The Pure: Book Three of the Oz Chronicles

The Pure: Book Three of the Oz Chronicles by R.W. Ridley

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Authors: R.W. Ridley
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the middle of the field.
    “‘Let’s see, who shall we pair our
halfer friend with?’ “‘The big one,’ a member of the crowd shouted.
    “‘The girl,’ another one shouted.
    “‘Yeah, the girl,’ someone else
concurred.
    “Carl smiled. ‘Ladies first.’
    “One of our escorts shoved April toward
the halfer. I stepped forward but was immediately punched in the kidney, which
sent me to my knees.
    “April tried to step back a couple of
times, but each time she was pushed forward by one of the goons. Tank dropped
his head in shame. He was too afraid to do anything. Little Bobby paced
nervously. He tugged on Tank’s arm a few times trying to get him to help April,
but Tank only responded by pulling his arm away. I attempted to stand, but
couldn’t catch my breath from the kidney punch.
    “The halfer was poked repeatedly with
the pitch fork until it couldn’t take it anymore . It hobbled hurriedly and
wrapped its purple arm around April’s neck. She screamed bloody murder. Her
only defense was to bite it, but the ugly beast seemed to take joy in her
choice of defense. It picked her off the ground and tossed her aside with
little effort. April pleaded for help as she crawled away from the approaching
halfer. I stood despite my pain and turned to the punk who had punched me in
the kidneys. I motioned for him to come closer. He witlessly agreed. As he leaned
in to hear what I had to say, I gave him the same elbow to the mouth I had
given Carl the night before, betting that this crony wasn’t as tough as his
boss. As I expected, he tumbled to the ground. I took the opportunity to turn
and run out into the middle of the field. The crowd booed me. I helped April to
her feet and positioned her behind me. The halfer seemed tentative. It didn’t
know what to do. It clumsily lunged for us, but I gave it a light tap on the
shoulder and it fell in a heap to the ground. It’s impractical build of half-man
half-Délon obviously didn’t make it very fleet of foot. It made its way to its
knees and flailed wildly, grabbing for my feet, but I easily moved out of its
reach. The crowd grew more and more impatient at the creature’s ineptness and
my interference.
    “The creep I had knocked out with the
elbow to the face was coming too. Happily, I watched as Tank feigned helping
him up, but really struggled to keep him flat on his back. Our second escort
was too occupied with trying to get me off the field to notice. I was just
about ready to feel like we had won the day when I was faced with an unexpected
development. The halfer’s head was flattened like a pancake.
    “I saw the Bashir draw back its enormous
fist, its mouth open in a victory roar, strands of mucus stretching from pointy
tooth to pointy tooth creating a grotesque web.
    “‘My opponent, I presume,’ I said.
    “It didn’t answer. I wasn’t sure if
Bashirs could talk. They had a great reputation for smashing things. But they
were not known for their gift of gab. It raised both fists and brought them
down to the ground with an earth-shaking thud, leaving large dents in the hard
ground. The force of the blow knocked me back into April and we both stumbled
backward. The Bashir leaped forward and snapped its massive jaws. Its two huge
tusks stopped a whisker short of the monster’s black eyeballs when the mouth
clamped shut.
    “April screeched in my ear. The Bashir
recoiled slightly from her scream. It was a promising sign. I screamed, but it
had no effect. Maybe my voice was too deep. ‘Scream,” I said to April. She
processed the request for a second and then let out a bloodcurdling scream.
The Bashir cupped its massive hands over its ears. ‘Again,’ I said. She happily
complied. The Bashir stepped back. It was working. It was too perfect to be
true. ‘Keep it coming,’ I said, but this time she did not respond. I turned to
see goon number two muffling her screams with a meaty hand over her mouth.
    “I turned back just as the Bashir had
made up

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