CHAPTER XI: The Sky Runner
Jeff Andonuts woke sleepily, putting on his large, round glasses. He brushed a lock of blond hair out from in front of his eyes, and climbed out of bed.
"Jeff...hear me...I am a friend you have never met before...I am Paula...I am with another friend, Ness. We are being held captive in Threed. Please, save us. Destiny beckons..."
He slipped into his school uniform, gray dress slacks, a white shirt, and a gray coat, plus a tie. Slipping on his shiny black shoes, he prepared to head out the door.
"Jeff?" It was his dorm roommate, Tony. "Jeff, where are you going?"
He thought for a moment. "I'm being summoned, Tony."
"By who? The Headmistress?"
"Of course not!" Jeff said, rolling his eyes. The Headmistress of Snow Wood Boarding School, here in Winters, was a fat, grumpy old coot who never left her room.
"By who then?"
"Someone named Paula."
"I don't know," Tony said, a little worried. "On-campus romances are forbidden, you know that!"
"Nothing like that, Tony," he said, his ears turning red. "Just come on. I'll need your help getting out of here."
They went downstairs, seeking out the late-night inventor, Maxwell Labs. Max greeted them at the door to his laboratory, and brought them inside. Jeff quickly explained the whole thing to both Tony and Max.
"Well," Max said to himself. "The whole thing sounds a little nuts, especially that 'Giygas' part. But, if you're fully intent on traveling out into the biting cold, I'll help you. By the way...how will you get to Threed?"
"My dad," Jeff said. "I haven't seen him in ten years...not since I came here. But, I know he'll understand. I can use any sort of flying machine he has."
"Okay," Maxwell said. "Take the stuff in the lockers next door. Here's the key." He produced a slightly bent little key.
The two friend made their way to the locker room, but the key was bent a bit too much, so they went back to Max.
"Sorry," he laughed. "I did that to test my new invention...The Machine That Opens Locked Doors, Especially If You Have A Slightly Bad Key. Just call it the 'Bad Key Machine'. It can open any locked door!"
"Wow," Jeff said, suddenly thinking of all the possibilities. "This'll come in handy. Thanks, Maxwell!"
They embarked on another trip to the locker room, and found a Pop Gun and a broken Air Gun. He fitted the Pop Gun into the holster in his jacket, and put the broken Air Gun in his backpack. Then, he and Tony made their way to the front door, and out into the cold night. They stopped at the gate.
"This is goodbye," Tony said. "Whatever it is you're gonna do, I know it'll be some dire thing. Just remember that I'm your best friend, and you can fall back on me anytime."
"Thanks," Jeff said, shaking his friend's hand. "Goodbye."
Tony boosted Jeff over the fence, and the two parted.
Jeff started off down the road, until he came to the "Best Friend Drugstore". He went inside, and was accosted by a young woman. She grabbed his arm, and pulled him aside.
"See that monkey over there?" She asked, pointing at a small, brown monkey in the corner. "Take the monkey. He's only a dollar, but if you buy a Pak of Bubble Gum, he's free."
Jeff, not really knowing what to do, handed her a dollar. "The Gum, I guess."
"Good, the monkey is yours. Hey! Bubble Monkey!"
The monkey waddled over, and soon, Jeff and the monkey were back on the trail.
They had been traveling for awhile, when they came upon a small camp on the shores of Lake Tess. This was the home of the Tessie Watching Club, an organization dedicated to watching the Lake for Tessie, the legendary lake beast that lived in those waters. They were almost at the camp, when a Spiteful Crow came screaming out of the trees. Jeff rolled forward. The Crow turned in the air, and came straight at him. Jeff carefully pulled his Pop Gun out, aimed, and fired. The Crow squawked, and fell into the snow. The young boy twirled his gun, and set it in the holster. The Bubble Monkey eeped a bit, and they were on their way.
They were met with open arms at the Tessie Watching Club. Jeff and the Bubble Monkey were ushered into the food tent, where the cook prepared some stew for them, then rolled out two cots. Gratefully accepting the hospitality, Jeff fell asleep immediately.
"You're heading in the right direction, Jeff. Head south, across the lake, and find a way to get to Threed. Please. We're waiting."
He awoke the next morning with a big yawn. The Bubble Monkey was nowhere to be found, and Jeff guessed he was off in the woods, running around as monkeys do.
"Now..." he said to himself. "How do I get across Lake Tess?"
As if to answer that question, the Bubble Monkey zipped into the tent, and jumped up and down, chattering eagerly. It jumped on the startled boy, grabbed the Bubble Gum Pak from his pocket, and ran back outside. Jeff followed.
Outside the tent, the wind was horrible. He ran over to a small peninsula, where the Bubble Monkey sat, chewing a piece of Bubble Gum. He blew an enormous bubble, and floated into the air, over the surface of the lake.
Directly under it, a large, round, purple dinosaur head, followed by a long purple neck and bulbous purple body, rose from the water. The Monkey landed on it, and beckoned for Jeff.
"Holy Cripes!" Jeff exclaimed. "That thing's bigger than the Particle Accelerator I built last year!"
He stepped carefully on the slippery, yet surprisingly warm dinosaur's back, and, with a wave to the astonished members of the Tessie Watching Club, started across Lake Tess.
Tessie dropped Jeff and the Bubble Monkey off at the southern shores of Lake Tess. With a short, dolphin squeal, it submerged, and vanished. The pair started off again, southwards.
After about an hour's walk, they reached a cave. Outside was a sign that read:
This is a Dungeon
Come on in
No entry fee
-Brickroad, the Dungeon Developer
Jeff laughed a little, and went in, the Bubble Monkey hot on his heels. The "Dungeon" was a neat, well-lit little cave, with a path lined with stones. Jeff started along the path, and after about two minutes, he could already see the end. Another sign on the way there read: "Watch for Falling Objects--Brickroad"
As if on cue, a squat man in black clothing, holding a camera, plummeted from the ceiling. He landed, took a quick photo, and vanished.
"I...beg...your...pardon?" Jeff inquired to nobody in particular. The Bubble Monkey eeped. They walked on.
Outside the Dungeon, they met a man wearing nothing but overalls, even in the biting cold. He greeted them warmly.
"Hello," He said in a friendly manner. "I'm Brickroad, the Dungeon Developer."
"Hi," Jeff returned. "I'm Jeff Andonuts, and this is the Bubble Monkey."
"Eeeeeep!"
Brickroad laughed. "Dr. Andonuts' son?"
Jeff nodded.
"Well, if you follow this path, you'll come to a cave. Beyond that is Stonehenge, and a bit farther is the Laboratory of Dr. Andonuts. Good luck, kid!"
"Thanks, Brickroad. By the way, how do you know my dad?"
"We have a deal," he said. "One of these days, he's going to install me into a giant body that's one big dungeon. I will become 'Dungeon Man'."
"Oh...kay...um...bye."
The cave that Brickroad spoke of was a huge, cavernous place, lit dimly by phosphorous crystals that dotted the floor at irregular intervals. The Bubble Monkey was chattering nervously as white eyes peered at them from the deep shadows. Jeff drew his Pop Gun, holding it out in front of him.
A Rowdy Mouse zipped from the darkness. Jeff jumped back, aimed, and fired. The ground next to the Mouse suddenly had a small crater in it.
The Rowdy Mouse ran forward, and bit through his pant leg. He yelped, aimed carefully, tracking the Mouse, and squeezed trigger. The rodent tumbled off into the darkness from whence it came. Jeff heaved the Bubble Monkey in his arms, and dashed through the cave. He heard the sound of a pack of Rowdy Mice in pursuit.
They ran full into a sheer rock wall. The light from the glowing crystals outlined a rope coiled at the top. There was no way to get it, and the Mice were almost upon them.
Suddenly, the Bubble Monkey blew a bubble. It floated way up the cliff, and dropped the rope to Jeff. The grateful boy grabbed it, and hauled himself up with all the speed he could muster. The Rowdy Mice chattered angrily below. Jeff laughed.
"That was a close one..." He panted, holding his chest.
"Kiiii!" The Bubble Monkey said.
They were still advancing through the cave, when they hit an intersection. Left or right? Jeff decided to go right. He was right handed, so this was the obvious choice.
Turning the corner, he almost ran face first into a giant mushroom! It had a face, arms and legs, and was sitting in a glowing nimbus. A small tune seemed to ring out. Deciding that a mushroom was not the best thing to fight, Jeff turned around, and went left at the intersection.
"I hope he gets here soon," Ness said, idly hitting rocks with his baseball bat.
"He'll be here," Paula said, catching a rock in her pan. "I know it."
He emerged into the bright sunlight near Stonehenge. The Bubble Monkey, who had gone ahead, was chattering wildly at a female primate. The two monkeys eeped to each other, and ran off into the trees, leaving Jeff alone.
"Heh," He laughed. "The Monkey takes a shine."
He continued, alone, past Stonehenge, and to the lab of Dr. Andonuts. He knocked on the door. His father opened it a second later.
"Jeff?" It was a squat man, wearing a lab coat and glasses, sporting a white beard and white eyebrows.
"Dad?"
They exchanged a warm hug.
"Why, it's been ten years since you went to Snow Wood Boarding School! It's been so long!"
"Dad, I don't have time to catch up on things," Jeff said seriously. "Sit down for a minute, and I'll explain everything."
"Hmm...that does seem to be a problem," Dr. Andonuts said after Jeff had explained. "You could use my new invention, the Sky Runner, to get to Threed."
"Really? All right!"
Dr. Andonuts led Jeff over to a large, bulbous, silver thing that looked like a flying saucer. The good doctor patted it.
"The Sky Runner has an antenna that receives messages. You can even track telepathy with this baby. Just get in, start the thing up, and track Paula's telepathy."
Jeff stood at the entrance, ready to get in.
"Jeff?"
"Yeah?"
"Visit me soon, okay?"
Jeff smiled. "All right, dad!"