He trained his concentration on a large urn that sat in plain sight at the highest point of the northern gate. Alfonso took a deep breath—sucked in the air, let it out—then swiftly took hold of the crossbow and fired. But just as his finger squeezed the trigger the sled hit another bump and his arm jerked involuntarily. The shot was spoiled. The arrow veered violently off course and sailed into a faraway field.

"Don't worry," yelled the general. "There should be one more green-tip."

Alfonso said nothing in reply. He simply reached into the quiver and pulled out the one remaining green-tipped arrow. Bilblox and Resuza helped him pull back the cord once more. When this was done, Alfonso loaded the arrow into the crossbow and shifted his focus to the large urn. He had to hit it. He took a long steady breath—sucked in a gulp of air, slowly let it seep out—then swiftly grabbed the crossbow, aimed it, and clutched the trigger.
Twanggggggg!
The shot came off cleanly—sailing straight and true into the night sky, arching high into the glare of the moon, then slowly tilting down and plummeting toward the large stone silhouette of the northern gate. The arrow disappeared into the darkness. For a good long moment there was nothing. Then there was a sudden eruption, an enormous flame burst from above the gate, and the entire area was bathed in an eerie, flickering green light. Seconds later, other
flaming arrows flew out from the Founding Tree—the archers there had been trained well, and responded immediately. Soon urns around the city were lit with large green flames. Trumpets sounded. The city sprang to life.

"What a shot!" yelled the general exuberantly. "What a spectacular shot!"

"I knew you'd do it!" whooped Resuza. "I knew it!"

"Unbelievable," murmured Ivan sleepily. "Simply unbelievable."

Unfortunately, this celebration was extremely short-lived.

"Oh boy," mumbled Ivan. "Have you looked behind us?"

"I can't see a thing," said Bilblox.

Alfonso set down the crossbow and craned his neck so that he could get a glimpse backward. "Holy cow!" he said. "Where did they come from?"

Now everyone looked back and saw a sight that they would not soon forget—a vast cavalry of at least five hundred Dragoonya horsemen were pursuing them in a wild, stampeding charge. Behind these horsemen were thousands of foot soldiers who had fanned out in a giant line that was steadily advancing on Somnos. For those in the sled it was now, quite literally, a race for their lives to the city gates. The lead horsemen were less than a few hundred yards away. Some of these horsemen were carrying crossbows of their own and soon a barrage of arrows began to rain in and around the sled. Arrows hit the sides, the seats, the floor, the horses, and the passengers themselves. All except Ivan hit the floor. Soon there were so many arrows sticking out of the sled itself that it looked like a giant porcupine on skis.

In the midst of another barrage of arrows, one struck Ivan in the buttocks. He let out a yelp, promptly woke up, and began to tug on the reins. "We're going too fast!" yelled Ivan hysterically. His cool demeanor had vanished. "This is insanity!"

"No we're not!" snapped General Loxoc, who instantly grabbed the reins. "You've just woken up, Ivan. Don't worry. I'll take over." The general then cocked back his head, as he often did before nodding off, and then fell asleep. Moments later, the general was snapping the whip and snoring at a furious pace.

"Yahhhhhhh!" he yelled. "Yahhhhhhh!"

They were now less than a quarter-mile from the northern gate. Alfonso could see the Dormian soldiers near the gate furiously turning a large crank, which hoisted the iron portcullis within the gate. The general snapped his whip. The portcullis continued to lift. Alfonso glanced up ahead and saw a line of Dormian soldiers at the ready.

General Loxoc unsheathed his sword. As the sled sped through the gate itself, the general raised his sword and—in one incredibly swift motion—sliced his blade through the rope that held the portcullis in place. The portcullis rattled down to close securely behind them. They had made it! They were safely inside the city! The general pulled back hard on the reins and the horses clattered to a stop. He looked up, his half-closed eyes blazing and shouted a series of high-pitched orders in Dormian. Then, perhaps for Alfonso's benefit, he added in English: "Soldiers! Prepare for the fight of your lives! We must defend Somnos, the Founding Tree, and the kingdom of Dormia!"

I
NSIDE THE
city walls, the atmosphere was utterly frantic. Dormian knights were mounting their horses and switching from awake to asleep and back again. Swordsmen were struggling to put on their armor. Shopkeepers were frantically locking up their storefronts. The Sleeping Mayor of Somnos was on hand, standing atop the northern gate, urging people to compose themselves and fall asleep. Next to the mayor was a gray long-haired woman playing the harpsichord. "Everyone hush now," exhorted the mayor in a calm voice as the harpsichordist played a soft, melodious tune. "Hush now and allow yourselves to grow sleepy. You are feeling sleepier, and sleepier, and sleepier!" His advice didn't seem to be working. Swarms of people continued to run about in a mad frenzy—all of them
wide awake. Meanwhile, the preparations for battle continued. In the marble towers, hundreds of archers ran to preassigned firing positions that looked down upon the oncoming tide of Dragoonya soldiers. Far off in the Trunk District, hundreds of leaf-sweepers were at work with hoses, pumping water onto the Founding Tree, presumably to help keep it from burning down. It seemed as if every last person in Somnos was rushing to do one thing or another.

Meanwhile, a small crowd had gathered around the general's sled. Among those in the crowd was Hill. "What on earth happened?" yelled Hill frantically. "Where did all those Dragoonya soldiers come from?" He stopped short and stared dumbfounded at Resuza. "What on earth..." he began.

"Do you see Resuza? She's a traitor!" announced Bilblox.

"I found her with the Dragoonya," explained Alfonso.

"I don't get it," said Hill, who seemed utterly bewildered.

"She was a slave," said Alfonso. "But it's okay—she's helping us out now."

"Yeah sure," said Hill. "Until she decides to betray us again."

"Exactly!" said Bilblox angrily. "She should be tried for treachery. She's the one that ought to be in jail—not me!"

"Enough of this," interrupted the general. "We have other matters to attend to right now!"

Two Dormian officers stepped forward, saluted the general, and yelped out some information in Dormian. Then they both turned, saluted Alfonso, and addressed him in English.

"Colonel Pissaro reporting for duty," announced a short, balding, bullnecked man.

"Major Hornslight reporting," announced the second officer, who was quite tall and lanky.

"Okay," replied the general. "Hornslight, reinforce the archers in the towers and all along the city walls. Send all able-bodied volunteers to the Founding Tree to assist the leaf-sweepers. I want all three regiments of Dormian knights to gather here at the northern gate. We'll launch our counterattack and the knights will lead the charge. Brigadier General Hill Persplexy will lead the effort to protect the bloom. He will take a dozen men and proceed directly to my office at the Tree Palace where the bloom is being kept."

"Very well, but who is this Brigadier General Hill Persplexy, sir?" asked Major Hornslight quizzically. "I've never heard of him."

"That's me," said Hill with a surprised—but very proud—look on his face.

"Who are you?" asked Colonel Pissaro in an extremely skeptical tone.

"He is the army's new brigadier general and you will address him as 'sir,'" said General Loxoc. "He is an accomplished soldier."

"Former captain in the United States Air Force," interjected Hill proudly.

"What's the United States?" asked Colonel Pissaro.

"And what's an 'air force'?" asked Major Hornslight.

"Nevermind that!" yelled the general who was more irritable than ever. "Just obey your orders!"

"Yes sir—nice to meet you, Brigadier General Persplexy—sir!" barked both Colonel Pissaro and Major Hornslight at once.

"Good," said General Loxoc. "Next, I want the Great Sleeper, Resuza, Bilblox, Colonel Pissaro, and a dozen Dormian knights to head directly to the main chamber of the Founding Tree in
order to intercept Nartam." He looked around. "MOVE!" he shouted.

They followed Ivan to a chariot nearby that had been abandoned in the swirl of confusion. Hill scrambled in last. "Can someone please tell me what's going on?" he asked. "You can start by telling me where Resuza came from."

"Yeah," said Bilblox. "I'd like to hear this too."

And so, as Ivan snapped his whip and drove the chariot toward the Tree Palace, Alfonso and Resuza took turns explaining everything that had happened since they had last been together in Straszydlo Forest. Bilblox and Hill were amazed.

"So you're on our side now?" asked Hill in a bitter tone.

"I am," said Resuza. "I swear it."

"Hmm," said Hill. "We'll see about that."

Conversation was soon cut short as Ivan continued to press the horses to go faster and faster. Behind them, a convoy of ten other chariots—carrying Colonel Pissaro and a contingent of Dormian knights—struggled to keep up. The plan was for the entire convoy to travel to the Tree Palace together, for safety and because their destinations were nearby. Once there, Hill would lead his group to General Loxoc's office in order to protect the Dormian bloom; meanwhile, Alfonso and Colonel Pissaro would lead their group into the main chamber of the Founding Tree in order to intercept Nartam.

As the convoy of chariots tore through the twisty, cobblestone streets of Somnos, the scene that unfolded was utterly topsy-turvy. Everywhere people were running around in a panic—locking doors, boarding up windows, hiding valuables, chasing after children, sharpening swords, putting on battle helmets—and everyone seemed to be wide awake. Somnos
usually had a calm, quiet air about it because most of its inhabitants were blissfully asleep. But now hysteria swept over the city. It seemed that no one could fall asleep.

The most immediate reason for this was an incredibly loud noise that was getting closer. It sounded like thunder, but was too regular to be the approach of a storm.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The noise was so loud that Alfonso and the others could feel and hear it. The vibrations from the booms reverberated across the city, through its marble buildings, down its cobblestone streets, up the wheel of the chariots, and into all of their bodies until their fingertips felt numb with tingling. "That's the sound of the Dragoonya drums of war," mumbled Ivan sleepily. "'Course these drums seem louder than usual. You can really hear and feel 'em right into your teeth. Luckily I can sleep anywhere, anyhow. That's why I'm the general's driver!"

"No kiddin'," said Bilblox with a slight whistle to show that he was impressed, or scared, or both. "Well, I'm glad Ivan can sleep through this racket, but for everyone else's sake I hope General Loxoc has a plan for—"

Bilblox was interrupted by the sound of a small explosion overhead. Everyone looked up and saw several large balls smash into the front of a nearby building and then clatter to the ground. At first glance, Alfonso assumed that these objects were cannonballs or simply rocks that had been hurled over the city walls by Dragoonya catapults. But then something very curious happened. As soon as the balls had come to rest on the street, they opened up like flower petals on a tightly clamped bud and began to scurry along the ground. One of these curious specimens was now running directly at them. It was moving quickly and it appeared to be using its roots almost like legs. As it drew closer, Alfonso noticed that this
thing
had a mouth with a great many sharp teeth. He had seen them before, in Minnesota. He was staring at a Dragoonya plant of war.

"Watch out!" yelled Alfonso. "They're firing Dragoonya plants of war into the city. We've got one coming at us!"

Ivan nodded vigorously and steered the chariot to the right so that one of its front wheels ran directly over the plant of war. The chariot lurched forward, there was a loud popping sound, and instantly the plant of war withered into a pool of greenish slime. Several more explosions sounded overhead and five new plants of war fell from the sky. Two of them crashed through open windows and disappeared. A third landed in a blazing urn and immediately burst into flames. A fourth landed on the chariot at the very end of the convoy. The horses in this chariot panicked and, before the driver could react, the entire chariot toppled over into the street. The fifth and final plant of war landed on the street directly in front of Alfonso's chariot. Ivan tried to run the thing over with his front wheels, but he missed, and instead the plant of war managed to latch one of its roots onto the side of the chariot. In the next instant, the plant had climbed into the chariot and was snapping its teeth ferociously.

Resuza let out a terrible yell. The plant lunged at her, but Alfonso tugged her away. Ivan steered the chariot violently to the left, in order to throw the plant off balance. The plan worked—the Dragoonya plant toppled heavily onto its side—but it also threw Alfonso, Hill, and Resuza off balance. Hill was hit the worst. He lost his equilibrium completely and toppled
backwards out of the chariot. Alfonso jumped up onto his seat in order to see what had become of his uncle. He was relieved to find Hill holding onto the wooden fender of the speeding chariot with just one hand. Alfonso grabbed both of his arms and helped him back onboard. When the two of them turned their attention back to the plant of war, they saw that it had its teeth locked around Bilblox's right leg. "Get it off! GET IT OFF!" Bilblox was yelling. In a flash, Hill grabbed the Colt .45 revolver from its belt holster, aimed it squarely at the plant's head, and fired several times. The plant wilted and fell back into the street.