Hamish X Goes to Providence Rhode Island (24 page)

“Hamish X, no!” George cried. In the instant before Hamish X launched himself into space, the raccoon leapt onto the boy's shoulders. Hamish X was so charged up he didn't even feel the extra weight.

He sprang at the Grey Agents with such blinding speed that neither of them had time to move. Hamish X struck, a bolt of lightning, blue flame trailing behind him as he crossed the intervening distance. With each hand, he latched on to the throats of Mr. Candy and Mr. Sweet.

Their instinctive reaction was to try to escape. Firing their jetpacks, they tried to veer off in different directions. Hamish X had the strength of his rage and all the advanced technology the ODA had poured into him. He squeezed tighter. Linked together and driven by the jetpacks, the three figures rocketed into the air in a corkscrewing spin, rising higher and higher into the brilliant desert sky. The wind roared in Hamish X's ears. The agents' mouths opened and closed convulsively as they fought for breath.

“HA!” Hamish X shouted into their faces. “What? Can't breathe? At least you're
that
human.”

Mr. Candy and Mr. Sweet were in distress now. They had to free their hands, and so they let go of Maggie and Thomas. Maggie screamed as she was dropped but quickly grabbed hold of one of Hamish X's boots. Thomas grabbed hold of his sister's waist and hung on for dear life as they were spun around and around like a ride at an amusement park.

“How does it feel?” Hamish X shouted into his enemies' faces. “How does it feel to be helpless?”

Mr. Candy brought up his pistol and aimed at Hamish X, but Mr. Sweet slapped the barrel aside at the last instant. The bullet slashed by Hamish X's cheek like a hot wind and buried itself in George's furry, ragged torso. Sparks flared from the tiny robot. Hamish X turned his head and saw the light in the raccoon's eyes flicker.

“George?”

“I hate to do this Hamish X, but I must.” With its final breath
⁷⁸
the George raccoon, last of its kind, sunk its teeth into Hamish X's shoulder.

“Yow!” Hamish X yelped in pain and twisted violently, kicking with his feet. Maggie held on for dear life.

“Cool it, will ya?” she cried. Hamish X was forced to let go of Mr. Candy to pull the George raccoon from his shoulder. He held it out, looking at the broken creature's face. “Why, George?”

“Trust me, Hamish X. Trust the King.” And with that, the creature went limp, all activity in its computerized brain ceased.

Meanwhile, Mr. Candy had not been idle. He pulled away from Hamish X and reached into his grey coat pocket. He swooped down close to Hamish X and slapped a cuff of pale glowing material onto the wrist that held Mr. Sweet.

Hamish X immediately felt his power draining away. His grip on the Grey Agent's throat weakened, allowing Mr. Sweet to bat his hand away. The agent grabbed hold of the front of Hamish X's jacket to keep him from falling back to the desert sand hundreds of metres below.

Hamish X was reeling. The cuff deadened the nerves in his body. He was overwhelmed by dizziness. His limbs became leaden. He tried to fight the lethargy that flooded through his body. Then Mr. Candy slapped the other cuff over Hamish X's free wrist. Hamish X went limp.

Maggie and Thomas felt the change.

“What's happened?” Thomas asked. He could see little beyond the back of his sister's knees.

“I don't know,” Maggie answered. “Hamish X has passed out.”

“The ride's a little smoother,” Thomas noted.

Mr. Candy grabbed Hamish X by one arm and Mr. Sweet grabbed the other. They jetted back to the top of the dune where their fleet of machines waited, engines rumbling. While still a few metres above the sand, they dropped their burden, sending Maggie, Thomas, and Hamish X tumbling in the sand. Thomas and Maggie struggled to their feet, coughing and spitting sand. Hamish X lay sprawled as he fell, completely inert. He was barely breathing.

Maggie knelt at his side and turned him over onto his back.

“Hamish X! Hamish X, wake up!”

“Uh . . . Maggie?”

Maggie looked up to see agents all around them, rifles levelled. Mr. Candy and Mr. Sweet landed lightly, their jetpacks causing miniature whirlwinds in the sand. The Grey Agents looked down at Hamish X.

“I'm afraid you will be accompanying Hamish X on his final journey.” Mr. Sweet snapped his fingers. “Put them on board the aircraft. We leave for Providence immediately.”

“What about them?” One of the Grey Agents pointed at the fortress in the distance.

Mr. Candy looked over his shoulder at El Arak and shrugged. “Level it,” he said.

Chapter 24

MIMI

“According to the charts, we are entering Narragansett Bay. We are approaching our destination. Providence is just ahead,” Xnasha announced from her seat at the crystal console.

Mimi wanted to jump for joy, but she probably would have banged her head on the low ceiling of the control centre. She was so keyed up after the long hours they'd spent in the vessel under the ocean surface. At first, the view out the front portal of the submarine had been fascinating. Schools of enormous fish gliding by, vistas of rock, and forests of seaweed had filled Mimi with awe. The dash through the Strait of Gibraltar had been particularly astonishing. Rock walls towered on either side as the Mediterranean poured through into the Atlantic. Xnasha's concentration was mighty indeed to keep them from foundering against the sheer underwater cliffs.

After the excitement of the Strait of Gibraltar, however, there was nothing but the black darkness of the deep ocean. They dared not travel close to the surface for fear of being spotted by ships on radar or sonar. There was the added danger of being picked up by other submarines of the world's navies. Xnasha assured Mimi and Cara that the Atlantean submarine would absorb most sonar and radar
waves, something to do with the material of which the vessel was constructed.

“I don't completely understand it, but the ship … tells me that this is true,” Xnasha explained.

“The ship talks to you?” Cara asked. “How?”

“It isn't talking exactly. I feel what the ship feels through the connection I make when I engage the crystal. The ship is sort of alive …”

“Like that crazy crystal thingy back at Atlantis?” Mimi offered.

“Yes,” Xnasha said, delighted. “It has a … spirit. And I commune with the spirit of the ship. It shows me—”

“
She
shows ya,” Mimi interrupted.

“
She
shows me. Through her I can feel the surrounding ocean. I can feel other ships. I can feel so much.”

“Why did the Atlanteans ever let this slip away?” Cara asked softly.

Xnasha shook her head. “I don't know.”

“Fear,” Mimi said simply. “They got too scared to face the world. Considerin' the fight they came through, I understand it.” They sat in silence for a while after that, each of them lost in her own thoughts.

The next hours were tedious for everyone but Xnasha, who had to concentrate on guiding the ship. For Mimi, Cara, and the other Guards stuck in their bunks, the time seemed to crawl by. Most of them tried to grab whatever sleep they could, sprawling in the bunks of the crew quarters. Cara spent the time trying to repair her uniform. She needed to occupy her mind with something else besides her fear for her brother Aidan's safety. Mimi tried to talk to her but got nothing more than noncommittal grunts in response.

In the end, Mimi left Cara alone and used her time to check and recheck her weapons. The Guards carried their
standard armaments. They still had their stun pistols. None of them had a full charge after the battle in the Hollow Mountain, but nothing could be done about it. All of them carried fighting sticks. Armed only with these meagre weapons, they hoped to storm the Headquarters of the most dreaded organization in the world. Mimi looked at the stick she held in her hands and laughed.

“We ain't got a hope,” she said to herself.

“Oh, don't say such things.” Mrs. Francis stood in the hatchway looking into Mimi's cabin. The former housekeeper had managed to find an alternative to her wedding gown among the clothing offered her by the inhabitants of Atlantis. Being not very tall herself, finding a dress that fit her wasn't a challenge. She now wore a sort of silken dress of pale blue that belted at the waist. On her feet she wore a pair of heavy blue clogs.

“Well, we ain't, Mrs. Francis,” Mimi insisted. “We ain't got a chance.”

Mrs. Francis came into the cabin and sat down on the bunk beside Mimi. “The proper English is not
ain't
but
don't
. We
don't
have a chance.” Mrs. Francis put a soft arm around Mimi's shoulders. “But it isn't true. We
do
have a chance. There is always a chance.”

“What chance have we got? They got all the advantages! They got an army and we got nothing but a bunch o' kids with sticks and popguns.”

“Oh, Mimi. I know it seems bad. I know there seems to be no way to win and the world is against you, but I want you to listen to me.” Mrs. Francis looked into Mimi's eyes. “We are still here. Don't you see? In spite of all the danger and the troubles we've seen, in spite of pirates and Grey Agents, storms and invasions, troubles of all kind, we are still here.” Mrs. Francis laughed. “I was certain that I'd work for Viggo
in Windcity until the end of my days. I thought I'd die alone and unloved. Then Hamish X came. Everything changed. I found someone who loves me and I found that, though I was never blessed with children of my own, I had a family.” She smiled and hugged Mimi to her ample bosom and, for once, Mimi didn't resist. “Don't you see? We've already won in so many ways. What's one more battle when we've won everything a person could ever wish for?”

“Why isn't Hamish X here? He should be with us.”

“Oh, Mimi.” Mrs. Francis hugged the girl close and kissed the top of her unruly hair. “He is. He brought us all together. He'll always be with us. And you know what? I have a feeling we'll see him soon.”

“Why do you think that?” Mimi said, looking up and wiping her eyes on her sleeve.

Mrs. Francis smiled. “Because he just has a habit of showing up when you need him most. I know what he'd say if he were here, though.”

“What's that?” Mimi sniffed.

“He'd say, ‘Mimi, you're in charge. Take care of everyone for me. I know you can do it.'”

“You think so?”

“I know so.” With that, Mrs. Francis left Mimi to see to the other children on the
Rhode Island Red
.

“I can do it, Hamish X. I will take care of things,” Mimi said to the empty room, and saying it made her feel better.

She checked her weapons one more time before heading to the control room. Cara was already there, along with Mr. Kipling and Mrs. Francis. Cara crouched by Xnasha's side, watching as the ship approached the mouth of Narragansett Bay. The long inlet plunged into the heart of the state of Rhode Island and, at its most northern point, split Providence, the state capital, into Providence and East Providence.

Mimi took up position at Xnasha's other elbow. “How long until we get to the city?”

Xnasha waved a hand and a chart appeared, hovering under her fingertips. “Not long. Where should we land?”

“The docks,” Cara said, pointing at the glowing outline of the port. “We can hide the boat in plain sight. We walk into town from there.”

“How do we find ODA Headquarters?” Mimi asked.

“We ask directions,” said Mr. Kipling.

AND THAT IS WHY
, an hour later, they found themselves in the Lucky Thirteen convenience store in downtown Providence. The store was attached to a gas station. Mr. Kipling stood at the counter looking down at a pimply teenaged boy who had his nose buried in a comic book with the unlikely title
Vampire Cat Robot
.
⁷⁹

“Excuse me, my lad,” Mr. Kipling said politely.

The teenager didn't look up from his comic book. “I'm not ‘your lad,' Grandpa.”

“I see,” Mr. Kipling said, nonplussed. “Of course. Well, I was wondering if you could give me some directions.”

The teenager looked up, his face full of disdain. “Do I look like the Auto Club?” He took a long look at Mr. Kipling, who was wearing his soiled and ragged dress
uniform with his sabre still hanging from his belt. “What's with the getup, Grandpa? Going to a costume party?”

“What? Er, no. I was wondering if you might help me. I'm looking for Angell Street.”

“Like I said,” the boy returned his attention to his comic book, “I ain't Google Earth. Buy a map.” He pointed without looking at a rack of road maps.

Mr. Kipling looked at the maps and patted his pockets. “Um. This is sort of amusing, but I don't have any money on me at the moment. I haven't needed it for a long time, you see.”

“You haven't, huh? Well, sorry, Grandpa, you're outta luck.”

“Can't you just …”

“Blow, Grandpa, I'm busy.”

Mr. Kipling frowned. “You are a very rude and impudent boy.”

The boy looked up at him and sneered. “Hey, why don't you go back to wherever you come from and get some money, buy a map, and leave me alone, okay, your Lordship?” Shaking his head in disgust, he leaned back in his chair, putting his feet up on the counter.

Mr. Kipling stood for a moment looking at the soles of the boy's shoes, one of which was caked with a large lump of dirty chewing gum. Uncertain what to do, Mr. Kipling turned and went out the door. An electronic sensor beeped as the door opened and swung shut behind him.

Mr. Kipling walked past the gas pumps and across the parking lot that was lit by lights on high posts. Gathered under one of the posts, the others, freshly landed from the
Rhode Island Red,
stood waiting for him.

“Did you find out where Angell Street is?” Cara asked urgently.