Hugo, stop singing.
The golem fell silent.
He isn't very good, Seth said.
About as musical as a landslide.
Does it embarrass him?
He doesn't think like we do. Doesn't get happy or sad or angry or bored. He's like a robot. Hugo just obeys commands.
Can I tell him to do stuff?
If I order him to obey you, Dale said. Otherwise he just listens to me, Lena, and your grandparents.
What else can he do?
He understands a lot. He performs all sorts of manual labor. It would take quite a team to match all the work he does around here. Hugo never sleeps. If you leave him with a list of chores, he'll labor through the night.
I want to tell him to do something.
Hugo, put down the scythes, said Dale.
The golem set the scythes on the ground.
Hugo, this is Seth. Hugo will obey Seth's next command.
Now? asked Seth.
Say his name first, so he knows you're addressing him.
Hugo, do a cartwheel.
Hugo held out his palms and shrugged.
He doesn't know what you mean, Dale said. Can you do a cartwheel?
Yeah.
Hugo, Seth is going to show you a cartwheel.
Seth put up his hands, lunged sideways, and did a cartwheel with sloppy form. Hugo, Dale said, obey Seth's next command.
Hugo, do a cartwheel.
The golem raised his arms, lurched to one side, and completed an awkward cartwheel. The ground trembled.
Pretty good for a first try, Seth said.
He duplicated yours. Hugo, when you do a cartwheel, keep your body straighter and aligned on a single plane, like a wheel turning. Hugo, do a cartwheel!
This time Hugo executed a nearly perfect cartwheel.
His hands left prints in the field. He learns fast, Seth exclaimed.
Anything physical, leastways. Dale put his hands on his hips. I'm sick of walking. What do you say we let Hugo take us to our next stop?
Really?
If you'd rather walk we can always- No way!
Kendra used a hacksaw to separate another pumpkin from the vine. Further down the long trough of soil, Lena was cutting a large red one. Nearly half the greenhouse was devoted to pumpkins, big and small, white, yellow, orange, red, and green.
They had arrived at the greenhouse by a faint trail through the woods. Aside from the pumpkins and plants, the glass structure contained a generator to power the lights and the climate control.
We really have to cut three hundred? Kendra asked.
Just be glad you don't have to load them, Lena said.
Who does?
It's a surprise.
Are jack-o-lanterns really such a big deal?
Do they work? Quite well. Especially if we can convince fairies to fill them.
With magic?
To dwell in them for the night, explained Lena.
Fairy lanterns have long been among the surest protections from creatures with dubious intentions.
But I thought the house was already safe. Kendra began sawing the stem of a tall orange pumpkin.
Redundancies in security are wise on festival nights.
Particularly on a Midsummer Eve after all the recent commotion.
How will we ever carve all of them before tonight?
Leave that to Dale. He could carve them all himself with time to spare. Not always the most artful renderings, but the man can mass produce. You carve only for fun; he knows how to carve for need.
I've never liked pulling out the guts, said Kendra.
Really? Lena said. I love the slimy texture, getting greasy up to my elbows. Like playing in the mud. We'll have delicious pies afterwards.
Is this white one too small?
Maybe save it for autumn.
Do you think the fairies will come?
Hard to say, Lena admitted. Some, for sure. Normally we have no trouble filling as many lanterns as we care to carve, but tonight might be an exception.
What if they don't show up? Kendra asked.
We'll be fine. Artificial lighting works, just not as well as fairies. With the fairy lanterns, the commotion stays farther from the house. In addition, Stan will be putting out tribal masks, herbs, and other safeguards.
Is the night really so awful?
You'll hear plenty of disturbing sounds.
Maybe we should have skipped the milk this morning.
Lena shook her head, not lifting her eyes from her work. Some of the most insidious tricks employed tonight will involve artifice and illusion. Without the milk you could be even more susceptible. It would only broaden their ability to mask their true appearance.
Kendra severed another pumpkin. Either way, I won't be looking.
I wish we could transplant some of your common sense to your brother.
After all that's happened, I'm sure he'll behave tonight.
The door to the greenhouse opened, and Dale poked his head in. Kendra, come here, I want you to meet somebody.
Kendra walked to the door with Lena behind her. In the doorway, Kendra paused and let out a small shriek. A bulky creature with a simian build was marching toward the greenhouse pulling a rickshaw-type contraption the size of a wagon. What is it?
He's Hugo, Seth crowed from inside the handcart.
He's a robot made of dirt! He jumped out of the cart and ran over to Kendra.
I ran ahead so you could see him approach, Dale said.
Hugo can run really fast when you tell him to, Seth gushed. Dale let me give him orders and he obeyed everything I said. See? He's waiting for instructions.
Hugo stood motionless beside the greenhouse, still holding the rickshaw. Had she not just seen Hugo moving, Kendra would have assumed he was a crude statue. Seth shouldered past Kendra into the greenhouse.
What is he? Kendra asked Lena.
A golem, she replied. Animated matter granted rudimentary intelligence. He does most of the heavy labor around here.
He's loading the pumpkins.
And rolling them to the house in his cart.
Seth exited the greenhouse toting a fairly large pumpkin.
Can I show her a command? he asked.
Sure, Dale said. Hugo, obey the next command from Seth.
Holding the pumpkin at his waist with both hands, leaning back a bit to stay balanced, Seth approached the golem. Hugo, take this pumpkin and throw it as far as you can into the woods.
The inert golem sprang to life. Grasping the pumpkin in one massive hand, he twisted and then fiercely uncoiled, hurling the pumpkin into the sky like a discus. Dale whistled softly as the pumpkin shrank into the distance, finally dropping out of sight, an orange speck vanishing behind far-off treetops.
Did you see that? Seth cried. He's better than a water balloon launcher!
Regular catapult, Dale murmured.
Very impressive, Lena agreed dryly. Forgive me if I hope to put a few of our pumpkins to more practical use.
You boys come help us cut the rest of our harvest so we can get them loaded.
Can't Hugo do a few more tricks? Seth begged. He knows cartwheels.
There will be time for nonsense later, Lena assured him. We need to finish our preparations for this evening.