Knight Quest (Time Hunters, Book 2) (6 page)

“Charge!” King Arthur shouted.

The horses started to gallop towards one another. Clouds of dust billowed up under their thundering hooves. Tom watched as Al's lance came down.

The horses galloped closer and closer.

Al's face looked grim.

His lance made contact with Percival's breastplate…

Thunk!

Percival grunted.
Oof!
The air was literally knocked out of him as he tumbled off his horse and hit the ground.

Clank!

Al had won the first round.

“Hooray!” Tom and Isis cried.

The villagers started to cheer and whistle loudly.

“Second round!” bellowed King Arthur.

Al smiled and waved cautiously at the crowd. He swung Acorn round to begin the second charge. Acorn seemed unruffled, despite all the noise.

Percival's stallion, however, was not coping so well. The horse was wide-eyed and rearing up on its hind legs.

“Behave, you stupid beast!” Percival yelled at the stamping horse and kicked him with his spurs.

The horse whinnied. It pawed the ground, then reared up again. The weight of the lance pulled Percival out of the saddle and he landed on the ground with a clatter. The crowd started to laugh.

“Serves him right!” another peasant woman said.

Percival levered himself stiffly off the ground. Tom could see that his shining armour had been dented. Judging from his blazing-red cheeks, his pride had taken a knock too.

“You ridiculous animal!” Percival shouted at the horse. “Calm down, or I'll turn you into food for Father's hunting hounds.”

King Arthur clapped his hands. “Leave the horse be. Come here, both of you,” he said, beckoning Al and Percival forward. “There is no point in continuing the joust with that horse in such a state. Instead, you will both progress to the final and trickiest trial of all. This will be a true test of your valour.”

“As you command, sire! I'm ready,” Al said.

Underneath his short beard and moustache, King Arthur was smiling. “I have hidden a golden sword in a nearby cave,” he said, with an air of mystery. “I challenge you both to seek it there. The man who finds it and returns it to me shall become my knight…” His blue eyes twinkled as he continued, “… but only if you can get past the dragons who are guarding it. What say you?”

“Dragons?” Percival scoffed. “Ha! Easy,” he said, although Tom noticed his hands were shaking.

Al scratched his head and frowned. “Well, I've never met any dragons before. But I'll give it my very best shot, Your Royal Magnificence,” he said, bowing low in front of King Arthur.

Tom turned to Isis. He was so desperate to get the words out that he didn't really make sense. “Dragons! The riddle! Legend of the stone!”

Isis nodded eagerly. “Yes! Exactly! Everything in the riddle is coming true. King Arthur is the legend. I'm fairly certain my amulet is the stone in his sword. And Al's about to track the sword down in the
cavernous lair
full of dragons!”

She jumped up and down on the spot with such excitement that she trod on poor Cleo's tail. “Sorry, Fluffpot,” she said. Snatching up the yowling cat, Isis smothered her in kisses.

“We're close now!” Tom said. “If good old Al finds King Arthur's sword,
we
can get the amulet!”

“What's Percival playing at?” Isis asked, looking towards the horses, who were drinking thirstily from a stone trough.

Tom glanced over and saw Percival crouching by the side of Acorn. Percival looked over his shoulder with darting eyes. Al was standing on the other side of Acorn, stroking his nose and feeding him a handful of hay. He was so busy tending to the horse, he didn't notice his opponent's shifty behaviour.

“I don't know,” Tom said. “Maybe he's adjusting his pants under his armour or something.”

“I think he's up to no good,” said Isis, heading over to warn Al. But there was no time.

Toot ta toot too TOOOOT!

King Arthur's servants sounded their horns and suddenly all eyes were on the king. He beamed at the villagers and then turned to Al and Percival.

“Stand by your horses,” he said. “It is time for the race to begin!”

Tom waved at Al and gave him the thumbs up. “Good luck!” he shouted.

“Take your marks,” King Arthur bellowed.

Al picked up Acorn's reins.

“Set…”

Percival smirked at Al in a way that made Tom's skin feel itchy.

“Go!”

Tom watched as Al wedged his muddy boot into Acorn's stirrup and started to heave himself up. But then the entire saddle slipped from the horse's back. Arms and legs flailing in the air, Al fell and landed in the mud with a
splat!

The saddle landed on his head.

“Ouch! That's got to have hurt,” said one of the villagers.

The wealthy villagers sniggered with delight, but the poorer ones shouted encouraging words to him.

“Come on, Al! Get back on your horse, lad!” someone called.

Tom and Isis rushed over to him.

“Are you OK?” Tom asked, pulling Al up out of the mud.

Al picked up his saddle and examined the girth.

“The saddle must have come loose,” he said, shaking his head.

Tom and Isis exchanged a knowing glance.

“So
that's
what Percival was playing at,” Tom said, helping Al fasten his saddle back on. “What a cheat.”

The squire's son had already streaked off towards the cave in a cloud of kicked-up dust.

Al hauled himself back into the saddle.

“Move up,” Isis said, vaulting on behind him.

“What are you doing?” Al asked.

“You didn't think we'd let you face this last trial alone?” she asked. “Plenty of room for three,” she said, extending a hand to Tom. “Up you come,” she said.

Tom looked nervous.

“I've only ever been on a donkey at the beach,” he said.

Cleo, who had been twining herself around Acorn's legs, mewed loudly and pawed at Tom.

“Fluffpot thinks you're a scaredy cat.”

Tom snorted half-heartedly, swallowed hard and pulled himself up into the saddle behind them both.

“Your friends are going to be with you every step of the way, Al,” he said. “We'll make sure Percival doesn't cheat again. Let's get going!”

“Friends! I got myself friends!” Al cried. “Good Lord, I'm a lucky lad.”

They thundered away, with Cleo running alongside. Peering into the distance, Tom could barely see Percival now, he was so far ahead.

“How can we possibly catch up?” Tom shouted as the wind gusted in his face, almost taking his breath away.

Al glanced back at him. “He's on the road to the caves,” he shouted. “But there's a shortcut.”

“Where?” Isis asked.

Al pointed to their left. “The woods!”

They paused and stared into the dark woodland. The tree trunks were growing very close together, barely letting in any sunlight.

“We'll never get through there!” Tom said.

Al tapped his nose. “Trust me. There isn't an inch of countryside round here that Alymere, the pig-boy, doesn't know like the back of his hand.”

They plunged into the shadowy woodland. Tom covered his eyes, convinced they were going to collide with a tree trunk at any moment.

But Al was right. There was a route through! Acorn picked his way nimbly over the mossy floor, moving more quickly than Tom thought possible. As the horse cantered along, Cleo scampered at his side. Before long, they shot out from the gloom ofthe trees.

Ahead of them, Tom spied a massive, craggy rock face that loomed up in jagged points against the grey sky. It had lots of dark, house-sized holes.

“The caves!” he said.

“We've only gone and beaten Percival to it!” Al said, reining in Acorn behind a large boulder.

The three of them dismounted, then peered warily round the boulder. Outside the mouth of the largest cave stood two men, dressed head to toe in chainmail and carrying broadswords at their sides.

“They look like knights to me,” Al said.

Over their chainmail shirts, Tom noticed that they wore red tunics with gleaming gold dragons on the front.

“Dragons!” Isis gasped.

“So
those
are the dragons King Arthur was talking about,” Tom said. “See, Isis. I told you the fire-breathing ones weren't real.”

Before Isis could respond, Al pulled her and Tom to the ground.

“Right,” he said, squatting in the dust. “Tactics. We've got to get past those guards. So, what's the plan?”

Isis clasped a purring Cleo to her chest and pursed her lips. Tom scratched his head and found a pine cone tangled in his hair. Al wobbled a rotten tooth.

“Maybe we should just charge them,” Tom said. “There's three of us and two of them.”

“Not likely,” Al said. “They're the king's knights! They'll mince us into sausage meat with those swords, faster than you can shout… er… pork chop.”

“I know!” Isis said. “I've thought of a way to distract them. Then we can sneak in while they're in a muddle.”