by Jan Burchett
He charged off and began to scour the sand. The rest of Year Four followed his lead and scattered across the beach. Soon sand was flying everywhere.
“Basher’s such a spoilsport,” complained Max as the boys clambered over the rocks they’d seen from the cliff path.
“We’ll show him, Agent Black,” said Ben, turning over some loose stones. “With our super spying skills we’ll sniff out the biggest fossil in the history of biggest fossils. The Basher will be green with envy.”
“Maybe the gargoylz will help, Agent Neal,” added Max. “Wonder where they are.”
“Behind you!” came a ferocious growl. Max and Ben spun round in alarm.
Cyrus and the rest of the gargoylz were watching them from behind a large rock, big grins on their faces.
“You’re just in time,” Max told them, trying to pretend he hadn’t been scared at all. “We’re on a fossil hunt.”
“We’ll help! We’ll help!” shouted Zack, running up and down and sticking his nose in the sand. “Er . . . what’s a fossil?”
“It’s a type of pirate,” said Ira knowledgeably.
“Not exactly,” laughed Ben.
As soon as he had told the gargoylz what to look out for, they were off over the rocks. All except Ira, who hopped up onto a boulder. “I’ll stay in the crow’s nest,” he squawked, shading his eyes with one wing, “and keep a weather eye out for enemy attack.”
In no time a huge pile of seaweed and shells had mysteriously appeared on the sand next to the boys.
Pop! Zack came into view, his paws full of driftwood. “We’re champion collectors!” he declared.
“Treasure!” squawked Ira in delight. “Pieces of eight!”
“Er . . . thanks, gargoylz,” said Ben, looking doubtfully at the pile of wood as Zack vanished again. He winked at Max. “I don’t think we’re going to find the best fossil anywhere in this lot.”
But Max was scraping at something in the sand. “Look what I’ve got!” he said, holding up a vicious-looking shark’s tooth. “That must have been some fish! This fang’s bigger than my hand! There’s no way The Basher will do better than that.”
“Everyone over here, please!” Mr Widget called. He was standing on an upturned bucket and waving urgently at the diggers. “Time to hand in your best fossils.”
“Let’s show the tooth,” said Ben. “The professor will be knocked out.”
But at that moment they heard heavy footsteps on the sand behind them.
“Man the guns!” shrieked Ira. “We’re under attack!” He hopped behind a rock just as The Basher pounded up to the pile of driftwood.
“What a load of rubbish!” he snarled. Then he spotted Max’s prize find. His eyes lit up. “I’m having that.”
He snatched the shark’s tooth right out of Max’s hand and sprinted off towards Mr Widget, scattering groups of fossil finders as he went.
“What a cheat!” gasped Ben. The gargoylz crept out from behind the rocks and Ira reappeared on his lookout perch. They all watched in dismay as Professor Bone praised Barry and displayed the tooth for Year Four to admire.
“That wasn’t fair,” complained Toby crossly.
“He’s a scurvy sea dog!” exclaimed Ira.
“Right, he’s not going to spoil our fun any more,” said Max. “Let’s build a super secret spy base over there, out of sight.”
With the help of their gargoyle friends, the boys soon had a fantastic spy headquarters made out of sand. It had a castle tower, a rocket launcher and an underground communications centre covered in shells.
Ira tried to draw a skull and crossbones on the tower with his beak. Suddenly he stopped. “Enemy to starboard! Enemy to starboard!” he squawked, flapping his wings.
Everyone stopped digging.
“It’s Barry again,” hissed Max urgently, “and he’s coming this way. Hide, gargoylz!”
Pop! Zack vanished and the others scuttled out of sight. Max and Ben stood on guard in front of the spy base.
“What a lovely castle!” said Barry, grinning spitefully. Suddenly he gave the boys a hard shove and they toppled backwards – right on top of their creation.
Barry guffawed and whirled away like a tornado towards his next victim.
“He’s such a bully,” muttered Max, scrambling out of the ruins of their spy base.
“Time someone taught him a lesson,” agreed Ben, shaking sand out of his ear.
Toby scuttled over. “If I had my catapult I’d get him,” he said crossly.
“I could breathe fire and singe his bottom!” declared Azzan.
“Someone might see you,” Ben pointed out.
“What about me?” said Cyrus, grinning from ear to ear. “I could use my special power.”
“Is it something really scary?” asked Ben hopefully.
“Not at all,” said the fierce little gargoyle. “I sing.”
Max frowned. “I don’t want to be rude, but how will that help?”
“Cyrus’s songs are lullabies,” explained Toby.
“And when he sssings one it puts humanz to sssleep. At once,” added Eli.
“That’s brilliant!” Max grinned. “The Basher can’t be a bully if he’s asleep!”
Barry was now busy throwing Lucinda’s shell collection into the sea. Cyrus crept towards him and hid behind a tall sandcastle where no one could see him. Then he flung out his arms, opened his mouth to show all his pointed teeth, and began to sing. Beautiful notes filled the air.
“It’s so . . . sweet . . .” Max yawned as the melody washed over him.
“Wish I’d brought my pillow,” murmured Ben dreamily.
“Cover your earsss!” hissed Eli urgently. “Or you’ll fall asssleep as well.”
Max and Ben quickly stuffed their fingers in their ears and watched as Barry gradually slumped to his knees, curled up on the sand and then began to snore. Cyrus finished his lullaby and scuttled back.
The boys took their fingers out of their ears.
“It’s gone very quiet,” said Ben.
“That’s because the singing has worked on everyone!” exclaimed Max. “Look!”
Year Four, their teachers and Professor Bone were all stretched out on the beach, fast asleep.
“Awesome!” said Ben. “We’ve got the rest of the day to ourselves. What shall we do?”
“Wait a minute.” Max turned to Cyrus. “How long will they all stay asleep?”
“Oh, ages!” declared Cyrus fiercely. “Probably all week.”
“Ten minutes at most,” Toby whispered to Max.
Max looked around at the sleeping figures. “We haven’t got long before they wake up then.”
“And Barry will be back to his horrible self again,” groaned Ben.
“Don’t worry, I’ve got a plan!” said Max. “Let’s bury him up to his neck in the sand. When he wakes up, he won’t be able to move and we can have fun without him spoiling everything.” “Get digging, landlubbers!” ordered Ira. “All hands to the pump!”
Barry was now lying on his back, sucking his thumb.
As fast as they could, the boys and the gargoylz piled sand all over his body and patted it down hard. Then they covered him in smelly seaweed.
Ira perched on The Basher’s chest and glared at him. “Next time it’ll be the plank for you, my lad!” he squawked fiercely.
“Good work, everyone,” said Ben, stepping back to admire the job. “It’ll take Barry ages to get out of that.”
“Keep an eye on the landlubbers!” warned Ira.
“They’re getting out of their hammocks!”
“I think he means everyone’s waking up,” explained Ben.
As Year Four and the teachers got to their feet, still yawning, the boys could hear angry shouts from Barry, who was struggling in vain to stand up.
“Leave the dog there a while,” advised Ira. “Teach him a lesson.”
“Let’s play hide-and-seek around the rock pools,” said Max. “That’ll keep the gargoylz hidden
from view. I’ll count first.”
Ben and the gargoylz shot off to hide.
“Ready or not, here I come,” called Max when he got to a hundred.
He leaped over a breakwater and landed on top of Ben. “One down, seven to go!” he declared as Ben joined in the search.
Pop! Zack suddenly appeared in front of them.
“You’re supposed to be hiding,” exclaimed Max, skidding to a halt.
“Clawz and pincers!” wailed Zack, in a panic. “Clawz and pincers!” The other gargoylz peeped out of their hiding places to see what was going on. Zack suddenly shot off around a rock pool and then vanished again. His stone friends burst out laughing.
“What’s going on?” asked Max, puzzled. Then he suddenly leaped in alarm as Zack appeared beside him, hopped up and down and disappeared again. Now Max and Ben could see a very surprised crab being flung about in mid air, attached to the tail of the invisible Zack.
“What do you call a gargoyle with a crab hanging onto his tail?” shrieked Bart, slapping his gladiator skirt in delight.
“I don’t know,” chorused the others.
“Zack!” spluttered Bart. The gargoylz rolled about on the sand, holding their round bellies and chuckling at the flying crab.
“Stand still, Zack!” called Ben as the crab whipped past his face. “And make yourself visible. Then I can rescue you.”
Pop! Zack came into view, shaking his tail with the crab still firmly attached. Ben grabbed hold of the end, gently removed the crab and put it safely in a nearby pool.
“Spluttering gutterz!” gasped Zack. “Ira was right. The seaside’s dangerous.”
“But it was funny,” gurgled Toby. “I haven’t laughed so much since Cyrus put everyone to sleep in the middle of the vicar’s sermon.”
“Teacher ahoy!” announced Ira suddenly.
Max looked up. Mr Widget was calling everyone over to the coach.
“Time to go home,” sighed Ben.
The gargoylz looked crestfallen.
“You’d better get on board before the rest of us,” Max told them.
“Aye, aye.” Ira saluted before giving the order. “Form a line, shipmates.”
Max and Ben gathered up their things and joined their class.
“Anyone seen Barry Price?” Mr Widget was asking anxiously.
“Help!” A distant cry echoed across the sand. “Get me out of here!”
“I think he’s stuck, sir,” said Ben.
Mr Widget raced over to where Barry was trapped. The Basher was complaining loudly.
“How did you manage to bury yourself in the sand?” they heard the teacher demanding as he tugged him out.
Max and Ben raced to the back of the coach. They could see a row of eyes under the seat. The engine started and very soon the boys could hear muffled gargoyle snoring.
“That was a great school trip!” said Max as the coach rumbled back towards Oldacre School.
“We’ve worn the gargoylz out,” said Ben with a grin. “No need to keep them quiet this time.”
“They didn’t even need Cyrus’s song to make them fall asleep,” Max added with a smile.
“We’re not all asleep,” came a squawk. Ira popped his beak out and winked at the boys. “Someone has to make sure the ship gets safely back to harbour!”
Gargoylz Fact File
Full name: Tobias the Third
Known as: Toby
Special Power: Flying
Likes: All kinds of pranks and mischief — especially playing jokes on the vicar
Dislikes: Mrs Hogsbottom, garden gnomes
Full name: Barnabas
Known as: Barney
Special Power: Making big stinks!
Likes: Cookiez
Dislikes: Being surprised by humanz
Full name: Eli
Special Power: Turning into a grass snake
Likes: Sssports Day, Ssslithering
Dislikes: Ssscary ssstories
Full name: Bartholomew
Known as: Bart
Special Power: Burping spiders
Likes: Being grumpy
Dislikes: Being told to cheer up
Full name: Theophilus
Known as: Theo
Special Power: Turning into a ferocious tiger (well, tabby kitten!)
Likes: Sunny spots and cosy places
Dislikes: Rain
Full name: Zackary
Known as: Zack
Special Power: Making himself invisible to humanz
Likes: Bouncing around, eating bramblz, thistlz, and anything with pricklz!
Dislikes: Keeping still
Full name: Ira
Special Power: Making it rain
Likes: Making humans walk the plank
Dislikes: Being bored
Name: Azzan
Special Power: Breathing fire
Likes: Surprises
Dislikes: Smoke going up his nose and making him sneeze
Name: Cyrus
Special Power: Sings lullabies to send humanz to sleep
Likes: Fun days out
Dislikes: Snoring
Read all the Gargoylz Adventures!
Gargoylz on the Loose!
Gargoylz Get Up to Mischief
Gargoylz at a Midnight Feast
Gargoylz Take a Trip
GARGOYLZ TAKE A TRIP
AN RHCP DIGITAL EBOOK 978 1 407 04974 8
Published in Great Britain by RHCP Digital,
an imprint of Random House Children’s Publishers UK
A Random House Group Company
This ebook edition published 2014
Series created and developed by Amber Caravéo
Copyright © Random House Children’s Books, 2009
First Published in Great Britain
Red Fox 9781862308350 2009
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