Chapter 1327 (2/2)

*****

The infiltration, as far as Tim could tell, was going swimmingly. At least Delilah’s beaming smile seemed to advertise that everything was going according to plan. Which of course, gave Tim a very bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

After crashing their boat, they had managed to find a side entrance into the ballroom that led to the staff corridors. Since no one was currently in the corridor, the children had immediately hurried forward like a mass of hungry rats, sniffing around for sweets.

“Keep up everybody!” Delilah called over her shoulder. Despite being the youngest, she also seemed to be the most physically fit and led the group from the front. “There are probably guards or something around here, so we need to be-”

Following their fearless leader, the children rounded the corner and skidded to a stop. Because Tim was larger but less agile on his feet, he ended up stumbling into Delilah’s back. But her superior Strength was enough that he bounced off of her bony shoulders and fell on his butt.

“Hello Mr. Ogre,” Delilah said in an overly bright voice. Tim’s gaze snapped sharply upward. “Nice to meet you. I’ve met other ogres, but never-”

“The pleasure’s all mine.” The ogre in front of them was the most massive specimen that Tim had ever seen, although he admittedly had not seen many. Such was the ogre’s height and width that he almost entirely filled up the five-meter high and three-meter wide hallway. In a perfunctory manner, the ogre adjusted his glasses. “However, it appears that you have wandered somewhere you shouldn’t.”

The kids glanced at each other, nervous about the ominous size of the ogre in front of them. But Delilah stepped forward, her forced brightness transforming into genuine self-assurance the longer she talked. “Oh, no, you probably hadn’t heard. We are allowed to be here. We just-”

Again, the ogre cut Delilah off. “How unexpected. But if you are allowed to be here… I suppose you simply need to hand me your invitation and I can let you proceed.”

Delilah’s expression twisted. “I…. we… we lost it. So-”

The ogre raised his extremely large hands and cracked his knuckles. “How… unfortunate. Then I simply must apologize for what is going to happen next, but I was given very clear instructions on how to deal with interlopers.”

Before Delilah could muster up a response, the ogre leaned forward and began to hurry down the hallway toward the group of children. He was perhaps ten meters down the hallway, and his long legs devoured one of those meters immediately as he accelerated toward the group of children.

Releasing a collective squawk, most of the older teenagers behind Delilah twisted around and fled. While the ogre was lumbering down the hall with heavy footfalls, Tim only managed to make it back to his feet before Delilah grabbed him painfully around his wrist and yanked him forward.

“We are running directly toward the ogre!” Tim shouted in alarm. Then he felt stupid because Delilah could obviously see that. How could she NOT see that with the huge body of the ogre rushing toward them?

But Delilah tugged him inexorably forward. “Call the moss spirits! Let’s see who is stronger, this bozo or all of Kharon! Go go go!”

“You’re crazy!” Tim’s face turned extremely strange. The huge body of the ogre was only six meters away. In terms of momentum, the enormous ogre was enough to crush them entirely into paste that would be spread along the floor of the corridor in its wake. Each step shook the ground and because there was only a little distance between them, also shook Tim.

Four meters away…

“Conjure the moss spirits!” Delilah said again, this time emphasizing the statement by an explosion of moss spirits out of the nearby walls and ceiling that were clearly responding to her own call. Very quickly, more quickly than Tim’s frazzled mind could keep up with what was occurring, those moss spirits came together to form a large emerald body standing behind them.

Tim realized suddenly that he was following around a six-year-old girl and hoping that she act reasonably. He should have known as soon as she had crashed their flying ship…!

“TIM!” Delilah yelled, but this time there was genuine concern in her voice.

Even if I’m an idiot for following here, I’ve done it. And dad always says men should take responsibility… Tim was trembling, as the huge ogre was only two meters away, but he still called the moss spirits. In that secret way that he had, his soul shivered and then began to sing in a way that all the green things responded to.

Acting on instinct, he released a clear note of necessity into the surrounding air.

They came in a surging wave, in such a volume that even Tim was surprised. Emerald spirits seemed immediately from the walls, floors, and ceilings, as well as blasting out of the nearby vents. He reached out mentally and pulled and he felt as though the whole world was spiraling to assist him. In fact, Tim felt like he could feel the whole of Kharon, with a bright curiosity at its core, that began to stir at his call-

The ogre was right in front of them. The condensed moss spirit raised its arm and smashed its fist forward. The two forces collided, and a shocked Tim watched as the condensed moss spirit exploded into a cascading waterfall of brilliant light and nothing else.

The ogre-!

Shrieking with laughter, Delilah made a sharp gesture. After a jerking wrench, Tim found himself standing with her on the other side of the ogre.

“How could we stand up to an ogre, Tim?” Delilah asked disapprovingly, as though a frontal conflict had been his idea. “Better to just avoid the fight. Now quick! The kitchen should just be through there!”

Delilah pointed to a normal-looking set of doors. Emerald lights danced around them excitedly, seemingly wondering what the two of them were going to do next. Tim was almost numb. At some point, Delilah had shifted her grip so she had a more comfortable grip on his hand.

With the ogre still rumbling after the other kids, the duo hurried forward. As though by magic, the doors to the kitchen opened up for them… and revealed a figure that had Tim skidding to a stop.

“Uh… hi dad,” Tim said weakly.

Derek Moss crossed his arms and frowned around at the playful currents of moss spirits in the air of the hallway. “Looks like we have some stuff to talk about, don’t we?”