Sebastian Darke: Prince of Pirates

by Philip Caveney

  Max shrugged. 'Oh, it's not so difficult when you know how,' he said. 'You just have to let them know who's boss. Besides, I was just toying with him. I knew that after all the terrible hardships we've endured recently, we wouldn't even consider going anywhere near that rotten jungle . . . would we?'

  Sebastian didn't answer the question, but instead directed one to Cornelius. 'How long would an expedition like that take?'

  Cornelius frowned. 'Impossible to say,' he replied. 'There's no guarantee that we'd even find this lost city. Chances are, it's just a myth. But think of it this way. Even if we fail to find it, we'd still have three thousand gold crowns in our pockets, enough to finance our own trip.'

  'But . . . hang on a moment!' argued Max. 'Are either of you up to it? Cornelius, you're still limping badly from that kelfer bite; and Sebastian, you very nearly ended up in the belly of one of those sea creatures. Goodness knows what kind of horrors might be lurking in that jungle.'

  Sebastian smiled at the buffalope. 'And my reply to you is the same as ever,' he said. 'You don't have to come with us – you're free to stay here in a nice, warm stable and relax. After all, Max, you're not as young as you used to be—'

  'Nonsense! I'm in my prime! And you know perfectly well that I'm not about to leave the two of you to run things. Why, without my help on that infernal ship you'd both have wound up as fish food!'

  Sebastian and Cornelius exchanged smiles. Max had a very high opinion of his own worth, but they both knew that he was quite right. He had saved their skins on innumerable occasions, and to go on any expedition without him would have been unthinkable.

  'So it looks as though you are in favour of the trip,' observed Cornelius.

  Sebastian nodded. 'It would finance our return to the treasure cave. And besides, Jenna's going to be away for a couple of moons – I'll be at a loose end.'

  'So decorate the house,' said Max. 'Have a few lie-ins and the odd flagon of ale! Why must we be forever galloping round the known world, exhausting ourselves?'

  'It's good for the soul,' Sebastian assured him.

  Cornelius grinned. 'I'll go straight after Thaddeus and tell him we accept his proposition,' he said. 'May as well get the ball rolling.' He clambered down from his chair and limped off in the direction that the oil merchant had taken. Sebastian and Max stared after him thoughtfully.

  'Are you sure he's up to it?' muttered Max.

  'Cornelius? Of course. He'd be up to it if he'd lost the whole leg!'

  Max sighed. 'And I suppose there's nothing I can do to talk you out of this?'

  Sebastian shook his head. 'Think of it this way,' he said. 'A large chunk of the treasure we lost was yours. If we can return and secure a portion of it for you, there's no reason why you should ever have to exhaust yourself again. Imagine, Max, a life of relaxation. All the fresh fruit you can eat and even the odd bucket of ale.'

  'Hmm.' Max looked doubtful. 'Excuse me, but my life just doesn't work out that way. At least, it hasn't so far. And I may remind you of this conversation when we're dying of heat in the middle of some stinking jungle swamp.' He sighed again. 'Now, come on,' he said. 'Since it looks like we've only a few days to rest our heels, you can take me to the Spyglass Inn and buy me that bucket of ale now!'

  'Only if you promise not to sing,' Sebastian warned him.

  'The very idea!' Max looked positively affronted. 'I'll have you know, I come from a very respectable family. I can assure you, they'd never have stood for any of that kind of behaviour!'

  'Is that so?' murmured Sebastian. He stood up, unhitched Max and led him back in the direction of the tavern. 'So what happened the last time we were in there? That was just an oversight, was it?'

  'I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about,' said Max haughtily. 'Not the foggiest! Really, sometimes I think you make up these stories, just to vex me!'

  EPILOGUE

  'Well, I suppose this is goodbye,' said Sebastian mournfully.

  The Sea Witch was fully provisioned and ready to sail. The crew moved around the decks, making their last-minute adjustments with practised ease. The sails flapped beneath a stiff breeze, eager to be tilted into the wind, to move the ship away from the dock and out into open water.

  'I'll be back soon enough,' Jenna assured him. 'Besides, you'll be off on your own travels any time now.'

  'The day after tomorrow,' admitted Sebastian. 'Well, there's nothing to keep me here now, is there?' He glanced over the ship's rail towards the quayside, where he saw Cornelius and Max bickering about something. Bickering already and they hadn't even left Ramalat. Not for the first time, he asked himself if he had made a terrible mistake.

  Other people were saying their goodbyes too. The Kid had signed on as cabin boy for the voyage, quite a step down from being captain of his own ship, but he was determined to prove himself a trustworthy seaman. He was over by the forecastle, bidding farewell to his father. Captain Jack Donovan was looking a lot healthier than he had back on that remote island. He had put on a bit of weight and his eyes had lost their hollow, sunken look.

  His return to Ramalat had caused an uproar, and several days later he had hired one of his former friends to take him across to Lemora in search of his old adversaries Bones and Sully. After a short interval he had returned to Ramalat. Nobody knew for sure what had happened over there, but there hadn't been a sign of Bones and Sully since Donovan's visit and nobody cared about them enough to go looking for them. Since then, however, Donovan appeared to have turned over a new leaf. He was working in one of the local carpenter's shops, employing some of the skills he had picked up while marooned on the treasure island.

  As Sebastian watched, the Kid and his father shook hands and strolled back towards the gangplank.

  'Make sure he does everything he's told,' Captain Donovan told Jenna. 'I want at least one of the family to have a respectable career.'

  'I'll watch out for him,' Jenna promised.

  'I'll bring you back a souvenir from the south coast,' the Kid promised his father with a grin. 'And you make sure you don't get into any trouble.'

  'I'm done with all that now,' said Donovan. 'From here on I'm going to walk along the right path.' He bowed to Jenna and Sebastian, and then turned and left the ship. He nodded to Cornelius and Max as he walked by, but they were too busy arguing to even notice him.

  'Well . . .' said Jenna. 'I suppose we really should weigh anchor now.' She nodded to Lemuel, who in turn strode away to give orders to the other crewmen.

  Sebastian nodded. He looked at her for a moment, wishing there was something else he could say, but he couldn't think of anything; so he took her in his arms and held her tightly. He had a sudden powerful feeling that he would never see her again and he wanted to tell her about it, but couldn't seem to find the right words.

  'I think this is where you're supposed to kiss her,' suggested the Kid gleefully.

  Sebastian glared at him. 'Don't you start!' he growled. 'You've obviously been spending too much time with Max.' But he did kiss her lightly on the lips and then, with a forced smile, he turned away and went quickly down the gangplank. He trudged across to Cornelius and Max, who were still arguing.

  '. . . and I say it's ridiculous, hiring a big heavy wagon like that,' said Max. 'We'll have to go along jungle trails and it will get bogged down.'

  'Who says we're taking it into the jungle?' retorted Cornelius. 'No, we leave the wagon at the edge, hidden under the vegetation, and we continue on foot, carrying the equipment we need on pack animals—'

  'Oh and I suppose you include me in that category, do you?'

  'Well, naturally, I would have thought that you'd like to contribute to the expedition. Or perhaps you think you're—'

  'You two,' snapped Sebastian, in a voice harsh enough to silence both of them. 'If you are going to bicker all the way through this expedition, I for one am not going. Do I make myself clear?'

  They fell into a sullen silence and watched as the ship's huge anchors were winched
from the sea bed. Powerful hands heaved on ropes and the sails began to billow as they filled with wind. The Sea Witch moved smoothly away from the quayside. Sebastian could see Jenna leaning on the rail. Beside her, the Kid lifted a hand to wave. Sebastian waved back automatically.

  'Isn't it strange how all your women keep leaving you?' said Max.

  Sebastian looked at him. 'What do you mean?' he said irritably. 'All my women? I've only had two.'

  'Three if you count the witch,' said Cornelius.

  'You can't really include her,' said Max, 'because she changed into a big cat and died. But the other two, they both gave him the cold shoulder.'

  'I haven't had the cold shoulder!' protested Sebastian. 'Princess Kerin had to sacrifice her feelings for the good of her people. And Jenna . . . well, she has a job to do, that's all.

  She'll be back in a couple of moons.'

  'Yes, but you have to wonder, don't you? One woman alone on a ship full of men for all that time. And some of the crew are very good looking—'

  'Max,' said Sebastian quietly, 'I'd like you to be quiet now.

  OK?'

  'But I—'

  'Shut up!'

  Max made a discontented huffing sound, but he didn't say anything more. Sebastian stood there watching intently until the ship had dwindled to a tiny black dot on the horizon. Then he turned and walked away along the quay.

  'Hey, wait for us!' yelled Cornelius. He hurried after Sebastian and fell into step beside him, still limping slightly. Max dropped into position on his other side.

  'So . . . where to now?' he asked.

  'To the jungles of Mendip,' said Sebastian quietly. 'And whatever fate awaits us there.'

  Follow the adventures of Sebastian, Cornelius and Max in Book Three: Sebastian Darke, Prince of Explorers.

  SEBASTIAN DARKE

  Prince of Fools

  PHILIP CAVENEY

  Sebastian Darke has the world on his narrow shoulders. The son of a human father and an elvish mother, he is desperately trying to become the family breadwinner as a jester and self-styled 'Prince of Fools '. Trouble is, Sebastian can't tell a joke to save his life.

  Accompanied by his talking (and endlessly complaining) buffalope, Max, he sets off for the fabled city of Keladon, where he hopes to be appointed court jester to the powerful King Septimus. On the way he encounters a tiny but incredibly strong warrior called Cornelius; the beautiful and captivating Princess Kerin; blood thirsty Brigands and enough perils to make him wonder why he ever decided to leave home.

  A swashbuckling adventure in the great tradition of THE PRINCESS BRIDE.

  978 1 862 30251 8

  SEBASTIAN DARKE

  Prince of Explorers

  PHILIP CAVENEY

  How can you kill something that's already dead . . . ?

  Deep in the remote heart of the jungles of Mendip, Sebastian, Max and Cornelius are in search of a legendary lost city. On route, they encounter the Jilith, a race of warriors locked in a deadly struggle with their mortal enemies, the fierce and brutal Gograth.

  Can Cornelius train the Jilith to defeat their enemies? Why does jungle girl, Keera think she knows Sebastian? Can Max avoid being turned into spare ribs?

  And if they ever find the Lost City, can the three friends survive the ravages of the Night Runners – terrifying creatures that haunt the ancient city . . . ?

  978 0 370 32918 5

  THE EYE OF THE

  SERPENT

  PHILIP CAVENEY

  EGYPT 1923.

  Fifteen-year-old Alec Devlin is on his way to the Valley of the Kings to spend the summer holidays working on his Uncle Will's archaeological dig. It's not the first time he's spent his summer this way . . . but this year things are different.

  Uncle Will and his young assistant, Tom, have recently made an amazing discovery – an ancient tomb hidden deep below the earth. But only hours after opening its doors, Uncle Will falls mysteriously ill and Tom seems to have disappeared without trace.

  Alec sets about unravelling the tomb's mysteries – seemingly harmless animals have turned into rabid killers, long dead mummies are rising from their tombs, the spirit of a powerful High Priest is claiming people as his living hosts . . .

  And Alec must confront a terror that has waited three thousand years to be reborn.

  978 1 862 30608 0