The Last Emprex (16 page)

The big blue marlin didn't slow as he chopped his way through three frilled sharks and found a mosasaur flipper. He sliced it clean off. Then he did a fancy pirouette and chopped another one, sending the prehistore monster careening away in agony. Snork was caught underneath the mosasaur's bulk for a moment. He managed to swim free before it crashed into the seabed, crushing an unlucky frill underneath it.

Another frilled shark reared in front of Snork. He blocked a tail strike and then slashed at its neck. It wasn't a good cut, but blood spurted everywhere and Snork moved past as the creature thrashed in its death agony.

With his long tusk, Aleeyoot was as deadly as Salamanca. He didn't yell like the blue marlin, but the frilled sharks must have sensed he was dangerous and tried to avoid him. Any of them in range of his nine-foot horn was sent to the Sparkle Blue. He then evaded the snap of a mosasaur before diving underneath the giant. When the mosasaur opened its crocodile mouth to try again, Aleeyoot cut its lower jaw off.

Two frills attacked Aleeyoot from behind, and Salamanca—lightning fast—cut them both in half. “That makes four times Salamanca has saved your life!” he said, waggling his bill triumphantly.

“It was
one
attack!” disagreed Aleeyoot as he skewered another frill with his tusk.

“There were two enemies to be slain!”

Aleeyoot sent another frilled shark to the Sparkle Blue. “No way!”

“Let us agree to disagree!” shouted Salamanca. “But I am right! Four!”

Snork fought another frilled shark, this one coming forward with a series of tail attacks. Though the noise of battle all around him was riotous, he heard the high-pitched whine of the spike passing by his ear as if it were the only sound in the ocean. If he survived this battle, he doubted he would ever forget it. Three more times the frilled shark shot his tail at him and three times Snork blocked until he landed a counter, sending the frill sinking to the seabed.

“GIVE THEM NOTHING!” he heard Striiker yell in his booming voice from twenty feet away.

Striiker was there! His friend was alive!

But a mosasaur had gotten above him and the great white didn't see the danger. Even the dolphin that usually protected Striiker's dorsal was occupied, ramming another frill that Striiker was fighting with his blunt snout.

Snork accelerated as fast as he could.

It came down to a matter of an inch.

Striiker would have been bitten in half, but Snork pierced the huge mosasaur's eye with his blade as he reared back to bite. With a twist Snork pulled his blade free and the monster sank without a sound. The great white stared in shock as the mosasaur slipped from view. “Glad you could join the party, pal!” he told Snork.

He and Striiker fought, flank to flank.

Snork still didn't see how any of them would survive the day.

CHAPTER 25

BARKLEY HAD HOPED TO JOIN JAUNT'S AUZYAUZY
mariners for the battle but was turned away because Velenka was with him. AuzyAuzy didn't like the mako since she had swum with Finnivus when his armada destroyed their homewaters. Salamanca and Aleeyoot hadn't let Barkley set out with the bladefins because they thought it was suicide for him. Barkley had to admit that to thrust himself in the middle of a melee without a sharp snout as a close-quarter weapon probably wasn't his best idea ever. So he and Velenka were lurking on the edges of the battle waters deep in the greenie looking for Hokuu.

So far they had seen no sign of the evil frilled shark.

Barkley felt absolutely useless as sharkkind died by the scores above him.

He couldn't help any of them!

Though the fury of the battle drowned everything out Velenka kept her voice low. “Hokuu's here. Close.”

“How do you know?” asked Barkley.

“Because he wouldn't miss this,” she said. “I still don't believe he and Grimkahn had an actual fight, but either way, he's here.”

Even if the fight had been real, Hokuu could be waiting for the perfect time to betray the mosasaur king if he won. The frill's wound was authentic enough. Barkley watched Grimkahn roar and chop a mariner in half with his huge crocodile mouth. He seemed unstoppable.

Suddenly Grimkahn darted off to the side and out of the immediate fight.

Why?

Barkley moved to get a better view.

“What are you doing?” Velenka hissed. “Keep down!”

Grimkahn snapped at something but the mosasaur's body blocked Barkley's view of what it was.

Then Barkley saw it was Gray.

“What is that chowderheaded fool doing?” asked Velenka when she saw.

Gray got slapped by Grimkahn's huge tail. He was dazed.

“Stay here!” Barkley said and he jetted forward as fast as he could. He wouldn't let Gray be eaten without doing
something
. “HEY! HEY! HEY!” was all Barkley could think to shout. Grimkahn heard and glanced his way.

The mosasaur didn't stop, though. He rushed at the stunned Gray, opening his lethal jaws.

Barkley did the only thing he could think of. . . .

He tail-finned Grimkahn in the eye.

Barkley apparently hit his mark because the mosasaur lunged at him with a pained screech. The jurassic was amazingly quick for something so big.

Gray slipped away into the thick of battle. He hadn't even seen Barkley's charge.

But Grimkahn had.

Now Barkley was about to get eaten, when—

Velenka
swam through
Grimkahn's mouth and out the other side!

This distracted the mosasaur king so much that he fouled his flipper strokes and reflexively struck at Velenka. The small delay allowed Barkley time to madly swim forward. When Grimkahn bit down—missing by an urchin spine—a wave of water forced Barkley forward as the mosasaur's huge jaws slammed behind him.

The
only
reason he was alive was because of Velenka's distraction. . . .

Barkley tumbled into the greenie as Grimkahn resumed his pursuit of Gray.

“Well that was the dumbest thing I've ever done,” Velenka said. She twisted and saw the tip of her tailfin was missing. It was only an inch, but still. She chuckled nervously. “They don't get much closer than that, do they?”

“I guess I owe you a few trust points,” Barkey said.

“Only a few?” she asked, faking displeasure. “I just swam through Grimkahn's mouth for you!”

“I know you did,” Barkley said.

“Youse was both pretty brave there,” said the familiar voice of Trank. “Stupid. But pretty brave. Maybe Gray and I were right about not sending you to the Sparkle Blue.”

Ripper was also there, guarding Trank. The big hammerhead looked at Velenka and grunted, “Not bad. Let's not get carried away, either.”

Barkley couldn't believe his eyes. “What are you two doing here?”

“Just taking a little swim,” the stonefish said. “Gotta keep up the exercise when youse get to be my age.”

Barkley then saw a mass of glowing . . .
something
. They weren't sharks. It was like a huge clump of lumo greenie caught in the current and heading straight for the fight.

Was Takiza up to something?

No. They were jellyfish!

They were different types and some of them were huge. Barkley remembered the names of a few: purple striped, moon, mauve stinger, sea nettle, and the giant lion's mane jelly, trailing tentacles longer than even a mosasaur.

The jellies drifted through the battle and by the reaction of those in the jurassic horde, scared the heck out of them. Striiker and their allies were able to get some space from the frilled sharks and mosasaurs and reform their mega-armada.

Then, as quickly as they came, the jellyfish were gone.

Barkley turned to Trank. “You did that, didn't you? I knew you cared.”

“Whoa! Whoa!” said Trank, circling his fins in an annoyed way. “Don't go saying anything youse can't take back. I was taking a swim and happened to be here when that odd thing happened. I'm on no one's side. I do like your friends the bladefish though. They have style. And one of them saved my grandfather. Old family story, maybe I'll tell ya sometime. Well, I gotta get back to the club. Got some fish waiting to be seasoned. See ya 'round.”

Ripper gave Barkley a wink and left with Trank.

Was this a dream?

Was he swimming the Sparkle Blue inside Grimkahn's stomach?

Barkley couldn't sort it out right now. His side hurt like it was covered with lava, and everyone above them began fighting again. He motioned to Velenka and they swam into the greenie to search for Hokuu once more.

Barkley even let Velenka cover his tail.

Gray was lucky he hadn't been eaten. He had been pushed past the main battle when Grimkahn saw him and attacked. Stupidly, Gray didn't think the mosasaur king was quick enough to hit him with a tail strike and he was knocked senseless for a moment.

Barkley had saved his life and then disappeared.

That's something else he'll never let me forget, thought Gray as he dodged another rush by Grimkahn. Gray had to make sure he didn't go back into the main battle and reappeared so the mosasaur king could see and chase him instead. He had recovered enough to use shar-kata but did not have anywhere near enough power to dent Grimkahn's armored hide. Right now Gray was swimming for his life.

“It's only a matter of time, pup!” the mosasaur king yelled as they paused from their exertions, both panting.

“Call your horde off, Grimkahn,” Gray answered, keeping his distance. He could see that mariners were dying by the hundreds again after the giant jellyfish swarm had stopped the killing for a moment. The jurassic horde was inflicting huge losses once more. “You and I can fight for leadership! Or are you scared?”

Grimkahn laughed and it sounded like a rock slide. “You'd like that, wouldn't you? But I ordered my commanders not to stop fighting for
any
reason. You'll all be lunch today!” With that the mosasaur roared toward him again.

Gray gathered power with shar-kata and mixed it with a little of his life force. He felt his heart flutter and skip a beat as fire surged inside him.

FHWOOM!

The blast slowed the mosasaur king.

He stared at Gray and then began to laugh. “Pretty good, but still not enough! Hokuu thought he was going to send me to the Sparkle Blue like that, too. I wish he was around so I could kill you both at once. I told you. Nothing cuts through mosasaur hide but mosasaur teeth, and you're no mosasaur!”

Gray's heart sank. There wasn't anything he could do to injure Grimkahn.

He barely dodged the mosasaur's next strike.

But he wasn't fast enough to avoid the devastating snout ram that followed.

Gray listed to the left, sure his ribs were broken.

Grimkahn opened his mouth wide and snapped down on Gray.

“NOOO!” cried Leilani when she saw Grimkahn devour Gray.

It couldn't be!

Gray—the Seazarein—her friend . . . was gone.

Striiker fought furiously, barely keeping at bay the frilled shark who was trying to skewer his head with its tail.

Over the monster's shoulder he saw Gray and Grimkahn fighting.

Then Gray was gone.

There's no way, Striiker thought. Gray must have moved away with shar-kata speed and I missed it.

But where was he?

And why was Grimkahn howling with joy?