Читать книгу The Last Kids on Earth and the Zombie Parade - Max Brallier - Страница 12

I remember how I felt the instant before I defeated the big, bad, odorous, evil Blarg: terrified but confident. Frightened but alive.

That’s how I feel now.

Brave.

Stupidly brave.

This is my moment.

The moment of Jack Sullivan, Post-Apocalyptic Action Hero.

The Wormungulous will be upon us in seconds. Its massive form is barrelling forward, turning everything in its path to dust. And I can’t let my friends fall into the category of ‘dust.’ That’s my biggest fear. That’s what keeps me up at night (well, that and thoughts of Selena Gomez – I hope she’s safe somewhere!).

I step toward the beast like some sort of samurai ninja Jedi.

‘Jack, what are you doing?’ June screams.

‘June, Dirk, Quint. Get back,’ I say. ‘Behind me.’

‘I’ll try to open the gate into Sears,’ Dirk says. ‘If you can slow it down, maybe we won’t all die today.’

I nod.

If Dirk gets that gate open, they can get to safety. But if not – they’ll be squished, squashed, splattered. Done-zo.

‘Jack . . .’ June pleads.

‘GO!’ I shout. This feeling of samurai ninja Jedi heroism is totally beating out my feelings of butt-clenching fear, and I raise the dramatics up a notch.

June knows my goofiness. She knows I pretty much stumble and bumble my way through every monster encounter.

I blush. ‘Sorry. Carried away. Just, please? Ah, please, go?’

KRAKA-SMASH!

The Wormungulous rips through the cell phone case kiosk. The walls quake. Glass falls and shatters from the railings above.

At last, June sprints toward Sears.

I stand tall. Blade at my side, like a cool, calm warrior. I can’t take this ferocious, fanged beast head-on. But if I can do some nifty light-saber type moves, I might be able to buy my buds enough time to –

Jagged cracks spread through the floor like ice splintering on the surface of a pond. The Wormungulous’s mouth opens, revealing a fat tongue darting around in the darkness of its gullet.

I take a deep breath.

And then, when the monstrous worm is nearly upon me, so close I can smell the rotten meat on its teeth, so close I can see my reflection in its hundred tiny eyes, I leap to the side. My fingers clench the blade, and I hold it with two hands, arms extended, parallel to the ground, gripping it as tight as I can as the worm blasts past me and the blade cuts into its flesh –

The monster shrieks in pain and its thick tail whips into me, and –

POW!

I slam into the side of the PacSun clothes store. I sag against the gate, then crash to the rubble-covered floor. Looking up, I see Dirk struggling to lift the heavy metal gate to Sears. Quint and June frantically help.

But it won’t budge.

And it’s too late.

The Wormungulous is upon them. The monster’s mouth has closed and its wormy head is lowered, ploughing through the floor.

But then I see it.

The man-monster. He’s rushing toward my friends. Quint spins around, horrified. The man-monster knocks him aside, grabs the gate, and lifts.

That’s the last thing I see.

The worm’s tail lashes me across the face, I’m flung to the floor, and everything goes black.