Oracles of Delphi Keep (55 page)

Ian looked up the rock and saw Perry and Jaaved still helping the professor while Thatcher waved at Ian to hurry. “Thatcher!” Ian shouted up the rock. “You’ve got to help Theo and Carl!”

Thatcher looked at what Ian was pointing to and
shrieked in horror. “Get up here now!” he shouted to Ian as he scrambled over the rock toward Theo.

But Ian knew he had to keep the larger beast occupied and away from Carl. Reaching into his pocket, he grabbed a few of the stones he’d stuffed there earlier, and instead of going up the rock, he began pelting the larger beast.

The giant hellhound became enraged. It snapped its evil jaws and clawed toward Ian. “Take that, you mangy cur!” Ian shouted as he pelted it again, right above its snout. “Stupid beasty!” he shouted. “Stupid, hairy, smelly beasty! How do you like that?” He hit the creature again.

Then, out the corner of his eye, he saw the smaller beast give a final shake of its ugly head and focus again on Carl. Ian crept further up the rock, just out of range of the larger hellhound, so that he could track the smaller one. With mounting worry he watched the smaller beast creep over to the rock and, crouching low, aim for his dangling friend again. Ian’s eyes darted upward to see how close Thatcher was, and although his schoolmaster was hurrying as fast as he could toward Theo and Carl, Ian knew he would never make it in time.

Quickly, Ian looked about and found a nice-sized rock wedged in the outcropping. He dug it out, wound his arm back, and let it fly, nailing the crouching beast right on the ear as it leapt into the air. The rock was large enough to throw the creature off, and for the second time, it crashed into the outcropping, narrowly missing Carl.

Ian whooped as the hellhound bounced off the boulder and fell to the sandy ground. To add to Ian’s jubilation, the
smaller beast attempted to leap toward Ian, but its judgment was severely off and it missed him, colliding with the first beast, sending them both tumbling to the sand below, where they snapped and snarled at each other.

Ian didn’t wait for the two of them to reconcile. Instead, he shinnied up the rocks, making it to Jaaved and Perry, who grabbed his hands and pulled him over, though not before he was able to steal a glance toward Carl, who had himself also just cleared the rocks, thanks to Thatcher.

“We’ve got to get off here!” yelled Perry. “It’s only a matter of time before they figure out how to climb up. Professor, can you make it down?”

Ian saw with alarm that the professor looked gray with fatigue, and he suddenly seemed much older than Ian had ever remembered him looking. “I’ll make it,” he said wearily.

Turning to Ian, Perry said, “Thatcher’s been to the cave. Apparently, right before he heard our shouts on the other side of the rocks, the portal in the cave opened and he was able to see that Caphiera’s ice wall is gone. The way back is clear, lad! We’ve got to get through to Dover before it closes again!”

Ian nodded and the group scrambled down the rocks, Perry and Thatcher helping the professor along while the children made it with relative ease. “I thought for sure you were dead meat,” Ian said to Carl as they leapt down to the sand.

“Makes two of us,” said Carl with a grin.

“Children!” Thatcher shouted from above them. “Run to the cave! Get yourselves through before the wall closes. If
we get shut out, get word to the earl to send passage for us home!”

Ian, Carl, Jaaved, and Theo all nodded, and grabbing his pack, Ian led them at a run toward the cave. But suddenly, Ian heard a faint splashing between the noise of the crashing waves. He turned to look back at the dark sea, and squinting, he saw something large and blacker than the surrounding ocean bobbing in the water. He slowed to a stop, knowing that whatever was in the water wasn’t good. Carl, Jaaved, and Theo stopped too and trotted back to him.

“Come on, Ian!” Theo insisted. “We’ve got to get through before the wall closes!”

“What’s that?” Ian asked, pointing just offshore to the black mounds bobbing in the water, coming nearer and nearer.

Jaaved gasped. “The beasts!” he shouted. “They’re swimming around the rocks to us!”

“What?” Carl shouted. “Don’t they
ever
stop?”

Turning to Carl, Ian gave him his backpack with the treasure and commanded, “Take this and get Jaaved and Theo through the portal and home safely, and no matter what happens, Carl, don’t look back!” With that he dashed off toward the boulders, where the professor was being gently lowered to the sand. Ian loaded his hands and his pockets with as many rocks as he could find and ran toward the surf.

“Ian!” he heard Thatcher shout behind him. “Come back! What’s gotten into you?”

“The beasts!” Ian called over his shoulder. “They’re swimming right for us! Get the professor to the cave. I’ll hold them off!”

As he ran closer to the surf, Ian could clearly see the hellhounds in the moonlight paddling through the waves. Their giant snouts were raised high and their glowing red eyes bobbed in the water. He knew he had to try to give everyone time to reach the cave, and to do that he had to stall the beasts’ progress as much as he could. Ian wound his arm back and aimed right for those glowing red eyes, but adrenaline caused him to miss his first throw, sending his rock skipping over the nearest beast’s head.

To Ian’s surprise, Thatcher suddenly appeared at his side. Winding his own arm back, Thatcher let loose a rock that skipped once and hit the larger beast right in the snout. It yelped, then growled, and a little hope rose in Ian’s chest. “Keep throwing!” Thatcher said. “We’ve got to give the others time to get through the portal!”

Ian and Thatcher threw a volley of rocks, shells, and sand—anything they could get their hands on—at the beasts.

Finally, Thatcher looked over his shoulder and saw that Perry nearly had the professor into the mouth of the cave. “Best to run for it,” he said to Ian, and the two bolted toward the cave. Behind them they could hear the growl of the beasts and the splashing take on a frantic pace, but they didn’t pause to look back. Ian knew they’d make the cave ahead of the beasts, and if the portal wall was open, they could get to the tunnel and race for the stairs. He’d worry about the beasts charging after him once he made it back to British soil. For the moment he put all his concentration into making it to the cavern.

But just as he and Thatcher were in that final sprint, a figure, tall and cloaked, stepped from the shadows, blocking their entrance. Ian and Thatcher swerved to avoid crashing into it and both of them tripped and fell into the sand.

“So we meet again,” said an eerie, high-pitched voice, sending a chill up Ian’s spine. Scrambling to his feet, Ian faced the figure. In front of him stood the Druid sorcerer, Magus the Black. “I see you’ve made the acquaintance of two of my pets,” he said. Behind him, Ian could hear the pounding of paws, large as dinner plates, closing in.

Thatcher was a little slower in getting to his feet, but after pulling himself up, he shouted, “Out of our way!”

But Magus only laughed, the sound like hot metal hitting water. “Now, now,” said Magus, wagging his finger at Thatcher. “Temper, temper.” He waved his hand and Thatcher fell back to his knees, gripping his stomach in agony. Ian hurried to his schoolmaster and tried to help him to his feet, but Magus waved his hand again and Ian fell, curling up into himself. His insides felt as if they were on fire. “My pets always did like their meat cooked,” said Magus, his voice breaking through Ian’s agony like an ice pick.

But before Magus could continue, there was a loud gasp that wasn’t from Ian or Thatcher, and Magus the Black fell to his own knees, gripping his rear end. Instantly, the pain in Ian’s insides stopped and he lay there panting and dazed.

“Leave them alone!” he heard Carl shout, and Ian caught a glimpse of his friend standing over Magus, the tip of his sword dark with blood.

Arms curled under Ian’s shoulders and he was lifted to
his feet. “Run!” Thatcher gasped, and Ian did. He, Carl, and Thatcher raced around Magus, who was still holding on to his buttocks.

“We’ve got to make it!” shouted Carl as they tore into the cave and threw themselves forward.

As they hurtled across the line in the stone that marked the wall, Ian fell to his knees, his abdomen growing hot again. Carl fell too, then Thatcher, and the three crawled on until the pain became too intense. Ian was aware of paws thundering into the cavern and a great howl echoed along the walls. He rolled to the side, hugging his stomach, writhing in pain, as a dark shadow passed over his head and landed nearby. Then there was a great scraping sound, and when it ended, the pain in his insides disappeared entirely.

He lay there gasping for breath and realized that Carl was on his knees, struggling to stand. “Ian,” he sputtered. “Get up!”

But Ian knew he couldn’t. That second assault had taken everything out of him. In the back of his mind, he knew that the shadow that had passed over him was the beast, and its hot breath was right now blowing down at him from just a foot or two away, but he was too drained of energy to care. “I can’t,” he gasped. “Save yourself, Carl.” Then the world grew dark.

I
an awoke to a chaos of noise, shouting, and confusion. He picked his dizzy head up from the lap it was resting on, and saw an awful sight unfolding below him. He realized with a jolt that he was on the stairs leading down to the portal, and below him, at the base of the steps, the smaller of the beasts stood menacingly, growling at Perry, Thatcher, Jaaved, and Carl. His friends and schoolmasters were moving around the beast in a circle, yelling at the hellhound while they held it off with any weapon they could find. Thatcher had the long stick that Carl had first brought down to the tunnel; Perry had the shield from the soldier encased in the wall; Carl had his short sword; and Jaaved had the professor’s walking stick.

Even in his dazed state, Ian could see that the beast was having a hard time concentrating as it struggled to focus and blood dribbled from its right ear. The several knocks to the head it had received seemed to have severely wounded the creature. He also saw that it moved lethargically, probably worn out from all the running and swimming, and Ian
realized with hope that their band might be able to hold it off until help arrived.

“He’s awake!” shouted Theo.

“Ian?” said the professor, off to his left. “Ian, my young man, you must get up and make your way out of here! The others will do their best to hold off the beast until we get to safety, but we cannot leave you in this state.”

Ian groaned while he got shakily to his feet. “Theo, Professor, you two go,” he insisted. “Get some men from the castle. Tell them to bring their guns. I’m going down to help them keep it occupied.”

“Don’t be ridic—” Theo began, but Ian turned to her with a look of such intensity that she didn’t finish.

“Go!” he shouted at her, and he stumbled woozily down the stairs to join the others while they yelled and called and chanted at the beast.

Perry banged his fist on the copper shield, creating an awful racket, which made the beast shake its head and growl low. “It can’t handle the noise!” shouted Perry when Ian came to stand next to him. “Every time we yell, it gets confused!”

Ian bent and picked up a nearby rock, then threw it as hard as he could at the ugly matted creature. He smiled when it hit the creature squarely on the nose. The beast yelped and shook its head, then turned toward Ian. Peeling back its lips, the hellhound snarled and crouched low. Perry pounded on the shield again to distract it, but the beast paid him no heed. Somehow it managed to focus only on Ian.

“Yah!” said Thatcher as he poked the beast with his stick. “Take that!”

The hellhound snarled at the schoolmaster but quickly focused back on Ian, who took a wary step away, regretting the stone he’d just lobbed. The way the beast was looking at him, he could tell that the brute was about to pounce.

“Ian!” shouted Thatcher as he jabbed his stick at the beast again. “Run!”

Ian took another unsteady step backward just as the beast gave a terrific growl and leapt into the air. Ian’s breath caught; his vision filled with the beast flying directly toward him, its hideous jaws opened wide.

Inches from death and paralyzed in fear, Ian was suddenly shoved violently sideways and he crashed to the floor while a horrible and deafening yelp pierced the night like a knife.

He rolled quickly to one side and tried to get to his feet, but he was in such terrible shape it took him a moment. Finally managing to stand, he looked at where he’d just been. There lay the beast, its mouth open, red-tinted drool dripping onto the tunnel floor, its eyes glazed over lifelessly.

The beast was dead! But just as he was about to shout for joy, he noticed a thin, bony arm sticking out from under the hellhound. “Oh, no,” he gasped. Thatcher and Perry were already pulling at the beast and trying to shove it off poor Carl.

The beast was terrifying even dead, its sulfuric stink almost too horrific to stand. And when the two men finally managed to roll it over, Ian’s heart sank once again. Carl’s
sword was buried deep within the creature’s furry flesh, but poor Carl was left flat on the ground, pale and limp. Ian rushed to Thatcher, who bent down to pick up the unconscious boy.

“We must get him help,” said Thatcher, lifting Carl gently in his arms. “Hurry, to the castle!”

Everyone raced up the stairs and ran toward Castle Dover.

Ian led the way through the woods and to the path leading to the castle. They were just about to enter the back gate when it opened and none other than the earl appeared, along with several of his armed men and Theo. Ian was startled to see him, as he hadn’t realized he was in residence. “Where’s the beast?” the earl demanded when he reached them.

“Dead, back at the tunnel,” said Perry, coming up beside Ian; then the schoolmaster pointed behind him to his brother, holding Carl. “The boy killed him single-handedly, but the poor lad is in terrible shape.”

“Here,” said the earl more gently as he passed his rifle off to one of the men and held his arms out for Carl. “Give him to me. We’ve already sent for the doctor. Professor Nutley collapsed inside.”