“Donut,” I croaked.
Donut, who’d just received the spell from herBanquet Fit for a Princessbook, castTemporary Macaroni.
Ahead, an absolutelymassivechunk of pasta appeared. The oblong tube had to be fifteen feet tall and twenty feet wide. I wasn’t sure how long it was, but it appeared in front of us like the opening of a highway tunnel. The spell cast at level 14 but was enhanced to 15. At that level, Donut could choose the size, shape, and direction of the giant tube of pasta. She chose uncooked, dried cannelloni. The spell only cost ten mana to cast, and she could chain it, which is what she did now, creating a tunnel of giant tubes.
The pasta was at least a foot thick, making it pretty strong. Strong enough to keep from breaking when the skulls rained on it, and strong enough to block the ones coming up from the ground. I hoped.
“I’m sliding in!” Gluteus foamed. We bumped heavily into the tube. Ahead, another tunnel appeared, then another. Donut was rigid as she focused straight ahead, chaining the spell. Still, there was space between each giant tube, and in those breaks, the sugar hermits surged.
A skull was suddenly in the cab, having come in through the missing windshield, and I punched it with my gauntlet. It exploded, but when I pulled my fist back, the purple thing living inside the skull was still attached to the gauntlet. It started to slither, octopus-like, around the metal fist, moving toward my arm. I castBang Bro, which electrified the weapon, and the creature dropped off, dead and sizzling.
Jasha: I see the tunnel! Going in now! Dominators are following you, and we’ll be right behind!
Carl: Chiyome, make sure you veer to the far-right side of the track, or you might miss it!
Warning: You may not message deceased NPCs.
The Wild Hunt have been eliminated due to the death of all team members. Six teams remain in the current heat.
“Oh, fuck!” I cried. More of the skulls attacked, and I smashed them all. Above, I could hear the ghoul struggling. I smashed another skull.
The Scavenger’s Daughter has been fed. Unleash her wrath.
Shit.I’d need to activate it before we finished, or I’d be stuck with it for however long it took until the next race.
The Jugglers have been eliminated due to the death of all team members. Five teams remain in the current heat.
“No, no, no,” I said, turning to look behind me, as if I could actually see them. The Lady Dominators remained right on our ass.Goddamnit.
There was another thump from the roof. I reached up to grab the ghoul’s legs to drag him back inside, but when I pulled, his head didn’t come with him. A skull thing chittered happily from the roof as it jumped off, the ghoul’s head in tow.
Warning: Another one of your hired mercenaries has died! I hope you offer workman’s comp.
“Almost there!” Donut shouted. “RecastingShield— Ahhh!”
The large skull of some orc-like creature crashed through the front and wrapped itself around Donut’s face like one of those facehuggers from theAlienmovies. Before anyone could react, multiple arms appeared from the car seat and violently ripped the thing off of her. The skull and creature within were torn to shreds.
“Thank you, Dorota,” Donut sputtered.
Ahead, the end of the tunnel loomed. All I could see was the blue of the beetle-skull thing. Already, it teemed with sugar hermits who didn’t appear to know what to do now that they’dfinally reached their target. They swarmed over it like fleas on a dog.
My foot buff had run out, so my feet weren’t protected. Still...
“Donut, forget the magic missile! Tighten the shield around yourself and Gluteus. Everyone, hold on!”
The truck lurched as it veered, and the now-empty passenger’s-side cage clipped the edge of the pasta wall. The whole truck wobbled ominously as we exited the last pasta tube.
“Hold it steady!” I shouted, turning to Gluteus, only to see him unconscious and slumped against the wheel, a line of foam dripping from his mouth. Ahead, the skull, followed by the finish line, loomed.
“Fuck!”
I didn’t think. I reached over and grabbed the steering wheel. There was a chime. “Donut, hit the accelerator and don’t let go!”
Donut again struggled to get out of the car seat, but it held her tight. She didn’t hesitate. She used her claws and ripped free, shredding the belt. She jumped down between the legs of the unconscious Gluteus. She slammed her paws on the accelerator. This was followed by a second chime.
The GTO’s engine roared as they emerged from the tunnel behind us. They surged forward, moving to our right, hugging the edge of the road as they started to pass.
With one hand still on the steering wheel, I pulled myself out the windshield and lay across the hood of the truck on my back, feet hanging off the front just in front of the headlamps. I reached over my shoulders and awkwardly held on to the steering wheel with my second hand.