Chương 74: George's Run (IX)

George hauled himself through the portal and gravity flipped. He hit the platform face-first in the sea monster room. His visor was immediately covered in sea spray misting up from the waves below. He stood up and Nod shot the lightrope at the ceiling, drawing them up into the air. Entering Scenario Room Two Objective: Find the exit token. Focus Stats: Laterality, Canny, Stealth Difficulty: Hard >>Identify, show me the token.

A white line pointed out the location of the token in the corner of the room and Nod swung them in that direction. Nod positioned them above the token and lowered them down to the surface of the water. George cast draw and the token moved but didn't rise into the air yet. He repeated the action and saw the line highlighting the location of the token twitch once more. >>Hurry… I think something is in the water. >>You can see into the water? What is it doing? >>It is just floating there. Not too far down. >>Ok.

We aren't low enough. Get me closer and get ready to pull us up. Nod paid out a little more line from the lightrope. George reached his hand toward the water and cast draw one more time. The token rose upward rapidly. >>It's moving! The token burst through the surface of the water at the same time as a slender black tentacle shot up and wrapped itself around George's outstretched arm. The exit token slapped into George's hand and he was immediately teleported into the next room.

But the tentacle around his arm—and the creature attached to it—came too. Entering Scenario Room Three Objective: Solve for X. Focus Stats: Intelligence, Facility of Being Difficulty: Hard George was yanked off his feet as soon as he landed in the next room. The creature attached to the tentacle had a hundred flailing limbs like the one crushing his wrist. If a knot of writhing flesh could look confused, this was it. Slick coils slapped at his chest and legs, trying to bind him.

Nod fired the lightrope to the ceiling, but the ceiling of the room was too low to pull them entirely free. George's arms stretched wide as the monster yanked him back down. George screamed as pain flared in his arms and chest. >>The answer to the equation is 5543. Get free and I'll get us over there! Writher scampered up George's torso, anchored itself onto his shoulder, and stabbed the tentacle around George's forearm in staccato bursts. A red beak emerged from the creature and emitted a deafening scream.

The wounded tentacle released George and retracted into the knotted mass below him. Nod pulled them toward the ceiling. From this vantage point, the sea monster looked like a knot of snakes, hundreds of limbs spreading like roots, groping for prey. Several already coiled around the keypad pillar they needed to use to escape the room. >>George. Its time to put that new agility skill to work.

I'll get us over the keypad and then you need to flip up so your legs are out of reach and I'll lower us until you can reach the keypad with your free hand. >>Maybe we can do better than that. George stretched his hand toward the keypad and activated his new remote manipulation skill. He felt the ghost sensation of keys under his fingers even though his hand was still meters away from the keypad.

He moved one gauntleted finger as though he were striking the five key and saw that button on the keypad depress when he pushed with his finger. He tapped it again and then moved his finger one key to the left and pressed the four key and then stretched his index finger to the three key. The portal immediately opened. >>Swinging us in! Curl up! Nod released the light grapple and shot it at a point above the portal doorway, reeling the rope in fast enough to pull George arm-first into the portal.

He closed his eyes and tucked his legs into a ball. He swung over the top of the monster and shot through the portal. His momentum carried him down the tube slide and around the first turn. He extended his arms and legs and slowed himself down, lungs burning. The whole escape had been a blur. If the Writher hadn't acted, he wasn't sure what would have broken first, the lightrope, the monster's grip, or his body. Entering Scenario Room Four Objective: Slide to the exit.

Focus Stats: Moxy, Ebullience Difficulty: Easy"Thanks, Nod," George panted.

"There is no way I would have gotten out of that room without your math—" George stopped speaking as he heard the sound of the portal activating, followed by a wet, squelching sound.

"You have to be kidding me!" >>It's coming. Get out of here! Why did you stop us! >>This is a horror movie, George. You never stop running! George leaned forward and scooted on his butt in an effort to get going again. He could hear the ropy strands of the tentacles slapping at the slides as they tried to pull the rest of the monster through. A roar shook the walls of the slide as the center mass of the monster moved through the portal. >>Turn on your shield and lay on it.

"Why? It's not going to—" >>Just do it, dummy! The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. George rolled onto his side and activated his shield. The force field crackled to life beneath him and he immediately started picking up speed. The sounds of the monster were getting louder behind him. The concave force shield cradled his body from head to toe. Nod extended George's arm and shot the lightrope at a point farther down the slide and reeled it in hard.

The impromptu sled rocketed down the slide and the sounds of the creature's descent down the tube grew quieter again. By the final straightaway, they had picked up so much speed that the ramp launched them high into the air. George flailed his arms and legs until Nod grasped George's shield hand and pulled it in close to his body. George screamed again and closed his eyes as it looked like they were going to do a bellyflop onto the second slide, but when they landed there was absolutely no feeling of impact.

The shield flickered and rendered the force of their fall null. They didn't even bounce. The shield somehow absorbed it all and they slid down the slope. As they began to pick up speed, an attenuated roar came from the mouth of the slide.

"Surely it can't fit all the way inside the—" Then George saw the first groping snake arms appear at the mouth of the slide, quickly followed by many more. They massed around the bottom of the slide and some reached forward, feeling for the rest of the slide. Then, George's slide curved and the monster passed out of sight.

"I think it is stuck there. It isn't going to be able to jump the gap. Right?" George said. >>George. When are you going to learn not to say things like that? >>Hang on. We're going to be able to see the tube slide again in a second. The winding course slide curved around again and showed them a view of the mouth of the tube slide, but, sure enough, the monster was gone.

"It must have fallen," George said. He was still breathing hard and trying to crane his neck to keep an eye on the slide above them. >>Dammit, George. What did I just say? Their path intersected a cluster of coins and the notifications flashed in George's vision, but he ignored them. >>It is still here.

"How do you know that?" >>I can sense it through the slide. Your magical shield sled is skimming right across the surface of this slide without a trace, but something is causing vibrations in the material of the slide. It is subtle and quiet, but it's there. >>I think it is beneath us. >>It is still hunting us.

"Beneath us?" George shouted.

"It can't do that. It's a sea monster!" >>Well, I don't see it anywhere on top of the slide, do you? The shield sled ran high up on the wall of the last curve and then dipped back into the center of the track as they rounded the corner of the final straightaway. The high wall with the portal to the dragon room loomed ahead of them.

"Take us up to the top of the wall again," George said.

"We can hide up there." >>No. >>If it can chase us along the bottom of the slide, it will be able to climb that wall, too. >>I have another idea.

"What is it?" George said. As they reached the straight bit of track in front of the portal, Nod shot the lightrope back in the direction they'd just come from and slowed them to a stop. >>Get up. Go to the portal but don't go through. Hurry. Another one of the monster's harsh roars sounded somewhere and echoed through the immense room.

"Take us up the wall! Get us out of here," George shouted. >>No! Calm down and do what I said. George held the shield in front of him and backed away from the edge of the wide, flat area in front of the wall. >>We'll have to time this right… >>When I say run, duck into the portal to the next room and get out of the way. Keep the shield toward the dragon and watch for fire spit. George backed up until he was inches from the portal.

"But what if it comes through the—" George didn't finish. The monster surged from beneath the slide, roaring as it closed the distance in a blink. Its limbs battered his shield aside and engulfed him, its momentum carrying them both through the portal. Entering Scenario Room Five Objective: Overcome your enemy Focus Stats: Strength, Courage, Agility, Stamina Difficulty: Hard George could only see through half of his helmet as the other half was obscured by the tentacles trying to wrap around him.

He could feel the pressure tightening on his legs and torso and he couldn't kick free of them despite his increased strength. They skidded to a stop inside the dragon room and George caught a glimpse of the creature's broad, sharp beak emerging from the center mass. Then, they were both hit with a blast of searing fire. The creature roared and flung George away, sending him rolling sideways into the wall. The helmet had protected his head from the fire, but his shoulder was burned in the gaps between the armor.

The wyvern was standing up with its wings outstretched. It had positioned itself between the hunk of meat on the ground and the tentacle monster. The snake arms that had been burned by the dragon's fire spit had become blackened and limp, but that didn't stop the creature. It pulled itself toward the dragon with that same uncanny speed and raised its many uninjured appendages toward the dragon's wings, neck, and chest. For its part, the dragon seemed confused that its enemy had survived its fire blast.

It stumbled back as the sea monster rippled toward it, but before it could run or raise itself into the air, the black coils were already beginning to envelop it. The dragon bit down at the creature, but it couldn't bite enough of the arms to make a difference. It blew another blast of fire down at the snakes, and this one seemed to do more damage. The sea monster roared and exposed its beak. It lurched upward and bit the dragon on the wing. That was when the portal activated. >>Gotcha! >>Let's get out of here.

George didn't need telling twice. He got to his feet and ran toward the exit portal. Entering Scenario Room Six Objective: There are four inactive portals in this room. The portals lead to easy, medium, hard, or extremely hard scenario rooms, respectively. Upon entering, you will have the opportunity to answer questions about your own life. Your performance on the quiz determines which portal activates. Focus Stats: Recall, Mnemosyne Difficulty: Various >>We need to do this fast.

If the sea monster survives the fight, I don't want it chasing us into this room. >>It seems… tenacious. Once again the room was empty except for the four inactive portal doorways on the far wall. A green light shone above each one. Question One In what order did your family enter the game? A. Max, Kat, Kit, George B. Kat, Kit, Max, George C. Kit, Kat, Max, George >>Well, that answers one question at least. >>All of your kids came into this game and you followed them.

"I'm just going to guess," George said. He walked back to the portal he'd just come through and watched the fight between the two monsters. The dragon had a hunk of the writhing mass in its jaws and was twisting its head back and forth.

"Max, Kat, Kit, George," George said. Incorrect. The correct answer is C. Kit, Kat, Max, George. The green light above the portal marked "easy" flashed off. Question Two What is your blood type? A. A positive B. B positive C. O positive >>The bleach bomb we crafted was called 'Improvised Gas Grenade, Type O-Positive' after you smeared your blood on it. >>Easy.

"O positive," George said. Correct. Question Three When Kat got hurt, what did Max do to try to save her? A. Nothing. They were already separated. B. Made a devil's bargain in exchange for powers. C. Broke out of the prison cubes and they both escaped.

"I don't understand," George said.

"Does it mean after they went into the game?" >>We just learned that Kat was the second one in. >>And you said that ALL CAPS dropped some hint about what happened to Cassie being similar to something that happened to Kat. George looked through the portal to the dragon room again and saw that the dragon was unmoving on the ground now. The tentacle monster was on top of it and George saw a glimpse of its giant beak tearing away strips of dragon flesh in rough bites. >>Uh-oh. Gotta go.

"My answer is that he did nothing because they were already separated," George said. Incorrect. The correct answer is B. Made a devil's bargain in exchange for powers. The green light over the "medium" door turned off. The portal to the "hard" room activated.

"It's the joust again," George said. >>Get a move on, George. That monster is going to be in here in a few minutes. George ran through the portal and entered the jousting room.