Sepron the Sea Serpent (2 page)

R
ACE
A
GAINST THE
S
EA

F
OR AN INSTANT, TOM FROZE.

“Tom!” Elenna tugged hard at his elbow.

Wrenching on the reins, Tom brought Storm’s head around and dug his heels into the horse’s flank. “Run!” he yelled.

Storm leaped forward like an arrow from a bow. Growling fiercely, Silver raced along not far behind.

“Faster!” Elenna cried. “The water is catching up.”

Tom risked a glance over his shoulder. The dark water was surging closer. He couldn’t believe how fast it was coming.

He bent low over the stallion’s neck. “Come on, Storm,” he urged. “You can do it!”

They raced along the path toward higher ground. Glancing back, he saw that Elenna’s face was white with terror. Beyond her, the flood nipped at their heels. They could feel the water’s cold spray. The hills where they would be safe were too far away. They weren’t going to make it.

Just then, Elenna tugged at Tom’s shoulder. “Over there!” she yelled, pointing to one side.

Tom saw an outcropping of rocks to their left. A smooth slab of stone covered in moss stood high above the flat valley. It just might be high enough for them to get safely out of the way. Tom pulled on Storm’s reins and the horse plunged away from the path. His hooves thundered across the blackened fields.

The murky water was gaining on them. Storm’s pace slowed as he began to climb, struggling over the rough ground. Tom had to cling to the front of the saddle to keep his seat. Elenna’s arms were so
tight around his waist that he could hardly breathe. He couldn’t see Silver, though he heard the wolf howling.

As the slope grew steeper, Tom glanced back. The wave was still close on their heels. Up ahead was a ledge where they’d be safe, if only they could get there before the frothing water swallowed them. “Faster, Storm!” he gasped. The stallion gave a final burst of speed, his hooves clattering on bare rock. Tom let out a yell of panic. If Storm slipped, they would all drown in the dark, churning water.

Just as Storm leaped onto the ledge, the water surged forward, smashing against the wall. A wave of thick, muddy water crashed over them. Below, the flood swirled and lapped at their feet.

Tom and Elenna slid to the ground, dripping with dark, dirty water.

Storm was sweating and trembling. Tom patted
his neck. “Well done, boy. You saved us. You’re the bravest —”

“Where’s Silver?” Elenna’s cry interrupted him.

Tom looked out over the valley of churning water. A branch bobbed roughly on the surface before disappearing under the water. Everywhere Tom looked, debris swirled in the flood. But there was no sign of the wolf.

“Silver! Silver!” Elenna called frantically.

A faint yelp answered her. Tom spotted a dark shape thrusting through the waves. Silver was paddling furiously toward them. His muzzle vanished under the swirling water, then reappeared. Tom couldn’t tell if he was making any headway.

“He can’t do it! He’ll drown!” Elenna sobbed.

She began wrenching off her boots, ready to plunge into the water.

Tom clutched her arm. “No — it’s too dangerous! You’ll drown, too.”

Before Elenna could struggle free, a rush of water
tossed Silver closer. His paws churned, bringing him within their reach. With a gasp of relief, Elenna leaned over the edge and grabbed his collar.

With her help, Silver scrambled to safety. He was panting hard, and water streamed off his thick coat. Elenna knelt down and hugged him.

After a moment, she stood up. “We’re safe,” she said, looking out at the receding flood.

“That was close.” Tom nodded. “Now I’m
sure
I caught a glimpse of Sepron back there. He must have caused the tidal wave. If we don’t free him, he’ll drown the whole western kingdom.”

Tom gritted his teeth. He knew he had to free Sepron — no matter how dangerous it would be. This was his quest, and nothing could make him give up.

S
TRANDED

T
OM PULLED THE MAP OUT OF HIS POCKET
. T
HE
glowing green path that had led to the western coast now ended in a waste of water. The spike of rock where he’d spotted Sepron earlier was the only landmark left.

Tom rolled up the map and looked around. In front of him, the floodwaters had slowly begun to recede, leaving behind a wasteland of mud and debris. Behind him, a rough slope led up to the ridge. A couple of twisted thorn trees stood out against the sky.

“It’ll be impossible to cross the valley now,” Tom realized. “The mud is too thick.”

“Maybe we can get back into the hills,” Elenna suggested. “There
must
be a way around.”

Tom pointed to the ridge. “We should be able to see from up there.”

With Elenna beside him, he climbed the slope. When Tom reached the thorn trees, he stopped in horror.

“No!” Elenna exclaimed.

The valley below them was completely destroyed. What had been rolling farmland before was now a lake of mud and debris. Almost nothing was left standing. Everywhere they looked, it was total devastation. The lower part of the ridge had disappeared underwater. Now they were stranded on a peninsula with no way to get back to the hills — or out to the sea.

Elenna folded her arms and let out a sigh.
“Now
what do we do?”

Tom gazed out toward the West. Out to sea he could still see the rocky islet poking out of the
water. But without a boat, they had no way of getting there.

Would they have to stay stranded here until the mud dried and the valley became passable again?

“What’s that over there?” Elenna pointed down the ridge, to a clump of trees near the waterline.

Behind the trees, Tom could make out the gray walls of buildings, and he caught a glimpse of movement. “There’s someone down there,” he said.

“Let’s go and see,” Elenna suggested. “They might need help.”

“Good idea.”

Before they could go and investigate, Tom and Elenna went to collect Silver and Storm.

Silver was still resting after his struggles. As they drew close to him he scrambled to his feet and shook himself vigorously, spattering them with drops of muddy water. Elenna rumpled his ears.

Tom went over to Storm and rubbed his nose.

“Not far now, boy,” he promised. “Then you can have a proper rest.”

Leading the tired horse, he made his way down the ridge. Elenna followed with Silver at her heels.

As they drew nearer, Tom saw a group of people gathered around three or four stone cottages. Some were sitting on the ground, their heads buried in their hands. Others just stared out toward the sea. Children were clinging to their mothers and somewhere a baby was wailing.

Lower down the slope, there were more cottages, all partly covered by water. The sea was washing in and out through the windows. Beyond them, Tom could see only thatched roofs, then nothing but unbroken sea.

Elenna halted, her eyes wide with shock. “It’s a village!” she exclaimed. “The water has covered most of it.”

“I hope no one was hurt,” said Tom. Anger and
anxiety flooded over him as he thought of the destruction Sepron had caused, all because of Malvel’s evil spell.

Tom and Elenna hurried toward the water. As they drew closer they had to wade through the wreckage: shattered pieces of wood, fallen trees, and strands of seaweed. In the mud, Elenna spotted something glimmering in the sunlight — unharmed and beautiful. It was a long, slender knife with a pearl handle. “Come on!” Tom called out. Elenna stooped to pick up the knife. “All right, I’m coming.”

At the sound of their voices, a boy standing at the water’s edge turned and saw them. He was tall and red-haired with a freckled face.

“My knife!” he called out. “I can’t believe you found it!”

“It’s beautiful,” Elenna said, handing it back to
him. “You’re lucky it survived. I’m Elenna,” she added, “and this is Tom.”

“I’m Calum. And I’m lucky
I
survived,” said the boy. “I never thought I’d see this again. It’s been in our family for ages. We’re fisherfolk here, but—”

He broke off as an older man, with gray hair and beard, came trudging toward them. His shoulders drooped and his face was lined with wrinkles.

“This is my father, Matt,” said Calum.

Matt looked from Tom to Elenna and back again. “We’d do more to welcome you if we had anything to give you,” he said. “But you see how it is.”

“Everyone’s safe, thank goodness,” Calum said. “But look at our village!” He pointed toward the submerged cottages. “What are we going to do now?”

“We’ll stay and help,” Elenna said.

Calum clenched his fists in anger. “Thanks, but what good can anyone do? We can’t live here
anymore. We’ll have to move away, and it’s all the fault of the sea serpent.”

“The sea serpent!” Tom exclaimed, exchanging a startled look with Elenna.

“You must think we’re talking rubbish,” Matt said. “I thought that myself once. But now I’ve seen the creature. It’s out there.”

Tom’s stomach churned with anticipation. They were in the right place, alright. With a bit of luck, he would soon be able to face Sepron and set him free.

“We were out at sea when we saw it,” Calum explained. “It burst out of the water and smashed our boat to pieces. I thought we would drown for sure. But then it vanished as quickly as it had appeared.”

“What did you do?” Elenna asked.

“We hung onto scraps of the wreckage and swam ashore,” Calum replied. “The whole time I thought
the sea serpent would come back any minute and swallow us.”

“We’re lucky to be alive,” Matt finished. “And that wasn’t the first bit of trouble, either. For weeks, we’ve caught next to nothing. Our nets were torn to bits. And now this.” He heaved a sigh. “It’s no use. We’ll have to pack up, all of us, and move farther inland.”

“But what will you do? You’re fishermen,” Tom said. If every fisherman thought like this, how would the Kingdom survive?

Matt snorted. “We
were
fishermen. But there’s nothing left to catch, and now all our boats have been washed away. Now we’re just beggars.”

Tom felt anger growing inside him, but he tried not to let it show. Even though the villagers had survived, their lives had been ruined. He
had
to free Sepron—and soon.

“There’s a boat over there.” Elenna pointed to
where a small fishing boat lay on its side, not far from the edge of the water.

“It’s the only one left,” said Calum despairingly. “And it’s got a hole in it.”

“I’ll help you mend it if you like,” Elenna offered. “My father is a fisherman. He taught me how to do it.”

Matt and Calum looked at each other. Matt shook his head doubtfully, but a spark of hope appeared in Calum’s eyes.

“We’ll mend it, father,” Calum said. “At least it’s something to do. We shouldn’t give up hope yet.”

“All right,” agreed Matt reluctantly. He trudged down to the water’s edge and stood scanning the sea, looking for the serpent.

Tom wished he could reassure Matt, but he couldn’t tell anyone about his quest. And he certainly couldn’t tell anyone that the Beast was under an evil spell! The most important task at the moment was to mend the boat. Then he and
Elenna could borrow it to row out and find Sepron.

“Let’s get started,” Elenna said. “We need wood for a fire, and rope and tar to mend the hole.”

Calum glanced around. “There’s wood scattered all over by the flood,” he said, “but it’s all wet.”

“We’ll have to go to higher ground for dry wood,” said Tom.

“Okay,” agreed Calum. “And I know where to get some tar.” He went off and disappeared into one of the cottages.

While Elenna gathered all the dry twigs and leaves she could find, Tom led Storm up to the trees where there was long grass for him to eat. While Storm grazed, Tom collected fallen branches.

Once he had several large pieces of wood, he lashed them together with rope and tied one end to Storm’s saddle. Then he led his horse back to the village.

When he returned, Elenna was already heaping
small scraps of wood together to start the fire. Calum came back from the cottage carrying a pot of tar. Over one shoulder, he had a coil of thick rope. Silver followed behind him with another length of rope trailing from his mouth.

Calum set the tar down near Elenna’s pile of wood and handed the rope to Tom. “That’s the last of the tar,” he said quietly, before going to look for more wood.

Tom crouched down.
This isn’t fair!
he thought as he started to unravel the rope. The coarse strands tore at his fingertips but it felt good to be doing something.

Elenna knelt down next to a small pile of leaves, twigs, and frayed bits of rope. She wrapped the string of her bow around a small stick and bent over the tinder. She drew the bow back and forth with practiced strokes, and the little pile began to burn. When the fire was ready, Calum brought an armful of bigger branches and laid them on top.
They crackled in the flames. Matt looked on approvingly.

When Tom had finished unravelling the rope, he and Calum turned the boat over so that they could reach the jagged hole in its side. Tom noticed that the oars were lashed together under the seat. At least they were lucky enough to have those. A boat without oars wouldn’t be much use.

Under Matt’s watchful gaze, Elenna packed the strands of rope into the hole while Tom put the pot on the fire and found a stick to stir the tar. When the tar was bubbling, Tom used a long ladle to scoop some out and carry it over to the boat. Quickly, Elenna used a scrap of driftwood to plaster the hot tar over the rope strands, inside and out.

Suddenly, Tom heard the fire roaring louder and felt a fierce heat on his back. He spun around to see flames shooting up around the pot. Some of the tar must have spilled and fuelled the fire.

“No!” shouted Calum. “That’s the last of the tar. If it burns we won’t be able to fix the boat!”

But it was too late. Smoke billowed out of the fire and the branches hurled out bubbles of hot resin. Sparks shot into the air, almost landing in the pot of tar. One landed on the ground just beside the boat. Matt stomped on it to put it out.

Everyone flinched back from the fire as it burned fiercely. Tom had to get the flames under control — but how?