The Scavenger continued, “This goody bag was given to me by Ms Hilary. Apart from various weapons and technical gadgets that it contains, it has one significant thing which could be a game-changer for us.”
The Scavenger took out an armour from the goody bag and kept it on the table. “This is the thing.”
“What? Just an armour?” Daniel asked.
“I was also thinking the same way. But I was taken aback when Ms Hilary showed me how it worked. It is something I have never heard of or imagined. I must admit that humans are geniuses.”
“Thanks for acknowledging the fact. Would you now please take the trouble to explain what this armour is all about?” James said to the Scavenger.
“Okay. First of all. It is called the FLICK – Flying Lightweight Invisible Camouflaged Kernel. Let me show you. Just close your eyes and count till ten.” The Scavenger stood up.
Everyone closed their eyes and counted ten in reverse... 5...4... 3... 2...1 and...
They opened their eyes. The Scavenger had vanished.
Suddenly, the Scavenger appeared with the FLICK worn around him. “Now you get it. It is not a simple armour but also a cloak of invisibility. Isn’t that genius?”
“Oh my goodness!” James exclaimed. “You are right. It can turn out to be a game-changer.”
The Scavenger continued, “But it has a small disadvantage. It can’t keep us invisible beyond five minutes as its battery drains away. It takes another half an hour to charge it again. But the FLICK is the only thing that gives us a substantial edge over Osay. In all other ways, Osay will defeat us hands down.
“I plan to use the FLICK and go inside the Cotton Village Library alone. Don’t worry. I won’t attack Osay or anything like that. It will be a silent mission.”
Everyone was listening in rapt attention.
The Scavenger divulged further details of his plan. “Once I am inside the Library, I will locate the Book. I will use the FLICK’s invisibility circuit as well as its camouflaging properties.
“I will go to where the ‘Book of the Universe’ is kept. It is the most important area for Osay, and he must have ensured everything possible to guard it well. I don’t know what will be the final situation that I will face, but I plan to just open the Book, summon the two Pages of Destiny from the Magic Compartment, place them inside in appropriate places and close the Book. It will then open the dimension. When Matt and the Skull Warrior get pushed out, I will push the Skull Warrior back into the dimension, using the Slayer, and tear away the Pages of Destiny. The dimension will close forever, consuming the Skull Warrior. Bravo.”
The children and Pyros were in a state of shock and they stared at the Scavenger in amazement. No one spoke for a while.
James broke the silence. “The plan seems to be perfect on paper. But, alas, it won’t work that way. First of all, Osay is not stupid. Osay must have prepared for this eventuality. Second, it all appears too ideal that you could single-handedly take out Matt, use the Slayer to push the Skull Warrior back, tear off the Pages of Destiny and close the dimension. Unbelievable. It is just too simplistic. You need at least three people to do all these tasks simultaneously. Moreover, let me remind you that the FLICK cannot make you always invisible. What if the battery drains in front of the guards? Nope, the plan is dangerously flawed.”
“James is right. The plan is not practical,” Pyros said.
The Scavenger stood up. “No further discussions. The plan is final.”
Pyros was frustrated by the Scavenger’s stubbornness. “Listen, be practical. The stakes are just too high to take such uncalculated risks. If something goes wrong, the entire mission will blow off, and we will never be able to retrieve Matt from the dimension.”
The Scavenger shook his head. “I am speaking with a heavy sense of responsibility. And I understand the high stakes. I am not taking such a risk for the first time. I have successfully broken into many kingdoms. If all goes well, I’ll be in and out the Library with Matt without any commotion. It’s MY battle now, and I will win it for Matt and every one of us.”
“IT’S NOT YOUR BATTLE!” James almost shrieked. He calmed himself, taking a deep breath. “It’s our battle. And we can’t allow you to blow it off like this.”
Seeing the discussions taking an adverse turn, Pyros intervened. “Listen guys. I suggest we not discuss this further till we reach the outskirts of Cotton Village. Let’s take small steps at a time.”
Everyone seemed to agree. They dispersed to the cabins to rest.
A few hours later, they halted five miles away from the village on a small hillock inside the forest. Using long-range binoculars, they saw signs of bustling activity inside Cotton Village.
They parked the chariot on the hillock. The Scavenger took out a cloth from the Bag of Goodies and threw it over the chariot. The cloth expanded to cover the chariot within it. The colour of the cloth turned green to camouflage the chariot within the forest surroundings.
The Scavenger turned to Pyros. “You stay here with the children. I will go and scout the area.”
Archer shook his head. “You aren’t going anywhere. I can sense you will go inside the Library and attack Osay. No, we will come along.”
James and Daniel nodded firmly, backing Archer.
“It’s getting too much now,” the Scavenger said in exasperation. “How can we plan an attack without a survey? If you come along, a group of five, or even four, can be easily spotted. Osay will just kidnap us all and we will be doomed.”
“The Scavenger is right,” Pyros intervened. He said to the Scavenger, “Look here, you need to respect our apprehensions. Please don’t just brush them aside. Give us some assurance.
