The monsters moved slowly forward with deliberate menace, likely savoring the thrill of the chase. But we held our ground. Savage growls ripped through the air while ravenous panting intensified with each monstrous step. Many licked their lips as if hungering for the impending violence.
“I hope you have a plan, Cameron.” Mrs. Chakoté gripped her cane like a sword and readied herself.
“I got this.” I put two fingers to my mouth, took a big breath, then blew, letting out a shrill whistle that stopped the monsters’ advance.
Just then, the Camp Pontchartrain kids stood from behind the grassy hills, fists held high in the air. They brought them down in unison, hitting their chests twice, THUMP—THUMP, raise. THUMP—THUMP, raise. THUMP—THUMP, raise. The thunderous sound filled the air, and some monsters took a step back.
I glanced over my shoulder and marveled at the sight. Instead of groups of kids wearing their team jerseys or club shirts, they all wore a dark purple shirt, C.P. emblazoned in gold across their chest. The collection of cliques and teams had come together as one group, the Camp Pontchartrain Army.
Raising my fist, I joined the rhythmical beat, adding strength to the cadence. The kids stepped forward, then stopped right behind Mrs. Chakoté and me, each holding some kind of weapon. There were baseball bats, hockey sticks, tennis rackets, and lacrosse sticks, as well as rakes, shovels, high-tech gadgets, and the occasional frying pan. Every student had something to push back against the creatures of Agartha, and I knew their strength together was far greater than their collections of teams and groups.
Mrs. Chakoté glanced at me and smiled, then nodded and gestured for me to take charge.
I took a deep breath and stepped forward. The buzzing in my head tried to push its way to the surface, but I wasn’t letting it. My entire focus was on the monsters before me and how I could protect my friends, no, my family.
Rylee settled to the ground next to me, his tail flicking about, ready for combat.
I pointed at Malphas. “We’ll let you go back to Agartha if you turn and leave the field of battle right now. If you don’t, you will be destroyed.”
Malphas laughed. “This is ridiculous. You aren’t the Order of the Stones. You’re just a bunch of kids.” He scanned his monster army with a hateful glare, then shouted, “Attack!”
The monster surged forward, claws, clubs, and stone weapons raised high.
“Earplugs . . . now!” I pulled a pair of earplugs from a pocket and stuffed them into my ears. We’d taken hundreds of them from the woodshop, and now they protected us from the shrill, hateful voices about to attack.
A group of banshees floated to the front of the monster formation and let out their piercing cry. The monster nearby dropped their weapons and put their hands to their ears, many howling in pain, but we were unaffected.
“Mirrors!” I screamed, holding mine in the air for the other kids to see.
Every student pulled a plastic mirror attached to a piece of string out from under their shirts, courtesy of the art department, the reflective pendants resting on every chest. Instantly, the monsters became transfixed, some dropping their weapons.
“CHARGE!” I shouted.
The students surged forward, sticks, bats, rakes, and fists falling upon the monsters as the terrifying creatures struggled to pull themselves from their reflections.
We fought in pairs, each watching the other’s back and fighting as a team. The monsters did not. The Agarthans fought like unorganized rabble, some trampling over their companions to reach the students, many still transfixed by their reflections.
I ducked under a spiked wooden club, then flung my lightning-rope at a hideous goblin. Sparks danced across the monster’s skin, making it howl in pain. Its eyes rolled back, then it fell unconscious. I sent the rope at another monster, wrapping it around their clawed feet, the sparkling end delivering painful shocks.
As we fought, the landscape grew darker, the Earth’s shadow taking bigger bites of the Moon’s mottled face; the lunar eclipse had started.
Reaching into my backpack, I flipped the switch on a shocker-ball and tossed it toward a group of imps. Four barbs shot out and stuck into the tiny creatures’ skin, electrocuting them. They fled in agony. I threw another and another, carving holes in the monster formation. My victims either fled or tried to resist the electrical shocks and ended up passing out.
Thud. Something whistled past my head. Turning, I found Karl swinging Number Three at a reptilian creature with a long, alligator-like snout and short limbs. I knew it to be a kobold, a creature I’d seen on the Internet. The kobold flew backward, landing in a heap, its skinny arms and legs twitching for a moment, then went still. Swinging repeatedly, Karl took out monster after monster, his bat an aluminum blur.
Leonard streaked past, his hockey stick slicing through the air like a deadly sword. He took the feet out from under a pair of monsters who tumbled to the ground. His teammates jumped onto the fallen monsters, pummeling them with fists and padded shoulders.
Bobby and a group of techies stood at the back, using high-tech slingshots similar to his. They shot steel ball bearings, the silvery projectiles leaving punishing welts on heads and chests.
Suddenly, a brightly colored something dashed across the battlefield and rammed into me, sending me backward. As I fell, I flung the rope, the sparkling end wrapping around my assailant. I yanked on the line as I hit the ground, knocking the creature off its feet. When I stood, I found a gnome on the ground, sparks licking at its skin. The brightly colored creature thrashed about for a moment, then fell unconscious. Its vicious face seemed locked in a permanent scowl, exposed teeth stained with decay. I kicked the creature’s pointed, multi-colored hat; it was rock hard, like a colorful battering ram.
A large group of gnomes climbed over the stone wall and charged at the left flank.
“Leonard, get some football players to the left.” I pointed, breathing fast and fierce, then wiped the sweat from my eyes.
Leonard glanced over his shoulder and spotted the flamboyant creatures. The gnomes crashed into a group of soccer players, their tiny feet a blur. The kids fell to the ground, some shouting in pain. In seconds, the football team was there to defend them. They smashed into the gnomes and knocked them off their feet.
I threw the last of my shocker-balls, then dropped the shoulder bag on the ground. Beside me, Chakoté dealt out punishing blows with her cane, her body moving faster than I ever imagined possible for the old woman. Flashes of light came from the Chakra stones, their magic adding to the attack.
Just then, I heard Rylee scream in fright. To my left, I spotted my friend standing before that horrific gremlin, Krak. The monster had his whip out and swung it at Rylee, a vicious snarl on his scarred face. The imp dodged to the left and right as he floated in the air, avoiding the end of that terrible weapon. I ran toward my friend but knew I was too far away to help.
“Rylee, don’t give in to fear!” I shouted. “Stare it in the eye and refuse to yield.”
“Take control of my fear?” The imp glanced at me, then turned to Krak. Rylee quivered with fright. “I fear that whip.”
“Good,” the gremlin said. “You’re gonna get a taste of it right now.”
Rylee scowled, the fear painted across his red face changing to anger, then fury.
Krak swung the whip at Rylee. But this time, instead of retreating, Rylee leaned to the side and extended an arm. The whip hit his forearm and wrapped around it like a snake. Before Krak could yank it back, Rylee grabbed the whip with both hands and pulled.
“No, you don’t.” Krak pulled on the handle, trying to bring the imp closer.
Rylee flapped his wings and flew backward with all his strength. The gremlin dug in his heels, pulling back with all his might. Suddenly, Rylee changed direction and flew straight at the gremlin, the claws of one hand extended, aiming at the monster’s face. Krak instinctively raised both hands to protect himself, releasing his grip on the whip’s handle. Rylee took advantage of this and swooped straight up, pulling the whip out of reach.
“Noooo!” Krak yelled.
Rylee pulled the whip in and held it by the thick cord, the handle dangling from the end. He then flew to the ground and approached the gremlin. Krak held a stone knife before him, but Rylee swung the whip’s handle at him, smashing the gremlin’s hand and breaking bones.
Krak screeched in pain and dropped the knife, then stepped backward. Rylee lunged forward and swung the handle like a club, striking one of the gremlin’s knees. Krak fell to the ground.
“Please have mercy.” The gremlin tried to crawl away.
Swinging the whip, Rylee brought the handle down upon the gremlin, hitting Krak on the shoulder. The monster screamed in pain. Rylee moved closer, standing over the gremlin, the whip held high in the air, his eyes boring into the gremlin’s glowing orbs.
I finally reached my friend’s side. “You don’t have to kill him.”
“Krak would have killed me if I hadn’t stood up to my fear.”
“I know, but you aren’t a killer. You’re good, not vicious and evil.” I put a hand on Rylee’s arm. “Don’t become what you hate.”
Rylee glanced at me, then back down to Krak, the gremlin’s eyes glowing red. He lowered the whip, then leaned down and spoke in a soft voice, Rylee’s words hard as stone. “If I ever see you again, Krak, I will kill you. Go back to Agartha and do no harm.”
“Yes, Rylee. Thank you, thank you. But the Demon Lord, he commands me.”
“If he can’t see you, he cannot tell you what to do,” Rylee said with a sneer. “Now, begone before I change my mind.”
The gremlin nodded, climbed to his feet, and limped back toward the cave.
I patted Rylee on the back. “I’m proud of you.”
“Thanks.”
Glancing to the left and right, I saw the kids of Camp Pontchartrain held the line and even pushed the monsters back a bit.
Malphas saw this as well and screamed in rage. He then shouted some commands over his shoulder and smiled. A flood of golems and gargoyles took to the battlefield. They flowed over the stone wall like a brown and gray tidal wave. The gargoyles flew high into the air, each holding large stones in their hands, while the golems, with their long legs, strode across the ground, shoving aside their comrades as they closed in on the students. There were at least sixty of them, if not more, each with a vicious snarl on their terrible faces.
“If those monsters reach the battle line, they’ll overwhelm us,” Karl shouted from a few feet away.
I glanced to my left and right and knew it was time. “RETREAT!”
Karl echoed the order. “Retreat! Fall back . . . fall back!”
The kids moved backward, trying to keep their distance from the massive group of gargoyles and golems.
I lashed out at monsters with my lightning-rope as I walked backward, hoping I wouldn’t trip. But as I retreated, I watched student after student take injuries from the Agarthans. With their glowing, red eyes, the vicious creatures hungered for victory, and they could nearly taste it.
“Cameron, what do we do?” someone asked. “We can’t keep retreating. We gotta fight.” It came from one of the high school football players.
“Keep retreating!” I shouted. This was part of my plan, but if this didn’t work, it would be the end of us all.
“I hope everyone is ready,” I whispered. “If not, we’re all dead.”