Dwellers of the Dark

By Matt Hults

Ben Banister is eleven years old now and ready for adventure! All his life the dark woods across the swamp from his house have terrified him, but not anymore. Together with his teenage sister, Nixi, and his best friend, Pudge,Ben is determined to conquer his childhood fears and discover the mysteries of the woods. The only problem is that none of them are prepared for what they find: a massive stone wall that separates their world from another dimension.One small crack and they inadvertently unleash a squiggly green monster that shrinks in the sunlight and grows in the darkness. Now it's a race against time to capture the little brute and keep it in the light before the sun goes down. But little do they know that the hole in the wall is getting bigger, spewing forth a cloud of unnatural darkness that quickly begins covering the Earth! Together they'll have to use brains, bravery, and a whole lot of flashlight batteries to fight their way back to the wall, seal the hole, and save the planet before it becomes overrun by the monstrous Dwellers of the Dark.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Matt Hults
• Release date: Apr 1, 2011
• ISBN: 9781452464060

Book preview

DWELLERS OF THE DARK

Lewis Hand

-RDDP-

Copyright © 2009

Cover Image by Matt Hults

Copyright © 2009 Matt Hults

SMASHWORDS EBOOK EDITION

Licensed for individual viewing only.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or shared in any manner without written permission except in the case of reprinted excerpts for the purpose of reviews. For more information, write to Red Dog Days Publishing

4250 Quincy Street NE, Columbia Heights, MN 55421

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This book is a work of fiction. All characters, events, dialog, and situations in this book are fictitious and any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental.

For

Logan and Nixi

Thanks for letting me be a kid again!

DWELLERS OF THE DARK

Chapter 1

The dark woods lay at the far side of the swamp, hunkered on the horizon like some giant sleeping beast.

Ben raised the binoculars to his eyes, and the trees jumped into focus.

Awesome, he cried. You can see all the way across the swamp with these.

I told you, Pudge said from beside him. Do I pick the best birthday presents or what?

Ben nodded, not taking his eyes off the woods. Even from his bedroom window he shivered at the sight of the place.

For as long as Ben could remember, he and his friends had avoided the woods. The trees stuck into the sky at awkward angles, all dark and twisted and reaching upward like drowning swimmers. Nine Mile Creek slithered out of their shadows toward town, and on some mornings he thought he saw strange shapes moving within the mist that floated above the water.

When Ben was seven years old he believed the woods were where The Boogeyman lived. When he was eight it became Bigfoot’s stomping ground. At nine he was sure it was the true home of the Loch Ness Monster. And for a couple of months when he was ten, he swore the woods were haunted by a snarling bucktoothed ghost—which later turned out to be a SpongeBob SquarePants kite that had gotten stuck in the trees. Even so, Ben knew the woods had always been a freaky place that no kid in town dared to explore.

Until now, he thought.

Lately the dark and creepy depths of the woods had started to interest him. Yesterday he turned eleven, and suddenly the clammy shadows no longer seemed so sinister, nor the gnarled branches of the trees so spooky. Lately he’d begun to wonder what mysteries hid within those trees waiting to be discovered, or what treasures he might find.

He licked his lips, imagining how to get closer to the dark woods. Across the street a tall fence divided the swampland from his neighborhood, but across town there was a public park that ran right along its weedy border.

I bet we could get through the trees of Cottonwood Park, he said. The ones by the playground. They’re not far from the creek. Then we could walk along the shore to the woods.

Ben lowered the binoculars to find Pudge squinting into a cardboard tube from a roll of paper towels as if looking through a telescope.

No good, Captain, Pudge said. I don’t think there is a shore. We’d be up to our chins in swamp water, and that’s not something I’d like to gargle with.

Ben stared at his best friend. ‘Pudge’ wasn’t his real name, of course. His real name was Meriwether Clarkson. Both his parents were history nuts, and they thought naming their only son after their favorite explorer was the perfect idea. But with a name like ‘Meriwether’ Ben could understand why a nickname (even one such as ‘Pudge’) would be preferred to the real thing. It was the neighborhood bully, Cliff Robson, who first called him Pudge, making fun of his weight. But instead of being insulted, Pudge took the name and stuck with it, using it as motivation to get fit. In the last two months he’d already shed ten pounds, and he wholeheartedly planned on needing a new nickname by the end of the summer. As of last Thursday he’d narrowed his selection of choices down to Diesel, Jet, or Cobra Commander.

Ben nodded at the cardboard tube. "Where’s your real telescope?"

Pudge sighed. It fell in the toilet. Don’t ask.

Ben rolled his eyes. Okay, what about an inflatable raft? We could paddle up stream.

Again Pudge shook his head. Check the water. Look at all those sharp sticks poking up. We’d be sunk after ten feet.

For being named after an explorer you’re not proving much help.

Pudge shrugged. Sorry, but it’s just that not all of our adventures have ended very well.

Ben gasped. Like when?

Like the time we wanted to find where the storm sewer led to.

Hey, even the weather station said that downpour was a fluke! Ben countered. Besides, you like waterslides.

What about Operation Rocket Blast?

Our hair grew back, didn’t it!

Or the day we dug up my mom’s flower garden looking for a secret cave.

Is it my fault your parents said Scrappy ran away instead of telling you the truth?

I’m just saying, Pudge said. We tend to run into trouble from time to time.

Ben growled and went back to scanning the distant woods. There must be an easier way out there.

Out where? a voice asked.

Both boys spun around to find Ben’s dad standing in the doorway.

Officer on deck! Pudge cried and jumped to his feet. He snapped a salute. Hello, General!

Ben’s dad grinned and returned the salute. Um, aye, aye, kiddo … as you were.

Pudge laughed and dropped down on the bed to read a Doctor Impossible comic book. There were at least fifty to choose from scattered across the room: on the bed, on the desk, on the floor.

Good grief, Ben’s dad said. I thought you said Pudge came over to help you clean this place up?

Ben and Pudge glanced at each other. They both answered: It is clean.

Ben’s dad shook his head. Your mom and I are about to leave. We’re going to get the brakes changed on the car and then do some shopping, so Nixi’s in charge until we get back.

Both boys groaned.

Dad, I’m eleven— Ben started.

And your sister is fourteen, which is why she wins leadership by default. We should be home by dinner, so just try to get along until then, okay?

Yes, sir! Pudge replied, hopping up again and snapping another salute.

Ben shrugged. Yeah, sure.

They watched Ben’s parents drive away a few minutes later. Overhead, steel gray clouds dotted the blue sky like battleships crossing an ocean.

This is it, Ben said. I bet we’ve got a good three hours before my parents get back. Let’s go scout out the creek.

Pudge considered it. I don’t know. If Nixi finds out she’ll tell on us for sure.

What, you’d rather stay here with her?

Pudge grinned. Sure! Your sister’s a babe.

Ben gagged.

Pudge twitched his eyebrows.

Enough of that, soldier, or it’s two years in the stockade for you!

Pudge laughed. Where is she?

Ben nodded across the hall. In her room, working on her laptop. Probably planning to take over the world or something.

Pudge leaned over to look out the door. Across the hall, Nixi’s door was closed.

Come on, Ben said. We can sneak out, and she’ll never know we’re gone. It’s a ten minute ride to the park and ten minutes back. That leaves us plenty of time before we need to be home.

Pudge thought about it. You’ve always said Nixi never lets you go anywhere when she’s in babysitter mode.

Yeah, but my parents let us go to the park when we want, right?

Sure, if we ask first.

So that’s what we’re doing, going to the park. We’ll just say Nixi didn’t hear us ask because her door was shut. Not our fault, right?

Pudge scratched his head. Promise we won’t end up bald this time?

Promise. Now are you with me, soldier, or what?

Pudge grinned, nodding in agreement. All right, Captain, let’s move out!

Ben grabbed his backpack and loaded in the binoculars, his rain boots, and a bag of trail mix. Pudge added Ben’s old rain boots from last year, two walkie-talkies, and a notebook with ‘Top Secret!’ written in red across the cover.

All set, Captain Ben?

Locked and loaded, Sergeant Pudge.

Do or die, Cap. Do. Or. Die.

Ben crept to the doorway with Pudge trailing