can fix that. You've got shotgun," Sgt Cooper finished. The guys stowed two of my duffels on the floor of the back seat, and strapped the third one on to the middle seat with a seatbelt before taking the two window seats. Middleton slid behind the wheel, and I buckled up, wishing I was in a more secure seatbelt, perhaps one with five points rather than three.
"There are a few things you should know," Middleton said.
"Such as?"
"So far the T-Rex has stomped and smashed its way through half the town. It's blocking the best access to the hospital." He paused as he flung the truck around another corner. I grabbed the side of my seat with my left hand as my right hand found the grab handle over the window. Luckily, I didn't break my wand.
Middleton continued, "We haven't found a gun that can injure the dino. It seems to be magical, and they're evacuating the town. There are city police, county police, state patrol, Rangers, National Guard, a few Army Reserves, and civilians working to contain and clean up this mess. The Rangers had two witches, both of whom said they could feel the magic, but they didn't know enough to attempt anything. They said their specialties were healing and scrying. The hedge-wizard said he felt more than one spell."
We slipped around another corner, giving me a view of something purple waving around.
"Oh, and it's pink and purple." Middleton finished.
"So I've been told."
The T-Rex was huge, maybe larger than I'd been warned. It focused its destructive nature on the gas station, shredding what remained of the roof over the pumps. It alternated between chomping, and bashing portions of the structure with its powerful head. The body of the T-Rex was purple with hot pink stripes starting along its spine and diminishing as they reached its belly.
The car slid to a stop, but I was too distracted by the dinosaur to move.
"Come on! There are people who need to talk to you." Sgt Cooper pulled me out of the truck, and over to a group of people hiding between the cars. I kept my wand in hand. It was easier to cast spells with the wand focusing the power, and I had a feeling my power was going to need as much help as it could get. Larger objects, or spells, required a larger energy input, and I had a limited supply of energy.
"Michelle, you're here." Hal King was a good ol' country boy. He was wearing his usual work boots, jeans, a tan jacket, and a battered baseball hat with a police logo. Hal usually chewed tobacco and his back right pants pocket had a white ring proclaiming where the chew lived. He pulled me into the group, leaving the guys who'd picked me up from the helicopter to huddle around the outside of the ring.
A map of the town sat on the trunk of a police car. Red X's covered a section of the map. Hal pointed at a spot north of town, along Highway Nine. "We think the T-Rex came from somewhere in this area. There were reports of it moving down the road and through some residential areas. The first place it did real damage was in the Wal-Mart shopping area. Most of the shops are destroyed, and the Wal-Mart is missing walls and some of it's roof. We've got crews over there trying to rescue people." His finger tracked the areas the dinosaur had destroyed, and the areas emergency crews were working. "It kept going down Hwy. 9, trashing the Chick-fil-A, Zaxby's, Wendy's, Captain D's, a few apartments, and the Taco Bell. Thank God it skipped down town and Emergency Services. Since it's blocking the road to the hospital, everyone is being treated at the nursing school right now. We're trying to figure out how to evacuate the hospital if we can't stop it before it goes in that direction, but we don't know where to put the people. We need to keep it away from the town, contain it, and figure out how to kill it."
Everyone looked at me. Behind the determination and tears, I saw hope. They thought I could fix this problem. I swallowed, feeling nauseous. "I need every witch and
"There are a few things you should know," Middleton said.
"Such as?"
"So far the T-Rex has stomped and smashed its way through half the town. It's blocking the best access to the hospital." He paused as he flung the truck around another corner. I grabbed the side of my seat with my left hand as my right hand found the grab handle over the window. Luckily, I didn't break my wand.
Middleton continued, "We haven't found a gun that can injure the dino. It seems to be magical, and they're evacuating the town. There are city police, county police, state patrol, Rangers, National Guard, a few Army Reserves, and civilians working to contain and clean up this mess. The Rangers had two witches, both of whom said they could feel the magic, but they didn't know enough to attempt anything. They said their specialties were healing and scrying. The hedge-wizard said he felt more than one spell."
We slipped around another corner, giving me a view of something purple waving around.
"Oh, and it's pink and purple." Middleton finished.
"So I've been told."
The T-Rex was huge, maybe larger than I'd been warned. It focused its destructive nature on the gas station, shredding what remained of the roof over the pumps. It alternated between chomping, and bashing portions of the structure with its powerful head. The body of the T-Rex was purple with hot pink stripes starting along its spine and diminishing as they reached its belly.
The car slid to a stop, but I was too distracted by the dinosaur to move.
"Come on! There are people who need to talk to you." Sgt Cooper pulled me out of the truck, and over to a group of people hiding between the cars. I kept my wand in hand. It was easier to cast spells with the wand focusing the power, and I had a feeling my power was going to need as much help as it could get. Larger objects, or spells, required a larger energy input, and I had a limited supply of energy.
"Michelle, you're here." Hal King was a good ol' country boy. He was wearing his usual work boots, jeans, a tan jacket, and a battered baseball hat with a police logo. Hal usually chewed tobacco and his back right pants pocket had a white ring proclaiming where the chew lived. He pulled me into the group, leaving the guys who'd picked me up from the helicopter to huddle around the outside of the ring.
A map of the town sat on the trunk of a police car. Red X's covered a section of the map. Hal pointed at a spot north of town, along Highway Nine. "We think the T-Rex came from somewhere in this area. There were reports of it moving down the road and through some residential areas. The first place it did real damage was in the Wal-Mart shopping area. Most of the shops are destroyed, and the Wal-Mart is missing walls and some of it's roof. We've got crews over there trying to rescue people." His finger tracked the areas the dinosaur had destroyed, and the areas emergency crews were working. "It kept going down Hwy. 9, trashing the Chick-fil-A, Zaxby's, Wendy's, Captain D's, a few apartments, and the Taco Bell. Thank God it skipped down town and Emergency Services. Since it's blocking the road to the hospital, everyone is being treated at the nursing school right now. We're trying to figure out how to evacuate the hospital if we can't stop it before it goes in that direction, but we don't know where to put the people. We need to keep it away from the town, contain it, and figure out how to kill it."
Everyone looked at me. Behind the determination and tears, I saw hope. They thought I could fix this problem. I swallowed, feeling nauseous. "I need every witch and
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