Chapter 10: The Spy
The King’s Hall looked as impressive as the last time William saw it. Food was abundant and fairies filled the air.
Merlin led William through the bustling crowd of waiters to the round table in the centre. Upon sitting down, King Arthur greeted William and then worriedly broke into conversation with Merlin about the continuing attacks on the local towns. It seemed they had increased.
Just as William was getting comfortable, Trevor and Albert showed up. They were both carrying large plates overflowing with cakes.
“Say hello to Camelot’s new culinary critics,” said Trevor proudly, as he and Albert sat down alongside William.
“Hello, critics, and how’s today’s gorging been going?” asked William.
“How dare you say that!” snapped Albert, his nose pointing skyward. “We merely taste the food the shop owners have on offer.” He stuffed a piece of cake into his mouth. “To say that we gorge, nay eat, is preposterous.”
“Absolutely,” agreed Trevor, between gobbling down his third wedge of cake. “We never gorge.”
“And what, may I ask, are you two doing right now?” questioned William.
“Oh, you mean this food? Well, this is our supper,” replied Trevor. “One should always have a large, hearty supper each day.”
“Looks like your simple minded friends just entered,” remarked Albert snobbishly to William. “I don’t like those two.”
“Neither do I,” said Trevor. “Let’s leave.”
Without another word, Albert and Trevor pompously got up and sat further down the table, much to William’s relief. He couldn’t stand their arrogance.
Looking excited, Sarah and Eric sat down beside William.
“King Arthur and Merlin are sitting just over there,” peeped Eric, peering up the table.
“Hey, I know, why don’t you go over and talk to him?” suggested William.
“Umm … err, m-maybe later.”
Sarah smiled. “So, how was your first lesson with Merlin?”
“Let’s just say I was given a lot of homework,” replied William, “and how about you two? I hope the cleaning job your mom gave wasn’t too hard.”
“There wasn’t anything to do, really,” answered Sarah, shrugging her shoulders. “The house was already spotless --”
“Oh, I just remembered something,” whispered William. “Do you two remember the message carved into my bedroom door?”
“Yes,” they replied softly.
“Oden’s uncle didn’t do it.”
“What … are you sure?” asked Sarah.
“Positive,” replied William. “A guard saw a short person in the shadows sneaking out of the castle that night. That means it couldn’t have been him.”
“Who do you think did it?” said Eric.
William leaned forward and replied, “Oden.”
“But can you prove it?” questioned Eric. “No one will believe you.”
“That’s what I hoped you two could help me with,” said William.
“What do you mean?” asked Sarah.
“Coming up with a way to prove he did it,” replied William, and he looked over his shoulder to make sure no one was listening. “You know, gathering some evidence.”
Eric grinned. “If we prove he did it, he’ll be banned from entering the Fire Ring Race.” He rubbed his hands together. “It’ll be the perfect payback --”
“That’s not why,” said William, “I’ve got a feeling his uncle’s up to no good and could be linked to the attacks carried out on the neighbouring towns … he might be a spy.”
Sarah and Eric were completely shocked.
“A spy?” repeated Sarah.
“Yes,” replied William quietly. “Oden’s probably just doing what his uncle tells him to do. If we gather enough evidence to prove Oden guilty, then the authorities will investigate his uncle, too. That’s my plan, anyway.”
“Sounds good, but how are going to get the proof we need?” asked Sarah.
“I know,” said Eric, “how about we sneak into their home and see if we can find anything in there? We might even find some stuff that proves Zorloth’s a spy.”
William frowned. “Isn’t that a bit risky?”
“No, not if we sneak in when they’re fast asleep,” replied Eric. “Midnight’s probably the best time to go.”
“But how am I supposed to sneak out from the castle at midnight with guards stationed outside my bedroom?” questioned William.
“There is one way,” said Sarah, “but you’re not going to like it.”
William sighed. “Let’s hear it.”
“You could cast a levitation spell.”
“Yeah,” nodded Eric, “with a levitation spell, you can just float down from your window.”
“There’s only one problem,” said William. “I don’t know how to cast a levitation spell.”
“Oh, it’s easy,” replied Sarah confidently. “You remember the word Oden used when he made Albert float.”
“Yes,” answered William, thinking back.
“Well, just say what he said and you’ll be set to go. As for the reverse spell, do exactly the same -- you do remember the reverse spell, don’t you?
“Of course,” replied William.
With the plan of creeping into Zorloth’s house agreed on, William suggested they tuck into some of the delicious looking food on the table. Eric eagerly agreed and dug in, completely forgetting about his obsession with King Arthur.
Soon they had finished their tasty meals and it was time to leave. As they left for the exit, William went over the plan and suggested they meet at the town’s water fountain. Both Sarah and Eric agreed and then left for home. William, on the other hand, headed up to his bedroom to sit out the hours, reading the books Merlin had previously arranged to be delivered there.
With his bedroom’s clock almost at midnight, William knew it was time to go.
“This is it,” he thought, placing down his book, “time to fly.”
William quietly got out of bed and moved a small wooden table underneath the window. With butterflies in his stomach, he carefully climbed on top of the table and peered out.
“What did I get myself into?” murmured William, as the cold wind bit at his face and the blackness of the night filled his eyes. “This is suicide!”
The idea of having to crawl to the very edge of the window filled William’s mind with horror, but he couldn’t back out now. Sarah and Eric were counting on him.
“Here goes nothing,” he said worriedly, and he slithered out onto the window’s ledge.
It was frightfully windy on the ledge, and William uneasily joked to himself about it.
“I’d better hurry up and cast the spell, or I might get blown off.”
After taking one last indecisive look back into his bedroom, William readied himself to cast the spell.
“Here I go,” he said, and he took a deep breath. “Levi --”
Suddenly, William was falling. A freak blast of wind had knocked him off the ledge.
“Leviarnus, Leviarnus, Leviarnus!” shouted William frantically, but each time the wind muffled his voice.
It looked like this was it for William. There was only a few seconds left before he’d crash to the ground. Not willing to give up, William closed his eyes and, as loud as he could, shouted the spell one last time.
“LEVIARNUS!”
William instantly felt himself stop falling, but was it because the spell had worked or had he fallen to his death? With apprehension, he slowly opened his eyes.
“It worked!” he yelled, reaching out and touching the ground. “I’m alive.”
Even though William had successfully used the levitation spell to get down, there was still one more task he had to do before he could use the reverse spell. He had to propel himself across the castle’s water filled moat, a feat much harder than it sounded, especially with the wind blowing him around.
“OK, if I move my arms like this
, I go up,” muttered William, trying to control his haphazard flight, “but if I move my arms like that, I go down.”
After experimenting for a couple of minutes, William had discovered that a swimming action seemed to work best, and with the wind having calmed down a bit, he decided it was time to head off across the moat.
“I’d better hurry,” he stressed, breast stroking his way through the air and out over the moat. “This calm wind won’t last.”
William’s progress across the moat was going well, and it looked like he’d be at the other side in no time, but his fears of the wind changing became a reality. It began gusting furiously. William was violently buffeted around and started being blown back across the moat, but he refused to give up.
“It’s time to see what you’re made of, William,” he said firmly to himself, battling to stay in control.
The wind continued to throw William around. Sometimes, he’d be blown hundreds of yards into the star filled sky. Other times, he’d be only a few inches above the moat, choking on mouthfuls of icy, cold water. Suddenly, the wind changed. This time, it blew him swiftly across the moat.
Without a moments delay, William cast the reverse spell.
“Releviarnus!” he shouted.
In the blink of an eye, William began plummeting earthward.
“This is going to hurt,” he fretted, realising that he was much higher up than he thought.
THUD!
William hit the ground hard, but thankfully, he didn’t break any bones. With the worry of being late, William quickly scampered up the embankment and headed off into the darkness towards the town’s water fountain.
“Not much further now,” he thought, making his way through the dimly lit streets of Camelot. “It’ll be good to talk with Sarah and --”
Suddenly, William heard footsteps from behind. He quickly turned around to see who it was, only to see the street completely empty.
“Am I hearing things?” muttered William to himself, and he turned back around to continue towards the water fountain.
After taking a few steps, William heard the sound of the footsteps again.
“Hello, is anybody there?” he asked timidly, peering down the misty street.
No one answered.
“Who’s following me?” panicked William. “What do they want?”
Not prepared to find out, he took off at full speed down the street, occasionally glancing back to see if anyone was following him.
“Just this last corner and I’ll be at the water fountain,” he huffed.
With his legs throbbing from exhaustion, William had arrived at the water fountain … Sarah and Eric weren’t there.
“I’m too late. They must’ve left without me!” fretted William, and he quickly looked back towards the dark street he had just run out of. “I’d better get out of here before I meet whoever’s following me.”
William turned to run back to the castle but stopped short after hearing the sound of something scampering across the rooftops. His heart racing, he turned around to see a cloaked figure crawling along the roof of a nearby shop, on all fours.
“I don’t like the look of that,” he gulped, and he turned to run for his life.
It was too late. The thing leap from the rooftop and grabbed him from behind.
“I tried to warn you, but you didn’t listen,” the thing hissed, clasping its hand tightly around William’s mouth, stopping him from being able to yell for help. “Now, I have no choice. I must do my master’s biding.”
William didn’t know what was holding onto him, but he knew for sure it wasn’t human. Nobody could leap from a rooftop that high without hurting themselves.
“I’ve got to try and free myself,” thought William, as the creature tightened its cold, bony hands around him and began to drag him towards one of the pitch-black streets.
Frantically, William tried to struggle free, but it was no good. The creature was too strong. In one last attempt to escape, William bit down hard on one of the creature’s fingers, but it didn’t work. His teeth crunched into what felt like a hard metal ring, instead.
“I am sorry, Chosen One, but I must do what my master tells me,” explained the creature, repositioning its hand so that William couldn’t bite it again. “I will make sure it is painless.”
Somehow, William didn’t feel comforted by the creature’s remarks and continued to struggle with all his might.
“Please, stop resisting,” said the creature, as it tightened its hold on William. “Once I have ridden my master of you, I will be able to complete my task of gathering information about the King’s army.” The creature shook with terror. “My master will punish me if I fail him.”
Just when William thought his was done for, he heard the sound of footsteps.
“More hu-mans?” hissed the creature fearfully, and it foolishly loosened its grip on William for a split-second.
Sensing his opportunity, William kicked free and ran off in the direction of the footsteps. It was towards the water fountain.
“It couldn’t be,” he thought, running out from the street. “Yes, it is.”
Sarah and Eric were standing beside the water fountain.
“Am I glad to see you two,” panted William, collapsing in their arms. “Something hideous just attacked me -- it was the spy.”
“Attacked you?” repeated Eric, stunned.
“Yes,” replied William, “it was trying to drag me into one of the secluded side streets, where it planned to kill me.” He shook his head in disbelief. “I only just managed to slip out of its hands when your footsteps distracted it.”
“We’d better get out of here,” suggested Sarah. “It might return.”
Eric gulped. “Where’s t-the safest p-p-place to go?”
“The castle,” she answered. “It’s not far from here.”
Frantically, they took off towards the castle, avoiding the darker streets and constantly looking back to see if anything was following.
After a terrifying journey, they finally made it back to the castle’s entrance and quickly informed a guard.
“Something tried to kill the Chosen One?” repeated the guard, overwhelmed by it all.
“That’s right,” replied Sarah swiftly. “Now please, hurry and send somebody out to find the attacker.”
“Yes, good thinking,” said the guard, still grappling to take it in. “I’ll raise the alarm and get the guards out to search the town.”
“Hey, what about us? Are we supposed to just stand here at the castle’s gate in the open?” questioned Eric, as the guard turned to leave.
“Yes, umm … you’re right, might be a bit dangerous. It’s best you all follow me.”
The guard quickly led them from the gate and into the castle.
“Stay here while I raise the alarm,” said the guard, and he ran off, leaving them standing in the castle’s courtyard.
Soon there were guards running past them and out into the town. Two of the guards stopped to talk to William.
“Merlin wishes to meet you in his study, right away,” one of them said.
“What about Sarah and Eric?” asked William.
“We are to escort them safely back home. Now, if you two kids are ready to leave …”
“Yeah, I suppose,” replied Eric half-heartedly. “Might as well face mom and get it over with.”
After saying goodbye to Sarah and Eric, William left the courtyard and headed for Merlin’s study.
“I hope Sarah and Eric don’t get into too much trouble for sneaking out,” worried William, walking through the now familiar corridors of the castle. “I shouldn’t have brought them into it.”
Once at the door leading into Merlin’s study, William swallowed hard and knocked. He felt troubled that Merlin would be angry with him. The door opened and he walked in to discover Merlin sitting down at a table reading a book, Foddle still snoozing in the corner.
“Please, sit down, my young friend,” said Merlin, placing the
book down and looking up at William with an expression of concern. “I was informed that you were attacked in the town by some creature. Do you know what it was?”
“No,” answered William, shaking his head, “but one thing I do know for sure about it. It’s feeding information back to its master about King Arthur’s army.”
Merlin looked bewildered.
“Are you saying the creature that attacked you is a spy?”
“Yes,” replied William, sitting down next to him. “Originally, I thought Zorloth was the spy. That’s why I went into town to meet Sarah and Eric. We planned to sneak into his house and find proof while he slept, but after hearing the creature mention it was collecting information about the King’s army, I realised I was wrong.”
“Hmm … a spy in Camelot would explain why the local towns are being attacked at the most vulnerable times,” remarked Merlin, tapping his lip. “Did it mention anything about who it was working for?”
“Nothing more than master,” answered William.
Merlin stroked his long bread, pondering what William had just said.
“It seems to me the time of Camelot’s doom grows nearer,” began Merlin forebodingly. “Something of great evil is at work and is rapidly preparing to destroy all that is good.”
William gulped. “How much time do we have left?”
“I do not know, but I believe the spy is the key in this evil creature’s plans. If we can catch it or stop it from gathering anymore information, then maybe we can complete your training before it’s too late. I’ll speak to King Arthur tomorrow. Hopefully, we can take new precautions that will guarantee no more information is leaked.”
“If finishing my training in time is in doubt, I’d better head off to my bedroom and start reading those books you gave me,” said William anxiously, and he rose from his chair. “I’m sure I can finish a few more before dawn.”
“I admire your enthusiasm, my young friend,” beamed Merlin, “but rest is what you need, not study.”
Merlin walked over to the door and opened it for William.
“I hope you’re not disappointed in me for doing something that would put my life in danger?” said William, standing in the doorway.
Merlin looked at William and smiled.
“Your actions tonight haven’t disappointed me. On the contrary, they have only reinforced my belief in you. Yes, what you did was dangerous, but it was only done in the interest of catching a potential spy.”
“Do you think Sarah and Eric’s parents will feel the same about them?” asked William optimistically.
Merlin chuckled. “Don’t worry, your friends will be fine. I’ll send a fairy around first thing tomorrow to clear everything up. Now, off to bed for some rest. A refreshed mind is always needed when learning.”
“OK, then. Goodnight,” yawned William, and he headed off to his bedroom.
As William lay in his bed that night, his mind kept bothering him about the spy.
“What was it? How did it know I was in the town? And who’s its master?”
These three questions kept bouncing around William’s head until, from exhaustion, he drifted off to sleep.
William Wright and the Dragon's Treasure Page 10
