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  BEAST QUEST

  BOOK FOUR

  TAGUS

  THE NIGHT HORSE

  ADAM BLADE

  ILLUSTRATED BY EZRA TUCKER

  With special thanks to Cherith Baldry

  Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Dear Reader

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE: A THOUSAND HOOVES

  CHAPTER TWO: TRAPPED!

  CHAPTER THREE: BEHIND BARS

  CHAPTER FOUR: HOOFBEATS IN THE NIGHT

  CHAPTER FIVE: VICTOR

  CHAPTER SIX: THE CATTLE DRIVE

  CHAPTER SEVEN: TAGUS BOUND

  CHAPTER EIGHT: CHASE TO THE HILLS

  CHAPTER NINE: FREE!

  CHAPTER TEN: NORTH

  Copyright

  Reader,

  Welcome to Avantia. I am Aduro — a good wizard residing in the palace of King Hugo. You join us at a difficult time. Let me explain….

  It is laid down in the Ancient Scripts that the peaceful kingdom of Avantia would one day be plunged into danger by the evil wizard, Malvel.

  That time has come.

  Under Malvel’s evil spell, six Beasts — fire dragon, sea serpent, mountain giant, night horse, ice beast, and winged flame — run wild and destroy the land they once protected.

  The kingdom is in great danger.

  The Scripts also predict an unlikely hero. They say that a boy shall take up the Quest to free the beasts and save the kingdom.

  We hope this young boy will take up the Quest. Will you join us as we wait and watch?

  Avantia salutes you,

  Aduro

  PROLOGUE

  VICTOR AWOKE WITH A START. GRABBING HIS sword, he sat up and looked around wildly. It was just before dawn and the sky was beginning to lighten in the east. The coals from last night’s campfire were still glowing red. Victor surveyed the plain — nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

  Must have been a bad dream, he thought to himself as he settled back onto his bedroll.

  But sleep was the last thing on Victor’s mind. In the last couple of weeks, three separate attacks had struck the cattle drives. None of the cattlemen were getting much sleep at night.

  No one knew who was behind the attacks, but according to the rumors, a horseman was responsible. Victor didn’t know what to think, but one thing was for sure: He was glad the night was almost over.

  Lying on his bedroll, Victor listened to the sounds of the plains. There was a slight breeze rustling the tall prairie grasses and he could hear the last of the crickets chirping softly. Then, a bird called out over the lowing cattle.

  Something wasn’t right. The cattle should be sleeping. Propping himself up on his elbows, he looked toward the horizon. The cattle were huddled together more tightly than usual, with their calves grouped in the center — a sign that they felt threatened. But by what?

  Victor thought he could make out the sound of hooves drumming in the distance. Was it just his imagination?

  The cattle began mooing frantically. Victor rose to his feet and stood by the fire’s coals as the sound of hoofbeats drew nearer.

  There, in the red glow of the coals, he saw the mysterious horseman. Victor gasped. This was no ordinary horseman! This was something much more horrifying — the torso of a giant man, attached to the body of a powerful stallion. Stumbling backward in fear, Victor stared up at the huge half man–half horse. His dark hair and beard were wildly tangled and the reflection from the campfire had turned his eyes a flaming red.

  The creature reared up on its hind legs, grunting fiercely, its hooves pounding the air. The Beast was ready to charge!

  Victor tried to dive out of the way. But he wasn’t fast enough. One of the Beast’s hooves struck him on the head, knocking him to the ground. The Beast galloped through the fire, scattering the red-hot coals in a flurry of sparks. It flung its head back and roared as the dry grass began to catch fire.

  Dazed, Victor saw the creature charge toward the helpless cattle. Before he could do anything, the pain overcame him and everything went black.

  CHAPTER ONE

  A THOUSAND HOOVES

  “I THINK THAT WAS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE yet,” said Tom.

  He sat tall in the saddle as he rode down the hills from the north of Avantia on his black horse, Storm. His friend Elenna rode behind him, her arms around his waist. Tom had just released Cypher the giant from the evil spell of the wizard Malvel. They were all tired from the struggle, but Storm kept going. Silver, the wolf, padded quietly after them.

  “I thought I’d be trapped in that cave forever,” Elenna agreed. “Cypher was so angry!”

  “I’d be angry, too, if an evil wizard had enslaved me!” Tom said. He gave a sigh of satisfaction. “But Cypher is free now. There will be no more trouble.”

  “Not from him,” Elenna pointed out. “But we have a new Beast Quest now. How long do you think it will take to reach the plains?”

  “It’s not far,” said Tom. “I hope we’re ready for it, that’s all.” He reached out and touched the saddlebag holding his sword and was reminded of all the challenges he had faced so far.

  “I know you have it in you,” Elenna said, giving him a playful jab. “And don’t forget, you’ve got me to protect you.”

  Tom glanced over his shoulder and smiled. “I haven’t forgotten. I’m glad we met in the forest.”

  It was early morning and the sun had just risen. Tom brought Storm to a halt and pulled out his magical map from one of the saddlebags. Elenna peered over his shoulder so she could see it, too. A glowing red line showed the road from the mountain town of Colton to the plain of Dareton in the middle of the kingdom. Tiny cattle moved about on the plain, eating the rich grass.

  “I think we’re about here.” Tom pointed to the edge of the hills on the map. “It can’t be too far now.”

  “Can you see Dareton?” Elenna asked, moving to get a better view of the map. “That’s the main town, isn’t it?”

  “There,” Tom pointed, “that’s where we’re headed.” He put the map away and looked at the plains below them. He could see the long grasses swaying in the breeze. With a nudge of his heels, he urged Storm onward. “Since we’re getting close, we should keep an eye out for the next Beast.”

  “Wizard Aduro said he’s half man, half horse,” Elenna said, shivering.

  Tom nodded. “Tagus. He’s attacking the cattle on the plain. The people of Dareton could starve.”

  Tom tightened his grip on the reins. He knew how important it was to free Tagus from the evil enchantment. Storm nickered, as if he knew what they were up against. Tom patted his horse’s neck. With each Quest, their bond grew stronger.

  They came to the crest of a low hill. Tom looked out across the wide plain that stretched as far as he could see. A river wound through clumps of trees and gently sloping hills. In the distance, a lake glinted in the sunlight. Silver’s ears pricked up and he sniffed the air eagerly.

  “It’s beautiful!” Elenna exclaimed. “Maybe Aduro sent us here before Tagus had the chance to do terrible damage.”

  “Could be.” Tom’s heartbeat quickened with hope. In the south, the crops had been burned by dragon fire. In the west, Sepron the sea serpent had flooded the coast. Cypher the giant had destroyed the northern hills with rock slides. Tom had almost forgotten what ordinary, peaceful countryside looked like. “Look over there,” he said, pointing into the distance. He could just make out square gray towers and rooftops covered with red tiles. “That must be Dareton.”

  “Then let’s go!” said Elenna.

  Storm cantered down the hill toward the plain. Tom enjoyed the steady beat of his hooves, sensing his horse’s rising excitement. Silve
r let out a joyful yelp and bounded ahead of them. He disappeared into the long grass until all Tom and Elenna could see of him was the tip of his tail.

  On the breeze Tom could smell a hint of smoke, as if there was a campfire burning nearby. He scanned the horizon to see if he could catch sight of it. Looking south across the plain, Tom spotted a herd of cattle. Moving in a thick mass, the herd appeared to be heading toward them.

  “That’s odd,” Tom said. “Shouldn’t the cattle be moving toward Dareton?”

  As they watched from Storm’s saddle, Tom and Elenna sensed that something was wrong.

  The herd wasn’t walking peacefully. They were stampeding!

  “We have to get out of here,” Tom said. “They’re heading right for us!”

  “Silver!” Elenna called to her wolf. She let out a piercing whistle, and within seconds the gray wolf was bounding through the tall grass toward them.

  “Good boy,” Tom said, looking east toward Dareton. If they could move quickly enough, they might be able to get out of the stampede’s way and reach safety. Tom squeezed Storm’s flanks and the horse took off through the prairie grass toward town.

  Running at full speed, Storm cut across the plain like a bolt of lightning. Silver followed at their heels. But they couldn’t get out of the way of the stampeding herd. Dust had begun to fill the air and the sound of their hooves pounding the hard ground was deafening.

  When Storm crested onto a slight rise in the ground, Tom caught a glimpse of the cattle. The herd was much larger then he had thought. There must have been a thousand animals, each the size of a large boulder. They were charging through the plain, trampling flat anything in their way.

  The ground was shaking under the weight of the massive animals. Tom could feel Elenna squeezing him tightly as they flew across the plains toward Dareton. They were almost out of the way of the stampede when Storm skidded to a stop.

  “Go, Storm! Keep going!” Tom yelled, kicking at the horse’s flanks. “We’re almost there —”

  Tom heard a crackling sound and looked up. Instantly, he knew why Storm had stopped so suddenly. Just in front of them, a raging fire was consuming the tall, dry grass of the prairie.

  CHAPTER TWO

  TRAPPED!

  THEY WERE TRAPPED. THE RAMPAGING CATTLE were closing in and there was nowhere to go. The only thing they could do was run with the stampede. This would be risky, but they had no choice.

  Tom wheeled Storm around, and the brave horse began running alongside the cattle. Before they knew it, Tom and Elenna were surrounded by a raging sea of stampeding animals.

  Choking on the dust and smoke, Tom urged Storm to run faster. “Go, boy! Go!”

  After a quarter of a mile, they had outrun the spreading fire.

  “Quick, go left!” Tom yelled, pulling on Storm’s reins. The horse made an abrupt turn, breaking from the stampede. Tom eased him to a stop.

  “We need to make a firebreak, to stop the fire from reaching Dareton!” Tom yelled above the thundering hooves. “I’ll need my sword and shield!”

  Tom jumped down from Storm’s back as Elenna handed him his shield and weapon. Running toward the approaching flames, Tom began chopping the tall grass with his sword. He knew if he could clear a wide enough break in front of the fire’s path, it would have nowhere to go.

  Running and chopping, Tom cleared a large swath of grass. The dragon scale in his shield kept him safe from the blaze. He did it again and again until the flames had nothing left to consume and began to die down.

  As the fire flickered out, Tom collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. His face was covered in soot and he was coughing from all the smoke he had inhaled.

  “Let’s rest a bit before moving on,” Elenna suggested, handing Tom some water and a little food. “Storm could use a break, too.”

  Tom walked a little ways to survey the damage. But he didn’t want to stay put for long. “We’d better get moving soon,” he called to Elenna as soon as he’d finished his bread. “The town will have stables where Storm can rest properly.”

  Just then, a shout rang out. “There he is!”

  Tom looked up to see a band of men approaching from the direction of Dareton. Tom was glad he had stopped the fire before it reached the town.

  “Hurry, let’s get him!” another man shouted.

  As the men approached, Tom knew something wasn’t right. These men weren’t here to thank him — they were angry and carrying weapons. Tom gripped his sword and shield tightly.

  “Elenna, leave them to me,” Tom told his friend as the mob drew nearer. “Take Storm and Silver to safety.” He watched as Elenna mounted Storm and galloped away, with Silver at her side. She cast him a worried look, but Tom did his best to look calm.

  The crowd surrounded him. They were all big men, brandishing scythes and pitchforks. Their faces glared red with rage. But at least they hadn’t seen his friends get away.

  There were too many of them to fight. And Tom didn’t understand why they were so angry — all he’d done was save their town from a wildfire. He took a step back as they jostled one another, trying to grab him.

  “Wait a minute. I haven’t done anything wrong —” Tom began.

  No one listened to him. One of the men pushed forward and grabbed Tom by the shoulder. “Where’s Victor?” he demanded.

  Everyone seemed to be shouting at once. “Look at him — covered in soot! He must have started the fire.”

  “And what about our cattle?” Another man thrust his face close to Tom’s, glaring fiercely at him. “You’ve caused them to stampede.”

  Someone else struck Tom a powerful blow on the back that knocked the air from him. “Our families will starve!”

  “Who’s Victor? I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Tom sputtered, trying to get his wind back. “I put out the fire! I didn’t start the stampede!”

  But the men were yelling, and Tom couldn’t make himself heard. Fear surged up inside him as they crowded around. He gripped his sword tightly, but one of the men wrenched it out of his hands.

  Then another voice rang out. “Wait! Let me talk to him.” A tall man pushed his way to the front of the crowd. He had dark hair and a stern face. “Calm down,” he ordered. “I’ll soon find out what’s going on.”

  The crowd moved back a bit and their shouts died down to angry muttering.

  “I’m Adam, the head guard of Dareton,” the tall man said. “My son, Victor, disappeared from a cattle drive last night. Do you know anything about him?”

  Tom’s heart pounded as he looked at the angry faces staring at him. “No, I’m sorry,” he said. “I’ve only just come down from the north. I barely escaped the stampede myself. I’m the one that put out the fire.” He glanced around at the circle of suspicious faces and added, “You’ve got to let me go. I have something important to do.”

  “I’ll bet!” one of the men jeered. He reached out and grabbed Tom’s arm. Someone else grabbed his other arm.

  “So you won’t tell the truth, eh?” a voice called out. “We’ll see about that! Take him to the jail!”

  CHAPTER THREE

  BEHIND BARS

  BY THE TIME TOM AND HIS CAPTORS REACHED Dareton, the sun had set. The streets were dark and narrow, with overhanging roofs that hid the sky. Rubbish lay scattered around the market stalls and stray dogs picked among the scraps.

  Adam and the other guards marched Tom through the streets, with the rest of the men following close on their heels. Tom tried to pull away from the rough grip of his captors, but it was no use. These men were twice his size, and strong.

  “Why won’t you listen to me?” Tom pleaded. “I don’t know anything about your son.”

  “Then tell me, why are you here?” Adam asked him. “And what’s so important about what you have to do?”

  “I can’t tell you that,” he answered. Tom knew he had to keep his Beast Quest secret.

  “If that’s the way you want it,” said Adam. It was clear his patienc
e was running thin.

  The band of men stopped outside a big stone building. Two guards stood by the door. Tom began to panic as he realized where he was.

  “No!” he exclaimed. “You can’t put me in there.”

  Still keeping a firm grip on Tom’s shoulder, Adam turned to face the men. “Go back to your homes,” he ordered. “I’ll see that justice is done.”

  “Make sure that you do!” someone yelled from the back of the crowd.

  “Don’t worry about that. If the boy knows anything about Victor, I’ll find out.”

  The crowd shuffled away, giving Tom angry looks as they went.

  “This is for your own protection, too,” Adam said. “Those men are desperate. They might kill you if given the chance.”

  He pushed open the door and thrust Tom inside. One of the guards followed.

  Tom was standing in a large, bare room lit by an oil lamp hanging from a beam. In the middle of the room was an old wooden table and chair. No one else was there. The guard pushed Tom across the room and through an inner door into a long, stone-flagged passage. On either side of the hall were heavy iron doors. Tom felt his stomach tighten with fear.

  The guard unhooked a bunch of keys from his belt and opened the door. Then he grabbed Tom by the arm and threw him inside. Tom sprawled onto the filth of the cell floor, then climbed awkwardly to his feet, rubbing his elbow.

  “I’ll question you in the morning,” said Adam gruffly. “A night in the cells should loosen your tongue.”

  The cell door slammed shut and the guard turned the key. The two men walked away, their footsteps muffled by the heavy door.

  Tom looked around his cell. The walls and floor were stone and there were no windows. Along one wall was a wooden bench with a single, tattered blanket. Tom shivered and tried not to breathe in too much of the foul smell.