The Serpent of Eridor Page 7

  ‘Believe me,’ whispered Keeko through her pain. ‘It’s not Zorrin.’

  The man raised his arm again. ‘I’ll just—’

  ‘No,’ exploded Ikara, as Alex swung his body between Keeko and the wizard. ‘Keeko doesn’t lie. You’re a fake.’ Ikara coiled to strike, the hood on the sides of her head flaring out as she swelled and lengthened. As she lunged forward to attack, the killing finger swung towards her.

  Alex grabbed a pewter vase from the table next to him and flung it at the wizard’s hand. Metal met bone with a sharp crack. The wizard’s deadly bolt of light missed Ikara, exploding in a shower of red sparks on the wall beyond, carving a jagged black fissure deep into the wood.

  Ikara struck, whipping round the wizard – tightening, wrestling, trying to drag him to the floor. He grabbed her round the throat and started to squeeze. She’ll only have seconds to live, thought Alex. Grabbing a heavy brass candlestick he lunged forward, brandishing it above his head. The deadly finger swung to aim at his heart. Instinctively, Alex swung the candlestick across his chest.

  The narrow beam blasted the weapon out of Alex’s hands, throwing him backwards, slamming his head on to the stone floor. Sick, unsteady, he tried to stand, but could not make it up past his knees. Clinging to the back of a heavy chair he hauled his body up, legs sagging – forcing himself to move despite the pain in his pounding head, desperate to get to Ikara.

  The wizard screamed. As Alex looked up he saw the furry body of Skoodle, front teeth buried deep in the wizard’s wrist, blood oozing from his mouth. In agony the wizard let go of Ikara’s neck, raising his fist to pulverise the hamster.

  Alex tried to launch himself forwards but his legs failed. He crumpled to the floor, yelling, ‘Jump.’

  With terrified eyes fixed on the approaching fist, Skoodle dug his teeth in deeper, body stiff, braced for the blow.

  Her body still wound around the wizard, Ikara swung her head above Skoodle. The fist hammered on to her skull. Eyes rolling, she sagged as her body loosened.

  ‘Let go, Skoodle,’ Alex yelled as the wizard’s hand rose again.

  Skoodle dropped to the floor, claws skittering, then bolted under a chair. The wizard’s furious eyes focused on him for a second then swept unpityingly past Keeko, who was clutching a chair leg, trying to scramble upright.

  Alex’s fingers found the candlestick. He grabbed it, clawing his way up the wall to a standing position. He lurched towards the man’s back like a seasick fencer with the candlestick as a foil.

  ‘Die, snake.’ The wizard aimed his deadly digit straight at Ikara’s head.

  With an unsteady swipe Alex crashed the wizard’s arm away. The killer shaft of purple light missed Ikara’s head by a centimetre, blasting a smoking hole in the ceiling.

  The wizard kicked Alex hard in the stomach, doubling him up. A red beam shot out of the tip of the wizard’s finger, transforming a coffee table into a snarling Rottweiler. The huge beast leapt at Keeko, who flung herself on to a wall bracket. The dog stood below her, snarling.

  Swiftly, the finger moved on. Another shaft of light hit a walking stick, transforming it into an enormous serpent twice as large as Ikara. It towered upright over Alex who froze, powerless to do anything.

  Before the wizard could morph anything else, Ikara sank her teeth into his forefinger. Sparks flew from the tip beyond her mouth, sending balls of red and blue light flying round the room like small meteors.

  The wizard grabbed Ikara’s neck. ‘Here is the deal, boy. You have information I want. Give it to me and command your snake to let go. In return I’ll keep my serpent at bay.’

  ‘But if Ikara lets go you’ll kill us anyway.’

  ‘Of course, but I’ll make it quick and fairly painless. It will be better than watching the monkey and the snake get torn apart as you die screaming in agony from the venom of my serpent.’

  Alex could feel the hard blade of his hunting knife against his belly, frustratingly useless. In the time that it would take to reach it, the serpent would attack him. Anger surged through him. Death either way. But I’d rather die fighting than give in. Balancing himself mentally, he prepared to grab the knife for one final desperate effort.

  The last fighter bolted from under a chair. Skoodle halted directly under the nose of the serpent. The vast lidless orange eyes swung to fix on the tiny animal. The terrifying jaws started to open as the serpent arched for the strike. Yet he hesitated. His master had not yet given the command to kill.

  It was the two seconds that Alex needed. He wrenched out his knife. The serpent’s glittering eyes flicked back to him.

  ‘Kill,’ screamed the wizard.

  The serpent’s huge head plummeted down, venom-filled fangs aiming straight at Alex’s heart. With a scything uppercut, Alex struck at the snake. The knife’s arc slashed through the serpent’s throat with a rasp, releasing a jet of bright green blood.

  The amputated body of the serpent fell to the floor like a cut-off rope, as the monster’s venom-filled head rocketed towards Alex’s heart. Instinctively, Alex flung himself out of the path of the severed head, crashing to the floor. The knife spun out of his hand, slippery with snake blood.

  With a heavy thud the huge scaly head landed inches away in a sticky emerald pool, vast dead eyes open. A moment later, the snake had transformed back to a walking stick, top broken off, lying in a patch of sawdust.

  ‘The dog,’ squealed Skoodle.

  Alex’s head jerked up. The dog was crouching only feet away, ready to spring, teeth bared. Glancing over at his knife, Alex realised it was too far away. He’d never get to it before the beast sprang.

  Keeko launched herself on to the Rottweiler, landing legs astride his back, grabbing his ears. The dog snapped at her legs, teeth ripping through the flesh of her foot. She squealed but hung on like a rodeo rider, clamping her legs round the dog even harder, claws digging into his ears.

  Alex snatched the hunting knife. Lunging forward, he rammed the blade deep into the dog’s chest. The animal sagged to the floor, howling. As his life evaporated, the Rottweiler transformed back into wood.

  ‘What happened?’ cried Keeko, legs now astride a table.

  ‘Two dead. Progress,’ Alex said, wrenching hard at the deeply embedded knife. It wouldn’t budge at all.

  Keeko sprang at the wizard, landing flat across his face. Digging her claws into his scalp, she fixed herself to him like a living balaclava. Fur blocked the wizard’s nose and mouth, suffocating him. The wizard pulled his hand away from Ikara’s throat to try and claw Keeko off his face: the more he fought the tighter she clung. Ikara coiled her body around the wizard’s chest and began to squeeze, forcing air out.

  Giving up on the knife, Alex grabbed a book to pummel the wizard – then realised how pointless it would be. The two animal faces in front of him were determined, victory in their eyes.

  ‘Squeeze him, squeeze him, ape and snake. Take his air, that evil fake,’ sang Skoodle.

  The man’s writhing became more frantic as the agony in his air-starved lungs built up. He swayed, knees sagging, then slid to the floor. As he went limp Keeko jumped off, landing heavily on the dog-table next to Alex.

  ‘That was close,’ said Ikara, hoarse from the wizard’s stranglehold. ‘Keeko, how did you know?’

  Breathing hard, Keeko peered down at her bleeding leg. ‘I found the true Zorrin. He’s trapped upstairs.’

  ‘How are you so sure that the other one is the real wizard?’ asked Ikara, loosening her hold around the wizard’s chest. ‘We were convinced by this one at first.’

  Keeko stopped licking the blood off her dark fur. ‘Zorrin bears the mark of an eagle on his right forearm.’

  ‘Like a tattoo?’ asked Alex, lying flat on his back, arms outstretched, waiting for his heart to stop banging.

  ‘A bit, but much more complex. It’s made of streaks of gold and silver, which shine with the brightness of sunlight. Really pretty. It’s ancient elemental magic which no one else could cop
y. Only Zorrin’s got one.’

  ‘We’d better go and release him,’ said Alex, attempting to rise. A bolt of pain shot through his left shoulder. Wincing, he stood up. ‘How did he get captured?’

  ‘How should I know?’ Keeko leapt on to Alex’s uninjured shoulder, landing on her good leg. ‘I didn’t stop to ask. I shot straight back down to rescue you.’

  ‘Thank the stars you did. Ikara, can you stay on guard while we go for Zorrin?’

  ‘No problem. My head still aches from his fist. If he starts to come round I’ll give him another blast of agony.’

  Alex grinned at her. She’d burned pity for breakfast, ripped up compassion. He got the point, though. Sympathy wasn’t on the list of combat necessities. Impatiently he shoved his fringe out of the way, finding his blond hair thick with clots. He wiped the blood from his hand on to his jeans then headed for the door, pausing to scoop up a shaking Skoodle.

  ‘You’re amazing,’ said Alex. ‘That was so brave.’

  The little hamster squared his shoulders, chin rising upwards. ‘Correct. Leonine courage. If I had nine lives like cats, I’d be one down from heart failure.’

  ‘We didn’t fail. Still got nine. Maybe.’

  Trying to avoid getting more blood on Skoodle, Alex placed him in his pocket. ‘Were the crocodiles still asleep when you came in?’ he asked Keeko.

  ‘Flat out. Still, be careful.’

  ‘Or the terrible jaws will snap,’ said Skoodle. ‘Flesh will rip: yours, a scream of agony… yours again, then death by being torn limb from limb in a bloodbath.’

  ‘And where will you be during the body-rippage?’

  ‘With Keeko, on a wall light. But upset, of course.’

  ‘It’s great to know that you’ll be safe.’

  ‘I’ll shout advice.’

  ‘Helpful.’

  Alex opened the door a crack as Skoodle put his paws over his eyes. Outside on the steps lay an unconscious crocodile, head lolling. The body of a second curled round the central pillar, tail out of sight. The rhythm of drawing in clear air and pumping out foul breath remained unbroken.

  Hesitating only long enough to be sure that they weren’t moving, Alex slid past the snout of the closest crocodile, pulling the door closed behind him. He ran upstairs, Keeko swinging between wall brackets ahead of him. Four spirals round the central marble pillar gave them sight of another dark wooden door, slightly ajar.

  ‘In there,’ murmured Keeko.

  She landed on Alex’s shoulder. Wincing, Alex pushed the door fully open and walked in.

  CHAPTER 10

  The dark, damp room was like a dungeon. The sombre walls were bare: neither pictures nor tapestries relieved the gloomy expanse. No rugs covered the hard floor. The stone fireplace was empty of both heat and light. A black panther lay crumpled on the far side, unconscious.

  On a low stool sat a man almost identical to the wizard downstairs, both in face and clothes. Yet this one was paler, with dark shadows under his eyes. He smiled wearily as they entered. ‘Welcome, Alex and Skoodle. Keeko said you would come. You must have defeated Karlan to get here.’

  ‘Are you really Zorrin?’ asked Skoodle.

  The tired lines round his eyes deepened in amusement. ‘I am.’ He indicated a large rip on his sleeve. ‘Your friend tore a hole in my shirt with her teeth to check if my brand was real. Luckily she missed my skin, despite her haste.’

  The wizard pulled aside the torn folds. Emblazoned across his forearm was a golden eagle, the light radiating from it powerful enough to illuminate the room.

  ‘Told you,’ said Keeko, triumphantly.

  ‘But if you’re Zorrin, and such a powerful wizard, how did you get caught?’ asked Skoodle. ‘Not impressive, really.’

  Zorrin frowned. ‘I was tricked into believing that my sister was in mortal danger. Karlan, an evil master was here, waiting for me. He couldn’t kill me, but was able to trap me.’

  ‘Are the other evil wizards still here?’ Skoodle asked, sliding back into Alex’s pocket.

  ‘No. They left Karlan to guard me.’ Zorrin grinned. ‘I don’t think Karlan expected to be defeated, especially by so tiny a gang.’

  ‘Small but fierce,’ said Skoodle.

  Alex sat on the cold, hard floor. ‘That was Karlan? When he attacked me on the boat he looked totally different, not identical to you.’

  ‘Transmorphing is child’s play to him. It stopped you being suspicious, didn’t it?’

  ‘Yes,’ said Alex, feeling slightly better that he hadn’t been so very stupid. ‘It was almost fatal for us.’

  ‘It’s very weird here,’ said Skoodle. ‘At home people always look pretty much the same week after week.’

  The stool creaked slightly as Zorrin shifted. ‘I can explain more about Karlan later, but perhaps for now you would be kind enough to release me and Myth.’ He pointed at the sleeping panther.

  ‘Of course. How?’ Alex asked.

  ‘There’s a brown leather pouch in Karlan’s right-hand trouser pocket containing powder which can break the hex that binds us.’

  Alex closed his eyes, head drooping. Back past the crocodiles. When would this nightmare end?

  ‘OK, Wiz,’ said Skoodle. ‘Crocodile hopping is our speciality. Consider us gone.’ He gazed at Alex. ‘My ride looks a bit tired, though. Perhaps a small bite would pump up the adrenaline.’ He bared his teeth.

  ‘Bite me and die,’ said Alex, pulling his hand out of reach. ‘Or maybe I’ll pull your ears off and feed them to the crocs.’

  ‘Finally, fighting talk. Crocodile row, here we come. Although, thinking about it, I’ll wait up here. No need for us both to go.’ Skoodle started to climb out of Alex’s pocket.

  ‘I’m not doing this alone,’ said Alex, pushing him back in. ‘Anyway, another couple of meetings and you may get to like the scaly ones.’

  ‘Not fantastically likely, but I’ll consider it on the way down to my next near-death experience.’

  ‘I’ll stay here. Guard Zorrin,’ said Keeko, loping closer to Zorrin’s stool and sitting cross-legged on the floor.

  ‘Fine by us.’ Alex set off with his hand loosely over his pocket, trapping Skoodle.

  ‘That translates into shotgun the cushy job,’ muttered Skoodle under his breath as they reached the first step.

  ‘It’s uncool to be harsh.’

  ‘Not for a rodent.’

  Footsteps echoing against the stone walls in an eerie drumbeat Alex retraced his steps downstairs, hoping that the crocodiles would still be asleep.

  ‘From saviour to errand boy,’ said Skoodle, resting his chin on Alex’s pocket edge. ‘Next Zorrin’ll want tea: one sugar; white; two biscuits.’

  ‘Don’t even go there,’ replied Alex. ‘He might have had a tougher time than us.’ For a second he reflected. So far today they’d endured the death of Tariq, nearly been eaten alive and almost died fighting a powerful wizard. He added, ‘Probably.’

  The room downstairs was as they had left it. Ikara remained loosely coiled around the unconscious wizard. As Alex rummaged in Karlan’s clothes Skoodle explained what had happened upstairs – giving a graphic description of how heroic he had been in spurring Alex into action, risking death or body-maiming.

  Alex snorted. ‘Zip the lip or I’ll throw you to Ikara for lunch.’

  ‘Wouldn’t eat him now that I’ve got used to him. I’m a carnivore, not a friendivore.’

  As Alex grabbed the powder bag Karlan stirred, his eyelids fluttering half open. Ikara tightened her body. With a grunt, as air was forced out of him, the wizard lapsed back into unconsciousness.

  ‘Practical demonstration of how to tame a wizard. Hurry up,’ said Ikara. ‘Being down here with this wizard is seriously unpleasant.’

  ‘So is killing snakes, playing dodge with crocodiles and belting around rescuing wizards,’ said Skoodle.

  Ikara sighed. ‘Accepted. Just go.’

  They arrived upstairs to find Zorrin squealing and grunting at Keek
o, the only recognisable sound being ‘Gelforth’. Alex raised his eyebrows questioningly at Keeko. Zorrin didn’t look mad, but you could never really be sure. Not with wizards.

  ‘Simian tongue,’ Zorrin said. Then, as Alex looked blank, he added, ‘Monkey language.’

  ‘Fairly sane explanation. I had assumed that you were one toad’s gizzard short of a potion,’ said Skoodle. ‘How many languages do you speak?’

  ‘About thirty.’

  ‘How about Hamster?’

  ‘Unfortunately not. But willing to learn. Got the powder?’

  Alex held the pouch up.

  ‘Fantastic. The pattern you need to trace with it is extremely precise. If the lines are not perfect the spell won’t break.’

  Following instructions, Alex began to sprinkle dust on the floor, starting at the door. As it touched down, the powder changed from sparkling red to bright yellow.

  ‘Get it right,’ sighed Skoodle as Alex redid a crescent for the third time. ‘Lucky there’s bags of it. Or bag of it, I mean.’

  Alex scraped some bright yellow powder into a line. ‘I don’t see you doing any of the crawling around.’

  ‘Not hero material, me. You do the rescuing. I’ll advise, map read, eat, organise – that sort of thing.’

  ‘The easy bits?’

  ‘No, the intellectual stuff,’ replied Skoodle. ‘I’m not built for the physical business. You’re the athletic one. I’m the brains. Life fact.’

  Too tired to argue, Alex finished tracing a thin line circling Zorrin’s chair then extended it around the panther.

  ‘Now a few grains on to my feet,’ instructed Zorrin.

  As soon as the first few atoms of powder touched Zorrin the whole line roared into flame. Gigantic red tongues of fire exploded up to the ceiling. Wizard and panther were engulfed in an inferno.

  ‘Beat it out,’ yelled Skoodle. ‘Use your shirt.’

  Alex dumped Skoodle on the floor and started tugging at his shirt.

  Zorrin called out, ‘Ignore the fire. Get back.’

  Halting, Alex stepped away. The wizard sat calmly in the centre of the intense blaze. Myth slept on. Neither made any attempt to save themselves.