Unwelcoming Committee is the seventeenth chapter of The Phantom Tollbooth.
Characters[]
- Milo
- Tock
- The Humbug
- The Terrible Trivium
- Demon of Insincerity (debut)
- The Gelatinous Giant (debut)
Plot[]
Milo, Tock, and the Humbug are happily working away on the absurd projects they were assigned by the faceless gentleman when Milo points out that he feels like he could go on forever. He decides to use the magic pencil the Mathemagician gave him to figure out just how long it will take him to complete his task and discovers that it will be hundreds of years. Milo confronts the gentleman and discovers that he is a demon called the Terrible Trivium. The three travelers feel trapped. Things get worse as the Trivium tells them more of his philosophy and it seems like they will never be able to escape. Then they hear a voice yelling for them to get out. Each of them thinks it's one of the others and they all obey. Following the bodiless voice, the travelers run away from the demon, running and scrambling up the increasingly steep and difficult path with the Trivium not far behind them. The voice shouts what seems to be helpful advice, directing the three companions through a confusing part of the trail. But before they know it, they drop into a large pit and realize they've been tricked. From there, they hear the voice threatening them. The voice warns Milo and his friends not to try to escape from the pit and describes itself as a terrible and scary demon, but Milo pulls out the telescope that Alec Bings told him would show things as they really were. He takes a good look at the demon, and discovers that he is a small, pathetic animal. The demon presents himself as "the demon of insincerity", and he is so upset by Milo's realization of the truth that he leaves crying. Once he's gone, Milo, Tock, and the Humbug work together to climb out of the pit. They continue along the path for a time and, upon stopping for a rest, find themselves in the palm of the Gelatinous Giant. They do not notice the giant until he announces himself because this demon tries as hard as he can to look exactly like whatever is around him. Being different simply is not safe, the giant explains. Milo cannot believe that someone so big could be afraid of anything, yet the Gelatinous Giant says he is afraid of everything, especially ideas. Milo pulls out the box of words that King Azaz gave him and shoos the giant away with it. And so the travelers are on their way once again. News of their journey seems to have spread across the demon network, though, and soon an entire throng of monsters is hot on their trail. Once they spot this horrible crowd, among its members all of the demons they had already met, Milo, Tock, and the Humbug press ahead at an even more urgent pace.
Chapter Guide[]
< A Very Dirty Bird (Chapter 16) | Castle in the Air (Chapter 18)>