Chapter: 25 Firework Flight
"Tomas!" called Benjamin. "Lad!" He ran in to see Tomas tightening his pauldrons and bracers. "It's done."
Tomas entered the great hall and joined the group gathered in the center of it. There was the emperor's legendary carriage, now fitted with enough pyrotechnics to turn Elsa's ice palace into a lake. Multicolored rockets lined the underbelly, sides, and back of the carriage. All of their fuses were intertwined in a bushel that led to Mushu. Tomas glanced over at Lucky, "You sure about this?" The snowgie squeaked with approval. "Of course you are."
Zi and Lihua sat in the back row and firmly gripped the handles on each door. As Tomas climbed into the front row, Ben uttered, "God's speed, my friends. We're all counting on you."
With a sigh, Tomas shook Ben's hand and then grabbed hold of the carriage's handles. "All set?"
"Ready," nodded Zi.
"We're going to explode," dreaded Lihua. Zi glared at her, "We're following a plan devised by a snowball!"
"Lihua," groaned Tomas. "Optimism please."
She sulked and spoke in a monotone voice, "Hurraaaaaay. This will be fuuuuun."
"That's more like it," Tomas held on as several Imperials wheeled the carriage to the front gates. The zombies continued to ram and claw at the doors. Their sounds made Tomas sweat. "No turning back now."
Shang placed a hand on the front of the carriage and locked eyes with Tomas. "You do realize that the second we open those doors and you shoot out of here, the undead are going to pour into here."
"I do," Tomas replied.
Shang paused and then unsheathed his sword, "Just don't take your sweet time up there. All of our lives are in your hands."
"We'll do our best, general." was all Tomas could say. He faced forward, observing the rattling gates.
"Mr. Tomas sir," said a younger voice. He turned to see Zhu, the brave farm boy he had saved during the attack on his village. He was armed with a spare sword and shield, "I believe in you."
Tomas smiled at him, "Thanks, kid. Hang on, we'll put a stop to this as fast as we can." He banged his fist on the carriage's door. "Alright we're ready!"
Everyone readied their weapons and pointed them towards the entrance. "Alright, Mushu." Tomas turned. "Light us!"
Mushu cracked his neck and rubbed his hands together, "Here we go, baby!" With a mighty deep breath, Mushu spewed a fireball onto the fuses, setting all of them alight.
The anticipation for the fuses to meet their end was pulse-pounding. Flares sparked up behind the carriage and the fuses neared their destinations. Shang turned and gave the order, "Tell the guards to open up, the gates!"
"The gates!" echoed Mulan.
"Everyone brace!" warned Shang as he took cover.
The soldiers swung the doors open and the zombie army flooded in. Just as they did, the fuses ended.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The simultaneous explosions were deafening and shook the very foundation of the palace. They hit supernatural speeds. It seemed as though they were in the palace for one second, and then out on the streets in the next. They blasted out in a trail of vibrant explosions that scorched the first wave of zombies and blasted the second wave to bits. The carriage rocketed through the entire zombie army, sending bodies soaring and exploding on impact. Tomas' hair shot all the way behind him and his body was forced against the seat. Zi had streams of tears blasting across her face. Lihua grit her teeth, still feeling the high speed winds pressing against her face. Lucky poked his head out of Tomas' collar and squeaked with enthusiasm.
The carriage skid upwards against the palace stairs and launched into the air. From the moment the carriage left the ground, everyone on board was screaming uncontrollably. Everyone except Lucky. The snowgie had a big smile on his face, exposing his one snow tooth as he squeaked with excitement. The carriage began to level out, and bash against the city's highest rooftops. Shingles shattered and rained down to the streets. The carriage's back wheels smashed against one of the rooftops, and the impact sprung the vehicle forward.
"We're gonna make it!" Tomas laughed daringly. Soon, gravity caught up with the carriage and hurdled them towards the city's wall. "Oh come on!" he raged. Everyone braced for the worst before their ride smashed through the top of the wall and spiraled into the ground. It spun for a solid minute, rolling across the newly scorched earth. Parts of the carriage were torn off with each consecutive, destructive turn. With a final, explosive crash, the carriage wedged itself in a snowy crater at the base of the Tung Shao Pass.
It took a moment for everyone to recover. Zi was the first to wearily climb out. Her thin braid stuck up, making her look like some bizarre jungle bird. Her face was covered in fallout as she stumbled out of the carriage, "Never...again," she spat.
Lihua remained seated. Her hands had gripped the handles so tight, that she had ripped them off. Her already short hair was now spiky and burnt on the ends. She licked her fingers and put out the flame on the edge of her hair. All she could say was, "I...hate...snowgies."
"Hah," Tomas pulled himself out of the carriage. "Haha." His face was coated in fallout and his long brown hair was an absolute, scruffy mess. "Hahaha," He began to laugh like a lunatic, "HAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAA!" He raised his arms, "WOOOOOOOO! Lucky!" He pulled the snowgie out from his collar. "You suicidal little GENIUS! It worked! It worked! Hahaaaaaahahahahaaaaaa!" Tomas sounded like a deranged maniac who had just escaped from a mental asylum. He kissed Lucky on the head, "We did it!" The snowgie made a kissy face and Tomas caught on. He scooped Zi in his arms, "We did it, beautiful!" He leaned in to kiss her when Lihua shoved them away from each other.
"Yes we made it out," she intoned. "But we still have a job to do and everyone's lives on the line. Let's move!"
"Right," said Tomas and Zi in unison while Lucky threw another tantrum. The strike team sprinted up the mountain, determined to confront Shan Yu and put an end to him. This time, for good."