Mr. Dove and the Pipes of Creation - The Final Chapters

[Jock Scot]

I will just finish this pot of tea and then, I will pop along to give you a hand if needs be.

[davedove]

Scene 94

“Are we safe in the digger, Professor?” Lady Dove asked.

The Professor shook his head. “No, the infantry troops aren’t a problem. As long as the just have firearms, the bullets won’t penetrate our hull.”

“But the tanks?”

“The guns on those tanks can penetrate the hull or they could easily blow the tracks loose and stop our movement. The tanks are a problem!”

Lady Dove quickly gave orders. “Doc, Wrecker, we need to get through those tanks!”

The two moved towards the hatch and she turned back to the Professor. “Professor, slow down so the Wrecker can get in front of us. He needs some running room.”

As the Professor adjusted the controls, we watched the screen. Soon, Doc Rocket could be seen flying overhead, firing rockets at the approaching tanks.

Then we could see The Wrecker running in front of us, gaining speed. A tank had stopped directly in front of us and was aiming its turret right at the digger. The Wrecker simply ducked his head and plowed straight into the tank, almost casually flipping it aside. He recovered his balance and began running to the next tank, trying to make a path for us.

Meanwhile, we could hear the sound of bullets hitting the hull of the digger, the noise nearly deafening us. On the screen, Doc Rocket fired a rocket at an approaching tank, knocking off its tread.

But then a stray round must have hit his rocket pack, as we saw him careen towards the ground with black smoke billowing behind him.

“Doc’s been hit!” Lady Dove called out.

“We’re on it!” the Shadow Avenger responded. He and the Scarlet Fist ran to the hatch.

Ahead, we could see The Wrecker had shouldered another tank away, leaving a clear path.

“There!” Lady Dove pointed to the screen. “Get us through that, Professor!”

The Professor pushed the throttle fully down and the digger practically leaped in response.

On the screen, however, I saw a horrible sight. After hitting the tank, while The Wrecker recovered, another tank had turned its turret towards him and fired. The shell exploded right next to him and the big man flew back with the blast.

“Mike!” I gasped.

As we watched, we could see the big man stir, but he seemed unable to rise from the ground. Storm troopers were quickly moving in his direction.

Lady Dove started to move towards the hatch. “Professor, keep this thing moving.”

I started to follow her to the hatch, but she stopped me. “No, your mission is to get to that island! The rest of you stay in the digger and complete the mission! I will get to The Wrecker and you will get to that fortress. Finish this!”

I stood in stunned silence before finally stammering out, “Good Luck.”

She smiled, winked, and then quickly climbed out of the hatch.

[davedove]

Scene 95

The Professor deftly maneuvered the digger through the gap in the line of tanks and it continued to speed towards our destination.

Just when we thought we were in the clear, the digger was hit with several high-speed bullets. Some ricocheted harmlessly off the metal plates, but a few managed to punch through.

“We’re under fire!” the Professor yelled out.

“Where’s it coming from?” I asked.

“There,” he said, pointing to the viewscreen. As we watched a small fighter aircraft passed over us. It began to bank as we watched.

“It’s coming back!” I warned.

“I see that! We can’t get away from that thing and, as you’ve noticed, it’s rounds can penetrate our hull.”

“What do we do?”

“Try to avoid it as best we can, unless you have a better idea.”

An idea did come to me. “Professor, are there any weapons on board?”

He gestured toward the hatch. “Over there, in that cabinet.”

“Keep us moving!” I said as I rushed over to the indicated cabinet. I threw open the door and looked over the inventory. I quickly passed over the pistols and grabbed one of the submachine guns, along with a couple of spare drum magazines. A quick check told me the drums were all fully loaded.

“Professor do your best! Everyone else, keep your head down!”

I climbed the ladder and opened the hatch. Looking to the sky I spotted the plane, which was now again headed straight for us. As it neared, its guns started firing and I saw the rounds strike the ground in a double set of lines leading right to the digger.

I made readied my gun and began firing, trying my best to control it enough that the rounds intercepted the path of the fighter.

I quickly emptied the magazine and ducked as the fighter’s rounds again peppered the digger. Again, some bounced off the digger’s metal plating, but I heard several hitting inside.

I ducked down and struggle to quickly change a loaded drum into the gun. As I raised my head to see, I noticed that the digger was headed straight towards a bridge that crossed a deep chasm. Looking back, I could see that the tanks had regrouped and were chasing us.

And in the air, the plane had again circled back for another pass.

I readied myself and began firing as the plane approached. As the plane’s guns again began to fire, I did my best to hit the aircraft. The plane’s rounds again struck the digger, hitting all around me, but I kept firing as the plane passed over head.

Whether it was skill, desperation, or just dumb luck, this time I managed to hit the plane and smoke began to stream from its fuselage. It banked and its pilot did his best to fly away.

I quickly slid back down into the digger. “Professor, I did it! You need to get us over that bridge.”

The Professor maneuvered a few levers and we kept moving to the bridge. The vehicle pulled onto the bridge, but suddenly swerved to one side. The digger struck the support railings and
one of its tracks slipped over the edge. The digger came to an abrupt halt and I had to catch myself to keep from falling.

“Professor, what are you doing?” I called out but stopped when I heard him groan and saw his knees buckle, causing him to fall to the floor.

I quickly rushed to his side and lifted him. I jerked my hand back when I felt the warm liquid and looked to see it was covered in blood.

“Professor!”

“One of the rounds penetrated the hull,” he choked out. “I wasn’t so lucky this time.”

“Can we get the digger moving?”

He shook his head. “The track’s off the edge and there’s no way we can lift it back. The digger’s not going anywhere.”

“We have to get out of here then. The tanks are right behind us!”

Again, he shook his head. “No, I’m not going anywhere either.”

“We can’t leave you here!”

“You have to. I don’t have much time left.” He closed his eyes briefly and then opened them to look right at me. “I have one more trick to slow down the tanks. You need to get out of here. Complete your mission!”

“But Professor.”

“Go!” he ordered. “If you don’t get through, everything we’ve done is wasted. Don’t waste it!”

Although I hated the situation, he was right. I eased him back to the floor.

“Come on. We have to get out of here.”

My last two companions joined me as I headed for the hatch. As we hurried to climb down to the bridge, we saw the enemy tanks getting closer.

“Hurry, we have to get off this bridge!”



The Professor watched as the three men climbed out of the hatch and then painfully pulled himself up. He adjusted the viewscreen to watch as they ran towards the far end of the bridge.

He then flipped a switch and the view changed to look behind the digger.

The tanks had just begun to pull onto the bridge. His friends would never be able to escape them on foot, so he had to perform one last action.

He kept his eyes on the viewscreen as he pulled himself to the far end of the console. He began flipping different switched and turned several valves.

As he watched several tanks had pulled onto the bridge and he knew they would soon overtake his position to chase down his friends.

He grimaced as he reached up to place his hand on the red lever. Closing his eyes, he said a small prayer and then pulled down the lever.



I stumbled as the force of the explosion shook the bridge. We all looked back and saw the far half of the bridge collapse, taking the digger and several of the tanks with it, and fall into the chasm below.

[davedove]

Scene 96

The three of us moved as quickly as we could in the direction of the lake, the rocky terrain soon becoming tree covered. Clouds covered the sky, turning the day to twilight.

The road we were following shrank to become a well-worn path, winding through the trees, slowing our speed to a fast walk.

“David, the darkness is closing around us,” Gerald warned.

“What does that mean?” James asked.

“Enemies approach.”

I looked around. Shadows were moving through the trees all around us.

“Come on! We need to keep moving!” I ordered.

Everything grew darker around us as we now ran through the trees, branches whipping across us.

Suddenly, a large shadow swooped down towards me. Whatever it was would have hit me if Gerald’s clawed hand had not caught it first.

More shadows began to swoop down on us. Soon Gerald could not keep up with all of them and their cold talons left gashes on our arms as we tried to fend them off.

James tripped over a root and the shadows took the opportunity to swarm him. Other shadows swarmed around both Gerald and me.

And then relief came. Two figures walked towards us, each holding a cross before them. The shadows recoiled from the two men.

The men quickly took positions on either side of our group, holding the shadows at bay.

I immediately recognized Father Trefor. The other man could only be my double, even though his weathered face was adorned with an exceptional handlebar mustache.

“It looks like we got here just in time!” Father Trefor declared.

I helped James regain his feet. “And we’re glad you showed up. Gentlemen, we need to get to the lake.”

“We surmised as much. By the way, Mr. Dove, this is Father David, but I suspect you knew that.”

“Yeah, I kind of figured it was. I’ve been meeting a number of my other-worldly siblings. Of course, you know Gerald, but this is James.”

Father David nodded in greeting. “If the introductions are complete, we really should get moving. There is no telling what other forces may be coming.

[davedove]

Scene 97

As we hurried in the direction of the lake, the trees began to thin, but the terrain became rougher, with large outcroppings of rock channeling our progress.

The two priests kept the creatures of the shadows at bay, but their attacks served to slow us even more.

Then we heard the howls.

“What’s that?” James asked, the fear obvious on his face.

Father David glanced quickly at Father Trefor, who listened carefully before nodding. “I’m afraid it is not good news. Those are werewolves.”

I listened more closely. “They’re in front of us.”

Father David nodded. “They seek to block our path.” New howls came from behind us. “And any retreat, as well.”

“Can you keep them back?” I asked.

Father Trefor shook his head. “No, they are cursed humans, not creatures of necromancy.”

“What does that mean?”

Father David looked worried. “It means that we need other tools to stop them, tools we do not have. We can only hope to avoid them.”

“How, they’re blocking our path.”

“Indeed, they are.” He quickly looked around for another path and then pointed to our right. “There, we can go that way.”

We all moved in the direction he indicated. The path took us over the rocks and through narrow passes. Even moving as quickly as we could, the howls were coming closer.

We passed through a narrow gap and the terrain opened up in front of us. The lake could be seen ahead. Unfortunately, it sounded as though the wolves were almost upon us.

Looking back, I could see that Gerald had stopped and turned around. I stopped as well and called back to him. “Gerald, come on! We’ll be there soon!”

“Keep moving!” he answered. “We can’t outrun them. You’re only hope is if I face them.”

“Gerald, there are too many! You can’t stop them all!” Father David told him.

Gerald took a deep breath, as if readying himself. “If I meet them at the gap, only a few at a time can attack me.” He paused for a moment. “And I release the beast.”

“Gerald, no!” Father Trefor cried with horror.

“I have to Father. It’s the only way David can continue. He has to succeed.”

“But Gerald,” Father Trefor started, but Gerald cut him off.

“Get him out of here, David! Once I release the beast, I may not be able to control it. You’re all in danger if stay here.”

We grabbed Father Trefor, but he resisted. “Gerald!” he pleaded.

Gerald looked back at him and we could see the tears in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Father. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me.” The young man started to transform, but this time he continued to grow, far beyond his normal dog form, beyond that of a wolf, until he was the size of a large bear.

“Go!” he commanded, and we could see him struggling to maintain control.

[davedove]

Scene 98

We left the sounds of animalistic slaughter behind us and moved as quickly as we could in the direction of the lake. As we crested the hill, we were brought up short by the scene before us.

The valley that we had to cross was filled with creatures, all of them walking on two feet like a man, but far from human. These were creatures that could only be described as lizard men.

“What are those!” James choked out.

“They look like something from a movie, something evolved on another world,” I answered.

“How will we get through them?” Father David asked. “There are too many.”

“And too far to go around,” I replied. “There must be hundreds of them.”

“So, we give up?” James asked.

“We can’t! Too much depends on this. Too many people have sacrificed everything to get us here. We have to get through them somehow.”

At that moment, the sound of a horn being blown drew our attention. On the hills around us, hundreds of men suddenly stood. These men were all primitive in appearance, almost bestial, and they all were wielding spears and clubs.

“Where did they come from?” asked Father David.

“A friend,” I replied and pointed to the central figure. There, riding atop what could only be described as a triceratops, was Ron, blowing his horn and holding his spear high above his head.
Ron blew the horn again and thrust his spear forward. As one, the horde of men charged down the hillside toward the lizard men.

The two forces met in bloody combat, both men and lizard men fighting, killing, and dying.

But as we watched, it became apparent that the men were directing the battle, forcing the lizard men to part.

“There, that’s our route!” I said. “Let’s go!”

But as we started, Father Trefor held back.

I turned back to him. “Trefor?”

The priest shook his head. “I can’t go with you, David. I have to go back.”

“What do you mean? You know what Gerald said. He won’t be able to control himself.”

“I have to try, David. I’ve watched him for years, helped him through his struggles. He’s like a son to me, David. I can’t abandon him now, just when he needs me most!”

“Trefor, I can’t just…”

“David, I have to! You have your mission. Go! Complete it. Save the worlds, all of them. I will just slow you down. But I can help him. I have to do this! I have to try to save a young man’s soul.”

“But Trefor, it’s too dangerous to go alone!”

Father David interrupted. “He won’t be alone!” When we turned to look at him, he continued. “What about it, old friend? We do this together, just like the old times.”

“There’s no one I would rather have at my side, my friend. Thank you,” said Trefor.

Father David turned back to me. “Go, David. Your friend has made a path for you. May God be with you, my brother.”

I looked back and forth between the two men and then nodded. “God be with you too. Come on. James! We have a mission to complete.”

[davedove]

Scene 99

We ran down the path that Ron and his forces had cleared for us. Occasionally a lizard man would move to attack us, only to be blocked by one of the wild men helping us. The battle was brutal and bloody, but we passed through unharmed.

Cresting the hill, we stopped short as we saw another group of lizard men ahead of us. Over a hundred of the creatures blocked our path and were heading our way.

James and I frantically looked for an escape route, when suddenly the escape came to us.

Sounds of gunfire and energy weapons erupted from behind the lizard men, who turned to face the new threat. Some of them rushed to attack the new danger, only to be cut down by the devastating weapons.

A small group of men rushed to us and the leader greeted us in his French accent. “Mr. Dove, good, we got to you!” Robert proclaimed. “Hurry! We must get you to the Lady Chrystel! She waits for us at the shore. Where are the rest of your group?”

He must have seen my sad expression. “I’m sorry,” he said, “but we have no time to mourn now. We must hurry!”

We let Robert and his men lead us down the hill and across the beach. There, at a small dock, was his ship.

“On board, quickly!” he ordered. “The forces of the Inquisition are on their way. We must get you across the lake!”

[Pleater]

Zounds - and gadzooks.
The bounder!

[davedove]

Scene 104

My mind raced as I tried to think my way out of this situation. I had been so accepting of the people that the Pleaters had sent to help me, that I had completely failed to notice a plant in my ranks.

James led the way as the guards took me through the hallways, deeper into the castle of the Emperor of the North.

“What are you going to do with me?” I asked him.

“That is up to the Emperor. The Chancellor just wanted to have you eliminated, but I convinced the Emperor that I could bring you to him.” He chuckled. “The Emperor was intrigued with the man who was causing him so much trouble, escaping all the traps that had been set.”

“I didn’t do it alone.”

“Oh, no, you had a lot of help. I don’t know how you convinced so many to follow you on such an insane quest, but it did make my infiltration so much easier.”

“No more insane than the Emperor’s quest to destroy all the worlds of existence.”

“Oh, you just do not understand. We are not destroying them. The Emperor is making them better, perfect!”

I shook my head in resignation. Obviously, James was part of the delusion and couldn’t be convinced otherwise.

As we walked, the hallways had become more well-kept, more ornate. We were obviously getting closer to our destination.

We approached a large, secure-looking door, with too large, very alert, very well-armed guards outside.

“Inform the Emperor that I have brought him Mr. Dove,” James told the guards. “He has been expecting us.”

“Yes, Minister!” the guard barked out and then turned to step inside the door.

After only a few moments, he returned. “The Emperor is ready to receive you.”

James entered the room and the guards led me in after him.

“Emperor,” James declared, “I have brought you the man known as Mr. Dove!”

“Yes, I can see,” said a very familiar voice. “Bring him closer.”

After all I had seen recently, I should have expected something like this, but it still took me by surprise. The voice was so familiar, because it came from a very familiar person. Although the face was a bit younger and more weather-worn, it was a face I had seen many times before.

It was a face I saw every time I looked into a mirror.

“Hello, brother,” the Emperor of the North said to me.

[davedove]

I'm going to try to get the rest soon. I've been getting distracted too much.

Scene 105

“So,” he said, “You’re the one who has been causing my troops so much trouble.”

“I wish I didn’t have to. Your troops are making a real mess of things.”

“A mess? Why, Mr. Dove, or may I call you David?”

“David is fine.”

“David,” he nodded. “And you may call me Daffyd. Since we are brothers, of a sort, we should be on familiar terms.”

“If you wish.”

He smiled. “David, what you call a mess is temporary. I am remaking all the worlds, refining them, making them better.”

“How is what’s going on making things better?”

“There is so much pain in the world, my brother, all the worlds. I want to take that all away.”

“By destroying everything?”

Another voice came from the shadows, a somewhat familiar voice. “He just doesn’t understand, my Emperor. He is too short-sighted. He thinks too small.”

Daffyd chuckled. “Step out so he can see you Chancellor.”

The man stepped from the shadows until I could see his features. The features were very familiar and I quickly figured out who he was.

“You’re one of the Pleaters,” I said.

The Chancellor smiled. “Indeed, I am Mr. Dove.”