Mythical Link ▸ Link Neal {Book One}

105

     The five of them were breathless by the time they made it to Home Depot. They had to stop a couple of times to catch their breaths and take a drink of water, sweat beading their foreheads. Lily was sure the younger ones weren't going to make it, but their stamina proved to be worthy. It was a good 15 minute bike ride, and they had to ride on some main roads in order to get there.

     Luckily the traffic wasn't too terrible, them only earning the occasional stare from a passerby. They parked their bikes on a bike rack behind the store and walked around, Locke and Lincoln walking in with their chests puffed out as if they owned the place. The smell of wood permeated their noses and Lily wrinkled hers. The boys looked up at her and mimicked the wrinkling of her nose with their own.

     "Is there any candy in this place?" Lando asked.

     Lily nodded her head.

     "Yeah there is, buddy. We can get some when we check out, okay?" Lily followed them all the way to the lights section, the walk seeming to take forever. It was such a ginormous store. Lincoln swung his backpack around and reached in it for a piece of paper that had a bunch of notes scribbled on it. He pointed to Locke. "We're gonna need a cart for everything we need," he instructed, and Locke hurriedly ran to grab a cart. He barreled toward them, riding the cart along the way. Lando and Shepard were laughing and Lily rolled her eyes.

     They were conducting themselves in a very poor manner. She tried imagining her dad standing there with them, and how he would be scolding them for acting like that. Lincoln feverishly scoped the lighting fixtures, running his fingers through his hair.

     "Man, I was really unprepared for this. I have no idea how we're going to make the bullets."

     Lily sighed. "I thought this was your grand plan?"

     "It is! I just didn't think it through entirely."

     Lily thought for a moment. "We're gonna hit up the science lab when we get to the school as well."

     Locke and Lincoln shared confused glances before looking at her.

     "If we can get our hands on some phosphorescent powder, we can make our own glow in the dark paint that we can paint the blade of the sword with, or the arrows that we shoot from our crossbows. The larger the particles, the more UV-A charge it can hold."

     Locke and Lincoln gaped at her with their mouths hanging open.

     "How smart are you? For real?" Locke asked, confusion laced in his tone.

     "Mom never taught us anything like that," Lincoln said, scratching his head.

     Lily simply shrugged. "I watched a documentary on it once. Let's buy the paint and we can do it. I remember exactly how it was done."

      The boys looked at each other excitedly and they veered away from the lights. They eventually threw a whole bunch of stuff in the cart; pieces of pinewood, PVC pipes, nylon string, a pack of steel pulleys, heavy duty clips, foam, wood screws, wood nails, PVC/wood glue, wood stain/varnish and dowels. That was just for the crossbows. Lincoln pulled out another list for the swords.

     Lily raised an eyebrow. "Shouldn't we just stick with the crossbows?" She asked.

     Lincoln shook his head. "We're going to need two ranges of combat. Close combat and range. Range is for the archers, close is for guys like me who'll attack with the swords."

     Lily laughed. "If you don't crap your pants first," she teased, and Locke laughed. Lando and Shepard giggled. Lincoln just huffed and started walking away, holding the piece of paper up close to his face. The only thing they needed was a few metal strips to mold into swords, and Lincoln reached for those and tossed them into the cart.