“Damn,” Zeke mumbles as he stared through the binoculars.

  “What?” Akun asked.

  Zeke handed the pit fiend his binoculars. The pit fiend looked through them and saw a long streak of sand being kicked up in the air. He followed the tail to the end. Kip and Jasssper were both riding Swiff. They were rounding the beach, traveling toward the two. Behind them, Akun noticed another streak of sand. It was their own teammates chasing after Kip and his crew. Mason the gargoyle was attempting to catch up.

  “How’d they find us?” Zeke asked.

  “It was a dumb plan.” Said Akun

  Zeke snarled and shook his head, “Well, we’ve got to come up with another plan.”

  “I gots one. Wanna hear?” The pit fiend took his chain hook off his belt and swung it in a circle, “We stop them.”

  “Sure. We can set up some trips or…”

  The pit fiend cocked his hand back and swung his chain hook across the beach. It hurtled at a collision course toward Kip and his buddies.

  “Wh-What’s the plan?” Zeke asked nervously.

  Kip, Jasssper, and Swiff were coming too fast. The sand kicked into their eyes and prevented them from seeing the hook. It hit Kip square on, knocking him and Jasssper off of Swiff. They rolled along the sand.

  “Woah!” Said Zeke, “Take it easy on them! It’s just tag.”

  Akun turned to Zeke, “I’m getting a little pissed off that you don’t seem to understand what this means. It means a sheepdog gets to be put back in charge. You are a sheepdog, aren’t you?”

  “Sheepdog?” He muttered it, more to himself than to Akun.

  “Zeke!” He heard Kip yell at him. He turned and saw Kip attempting to get up. Jasssper was still coiled around him, “They’re hur-”

  The gargoyle swooped both of them. Swiff had diverted his direction and returned. He powered through Kip but the gargoyle was big enough and strong enough to take all of them. He slammed into their backs and scooped them into the air. Zeke cringed at the sight, recoiling and covering his eyes with his hands. As Mason lifted them, the scoreboard changed to reflect the new reality.

  Jasssper: It Mason: Not It

  Mason released them. Swiff zipped off as Jasssper and Kip both fell back toward the ground. Kip spawned his wings so he could glide to safety. Jasssper rushed by him but Kip plucked Jasssper’s tail. Kip tried to catch his breath as he continued to soar.

  “Hey!” Screamed Mason.

  Zeke looked up at Mason, the gargoyle told Zeke, “Get out of here! I’ll fight them off.”

  Akun grabbed Zeke’s shoulder, “Come on. If one person stays ‘it’ we can survive. There isn’t much time left anyway.”

  Zeke looked back, “But…”

  “Hey!” Akun said, “Better us in this game then some wolf on the outside. Right?”

  “That looked like it really hurt.” Zeke said.

  “Let’s get out of here before we hurt them worse.”

  Stunned, Zeke let himself get dragged away by the pit fiend into the forest.

  “Zeke…” Kip cried out.

  “He’s left us, Sire,” Jasssper said, “We must take evasive maneuversss.”

  Jasssper pointed with his tail up to Mason, who was now dive bombing them. Kip adjusted his gliding downward and let gravity pull him. As Mason approached ever near, Kip let his wings disappear. Kip and Jasssper’s trajectory took an abrupt dip and rolled on the sand. Swiff circled the top of the beach waiting to make its next move.

  “Quick!” Kip said to Jasssper, “You’re my advisor! What’s a gargoyle weak against?!”

  “Their tough stone skin allows them to be the perfect guards against martial artists. As well as most destructive castors. They have an invulnerability to most things.”

  “Most?” Kip gulped as Mason doubled back up into the air. Mason was gaining height and distance to dive on Kip and Jasssper again.

  “Yes. Most. The one thing they are vulnerable to is magic of course.”

  “Right.” Kip said as he ran with Jasssper on his neck, “Well… we’re not magic castors, are we, Jas?”

  “Ah…”

  “What??”

  Jasssper took his tail and wiped off a snakey tear from his eye, “It’s nothing, Sire.”

  “No, what is it?”

  “I’ve… I’ve never had a nickname before. Not one that wasn’t hurtful anyway,”

  "Oh, sure.”

  “Can I just say you're my best friend? You don’t have to sssay it back!”

  "Uhm, you’re one of my friends, Jasssper. That’s for sure. But let’s focus on the plan here.”

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “Sure. But really think on it.” Said Jasssper, knowing that he’d have to remind Kip to think on it as he was Kip’s advisor and there was a lot going on that day.

  “Okay… no vulnerabilities.” Kip turned back. They had lost Mason. He was hiding in the miasma of the setting sun. Kip stuck up his scaly hand at the sun while trying to glance up at Mason. Under Kip’s palm, he could see Mason flying.

  “Quickly, Sire!” Jasssper said, “He’s coming down!”

  As Kip stared up at Mason, he noticed something bouncing off of Mason’s chest. It was a spot of sunlight that defied logic. Mason was coming from the direction of the sun. How could he bounce what was bouncing off of him? Kip moved his hand slightly and the spot of sun moved too.

  “Jasssper,” KIp said.

  ‘Yesss?” Jasssper wondered if Kip had finally decided to tell him that he was his best friend.

  “My scales!” Kip took his hoodie off and dropped it on the ground as he continued to run toward the tree line. The sun bounce off the scales on his back and point up at Mason.

  “Direct me!” Kip said.

  “Ssscrunch over! Down! Curl more! There!” A blast of sunlight was hitting Mason in the eyes. The stone creature tried to block the glimmering parry as best he could but it was futil. To avoid another nasty collision, he pulled his wings and went back up. Kip and Jasssper had enough time to escape into the trees. While Mason was climbing in the air, he felt a small poke. He saw that Swiff floating beside him.

  He snatched at the broom but it was already too late. The broom had turned tail and dotted away toward the cover of the forest. Mason looked up and saw that he was now infected with the ‘It’ and the only one who could turn him back was that lightning fast wooden broom that blended in so well with the woods. Finding the broom again would be a distraction. It would be much easier to find red kobold. Now that he was tagged, it would be in the team’s best interest to stop these people from tagging his team.

  “If you can’t catch em’, beat em’.” he said as he dove back down into the forest.

  “He knows we’re being hurt.” Said Jassper, “He doess not care.”

  “I don’t believe you,” Kip said, “I know Zeke likes to make morbid jokes but those are just a part of his shield. A shield he created that’s as tough as his hide. He cares about me.”

  “Did he care about you when you fought againssst Davorin?”

  Kip looked at the snake with absolute resolve, “Yes.” Jasssper did not believe Kip. But Kip remembered vividly a conversation he’d had with Zeke just before the battle.

  “You’re not going to die, little buddy. Not on my watch.”

  “Even if my plan is a little off…”

  “If you think things are going haywire… if you think Davorin’s going after you for real, stick your thumb and pinkie out. Give me a ‘shaka brah’ and I’ll drop in there myself. I’ll sit on the labyrinth walls to protect you. Got it? Go on, give me a ‘shaka brah.’”

  The shame of almost needing to do a ‘shaka brah’ with his hands to save his life still carried in Kip’s chest. He turned away from the snake and kept walking through the forest.

  “Maybe you’re right. The others might have their own game. There was something the gargoyle and skull said on the chlorophone. Something that did not make sense.”

  “What is it?”

  “It did not feel like they resspected Zeke asss a leader. But if so… why are they here?”

  Kip shook his head, “Then let’s get him back on the right track.”

  “Absolutely.” The snake stuck his little tongue out, but only said, “Asss you wish, sire.”

  Kip and Jasssper kept running, “We’ll never catch up with them. Not on our feet anyway.”

  “Do you have any juice left in your wingsss?”

  “The gliding is all done but I still have three Bursts. Should we use them to catch up?”

  Kip heard something. He looked up and then buried himself in the brush.

  “What is it, sire?” Jasssper asked.

  “Look!” kip pointed upwards past the canopy of trees. He saw the gray blur of a gargoyle overhead.

  “That’s Mason.” Kip said, “He’s it from Swiff. That means he can only tag Swiff back. Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

  “No, Sire.”

  “Jasssper, have you ever been rope?”

  Mason flew overhead as his eyes scanned for every instance of red among the blur of greens. He was moving fast, and constantly gathering air and diving again. He was running out of steam. He could see from his height where Akun and Zeke were. They were heading to a derelict cabin that Mason was already informed about. When he rose back up and dove, he saw Kip. Mason attempted to stay behind Kip and out of his eyeline. Kip was facing away from him, running toward the direction of the cabin. This was Mason’s opportunity.

  Mason dove as fast as he could, before Kip could see or notice him. Kip was running along, merrily, but where was Jasssper?

  He could not see the snake at all. But like a predator with its prey, Mason was locked on. Kip ran as fast as his little legs could carry him. Mason got closer and closer. Kip dropped his hoodie again, attacking Mason with a burst of the sunset. Mason growled. “He knew!” Mason thought. He pulled up, attempting to escape the canopy, but just as he did, Kip leapt up and grabbed Mason’s foot.

  “Hey!” Mason yelled. Kip held on as he could. Mason tried to shake him off. Kip dug his boosted claws into Mason, giving himself enough of a hold for Jasssper to climb up Kip’s front, and around Mason’s legs.

  “What the hell?!”

  “Sorry,” Kip said, “We need a lift!”

  Mason flipped on his belly, attempting to turn in such a way that brought Jasssper facing the ground, but it was no good. Jasssper just climbed around him. But flipping on Mason’s back did give Kip enough leverage to climb further on top of Mason.

  “What are you doing?!” Mason yelled.

  Kip pointed forward. Mason cranked his neck and, upside down, could see a tall tree coming toward him. He turned around and pulled upward. Kip ran along Mason’s side and landed on the gargoyle’s back.

  “Formation!” Kip yelled.

  “Asss you wish, sire.”

  Jasssper wrapped himself tightly around Mason’s neck. So tightly that even though there was the thick, petrified skin, it was enough to close Mason’s windpipe just a little.

  “What …”

  “Reins!” Kip yelled. Jasssper sighed and handed his boss his tail and his head. Kip grabbed onto Jasssper’s tail and neck and pulled, like the reins of a stead, Mason followed their direction.

  “Ah!” Kip yelled as he pointed toward the cabin, “Seems their going in the old abandoned cabin!” Kip yelled.

  “I can’t see sire,” Jasssper said, “I’m being used as rope.”

  “That you are, onward!” And with that, Kip pulled the reins again, and tilted Mason toward the cabin, where they would make their final confrontation with Zeke and the pit fiend.

  Akun closed the cabin door behind him, “Come on.” The pit fiend said as he walked over and opened the cabin door.

  “Naw,” Said Zeke, “I don’t want to play dress up. Probably couldn’t fit in anything there anyway.”

  “Not dress up, moron. We’re getting out of here.” Akun grabbed the screw in the top right corner of the large wardrobe. He unscrewed it easily. It had already been loosened. He reached for the other one on the bottom left.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Shut up.”

  “You really hurt my friend out there.”

  “You want to win or not?”

  The skeleton unscrewed the other one. The panel only had those two screws. The pit fiend used the edges of his fingertips to pull the board out.

  “Got it!” When he had fully moved it, it was clear that there was an exitway. A secret passage.

  “How’d you know that was there?” Zeke asked as he started to get a bad feeling in his stomach, “Something’s not adding up.”

  “Somebody told me.”

  Zeke shook his head, “Who told you? You’re on the sixth floor. Who the hell coulda told you about that? Why the hell have you been playing so mean with my friends?”

  The pit fiend looked over, a glint in the socket where an eye should be, “You know who. The one who keeps us safe. The one who keeps all of us safe.”

  Zeke gulped. He stared at Akun with righteous indignation. He knew who had sent him here. He knew who was behind this.

  Zeke mumbled the words, softly, as if terrified that uttering his name would summon him.

  “Bodhi.”

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