Battle of the Crocodile King
Page 5
The three of them picked themselves up. They all bowed in respect before Isis, who gave them a gentle smile.
“Thank you, my children,” she said. Now that Akori could hear her voice out loud instead of only in his head, it seemed as sweet as honey melting slowly on his tongue.
“I have not enough words to describe your bravery,” said the lovely Goddess, “but I do have this to help with the dangers ahead.”
She took her ring from her finger and handed it to Akori. “This Ring of Isis will hide you from sight whenever you need it. Use the power of invisibility wisely on your quests, young prince.”
Akori smiled at her gratefully as he took the ring. “Thank you, Goddess.” Then he looked around the cave anxiously. “Please, I must know. What happened to Sobek and Heket? Are they still here?”
Isis’s smile became a laugh. “I assure you, they are under control! When children behave badly, they must be taught a lesson – even if they are Gods.” She pointed to a large pool of rainbow-coloured water left behind on the cavern floor.
Akori peered into it and gasped. Splashing around in the pool was a tiny crocodile-headed man, no bigger than a newt. He was about as frightening as a newt too. He raged and nipped with his little jaws, and cried out in a squeaky voice. Beneath the surface, a fat tadpole was swimming round in circles, its mouth opening and closing hungrily.
“I cannot keep them in this form for much longer though,” Isis warned, “so escape while you can!”
“But what about Sobek’s crocodile army? Won’t they be waiting to get us?” Akori felt exhausted, but maybe he could still fight, if Isis was there to help.
“No need to worry about them,” Isis smiled. “All you have to do is hold hands.”
Confused, Akori held hands with Manu and Ebe. He was about to ask “Now what?” when Isis raised her hand again and her eyes shone bright with magic.
“Hekau!” she whispered, the words of power sizzling in the air. “Weret hekau!”
The three of them were lifted into the air and began to rotate in a circle. They spun like a potter’s wheel, faster and faster, and the cave became a blur. Manu turned pale, but Ebe squealed with excitement. Akori held on tightly to both of them as his eyes began to water with the wind and a roaring filled his ears.
“A safe journey to you!” Isis cried, and clapped her hands.
Akori, Manu and Ebe felt themselves merge with one another and with the wind. They were a human tornado, exploding through the roof of the cave and out into the endless sky.
As Akori felt himself rocketing into the starry night, he heard Isis’s final words ringing in his ears:
“Stay true to your quest, young prince! Free Horus! Free my son!”
In the Temple of Horus, it had been a busy day and the weary priests had gathered for the evening meal. A cauldron of fish stew had been prepared, and was being ladled out into bowls.
The priests took their seats on benches, with the High Priest at the head of the table. He blessed the meal in silence, and everyone began to eat. One of the priests looked up as he heard a distant rushing noise but, seeing nothing, he shook his head and bent over his bowl again.
Next moment there was a tremendous crash as Akori fell through the ceiling and landed on the table. He looked around at several extremely surprised priests. One of them seemed to be wearing a soup bowl on his head. Two more crashes announced the arrival of Ebe and Manu.
Akori clambered from the table and made his way over to the High Priest. He took hold of the blind old man’s frail hand. “Your Holiness, we are home. We succeeded in our quest and Isis is free.”
“Akori!” declared the High Priest delightedly. “Welcome back! You must tell me all about your adventures!”
Akori and Manu began to talk excitedly at once. All the priests listened to them in admiring silence.
When they had finished, one of the priests gasped aloud. “Horus!”
Everyone turned to look.
The priest pointed to the hearth where the fire was blazing. The flames were moulding themselves into the familiar shape of the hawk-headed God. All the priests fell to their knees.
“I owe you my thanks as never before, Akori,” said the flickering image of Horus. “My mother is safe. Now, you must rest. Let your friends here at the Temple care for you.”
Akori nodded. “But what about my next quest? Shouldn’t I be preparing for that.”
“Oh yes,” Horus replied. “But not before you’ve had a good night’s rest. Your next quest will be your most dangerous yet. If you thought your encounter with water was bad, next time you will be journeying to the very heart of—”
The flames in the hearth suddenly started to fade.
Akori’s heart began to pound. “To the very heart of what, Your Holiness?”
But it was no good. The image of Horus flickered and faded and then disappeared altogether in a puff of smoke.
“What’s happened?” Akori cried. “Horus! Come back!”
But the hearth was now empty, apart from a pile of sooty ashes.
Akori turned to the High Priest in despair. “He’s disappeared, High Priest. He disappeared before he could tell me where to go for my next quest.”
The High Priest shook his wizened head sadly. “His power is fading, Akori. Hopefully he will be able to gather the strength needed to come to you again. You will have to be ready for him if he does. He may not have long left.”
“I will be ready,” Akori replied solemnly. “I won’t let him down.”
“What did you say?” screamed the Pharaoh Oba.
“They were turned into a tadpole,” repeated Bukhu, “and a baby crocodile—”
“I heard you the first time, idiot!” Oba stared at his priest in disbelief. “But how? Sobek is the mighty Crocodile God! His jaws have crushed thousands! How did Akori do this?”
“Magic!” scowled Bukhu. “The magic of Isis, no doubt! She has power over life. She would not kill – oh no, not her. She merely made Heket and Sobek into babies for a while to allow the farm boy time to escape.”
“So, once more Akori has had help from his wretched good Gods.” Oba mounted the steps to his throne, and sprawled sideways across it. He was silent for a while before speaking again.
“I shed blood to win this throne, Bukhu. Family blood. So why is it that nobody seems able to help me keep it? What good is my bravery if you all fail me? Is every last one of you a traitor?”
“Do not worry, Your Majesty,” said Bukhu, fighting to keep his voice calm. “No amount of magic will help Akori next time. Where he is going, he will burn…for ever.”
Vicious vultures and deadly beasts lie in wait for Akori as he searches the desert for the Hidden Fortress of Fire – and the Goddess imprisoned there. Will he survive or will this quest be his last…?
Manu pointed to the sky with a yell. Something enormous was swooping in their direction, blotting out the sun. Akori saw huge wings beating and smelled something foul and rank. He glimpsed a gaping beak, an eye as huge as a round shield... It was a vulture, the hugest he had ever seen. It was circling above them, horribly silent for something so big. When vultures circled like that, Akori knew, they were waiting for something down below to die. And then they would come and feast.
Akori reached for his khopesh. “I’m not dead yet,” he snarled. “You want a fight, you’ll get one!”
ISBN 9781409521082
EPUB ISBN 9781409554837
KINDLE ISBN 9781409554844
Also available:
ATTACK OF THE SCORPION RIDERS
For his first quest, Akori must risk his life, fighting giant scorpions and a deadly Snake Goddess. But will his terrifying battle end in victory?
ISBN 9781409521051
EPUB ISBN 9781409554776 KINDLE ISBN 9781409554783
CURSE OF THE DEMON DOG
The dead are stalking the living and Akori must send them back to their graves. But dog-headed Am-Heh the Hunter has sworn to destroy Akori…and no one has
ever escaped his fearsome jaws.
ISBN 9781409521068
EPUB ISBN 9781409554790 KINDLE ISBN 9781409554806
SHADOW OF THE STORM LORD
The battle to end all battles has begun. Akori must fight Set, the dark Lord of Storms himself, and beat Oba, the evil Pharaoh, to claim his rightful throne. But can Egypt’s young hero finally win the crown?
ISBN 9781409521099
EPUB ISBN 9781409554851 KINDLE ISBN 9781409554868
THERE’S A WHOLE WORLD OF GODS AND MONSTERS WAITING TO BE EXPLORED AT...
Check out all the game cards online and work out which ones YOU’LL need to beat your friends
Discover exclusive new games to play with your collectable cards
Investigate an interactive map of ancient Egypt
Get tips on how to write top-secret messages in hieroglyphics
Find out the goriest facts and grossest info on ancient Egypt
Download cool guides to the gods, amazing Egyptian make-and-do activities, plus loads more!
Log on now!
WWW.QUESTOFTHEGODS.CO.UK