monstrous creature hurled the hazard-suit at Adam’s feet and pointed to it.
“What do I do with that? Wear it?” Adam looked doubtfully at the heap of white rubber. “I think it’s kind of ruined.”
“Need. Go.”
Skin crawling, Adam climbed into the dead man’s suit. He put on both legs, but before he could slip on the arms, Zed grunted and shook his head. He stretched out his tail and pointed to a map of the world on the wall.
The scaly tip hovered like an arrow over Scotland.
“Uh, yeah. Looks like everyone’s either there or headed that way.” Adam sighed. “If only I could get back too.”
“Zed. Get. Back.”
“What?” Adam shook his head, tired, scared and frustrated. “I don’t know what you’re saying.”
With a wet crunching sound, Zed’s sail-like wings unfolded again from his back. He looked at Adam, an unspoken challenge in his black crocodile eyes.
“What?” Adam shook his head. “You can’t fly there.”
“You,” rasped the dinosaur. “Zed. Go.”
“No.” Adam felt his stomach twist. “No, you can’t take me with you. Not all that way.”
Zed kicked the empty fridge into the wall and stabbed a claw down at the jumble of food. “Hungry,” he grunted. “Need. GO.”
Thirty minutes later, Adam’s stomach was full, but he felt sicker than ever. While he’d been eating, Zed had quietly, methodically gathered supplies in a couple of rucksacks: tins of food, matches, coats and blankets—and a selection of the mysterious files. Then the monster had fastened both bags to his tail.
His brain’s been fried, Adam realized, still half dressed in the oversized hazard-suit. He’s been inside Ultra-Reality, and now he thinks life is like a video game, thinks he’s a superhero. He reckons he can fly halfway across the world with me on his back.
I have to run for it, he thought.
Then he pictured again what had happened to Sedona, and imagined how far he’d get.
In the end, Zed settled the matter. He grabbed Adam in both claws and thrust him upward onto his back. Terrified, Adam clung to a knobbly ridge on the dinosaur’s back and managed to swing one leg over like a jockey, perching just above Zed’s wings. Then Zed reached back, grabbed the flopping arms of the hazard-suit and used nimble claws to tie them tightly around his broad, scaly throat. That had the effect of securing Adam in a kind of makeshift harness, his body pressed up against the back of Zed’s long neck as he clung on for dear life.
“I’m so gonna die,” Adam moaned to himself.
The two rucksacks scraped and bounced over the rocky ground as Zed strode back toward the cave mouth.
“Don’t you understand?” Adam shouted. “You can’t do this! You’re gonna kill us both!” The bomb still lay close to the entrance—and it seemed Adam would be proved right sooner than he’d thought as Zed stooped, picked up the explosives and studied them carefully.
“Zed . . . please put that down,” Adam begged him, hearing the scratch of claws against wires. “Please, please put it down before you—”
The bomb made an ominous, electronic belch, and the blue numbers glowed back into being. There were now thirty seconds clicking down on the display.
“Get rid of it!” Adam almost sobbed. “C’mon, you can’t know what you’re doing. . . .”
Zed calmly placed the bundle down beside the entrance and strode out into the cold night darkness. His wings unfurled like broad sails, lifted to the rising wind. Then Adam gasped and gripped on as, with a sickening lurch, his unlikely mount launched skyward. Hold on, he willed himself. Hold on as hard as you can . The world tumbled and spun about him as they climbed up into the starry blackness. The wind teased tears from his eyes as they went higher, higher over the crumpled shadows of the wilderness park.
The bomb detonated with a roiling bloom of fire. The deafening boom of the blast left Adam’s ears screaming and his heart in his mouth, as the
“What do I do with that? Wear it?” Adam looked doubtfully at the heap of white rubber. “I think it’s kind of ruined.”
“Need. Go.”
Skin crawling, Adam climbed into the dead man’s suit. He put on both legs, but before he could slip on the arms, Zed grunted and shook his head. He stretched out his tail and pointed to a map of the world on the wall.
The scaly tip hovered like an arrow over Scotland.
“Uh, yeah. Looks like everyone’s either there or headed that way.” Adam sighed. “If only I could get back too.”
“Zed. Get. Back.”
“What?” Adam shook his head, tired, scared and frustrated. “I don’t know what you’re saying.”
With a wet crunching sound, Zed’s sail-like wings unfolded again from his back. He looked at Adam, an unspoken challenge in his black crocodile eyes.
“What?” Adam shook his head. “You can’t fly there.”
“You,” rasped the dinosaur. “Zed. Go.”
“No.” Adam felt his stomach twist. “No, you can’t take me with you. Not all that way.”
Zed kicked the empty fridge into the wall and stabbed a claw down at the jumble of food. “Hungry,” he grunted. “Need. GO.”
Thirty minutes later, Adam’s stomach was full, but he felt sicker than ever. While he’d been eating, Zed had quietly, methodically gathered supplies in a couple of rucksacks: tins of food, matches, coats and blankets—and a selection of the mysterious files. Then the monster had fastened both bags to his tail.
His brain’s been fried, Adam realized, still half dressed in the oversized hazard-suit. He’s been inside Ultra-Reality, and now he thinks life is like a video game, thinks he’s a superhero. He reckons he can fly halfway across the world with me on his back.
I have to run for it, he thought.
Then he pictured again what had happened to Sedona, and imagined how far he’d get.
In the end, Zed settled the matter. He grabbed Adam in both claws and thrust him upward onto his back. Terrified, Adam clung to a knobbly ridge on the dinosaur’s back and managed to swing one leg over like a jockey, perching just above Zed’s wings. Then Zed reached back, grabbed the flopping arms of the hazard-suit and used nimble claws to tie them tightly around his broad, scaly throat. That had the effect of securing Adam in a kind of makeshift harness, his body pressed up against the back of Zed’s long neck as he clung on for dear life.
“I’m so gonna die,” Adam moaned to himself.
The two rucksacks scraped and bounced over the rocky ground as Zed strode back toward the cave mouth.
“Don’t you understand?” Adam shouted. “You can’t do this! You’re gonna kill us both!” The bomb still lay close to the entrance—and it seemed Adam would be proved right sooner than he’d thought as Zed stooped, picked up the explosives and studied them carefully.
“Zed . . . please put that down,” Adam begged him, hearing the scratch of claws against wires. “Please, please put it down before you—”
The bomb made an ominous, electronic belch, and the blue numbers glowed back into being. There were now thirty seconds clicking down on the display.
“Get rid of it!” Adam almost sobbed. “C’mon, you can’t know what you’re doing. . . .”
Zed calmly placed the bundle down beside the entrance and strode out into the cold night darkness. His wings unfurled like broad sails, lifted to the rising wind. Then Adam gasped and gripped on as, with a sickening lurch, his unlikely mount launched skyward. Hold on, he willed himself. Hold on as hard as you can . The world tumbled and spun about him as they climbed up into the starry blackness. The wind teased tears from his eyes as they went higher, higher over the crumpled shadows of the wilderness park.
The bomb detonated with a roiling bloom of fire. The deafening boom of the blast left Adam’s ears screaming and his heart in his mouth, as the
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