LITMIR.BIZ

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cities into darkness. In fact, Tokyo was just recovering from a Gremlin-caused blackout.

      The fear brought on by these attacks caused millions of nightmares in people across the planet. In turn, those nightmares opened portals to the Netherworld, allowing an incredible influx of new monsters to pour through. Charlie had been taught in his ‘Monster Invasion: What You Can Do About It’ class that this was called the ‘Snowball Effect’. But to learn about it in a schoolroom was one thing - seeing it in action was something terrifyingly different.

      “Horrible, horrible…” Charlie’s father Barrington muttered as he watched the attacks unfold.

      “Yes, indeed,” his wife Olga agreed. She smoothed her dress and sighed heavily. “Why are they doing this to us, Charlie?”

      “Because they can.”

      He knew the answer wasn’t very satisfying, but it was true. The monsters were attacking because it was in their nature to attack - it was simply what they were born to do, and they were doing it now with terrifying gusto.

      And all because of me, Charlie thought glumly, although he didn’t say it.

      The attack of the monsters of the Nether wasn’t his fault, not really, but he’d certainly contributed to their getting to Earth in the first place.

      For six months, he and his friends had studied Banishing and Nethermancy at the Nightmare Academy, honing their skills in preparation to one day go to work for the Nightmare Division - the organisation charged with controlling the Nethercreature population on Earth. During their final exam, they stumbled across a plot to bring the last two Named Lords of the Nether out of that terrible land of monsters and here to our world.

      Despite Charlie’s best efforts (or maybe because of them, depending on who you talked to) the Named succeeded in their evil scheme and managed to summon the Fifth - a creature of unimaginable power. She promptly destroyed all the Named Lords and established herself as the General of the Army of the Nether, sending her ferocious minions out across the planet to wreak havoc on humanity.

      Someone had to take the blame, and Director Drake of the Nightmare Division blamed Charlie and sent him into exile.

      As much as he was desperate to leave his parents’ apartment and return to his friends at the Nightmare Academy, Charlie didn’t see how he could. If he left his mum and dad alone, they would most likely be monster food within minutes. Plus, there was that sticky matter of his being ‘exiled’. He didn’t know what it meant exactly, but he suspected it involved him being banished from the Academy - maybe for ever.

      Not that a little thing like ‘banishment’ was going to stop him. As far as Charlie was concerned, nothing was going to prevent him from seeing Violet, Theodore and Brooke again after he was sure his parents were safe from the monsters of the Nether. And then…something miraculous happened.

      The monsters gave up.

      As quickly as the attacks on humanity had started, they stopped. For a full week, there were no monster sightings anywhere on planet Earth. Across the globe, people celebrated and rejoiced. They even went back to their old routines, sure that the Monster War was finally over.

      “Charlie, you’re too thin,” his mother scolded as he nibbled at his burger. Charlie kept glancing at the door of the restaurant, sure that some horrible beast was going to lurch in - but the place remained calm and quiet.

      “I’m fine, Mom. Really.”

      “There’s nothing wrong with him,” his father said, gulping down a chocolate milkshake. “The boy is just growing taller. Children are like toffee - as you stretch them, they get thinner.”

      “Well, I think it’s stress. For almost a year now, he’s been expected to save the entire world from monsters all on his own. I mean, he hasn’t even kissed a girl yet.”

      “Mom!”

      “Well, it’s true.”

      Not really, Charlie thought, thinking of the quick kiss he’d shared with Brooke on the beach in front of the Nightmare Academy six months ago, but he didn’t say anything. He glanced again at the front door.

      “Will you please stop doing that?” Olga snapped. “Nothing is coming through there! Goodness gracious - no one has seen a monster in over a week.”

      “Yeah, but that doesn’t mean they’re not around…hiding…waiting to attack.”

      “And why is that your problem?” His mother angrily jabbed a French fry into her ketchup. “Let the adults in the Nightmare Division handle it - you’re still a child! My child! And as long as you’re with us, we will protect you - not the other way around. That’s just the way it works in the real world.”

      Yeah, right, Charlie thought. The image of his parents protecting him from monsters was so laughable that he couldn’t even conjure it up.

      “Well, we may be the adults,” his father said, “but the fact remains that Charlie is an extraordinarily good monster hunter. He’s a…what do they call you?”

      “A Double-Threat.”

      “Double-Threat! Yes, indeed! The boy can both Banish and Nethermance - most children can’t do either.”

      “Well, he didn’t ask for this horrible ability,” his mother replied icily. “I’m just thankful the monsters have stopped attacking so we can stop worrying about it.”

      Charlie shook his head. “It’s not over.”

      “How do you know?”

      “I just do. I can…I can feel it. Something is coming, something bad and I’ve got to…” He hesitated. “I’ve got to leave you and go and find my friends at the Academy - I’ve got to get ready to fight” were the words he knew he should say - but the panicked, desperate look in his mother’s eyes stopped him.

      “Charlie Benjamin,” she said with a sigh. “You know I love you more than life itself…but you can’t possibly get rid of all the monsters in the world.”

      And that was when a Netherbat crashed through the large front window of the restaurant.

      I may not be able to get rid of all the monsters in the world, Charlie thought as the crimson beast sailed inside with a shriek, furiously flapping its leathery wings as startled customers dived for cover from the terrible spray of glass, but I can get rid of this one.

      He reached under the table and drew his glowing blue rapier - it felt good in his hand. With another ear-piercing shriek, the Netherbat snatched a screaming, stocky man in its talons, then spun around and flapped towards the broken window, trying to escape with its flailing prize.

      Charlie leaped into the air and, with one quick, smooth move, brought his sizzling rapier down on the beast’s left wing. The Netherbat fell to the ground in a fountain of black ichor and, off balance now, careened into a table in a gloopy explosion of mustard and ketchup. Still flapping with its one remaining wing, it flipped on to its back and slammed into the restaurant wall. The nearby customers scrambled to crawl away as the beast snapped at them - until Charlie put a quick stop to that by chopping off the Netherbat’s head.

      “Th-thank you!” the stocky man exclaimed as Charlie yanked him from the dead creature’s spasming talons. But before Charlie could mutter “You’re welcome”, two more monstrous bats sailed in, searching for tasty human prey. Charlie gutted one of the beasts as it soared above him and then quickly dispatched the other as it flew into the kitchen. The creature’s carcass slammed down on to the grill, where it cooked and sizzled alongside the burgers and fried onions.

      There was silence then, broken only by the popping of frying meat. After a moment, it was joined by another sound.

      Clapping.

      Charlie turned to see the customers in the restaurant applauding as they struggled to their feet. “Oh, it

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