Peril in the Palace
Page 4
“I’ll remember you every time I play the game in the pool,” Patrick said.
Marco gave Patrick a curious glance. Then he got on his horse.
Amaffeo and Niccolò rode out the gate first. Marco turned to wave one last time. Then he left Shangdu.
The guard led Patrick and Beth back to their room. The cousins stepped inside. They watched the door as it swung shut. They heard the guard quickly bolt the door.
They were trapped, again.
“You’re taller than I thought,” said a soft voice. It came from behind them.
The cousins spun around.
Sitting on a bed was a Mongol girl.
The Princess
The girl stood up and bowed. Her little hat almost fell off.
“It is an honor to meet you,” she said. “I am called Beki.” The girl bowed again.
“Hi,” said Patrick. “I’m Patrick.” He gave her a half bow.
“I’m Beth,” said Beth. She studied the girl. Beki looked to be about her age.
“Weren’t you in the throne room yesterday?” Beth asked.
“Yes,” Beki said. “I saw all that happened. And I want to thank you.”
“Thank us?” Patrick said. “For which part? Looking foolish with our nails or getting locked up?”
“You were brave,” Beki said. “You told my grandfather about Jesus.”
“Your grandfather is Kublai Khan?” Beth asked.
“Yes,” Beki said. “And he can be very stubborn. He won’t listen to the truth about Jesus. But he listens to the yellow lamas. And you proved them wrong.”
“We scared everyone with a toy chicken,” Patrick said. “And it was just a simple windup toy.”
Beki’s eyes widened. “That is a toy in your land?” she asked.
“Sure,” Patrick said.
Beki’s eyes sparkled. “I would love to see more of your toys,” she said. “They must be amazing!”
Patrick smiled and said, “I wish I had a laptop to show you. Or even a cell phone.”
“Lap top? Sell fone?” she said. The words didn’t mean anything to Beki. But she looked impressed.
“Never mind,” Beth said. “Why did you come to see us?”
“I have something to show you,” Beki said.
She reached for a bag that was next to her on the bed. She pulled out a golden tablet. “You must take this,” Beki said.
Patrick and Beth gasped.
“Is that a golden tablet of Kublai Khan?” Patrick asked.
“Better,” Beki said. “It is the golden tablet of Genghis Khan and Kublai Khan. Ghengis was the first and most powerful Mongol khan. He was my great-great-grandfather. He gave this to Kublai Khan’s mother. I am named after her. She gave it to my grandfather, who gave it to me. Now I am giving it to you.”
She gave the tablet to Beth.
The gold felt smooth and cool to Beth’s touch. “Why are you giving it to us?” Beth asked.
“Because you’ll need it when Baraq’s warriors come,” Beki said. “They will try to kill grandfather. If they do, you will not be safe without a tablet from Genghis. He is still feared, even though he is dead.”
“But what about you?” Beth said. “You won’t be safe either.”
“No one will harm me,” Beki said. “I am the great-great-granddaughter of Genghis Khan. The Mongol leaders treat royal girls well. They hope I will marry one of their sons.”
Beth gave the golden tablet to Patrick. He looked it over. Then he put it inside his wool bag. His face lit up.
“Wait,” he said. He took out the present that was wrapped in yellow paper. The tag written in Chinese hung from the top.
“Can you read this?” he asked Beki. “It might be for you.”
Beki took the gift. She felt the yellow paper and then she inspected the tag.
“Thank you,” Beki said. “This is Chinese. My grandfather is making me learn it.”
Beki read the tag out loud, “To Beki, a daughter of the true Khan, Jesus Christ.”
“So it is for you!” Beth said.
“Mr. Whittaker knew we would meet,” Patrick added.
Beki look confused. “Mr. Wit-tock-air?”
“He’s a friend of ours,” Patrick said.
“Open the package,” said Beth.
Beki gently peeled off the paper. She held the book and pressed it to her. Her eyes filled with tears.
“A Bible!” she said. Beki flipped the book open. “It’s written in Chinese. Now I can learn more about being a Christian.”
Beth glanced at the Bible. The Chinese characters were stacked top to bottom. She also saw a card fall out of the Bible. She picked it up. A note was written on it in English.
“It’s from Mr. Whittaker,” Beth said. “It says, ‘Hurry up, you two. You have a golden tablet. Use the nails to make a ladder. Get out of the palace. NOW!’“
The Nest
“Why didn’t I think of that?” Patrick asked. “We could have escaped last night.”
“Good thing we didn’t,” Beth said. “Or we wouldn’t have met Beki.”
Patrick picked up the hammer. He pounded the first long nail partway into the wood beam. Then he stood on that nail. Quickly he hammered all ten nails in partway. He nailed them into both sides of the beam. The nails were now footholds and handholds. They weren’t very strong, but they would do.
Finally Patrick reached the window at the top of the wall. He looked down at the two girls.
“Beki,” he said, “how does the window open? It’s the only way out.”
“You can push them out,” she said.
Patrick looked closely at the wood around the window. The wood was only notched. He pushed on the frame. The window came out easily.
If they had used nails, Patrick thought, himself, it would have been harder to escape.
He called to Beth, “Come on up, Beth. We can get to the roof through this opening.”
Beth and Beki hugged good-bye.
“Thanks for the golden tablet,” Beth said to the Mongol princess. “It may save our lives—and another man’s life as well.”
Beki nodded and smiled. “Thank you for the Bible,” she said. “It will save my life.”
The cousins reached the palace roof. They could see for miles.
“Baraq’s army is coming from the east,” Patrick said. “They’ll reach the gate in no time. … By the way, are you sure Mongols didn’t have airplanes?”
“Don’t be silly!” Beth said. “The Wright brothers flew the first plane in the twentieth century, not the thirteenth. Plus it was in North Carolina—not North China.”
“Silly, huh?” Patrick said. “Then what are those two black things in the sky?”
Beth looked east. She had to cover her eyes from the sun’s rays. She gasped. “They’re eagles.”
“Really big eagles,” Patrick said.
“It can’t be! Those are rocs,” Beth said. “But rocs aren’t real. They’re made up in books and fairy tales! They can’t exist.”
“These do,” Patrick said. “And they’re coming right at us!”
The rocs swooped down near Patrick and Beth. The giant birds napped their wings for a moment. They hung in the sky and eyed the cousins.
Patrick was worried. “Do we look like giant worms?” he asked.
The wind from the napping wings blew Beth’s hair. She stared at one of their huge heads. She guessed the roc’s beak could tear apart a car. She stepped backward, trying to get away. But there was nowhere to go but down.
“What do we do?” Beth asked. “Should we roll off the roof?”
“It’s too high—” Patrick said.
Suddenly a roc swooped and scooped Patrick up by the arms. Its claws wrapped around him. They were surprisingly warm.
He heard Beth scream and saw that she had been snatched up too.
Patrick wriggled with all his might.
“Let me go, you birdbrain!” he shouted.
Then Patrick realized he was alre
ady a hundred yards above the palace. To fall would mean broken bones, if not death.
“Don’t let me go!” he shouted.
His stomach lurched. He closed his eyes. God, please help us, he prayed.
When he looked down again, the rebel army was below him.
The birds flew fast and far. Over the plains. Over the Great Wall.
Patrick felt as if he were in a wind tunnel. When he breathed, great gushes of air filled his lungs.
The wind burned his eyes, and so he closed them again.
The bird’s talons squeezed him tightly under his arms. He was afraid his arms would fall asleep.
Finally the bird began to fly lower. Patrick opened his eyes and looked ahead. They had come to the red cliffs.
Is it taking us to the Imagination Station? he wondered. Did Mr. Whittaker arrange for the rocs to do that?
Then he saw a giant bird nest on a cliff ledge. It wasn’t made from small sticks and thin twigs; it was made from giant tree trunks and thick branches. It was lined with sheepskin.
Two baby rocs sat in the nest. Their feathers were fluffy and white. Their eyes and beaks were black. They stretched out their thin necks. They opened wide their beaks.
“Aaw! Aaw!” the baby birds cried.
Uh-oh, thought Patrick. We’re going to be bird food.
Beth saw the cuddly eaglets. They reminded her of Easter chicks.
She saw the first roc drop Patrick into the nest. Then the parent roc flew away.
How cute, Beth thought. The rocs must think we’re their babies. They want Patrick and me to live in their nest. They want to take care of us.
She saw Patrick land feet-first. He rubbed one shoulder and then the next. She was glad to see that he still had the wool bag.
The second roc dropped Beth and swooped away. She landed on her side. The sheepskin softened the blow. Then she felt something poke her through the cushion. A branch had scraped her leg. She started to bleed.
“Ouch!” she said.
The little rocs wobbled toward Beth.
They didn’t look as cuddly up close. They were bigger than full-grown geese. Their eyes were fierce like a weasel’s. Their beaks were hooked and sharp.
One of the beaks grabbed Beth. She moved to one side. The bird caught the edge of her dress.
“It’s got me!” she shouted to Patrick. “Help!”
“Watch out!” Patrick yelled. He was carrying a large branch in his arms.
“Yaw!” he shouted.
The baby roc let go of Beth’s dress. It jumped back at the sudden shout. Patrick swung the branch. It just missed the eaglet’s beak.
The little roc squealed.
EEEP!
It sounded scared.
“Thanks,” Beth said to Patrick. He helped her to her feet. The cut on her leg hurt.
“Let’s get out of here,” Patrick said. “They want to make us a meal.”
Just then a shadow covered the nest. The cousins looked up.
“Yikes,” Patrick said. “One of the parents is back.”
The long, curved talons of the roc lowered toward them.
Patrick and Beth froze in fear. They dropped down and covered their faces with their arms.
They waited for claws to dig into their skin.
“No … you … don’t!” came a man’s shout.
The cousins looked up.
Suddenly a silver sword slashed the air above them. The sword hit the bird’s claws, and the bird cried out.
Raaaw!
Beth looked over at a man wearing full chain mail and leggings. Then she saw his face. He looked very familiar.
“Who is that?” Patrick asked. “It looks like a young Mr. Whittaker!”
“It’s the knight!” Beth said.
“But where is his armor?” asked Patrick. “He’s going to need it!”
Raaaw! Raaaw!
The roc called as it swooped down again. This time it came headfirst.
It opened its yellow beak wide.
Beth saw the bird’s throat. The opening was large enough to swallow a man in one bite.
“Look out!” she cried.
The knight turned just in time. He swung the sword with both hands.
Bam!
The sword hit the roc’s beak—and bounced off. The roc backed off, but it still hovered over the nest.
“To the edge of the nest!” the knight shouted. He pointed to a spot near the cliff wall. “There!”
The cousins scrambled to their feet. They raced to the edge of the nest. The bottom of the cliff was far away.
“Does he want us to jump?” Patrick asked.
“That’ll kill us,” Beth said.
“The machine!” the man shouted and pointed.
Another shadow passed overhead. Parent roc number two was back.
Raaaw! Raaaw!
In an instant, the nest was a whirlwind of action. Flapping wings. Slashing sword. Snapping beaks.
Patrick and Beth panicked. They didn’t dare jump. What did the knight want them to do?
Then the Imagination Station appeared at the edge of the nest. It seemed to hang halfway on the nest and halfway in the air. The door was open for them.
Beth didn’t move. Was the Imagination Station a flying machine? Would it fall if she got in?
“What are you waiting for?” Patrick shouted.
She had to believe it was safe. She leaped in through the door.
Patrick was about to jump, but he turned to the knight. He was still fighting the rocs.
“Are you coming?” Patrick asked.
“Go! Save Albert!” the knight called to him. “And may God be with you!”
Patrick flung himself at the Imagination Station’s door.
Patrick joined Beth inside the Imagination Station. He settled into a black seat. The door closed. The red button on the dashboard blinked.
The cousins sighed with relief.
“Good,” Beth said, “you still have the bag.”
Patrick looked down. He had forgotten he was holding it.
He looked toward the closed door. “What about the knight? We should help him,” Patrick said.
“We can’t,” she said. “He told us to help Albert.”
Beth pushed the red button.
Everything went black.
In the Dark
Patrick blinked. The darkness wouldn’t go away.
He stood on stony ground. The Imagination Station was gone.
“Patrick?” Beth whispered next to him.
“Where are we?” she asked. “This isn’t the workshop at Whit’s End.”
“I know,” Patrick said.
Patrick heard the echo of his voice. The air around him was damp and cool. He narrowed his eyes.
The darkness turned to deep blacks. Then grays. Then the blacks and grays took shape.
Patrick reached out and took a step. His fingers touched a rock wall. It was bumpy and slimy.
“We’re in a cave,” Patrick said.
“A cave!” Beth said. “What cave? Where is it?”
“You mean ’When is it?’“ Patrick said. “I think we jumped to another time.”
For the next part of the adventure, go to TheImaginationStation.com. Click on the cover of Revenge of the Red Knight.
Fill in the crossword puzzle on the next page. The letters in the shaded boxes will spell out a secret word.
Write those letters in the boxes below the puzzle grid. The answer is the secret word and the name of a valuable book.
Down
1 The first name of the khan who Marco Polo met.
2 The first name of Marco’s father,
3 The name of the man who needs Mr. Whittaker’s help,
Across
1 The name of the country that has “the Great Wall.”
2 The name of the Mongol princess,
3 The name of the Mongol warrior who was shot with an arrow,
4 The first name of Marco’s uncle,
Paul McCusker, Peril in the Palace