Paraworld Zero (34 page)

    Lying flat on his back, Simon gazed past the blemished lumps of mountains
that pierced through the hard, earthen floor and saw the yellow disk of sun bleach the sky with
its magnificent glory. He felt so small and so alone. How could he possibly save the planet from
the dragunos?

    Just then, a large tongue came out of nowhere and licked his face. Startled,
the boy realized that something big stood above him: a farbearus. Simon had first seen one when
Har’s mother had come to plead for her son’s freedom. He also remembered seeing the big Puds use
the docile creatures to haul the wheat in the fields. This one must have gotten left behind by
accident.

    A broken strap, attached to a leather harness, dangled freely in the air, but
upon closer observation, Simon noticed the end of the strap had been gnawed through. The animal
hadn’t been left behind; it had escaped.

    Fighting back the pain in his shoulder, he grabbed the harness with his good
hand and sluggishly pulled himself onto the hairy beast. Delirious, Simon dropped the reins,
allowing the large creature to roam as it pleased. With his strength depleted, all he could do
was hug the animal’s back and pray that it would take him to someone who could help.

    They trod through the barren wasteland where, just a few days earlier, golden
rows of wheat had stood. The big Puds had stripped the entire field clean.

    An hour sped by quickly while Simon went in and out of consciousness. When he
awoke, he realized his companion was drinking from a small pond. Simon threw himself to the
moss-covered bank, blazing with thirst, and stuck his head into the clear water. The cool,
refreshing liquid revived his spirits a little.

    He cupped his hand and was about to drink when something in the water
startled him. At the bottom of the innocent-looking pond lay thousands of bones.

    Simon jumped to his feet and staggered back a few paces. He noticed a small
ripple in the center of the pond that grew bigger and bigger. Black oil bubbled to the surface.
Slowly, the dark liquid collected into one body until it coagulated into the consistency of tar.
Without warning, the dark mass raced towards the shore.

    “Come on, big guy,” Simon yelled, tugging on the leather strap to get the
farbearus to move, but the stubborn creature refused to budge.

    The hairy beast looked up from drinking just in time to see a huge mound of
black jelly leap from the water. Thick goo engulfed the entire mammal, as well as Simon’s
forearm. The black jelly gave a tremendous yank, which pulled them both towards the pond.

    The farbearus didn’t have a chance, but Simon was more fortunate. As he fell
to the ground, the black goo ripped off him like putty and removed his shirtsleeve in the
process. Simon looked at his bare arm and realized that the burning sensation he felt was due to
the fact that most of the hair on his tender skin had just been pulled out.

    Lying flat on his belly, he watched the pond as it erupted into a commotion
of thrashing waves. Somewhere in the turmoil, an item ejected from the water and landed next to
him. The scared boy looked over to see a leather harness, mutilated and foaming with acid.

    At that moment, Simon found his second wind. He sprinted away from the pond,
screaming in terror, not daring to look back.

    He slipped on the moist grass a couple of times but kept running. After
reaching a small hill, he spun around to check on the creature, but to his horror, he found it
standing right behind him.

    Simon darted up the steep hill just as a couple of oily tendrils shot out of
the black jelly. He thought that surely the monster wouldn’t be able to follow him up the hill,
but it proved him wrong.

    The grass turned brown as the strange creature pulled itself up the hill with
its two wiry arms. Simon fervently wished he had his hover chair. His body protested with every
movement.

    When he finally reached the top, a sickening feeling spread throughout his
entire frame. He stood at the edge of a steep ravine, and down at the bottom of the gorge lay a
rushing river.

    Without hesitation, Simon jumped. Unfortunately, the dark blob spilled over
the edge as well. But as it fell, a strong updraft thrust into the monster’s formless body,
causing it to balloon like a parachute.

    A moment later, Simon plunged into the river below…
SPLAT
—and so did the blob of jelly. But as it splattered against the water, its liquidlike
body broke up into a million droplets of black oil that soon vanished within the harsh
current.

    Simon felt the hammer of a thousand little bubbles attempting to smother him.
His lungs were about to explode, and he feared his handicapped arm would prevent him from
reaching the surface. But just then, he touched the hard bottom of the riverbed, so he kicked
himself upward with all his might. A rush of air filled his lungs as he burst through the surface
of the river.

    Trying to stay afloat, Simon grasped at nearby debris, but after a short
while, he found himself still struggling to stay above the cold water.

    
If I could just find a branch big enough to hold onto…

    Something large brushed against him. Petrified, Simon gasped but then saw, to
his relief, that it was just an old log. A log! He seized the long piece of timber with his good
arm and held on tight. Now that he was relatively safe, Simon glanced around at the sheer walls
of rock that enclosed both sides of the river. Gray birds with long beaks and sharp talons
watched him closely as he floated by. One after the other, they thrust off the wall and plunged
into the water for hard-shelled crustaceans. Two of the birds never emerged from the river.

    The frothy water chilled Simon to the bone but also soothed the pain in his
shoulder. In fact, he hardly noticed the tingling sensations of the poison anymore.

    After a few minutes, the cliff walls finally disappeared and were replaced by
fertile banks filled with lush vegetation. Sago palms and leafy ferns lined the river, and tall
prehistoric-looking trees jutted everywhere.

    Despite the picturesque scenery, Simon’s eyes widened at what else he saw.
Ferocious creatures, full of menacing teeth and claws, bathed at the river’s edge. The boy
doubted he’d be able to swim to the embankment anyway, especially because of the swift current.
He ducked as a bear-like animal with extraordinarily long arms raised its head to stare at him.
It took a step forward, but a reptile nearby gave a warning hiss. The water was no place for
mammals. Simon hugged the log and held his breath. The bear-like animal growled and then backed
away.

    Simon found it difficult to exhale. How much longer would he have to endure
these trials? He hungered for food and water. He yearned for a warm bed. And most of all, he
wished for the pain in his shoulder and arm to go away. But none of those things really mattered.
If he didn’t get back to the city soon, everything and everyone might be lost. He thought of his
friends and gained an added measure of hope and determination. He had to try.

    The width and depth of the river increased rapidly. Every once in a while,
the boy thought he saw the end of a jagged tail or the tip of a sharp fin. He wondered how much
safer he really was in the river. For all he knew, there could be piranhas—or even worse,
dragunos—in the water.

    While contemplating this very thought, the long timber he held onto suddenly
bobbed up and down. Choking on a mouthful of icy water, Simon turned to see a twenty-five-foot
crocodile chewing on the far end of the log. Even more shocking, the strange reptile had several
rows of tall, colorful spikes running down its back and two thrashing tails.

    The monster spun the large piece of wood around like a toy, causing Simon to
lose his grip and float off in another direction. Attracted by the boy’s movement, the scaly
reptile abandoned the log and headed towards him. It opened its hideous mouth and let out a deep,
gargled roar.

    Just then, a giant fin glided past Simon’s small frame. The boy looked down
to see something dark and massive swimming directly underneath him. In a sudden fury, a gigantic
yet agile shark sprang upwards and clenched its jaws around the two-tailed crocodile.

    Like a crippled frog, Simon floundered through the bloody water for the
safety of the log. Although he no longer had any feeling in his left arm, he still reached the
floating piece of driftwood. By this time, the giant shark was dining on its fallen prey at the
bottom of the deep channel.

    Simon began to shiver uncontrollably. He wasn’t sure if the trembling came
because of the cold water, the frightening experience he’d just had, or the spider venom, but
what he did know was that he couldn’t stay in the river much longer and expect to live.

    Almost as if in answer to a prayer, the boy glimpsed a school of small boats
just up ahead. The river spilled into the ocean, and there, the fishermen waited to catch the
fish that swam out to sea. Simon’s heart jumped for joy as he got closer to the skiffs.

    He felt a dull numbness enshroud his body, and when he breathed, he couldn’t
seem to get any air into his lungs. Hypothermia was setting in—either that, or the spider’s
poison had finally chosen to kill him.

    The boy tried to scream, but his chest hurt so badly that he was forced to
stop. He looked up at the closest boat and saw the big Puds pointing in his direction. He was
saved!

    Simon watched in earnest as the fishermen rowed their boat frantically
towards him. Some of the men continued to wave their hands and point. After seeing the strange
looks on their faces, Simon realized that maybe they weren’t pointing at him. Confused, the boy
looked behind and saw a twenty-foot-long shark jumping out of the water—just like a swordfish
would do. In fact, it even had a tiny sword-like beak attached to its upper jaw. The white,
slender shark glided across the water in his direction.

    “It’s not fair,” Simon moaned. “Just leave me alone.”

    He watched sorrowfully as the shark’s mouth drew open in what looked like a
menacing grin. Simon was too sleepy and exhausted to care anymore. Not wanting to give the shark
the satisfaction of a stationary kill, he released his grip on the log and descended into the
ocean. But before his head was even completely submerged, he felt a large hand clutch his
shoulder and pull him out of the water.

    A second later, the shark struck the log with its sharp beak, splitting the
wood in two. Angry, the aggressive creature circled around and leapt right onto the small wooden
skiff. It slid across the bow towards Simon.

    Delirium swept the boy to his knees. His eyes fluttered. The shark opened its
jaws for the kill. Suddenly, a spear pierced through the shark’s head from behind, bit into its
brain, and came out of the creature’s gaping mouth. At that same moment, Simon fainted.

    The large fishermen attacked the shark with their clubs, and the giant who
had slain the creature approached Simon. He reached down with his mighty hand and picked up the
black medallion that had fallen from the boy’s neck. A look of understanding came into the big
Pud’s eyes as he stared in awe at the young wizard before him.

Chapter 22
    

    

    “Simon… Simon…” came the cool, delicate voice from the woman in his dream.
The words left her lips like notes from a song.

    

    

    The beautiful young woman began to disappear into the mist once more. “Please
don’t go,” Simon begged. “You still haven’t told me who you are.”

    As she faded away, her final words echoed in his mind. “My dearest Simon. The
answer is found within.”

    Perplexed by her response, Simon opened his eyes. His vision slowly came into
focus. He saw a large face staring down at him.

    “Si-moan almost fish bait.”

    “Har?” Simon said, astonished. The roaring fire nearby illuminated the grassy
interior of the hut. Evening shadows danced upon the walls and played with the light from the
crackling flames. “How did I get here?”