The Witch's Revenge (14 page)

“Don't panic,” replied Morag, stroking his fur. “Sit closer to me and Bertie. We're not afraid—are we, Bertie?”

“Morag!” Bertie hissed. “I think we're being followed.”

“Are you sure you're not imagining things?”

“No, I'm not,” he said urgently. “We're definitely being followed. I've been seeing the same sets of eyes for the last half hour.”

“He's right,” said Shona. “The smell of the forest has changed.”

Now,
that
got Morag's attention. Her eyes opened wide and she sat up.

“What do you mean?” she asked nervously.

“Look,” the dodo replied. He pointed to a clump of bushes. “Over there, and there. And back there too.”

Morag followed Bertie's outstretched wing and thought she could make out large dark shapes shifting behind the spiky greenery of the undergrowth. Wherever she looked, huge yellow eyes glinted hungrily in the shadows, and then vanished back into the dark. She thought she heard a low snarl from somewhere nearby. She gulped and turned to Chelsea. “I think you should try to make the horse go faster. We're being followed.”

“Oh, don't worry about that, it'll just be the wolves,” the girl replied. “They don't tend to attack during the day. We'll be fine.”

This did not make Morag feel any better. The horse whinnied nervously, its ears flicking, listening for danger.

Morag tried again. “I really think we should move faster.…”

“Look, are you driving this cart or am I?” Chelsea snapped, her voice ringing out through the forest. A million rustling creatures took fright and rushed from the
path. Birds flew into the air, rodents burrowed deeper, but the shadows around them seemed to move closer.

“Just the wolves, she says!” Bertie repeated incredulously.

“WOLVES! Where?” Aldiss shrieked, glancing around him.

“Shhhhhhhh!”

“Sorry,” mumbled the rat, eyes wide as something went
SNAP!
in the forest beyond the path.

“What was that? What was that?”
he yelped, leaping into Morag's arms.

“It's nothing,” she said, although she could not be sure. The trees seemed to be crowding closer; the bushes seemed thicker, and the shadows darker. And although she had not actually seen a wolf yet, she was sure she had caught something out of the corner of her eye: something large prowling through the undergrowth. But when she looked there was nothing there.

“Y-you're probably right, Morag,” stammered Bertie. “There's nothing to … AAAWWK!”

He jumped in an explosion of feathers as an enormous wolf pounced from the bushes and bounded after them. It was long and lean and the biggest animal Morag had ever seen. Its mean eyes never left hers as it bared its razor-sharp teeth. Morag caught her breath and shrieked, “Chelsea! Faster!”

Chelsea saw the wolf and whipped the reins. “Hold on in the back!” she yelled. Her horse, wide-eyed and sweating, screamed as it flew into a gallop, dragging the cart bumping
behind. Shona dove into the shrubs as the huge gray wolf tore past her. The dragon quickly regained her senses as seven more wolves stole out from the bushes and joined the chase. Chelsea, clinging to the side of the cart, her arms straining to keep hold of the reins, screamed at Morag. “Look under … get them …!”

The wolves were baying and barking and snapping. The horse, running for its life, squealed. Aldiss was in Morag's arms, whimpering in fright.

“What? I can't hear you!” Morag shouted. She was nearly thrown out of the cart as it swerved and threatened to overturn.

“Under the hay! I put them there!” Chelsea screamed back.
“The swords! Use the swords!”

Morag dropped Aldiss with a bump. “Help me look, they're here somewhere!” she instructed him and Bertie as the cart swayed and jolted with the wolves snapping at the wheels. The three friends began to scrabble at the hay, throwing it up and over the side. Some of it landed on the face of the lead wolf, who snarled it away. Morag pulled up the hay in handfuls as her friends rooted for the weapons.

“What's this?” Aldiss squeaked, tugging something with his teeth. Morag helped him lift a long heavy object that was covered in a sack cloth. She threw the cloth off and uncovered two swords with long gleaming blades. Grabbing one and swaying dangerously from side to side, Morag got to her feet and tried to hold it steady.

“Come and get it!” she cried as the lead wolf growled at her, saliva dripping from its lips.

No sooner had the words left her mouth than the cart smashed into a knotted tree root in the road. Morag was thrown into the air and crashed into Bertie and Aldiss on the floor of the cart. They heard the sound of splintering wood as the wheels buckled beneath them. The cart tilted and Aldiss was swept off, clawing and squeaking, toward the wolf's ravenous jaws. Bertie dove forward, caught Aldiss's tail in his beak and yanked him back just as the wolf's fangs snapped together in midair.

With a terrible crack the shaft gave way, crashing the cart and releasing the terrified horse. It reared up out of its restraints and galloped off into the forest.

The wolves surrounded the cart as Morag helped Bertie and Aldiss to their feet and checked that Chelsea was all right. Clasping the sword tightly, Morag looked unblinkingly into the wicked eyes of the lead wolf. She could have sworn it was actually grinning at her. With her heart beating furiously, she brandished the sword, daring it to attack. The wolf licked its lips as it sized her up. As Bertie and Aldiss looked on, terrified, Morag stood still and held her sword steady. She knew that if they ran, they would be hunted down and torn to pieces. They had a better chance of survival if they stayed and fought.

The wolf edged a few steps closer, its fur raised and its lips curled back in a bloodthirsty growl. Snarling and snapping, it readied itself to launch at the girl.

“Oh no you don't!” a voice called.

The wolf jumped when a large, green scaly body bounded into the clearing.

“Shona!” cried Morag.

The wolf growled and bared its large teeth.

“Is that the best you can do?” Shona snorted. “Now, I will give you one chance to leave my friends alone.”

The wolf turned from Morag and began to circle the dragon. It paused, threw its head back and howled. Its hunting call was enough to bring the others, and before Morag knew what was happening Shona was surrounded. The dragon held her ground as the wolves gathered round her.

“Leave now or you'll be sorry!” she warned.

The lead wolf crouched to pounce, muscles quivering.

“Aaaaa​rrrrr​rrrrr​rrr!” the dragon roared as she unleashed a torrent of flames and smoke.

For a moment the air turned white with fiery heat. Then the smoke cleared, leaving a ring of stunned wolves with blackened, hairless muzzles. The leader blinked, sneezed and scurried yelping into the forest, its tail between its legs. The rest of the pack followed, burnt and smoking.

“Well,” said Shona to her astonished friends, “
they
won't be bothering us again.”

“You got here just in time,” beamed Bertie.

“I was nearly eaten!” cried Aldiss.

“Are
you
okay?” Shona asked Morag. The girl nodded and put down her sword. “Thank you,” she said. “Another moment and they would have had us for dinner.”

“I thought it would be best if I held back for a bit,” Shona explained. “So I could take them by surprise when their attention was focused on you.”

“Now what?” asked Henry from around Morag's neck.

“The horse is gone and the cart is destroyed.”

“Now we walk,” replied Morag determinedly as she jumped to the ground. “I'm not going to let a bunch of wolves stop us.”

She set off in the direction of the castle but stopped when she realized the others weren't following. “Are you coming?”

“It's such a long way,” began Aldiss, still quivering.

“And we're only little,” added Bertie, looking at Shona hopefully. “I don't think we can walk that far, especially Aldiss, who is the littlest of us all.”

The dragon rolled her big yellow eyes and sighed. “Get on,” she said, crouching to allow the animals to clamber onto her back. “Morag? Chelsea? Do you need a lift too?”

Chelsea, who was quiet and shaking after their scare, was about to say yes, but was interrupted by Morag, who was determined to get there under her own steam. “No, we're fine. We'll walk,” she said. “Are you coming, Chelsea?”

Annoyed that she was going to have to walk, Chelsea sullenly joined Morag and together the girls led the little band of friends through the forest.

The walk was long and hard, and wasn't made easier by the worsening weather. It grew colder and a sea wind started to howl through the trees, causing Aldiss to squeak with fright.

Morag pulled her hood up, tucking Henry under her
collar to keep him warm. She stuck a frozen hand in her pocket and felt the reassuring shape of her missing parents' book. The familiar pang of sadness swept over her and she wondered where they were and if they were thinking about her. A flurry of snowflakes broke through the canopy of trees and landed on the sleeves of her coat. Normally snow would have delighted her, but this time she felt exposed, without warmth or comfort, and knew a heavy snowfall could be dangerous for them all, especially the cold-blooded Shona.

“How much farther?” the dragon panted. She was shivering and had fallen behind.

“Not far,” Chelsea assured her. “We'll be there soon enough.”

“Look! Over there!” Morag cried. “The castle!”

Through the trees they saw the tall turrets in the distance, their flags guttering in the wind. The castle was still far off, and it was another hour before they saw it again between the firs. It still looked formidable. The fortress of gray stone was pocked by narrow windows that glittered in the dimming light. Red banners hung from the ramparts were whipped by the vicious sea winds. High above, giant guards marched back and forth on unending patrols, carrying sharp pikes across their shoulders, their eyes vigilant for attack. Huge wooden gates held the castle's occupants inside and kept intruders out. These too were guarded by four giants standing to attention.

“There's no way we'll get past them,” Morag confided to Henry.

“Don't worry,” he told her. “There
will
be a way.”

“What are you whispering about?” Chelsea asked.

“I was just wondering how you are going to get us into the castle,” Morag replied. She studied Chelsea to see how she would react. She was not sure the girl would keep her promise.

“Oh, that's easy,” Chelsea replied. “There's a door at the side that not many folk know about. It was supposed to be an escape route if the castle was ever attacked. It never has been, so no one's ever used it and it's been forgotten about. Except by me. I'll go through the main gates and open it for you. You should get in without being seen.”

Chelsea's plan seemed too simple for Morag's liking, but it was their only hope, so she agreed to it.

“And you'll stick to your part of the bargain?” Chelsea asked, searching Morag's face for any signs of duplicity. “You'll take me with you when you leave?”

“Yes. I promised, didn't I?”

Before Chelsea could reply they were interrupted by a howl washing over the forest. Chelsea turned a deathly white. The sound continued, growing deeper, stronger, closer.

BWWWA​AAAAA​AARRR​R!

“What's that?” Morag asked.

“The—the—Girallons. They—they're out hunting!” Chelsea squealed. “That's their horn. We must hide! They'll kill us if they catch us!”

BWWWA​AARRR! BWWWA​AAAAR​RR!
The horn sounded over and over, its tone flat and baleful. It rumbled through the forest like an elephant on the rampage.

“Quickly,” Morag urged. “Hide in the bushes!”

Aldiss disappeared with a leap, and Bertie scurried under a shrub, but Shona was having some difficulty. She was quite large for a pygmy dragon, and it took her some frantic moments to find a bush large enough. Morag ran to the other side of the track and threw herself behind a fallen tree. She glanced up and saw Chelsea still standing in the pathway, frozen with fear.

“Chelsea! They'll see you!” Morag called, but the girl seemed not to hear. Morag scrambled to her feet and raced to her side. She seized Chelsea's arm, yanking her off the path. Although Chelsea was trembling, she did not resist and followed Morag to the hollow tree trunk. She crawled in first and Morag followed, just managing to hide herself as a group of hunters burst through the trees. She could hear the heavy pounding of their feet as they approached. A gruff voice barked an order and the hunters stopped just feet from them. Pressed against each other, Chelsea was curled up with her eyes shut tight.