The giant bug did not go away.
In the blink of an eye, the huge beast ‘skipped’ across the field, moving from fifty yards to ten feet in front of the militia without warning, without a chance for them to react.
Furry tendrils from the mouth grabbed for one of the men. He stumbled backwards, cringing from the reach and nearly incapacitated by the smell coming from its orifice.
The group fired. Most shots went wild, missing the target despite its close range and massive size.
Billy Phelps performed better. His shotgun hit the mouth as it loomed over his man. The pain of the pellets forced the beetle to hesitate for a second. After overcoming the minor pain from the shotgun blast, it again stretched down to gobble its next meal.
“Hey, over here!” Cried Dante Jones’ voice.
Jones ran into the field carrying two lit torches. He ran directly at the Skip-Beetle.
To the shock of everyone-particularly Billy Ray Phelps and Evan Godfrey-the beetle retreated a step, like an elephant fearing a mouse.
“Shoot it all you want, boys!” Dante yelled. “But unless you got something bigger than them pop guns you’re in for a bad day!”
Dante flung a torch at the tangle mess of furry tendrils around the monster’s mouth. It hit the target and the front face of the creature lit up faster than charcoal coated in lighter fluid.
The Skip-Beetle, its mouth burning, hopped away. It nearly reached the bog before it perished. The smell of burning giant insect would drift over New Winnabow for days.
The militiamen and Evan stared at Dante.
“Didn’t you smell that thing? What’d you think that odor was, bad breath?”
They waited for more of an explanation.
“Its saliva is like gasoline, burns real good.” Dante smiled a big cocky grin and told Evan, “Maybe you should pay more attention at the council meetings.”
“We appreciate all of your efforts to bring this to a successful settlement,” Robert Parsons spoke to Evan Godfrey and Dante Jones from the center of the head table in the council chambers. “However, as we told your Emperor, we cannot allow your army to pass through. It would go against all we hold dear.”
Dante burst, “Even after today? Even after a giant bug nearly killed some of your people? You won’t make this one small concession?”
Parsons held his hand up, clearly annoyed at the breach of protocol.
The fourth councilman, a younger fellow named Brad Case, spoke to Dante, “Hey, that was great what you did today. Thanks and all.”
Elizabeth Doss added, “But that has no bearing on our decisions. Besides, there are some of us who think-” she stopped, embarrassed.
Dante Jones finished for her, “Some of you think the Skip-Beetle was a sign. A sign Evan and me shouldn’t even be allowed here. Right?”
The council-which prided itself on rationale thought and well-considered procedures-refused to admit to any such thing.
“I can’t believe that,” Jones said. “It’s like you’re refusing to listen to reason because you’re too stubborn.”
“Mr. Jones,” Parsons wrapped things up. “I am sorry that we cannot end this on a mutually agreeable note. You must understand this is the life we’ve chosen. We have not traveled to Pennsylvania and asked you to change for us. This is our land. We ask you to leave it, and us, in peace.”
“That might not be possible,” Dante tried.
Evan put a hand on his shoulder to stop him and said, “I see your mind is made up. I will have to inform Trevor of your decision.”
“We understand, Mr. Godfrey. We wish you a safe journey home and we hope that we do not see one another again, unless you desire to come live with us.”
“Make no mistake,” Elizabeth Doss warned. “We will defend our borders. Tell that to your Emperor. If he decides to force the issue, human blood will be shed. Blood that will be on his hands.”
Dante glanced at Billy Ray Phelps who stood to the side of the chamber. The man enthusiastically nodded in agreement with Doss. Dante realized the man did not understand what he faced. On some level, Phelps must be entertaining a fantasy that determination and shotgun shells could hold off attack helicopters and tanks.
Of course, that assumed General Jerry Shepherd and his men would follow the order to fight their way through this town. Would Shep do that? Could his men shoot fellow human beings, or run people over with tanks?
Dante closed his eyes and shook his head. He saw no good outcome no matter which direction this went. And why? Because the leaders of New Winnabow were as stubborn and self-righteous as Trevor Stone.
Parsons dismissed the council and ended the discussion.
Dante turned to Evan. “We have to get back and tell Trevor we failed. These poor people put us in an awful position.”
“He is supposed to be a great leader,” Evan said as they stood in the emptying chambers. “He must find another way. He must.”
Dante insisted, “You heard what he said. He has no other choice. We had to convince these people of that. We failed.”
Evan noticed a man walked toward him, but doing so in very tentative steps. He recognized him as Gunther Faust, the older, German-accented councilman they met at dinner the night before.
“Please, may I have a word with you?” Gunther looked over his shoulder as if afraid someone might hear.
However, Doss and Parsons stood in the far corner discussing something with Phelps. Case, the other member of the council, had left the building.
Evan told Dante, “Why don’t I meet you back at the transport?”
Dante put a hand on Evan’s shoulder, “Remember what we just talked about, Evan. Remember.”
“I will.”
Dante left.
Gunther led Evan out a side exit. They found a quiet courtyard surrounded by flowers under a blue sky.
“Mr. Godfrey, do you know what I’ve been doing the last few years?”
“What is that?”
“I have been building this town. Brick by brick, layers of mortar upon layers of mortar. Concrete and stone… that’s what I have been doing.”
“You’re a mason,” Evan surmised. “Your work here is outstanding.”
Gunther appeared both angry and frightened.
“I do not want to see it smashed down! We have built more than buildings, this I know. But are our convictions so weak that they will not withstand the passing of your army? I find this something hard to believe.”
This confused Evan. He said, “I’m not following you, Mr. Faust. Your council spoke. It was a unanimous vote against allowing us to pass.”
“You are a political student, yes?”
Evan nodded. Certainly, Gunther understood that after the conversation of the night before.
“What we did…what would you call it? We presented a ‘united front,’ so to speak.”
“Ahhh, I get it. You agreed to vote with the others for the sake of appearance. But why? If you’re so afraid of what The Empire will do, why didn’t you vote to allow us through?”
Faust explained, “It was for Robert’s sake. He is a man of great convictions. This place…it means so much to him. And he is so certain…”
“So certain of what?” Evan leaned close.
“He met with this Trevor. Robert-forgive him-actually likes that young man. He thinks this Trevor is a person of honor. He thinks that if we show a united front that Trevor will not attack this city. Robert thinks that as long as we stick to our principles, Trevor will back down and go a different way. That is why he convinced us to vote with
