The Teddy Defenders Trilogy: Books 1-3 Read online

  THE TEDDY DEFENDERS TRILOGY

  Books 1 through 3

  Justin Sloan

  www.JustinSloanAuthor.com

  Contents

  Teddy Bears in Monsterland

  Chapter One: A Friendship

  Chapter Two: Taken

  Chapter Three: Rusty

  Chapter Four: The Attic

  Chapter Five: A Picnic for Teddy Bears

  Chapter Six: A Boat Ride

  Chapter Seven: The Games

  Chapter Eight: Misfit Desert

  Chapter Nine: The Pits

  Chapter Ten: Return of the Eye

  Chapter Eleven: The Monster Dungeon

  Chapter Twelve: The Fortress of Monta

  Chapter Thirteen: Into the Shadows

  Chapter Fourteen: Dark Depths

  Chapter Fifteen: The Serpent

  Chapter Sixteen: Horrors of the Night

  Chapter Seventeen: It Gets Worse

  Chapter Eighteen: Prison Break

  Chapter Nineteen: Flying Friends

  Chapter Twenty: Reunited

  Chapter Twenty-One: Bringing It

  Chapter Twenty-Two: Peace of a New Type

  Teddy Bears and the Halloween Ghost

  A SHORT STORY

  Teddy Bears and the Christmas Pirates

  Chapter 1: Christmas Eve

  Chapter 2: We be Pirates

  Chapter 3: Mutiny

  Chapter 4: Darkness

  Chapter 5: Whispers

  Chapter 6: Out of Hiding

  Chapter 7: Taking the Seas

  Chapter 8: Merry Christmas

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  First Chapter of Allie Strom and the Ring of Solomon

  To my amazing wife and children, who I hope love crazy action stories as much as I do.

  Teddy Bears in Monsterland

  Book 1 of the Teddy Defenders trilogy

  by Justin Sloan

  Copyright © 2014 Justin Sloan.

  All rights reserved.

  This is a work of fiction. No bears or monsters were harmed in the making of this novel. Please consider leaving a review, and tell your friends about Teddy Bears in Monsterland.

  Thank you for supporting my work.

  Audiobook available on Audible.com! Free with an Audible trial.

  To receive a free story and audiobook, as well as future updates, sign up for Justin’s newsletter at www.JustinSloanAuthor.com

  Chapter One: A Friendship

  Bare tree branches scraped across Rick Tomo’s window, blowing in the wind and casting eerie shadows through the room. The sun had begun its descent and cast a golden glow on the foothills in the distance, pinks and reds reflecting on the blinds. A gust of wind rattled the windows and Rick pulled up his teddy bear, Ari, to protect himself.

  Ari’s beady eyes shone in the setting sunlight as laughter came from the cartoon monsters on the television. Crouching, Rick walked Ari across the bed. He sprang up and turned Ari to kick the air with a “Hi-ya!” to Rick’s head, but Rick blocked it and said, “Not today, Ari!”

  They faced each other in a stare down, boy and teddy bear. Ari wore a red bowtie, to match Rick’s pajamas.

  Footsteps sounded from the hall. The door handle clicked. Oh no, Rick thought, monsters!

  He pulled Ari in front of him to face the door. “Come on, Ari. With our powers combined, they don’t stand a chance!”

  Ari’s button eyes gleamed with the yellow light from the hall as the door opened. Rick pulled back and let Ari go. Ari flew for the intruder, arms spread for the attack and…

  …Rick’s mom caught the stuffed toy with a smile. “Got me again.”

  Rick laughed and plopped to his butt on the bed, holding out his arms for Ari.

  “What’d we say about standing on the bed?” his mom said.

  “Can you leave the lights on tonight?”

  “Rick....”

  “Just one night?”

  “I might have just the thing, if you be good and promise to be brave.” She revealed a small nightlight in the shape of a bear like Ari. She plugged it in and then turned the lights and TV off. A dim, comforting blue light filled the room. “There. I want you to set a good example for your sister. Can I count on you?”

  He nodded and smiled as she handed Ari back to him.

  “Sweet dreams.” She closed the door behind her.

  Rick pulled Ari in tight as he wiggled his way under the covers. His eyes darted to the closet, the shadows in the corners, and then to Ari. He reached for the TV remote and turned the TV back on, muted. With a smile, he watched TV until his eyes slowly closed.

  ***

  The night wore on and the shadows darkened. The nightlight flickered and the TV turned to static. Had someone been watching, they might have wondered if Ari’s head moved or if it was just the shadows.

  A scratching sounded from under the bed. Ari’s button eyes flicked open to reveal his baby browns. He wasn’t a very boastful bear, but if any other bears asked about his favorite feature, it was certainly those eyes. They matched Rick’s, after all.

  Ari looked at the dark corners, frightened. The scratching grew louder and Ari stood on the defensive. With the bear’s cautious step toward the edge of the bed, the noise stopped. He took another step. He looked around at the darkness and felt his chest pounding. For a bear that only awoke at nights, he sure hated the dark. Continuing with caution, he got down on all fours and started crawling toward the edge. He slowly peeked over to see a pair of beady eyes caught in a flash of light. Ari fell back, tripped on a blanket, and landed on Rick.

  Rick sat up with a start. He looked around with half-shut eyes but saw nothing. It wasn’t long before he fell back to sleep, holding Ari tight as he returned to dreamland.

  Ari waited a moment, and then sat up, eyes wide. He wriggled free and then crawled to the edge of the bed for another look. The beady eyes were still there, staring up from the face of a tiny mouse. The mouse twitched its nose and vanished into the darkness. Ari wanted to laugh at himself for being such a scaredy-cat. He wiped his brow with the back of his furry paw – not that he sweated much, or ever, but he had watched Rick’s mom make this motion often enough when Rick was causing his usual chaos. Ari glanced back and was happy to see his boy safely asleep.

  Rick started to turn over in his sleep and his eyes flickered. Ari raced back to Rick’s side and lay down in his arm as Rick moved about, eyelids fluttering. But he didn’t wake. False alarm.

  Chapter Two: Taken

  Rick snuck through the sheets hung between chairs and the couch, eyes peeled for any sign of monsters. He jumped out of the fort with Ari, doing the karate kicks he had learned in martial arts class at the YMCA. He had been going for three years now, since he was six, and he was getting pretty good. At least he thought so. He ran around the fort and dived back in before his sister could see him.

  “Get him, Ari, you got—”

  But the sheet collapsed and he had to pull himself out. There in the middle of what had been his fort stood his sister, Tiffany. Her hair was spiked with mud and she wore a wreath of dandelions as well as a ballet tutu.

  “Hey!” Rick said. “You’re not allowed!”

  “Momma said I could do whatever I wanted today since tomorrow’s Thanksgiving.”

  “Not in my fort!”

  Tiffany looked sad for a moment, but then snatched Ari and ran off.

  “Mom!” Rick called as he ran after her.

  Their mom swept Tiffany up with one arm and returned Ari to Rick. She let Tiffany down to go and play.

  Rick addressed Ari, frowning. “Don’t worry about her, she’s a monster.”

  “Rick!” his mom sai
d with a slight smile, wiping her hands on her apron. “She’s got character. Anyway, can’t you kids play outside? What happened to your friend, you know, Derrick, was it?”

  “Tell her to play outside. I’ve got a friend.” He held Ari close.

  “You know, your sister’s never had a teddy bear. And don’t you think you’re getting a bit old?”

  Rick looked at his mom, staring for a moment until he caught on. “No! Ari’s mine.”

  His mom stepped over the collapsed fort and sat on the couch. She pulled Rick onto her lap. “Do you know what tomorrow’s all about?”

  “Of course. Thanksgiving’s about turkey and stuffing and pies. Who cares.”

  She sighed. “It’s not only that, it’s…. Well, it’s had its problems over the years, but what it should mean is that we don’t judge, that we share what we have and be thankful.”

  This wasn’t the first time he had heard this from her, and he reminded her with a roll of his eyes. “Don’t make it so boring, Mom.”

  “Well, it is what it is, so you should show your sister that you appreciate her.” She gently took Ari and set him aside. “And sometimes we just have to learn to let go, do you understand that?”

  Rick looked at her suspiciously, and then glanced at the old teddy bear, Rusty, sitting in his red rocking chair in the corner. The bear had mismatched brown and black button eyes and wore a Hawaiian shirt.

  “What’s your excuse?” Rick asked.

  “Ah, him.” She stared at Rusty, lost in thought. “He was the last thing your Grandpa gave me. Sometimes it’s almost like he’s here with us, watching.”

  “Well Dad gave me Ari, so it’s the same.”

  She didn’t have anything to say to that. Knowing he had won, Rick took Ari by the arm. He went outside to play, leaving his mom to get back to baking pies for the next day. He loved his bear and couldn’t understand why his mom would even suggest such a thing as giving his best friend to his sister.

  ***

  That night Rick lay in bed watching TV, Ari in his arms. His stomach rumbled and he felt his mouth salivating at the thought of the next day’s turkey, or some strawberry rhubarb pie. Again the footsteps approached, a creak in the floorboards, and Rick pressed mute on the remote to make sure his mom didn’t hear. He waited to see if he was in the clear, and then turned the volume back on, but barely.

  After a few more minutes of watching TV, Rick yawned and knew he would fall asleep soon. Maybe he could get away with sneaking to the fridge for an early bite of pie? He looked to the door and then squirmed over, inching toward the side of the bed to look down. It was too dark, even with the nightlight. No way was he going to risk getting out of bed when it was so dark, not even for pie. He turned back to the TV and laughed as a cartoon monster slipped on a banana peel. That’s why he liked these shows—when he met a real monster he would be less scared, knowing how silly they could be.

  He curled up with his back to the TV, and closed his eyes.

  ***

  It wasn’t much later in the night when the scratching returned and Ari sat up with a start. The TV had turned to static. An immense shadow passed behind him, darker than the rest. He sensed it, but when he looked back there was nothing. He stood and moved to the foot of the bed with a glance to the blue nightlight. That was probably the best gift Rick’s mom had ever given him, at least in Ari’s eyes. Why sleep in darkness at all? That one didn’t make sense to Ari.

  Behind him, the shadow whipped around the walls. From within the darkness, eyes popped open, red and narrow like a snake’s eyes. The monster pulled out from the shadow, its skin reflecting the light, revealing the scales that covered its arms as it reached for Rick.

  Ari paused, his face forward but his eyes slowly moving to the left. He jumped into the air, spinning with his leg out, and let out his mandatory “hi-ya!” as his foot smacked the monster across the nose.

  The monster withdrew, claws held to its face. Its red eyes turned on Ari as he landed from the kick.

  In the stare-down, tears lined the monster’s eyes. It opened its mouth to roar, sharp teeth dripping green saliva, but Ari held a finger to his mouth and pointed to Rick. The Monster paused, confused. That was all the time Ari needed, and he took it. He charged forward and lifted his left paw in the air. A blue glow shone from his paw as light streamed from the nightlight and imbued his paws with the force of its light.

  He jumped, and the monster cringed. Blue light coalesced around Ari’s paws and he struck with a punch, but the monster’s scaly tail whipped around to whack Ari into the TV set, causing the screen to go black.

  Blue light flickered around Ari’s paws like fire. He glared at the monster, ready for the next attack. Before either could move, Rick’s eyes popped open and he screamed.

  Ari charged forward and thrust toward the monster. The blue light exploded upon impact and the monster shrieked, vanishing like a shadow in the light.

  Ari turned to Rick, wondering how he was going to explain this, but he froze. Rick was being dragged toward the edge of the bed by a lanky green orc and a droop-nosed goblin. The latter was only two feet tall with shifty eyes and a belly that the goblin kept trying to move out of his own way.

  Ari lunged, reaching for his boy, but Rick disappeared over the edge of the bed, his eyes staring straight through Ari in shock. Ari flipped from the bed and landed in a crouch to see the orc and goblin struggling to pull Rick behind them. The goblin got tangled in the fallen blanket and tripped. Ari took his chance and jumped, preparing his kick, but the orc turned with a hammer-like fist that caught Ari mid-air and sent him to bounce off the goblin’s belly like a trampoline. Ari slammed into the mattress and then thudded to the ground.

  The orc returned to Rick, but Ari lunged for the creature’s heel. It turned and raised its other foot to stomp on Ari’s face, but Ari rolled to the side. The orc’s foot splintered the wood floor.

  The goblin struggled with Rick as another kick from the orc collided, this time with Ari’s side. Ari blocked the next kick and rolled to lock the orc’s leg and take him to the ground.

  Ari once again pulled light from the nightlight and struck, but this monster wouldn’t fade. Ari didn’t get it. Then again, he had only fought a few shadow monsters away from Rick’s room over the years, and never any sort of creature as disgusting as these. He turned to see the goblin holding Rick and heading for the shadows under the bed.

  Ari charged and took down the goblin with a tackle. Fist raised, he turned to see Rick thrown over the orc’s shoulders

  “Rick!” Ari called out.

  Rick’s terrified eyes focused on Ari, almost calm for a moment, but they went wide again as the orc growled and stepped into the darkness. Rick and the orc vanished.

  The goblin crawled for the bed, but Ari lunged and pinned him to the ground with one paw, the other in the air ready to strike.

  “Where’d they go?” Ari shouted.

  The goblin smirked, mouth shut.

  “Where?”

  “The orc king sends his pity.” The darkness from the goblin’s shadow deepened and engulfed him, and the goblin disappeared as Ari struggled to grab hold. It was like trying to grasp fog.

  They were gone. Ari clawed at the floorboards where Rick and his captors had been moments before. He pounded the wood and roared. As the light faded from his paws and the room, he collapsed. The nightlight flickered one last time, then went out, leaving him in darkness.

  Chapter Three: Rusty

  Ari couldn’t just sit there in the dark of Rick’s room, wishing he had done more to save his boy. His first instinct was to get Rick’s mom because she would do anything for Rick. With Rick’s life at stake, Ari had a hard time worrying about the consequences of her finding out teddy bears came to life at night.

  The living room walls towered over him as they never had when he was with Rick. He felt so small. From behind a nearby door the sound of a TV blared, followed by a laugh from Rick’s mom. Ari ran for the door and pounded as
hard as his little stuffed bear paws would allow him, but there was no response.

  He continued to pound away, refusing to give up for what seemed the longest time. No response came. He stepped back and roared, hoping that would get her attention. Next he charged the door with his shoulder, but wow that hurt! Stumbling back, he plopped down on his butt. Maybe it was time to start feeling sorry for himself. The light at the crack of the door seemed to taunt him. So this is what failure feels like, he thought as he fell back to stare at the ceiling.

  “She wouldn’t be no help no how,” a deep voice said.

  Ari’s eyes rolled up to see Rusty, the old bear plopped on the tiny red rocking chair in the living room. Rusty’s brown button eye opened and he stared back, his Hawaiian shirt hanging loose to reveal the white circle of his stomach that contrasted with his black cotton fur.

  The two rarely spoke, but now was as good a time as any to break that pattern. Ari hopped to his feet and ran over to the base of the red chair.

  “You have to help me!” Ari said.

  “Me?” Rusty rolled his neck, his good eye turning to the window. “Naw, I take no part of it. Not even if they are back.”

  “But you said they were gone, never to scare a child again!”

  Rusty sighed in that old-person way. “The monsters? Yes, we all thought the same. The Council of Elders’ll know.”

  “The Council?”

  That was a story Ari knew as good as any. Legend had it that long ago, at the monster fortress, teddy bears of all shapes and sizes charged for the attack. Pale moonlight streamed from the sky and shone pearly white from their paws and weapons. A massive fortress of black rose high before them, jagged stone walls glowing. Orcs and goblins stood at defense.

  The two armies had met in a brilliant display of light and darkness. But the monsters hadn’t stood a chance. One last incredibly fat orc, the orc king, crawled backwards toward the fortress as the bears surrounded him. Three old teddy bears in robes stepped forward from the rest and raised their paws. Light shot from their claws and surrounded the orc king like a prison that dragged him into the ground. With an explosion of light, the orc king was gone. One large teddy bear stepped forward and drew a circle in the dirt with his staff. As he traced a pattern within the circle, it shone brighter and brighter until everything was light.