Monster School

10 - GO

Vasuda

It felt like a betrayal.

Someone was an arsonist, and the proof was visible from everywhere in the hangar.

The Monsters had been basically good to them. They were only trying to keep the children safe, not imprisoned.

The fire blazed high, filling the hangar with smoke.

It wasn't a prison, and they weren't escaping. What they were doing was giving up the protection that they had enjoyed up to now.

The fire reached high, casting grotesque shadows on every surface.

She would just have to get used to it. It was not actually a betrayal. They were only escaping because, at least ostensibly, the so-called War party wanted to help. While Vasuda was not not fully convinced of this, for her part she wanted to help.

She wanted to help the children to stay out of trouble, to help herself to understand the situation more fully, and perhaps to see how peace might be achieved.

The hangar doors began to open.

The children instinctively began to head for the doors, even those who were not involved with or aware of the war party.

The light from the fire flickered beautifully over the things and people in the hangar. Vasuda wished they could have this kind of light more often, and without the risk of burning the place down. She might look into the idea of having regular campfires when — and if — she got back.

As before, the Monsters entered the hangar, carrying their tanks of fire- and substance-eating foam. As soon as the Monsters were engaged in dousing the fire, the war party slipped away. Of course, it also became a matter of avoiding the notice of those children who were not in on the plan. The others who had helped with the planning but decided not to go on the expedition would help cover for them.

Loyal led the group, being both the organiser and the only one who claimed to know the way to the spaceship. It had been suggested that this was a pretty flimsy basis for mounting an expedition — that Loyal thought he could remember where spaceship was — but Loyal had countered by pointing out that if there was no ship then they could simply make their way back. Even if they got caught, they basically believed they would simply be put back in the hangar, perhaps with a reprimand.

The group came together out of the throng of children watching the fire, and Vasuda kept up easily. Loyal did not set a demanding pace, though he moved quickly.

Though it was night, it was still necessary to stay out of the light, the streets being illuminated much like they were in any city on earth. Loyal picked a more or less stealthy path, stealing from shadow to concealment like a spy. Everyone seemed to understand by instinct that they needed to cross any lighted areas quickly, only after checking as best they could that they were not being observed.

They seemed unlikely to have been observed in any case, Vasuda thought, as she noticed that the streets were empty of Monsters. They must have had a relatively early bedtime.

It still seemed wrong to be involved in a war party. Maybe it was just a problem of semantics. The others referred to it as a war party, but from Vasuda's point of view it could be seen as a peace party. They were only really going to gather information. Whatever use the others might put that information to, Vasuda was most interested in learning how peace might be made. She certainly wouldn't fight, in any case.

After a few more minutes of stealthy sneaking, Loyal spoke. "There it is," he said, pointing.

All the children looked at it in amazement, never having seen a spaceship before. They momentarily forgot their mission as they walked a full circle around the craft to get a proper look at it. Its shape was that of a short tube with rounded ends, just like a giant tylenol. At one end, obviously the front, a cockpit was suggested by windows in the upper quadrant. At the other end were some large holes that suggested engine exhaust ports. Halfway along the structure of the ship was a seam where it looked like the craft could be split cleanly in half. The ship was about as high as a building of four or five stories, and the spindly legs that supported it didn't look strong enough. Circling the fuselage of the craft were rings of shiny metal plates, reminiscent of the weights that divers wear to make it easier for them to stay under water. With the exception of the legs, all of its features were flush with the ship's smooth surface, nothing defying its pharmaceutical-capsule contours.