Finding Monsters (13 page)

“Ok, let’s go,” Atian said. Sophie followed them as far as the outer door, and kissed each of them b
e
fore they left for the corral.

They loaded the packs on the cabayo. Missy pulled a few carrots from her pocket for Egan, who devoured them. He knelt down and let her climb aboard. Charlie settled on her shoulder while Sir Alastaire shrank and nestled himself inside Missy’s backpack. Atian and Vrag mounted their beasts and pulled alongside Missy. Their cabas dwarfed Egan but they seemed wary of him. Missy led the way at Sir Alastaire’s direction. Once free of the dwellings, they increased to a gallop.

“How far away are the tall trees?” Missy asked.

“Two day’s ride. It’s maybe another day’s hard ride past the tall trees to get to dragon country. The surrounding mou
n
tains make getting to dragon terr
i
tory treacherous and slow,” Sir Alastaire explained.

“What do you know about the cat people?”

“Nothing. Atian is right; they are an elusive and very da
n
gerous clan.

Their first day on the trail proved uneventful. Drago had not returned, and they’d made good time. Charlie sailed high, looking for a place to camp. He found a clearing between two groups of evergreens a few miles from the main travel path.

“Vrag and I will make camp. Missy, you and Sir Alastaire start a fire and get dinner ready,” Atian said.

Missy unpacked the food Dredge had prepared, while Sir Alastaire collected wood for the fire. Missy watched Vrag and Atian unpack two tents, and within minutes, they were up and secure.

“They look like arctic tents from my world,” Missy o
b
served.

“Yes, they are,” Vrag said. Missy raised an eyebrow at them.

“No sense reinventing the wheel. Last time I had to go to your world, I went into the untamed arctic wilderness. Our wi
n
ters are almost as cold. I thought they would come in handy,” Vrag explained.

“So, once I’m a monster, can I go back to shop?” Missy asked.

“I wouldn’t count on it,” Charlie said from a nearby branch. “Besides, with my Mother, Elyen, and Ginger on the case, you will have plenty of clothes. You’re their favorite dress up doll.”

True
, M
issy thought. Her clothing looked beautiful and functioned well for this world. They ate dinner quickly and put the fire out so as not to attract atte
n
tion. Missy, Charlie, and Sir Alastaire occupied one tent while Vrag and Atian shared the other. Atian took first watch.

“These tents are roomy on the inside,” Missy said as she pulled out her sleeping bag. Sir Alastaire shrank again and nes
t
ed inside Missy’s pack. “Do you need anything else?” she asked him.

“No. The pack is perfect for me, and it’s warm. This tent’s design helps keep the heat in. You should have no trouble sta
y
ing warm,” he told her. Missy nodded and continued to lay out her bedding. She placed a nest of hay and sticks near her pillow for Charlie and padded it with her scarf. Charlie sat on the nest and settled down for sleep. Missy zipped herself snugly into her sleeping bag and fell asleep within minutes.

Midnight signaled the change in lookout. Vrag stood watch a ways from the camp and listened for intruders. He heard Sir Alastaire well before he saw him.

“You should be resting,” Vrag told him.

“I’ve slept enough,” Alastaire said.

“And, Missy?”

“She sleeps well.”

“Good. Tomorrow we may encounter trouble. I’ve counted at least two hyenas on our tail.”

“Are they close?”

“They’ve camped several miles behind us. They try to keep hidden, but their bark is easy to hear.”

“Do you need me to pinpoint where they’ve camped? I could scout it over and make sure,” Ala
s
taire offered.

“No need. I suspect one of them is with the dragons and the other two will warn them when we get close. New plan, if we encounter the dragon tomorrow, you and Missy make for the tall trees as fast as you can. If the dragon doesn’t take the bait and comes after you, go through the forest of tall trees as fast as that little cabayo can go. Don’t stop until you reach the other side and forget about trying to communicate with the natives,” Vrag said. Sir Alastaire nodded his understanding. He would get Missy to dragon territory no matter what.

“
Egan,” Missy called. “Wake up.” The little cabayo lay belly up and snoring. His head completely covered by a thick blanket.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Charlie co
m
mented from her shoulder. Missy pulled a few carrot chunks from her pocket.

“Let’s see if these help.” She walked over to the sleeping caba’s head and dangled carrots around his nose. The snoring gave way to loud sniffing noises. A long tongue emerged from under the blanket and wrapped around the treats before pulling them in. “You have to wake up to get more, Egan,” she told him. Egan rolled over quickly and came to his feet. Missy dropped several treats at his feet. She removed the warm leggings from around his legs as he ate. She co
l
lected the blanket and packed them all away, then patted the silky fur on his back, leaving him to brea
k
fast. The group left their camp an hour later.

“The winds are light today; it will make the day warmer,” Sir Alastaire commented from his snug loc
a
tion in Missy’s pack.

“Maybe we can make good time again today,” Missy said.

The cabayos could run nonstop for hours. Egan and Missy took the lead as the little cabayo got his first taste of uninte
r
rupted run time. Missy felt the elation steaming off the animal as he enjoyed the rush of ru
n
ning with abandon. She had to rein him in a few times when he got too far ahead of the pack. She would, however, let him run as fast as he could through open fields, as long as they stayed within sight of the party. Missy now walked beside Egan as he grazed in high grass, wai
t
ing for the others to catch up to them. Sir Alastaire popped out of the pack and sniffed the air.

“I hear something, actually I feel it,” Sir Alastaire said. “Stay here. I’m going up to take a look.” He scampered to a tree and quickly ran up the length of it. Vrag and Atian reined in beside Missy.

“What’s Alastaire up to?” Vrag asked.

“He feels something. He went to investigate,” Missy said. She watched as Charlie made his way up the tree as well to consult with Sir Alastaire. Moments la
t
er, Charlie came down in a rush, with Sir Alastaire close behind him. The flying squirrel leapt from the tree and glided down, increasing in size as he de
s
cended. He landed at his full height.

“Drago is behind us and coming up fast!” Sir Alastaire said.

“Were there any hyenas with him?” Vrag asked as he turned his caba around. He felt the ground shaking now from the dragon’s approach.

“I didn’t see any, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t lur
k
ing in the shadows, the mangy beasts,” Sir Alastaire hissed.

“Missy, get out of here before he spots you,” Vrag barked.

She didn’t need a second invitation. Egan sensed the mood change and held his foot up as a step for Missy as she quickly mounted him. Sir Alastaire shrank and jumped behind her. They turned and galloped toward the meadow with Charlie flying ahead to nav
i
gate. They headed for a group of towering fir trees at the end of the clearing.

“Are these the tall trees?” Missy asked, keeping her head down to cut wind resistance.

“No. You’ll know them when you see them,” Alastaire said.

They raced without let up for hours as Egan pushed hi
m
self to the limit. When they broke through to another clearing, Missy saw it. The Valley of Tall Trees was exactly that. The staggering height of the trees took her breath away. From a di
s
tance, she would have mistaken the tall trees for a lush green mountain range. The strange shimmer of the landscape had made no sense until now.

“They’re willows!” Missy said. The Valley of the Tall Trees swayed and undulated with the passing breezes. The elongated leaves flowed almost to the ground creating a green curtain at the entrance of the valley.

“The roots are deep, wide, and immensely strong. The wood itself is semi soft and sways in the wind. There is so much we don’t know about this region,” Alastaire commented.

“Egan, how you doing? You need a rest?” she asked the cabayo. She felt a surge of energy coming off the caba and a single happiness in running. As they neared the Valley, the ground shook violently. Sir Alastaire glanced behind and saw the top of Drago’s head coming from between the trees.

“Drago’s on our tail!” he shouted. Missy didn’t look b
e
hind; she just urged her mount to go faster. Egan responded and increased his speed. The dragon roared a hideous sound then took to the air.

“He’s spotted us. Get to the trees quickly!” Alastaire yelled. Charlie moved in close to Missy’s head as he flew beside them.

“I need to find out what happened. I need to check on Vrag and my father!” Missy could hear the fear in his voice and felt the tense emotion radiating from the hawk.

“Go!” Sir Alastaire said. “Check on them. I’ll make sure Missy gets through safely.”

“We’ll be fine, Charlie, don’t worry about us!” Missy said.

Charlie swooped away from them and doubled back to the trees they’d just left. Missy knew Charlie hated to leave her in such a crisis but also knew they needed to know what ha
p
pened to the others, even more so since Drago was so close b
e
hind them now. They soon cleared the first of the tall trees. They didn’t slow as the forest became denser. Missy became aware of the first pursuers of the cat people. They moved so swiftly, she could not see them clearly. Egan sensed them too as he became more nervous the farther in they went.

“Easy, boy,” Missy assured him. “They’re just as afraid of us. Keep focused. We need to get through this forest.”

More of the cat people appeared in Missy’s peripheral view. They ran on the ground, leapt in trees. They appeared in front, in back, and on all sides. Egan darted left as one of the cat people lunged for him. He snorted, and Missy could feel his anger rising. Another jumped for his face. This time Egan snatched the cat from midair and flung him away, without lo
s
ing stride. Missy hung on as Egan darted sharp left, then right to avoid two more attacking animals.

“Keep low!” Sir Alastaire yelled to Missy. She tried to stay as low as possible but her bulky pack wouldn’t flatten out as she did. They raced through a small gap in the trees. Missy tensed as she saw for the first time the cat-like people racing on either side of the cabayo. They appeared mostly spotted like a leopard, but ot
h
ers had the colorings of house cats from her world. They ran much faster than a cheetah and their stamina rivaled the cabas. The other side of the clearing loomed ahead, coming up fast, and she could see several more of the cat pe
o
ple in the trees ahead. Egan bellowed a maddening sound at the attacking beasts. He snorted and bristled his hair, ready to fight. Missy caught a flash out of the corner of her eye and felt the claws gripping her sides before a cat pulled her off the caba. She hit the ground hard and rolled several feet before she rea
l
ized what had happened. Her grip was so tight on Egan’s mane that he stumbled and crashed to the ground. Missy rolled on the hard ground, e
n
tangled with one of the cat people. It hissed and snarled as they rolled. She felt a claw ripping at her side, her thick coat preventing too much damage. Missy instinctively fought back, while trying to project her message. The cat had the advantage this time, pi
n
ning Missy to the ground. Missy was astounded to see it was female.

“We mean you no harm!” Missy shouted at it, hoping her gift would work. “The dragon is behind us. We need to flee!” She tried to project her message to the snarling cat. She ve
n
tured a glance at Egan. He hadn’t moved, and Sir Alastaire, at full size, had a staff ready to fight off the growing number of cat people surrounding them. Missy looked back at the female that had her pinned. The cat swiped a paw at her face but Missy caught her wrist. The other hand came next, and Missy caught it as well, holding tightly to both. The panicking cat tried to wrench herself away from Missy. She hissed and bri
s
tled her fur in protest. Missy held fast and yelled again at the savage beast.

“We don’t want to hurt you!” There were no words co
m
ing from Missy’s lips, only the snarl and hiss of a feral cat. Missy froze as did the cat attacking her. They heard the sound of the hyenas at the same time. With quick reflexes, the attacker pulled free from Missy’s grasp and launched herself up the nearest tree. Missy quickly rolled to her feet and watched as the cat people all ascended to the treetops. She saw the first hyenas come into the clearing. Moving in front of Sir Alastaire and Egan, she pulled out her staff and stood patiently waiting for them.