Narga the Sea Monster Read online

  “Did they say how he can be defeated?” Elenna asked.

  Odora shook her head. “No one can defeat him. He’s too powerful. Please don’t even think of trying. He will kill you just as he killed Dako.”

  “We have to try,” Tom said. He didn’t have time to tell the young girl about his Quest, but he needed any help she could give him.

  Odora drew a deep breath. “The rebels have another boat for emergencies. You are welcome to use it. We keep it covered with bracken in a cove just north of here. Look for a black pinnacle of rock shaped like a sword.”

  “Thank you,” Elenna said.

  Odora shook back her fiery hair. “Don’t thank me. I owe you more than I can ever repay.”

  “And where will you go?” Elenna asked her. “We can’t leave you to be recaptured by Malvel’s men.”

  “I’ll be all right,” Odora assured her. “There’s a rebel camp a few miles northwest. I’ll be safe there. And so will you,” she added. “We’ll take you in.”

  “We might find it hard to find you,” Tom replied.

  “We have a map that Malvel sent us,” Elenna explained. “But we can’t trust it.”

  “Let me see it,” said Odora.

  Tom fetched Malvel’s map from Storm’s saddlebag.

  Odora unrolled the slimy scroll. “Here,” she said, as she picked up a twig and scratched a cross on the map, not far from the coast. “There’s our camp. You can’t miss us.” She gave Tom and Elenna a wry smile. “We’re the friendly ones.”

  She rose to her feet, bid them farewell, and walked into the forest.

  Tom watched her until she was out of sight. “I hope we meet her again one day,” he murmured, helping Elenna to her feet.

  “So do I,” Elenna agreed. “She’s brave and deserves a better place than Malvel’s kingdom.”

  Mention of the evil wizard made Tom straighten up determinedly. “So, are you ready to take on another Beast?” he asked.

  Elenna set her hands on her hips. In spite of her cuts and bruises, her eyes were glowing with courage. “I’m always ready,” she replied.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  THE BLACK OCEAN

  TOM AND ELENNA STOOD GAZING OUT ACROSS the Black Ocean. Dark waves, edged with dirty scum, broke on the black sand of the beach. Tom had never seen such a dismal place.

  Storm was pawing the sand restlessly as if he didn’t like the feel of it under his hooves. Silver ran down to the water’s edge, sniffed at the water, and backed away.

  “Come here, boy!” Elenna called.

  The wolf raced back up the beach and stood by her side, his fur spattered with the black sand.

  Elenna turned to Tom. “Can you see anything?”

  Tom used his keen sight to look out across the calm surface of the ocean.

  “I can’t spot Narga,” Tom said. “And there’s no sign of Sepron, either.” Anxiety stabbed at him as he wondered if they were too late to save the good Beast of Avantia.

  “What do you think we should do?” Elenna asked.

  Tom thought back to his first encounter with Sepron, and then with Zepha the Monster Squid. His chest grew tight as he remembered the suffocating sensations of being underwater. “I want to keep this battle on the surface,” he said at last. “It’s too dangerous to dive, especially in this black sea. I wouldn’t be able to see a thing!”

  “Then let’s find the rebels’ boat,” Elenna decided.

  “Yes, Odora said it was north of here,” Tom replied. “Let’s go.”

  Leading Storm, Tom and Elenna walked along the beach, keeping well away from the black water. Silver darted to and fro, sniffing at clumps of black seaweed and scum thrown up from the sea, all the while whining uneasily.

  After walking north for some distance, they came to a deep cove set back among some rocks.

  “This looks like the place Odora told us about,” said Elenna, pointing to a thin spire of stone at the side of the cove. “There’s the black pinnacle shaped like a sword.”

  Tom left Storm on the beach and scrambled over the rocks toward the cove.

  “Stay,” Elenna said to Silver. “Warn us if you see anyone coming.”

  The gray wolf sat on the sand beside Storm, his tail slowly beating on the ground and his muzzle raised alertly.

  “I can’t see the boat,” Elenna said, as she caught up with Tom. “Odora said the rebels had hidden it under some bracken.”

  Tom noticed that lots of the boulders around the cove were covered with dead, rust-colored bracken. Then he spotted a heap of it lower down among the rocks, looking as if it were floating on the surface of the water.

  “There!” he exclaimed.

  Tom and Elenna clambered over the rocks at the edge of the water until they reached the floating bracken. Close up, they could see the wooden hull of a boat underneath it. They started grabbing the bracken in huge armfuls and tossing it into the water.

  “We can’t use it,” Tom said, struggling with disappointment as he uncovered the mast, which was lying flat along the deck. “The mast is broken.”

  “No, it’s not,” Elenna explained with a wry smile. “It’s supposed to do that. The rebels must have taken it down to make it easier to hide.”

  When the boat was cleared of bracken she showed Tom how to hold the mast in place while she attached the bolts.

  “It’s a good thing I’m Questing with someone who knows the sea,” Tom said with a grin.

  Elenna checked the sails and the oars, and fixed the ropes in place. “The sails are a bit worn,” she said, “but I think they’ll do.”

  “I hope so,” Tom replied. “We don’t know how far we have to go.”

  At last the boat was ready. Tom went back to Storm and Silver, and led the stallion carefully among the rocks until they reached some trees near the cove. He unsaddled Storm and gave him a farewell pat on his glossy black neck.

  “We won’t be long,” he said. “You should be safe here.”

  “As safe here as anywhere,” Elenna said, plunging her hands into the thick ruff around Silver’s neck and giving him a hug.

  Leaving their friends hidden, Tom and Elenna climbed into the boat. Elenna used an oar to push the boat off the rocks, thrusting it out of the cove and into the open sea. Tom pulled on the ropes, and the sails grew taut as wind filled them. Elenna took the tiller and steered the boat out into the Black Ocean.

  “Which way?” she asked.

  “All we know is that Narga’s lurking out there somewhere,” Tom replied. He used his sharp sight to scan the water as the boat skimmed over the waves, leaving the land far behind. He startled as something broke surface not far from the boat, then relaxed as he realized it was only a dolphin. But when the creature surfaced again, he saw it was not like the dolphins of Avantia. Light from the sky reflected red on its sleek black skin. Its snout was longer than an ordinary dolphin’s, and when it opened its jaws it showed a set of sharp black teeth.

  Tom shuddered. “The ocean is just as evil as the land,” he said.

  “I know.” Elenna pointed into the water. “Look at that starfish. It has pincers just like a crab’s.”

  Tom looked and caught a glimpse of gleaming black claws. From that point he decided to ignore the evil sea creatures and concentrate on spotting Sepron or the fearsome Narga.

  When the coast was just a dark line on the horizon, Tom caught sight of something multicolored drifting on the surface of the black water. “Over there!” he called, pointing.

  Elenna adjusted the tiller, and the boat tacked on to its new course. As they drew closer, Tom realized it was Sepron.

  The noble sea serpent lay unmoving on the waves. His coils stretched out far across the surface, and the scales that had shimmered in the clear light of Avantia now looked dull and lifeless.

  “I think he might be dead!” Elenna sobbed.

  Tom didn’t reply. He and Elenna both grabbed an oar and dug into the waves, trying to propel the boat even faster across the ocean.

  “Sepron!” Tom shouted as they reached the great Beast.

  But the sea serpent’s eyes were closed and he didn’t respond.

  “Sepron, please wake up!” Elenna begged desperately, but the Beast’s eyelids didn’t even flicker.

  Tom was torn between rage and despair. Had they come so far only to find that they were too late? He decided to use the power that he had won when he defeated Torgor the Minotaur — the power to hear the thoughts of the good Beasts of Avantia. Closing his eyes and opening his mind, he touched the minotaur’s ruby that was fixed to his belt, but he couldn’t sense anything from Sepron.

  “Tom,” Elenna said, “Do you think —”

  She broke off as a dark shadow loomed over them, cutting off the red light of Gorgonia’s setting sun.

  Tom whirled round. Rising out of the sea were six enormous snake heads.

  “Narga!” Elenna gasped.

  CHAPTER NINE

  THE RAGE OF NARGA

  “AT LAST!” TOM EXCLAIMED, DRAWING HIS sword. “I’ll protect Sepron — or avenge him.”

  He sprang up, kicking off the mast for greater height as he harnessed the power of the golden boots. Then he grabbed the top of the mast and, using his free hand, swung his sword at Narga.

  The Beast’s heads dodged the blow and darted forward, snapping at Tom from all directions. He managed to evade them, but the gaping jaws were so close that he could see Narga’s yellow fangs and smell his rotten breath.

  Tom struck out again, this time aiming for the Beast’s necks, but Narga was too fast. One of his heads swooped down on Tom and jabbed his arm, forcing him to lose his grip on the mast and fall toward the deck.

  “Tom — no!” Elenna cried out in alarm.

  But Tom somersaulted neatly, landing nimb
ly on the deck beside his friend. She smiled in relief and raised her bow and arrow, ready to shoot. Tom turned to face Narga again, his sword clutched firmly in his hand. All six heads gave a roar of rage and suddenly towered up toward the swirling red sky of Gorgonia. Water cascaded off Narga’s back as he began to rise out of the ocean. His body was round and covered with glistening black swellings, and reeking ocean mud dripped off his skin. Tom and Elenna watched in amazement as the Beast finally stopped his ascent and stood on the surface of the ocean. The six heads snarled and hissed; then the evil Beast began to walk across the waves toward them.

  “Now what do we do?” Elenna’s bow and arrow quivered in her hand.

  “We do what we always do,” Tom replied grimly. “We fight!”

  Before Narga could reach the boat, Tom leaped into the air again. Dodging the weaving necks, he landed on the Beast’s back, slashing and swiping his sword at Narga’s body, feeling the blade sink deep into his flesh. A couple of Elenna’s arrows also found their marks in the Beast’s side.

  The sea monster roared in fury and jerked his body to and fro, trying to throw Tom off. Gritting his teeth, Tom struck the Beast again with all his strength. A violent spasm shuddered through Narga’s body; then he was still.

  “You did it, Tom!” Elenna’s voice carried toward him on the wind. “You defeated the Beast.”

  Tom jumped back onto the boat and turned, expecting to see Narga sink into the waves, but to his dismay the Beast’s necks suddenly began to writhe, and the snake heads let out a roar. Narga was not defeated; in fact, he seemed as strong as ever.

  “He’s still coming.” Elenna groped for an arrow.

  Narga’s six heads loomed over the boat once more. Tom raised his shield. Then out of the corner of his eye he spotted movement in the water.

  “It’s Sepron!” Elenna gasped. “He’s alive!”

  Sepron’s coils were flexing strongly, propelling him toward the boat. Close up, Tom could see cuts and gashes all over the sea serpent’s scaly body. Tom’s anger rushed up again as he imagined how the evil Narga had caused the injuries.

  The great sea serpent thrust himself between Narga and the boat, and jabbed his huge head at the evil Beast. Narga stumbled back, although he was quick to compose himself. Fear stabbed through Tom as he saw all six of Narga’s heads swoop down upon the noble Beast of Avantia.

  Narga’s heads swarmed all over Sepron’s battered body, snapping and biting. The sea serpent let out a bellow of rage and pain.

  “Oh, Sepron!” Elenna’s voice was filled with despair.

  For a moment Tom felt helpless. Was this how his Quest was doomed to end?

  CHAPTER TEN

  THE WHIRLPOOL

  “I WILL NOT LET SEPRON DIE.” TOM CLENCHED his fists.

  “Then we need a new plan — and fast,” Elenna replied.

  Tom looked around him. Just a few paces away he saw a length of rope. Suddenly he remembered how Elenna had skillfully fired two lengths of rope across the quicksand.

  He leaped forward and grabbed the rope. “Tie this to an arrow,” he said, passing it to Elenna. “I need you to shoot it.”

  Elenna shot him a puzzled glance, but didn’t hesitate. Grasping one end of the rope, she fastened it securely to an arrow.

  “Fire at my signal,” Tom instructed. “Aim just past Narga.”

  Looking even more puzzled, Elenna fixed her arrow in place. Tom braced himself, preparing for the jump of his life.

  Sepron lay limply on the surface of the water, though the feeble movement of his coils told Tom he was still alive. All six of Narga’s heads let out a roar of triumph as they reared up again to deliver another assault upon the good Beast.

  “Now!” Tom exclaimed.

  As Elenna fired the arrow, Tom launched himself into the air after it. He grasped the shaft and directed it in a wide arc around Narga’s necks. Touching down briefly on the Beast’s back, he pushed off again, landing back on deck at Elenna’s side. All six of the Beast’s necks were caught in the loop.

  His friend was gazing at him in admiration. “Tom, that’s brilliant!” she exclaimed.

  Tom grasped the other end of the rope and pulled it tight. Narga’s heads thrashed back and forth, hissing with rage, but the evil Beast couldn’t escape.

  “Here.” Tom thrust both ends of the rope into Elenna’s hands. “Hold on.”

  Elenna braced herself against the mast, her feet apart to keep her balance, as the furious Narga tried to drag himself free.

  Tom drew his sword and whirled it around his head. When he let go, it spun toward Narga, and the sword blade sheared through all six of the Beast’s necks. The sword curved around and returned straight into Tom’s hand, while Narga’s six snakelike heads dropped like stones into the Black Ocean and sank. Narga’s body melted away, until finally it dissolved into the water and was gone.

  Elenna dropped the rope and let out a long, shuddering sigh. “You did it!” she breathed.

  “We did it,” Tom replied.

  The place where Narga’s body had disappeared suddenly began to bubble; then it swirled faster and faster until it formed a whirlpool. Tom and Elenna’s boat was swept to the edge of it but no farther. Looking down into the depths of the pool, Tom saw sunlit green water, with a sandy beach and gently rolling hills in the distance.

  “It’s Avantia,” he whispered. “A gateway back.”

  Tom turned to look for Sepron, who was floating on the waves a little distance away from them. The sea serpent looked exhausted from the struggle, and Tom felt a wave of pride at how well he had fought.

  Touching the ruby in his belt, he sent the good Beast a message using his thoughts: Sepron, come and see! This is the way home.

  The good Beast swam slowly to the edge of the whirlpool. He raised his head and stared straight at Tom and Elenna. A warm rush of gratitude flooded through Tom, and he knew that the sea serpent was thanking them.

  “Sepron is saying thank you, Elenna,” Tom said.

  “You’re welcome, Sepron,” Elenna replied, as the good Beast stared into the whirlpool and then dove down into the depths.

  Tom gazed after him and saw his many-colored scales flare into life as he reached the sunlit water of Avantia. The sea serpent swam through the waves with all of his old strength. Then the sunlight began to fade and the swirling water grew quiet, until the boat was rocking gently on the waves of the Black Ocean.

  “I wish we could go back with him,” Tom said softly. “But we have a Quest to finish.”

  “Yes, we do,” Elenna said with determination. She moved toward the stern of the boat and took the tiller. “Let’s get back to shore.”

  Tom grabbed the rope to tighten the sail, but as he did so he spotted one of Narga’s yellow teeth floating on the surface of the ocean near the boat. A sparkling blue sapphire was embedded within it.

  Tom leaned out of the boat and fished the floating tooth out of the water, then used the tip of his sword to work the jewel free. He slipped the sapphire into one of the notches on his belt.

  “What does it do?” Elenna asked eagerly.

  “I don’t know,” Tom replied. “I don’t feel any different. Maybe it’s because I can’t stop thinking about the battle with Narga.”

  Suddenly his mind was flooded with pictures of the struggle. He remembered clinging to the mast while Narga’s heads snapped at him. He recalled leaping onto the Beast’s back and how disgusting it had smelled. He imagined that he could still feel the wind whipping through his hair as he leaped for Elenna’s arrow.

  “Hey!” he exclaimed. “I remember everything about the battle. The detail is amazing. I think the sapphire gives me a really good memory.”

  Elenna laughed delightedly. “That’ll be a big help. Now we won’t just have to rely on Malvel’s lying map — we’ll have your memory as well!”

  Smiling, Tom took hold of the ship’s rigging, and wind filled the sails, driving the boat back toward the shore of Gorgonia. However, before they had gone far, a familiar blue glow appeared in front of them, floating across the waves toward the boat.

  “I think it must be Wizard Aduro!” Elenna exclaimed.

  Even as she finished her words, the good wizard’s form had appeared.