The warlock insane by Christopher Stasheff Read Free Book Online Page B

"He cut me!"
    "A pinprick!" Rod snorted.
    "Understandable," Dexter said reluctantly, "but unnecessary. He's really quite harmless, though he is a bit of a bully."
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    "Bully? I am not! You take that back!"
    "Now, Sinister… you know you…"
    You'rethe one who's always picking on meV
    "I never!"
    "Oh, yeah? Then why won't yuh…"
    "They were improper in using force after the danger was past, true. Still, you must admit you…"
    "Lemme at 'em!"
    And Sinister hurtled toward the Rods again. Dexter dug in, of course, and the result was that Sinister slewed around in a circle, bawling and cursing at his better half— and around and around they went, churning like a pocket tornado, with roaring accusations underscored by firm, quiet counterstatements. Rod nudged the doppelganger and pointed down the trail in the direction in which they'd been going. The doppelganger nodded, and together, they inched away from the arguing heads, sidling farther away and more toward the side of the road, with Fess pacing them at a discreet distance. They almost made it into the thicket where the trail curved, but just before they reached the cover of the evergreens, Sinister looked up, saw how far they'd moved, let out a howl like a freight train whose cars had been kidnapped, and charged them.
    "Run!" Rod shouted, and did so. But he heard a roar of fury behind him and skidded to a stop behind two evergreens, turning to look, with the doppelganger right beside him. They had stopped too soon; Sinister was lunging toward them full-strength, with Dexter digging in his heels and pulling back—and their whole body pivoted, swinging around in a huge arc with Sinister's head at the end of it, jaws open wide, shooting right toward Rod.
    Rod still had his sword out. He brought it up to guard position—and the huge head flinched away, trying to avoid the blade. Sinister overbalanced, and the body stumbled forward a step; Sinister's head caught Rod side-on, slamming him head over heels into the fir tree.
    "Let that learn ya!" Sinister crowed. The effect was somewhat spoiled by the tremor in his voice, though, possibly occasioned by Fess leaping in between the creature and his masters with a screaming whinny, rearing back to lash out with his hooves. Sinister flinched away.
    Which was just as well, because Rod came scrambling back out of the fir tree with blood in his eye.
    "You chuckle-headed lumpish fugitive from an overloaded nightmare! You crumb! Of ill-digested cheese!
    You…"
    "Please!" Dexter protested, wounded. "I tried my best!"
    "Not you—your… Well, him!" Rod aimed his sword at Sinister, who flinched back. The doppelganger had his sword up, too, but gave Rod a knowing look and lowered his blade. Page 32
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    Reluctantly, so did Rod. Fess saw, and snorted as he stepped aside. That was all the opening Sinister needed. "Scared, huh?" he cried in glee, and leaped—or at least, the left-hand side of the body did. The right-hand side planted itself firmly—and the monster tripped over its own feet. Bellowing, it rolled heads over heels down the slope beside the trail, crashing through twigs and underbrush, and caroming off tree trunks.
    "The poor beast," Rod whispered.
    "Poor, my aunt Fanny!" his doppelganger snapped. "He's rubber—he bounces! Our job is to get out of here before Sinister manages to get his side moving enough to drag Dexter back up to the trail. Come on—run!"
    They stopped after a mile, staggering up against tree trunks and wheezing for breath. The chill winter air stabbed their lungs like tiny knives. Fess slowed and stopped behind them.
    "Must be getting—outa shape," Rod gasped. "A mile never did this to me… before."
    "Yeah, but this mile… was through foot-deep snow," the doppelganger answered.
    "I would have carried you, Rod," Fess reproached him.
    "I didn't want