On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness (19 page)

37

Talons and a Sling

R
unning faster than Janner believed possible, Peet the Sock Man bore down on them, mouth open in a vicious cry, wildness in his eyes.

The Fangs watched him come, unable to understand what they were seeing, too shocked to react. Peet leapt into the air with an animal-like grace and spread his socked arms wide, his screech still filling their ears, the crows scattering before him.

Peet fell on three of the Fangs nearest to him in a fury of talons and shrieks. The talons, Janner saw, were Peet's—three long talons, in fact, that tore from within the socks on both arms and shredded them to pieces. The remains of the stockings floated to the ground like feathers. The Fang company stood motionless as their fellow soldiers crumpled to the ground, sliced and bleeding from a hundred wounds. Peet wasted no time. Slashing and spinning, his talons now covered in green blood, he felled two more Fangs before any of them had the sense to draw a weapon.

Tink and Leeli ducked beneath the Black Carriage. Janner followed, unable to believe his eyes.

Commander Gnorm sputtered and growled as he watched his soldiers fall, one by one, to the swift talons of Peet the Sock Man. More than half of the Fangs were either dead or dying. The remaining ones had come to their senses and were advancing in a half circle on Peet, who was backed up against the wall of the jail.

Peet screamed at them, the swipes of his talons keeping them at bay.

“Kill him!” Gnorm bellowed from a safe distance.

The Fangs closed in, jabbing at Peet with spears.

Janner shut his eyes, waiting for Peet's final wail, but it never came. Janner heard Gnorm grunt with surprise.

Podo, covered with grime, had shot from the carriage and was wrestling Gnorm's sword from him. Gnorm's fangs were bared and oozing venom. He snarled and thrashed at Podo, who was trying to hold him down, avoid his fangs, and draw Gnorm's sword from its sheath. They struggled in the dirt while Peet fended off the surrounding Fangs.

“Come quick!” Nia told the children. She climbed out of the carriage, also covered with black grime, and bustled them away from the fight, making for the shadows on the opposite side of the street, beside Books and Crannies. Janner knew that neither Peet nor Podo would last much longer, so with a prayer to the Maker he shot away from Nia.

Gnorm was so consumed with fighting Podo that he didn't notice Janner behind him, lunging for Gnorm's dagger. Janner gripped the hilt, cold in his sweaty hand, drew it out, and ran it deep into Gnorm's side. The fat Fang spun around, his black eyes wide with surprise and rage.

“A boy!” Gnorm yelped, aghast. With the Fang's own sword, Podo finished him off.

Janner stood in shock over Commander Gnorm's dead body.

Suddenly, above the sounds of the battle, a high, steady whistling sound tore through the air. Fang and human alike stopped and covered their ears, but as soon as it started, the odd sound died away. They had no time to wonder about it. Podo howled and engaged the Fangs who had recovered from the noise and were closing in on Peet.

Podo's growl, Peet's screech, and the snarls of the Fangs mixed with the racket of clashing steel.

In a matter of moments, only Peet and Podo were left standing—the pirate and the Sock Man, covered in green blood and gasping for breath, knee deep in a pile of scaly corpses. The two warriors looked at each other without speaking for a long moment.

“You all right, then?” Podo asked gruffly.

Peet nodded. He was out of breath, but standing tall. The sadness in his eyes had been replaced with a piercing, almost noble aspect, though Janner noticed that Peet seemed unable to look directly at Podo.

They turned their attention to the Black Carriage and the bodies of Fangs littering the street around it. The ghostly driver, forgotten in the battle, was still sitting on the carriage, holding the reins. The hooded head turned slowly their way and a chill ran through Janner.

Podo took a threatening step toward the driver, gripping a Fang sword.

“Zounds!” the driver said and whipped the black horses into a gallop. “Zounds!” it repeated, as the carriage sped away.

“N
O
!” Podo cried. “We have to stop the carriage, or that critter driving it'll get reinforcements!”

Podo started after the carriage, but it was nearly out of sight.

Janner heard an odd hissing sound from somewhere above him. He turned in time to see Zouzab Koit on the roof of the jail whirling a sling. The rock flew out of the sling and whizzed through the air, striking the ghostly driver with a dull thud.

The driver of the Black Carriage fell limply from his perch, and the dark horses came to a stop, snorting and stamping the ground at the edge of town.

“It was you!” Janner said, astonished. “You threw the stones at the Fangs in the alley!”

Zouzab smiled his thin smile and bowed his head. “Yes, young Janner. Ridgerunners see many things. It wouldn't do to let the Igiby children get hurt, now would it?” With that, he disappeared into the shadows.

“It was him, it was, it was,” Peet mumbled. “I was there too, around the corner, but Zou-runner Ridge-zab slung his rocks first, first…” Peet's words trailed off into murmurs when he realized that the Igibys were watching him. Already Peet's eyes were sad and downcast again, and Janner wondered whether he had imagined the fire he had seen in them moments ago.

A light breeze blew through the streets of Glipwood, where sixteen Fangs of Dang lay dead, and somehow the Igibys were still standing. Tink broke away from Nia, ran to Podo, and hugged him fiercely. Nia, Janner, and Leeli followed. They huddled in a long embrace while Peet kept at a distance, hiding his taloned hands behind his back, shuffling his feet.

Finally, Nia looked over at him. “It's all right, Peet,” she said.

He stopped fidgeting and looked at the cluster of Igibys. Tears filled his eyes, and he looked down at his talons, covered with Fang blood. He wiped them on his shirt as if to make himself more presentable.

“Peet,” Nia said gently. “It's all right.” She beckoned him to them.

Peet the Sock Man stared at her, eyes wide and shining. He tried to fix his wild, white hair and stood erect as he inched closer to the family. Peet reached out to hug them, still unsure of himself. He looked down again at his strange, clawed hands, and Janner saw a look of anguish pass over his face. His gaze met Janner's. The large, teary eyes moved from Janner to Tink, where they lingered long as well. The Sock Man dropped to one knee and looked lovingly at Leeli, who for the first time since seeing Nugget's broken body, smiled.

Peet broke into sobs and commenced kissing the children's feet in turn, pawing at their legs and mumbling through sobs. “Safe! Jewelbyfeathers! They're safe, praise the Maker.”

“That's enough,” Podo grunted, toeing Peet away from the children. Podo glared down at the Sock Man. The look on the old pirate's face was a confused mixture of anger and pity.

Suddenly a door creaked open in the shadows across the street. In the dim light they could make out a figure emerging from the entrance of Books and Crannies. Podo took a threatening step toward the shop and raised the crude sword he'd been using.

“Who's there?” he growled, his voice echoing in the deserted street.

“Pssst! Come, quick!”

It was Oskar N. Reteep.

Podo snorted with relief. “Aye, come on children. It's no good standing here in the open with all this filth lying about. Inside, and hop to it!”

But Leeli broke away with a sob and hopped toward the cottage, where she knew Nugget's body lay.

“Lass!” Podo said. “This is no time to—”

But Nia quieted him with a stern look, moved to Leeli, and put a comforting arm around her. Janner couldn't hear what his mother was whispering to Leeli, but he saw his sister nod, stand up straighter, and take a deep breath as she and Nia turned back to Books and Crannies.

The Igibys hurried across the street. Peet scampered along behind them, keeping well away from Podo. Oskar, wild-eyed, peeked out at them, spectacles twinkling in the moonlight. He beckoned for them to enter and opened the door as they approached.

“That's it, now. Inside, inside! What in blazes are you doing, you old pirate!” Oskar said with a laugh and a slap on his knee. “I heard a commotion and looked out just in time to see the last lizard go down! Why, nothing like that's happened since the Great War! Come to think of it, nothing like that happened on this continent even during the war. That may be the most Fangs that Gnag has ever lost in Skree.
¹
And young Janner here! And Peet!” What little they could see of Oskar's face showed that he was happier than they'd ever seen him.

“Why, in the words of the Sage of Brivshap, ‘Exactly!'” Oskar laughed, clapping his hands. “Exactly, I say! Zouzab! Fetch some water from the cistern for these warriors, if you please. Zouzab!” he called.

No answer came.

Oskar scratched his head. “Now, I wonder where that little fellow's off to?”

“Outside,” Podo said. “He took out the carriage driver with a stone and a sling.”

“Did he now?” Oskar said, looking at Podo with surprise. “No matter. Follow me, everyone.”

Peet, who stood just inside the door fidgeting with his hair, sneezed, reminding everyone of his presence.

“You,” Podo said gruffly, pointing Gnorm's sword at him. “You wait outside.”

“But Grandpa!” Leeli said. “He just saved our lives!”

“What was that bowing and kissing our feet about?” Tink demanded. “Did he say something about jewels?”

“Tink,” Podo said, “you know the feller's crazy in the head. A crazy old fool, that's all.” Janner shuddered at the bitterness he heard in his grandfather's voice. A sniff came from Peet's direction.

Oskar coughed. “Come now, there's no use carrying on in the dark. Follow me. Peet, you too,” he said, turning to go.

“No,” Podo said in a menacing voice. His face was as hard as rock.

Ignoring her grandfather, Leeli moved to Peet and took his strange, reddish claw of a hand, drawing him past Podo.

In one swift, terrible movement, Podo jerked Leeli away from the Sock Man, seized him by the shoulders, and thrust him out the door. “I said
NO
! You stay away from these children, do you hear? Away!”

Peet lay sprawled on the ground. The look on his face in the dim light was one of torture, as if he hurt too much even to cry out. Podo slammed the door and leaned his head against it, panting. No one spoke a word. Leeli sniffled, trying to hide her sobs. Janner kept waiting for Nia to intervene, to talk some sense into Podo's unfair treatment of Peet, but she was silent, her expression unreadable in the dark.

“Now let's go,” Podo said as he straightened and turned to them.

No one moved.

“Oskar!” Podo barked. Oskar leapt into action and beckoned them to follow.

Through Books and Crannies' front window, Janner caught a glimpse of Peet silhouetted by the lamplight of the street, walking away with his head bowed low. Janner's heart ached for the poor man.

Oskar led them past tottering bookshelves until they detected the soft yellow glow of the lamp-lit study ahead of them. Oskar disappeared for a moment and returned with a pitcher of water and five small clay cups.

Janner was surprised at how thirsty he was. His stomach rumbled, and he realized that they hadn't had food or drink since the snapping diggle stew at Peet's tree house.

He thought about Peet's strange talons—he had never seen nor heard of anything like them. And if he had doubted before whether or not Peet was looking out for them, now he knew for sure, even if he'd been wrong about the stones in the alley. But why? Why had Peet chosen to watch over the Igiby children out of all the other people in Glipwood? Janner was even more bothered by his mother's and grandfather's strange treatment of the Sock Man.
Why is Podo so angry with Peet?

But more immediate fears pushed those thoughts from Janner's mind. His whole family was in danger. Their home was ransacked, their barn burned, and they had just killed a company of Fangs. They had to come up with some plan for where to hide and where to live.

With a pang of sadness it struck Janner that there was a very good chance that they'd have to leave Glipwood—possibly forever. How could they stay in light of all that had happened? Obviously Gnag the Nameless sought the jewels, wherever they were, and he thought the Igibys were hiding them.

The adults huddled over Oskar's desk and spoke in hushed tones.

Leeli was in a corner sitting on an empty crate, staring at nothing in particular.

Tink, however, was fidgeting, moving about like a shrub in the wind. His cheeks were flushed and he looked angry. “Will somebody tell me what's going on?” he burst out. The adults looked at him with surprise.

“Not now, son,” said Nia.

“Why not?” Tink pressed. Janner, trying to save his fiery little brother from trouble, laid a hand on his arm. Tink jerked away. “Why not now? Why did Grandpa drive away the man who just saved our lives? I want to know where the jewels are and why Gnag the Nameless thinks we have them. What's so special about those jewels anyway? And who is Artham P. Wingfeather, and why does Peet the Sock Man have his journals in his tree house?”

“What?” Podo and Nia said at once.

Oskar stared at Tink, wide-eyed.

Tink's head dropped and his eyes met Janner's apologetically.

Nia folded her arms and glared at Tink. “How do you know what's in Peet's tree house?”

Tink didn't look up or answer the question, so Janner spoke.

“We followed Peet there today. We didn't, uh, mean to, but…” Janner's voice trailed off.

“It was my fault,” Tink said quietly.

“Lad,” Podo rumbled, “ye'd better be glad there are more pressing things afoot, or I'd tan your hide. What are you thinking, going off into the forest alone? Haven't you ever heard of toothy cows? Of horned hounds and snapping diggles and cave blats? Right now, since you've shown that yer not responsible enough to be treated like a man, yer gonna keep quiet and let the elders in the room figure out what's to be done. And that goes for the lot of ye,” he finished, looking disappointedly at the three of them.