Gregor And The Prophecy Of Doom (Book VI)

Chapter 7

When they knocked on Mrs. Cormaci's door, The sound of footsteps immediately came from within, and a few seconds later, she opened the door.

Mrs. Cormaci hadn't changed for the past 3 years one bit. She was still that slightly grumpy but non the less extremely good person. She now looked at them quizzically, with one eyebrow raised sky high on her face. Gregor realized that the sight of him in his pajamas, his dad with a worried look on his face and his mom looking like Armageddon was expected on Christmas did give the impression of serious business.

"Well what a surprise," she said, opening the door wider, "and to what do I owe the pleasure of this late night visit?"

Gregor told Mrs. Cormaci about... about everything, since she was one of the few people he had trusted with the story of the Underland, and there was nothing to hide if he needed her help. After he finished recounting the details of the prophecy and his need of her vest, she didn't say a word and disappeared back into the house. She appeared back at the door with the vest so fast that he wondered if she'd kept it in the living room all the time. She handed it to him, and said: "Use it wisely, Gregor." At first, he had no idea what she was talking about, but then she added: "You can't escape it, but you sure can let it do as much good as possible and as little harm as possible." And he knew she wasn't talking about the vest; she was talking about his rager sensation. He nodded, and she gave him a smile. Then they thanked her and said good night.

"And don't ruin those shoes like last time," She called after him, "be careful not to get any acid on it, your parents spent a lot of money buying you new clothes."

When they arrived back at their apartment, the clock showed 9:20 PM. At least they didn't need to rush that much this time. But waiting for the time to come was just as painful and unbearable as rushing about preparing themselves. They quickly extracted as many fitting batteries from the house as possible, and Gregor found a powerful big flashlight with a giant beam and a handle on the top that they used to check the stairway when the electricity went out. He also put his vest on, just in case, though he didn't know just in case of what. Gregor's mom woke Boots and Lizzie, and told them what had happened and that they needed to go back to the Underland. Lizzie was eleven, and she was able to register what was wrong. She was shocked at first, but when she thought of visiting Ripred, her eyes visibly brightened. Though she did not say it out loud, Gregor knew that she was as anxious and excited as Gregor was to revisit the Underland. But she was as worried as her mother, for fear that something awful may await them down in there. The mixed emotions caused one of her full forced panic attacks, and Gregor had to grab her a paper bag to calm her down. Boots however, had no such problem with expressing herself. She had been only 2 when she'd first visited the Underland, and even though she was now 5, she was still unable to understand the danger the Underland posed. She was so excited that she leapt out of bed and began jumping around, yelling "I ride bat, I ride bat, big bugs!". Eventually, Gregor's dad had to calm her down with some toys for fear she'd awaken the whole building. Gregor and his mom sat quietly together in Lizzie's room. His mom sat between them, one arm around Lizzie, and one around Gregor. He could feel her shaking with the wait of the situation, but he could do nothing to comfort her. The minutes crept by, and it was as if no time had past at all when his dad glanced at the clock and said: "Well, it's 12:50. We need to go."

They took the lift down to the ground floor where the laundry room was. No one was there, since not many people needed their laundry cleaned at 1 am. They walked quietly through the rows of washing machines, which whirred continuously, and reached the metal grate. Gregor pried the grate door open, and a gust of cool air struck his face, as a wispy thread of white vaper bloomed out. The currents were on, and they were on powerfully, but Gregor could not discern any creatures from the gloomy drop.

"Where are they?" He asked.

Just then, he heard his answer. "I have come, overlander." Purred a light voice that he hadn't heard for 3 years, and the graceful head of the black and white bat floated into view.