Ruff and Tumble - Invasion of the Goblin Horde

by Royston Wood

  Chapter Four

  Black Graksox

  Ruff woke up with a start.

  The last thing he remembered was a horrible, vicious goblin blasting him with a spell.

  Ruff dragged his head up from his fleecy blanket and peered over the side of his bed, half expecting to see the goblin leering at him.

  But there was just Tumble, asleep in her own bed.

  It was still the middle of the night.

  Ruff felt quite confused. His head was full of images, like broken up bits of a movie. I was battling a black sock..no…Black Graksox! That was his name! He was the leader of the Goblin Horde, or army. He had stolen the Crown Jewels and was going to use their magical powers to release his Goblin Horde from the Nether Pits, where they were trapped.

  But the Crown Jewels hadn’t looked like jewels, all golden and sparkly. They looked like my missing old toys! At least they did until Graksox cast a spell on them. My rubber ball became an Orb, my bone a Sceptre and my rubber ring a Crown!

  Was I meant to have guarded my old toys to keep the Goblin Horde trapped? Nobody told me! I would have been much more careful! Now that I’ve lost them will Black Graksox and his Goblin Horde destroy everything? I hope not.

  Ruff strained his ears to see if he could hear an army of goblins trying to break down the garden gate and invade the Pack Lands.

  Fortunately, all was quiet.

  What am I going to do?

  Ruff heaved in a deep breath and grunted it out again. It was all too much for him. He wasn’t used to so much thinking.

  I guess I’m going to have to get the Crown Jewels back from Black Graksox. Then he won’t be able to set his Goblin Horde free and we’ll be safe. But how am I going to do that?

  Ruff sat up and scratched behind his ear, trying to get his third Brain Cell working.

  Well, if the Crown Jewels are my missing toys then all I have to do is find them. Then Black Graksox won’t have them! Genius!

  Ruff rolled onto his back again and drifted back to sleep. His last thoughts were, I’ll have to start looking for my old toys in the morning. Need to get them back...