Max Stone and the Lost Star of Zirdon (6 page)

The Ranguilla struck again, this time broadside, knocking the boat violently, tipping the side of the boat into the water for a few seconds. More water flooded in now, right up to the calves on Max's leg. This made the boat harder and heavier to pull through the water.

‘Heave!'

Again the Ranguilla crashed into the boat and there was a sound of breaking boards where the monster's gigantic head crashed into the boat.

K-K-KRAAKK!!

Water was now pouring in, in several places.

‘Move, Max'. They were nearing the other side.

The Ranguilla sensed that its meal was escaping and it swam underneath the boat, its tail splashing as it dived out of sight.

Moments later it rose out of the water, its huge gaping jaws flashing rows and rows of pointed teeth as it launched another attack on them. This close up it was a terror. Its skin was shiny, sleek and black and it had tiny flared nostrils and small beady black eyes.

‘
BaamM.
' It smacked straight into the side of the boat. They were almost there, just a few feet at most, but the boat nearly capsized. Max and Boctamus just about held on but the box fell open and Lost Star of Zirdon rolled wildly around the bottom of the boat. Max reached out trying to grab it but it rolled out of the boat and into the icy waters

‘Oh no!' cried Max. He looked up to Boctamus for help but he could see that the Star had already taken effect on him. He was holding on, but only just.

The Lost Star didn't seem to affect the Ranguilla in any way as it came back for another strike.

It would feed tonight!!

Max hauled the leaking little boat the last few feet to the bank of the lake with all his might. The boat hit the soft sandy bank. Max lost no time in grabbing Boctamus under the arms, hauling him from the boat. Max didn't realise how heavy the young alien warrior was but he had to get him back from the water's edge and to safety at all costs.

Max lay his friend down on the lake shore but he was breathing heavily, his eyes were pale and Max knew he had to act, and fast.

CHAPTER SEVEN

THE TIGRAL TRIBE

Altusa, head of the Tigral Tribe, awoke feeling better and stronger than he had for a long time.

He left his tent and moved quietly though the sleeping camp. He and his tribe had taken refuge in the hills since the Star of Zirdon had been lost to his world. Without it, his people grew weak and were unable to fight the lizard dogs that had invaded his planet.

But today something was different.

Today Altusa felt a new strength race through his veins. He felt an air of hope in the bright morning sun.

In the distance he spied a young pterodactyl squawking in the sky as it tried to catch a bright feathered bird. Altusa watched from the distance as the bird ducked and dived. The bird it chased did aerial somersaults that could only mean it must have been the Takuon bird. He caught a flash of brilliant blue and white feathers that marked the Takuon from all others on Zirdon.

Altusa thought to himself, ‘
If a Takuon bird is flying so high in these hills it must be carrying a message.'

Without hesitation, he drew his bow and set a silver tipped arrow and took aim. He followed the flight of the pterodactyl; its snapping jaws and sharp talons as it tried to snare the Takuon bird. Altusa calmed his breath and took slow steady aim. He let the arrow fly and it whizzed through the air and caught its target clean in the throat.

With a single strangled cry the surprised young pterodactyl fell to the ground and Altusa ran towards where it had fallen. He would skin it and give it as a present to his Fight-Cat, Srana, later. She would relish the meal.

‘
Squawk, Squawk'
, the Takuon bird circled Altusa and he held his arm out to the bird. With a flap, the bird landed on him and Altusa saw that there was in fact a message carefully fixed to its leg. He calmed the bird, wary of its strong beak.

The Takuon birds had long been friend to the Swaveb Tribe and were raised from chick to carry messages. They were a large bird with mostly brown feathers but in flight their true beauty could be seen. Their wings and tail opened out to show the blue and white feathers that flashed brilliantly as it flew.

Carefully, he untied the scroll and the Takuon bird took flight. The scroll had been sealed and marked only for his attention. He opened the scroll and instantly recognised the careful handwriting of his friend, Mar-Hoc-Seia.

Altusa read the message again and again, hardly daring to believe the good news. If the Star had retuned then there was hope; hope that strength would return to his Tribe, hope that they might rid their planet of the curse of the Kaemon Klann.

Mar-Hoc-Seia had been careful not to say too much of his plans in the message in case it fell into the wrong hands. But it was clear that Boctamus would approach from the North while the Swaveb Tribe would approach from the south. Already a plan formed in the wise old warrior's mind.

He ran back to the camp, pterodactyl under his arm, and called for his son.

Tomac was already up and standing outside his tent. He was dressed in full battle gear, feeling stronger than he had in many months. He greeted his father warmly.

‘Father, what news?'

‘Tomac', said Altusa, ‘I bring good news from our friends of the Swaveb Tribe. The Lost Star has returned to Zirdon, but we must act fast, for the carrier of the Star is in great danger.'

He showed him the message from Mar-Hoc-Seia and Tomac smiled.

‘He is in good hands with Boctamus at his side.' Boctamus and Tomac had been friends from an early age, learning the old ways of the Tigral Tribe together. They were perhaps the two best hunters in the whole tribe and Tomac had also shown a special skill for tracking.

‘If the Kaemon Klann know of his escape through the northern caves they may well lie in waiting for them.' Tomac said to his father.

‘Yes' said Altusa, ‘I fear you may be right.'

‘I will travel to Elgonze, Father, and lend assistance to Boctamus and this earth boy, Max. I will travel with Lothius and perhaps Boctamus's Fight-Cat, Mannuk, will travel with me. It will make escaping those lizard dogs more easy.'

‘Good,' his father agreed, ‘and I will gather the tribe and meet you at the crossing of the Zagger Zee. There we will meet the Swaveb Tribe and together we will see the Lost Star returned to its rightful place at the Stone of Azul.'

Tomac quickly got himself ready for the journey and summoned his Fight-Cat, Lothius.

Lothius was quick to answer the call, and he bounded down from the high hills, sensing the urgency in Tomac's call. He sensed a battle might be near.

Lothius was a most unusual Fight-Cat. While the others had brown and orange fur, often with manes of green and red, Lothius was almost pure white. Tomac had found him as a small cub and the bond between them was strong.

He packed a small sack of food from the camp and before he left he sent out a low call of summons to Mannuk, Boctamus's Fight-Cat. While Mannuk would know it was not Boctamus who sent the call, he would recognise the voice of Tomac and know his warrior needed him.

Altusa was busy waking the warriors of the Tigral Tribe and came to see his son off. Already the camp bustled with more life and energy than they had seen in months. Like Lothius they too sensed a battle.

‘Travel well my son, for tomorrow we will stand together in battle. We shall see balance once more restored to our world and bring great honour to the Tigral Tribe'

Tomac waved to his father as he and Lothius set off in a bounding run towards Elgonze.

Mannuk followed at a distance behind them, eager to find and help Boctamus.

CHAPTER EIGHT

THE RANGUILLA

Max crouched back from the water's edge and swallowed hard.

He had two options, each worse than the other. Boctamus was growing weaker by the minute. Being this close to the Star was taking its toll on him.

He could try and help Boctamus up to the top of the caves, hoping that as he put distance between them and the Lost Star his friend might recover. But that was crazy! Boctamus was far too heavy for him.

‘
Besides
' he said to himself ‘
to just leave the Lost Star after all this was out of the question
.' The Kaemon Klan might sense its presence and find a way of getting it out of the lake. And then they would all be done for.

Things got worse. The Lost Star was beginning to glow, sending a pulse of blue light up into the centre of the cavern. The Kerlang stones were already picking up the light, bouncing it around the cave, making the whole place brighter. Soon it would be lit up like a ballroom. If the Kaemon Klann did venture into the caves they would soon be so lit up that they would know straight away where the Star was.

This brought Max back to the second option. The little boat was of no use anymore so he would have enter the water for the Star. Much as he didn't like the idea, he really had no other choice.

Max began to take off his shirt and his shoes and his socks. He held the penknife, blade out, in his right hand. Boctamus raised his head weakly seeing what Max was about to do.

In a near whisper he said ‘It's too dangerous, Max, don't do it.'

Max simply smiled at his friend and said ‘for Granddad Arthur.'

He turned his attention to the lake and studied the inky black waters, without a ripple or a wave. Gingerly, he put his toe in the water. He sucked in deeply at the cold but he pressed on and waded out into the lake. The bottom of the lake was soft and squishy and he felt as if something might rise out at any moment and pull him down. He could hear the soft lapping of the waters as though something moved very slowly and very steadily towards him.

The Kerlang stones bounced the light from the Star around the cavern, giving the whole place an eerie feeling. He could see the Lost Star just ahead of him lying in the soft mud of the lake … it seemed as though it called to him.

‘
How am I going to reach it
?' Max wondered. The waters were freezing, and he surely couldn't last too long. Besides, the monster of the deep was lurking around, lying in wait.

Behind him he could hear Boctamus's breathing coming in short gasps as the power of the Star took greater effect on him. Max's hand itched and he looked at his palm, the pattern of the Star had risen up and he could clearly make out the four blades with the diamond at the centre. It seemed as though the stone called to him, urged him to action. In that moment Max made a decision.

He wadded out a little further but it was still too far away and too deep to reach it. The lake was far deeper than he had first thought.

He would have to dive in and get it.

He entered, head first, into the lake, the icy waters numbing his head.

He reached out his arms and swam into the murky darkness. Suddenly the Ranguilla came at breathtaking speed from the deep and made a swipe at him. It just barely missed Max but it sent him into a tumble under the water. He didn't know which way was up or down. He struck out with his penknife, feeling the blade sink into the creature's flesh and it hissed in anger.

Furious, the Ranguilla coiled and struck again with lightening speed. Max struck out again, not knowing in which direction he was facing, his lungs burning for air. His penknife bit into the side of the Ranguilla and it recoiled and disappeared into the inky darkness of the cave water. As it swam away, it struck out with its tail, sweeping Max into another terrifying spin under the water.

His breath was giving out but he was just inches from his goal. The Star pattern itched furiously in his hand. He simply didn't have the breath to go any deeper, his lungs screamed for air.

Max reached out his left hand and the Star moved ever so slightly in the soft mud below him. He reached his hand further, urging, not too sure what, but urging for something to happen.

And then the Lost Star moved, rocked back and forth and then suddenly it lifted off the bottom of the lake.

Max reached with every cell of his body, his outstretched hand like a beacon for the Lost Star. The Star lifted higher and higher, the pattern deep within it matching the shape on his hand. It moved faster and faster, travelling up through the water. The Star flew into his hand, locked in place, a perfect match for the pattern in his palm.

The Ranguilla took that moment to make another lunge at Max. This time its giant jaws were open as it came straight for Max. Max's lungs screamed for air as he turned and faced the on-coming monster. Not too sure why, but desperate to do something, he pointed the Lost Star at the Ranguilla.

A clean bolt of blue energy shot out from the heart of the Star and struck the Ranguilla at the back of its mighty jaws. It squealed in anger and pain and dived off to the left. No one had ever dared to attack it like this before.

Max made straight for the surface, breaking the water and gulping in huge breaths of air, filling his lungs, gasping for breath.

He looked behind him and saw the menacing fin of the Ranguilla snake its way towards him again. He desperately swam towards the shore, pushing with all his might and strength. His feet touched off the squishy bottom and he hauled himself out of the lake. He hurried back from the water's edge gulping in big breaths of much-needed air.

Quickly, he put the Star straight into the box, back to safety.

Almost right away Boctamus came to, shaking his head as if from a deep sleep. He looked drowsy, but well.

‘Max you…, you got the Star!'

Max quickly told him what had happened.

Boctamus placed his hand on Max's shoulder, ‘you are very brave earth boy, and all of Zirdon owes you a great favour for your act of bravery. Your grandfather would have been very proud of you.'

Max shivered as he put back on his shirt, shoes and socks, his teeth chattering against the cold of the cave after being in the icy waters. Max realised he was starving and what he wouldn't give for one of Fredo's Pepperoni Pizzas right now.

Boctamus was worried for Max, he was so cold. The only thing for it was to get up and out of the deep cold caves. ‘Come, Max, we must hurry, we must make it to the top of the caves where we might find some heat from the sun'