‘Not more dandelions?’
‘No, it’s my wolf’s tooth necklace. Maybe it’ll bring you luck.’
Umily looked at the necklace in his hand. ‘Thanks, but I’ve got one. Snark gave me his.’
She touched the necklace round her neck, which Iggy had somehow failed to notice. It had a small bone carved in the shape of the moon, or possibly a fish, it was hard to tell.
‘It’s um . . . nice,’ said Iggy.
‘He says I mustn’t worry. He’d never let nothing happen to me.’
Iggy’s eyes widened. ‘Snark said that?’
‘Yes. He’s the bravest person I know.’
‘Mmm,’ said Iggy. Snark was certainly the biggest liar he knew.
He got up to go. Umily stood up as well.
‘Well,’ said Iggy, ‘see you then.’
He trudged back up the hill, wishing a boulder would drop on his head from the sky.
‘See you then.’ What kind of idiot said that to someone who was about to die?
Later that evening, as the sun dipped below the mountains, a solemn procession made its way towards the Forest of Urk. At the front walked the stooped figure of Gaga the Wise, leaning on a stick. Behind him came Borg, Chief of the Elders, and a group of Urk warriors who kept close together and glanced constantly about them. At the back, flanked by guards, came Umily, looking very small and alone.
From high on the hill, Iggy and Hubba watched the procession cross the river and approach the trees. Iggy was busy knotting together long bits of sinew – the tough bits of animals that are useful for making weapons or knotting together.
‘What you call it again?’ asked Hubba.
‘A net,’ said Iggy.
‘Oh. Funny name. What’s it for then?’
‘You throw it,’ said Iggy.
‘Like a spear, you mean? Where’s the pointy bit?’
‘This is different. The animal gets caught in the net and it struggles but it can’t escape.’
Hubba laughed. ‘Course it can! You left whoppin’ big big holes! It’ll wriggle out.’
‘No, it won’t!’ said Iggy.
‘A snake would. Or a worm.’
‘It won’t wriggle out,’ said Iggy irritably. ‘Once it’s caught, it can’t get away.’
‘Show us then,’ demanded Hubba.
‘I told you, it’s not finished yet.’
‘But just show us how it works.’
Iggy sighed. He bunched up the net and threw it high, so it landed neatly over Hubba’s head. Hubba shook himself like a dog and the net fell in a heap on the grass. Iggy picked it up.
‘Like I said, it’s not finished yet.’
.
Meanwhile, deep in the forest, the procession had come to a halt. The light was fading and it had begun to rain. The Urks were unwilling to go any further. Since entering the woods they had become more and more nervous, and several were convinced that the trees were following them. They stood watching as Gaga the Wise led Umily to an old, twisted oak tree and tied her to the trunk.
‘Any last requests, my child?’ he asked gravely.
‘Can us come back when it’s not raining?’ asked Umily.
‘I’m afraid not.’
Gaga took a few steps back, spread out his arms and addressed the sky in a loud, ringing voice.
‘Great Spirits of the Ancestors, we offer you this Daughter of Urk . . .’
Borg tapped him on the shoulder.
‘Do the short version. We’re in a hurry.’
Gaga hesitated for a moment. The others were already edging away, anxious to be gone.
‘Great Spirits,’ he said. ‘She’s all yours.’ He hurried after them. Umily was left alone with only the wind and the rain for company.
Minutes slipped past and became hours. Soon she lost track of how long she’d been there. The leather cords bit into her arms and chafed whenever she struggled. As darkness came she began to hear noises. Rustling, scuffling, snuffling noises. A twig snapped. The trees moaned in the wind. Umily closed her eyes and tried to pretend she was safe at home in her cave. Her eyes blinked open. Something was coming. In the moonlight she thought she glimpsed a shadow flitting silently between the trees. She struggled wildly, desperate to break free. She wanted to cry out for help, but her mouth was dry as a bone. Somewhere in the darkness IT was watching her, waiting to pounce.
x
Chapter 8
Saving Umily
YAAAARGHHHHHH!’ Umily screamed as the thing leapt out from behind a tree.
‘Iggy, you bonehead!’ she groaned. ‘You scared me half to death!’
Iggy blinked. To be honest he’d expected more of a welcome. After all, he was risking his life – and it was raining.
‘What’re you doing here?’ asked Umily.
‘I came to save you.’
‘You?’
‘Yes. Well, me and Hubba. He’s back there.’
‘Hello, Umily!’ Hubba’s head popped up from the bushes and he waved cheerily.
Umily wondered if this was a dream.
‘Anyway, you’re all right,’ said Iggy.
‘All right? I’m wet through and tied to a tree!’
‘Yes, I know, but you’re alive. And look, I brought something.’
Iggy showed her a strange knotted thing that he had slung over his shoulder. It looked like a moth-eaten blanket.
‘It’s a net,’ he said. ‘For catching slimosaurs. It’s stronger than it looks. You hold it like this . . .’
‘IGGY!’ cried Umily. ‘We don’t have time!’
‘Oh yes, sorry. I’d better cut you loose.’ He slipped a hand inside his furs and felt around. ‘Oh.’
‘Now what?’ said Umily.
‘I forgot to bring an axe.’
Umily hung her head in despair. This was probably the worst rescue of all time.
‘Don’t worry,’ said Iggy. ‘I can probably bite through it.’
He tested the leather cords with his teeth, but they were much too thick.
‘Stay there,’ he said. ‘I’ll be right back.’
He hadn’t got more than a few steps when he froze in his tracks. It was the same noise they’d heard the night they were picking yumberries. A low, blood-curdling roar that carried on the wind and filled the forest with squawks and shrieks.
‘GROOARGHHHHHHHH!’
THUD . . . THUD . . . THUD!
The slimosaur was on the move, making the ground shake.
‘Iggy!’ cried Umily. ‘Where are you?’
No answer came back. Iggy had vanished into the darkness, abandoning her.
THUD . . . THUD . . . THUD!
It was coming closer. Where was Snark? Snark the Fearless, who would protect her?
.
Close by, Hubba and Iggy were watching from their hiding place in the middle of a holly bush.
‘Ow! It prickles!’ grumbled Hubba.
‘Then keep still!’
‘I am keeping still! Do you see anything?’
‘No,’ hissed Iggy. ‘It’s too dark.’
They listened. The forest had gone as silent as a graveyard. All they could hear was Umily’s snuffly breathing. In the darkness, Iggy could hardly see her under the tree. They had brought a torch, but the rain had practically put out the flame.
THUD . . . THUD . . . THUD!
The monster was coming. Iggy wondered if it could smell them on the breeze. It would be easy enough to smell Hubba.
‘Remember,’ hissed Iggy. ‘Wait till it’s caught in the net.’
‘Then we run?’ asked Hubba.
‘No. Then we kill it.’
‘Right. What if the net don’t hold it?�
�
‘It will,’ said Iggy.
‘But what if it don’t?’
‘Then we run.’
Iggy peered into the darkness, one hand grasping the net and the other gripping his spear. He wondered if hunting was always like this – a mixture of terror, excitement and wishing it would stop raining. Suddenly the forest shook again. A monstrous head loomed into view, outlined against the moon. The next thing Iggy heard was Umily’s scream and he burst from the bushes with Hubba at his heels.
What happened next was all panic and confusion as they lost sight of each other in the dark. Iggy came upon the slimosaur from behind and leapt back as the long green tail almost knocked him off his feet.
‘IGGY!’
He heard Umily scream again, followed by another sound like a wave of custard splatting against a wall. Iggy rushed towards the noise and stumbled against something on the ground. He threw the net.
‘Hubba! I’ve got it!’
The beast kicked and struggled to escape. Iggy raised his spear and jabbed down hard.
‘OWW!’ yelped the beast. ‘Get off, you noggerhead!’
It wasn’t the slimosaur. It was Hubba who was blundering around in the net.
‘Hubba! Where is it?’ cried Iggy.
‘Don’t ask me! I fell over.’
Hubba managed to untangle himself from the net and rubbed his bottom where the spear had prodded him. They both looked around, suddenly aware that the roaring in their ears had stopped. A distant booming told them that the slimosaur was lumbering off through the forest. Leaves and broken branches littered the ground.
‘Umily!’ said Iggy, realising they’d forgotten all about her. He hurried to the twisted oak, suddenly afraid what he might find. Umily had gone. All that was left was a patch of sticky gloop dripping down the tree trunk and forming a thick green puddle in the mud. Iggy covered his face with his hands and turned away.
‘Don’t look,’ he said. ‘We’re too late.’
x
Chapter 9
Lair of the Slimosaur
Hubba crouched down and dabbed a finger in the slime.
‘Hmmm,’ he said.
Iggy looked at him. ‘What do you mean, “Hmmm”?’
‘Well, look – where’s her bones?’ asked Hubba. ‘If she’d been eaten, there’d be bones and innards.’
Iggy cast around under the tree. Hubba was right. The day they had followed the slimosaur’s trail it had led them to a fly-ridden pile of bones. But there was no trace of Umily at all. It was as if she’d vanished in a puff of smoke – or in this case a puddle of slime.
‘Then maybe she got away,’ suggested Iggy.
Hubba looked doubtful. ‘Maybe. Or it carried her off.’
‘Why would it do that?’
Hubba shrugged. ‘Don’t ask me. To get out of the rain?’ Figuring things out was supposed to be Iggy’s job.
They searched the muddy ground for tracks. There was no sign of Umily’s footprints, but it wasn’t hard to tell which direction the slimosaur had taken – it looked as if a giant boulderball had cut a path through the trees.
For the next hour they followed the trail by the moonlight and the faint glow of Iggy’s torch. Further on, in the muddy shallows of a stream, Iggy found two large footprints. Something small and white under the water caught his eye. He fished it out. It was Umily’s bone necklace, the one that Snark had given her. They had come this way. If Umily was alive, maybe she’d dropped it deliberately, hoping they would follow the trail.
Finally the forest began to thin out and it was easier to see their way. They emerged into a barren rocky valley. Steep hills rose up either side of a dry riverbed strewn with boulders shaped like giant eggs. Iggy trod on something sharp, which made a loud crunch. He stooped to pick up an animal skull, now badly dented and missing a few teeth.
‘Nice,’ said Hubba.
Further on they came across more piles of bones: claws, beaks and grinning skulls. Iggy looked round uneasily.
‘Are you thinking what I’m thinking?’
Hubba frowned. ‘Dunno. I weren’t thinking.’
‘This is its lair, Hubba. I think we’ve found it.’
They went on more carefully, clambering over rocks and taking care not to step on any bones. Turning a corner, Iggy stopped dead. Slowly he raised a finger and pointed to a humpbacked hill just ahead. Curiously the hill was covered in scales and rose and fell in time with raspy breathing. The slimosaur was asleep.
They backed up and circled the beast, giving it a wide berth. When they were level with the head, they hid behind some rocks to watch it from a safe distance. The slimosaur was flopped on its belly. A trail of slime drooled from one side of its mouth. Iggy noticed blood on its teeth and a cold shudder went through him. But Umily wasn’t dead. The creature had her gripped in one of its claws. She seemed unharmed, though she was coated in thick green gunk. Hubba jumped to his feet.
‘Wait!’ said Iggy, pulling him down. ‘If it wakes up now, we’re all dead. We’ve got to get close without disturbing it.’
‘Then what?’ said Hubba.
‘Then we grab Umily and get out of here.’
They crept closer. Umily gave no sign she’d seen them, although it was probably difficult to wave when you were in the grip of a giant claw. Iggy crept from one boulder to the next till they were almost at the head. The slimosaur’s eyes remained closed, its breath turning the air sour. Iggy crept over to Umily and softly whispered her name. Her eyes blinked open in amazement. Iggy put a finger to his lips. Kneeling down, he tried to pull her out by the arms, but the claw only tightened its grip. The slimosaur grunted in its sleep and let out a horrible belch.
‘BUUUUUUURRROOOP!’
‘Iggy! Hurry up!’ hissed Hubba.
‘I’m trying!’
Iggy cast around for a solution. Piles of bones lay everywhere and beside one was a heap of brown feathers. It gave him an idea. He chose the largest feather he could find and took it to Umily. She stared at him blankly.
‘Tickle it,’ he whispered.
‘What?’
‘Just try it! Go on, tickle its claw.’
Umily wriggled her arm until she managed to get in the right position. Using the tip of the feather, she tickled the creature’s horny palm. The slimosaur twitched and a gurgling noise bubbled up from its belly. It was laughing. But this wasn’t much help since the claw was squeezing Umily tighter. Fighting for breath, she tried again. This time the claw relaxed a fraction, just enough for Iggy to drag her free.
Umily got unsteadily to her feet and took a few deep breaths.
‘Can you walk?’ Iggy whispered.
She nodded.
They set off, scrabbling over the rocks in the direction they’d come from. Iggy knew if they could just reach the top of the hill they’d be out of sight. They might have made it too, if Hubba had looked where he was walking.
‘EUGHHH!’ he yelled.
Iggy wheeled around. Hubba was staring down at his foot, which was caked in something brown. He had stepped in a giant pile of slimosaur droppings.
‘Ugh! It stinks!’ he moaned, hopping around on one foot.
Iggy ran back. ‘Never mind that. Let’s get out of here.’
‘Iggy . . . !’
But Umily’s cry of warning was drowned out . . .
‘GROOOARRGH!’
The slimosaur had woken up. It rose to its full towering height, threw back its head and bellowed at the sky again.
‘GROOOARRGH!’
Iggy gulped. Hubba took a step back and heard a squelch.
‘RUUUUUUUN!’
x
Chapter 10
A Long Way Down
They ran. Iggy didn’t have to lo
ok back to know the slimosaur was giving chase. The ground shook and the rocks bounced around like jumping beans. Umily was up ahead and running for her life. Though they had a good head start, the slimosaur was already gaining. Every giant step it took ate up the ground between them. Their only chance was to reach the top of the hill and find somewhere to hide. The steep slope made running hard work, but Iggy drew level with Umily.
‘Where’s Hubba?’ she panted.
He glanced back. Hubba was holding his side and struggling to keep up. Behind him, the slimosaur had reached the bottom of the hill and was beginning to climb. Iggy dashed back and grabbed Hubba by the hand.
‘Come on! Hurry!’
‘I can’t!’
The slimosaur’s foot came down on a young tree, flattening it like a mushroom. It roared with fury. Hubba heard it and shook Iggy off, suddenly finding a new burst of energy. Seconds later the two of them raced over the hill to where Umily stood waiting for them. She blocked their path, spreading her arms wide.
‘STOP!’ she yelled.
Iggy skidded to halt and grabbed Hubba just in the nick of time. They were standing on a flat shelf of rock just a few steps short of the sheer edge of a cliff. When Iggy inched forward to look, the drop made his head swim. They were trapped.
‘What now?’ moaned Hubba, gasping for breath.
‘We fight,’ said Umily bravely. ‘At least you got your spears.’
Iggy and Hubba looked at each other. In the panic of the escape, they must have dropped their spears when they fled up the hill. All they had was Iggy’s net, which now had even more holes than before.
THUD . . . THUD . . . THUD!
Iggy peered over the cliff. If he’d had wings, he could have launched himself off the edge and swooped safely to earth. But he didn’t have wings, only a net that was no use at all. Unless . . .
He thought quickly. It was insane, but it was their only chance. He turned to the others.
‘We have to jump.’
‘What?’ said Hubba. ‘From here?’
‘Yes.’
‘You’re crazy. We’ll be killed!’
‘We’ll be killed if we stay here,’ said Iggy. He began breaking the knots of the net, unpicking it hurriedly. THUD! The ground shook again.
Arrrrgh! Slimosaur! Page 4
