Glory Alley and the Star Riders (The Glory Alley Series) (84 page)

Needle raised the Nightburner. They were near the spot where the Elboni used to sit
, in the very place where the Hoogula had first accosted her
.
Fear streaked down her spine at the thought of Budd lurking in the shadows.

“Oops,” White Feather said to the other Wybbils. “I meant to bring us outside the cavern, but as ye know, the magic
be
dimming.”

“Whoa,” Clash said
. Up
on seeing the starry cavern with the smooth polished floor and stalagmite forest
, he took out his Sliver and began videoing the area from wall to wall
. “What planet is this?”

“
Tullah
,” Glory said
.
“We’re in Queen’s Mesa.”

“I’ve never seen
this
cavern before—are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure—remember, I told you all about it back in the Bamboozle?”

“Your description didn’t do it justice.”

Their attention went to a
large white
figure
lurk
ing
behind a lacy wall of stalactites
.
A low growl reverberated through the cavern.
Glory had to squeeze her bladder muscles to avoid an accident.

“
Budd
has been extra foul since losing
the
Elboni
,” said Needle, addressing everyone
.
“Tread with care.”

T
he
Hoogula
’s eyes burned red
der
than ever
as if the very sight of her fueled his rage
.
Glory
w
himper
ed
and
pressed h
er
back against the wall
.
Clash froze on the spot, eyes almost as
huge
as the monster dog
’s
.

“There, there,
Budd
,” Needle said cooly, but even the
star riders
hesitated
at the sight of
him
. Bone
circl
ed
around the room, goading him away from the
Tullahns
by shaking the Thunderbone
.

The
Hoogula
’s bared teeth looked like lethal sabers. His
growls rumbled the cavern
. All
the hate in his eyes seemed reserved for Glory alone
.
Clash
’s
fingernails d
ug into Glory’s wrist.
“The Hoo-Hoo-Hoo-Hoo
,
”
Clash said, sounding like an owl.

“
Hoogula
,” Glory finished for h
im
, feeling a bit miffed.
He
had been the first
person
she
told about
the cavern and the
Hoogula
.
He’d also been the first to
totally
dismiss
her. She’d been dealing with this new reality all alone for far too long. It was about time for someone else to squirm under the weight of such knowledge.
“I told you he was for real.”

Salvia dripped
from
Budd
’s mouth. His view shifted from Glory to
Clash
.
He
was
l
icking his muzzle
as if Clash looked like a
pork chop.

“
Whah
!
”
Clash
cried out.

“Quit
with the screaming
!” Bone yelled
.
“Fear makes
Budd
more powerful.” He
removed the
Thunderbone
from his hatband
.

"Hurry,” White Feather urged. “
Budd
’s hatred for the Rock Collector
makes him
extra
dangerous
.
”

Bone held onto his
rib
bone then flicked his wrist as if tossing a discus
.

"Battan!"
h
e cried out
. A
second bone
, an impossibly bigger one,
flew out the
Thunderbone
.
Budd
leapt upon
it
, chomping it down in one bite. He shook the cavern with a howl, obviously not satisfied with his snack
.

“Battan!” Bone repeated the gesture
. A statue of Glory’s likeness made entirely of bone
sailed
across the cavern.
Budd
took it into his massive jaws, shaking vigorously until
snapping it in half. The sound echoed eerily through the cavern.

Needle took the lead position out of the
Hoogula
’s lair, his Nightburner lighting the way
.
White Feather
pushed
Clash
and Glory
along,
making a quick exit
.
Bone exploded a spear from
out of
the Thunderbone
, jabbing it
toward
Budd
as
he
was the last to
back out of the cavern.
He left another large bone as a parting gift. The
Hoogula
shook it in his mouth wit
h a growl the size of a tsunami. Lying down, he seemed orally satisfied for the moment.

Glory and Clash traveled with the
star riders
through the winding
tunnels of Queen’s Mesa
at a fast pace
.
She knew this part of the trail well. Tullah’s familiar ground felt good beneath her feet. She had half the mind to kiss it.

“
Wh
ere are we going?
”
Clash
whispered
out of
earshot of the
others
.
“Are you finally giving them the Elboni?”

“Nope.”

“Don’t you get it
? I
f you don’t give them their stone now
this is your friggin’ death march.”

“I am
this close
to getting my wish
.”
She held her thumb and index finger half-an-inch apart. “B
ut I’m going to need your help.”

“I
’m not going to help you die.”

“I’ll try with or without you.”

Clash let out a big reluctant sigh.
“
What do you need me to do?”

“No talking,” Bone said from
behind.

“Why not?
”
Clash
asked.

“The beast has a short attention span
.
I think he’s forgotten about us for now, but if he hears
talking
that
might
set him off again.”

Glory
immediately zipped her lip and
Clash
didn’t say another word the rest of the journey
.
When they
were at the top of the Queen’s Mesa
,
a
b
last of cold, dry air hit them
.
Not a moon or star to be seen under an overcast sky
.
They half walked, half skidded down the steep slope
.

“Ow!” Glory cried out, tripping and falling just before they reached the bottom
.
When she stood, she gave a painful cry
.
“My ankle—I twisted it or something.”

“Crimeny,” said Bone.

“These mamsey pamsey
Tullah
ns break so easily,” White Feather said
.
“Can you walk on it?”

She put a little weight on it and winced
.
“
O
w, it hurts, but I don’t think it’s broken
.
Maybe if I just rest it a few minutes.”

“Grrrr,” said Bone between clenched teeth
.
“
Just a few.”

Dried leaves and wilted grass dotted the forest floor, but bare dirt and gnarled roots were just as plentiful
.

“Smells like snow in the air,” Needle commented
.

The five of them park
ed their behinds under
the
trees lining a
c
learing
. G
lory fumbled through
her
pajama pockets
.
She had Clash’s blue
S
li
ver
. He still had Matthew’s.
P
ower
ing
them
on
was
part of the plan hatching in her head
.
She slid
it
out
and opened the screen, showing it to the star riders.