Skor the Winged Stallion Read online

  Tom spun around. The wolf was nowhere to be seen.

  “Silver!” shouted Elenna. “Where are you?”

  A howl sounded back, from behind a nearby cluster of boulders. They dashed in the direction of the noise and found Silver. He was sniffing a bush loaded with bright red berries.

  “Food!” said Elenna. “Clever boy, Silver.” She ruffled his fur, then started to pick the fruit.

  Tom joined her. It had been so long since they last ate. Tom stuffed the juicy berries into his mouth until the sticky sweet juice dribbled down his chin.

  “They taste so good.” Elenna laughed, licking her fingers. “Who would have thought something so delicious could grow in Gorgonia?”

  Tom stopped. Elenna was right. The berries tasted too good. He spat out his mouthful, and stared at his friend. Elenna was blurring in front of him. Tom held his hand up to his face — his fingers became hazy around the edges. He staggered sideways.

  “The berries!” he said. “They’re poisonous!”

  It was another of Malvel’s evil tricks.

  Elenna stumbled toward him. “Something is wrong with my eyes! What shall we do?” she asked.

  Tom pointed shakily to the gorge. “We have to get across the bridge — while we still can. We can’t let Malvel end our Quest before it’s really begun!”

  Holding on to each other, they walked unsteadily toward the edge of the cliff. Storm came to their side.

  “You’ll have to stay here,” said Tom, unhooking his shield from the stallion’s saddle and patting his head.

  Silver lifted his nose and licked Elenna’s hand.

  “You too, Silver,” she said. The wolf dropped back, letting out a worried whine.

  Tom edged toward the bridge. It was so narrow and he felt so unsteady on his feet.

  “We’ll have to go one at a time,” he said. “Let me lead the way.”

  A strong wind had picked up, gusting along the gorge. The rope bridge swayed and creaked. Tom shuddered. None of his special powers could help him now. He looked back to Storm and Silver. Both animals were watching in silence.

  “Maybe we should wait until the magic wears off,” said Elenna, tightening her grip on Tom’s arm.

  “We don’t have time,” he said. “Somewhere in that rain forest, Epos needs our help.”

  “You’re right,” said Elenna.

  Letting go of his friend’s arm, Tom stepped onto the bridge.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CROSSING THE BRIDGE

  “BE CAREFUL!” SAID ELENNA. “DON’T GO too fast.”

  The bridge groaned under Tom’s weight. Tom’s vision blurred again. He shot out a hand and steadied himself against the ropes. He managed to take another short step.

  A screech made him glance up. A black shape drifted under the clouds. Tom’s eyes regained focus. An eagle! It circled, suspended on the air, gliding gracefully through the red sky. It screeched again, the noise piercing Tom’s brain. Was this another of Malvel’s tricks? A distraction to send him plummeting to his death?

  Tom gripped the ropes and inched his way across the bridge. Each time he took another step, the ropes creaked, but they held. Tom’s dizziness was becoming worse. The wind was stronger now, whipping through his hair.

  Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Tom called back to Elenna. “It’s safe,” he shouted. The wind caught his breath and whipped it away. Had she heard him? He yelled again. “The ropes are strong enough. You can come across.”

  He looked around to see Elenna gingerly place a foot on the bridge. So far, so good. But as Elenna took another step, Tom realized he had made a mistake. The bridge began to lean to one side, then the other. With both of them on the bridge, plus the strong wind, the bridge was beginning to sway dangerously. Tom bent down, keeping his weight close to the wooden planks. His vision blacked out again and he heard Elenna call out.

  “I have to go back, Tom. The bridge won’t hold us both.”

  “No!” urged Tom. “You can make it, Elenna. Keep coming!”

  “But I can’t see!” she said.

  Tom turned. He squinted and was just able to make out a blurred vision of Elenna, desperately clutching to one side of the rope bridge.

  “Listen, Elenna,” he shouted, as his vision faded out once more. “I need you to do exactly as I tell you. Hold the ropes on both sides of the bridge. That will steady you.”

  Slowly, Elenna did as he said.

  “That’s good,” said Tom. “Now move forward. Shuffle with your feet.”

  Elenna was making good progress toward him, but the bridge was still swinging violently. Tom began to back toward the other side, keeping his eyes on Elenna.

  “You’re doing well,” he said. “You’re nearly at the middle.”

  Elenna smiled weakly, but she was still shaking with fear. Then she tripped. She thrust a hand out to break her fall, barely keeping hold of the rope with her other hand. A shudder traveled along the bridge like a wave, tilting it to one side. Tom was thrown against the ropes and cried out. He only just managed to hold on.

  “Are you all right?” shouted Elenna.

  “I think so!” shouted Tom. “Keep coming toward me.”

  Then he felt something slimy against his palm and looked more closely at the rope he was holding. What he saw made him feel sick. It was made of hair! Many different colors, all wound tightly together. Was it hair from long-dead Beasts? he wondered. Or even human hair? Who knew what evil Malvel was capable of?

  The eagle screeched again, closer this time. Tom watched its black shape swoop low over the bridge. Was this bird acting as Malvel’s eyes?

  Elenna had reached Tom now, and the wind had died down. They were going to make it.

  “Nearly there,” he said, taking her arm. Then Tom noticed the rope on his left give a tiny shudder. He looked back. The eagle was perched on the far end of the bridge. Gripping the rope between its talons, it tore at the strands with its beak.

  “No!” shouted Tom.

  “What is it?” said Elenna.

  Tom didn’t have time to answer. Before the eagle was halfway through the twine, there was a loud twang and the rope snapped.

  Tom felt his feet fall away, and his whole world turned upside down. He and Elenna plunged into the air, their screams echoing through the rocky gorge.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  ESCAPE FROM THE GORGE

  THE ROCK FACE RUSHED PAST. BUT SOON TOM felt himself begin to slow. Of course! My shield! he thought. Its magic was protecting him — but would it slow him enough to avoid crashing into the rocks below?

  As he passed a ledge, Tom shot out a hand. Jagged rock cut into his fingers, but he held on. His whole body jarred. Elenna was falling toward him, spiraling through the air. He would get only one chance….

  He reached out, his fingers closing around her wrist.

  “Got you!” he said. The extra weight tore at him, but he couldn’t let his friend fall.

  Elenna’s nails dug into his hand as she clung to him. Gathering all his strength, Tom heaved Elenna onto the ledge, then pulled himself up as well. Thankfully, the evil poison that had blurred his vision seemed to be wearing off. Now he could see what he was doing.

  He lay on the ground, panting for breath.

  “Thanks,” gasped Elenna. “You saved my life.”

  “How is your eyesight?” said Tom.

  Elenna moved her hand in front of her face, flexing her fingers. “It’s better!”

  Tom gazed up. The top of the gorge was far above them.

  “How can we get out?” asked Elenna.

  “We’ll have to climb,” said Tom.

  But the sides of the gulley were slick with slime. With no ropes, it would be difficult.

  Tom hauled himself up against the rock face and placed his foot in a shallow dent. Keeping his body tight against the rock, he began to pick a path upward, using the tiny crevices to lever his way.

  “One step at a time,” he called down to Elenna. “Slowly and
carefully.”

  Elenna pulled herself up behind him.

  As he climbed, Tom’s knuckles turned white, and sweat streamed down his back. He forced himself to concentrate. Reach. Step. Reach. Step. Up there, somewhere, Epos the Winged Flame needed help.

  The muscles in his arms and chest trembled, and his legs shook, but Tom pushed onward. Then he saw it — a rope. It was the frayed remains of the hair cord from the bridge, dangling into the abyss. Tom tugged hard on the end. It held.

  “We can use this,” he called down to Elenna.

  He seized the rope and began to haul himself up, his feet braced against the slope. Placing hand over hand, he dragged himself up the final section of the cliff. Behind him, he could hear Elenna breathing hard. When he got to the top, Tom leaned back to help his friend up. Then they collapsed together in the dirt.

  “We’ve made it!” Elenna gasped.

  Tom turned to face the rain forest. Huge trees shot out of the earth. Their lush green leaves cast the undergrowth in shadow. He could make out vines wrapped around the tree trunks, and snaking tendrils hanging from the branches.

  “Come on!” said Tom. “Let’s make Aduro proud.”

  Tom and Elenna hurried toward the forest. Smaller trees grew at the edges, with twisted, leafless branches that seemed to reach out as they passed by. Bushes, sprouting stems lined with thorns, tore at their legs. Parts of the ground were marshy, and Tom felt squelching mud clutch at his feet. Then he noticed something strange. A patch of the long swamp grass was crushed. He walked another few steps and saw another flattened area.

  “Look, Elenna.” He pointed. “They’re shaped like …”

  “Hooves,” Elenna finished.

  Tom nodded slowly. “But they must be ten times the size of Storm’s hoofprints! What creature could have feet that large?”

  Elenna didn’t answer and Tom shot her a glance. She wasn’t even looking at him. Her eyes, opened wide with terror, were fixed on a spot behind him. Her hand shook as she pointed.

  “Skor!” she yelled.

  CHAPTER SIX

  AN ENEMY RETURNS

  TOM FROZE. A DARK HORSE’s BODY TOWERED above him. Silver sparks flashed from its eyes. The Beast reared on muscular hind legs, churning the air with gleaming golden hooves. His mane was as black as coal, and his tail floated in the air like strands of emerald seaweed.

  Skor gave a deafening roar and unfurled giant, glossy wings. Tom staggered backward into Elenna. The underside of the feathers shimmered purple like an exotic seashell, and the tips looked as if they’d been dipped in gold. Tom spotted a shimmer of emerald green in one of the golden hooves. A jewel the size of his fist was embedded there, just like the ruby in Torgor the Minotaur’s ax. Skor beat his mighty wings back and forth, the draft flattening the clothes against Tom’s body and blasting Elenna’s hair into tangles. Then the wheeling hooves crashed back to the ground, sending tremors through the earth that knocked Tom to his knees.

  Skor snorted but didn’t come forward. A voice pierced the stillness.

  “Very good,” it said. “It is right that you should bow before me.”

  Tom saw a figure jump down from Skor’s back. He recognized him right away. The boy was a year or two older than Tom, with pale blond hair. A bronze sword hung by his side.

  “Seth!”

  “That’s right,” said the boy. “Didn’t you expect to see me again?”

  Tom had met Seth once before, on a quest to free two baby dragons. But that had been another time, in another kingdom.

  “How are you in —” he began.

  “Gorgonia?” Seth finished the question. “I’ll always be able to find you.”

  Tom climbed to his feet and drew his sword. “Then that makes us enemies.” I’ll finish the fight this time, he told himself.

  Seth’s lip curled in a sneer when he saw Tom’s blade. He unsheathed his own. “I hoped I would get the chance to fight you,” he said. Then he turned to Skor and pointed back into the forest with his sword.

  “Begone, Skor! Do Malvel’s bidding, and take care of our prisoner.”

  The Beast snorted and rose into the air. Then he headed back into the depths of the forest, his wing tips glittering like flames.

  Tom tightened his hand around his shield’s strap. He pushed Elenna back among the foliage, whispering, “Stay out of the way.” He raised his voice. “What have you done to Avantia’s Beast?”

  Seth laughed. “You won’t see her again.”

  Tom clenched his teeth. “You’re nothing but Malvel’s puppet,” he said.

  “That’s better than being Aduro’s workhorse,” Seth shot back.

  Tom adjusted his grip, raised his sword, and darted forward, cutting through the air.

  Seth stepped aside nimbly, grinning. “This will be easier than I thought,” he said.

  He lunged at Tom, who parried with a downward stroke. Seth came again, slicing an arc at Tom’s legs. Tom jumped, feeling the draft of the blade pass under his feet. Seth’s face became red and he hissed in anger. He brought his blade down heavily. Tom blocked upward with his shield, feeling the power of the blow shoot through his arm. Seth grunted. Tom tried to thrust underneath, but Seth parried, and the blades jammed together. They faced each other, locked in position, faces close enough for Tom to feel the warmth of Seth’s breath.

  “You can’t keep this up forever,” said Seth through gritted teeth.

  “I won’t stop until it’s over,” said Tom, then he thrust his shield into Seth’s stomach. They both toppled to the ground, but Tom was up first. “Let your sword do the talking,” he said, watching as Seth climbed to his feet, his face now black with anger.

  His enemy ran forward, shouting a cry, and swinging wildly with his sword. It whistled through the air, but Tom kept his shield well placed. He backed away until he saw his chance. He ducked under one of Seth’s swings and twisted up behind him. With his right hand, he pinned Seth’s sword arm. With his left, he held his blade to his enemy’s neck.

  “You’ve lost!” he said in Seth’s ear. “Drop your sword.”

  Seth’s blade clattered to the ground. Tom kicked it to Elenna. But as her fingers closed over the hilt, a high-pitched screech rang out through the air. It filled Tom’s head and he had to let go of Seth to cover his ears. He could barely stay on his feet.

  Just as abruptly, the screeching ceased. Seth was already running in the direction of the rain forest, but Tom didn’t care about him anymore. He knew that the awful sound was a Beast in pain. The winged flame’s feather, fixed into Tom’s shield, was vibrating and glowing, and through the ruby in his belt, which helped him to understand the thoughts of Avantia’s Beasts, Tom realized that time was running out for Epos.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  FINDING THE WINGED FLAME

  THEY DASHED TOWARD THE RAIN FOREST. Seth had disappeared into the shadows ahead of them. But Tom couldn’t follow; he had to get to Epos.

  The trees were massive, the trunks taller than the towers of King Hugo’s castle and some as wide as five men.

  A figure appeared suddenly from behind one of the trees. Tom recognized his bald head and eye patch. It was the keeper of the gate between Avantia and Gorgonia.

  “Look, Elenna!” he said. “It’s Kerlo.”

  They watched the ragged figure hobble toward them, supported by his wooden staff. Kerlo paused when he was still some distance away. He smiled and lifted his hand.

  “Greetings, travelers!” he called out. “How fares your journey?”

  “We have to rescue Epos,” shouted Tom. “She’s trapped in the forest.”

  Kerlo nodded slowly. “I warned you, did I not? Gorgonia doesn’t welcome fools.”

  Tom felt his fists clench. “We’re not fools, gatekeeper. We have a Quest to fulfill.”

  “The jungle holds many dangers, young one. You will need great bravery,” said Kerlo. He shook his head.

  Tom was tired of the gatekeeper’s mocking tone. “We’re not afraid of anyt
hing,” he said.

  “That’s funny,” Kerlo said. “Your father, Taladon, said the same thing to me once.”

  Taladon! Tom had never met his father, who had disappeared before Tom was born, but the stories of his brave deeds seemed to have reached the farthest corners of Avantia — and Gorgonia. Kerlo turned to leave.

  “Wait!” said Tom. “Tell me more!”

  Epos screeched again, but more faintly this time.

  “Come on, Tom,” said Elenna. “We don’t have much time. She’s losing strength.”

  He nodded. And when he looked back, Kerlo was gone.

  They turned and plunged into the foliage.

  The air in the forest was thick and heavy. It was dark, too, and the shadows shifted as though creatures were creeping through the gloom. Elenna suddenly seized Tom’s arm.

  “What’s that?” she whispered, pointing.

  Tom couldn’t see anything but dense leaves.

  “What?” he asked.

  Elenna relaxed. “I thought I saw something … a pair of eyes.”

  Tom peered again, and felt a chill tingling his spine.

  “Just stay close,” he said.

  The ground was covered in spongy moss, and huge fallen branches blocked the path ahead. Mysterious sounds came from all around them — shrill calls of unseen animals cutting through the air. The leaves above them rustled, but when Tom looked, he could see nothing. Somewhere in the distance a branch splintered. Tom couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being watched. But Seth was nowhere to be seen.

  “I wish Silver were with us,” said Elenna.

  Tom thought about Storm, too, and tried to ignore how heavy his heart felt without their loyal friends.

  As they moved farther into the jungle, the vines became thicker. Tom drew his sword and hacked them aside. The canopy above blocked out most of the red sunlight. A black shape suddenly broke cover and shot between their heads. Tom spun around with his sword, and Elenna let out a cry.

  “It’s only a bat,” said Tom. “It won’t hurt us.”