The Mysterious Island (2 page)

“Uh-oh,” Neal said. “Unless I’m crazy, Lord Sparr has found us! And he’s not alone!”

“Groggles!” Eric hissed. “Hundreds of them.”

The sea bubbled suddenly like a cauldron. Waves splashed up higher and higher. Rain fell on the deck in big icy drops.

“Looks like he is bringing foul weather with him, too!” Max snapped. “Prepare for battle!”

The swarm of groggles flew low over the ship.

One of the flying lizards swooped down and landed on the deck. On its back was the evil sorcerer himself – Lord Sparr.

“Get away from my ship!” Keeah cried.

The sorcerer snarled as he slid off the groggle. His bald head gleamed. The fins behind his ears turned from purple to black. In his hand he held a long staff.

“Beware, Sparr,” Galen boomed. “You are outnumbered.”

“Right,” said Julie. “And we’re keeping the jewel! So you can forget about taking it.”

Sparr’s eyes flashed at the children. “Ah, the magic stairs brought you again? When the Eye is mine, I’ll climb those stairs to the Upper World!”

Eric shivered.
Sparr? In my world? My house?

Without warning, Sparr thrust his magic staff at the golden chest.

Ka-blam!
The box blasted open, and a black armored glove tumbled across the deck. Fitted into the glove was the Red Eye of Dawn.

“You wicked creature!” Galen cried. “I will not let you have it!” He threw a sizzling bolt of blue light at Sparr.
Ka-koom!

But Sparr’s staff sucked up the light and threw it back at Galen

Then the sorcerer grabbed the glove and slipped it on. Bright red light shot from its fingertips. “Your powers are weak, Galen. Now – Red Eye of Dawn, show me your power! Create for me a sea of fire!”

Ka-whoosh!
A wall of fiery water rose up suddenly. The kids tumbled to the deck.

“Keeah!” yelled Eric. “Do a spell!”

“Break something big!” Julie cried. “Real big!”

Keeah struggled to her feet and aimed her fingers at the giant mast. “
Bembo – switt!”

Suddenly –
crack!
– the towering mast split in half and fell toward Sparr.

Whoomf!
Sparr was slammed back against the main cabin. The black glove was thrown from his hand.

“Yes!” Keeah shouted.

Galen leaped across the deck. Grabbing the glove, he flung it into the golden chest and held the lid down tight.

Sparr’s face wrinkled in horror. “That power belongs to
me
!” Rise, Oh Demither!”

“Demither?” Eric cried. “The witch?”

The waves thundered below. A huge green serpent burst through the water. It had sawlike teeth, two powerful claws, and a long, spiky tail.

“The witch is a sea monster now!” Neal cried.

The serpent twisted her mighty tail around the ship and pulled tight.

Crack!
The ship’s planks began to break.

“The hull is splitting!” Max yelled out.

“And you will all drown!” Sparr howled, jumping back onto his groggle.

Keeah threw a thick rope to Julie. “Everyone hold tight!” Neal lunged and grabbed the rope.

“Eric,” Keeah yelled. “Take the rope!”

“I can’t reach it!” he cried.

The serpent witch lifted the ship high above the waves. She held it there for a moment then threw it back down into the water.

Krrrrunch!
The wooden hull shattered into shreds. And the
Jaffa Wind
, with everyone aboard, broke in two.

The ship sank instantly beneath the waves.

Three
Shipwrecked

Eric`s world went black and bubbly.

No!
he thought.
This can’t happen! I can’t sink!

He clawed at the icy waves, trying to reach the surface. Then the waves opened above him. Eric lifted his head out of the water. His fingers felt something soft.

Was it… sand?

Yes! It was sand. Eric scrambled up onto it. He sucked in a deep, deep breath. He opened his eyes.

He was on land, on a beach. He was alive.

“Julie! Neal! Keeah!” he called out.

No answer.

Eric looked to his left. All he saw was the beach stretching away until it curved out of sight. He looked to the right and saw the waves splashing against piles of rocks. Ahead of him was a thick jungle full of odd-shaped bushes and tall trees.

A dark haze hung over the treetops. The whole island was covered in fog.

“What
is
this place?” he said to himself.

Splursh!
Another wave crashed against the nearby rocks. Something tumbled onto the sand.

Eric ran to the rocks. The waves had washed up some broken boards and a torn piece of cloth. They were from Keeah’s ship.

Next to them, half covered by sand, was…

“The golden chest!” Eric gasped.

With the Eye, he knew, anything was possible. Maybe he could use it to find his friends. Maybe even to fight Sparr.

But where was Galen?

Where was everybody?

Carefully, Eric lifted the chest from the sand. He opened it. But instead of finding the black glove with the red stone, flames jumped up at him.

“Ahh!” Eric cried, nearly dropping the chest.

Suddenly the fire changed. Before his eyes the fire became hundreds of snaky creatures, slithering over one another.

They gleamed red, then silver, then red again. Sometimes they looked like flames. Sometimes they looked like rippling ropes of water.

“Don’t eat us-s-s!” the creatures pleaded.

Eris set the chest carefully on the sand. “I’m not going to eat you. But… who are you?”

Many tiny silver heads twisted toward him.

“We are s-s-silfs. We have lived-d-d for centuries in the s-s-seas of Droon. Demither-r-r is our queen.”

The sound the creatures made was more like singing than speaking. Their bubbly voices sounded as though they were talking underwater.

“Demither sank our ship,” said Eric.

“Sparr has put a curse on her-r-r,” one silf sang. “She must do things she doesn’t want to-o-o. The Eye will give Sparr even more power-r-r.”

Eric shook his head. “The Eye was lost at sea.”

“No!” the silfs sang. “It is on this-s-s island. This is one of Demither’s-s-s many islands.”

“The Eye is here?” Eric asked. “Where? I have to find it. I have to help Princess Keeah get it to Jaffa City.”

Thwomp! Thwomp!
A deep thumping sound came from down the beach.

“Hide,” the silfs cried. “The Ninns-s-s are coming!”

“Wait,” Eric called out. “Help me find my friends. And tell me where the Eye is!”

“If we can-n-n help you, we will-l-l…”

The creatures turned fiery red, then silver. Then they slid over the sand and away into the waves.

Thwomp!
Dozens of heavy, red-faced warriors came marching slowly up the beach.

“Ninns!” Eric gasped. “I am out of here!”

Eric ran quickly into the jungle.

Strange and wild plants slapped him in the face as he raced. Slippery yellow vines coiled down from above and dangled in the paths.

The Ninns’ thumping got louder.

Eric ran faster.

Suddenly the ground turned soft beneath him.

“Huh?” He stumbled and fell.

Fwit!
A sticky web surrounded Eric like a sack. It pulled tight around him.

He couldn’t get out. Then the sack – with Eric inside – flew into the air. It went up high into the yellow trees.

“Please, no!” he yelled. “Help, I’m trapped!”

He couldn’t escape.

Thwomp! Thwomp!
The Ninns marched closer.

Four
Trapped… with Friends

Eric pushed and pulled as hard as he could to break out of the sack. The more he struggled, the more he got tangled in its sticky web.

“Get me out of here!” he cried.

And still he was pulled higher into the yellow trees.

“Stop making so much noise!” hissed a voice from above. “Do you want the whole Ninn army to hear you?”

Eric stopped going up. The sack swung back and forth from a high branch. A branch someone was sitting on. “Keeah?”

The princess smiled at him. “And Max, too.”

“Of course!” Max chirped from the branch above. “Who do you think spun this little trap?”

“Boy, am I glad to see you,” Eric said. He told them quickly about the silfs.

“I’ve heard of the silfs, but I’ve never seen them,” said Keeah.

“They told me the Red Eye is on this island,” said Eric. “We need to find it.”

Thwomp! Thwomp!
The Ninns crossed the beach and marched into the jungle right below them.

“Galen is on the island too,” Keeah said. “But, look –”

In the middle of the troop of Ninns was the wizard, wrapped from head to foot in thick chains.

Galen was their prisoner!

“My poor master!” Max whimpered.

One of the red-faced warriors below held up his six-fingered claw. “Sparr said wait here.”

“He wants the old man alive,” said another.

“For now, at least,” a third said, laughing.

The laughter reminded Eric of gargling.

A cold wind blew through the trees.

Keeah gritted her teeth as she looked up. “Sparr is coming!” she snarled.

A groggle landed on the ground. Lord Sparr slid off its back. He pointed his magic staff at Galen. “You know where the Eye is. Tell me.”