Hello! I'm back with chapter two of my story (the real chapter two.) The chipmunks and chipettes are in the van but they now have to escape the city without being zapped to a crisp by one of the heat rays. Read and Review!
Chapter two: The Hornet's Nest
Otto's POV
The next second we were on the free way, zipping by building after crumbling building. The city was in ruins, creating total chaos around us. Debree from falling skyscrapers were constantly slamming into the asphalt next to us, and it wsa an effor for me to dodge them. Sometimes whole thirty story buildingwould start toppling and miss crushing us by inches. Going around these was extremely difficult because I couldn't see anything outside our general area. Fire engulfed every single building that was still standing, and it was the most I could do to just keep going and hope we find a way out.
"So where am I heading?" I called back.
"We'll figure that out later," Simon replied, "but for now we just have to get out of the city."
"I'll try," I yelled back, "but I don't know if this is the right road. I can't get off because every b-"
"LOOK OUT!" Eleanore scremed.
I looked forward again to see a giant metal leg sitting right in our path. "DAMMIT!" I screamed as I jerked the wheel to the left, barely avoiding the leg with a screech and, as I saw through the sunroof, bringing us directly under the tripod. It was so massive! Everything around us was now dark from the shade, creating an interesting contrast from before when everything made me cough and watery eyed due to the fact that every living or not thing was on fire.
*Flashback*
"I'm sorry Dave, but I just can't," I said.
"Look Otto, everyone else either said they're booked or they wont do it. I need you to do this. My plane leaves in like two hours. I'll pay you... three hundred dollars a day."
"Look, Dave I'm not interested in more money. I have a sh- crap load of things to worry about on my on here. My senior project, my real job, my college aplication, what about all of those things Dave?"
"LOOK OTTO!" Dave boomed back. "I HAVE A PLANE I NEED TO CATCH. MY AUNT JUST DIED, AND I NEED TO GET TO HER FUNERAL TO DELIVER A VERY IMPORTANT SPEECH! JUST PLEASE DO THIS!"
I swallowed. "Okay," I sighed.
*End Flashback*
Suddenly a leg lifted off the ground and began hovering into our path. I floored the gas pedal, speeding up just enough to avoid being hit and pushed over. In a few seconds we were backin the real world... not under the tripod. But instead of going the way he was apparantly walking, he stopped and began zapping our surroundings (probably trying to get us) with the heat ray. I tried to zigzag, break, and speed up randomly in order to confuse him but each time he shot he was getting closer and closer. And all around us the pavement was melting into lava.
Now the tripod shot a few yards in front of us. I pulled to the right to avoid the boiling magma. We did, but at the cost of time. The tires screeching and left sickening marks on the road behind us. I tried to get us back on course but we were spinning out of control. We turned until we were driving straight towards a burning building.
The shock paralized my body just long enough to let us crash into and through the front porch. Just as we did, the building began coming down on top of us, but because the fire had weakened it so much we were able to drive through as large chunks of smoldering wood crashed into the melting tile floor we were driving over.
Finally we crahsed through the back door and were embraced with the outside world once again. But on a different road. We had through the opposite side of the house. It was still paved but it was thinner (only two lanes) and curved.
"Where are we?" Alvin asked.
"I dunno, but it looks like maybe some exit!" I yelled back. It was still really loud out there. Buildings were still toppling like jenga pieces.
I hadn't thought about how tragic and dramatic the scene had been. I could only think clearly enough to steer the steering wheel when I needed to. I though about all of the hard work that was put into all of those buildings. Some were even built a long time ago, before our modern technology. It must have taken a fortune and years to build. It did. And then these tripods just take a few minutes to push them over and kill everyone inside in the making.
"Hey Otto, look, there's another car!" Brittany yelled pointing through the windshield and at a smaller car that was going relatively slow, allowing us to catch up to it.
*Flashback*
The second I pulled up my tiny old ford into the driveway carrying my lonely little worn suitcase, Dave was sprinting out the door carrying his two large suitcases and keys to his convertable. "They have a concert in a few hours," he said. "Just feed them a few times a day and make sure they get to be before morning. You can do whatever you want as long as you don't burn my house down." He chuckled at the thought. "Now, I have to go."
I still don't think it's fair!" Alvin chipped in. "He's a year younger than us! We shouldn't have to have a babysitter."
"You need someone to drive you around places," Dave replied. "Please don't argue, Alvin. Just do it, please."
Alvin grumbled in unwilling cooperation. "Okay."
Dave nodded thankfully. "Now, I have a plane to catch." And just like that he got into his car, shut the door, turned the engine on, and in a few seconds was gone.
I turned to the chipmunks and chipettes (not Charlene yet) who were all staring at me. "So," I said, "I guess we better start getting ready for that concert.
*End Flashback*
As we drew nearer and nearer I pulled up to the right of them. They rolled down a window, revealing A forty year old man in the driver's seat and a girl about my age in the passenger seat. She stuck her head out the window and waved to me. "Hi!"
"Hi!" I replied as loud as I could, hoping she would hear me.
"Can we help you?" she asked (well, more like screamed. Who could blame her, though? The city sounded nothing but of huge building screeching to the floor and the people inside them screaming.)
"Yeah," I replied, "do you know the quickest ruite out of the city is? We kind of want to get away from all of the death, tripods, and fire."
"Sure! Just keep following this road. Soon there'll be a sign warning you of "exit 13." Take that and you'll be out of the city in a few minutes. We're heading that way too. Say, do you wanna come with u-"
I blinked and saw that she was no more. A tripod leg had squashed her, the old guy, and the rest of the car like a bug. I guess I wasn't sad or anything, but I was shocked. It was all I could do to keep my eyes forward and focus on the road as we sped at over eighty miles per hour. The tripod behind us threw a careless and lazy shot a few feat to our left and then moved on.
"What was she saying?" Theodore asked.
"She said just keep taking this road until we see a sign that sais 'exit 13.' We take it and we'll be out of the city within a few minutes."
"Oh good," he replied.
And it was, because we had no trouble reaching the exit and even less trouble on it. Soon enough we were perfectly clear of the city and the hell inside it, and in a beautiful forest that thankfully had no sign of tripods. Even from our distance you could still hear the screams and firy buildings coming down with a screeching thud. You could still probably seet it as well but we weren't interested.
"Now, where are we going?" I asked.
"Shelter," Simon said, "we need shelter."
I nodded. "There's probably a cave somewhere around here. I'll keep my eye peeled."
Bored, I turned on the radio.
And that was chapter two! Hope you enjoyed it and I look forward to giving you chapter three!
