Suddenly, Ruger stopped in his tracks.
The Spirit Furs worked together, forming a small bulge beneath his Wizard robe. Amid a chorus of chants, the bulge traveled upward toward his collar, where a pale yellow mushroom emerged, held aloft by a crowd of Fuzzies. Then it began to wriggle.
In the blink of an eye, the lifeless ordinary mushroom became a lively little Mushroom Man with a nose and eyes. The Fuzzies held him sideways, and he even managed an awkward little smile.
Ruger glanced sideways at the awkward little mushroom at his collar.
Mahama and Mona were doing much the same, fiddling with the Mushroom People in their hands.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your fun. My plan was to take care of a few simple matters, then join you in trying a few things at two locations I'd carefully selected. I never expected it to drag on this long."
Barry Danton's voice rang out, slightly distorted by being transmitted through the little Mushroom Man.
"So, are you inviting us?" Ruger asked, glancing at the mushroom.
"Oh, no. I'm sorry, and let me apologize again. Some new, unexpected developments have caught me off guard. Of course, you could still consider this an invitation," Barry Danton said. "An invitation to visit my Mushroom Kingdom. I've prepared a delicious feast, because those Bearers are going to cooperate with me. Yes, those arrogant Bearers. Things always take such unexpected turns. So I need some powerful helpers. That would give me a little more peace of mind during our cooperation."
Ruger and Mahama exchanged a glance.
"That jar?" Ruger asked.
Barry neither paused nor fell silent.
"Yes. They need me-or, more precisely, they need the jar's owner. Just now, after a strange tremor, a door that couldn't be opened was successfully opened. Three doors