6

Simon sprinted through the snow away from the Overlook hotel. He couldn't move as quickly as he wanted; he felt like he was waking up from a long and restless sleep. Whenever he tried to remember what he had been doing earlier that day, his mind closed (NO!) on the thought with a painful jolt.

Just as well, though, to focus on the present. Simon still didn't quite understand what was going on, but the sight of Dave's dead eyes had quickly convinced him that the peril was real. As the chipmunks ran down the steps, the front door of the hotel flew open and Dave ran out, still clutching his ruined bass by the neck.

"COME BACK HERE!" he yelled. "Simon! Theodore! AAAALVIN!"

"Let's go into the woods," yelled Alvin. "We can lose him in the woods."

"We...could…" gasped Theodore, "also...go...into...the hedge...maze…"

"No," said Alvin. "That's stupid."

The three ran through the forest at high speed, hearing behind them snapping twigs and Dave's screams. Simon found his mind racing as he ducked branches and brambles.

What's the plan, Simon? You're domesticated. You can't survive out in these woods.

He didn't know. It was all he could do to place one foot in front of the other.

After an eternity of running, Simon noticed that Dave's shouts sounded farther away. Alvin seemed to have heard the same thing; he waved his brothers over towards a bush and motioned for them to hide behind it. There, the chipmunks crouched in the snow and tried to catch their breath, paws over their mouths to muffle the noise. They heard Dave's footsteps pass them...then continue on ahead...then eventually disappear into the night sounds of the forest.

"Ok," whispered Alvin, standing up. "Let's double back to the hotel. Find Danny and Wendy and warn them. Maybe look for a snowspeeder?"

"Do you think...we have time?" panted Theodore. "When Dave gives up...he'll head back there too."

"What choice do we have?" asked Alvin, who was already moving forward. "We can't stay out here all night, and we'll at least have a chance if…"

He stumbled and cried out in pain. Simon ran to his brother's side and saw that his left foot had disappeared into a hole. "Are you okay?"

"Ow ow ow!" said Alvin in a choked whisper. "Simon, my leg, it really hurts…"

"We'll pull you out," promised Simon, putting his shoulder under Alvin's arm. "Here, Theodore, help me…"

"Wait…"

"Now!" whispered Simon and he and Theodore pulled Alvin hard. There was another yelp of pain and Alvin's leg popped out of the hole. Moaning, Alvin clutched his ankle.

"I think I broke it," he said. "Can you help me get back?"

"Of course," Simon said calmly, but inside he was screaming. We're so exhausted and we're going to be so slow, and sooner or later Dave will turn around and find us. And then we're doomed.

Their progress was as slow as Simon feared. With Simon and Theodore under each arm, Alvin hopped through the overgrowth, but they were constantly getting caught on branches and brambles, and Theodore in particular was tiring quickly. As they approached the edge of the forest, Simon felt Theodore falter.

"C'mon, Theodore," Simon muttered. "You can do it."

But Theodore sank down, causing Alvin and Simon to collapse as well. Together, the chipmunks laid on the snow, watching the distant light from the hotel peek through the trees.

"I'm sorry," gasped Theodore. "I'm going...I need...I'm going to try to call for help."

"No!" hissed Alvin. "The only one who will hear you is Dave."

"I'm not going to yell," Theodore said. "Danny has been teaching me how to speak with just my mind...to shine. Not many adults can hear...just his friend Mr. Halloran...and children and animals."

He's lost it, thought Simon, but at this point, what harm can it do? Better to try to sound positive. "Sure, Theodore. Give it a try."

Theodore took a deep breath and scrunched up his face, and suddenly Simon felt the inside of his mind explode into noise.

SOMEONE HELP US HELP HELP HELP PLEASE PLEASE HELP!

Simon and Alvin gasped in pain and clutched their heads. As he did so, Simon felt the memories of earlier begin to rush back, and he saw in his mind the burned body from the library, and it was all he could to keep from screaming.

Simple Simon's gonna die, man

Simon opened his eyes and saw that Theodore had passed out from the effort. Alvin was struggling to get up.

"Simon," Alvin coughed, "what do we do now?"

Die, man.

Simon was about to respond when he heard a man's voice singing, slow and playful. His heart stopped.

Slowly, Dave Seville pushed through the needles of a fir tree. His lips were blue and his eyebrows and nose were already showing signs of frostbite, but he seemed not to notice. Dave looked down at the fallen chipmunks and began singing again. This time, Simon recognized the tune.

"You've been good, but you can't last. Merry Christmas, coming fast."

It was a Chipmunks song, but in Dave's wheezing voice it sounded like a funeral dirge. He raised the bass high over his head, and Simon thrust out his hands in terror.

"Wait, Dave! You don't have to do this!"

Dave laughed. "Yes, I do, Simon. I should have done this years ago. I'll be the official musician of the Overlook hotel, once they know how ROCK AND ROLL I am. Once they know I MEAN IT."

"But Dave," whispered Alvin, "we were a team!"

At this Dave's eyes changed, and he lowered the bass. For a moment, he looked like his old self again. Simon let himself feel hope...but then Dave was seized by a spasm that overtook his whole body. When it passed, his visage was again monstrous.

"Sorry, I've gone solo," snarled Dave. "I'm going to be a smash."

He raised the bass again (!NO NO NO PLEASE NOOOOOOO )

Suddenly, a large dark blur collided with Dave, hard. He fell backwards, the bass flying from his hands. The creature stepped with graceful speed atop the man and lowered its great head. Dave began to scream, not his low menacing growl, but a high-pitched wail. There was an awful sound of something tearing...and the scream abruptly stopped.

Simon stared into the darkness, trying to discern what exactly had happened, when the dark creature stepped forward into the beams of the hotel's light and the chipmunks saw their rescuer clearly for the first time.

"I knew," whispered Theodore, his eyes fluttering open, "that there were wolves in these woods."

The gray wolf, its face wet with blood, stared at the chipmunks for a moment. Then it nodded once to Theodore, turned regally, and disappeared into the night.

"What," said Alvin, "the fuck?"