32. Tempi

CHAPTER 32

TEMPI

T he animals all swarm after us, the zombie ones more ambling, leaving Pooh in the lead. He barrels through the forest as Midas and I run through the trees. Midas leaves a path of gold behind us where his ungloved hand brushes against the leaves and trees.

"Don't let them escape!" Christopher shouts in the distance.

I trip over a root in the ground, but Midas keeps me on my feet with his gloved hand as we run. The trees catch at my hair, ripping at it, but I push through. I'd rather the bites of pain than whatever fate awaits us at the hands of the massive bear roaring and running behind us.

"Come back!" Pooh shouts. "We won't hurt you! We can be friends!"

"This place is a nightmare," Midas grunts as we run.

"No shit!" I growl back.

We break through a tree line and slam to a stop just barely. Oh no. Oh no, no, no. There in front of us, blocking our path, is a zombie kangaroo. As we stare at it, a baby one appears in its pouch.

"We won't hurt you," the baby says. "Just hold still."

We turn to the right, but that way is blocked by a large rabbit. To the left, Piglet appears, standing serenely, watching us. Behind us, Pooh breaks through the trees and ambles to a stop.

"Stop running," he coos. "You're only making it harder on yourself."

I pick up a large stick on the ground and hold it aloft. "We aren't food."

"Everything is food," the rabbit says. "Even us."

Wow. That's really fucking sad and creepy at the same time. I don't know how to handle this shit, but the best I can do is survive. It's too late to help these creatures.

Christopher Robin appears before us, as if he circled around, or we ran in circles. Either way, he moves with an unnatural lop that tells me he's not a normal child.

"Get the big one first, Pooh," he tells the bear behind us.

I scream and swing my stick just as all the animals lunge at us. My stick connects with the rabbit and throws it backwards. A piece of it peels off on my stick and I fight the urge to gag. Midas swings his hand around and touches the bear, but it doesn't stop Pooh as gold starts to spread from his nose down his body. The bear still roars and knocks Midas onto his back, snapping its jaws at him. Midas just barely holds him back.

"Why isn't your power working?" I ask, panicked. Pooh should be a statue right now. While he's now golden, he's not frozen. He's just a giant golden bear now.

"I don't know!" Midas growls. "Watch out!"

I swing my stick toward the baby kangaroo as it lunges for me. It's head comes clean off but that doesn't stop the body from still ambling after me.

Midas manages to get out from under the bear somehow and is punching it now, as if that's going to do anything. The sound of whooshing reaches my ears and I almost sigh in relief. Gracias Dios!

"A portal! Midas, a portal is opening!" I shout.

He jerks backward away from the bear and rushes toward me as a portal opens up.

"Don't let them get away!" Christopher shouts.

The tiger lunges for me and Midas tries to jerk me backward. The tiger runs into his golden hand and shoves it over, against me, as we collapse into a tumbling mess of rot and flesh. Gore goes all over me, and I gag just as the portal catches us in its gravity and pulls us backward violently. The tiger falls away and the Hundred Acre Wood disappears from our view.

We crash land into another world just as my shoulder starts to go numb. I'm panting and trying to catch my bearings when the numbness grows more insistent. I'm lying on the ground, Midas panting beside me, both of us trying to calm down. I glance over at my shoulder, wondering if I got clawed by the tiger or something, only to see gold.

I sit up, panicked. "Midas!" I cry, brushing at the color as it starts to slowly climb along my arm and collarbone.

Midas jerks up at my tone and looks over at me, worried. When he sees what I'm staring at, his face twists with horror.

"Midas," I rasp, looking at him, horrified. "What have you done ?"