“Really, boss?”
Chuckling to himself, Stumper limped away towards the distant trees. Little Bennett grabbed the ends of the rope, swung Luke, Resus and Cleo over his shoulder, and stomped after him.
“Well,” said Resus to Luke, his upside-down face rubbing against Little Bennett’s rough, scaly back. “You did say we’d make it to the forest by nightfall…”
Chapter Seven
The Village
It took a little under an hour for Stumper and Little Bennett to reach the edge of the wooded area. By this time, Luke, Resus and Cleo were sore from the rope rubbing on their wrists and ankles, and dizzy from swinging side to side as Little Bennett skipped along, chasing after his beloved nasterns.
Eventually a voice brought both trolls to a sudden stop. “Halt! Who’s dat wot goes dere?” Luke peered under Little Bennett’s armpit to discover two more trolls blocking their way. These, however, were muscle-bound and armed with sharp spears.
Stumper cleared his throat. “It is I – Pebble J. Stumpington.”
“Who?” rumbled the guard.
“Stumper, you cretin! I demand to see the Medicine Man at once.”
The second guard pointed his spear at the visitors, his brow furrowed in thought. “’Ere, I know you,” he grunted. “You’re dat bloke wot got frone out of de village for stealin’ de Medicine Man’s crown!”
Stumper sighed. “I didn’t steal anything,” he said indignantly. “I merely noticed that the crown needed a bit of a clean. I only wanted to help.”
Little Bennett tapped him on the shoulder. “I thought you said you hated the Medicine Man for cutting off your leg and leaving you wiv dat stump…”
Stumper gave Little Bennett a swift elbow in the stomach and continued. “I knew that the Medicine Man wouldn’t want to go to the trouble of having the crown spruced up, so I simply took it when he wasn’t looking.”
“But … but…” The guard’s expression crumpled further as he struggled to compute. “You didn’t clean de crown at all. You sold it to some goblins …”
“…and used de money to buy a dagger …” added the first guard.
“…dat you used to stab de Medicine Man in de bum,” finished the second.
Little Bennett spoke up again. “Dey’re not wrong, boss! You said you’d get de Medicine Man back one day for giving you dat wooden leg.”
“Quiet, you fool!” hissed Stumper. “Don’t forget, you were banished from the village too.”
“Was I?” enquired Bennett. “Why?”
“You knocked out the Medicine Man in the first place so I could nick his crown!”
A grin spread across Bennett’s face. “Oh, yeah.”
Both guards advanced. “So, what makes you fink we’re gonna let you two back into de village?”
“Because …” Stumper smiled and clicked his fingers. Little Bennett swung the children off his back and dumped them at the guards’ feet. “…I’ve brought dinner!”
Luke, Resus and Cleo stood huddled together in a rusted old cooking pot, their arms and legs still bound. All around them, trolls danced and sang to the sound of pounding drums. In the background was a circle of crude mud huts that made up their forest village.
More than a hundred creatures of every shape and size imaginable whooped and squealed with joy as Little Bennett piled armfuls of firewood beneath the cauldron. From a large wooden throne the village Medicine Man watched intently, his face obscured behind a hideous mask. Stumper sat at his side, a smug grin on his face.
“All in all,” Resus muttered, “this isn’t quite the fun-filled adventure it was made out to be…”
“Are you two OK?” hissed Luke.
“No!” whispered Cleo as a female troll approached and emptied yet another bucket into the filthy liquid already slopping around their knees. “This water’s disgusting!”
“Why don’t you tell them you’d prefer to be boiled alive in clean water?” suggested Resus. “I’m sure they could arrange it for you.”
Little Bennett finished piling up the firewood and dropped to his knees. He banged two pieces of flint together to make a spark.
Cleo leant over to watch. “That wood will never light,” she observed. “It’s too wet. He’ll need some dry kindling to get the fire—”
“Don’t give him tips!” roared Resus as Little Bennett smiled toothily and scampered off.
“We need to think of a way to get out of here – and fast,” said Luke.
“And I was just beginning to enjoy myself!” retorted Resus.
“What if we—”
“SILENCE!”
The drums ceased and the tribe froze as the Medicine Man stood to address them. As the villagers looked on, he slowly removed his repulsive mask – to reveal an identical face underneath.
“Someone fell out of the ugly tree…” hissed Resus.
“And hit every branch on the way down, by the looks of it,” added Luke.
The Medicine Man began to speak, shouting out the important words. “You might REMEMBER young STUMPER here visiting me LAST SUMMER, complaining of a BOIL on his TOE.” The tribe all scratched their heads and frowned as they tried to access the less used areas of their brains. “He knew that with my AWESOME POWER I would be able to HEAL his AGONY!”
The trolls cheered and screeched enthusiastically. The Medicine Man stood proud, accepting the adulation. Then he continued.
“You might also REMEMBER that Stumper did not APPROVE of my SOLUTION to his problem. IN HIS IGNORANCE he thought that cutting off his WHOLE LEG was too severe a TREATMENT!”
Stumper winced at the memory but quickly replaced it with a smile.
“Banished for his RETALIATORY ACTIONS, he has now RETURNED to us,” bellowed the Medicine Man. “Returned to us with the GIFT of FOOD!”
Luke, Resus and Cleo shuddered as the trolls all turned in their direction.
“NO LONGER shall we be forced to eat HEATHER and NASTERN DUNG!” the Medicine Man exclaimed. “TONIGHT we dine on HUMAN FLESH!”
Once again, the entire tribe went crazy: singing, dancing and beating drums.
“But BEFORE WE EAT…”
The tribe, impatient at the further delay, struggled to quieten down and listen to their leader. One voice could be heard to mutter quietly, “Get on with it!”
“Before we eat,” repeated the Medicine Man, “I shall DEMONSTRATE for you my INCREDIBLE MAGICAL POWERS!” Turning towards Stumper, he produced several strips of tree bark from behind his throne.
“PICK A CARD, ANY CARD!”
As Stumper reluctantly took one of the cards, Little Bennett returned with an armful of dry reeds. He packed the grass over the wood beneath the cauldron and once again struck his flints together. The pyre lit instantly.
“He’s got it going,” Cleo commented.
“Yeah,” said Resus, “but only because you told him how fire works.”
“That’s it!” exclaimed Luke. “Fireworks!”
“What?” asked Cleo.
“The fireworks in Resus’s cloak!” replied Luke excitedly. “If we can dump them all on the fire, the explosions might freak out the trolls and give us a chance to escape.”
“Brilliant!” grinned Resus. “But how do we get them out of my cape? All our hands are tied.”
“Leave that to me,” smiled Luke. “Seeing as I’m in the swing of partial transformations, we might just live to tell the tail…” He closed his eyes and concentrated on sending feelings of anger towards the base of his spine. Within seconds a long, bushy werewolf’s tail began to sprout over the top of his jeans.
“Quick as you can,” urged Cleo. “My feet are starting to feel warm!”
“And I don’t know how much longer these guys are going to wait before jumping in and eating us raw,” added Resus. Several of the creatures were already watching them with hungry eyes.
Meanwhile, around the clearing, other trolls stifled yawns as the Medicine Man moved from card tricks to producing a nastern’s egg f
rom behind Stumper’s ear. “And NOW I want you to think of a NUMBER between ONE and THREE…”
“OK, I’m ready,” hissed Luke.
Resus wriggled himself around, allowing Luke to slip his long tail under the edge of his cloak. “The fireworks should be somewhere near the top,” whispered the vampire. “Just above the picnic table… Careful – that tickles!”
“Now, if I reach inside the MAGIC BAG…” announced the Medicine Man.
Luke found the bundle of rockets and Catherine wheels and wrapped his tail around them. Then, in one swift motion, he pulled them out of Resus’s cloak, dumping them over the side of the cooking pot into the fire.
Little Bennett was on his hands and knees, blowing gently on the flames, when the village exploded.
Chapter Eight
The Night
“How much of a head start do you think we’ve got?” asked Cleo as she, Luke and Resus raced through the forest.
“Ten minutes at the most, I’d imagine,” replied Luke. “I just hope we’re heading in the right direction. All I can see are purple and green swirls!”
The fireworks had erupted spectacularly, sending colourful explosions and screaming rockets shooting through the village. As Luke had hoped, the trolls had been terrified – all except for the Medicine Man, who had stared down at his hands in amazement, wondering if he had just come up with his finest magic yet.
As soon as the fireworks display had begun, the trio had flung themselves to one side of the cauldron, tipping it over and crashing to the ground. Pausing only to burn through their bonds, they’d run blindly into the dense forest without a backwards glance.
“I just wish we’d had time to get the crystal ball,” said Resus. “I stuck my hand into Little Bennett’s pocket before we ran, but all I got was a handful of birdseed.”
“You put your hand in his pocket to get the crystal ball?” asked Cleo. “Shame it had already been taken!” And she produced the globe from the bandages around her waist.
Luke took it from her with a grin. “You wily little thief!”
Cleo gave a curtsy. “I’m not just a pretty face, you know.”
Suddenly, a roar echoed through the woods. “Me finks dey went dis way!”
“So much for ten minutes’ head start,” hissed Resus.
The trio continued to run, the forest growing darker as the sun began to set. The deeper into the woods they raced, the closer the trees stood together. Roots protruded from the ground, causing Luke and Cleo to trip again and again. Low branches whipped Resus across the face. Behind them, they could hear crashes in the undergrowth as the trolls gave chase.
“We need to get off this path,” said Luke, peering around them into the darkness. “They’ll catch us in no time if we don’t.”
“What path?” demanded Resus as he plunged his foot into yet more troll poo. “Besides – they’re trolls. They’ll sniff us out whichever way we go.”
“Then maybe we can disguise our scent,” proposed Luke.
“How can we disguise our…?” Resus’s face fell as he realized. “No way!”
Luke reached down and grabbed a handful of the troll dung. “Fine,” he said, beginning to smear it over his arms. “You can smell like dinner if you like. I’m going to get them off my back!” With a wry face, Cleo began to copy him.
“All right,” sighed Resus. “But you owe me a new shirt…”
Two minutes later, Luke, Resus and Cleo were all coated in troll dung. The stench was almost unbearable.
Branches cracked as the trolls drew nearer. Luke pulled the others behind a clump of bushes with him and they waited in silence.
“Come out, you scrawny little humans!” bellowed Stumper, appearing out of the darkness with Little Bennett in tow. “You might be able to get one over on those other morons, but you can’t escape from me!”
“Dey aren’t answerin’, boss,” said Little Bennett. “I don’t fink dey can hear you.”
“My one chance of getting back into the village and teaching that pathetic Medicine Man a lesson, and it’s ruined by some stupid kids!” spat Stumper. “I thought you said you had their scent,” he added, turning on his companion.
Luke held his breath as Little Bennett sniffed at the air. “I did – but now I’ve lost it,” he admitted. “And I can’t smell dat much right now!” The larger troll, his face bruised and blistered, had two burnt-out fireworks wedged up his nostrils.
Stumper pulled them out angrily. “Now what can you smell?”
Little Bennett breathed deeply. “I can smell us…”
Stumper sneered. “They must be further ahead than I thought,” he growled. “Come on!” The trolls crashed on through the forest, and soon everything was quiet once more.
Luke crept out of the bush and stretched his legs. The others followed. “Now we just need to work out which direction the castle is in,” he said.
“Maybe Mr Skipstone will know,” suggested Cleo.
Wiping his hands on his trousers, Luke pulled The G.H.O.U.L. Guide from his pocket. Samuel Skipstone opened his golden eyes and gazed up at the trio in shock. “Goodness me!” he exclaimed. “What on earth happened to you three?”
“It was Luke’s idea,” said Cleo, pulling the mucky bandages away from her mouth. “He got some of the stuff on him earlier and decided we should all have a go.”
“I stopped the trolls finding us, didn’t I?” Luke pointed out. Without waiting for an answer, he turned back to the author. “We’re lost, Mr Skipstone.”
Samuel Skipstone stared up at the trees. The light was failing by the second. “Count Negatov’s castle is to the west,” he said. “Can you remember in which direction the sun set?”
Luke looked at the few patches of sky visible through the treetops. Colourful swirls still danced before his eyes. “No,” he admitted.
“Then unless you want to blunder through the forest in the dark, I suggest you camp the night here and watch for the sunrise in the morning,” advised Skipstone. “The castle will be in the opposite direction.”
With a sigh, Resus found himself a patch of moss and lay down, his cloak wrapped around him like a blanket. “Great way to spend Vampire New Year,” he muttered.
Luke propped himself up against the base of a tree and took out the crystal ball. As he peered into it, he concentrated on Scream Street and watched as tiny houses began to form out of the mists.
Cleo sat down beside him. “Looking in on your mum?” she asked.
Luke nodded. “Funny,” he said. “It used to be my dad I worried about most, but since my mum started transforming…” His words trailed off.
“She’ll get used to being a werewolf,” Cleo assured him. “You did.” The image inside the globe zoomed over the central square and down a side street.
“It’s not that,” said Luke. “I know she’ll be OK with transforming occasionally. I’m more concerned that she’ll hurt someone. With so many normals walking around Scream Street, it’s just not safe. I don’t think she could live with that.”
As the picture in the crystal ball finally settled on 13 Scream Street, Luke could see through the window and into the living room. Both his parents were there, reading – his mum’s arm now back to normal.
“’Night,” he whispered, and settled down to sleep.
Luke was woken at dawn by the sound of someone screaming. He leapt to his feet, convinced that the trolls must have found them. It turned out to be Resus having a nightmare.
“Wake up!” he ordered, shaking the vampire by the shoulder.
Resus opened his eyes blearily. “I just had the weirdest dream!” he exclaimed, sitting up. “The trolls followed us back to Scream Street and covered everything with poo. We couldn’t get rid of the stuff – it was everywhere!” He looked around him in terror. “They’re not back again, are they?”
“Well,” said Cleo, yawning. “I think we’ll be lucky if they didn’t hear you shrieking like a banshee in a blender.”
“I was not shriek
ing,” countered Resus. “It was a manly cry of terror.”
“Come off it,” said Cleo. “You sounded like a bat with a helium balloon!”
Resus stood and stretched. “Any idea which direction we need to take?”
Luke looked around them thoughtfully. The clouds had parted a fraction and he could just make out the red glow of the sunrise. He turned his back on it and pointed through the trees. “This way,” he said. “Count Negatov, here we come!”
Chapter Nine
The Castle
Luke, Resus and Cleo finally emerged from the forest at the foot of a steep hill. At the top stood a black, misshapen castle. Bats circled around a high tower and the occasional bolt of lightning forked down, reflecting off the windows.
“Oh, come on,” said Luke. “That’s such a vampire stereotype. All it needs is a howling wolf and it’ll be like a cartoon!”
Somewhere in the distance, a wolf howled.
Resus grinned at him and brought some fruit out of his cloak. He shared it among his friends. Once they’d eaten, the trio began to climb the hill, looking nervously over their shoulders every now and then in case the trolls emerged from the forest below.
“Tell me we won’t have to go through this each time in order to return all six relics,” moaned Resus.
“We might do if we want the doorway closed and the normals gone from Scream Street,” said Luke, gripping a handful of heather as he pulled himself over a pile of rocks.
“We’re still not one hundred per cent certain that returning the relics will close the doorway,” Cleo reminded them.
“Oh, great,” said Resus. “So we might have been almost boiled alive, covered ourselves in poo and climbed a mountain, all for nothing!”
Eventually they arrived on a flat plain, at the centre of which stood Castle Negatov. It loomed above them, even more imposing than it had looked from below. A huge, rusted portcullis marked the entrance to the fortress and a moat ran lazily around its base.
Attack of the Trolls Page 4
