It was the soggy voice of one who’d spent decades gnawing on his tongue. Gunmar the Black, the Hungry One, saw me, smelled me, wished to eat me. From somewhere within the pupil’s void I could hear the splintering whack of what I knew was his wooden arm. He was aching to add another few slash marks of conquer, and as much as he’d prefer to do it in person, he wasn’t strong enough yet, so he’d just use this handy, four-ton puppet.

One of ARRRGH!!!’s clawed hands barreled at us, big as a school bus. The wind of it knocked us down before the paw itself arrived. Tub and I clung to each other in the grass, too scared to scream.

The paw never reached us. Gunmar bawled through ARRRGH!!!’s muzzle. Tub and I scrabbled away on all fours and saw Jack withdrawing his long-sword from ARRRGH!!!’s calf. Her hackles stiffened and she turned on my uncle, baring skewed teeth. But when she saw the boy bravely wielding his little blade, her shoulders fell. Both paws made fists and landed on the ground, and from there she eased her body to a seated position atop the broken tree branch. Tub and I were jostled by the impact.

The Eye of Malevolence fattened and wobbled like dough. Dozens of veins retracted from ARRRGH!!!’s skull, each one unchaining her from bondage. The Eye quavered upon her muzzle for a few seconds before falling, bouncing once on the ground, and rolling to a halt amid the manicured grass. ARRRGH!!! dropped her weary face into her massive paws. Jack sheathed his swords, put his hands to his friend’s neck, and whispered in her ear. The suburbs were quiet enough for me to hear.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t cut deep. Just a scrape.”

“Boy humans. Me want in belly. Ashamed.”

“Shhh,” Jack whispered. “I wouldn’t let that happen.”

“Not mean it!” ARRRGH!!! cried.

“Tell me what you saw.” Jack pet the damp fur. “Before you forget.”

“Nullhuller go to Gunmar. Gunmar send more. Gumm-Gumms find fuel. Fuel for Machine.”

Even in the dim light I could see the paling of Jack’s face.

“The Machine? We destroyed the Machine. I was there, I saw it.”

“Gumm-Gumms work hard. Gumm-Gumms fix. Boy humans right. Killaheed make strong. Much sad. Much sad is ARRRGH!!!.”

From my seat in the grass I forced out a question.

“What’s the Machine?”

Jack’s expression of dread unnerved me. He shrugged away my query.

“Nothing. Don’t worry about it. What’s important is that ARRRGH!!! confirmed everything. And none of it’s good. Trolls like these tonight? That’s nothing. Gunmar will keep sending them, every night, to occupy us while he waits for the Killaheed to be finished. It’s a perfect plan and we have to deal with it. If these Gumm-Gumms are out gathering fuel for the Machine—”