[the phantom]

"Um, Mardil, I've been meaning to ask," began Sai, "Can't we get in really big trouble driving down the middle like this?"

There was an embankment of dirt and gravel separating the two sides of the grid locked interstate. The drive on the interstate had been pretty for the first half an hour or so, but then traffic began to slow. And so Mardil had, for the past twenty miles, been driving on the central embankment, managing to keep his speed somewhere around 60 mph.

"Of course we could get into trouble for this," said Mardil, not too concerned.

Sai piped up again. "Well then, don't you think-"

"But we won't," interrupted Mardil.

"Why not?"

"Because we've got a lovely young lady with a nasty head wound in back. If some police officer pulls us over, then we just point to Alli and tell him we were trying to get her to a good hospital quickly. One look at her and he wouldn't dare tell us to make her suffer longer." Mardil reached back and patted Alli's cheek. "Even if you have no other benefits, at least your pretty face is useful."

Just then, there was a bright flash and a peal of thunder sounded. "The weather changes quickly here," commented Sai.

"I don't think this is normal," said Mardil. "Anakron is probably having some fun with us."

After another ten minutes, Mardil had no choice but to slow down. The rain was coming down in thick sheets and the embankment was getting extremely muddy. "Go back to the road," begged Sai, not wanting to get stuck.

"Yes, yes, I suppose that is best. The road appears to be moving just as fast as we are at this point," agreed Mardil.

As the SUV shot back onto the road neatly between two other cars, a red-orange glow appeared in the cloudy, wet gloom well off to the right of the interstate about half a mile ahead. As they got closer, the source of the glow seemed to be moving closer to the road. "Can you tell what that is?" asked Sai.

But before Mardil could answer, a groan from the back seat announced the awakening of sleeping beauty.

"Pull...over," she said through gritted teeth, "and let me the **** out of this gas-guzzling, environment-destroying, too-macho, trying-to-compensate-for-something hunk of moving metal before I let myself out. What right do you have to abduct me AGAIN when I was perfectly fine on my own?!"

Mardil wouldn't have been in the mood for this, and Mardil in orcish form certainly wasn't, so he snapped back without hesitation.

"One, this vehicle gets 21 mpg, which is plenty good! Two, it doesn't destroy the environment! There aren't enough SUVs in existence to make a significant impact on this huge world! Third, there's nothing wrong with getting a 'macho' vehicle if it gets you to your destination faster! Fourth, this vehicle is not an attempt to compensate! If I was trying to compensate, I would've gotten a weak little French car like you! And finally, you were NOT doing FINE on your own!! Your car was RUINED and you were BLEEDING and KNOCKED OUT beside the road when I 'abducted' you!!"

Sai whistled loudly to get Mardil's attention. "We're getting closer to that red-orange glow. You can continue your fight later. Now, can you tell what it is?"

"No, it's raining too hard, but... uh oh."

"What? What is it?!" said Sai, who was rather unsettled by the way the ever in control Mardil had said "uh oh".

"I think an old friend is paying us a visit."

But there was no need for Mardil to say who. Rôgû was clearly visible now. He was but forty yards ahead, standing by the side of the road, his gaze fixed on their vehicle. His shattered leg had been replaced with a wooden peg leg. To compliment the peg leg, he sported and bandana with a skull and crossbones, an eye patch, and an oversized rapier.

"Rôgû!" said Alli happily.

"He wookth vewy thwathbuckwing," commented Orckel.

"And very angry," added Mardil, hugging the opposite side of the road.

Rôgû gathered himself and leaped over into their lane. "Brace yourself!" yelled Mardil as he aimed the SUV at Rôgû's peg leg, in hopes that they could keep driving and leave Rôgû behind and unable to walk. But Rôgû quickly curled up into a ball and allowed the SUV to smash into his side.

"Nooo!" screamed Alli.

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Mardil opened his eyes. His head was resting on an deflated airbag draped over the steering wheel. He was facing to his right, and could see Sai slumped forward, her head, like his, resting on a deflated airbag, which was lying on the dashboard. He felt a weight on his back. He turned slowly and found that Alli had ended up half way into the front seat. She was lying across Mardil's back, her head by his door and her feet sticking into the back seat. "How long have we been here- and where's Rôgû?"

As if in answer, a low rumble sounded and Rôgû's back appeared in front of the vehicle. The beast was picking himself up slowly off of the ground. Mardil could see ugly bruises on the creature's side and several places where meat had been torn off.

Rôgû shook his head to clear out the cobwebs, and then turned to the SUV. Mardil tried to start the vehicle, but it was no use. The Explorer was ruined. Rôgû picked up his rapier and drew it back, preparing to stab it right through the cracked windshield and into Mardil's chest. Thinking quickly, Mardil reached behind him and managed to pull Alli over his head and into his lap.

Rôgû stayed his hand and roared in anger. The roar brought Sai and Orckel back into consciousness. "Do something, Mardil!" yelled Sai.

"I am!" he shouted back, drawing a knife from his belt and putting it to Alli's throat.

"What are you doing?!" screamed Sai.

"Keep quiet!" snapped Mardil, his eyes fixed on Rôgû. Rôgû stared back at him, his face a picture of hesitation and apprehension. "It's quite obvious from yesterday's events that these two are old friends," Mardil whispered to Sai. "I'm trying to use that to our advantage."

Mardil kicked his door open and emerged holding the limp form of Alli. Rôgû remained motionless in front of the smashed vehicle. Mardil pointed to a mileage sign that read "Mount Doom: 60 miles", and then pointed to the ruined vehicle, and then finally he pointed at Rôgû and made a motion of slitting Alli's throat with his knife. Rôgû appeared distressed by the last action, but gave no sign of understanding Mardil's intentions.

"Mardil, I think he can understand speech!" called Sai from the car.

"Okay, I'll try it," said Mardil. "We will get into the vehicle and you will carry us to Mount Doom, or I will kill Alli," he said to the monster.

Rôgû bellowed in helpless rage, and hopped around stabbing the air with his rapier, but Mardil repeated the message again, only this time he moved the knife to prepare to make the cut. Rôgû immediately came to a stop and, in a sulky, defeated voice he said, "Get in- I'll take you to Mount Doom. Just don't hurt Alli."