Betsy Visits River City.
CHAPTER 42
Billie was now really worried. That monster had taken all the blows Fundamental and Fundamentelle gave and wasn’t reacting, nor was it getting any smaller. She noticed that Faeryfaye had approached them and had tried to talk to them, but they ignored her and continued. Billie signalled Faeryfaye to her and instructed the other heroes back as well. The bimbos watched all this with interest.
“What’s happening? What did you want to say to them?” asked Billie to Faeryfaye.
“They’ve got to stop,” said Faeryfaye. “They’re just making the thing stronger. It’s absorbing their power and they don’t realise it. It’ll soon be powerful enough to absorb them and then it’ll go for us. I don’t know how to stop it.”
Just then, Vicky, Betsy and Sonia, together with another two women, ran out at full speed. “Run,” screamed the two new women at them as they ran past and into the woods, never to be seen again.
Faeryfaye stopped Betsy. Vicky and Sonia stopped with her. “The elves are going to destroy the whole bottom chamber. They say it’s an abomination. I don’t know why, but they’ve given us a warning,” said Betsy.
Faeryfaye’s face was alarmed. Everything was happening too fast for her to react. So she resorted to what she knew. And she knew she had left Ffanci and Pearl Girl in the hospital wing. She told Betsy and the two of them raced back in and raced to the hospital wing, Betsy following Faeryfaye’s lead. Vicky following Betsy. She had been searching for Pearl and wasn’t going to lose her now. Sonia followed Vicky.
They found the two invalids still in their beds. Ffanci was conscious and resigned to her fate while Pearl Girl was still out. Vicky noted Pearl was strapped in, but didn’t say anything for now.
“What are they going to do, Betsy?” asked Faeryfaye.
“I don’t know. Probably destroy the whole thing. There’s something there they don’t like,” answered Betsy.
“Are they all heroes in there?” Betsy asked of Vicky and Sonia. “Don’t know,” was the response. “Looks like Dr. Orlof has been collecting them, although he must be older than he looks. Some of them go way back.”
“Or his parents started collecting and he’s taken over,” Sonia added.
“Aye,” answered Betsy while assisting Faeryfaye moving the beds into the centre of the room.
Betsy turned to Vicky, “Vicky, we’d better take care of this. We can’t have any interference.”
“OK,” she responded. She quickly went to hold Pearl’s hand. Sonia hung back and watched.
Betsy then found an instant marker and started drawing a circle around the patients then instructed Sonia to get inside the circle. Faeryfaye dug into her pockets and bra for various powders. She always carried them, just in case. And this was a just in case if ever there was a just in case. She quickly combined certain powders and ended up with two piles of powder. One of which she spread over the lines Betsy had drawn while the other just seemed to light itself, producing a smell that quickly permeated the room. Betsy and Faeryfaye stepped inside the circle then closed it. They waited.
Suddenly they felt it. A pressure in the atmosphere. It was oppressive and they both hunkered down automatically and covered their heads, while both chanted what sounded to be totally different chants. Well, an observer would have said that, but there was no outside observer, so you’ll just have to take my word for that. It’s true though. It sounded discordant and, at a deep level, wrong.
Then there was a woomp and everything shuddered. There was no noise or dust. Just the woomp and nothing else.
Then nothing. Betsy looked at Faeryfaye, who looked back.
They broke the circle when they both ascertained there was no more danger. Their patients seemed none the worse. Betsy, Vicky and Sonia raced off to see what the elves were doing while Faeryfaye stayed with her patients and moved the beds back to their proper positions.