Part 12 (2/2)
”Even though we don't know you all by name, I'd like to thank every one of you!”
Bigears slapped his back paws in embarra.s.sment. ”That's right, you haven't been properly introduced. How thoughtless of me!” He nodded at the a.s.sembled rabbitdom.
”Delores, I'd like to introduce my bunny legion.”
”Oh, that's quite all right,” Delores demurred with a smile. ”We must be-”
But the bunny leader wouldn't hear of it. He hopped from rabbit to rabbit, introducing each of his fellows as he landed: ”This is Fleckedtail-” Hop. ”And Spottyback-”
Hop. ”And Bentear-”
Big Louie trotted up beside Delores. ”Now that Dread's gone, shouldn't we be making tracks, too?”
”-and Pinkeyes,” Bigears continued with a hop. ”And Gray whiskers-” Hop. ”And Threepaws-” Hop.
”To let Dwight sniff out Captain Crusader? My thought exactly,” Delores agreed.
”But can we get there from here?”
”And Brownnose-” the rabbit continued as it hopped, ”and Notail-” Hop. ”And Crosseyes-” Hop. ”And Tallears-”
”The Volcano world?” Louie mused. ”Sure. No problem.”
”And Bigfeet-”
”You can find it with the ring?” Delores asked.
”And Highjumper-” Hop. ”And Pinkears-”
Louie shrugged. ”I've got a talent for this sort of thing.”
”And Spottypaw-”
”Good,” Delores replied tersely. ”Get the others together. Now!”
”And Mottlednose-”
”We really must be going,” Delores insisted.
”-you already know Fluffytail,” Bigears continued, then stopped abruptly, as if Delores' a.s.sertion had only then penetrated his bunny brain. ”You have to leave?
Now?” His ears twitched in consternation. ”I still have to introduce you to four hundred and eighty-one bunnies!”
”It certainly is a shame that we have to run,” Delores agreed. ”I'm sure we'd all be glad to meet every single one of you some other time, when the very fate of the Cine verse wasn't at stake.”
”Oh,” Bigears replied, trying hard to cover his disappointment. ”The very fate of the Cineverse? I guess I can understand-”
”And when we have time, boyo,” Officer O'Clanrahan interjected, ”I'm sure Dwight would be glad to give every one of your fellow rabbits the Wonder Dog handshake!”
”Bark bark, yip!” Dwight agreed.
”Gee, really?” Bigears marveled. ”Well, I guess it's all right, then.””You learn a lot from doing personal appearances,” the officer remarked to Delores in a stage whisper.
”And we'd better be going,” Louie announced. ”Come on, everybody, grab hold. Next stop-a South Sea paradise!”
All the heroes gathered around. All the bunnies cheered merrily. There was the required blue smoke.
They heard the voice even before the smoke had cleared. Delores remembered that voice.
”Once again, we welcome our happy visitors to our friendly island paradise.”
And then the smoke was gone, blown away by the island wind. Delores glanced around at her companions. All of them, save Dwight and O'Clanrahan, appeared tense, no doubt remembering the circ.u.mstances of their last visit to this ”island paradise.”
”Our visitors discover, to their delight, that they are greeted by the peaceful islanders bearing flowers,” the sonorous voice continued. Now that the smoke had cleared away completely, Delores could see the speaker-the village elder-smiling beatifically.
”So, it really is peaceful around here?” Louie asked skeptically.
”More peaceful than you could imagine,” one of the island maidens replied as she tossed a lei around his head. Did Delores catch a hint of desperation in her tone?
”How Volcano G.o.d?” Zabana asked cautiously.
”Oh, quiet as can be,” one of the young men of the island replied with a sigh.
”And howsabout those quaint island customs you fellas used to have?” Doc demanded.
”Fallen into disuse,” the elder rea.s.sured him. ”Especially anything to do with knives and sacrifices. So you see, our visitors have nothing to look forward to except for fun under the sun!”
The island men and women groaned en ma.s.se.
Delores studied the natives somewhat more carefully. She couldn't shake the feeling that, once again, the village elder was holding something back. If everything was so peaceful around here, why were all the islanders so miserable?
Louie said it for her: ”You know, if everything is so peaceful around here, why do all you islanders look so miserable?”One of the young men ignored the warning frown of the village elder, to blurt out: ”Do you know how boring it is with nothing but fun in the sun? Ever since you outsiders left, all the zest has gone out of our plots!”
”Oh, we've done all the standard things,” a maiden continued. ”You know, a lad from the wrong side of the tribe runs off with the princess.”
”We even did a girl from the wrong side of the tribe running off with the prince!”
another added.
”But with a limited cast, what else can you do?” the first fellow concluded. ”We've had to face it. We've run out of plots.”
Delores felt an involuntary s.h.i.+ver run through her body as she saw her companions blanch around her. Run out of plots? In the Cineverse? That was unthinkable! Or, Delores realized, worse than unthinkable. It must mean that the Change was truly changing things all over again. But if someplace as idyllic as this could go plotless, could anyplace in the Cineverse be safe?
”Come now, my children!” the elder cautioned. ”Our esteemed visitors did not come to our happy island to hear such negative things. Think about all the progress we have made of late.”
”In what?” one of the other islanders yelled.
<script>