One breath later, a massive bundle of brown fur fell from the air.
Animal.
My gate kept moving, missing the creature by inches, still rolling toward us. On the black sand, the animal lay still.
“You have to go back!” Charley cried. “You can make it!”
She yanked her hand away, and ran toward Rives. “Run!”
“Charley—” I started. The creature stirred, lifting its head and baring its teeth. My answer was wrong: it was a thing.
“RUN!” she screamed.
I spun around and sprinted back toward the gate, feeling like I was playing Nil’s sick version of Simon Says.Nil says catch the gate. Nil says run away. Run back.
The animal wobbled to its feet, swaying like a drunken boarder and grunting. It was a giant grizzly—and I was running right at him. The gate beckoned less than two meters away; the grizzly three. It was a catch-22, Nil style.
Oh, I didn’t say Nil says…
The outbound collapsed, dissolving into a shimmering black dot.
It was just me, Charley, Jason, Miya, and Rives, and one seriously pissed-off bear.
Nil says run away.
“Go!” I shouted as I turned back around. Five steps later Charley’s hand was in mine and I was pulling her, running, sprinting, holding her tight; it was amazing I hadn’t broken her fingers by now.
The grizzly roared; we had his full attention.
Flying as a group, we sprinted past the tubes, gaining distance with each step. We knew Nil, and the bear didn’t. He was also having problems with the sand, or maybe he was confused from his gate trip.
We hit the trees, Rives in the lead. The bear followed, swatting trees, roaring in frustration, and generally making enough racket to let us keep track of him. Running and cutting, we wove through the trees, toward the lava fields and away from the bear.
Eventually we lost the grumpy grizzly. After we hadn’t heard any roars in hours, I felt decently safe. We made camp, then I pulled Jason aside.
“You still have a spear?”
He nodded.
“Okay. Take Miya and head back to the City. Tell them about the grizzly. Let everybody know Nil has a new toy. And check the gliders. Make sure they’re reinforced before you go up, okay? Check every time. But don’t forget the grizzly.”
Jason looked at me. He knew what I was telling him. Guys suck at good-byes.
“They need to know,” I said, gripping his shoulder.
“You sure?” he asked, his face twisted with emotion.
“I’m sure.”
He stood there, then kicked a shell that wasn’t there. “This sucks.”
“Nil does,” I agreed. “But hey, if it weren’t for Nil, I’d never have had the chance to school you in the proper way to land a frontside air.”
Jason nodded. “Yeah. You did, man, you did. Hey”—he looked up at me—“when I make it home, I’ll look you up. You can teach me how to snowboard, and I’ll—I’ll”—Jason stumbled—“let you drive the tractor or something.”
I grinned. “Sounds like fun. I’ve never had the chance to drive a John Deere.”
“Kidde,” he said abruptly. Almost fiercely. “With twod’s and ane. That’s my last name.”
