The Mysterious Island

  Title Page

  Dedication

  1: The Storm

  2: Wings Over Water

  3: Shipwrecked!

  4: Trapped … with Friends

  5: Attack of the Icky Bugs

  6: Groggle Mountain

  7: The Glove of Power

  8: Cave of Bugs

  9: At the White Cliff

  10: A Ship Reborn

  The Adventure Continues …

  Also Available

  Copyright

  Keee-kkkk! Lightning crackled and flashed outside the windows of Eric Hinkle’s basement.

  But he and his friend Julie could only look at the soccer ball in the corner.

  Boooom! The thunder two seconds later told them the storm was only a couple of miles away.

  “Neal is going to freak out when he sees,” said Eric. Neal was Eric and Julie’s friend.

  Julie stared over his shoulder. “I’m freaking out already,” she said. “Let’s call him. His eyes will bug out. He’s got to see this — now.”

  The two friends ran up the basement stairs to the kitchen. Eric picked up the telephone and punched in Neal’s number. Another flash of lightning made the phone crackle in his ear.

  “Hello, Neal?” Eric said when his friend answered. “You’ve got to come over right away.”

  “Are you kidding? There’s going to be a humongous storm in five minutes,” Neal replied. “Besides, I’m getting ready to eat. It’s lunchtime.”

  “It’s always lunchtime for you,” Eric said. “Forget food, Neal. This is important.”

  Neal sighed. “It’d better be, for me to pass up one of my mom’s tuna fish sandwiches. I’m coming.”

  After Neal hung up, Eric and Julie glanced out the window. The sky was getting very dark.

  Eric began to smile. “Good day to hang out in my basement.”

  “You mean, hang out in Droon,” Julie added.

  Eric chuckled. “Of course that’s what I mean.”

  In Eric’s basement there was an entrance to another world.

  A world that Eric, Julie, and Neal kept secret. The mysterious and magical world of Droon.

  Droon was a place where a good wizard called Galen Longbeard and a young princess named Keeah battled a very evil sorcerer by the name of Lord Sparr.

  Droon had all kinds of strange creatures, too. Galen’s assistant, Max, was a spider troll, half spider, half troll. He could climb up anything and spin sticky webs with his eight long legs.

  And then there were the Ninns. They were Lord Sparr’s nasty, red-faced warriors who flew around on big lizards known as groggles.

  And a witch named Demither. And —

  Boom-ba-boom! The sky flashed outside, and thunder boomed just as the back door opened.

  “Yikes!” Neal charged into the kitchen. “I think that storm followed me!”

  Eric opened the basement door. “No time for talk. Everybody downstairs.”

  The moment they got to the bottom of the stairs — kkkkk! — the basement flashed white, and — ba-boom! — the walls rumbled, and — splish! — rain splashed hard against the house.

  “Hello, storm,” Julie said.

  “All right,” said Neal, stepping into the basement. “What is more important than tuna fish sandwiches?”

  “That.” Eric pointed to a corner of the basement. The soccer ball — Julie’s soccer ball — was sitting on the workbench.

  Actually, it was sitting above the workbench.

  It was floating in the air.

  “Whoa!” Neal gasped. “I repeat — whoa!”

  “Not only that,” Eric said. “You remember the first time we went to Droon and the soccer ball came with us and then it did that magical thing when we came back? Well, Julie and I were looking at it before, and —”

  “Shhh!” Julie whispered. “It’s doing it again!”

  By the glow of the ceiling light they watched the ball begin to change.

  The black and white patches moved slowly across the surface of the ball. The patches became the shapes of countries. And the ball itself became a globe of another world.

  The world of Droon.

  “It means we need to go,” Julie said, looking at her two friends. “What else could it mean?”

  “Last time, our dreams told us to go to Droon,” Eric said. “But this is different. I think it’s a sign from Keeah.”

  Neal took a deep breath. “What if something bad is happening? What if Lord Sparr is, like, attacking Keeah? Or Galen?”

  Kaaa-kkkk! The room flashed white. The lightbulb in the ceiling flickered and dimmed.

  “There’s only one way to find out,” Eric said.

  Doom-da-doom! Thunder exploded overhead.

  “Hurry before the power goes,” Julie added.

  Eric felt his heart race as they went to the closet under the steps. Just like the other times, he pulled the door open and turned on the light.

  They entered the small room.

  Where are we going this time? Eric wondered.

  So far, the stairs had never taken them to the same place twice. And the stairway always faded and reappeared in a new part of Droon.

  That was just one of the secrets of Droon.

  Julie shut the door behind them. Neal flicked off the light. The room was dark for an instant.

  Then it wasn’t.

  Whoosh! The floor vanished, and a long flight of colored stairs shimmered into place.

  “I love that!” said Eric.

  A sudden, cold wind blew into their faces.

  “Whoa!” Julie said. “Hold onto the railing.”

  “Hold your nose!” Neal said. “I smell fish!”

  “Seawater!” said Eric. “The stairs are over an ocean or something. Maybe we should go back.”

  But even as he said that, it was too late.

  Shloosh! — a huge wave of icy water splashed across the stairs.

  Eric’s feet slipped out from under him. “Help!” He clutched for the railing. He missed.

  “Eric!” Julie grasped his hand, but another wave followed the first. Eric slid off the stairs, pulling Julie with him. She grabbed for something to hold on to.

  “That’s my foot!” Neal yelled.

  Neal slipped down, too.

  Splish! Splash! Sploosh!

  The three friends hit the water hard.

  “Neal! Julie!” Eric cried.

  Tall waves leaped and crashed around him.

  “I’m here!” Julie shouted, gulping for air.

  “Something’s coming!” Neal yelled.

  A dark shape plowed across the waves. It was the bow of a giant ship.

  “Watch out for us!” Eric shouted.

  But the ship charged toward them, faster and faster.

  Suddenly the ship slowed.

  “Down sail!” boomed a deep voice above them. “Circle around! Drop a rope!”

  Splash! A thick rope slapped the surface of the water. Eric, Neal, and Julie grabbed hold of the rope and climbed up.

  The ship was huge, with red-and-yellow sails and blue wings that swept to the back.

  As he climbed, Eric read the golden letters on the ship’s side.

  “The Jaffa Wind. Jaffa City is where Princess Keeah lives. This must be her boat!”

  A strong hand reached down and helped them aboard.

  “Our friends from the Upper World!” said a man in a long blue robe, smiling at them. It was Galen Longbeard, first wizard of Droon.

  “You have come to us again,” he said. “And again we can offer you nothing but danger.”

  “We had to come,” Julie said. “The soccer ball turned into a globe of Droon. Did Keeah do that?”

  “Eric! Julie! Neal!” cried Princess Keeah, running over.
“You got my message. The magic must be working. I’m so happy to see you.” She gave them all big hugs even though they were soaking wet.

  “How can anyone be happy with that thing on board?” snapped Max. The spider troll’s orange hair stood on end as he pointed to a small gold chest on the deck.

  “Whoa,” Neal said. “The Red Eye of Dawn is in there!”

  The Red Eye of Dawn was a jewel of amazing power. Neal, Eric, and Julie had helped Keeah steal it from Lord Sparr’s volcano palace.

  “We’re going to hide it in Jaffa City,” said Keeah. “We can use your help. Then my father and I are going to search for my mother.”

  “You can count on us,” said Eric.

  A strange witch named Demither had told them that Keeah’s mother was alive. But, like Demither herself, Queen Relna was under a curse.

  Galen nodded. “But Sparr will do whatever he can to stop us. It is his angry heart that makes the Red Eye so dangerous. Come, we must hurry.”

  Kersplash! Icy waves crashed against the sides of the ship as it gathered speed once again.

  “With two wizards aboard we should be safe,” Eric said, looking at Galen and Keeah.

  “One and a half,” Keeah said. “I’ve been practicing spells. But so far all I do is break things. Like this morning —”

  Kkkk! A sudden bolt of lightning lit up the sky.

  A dark swarm streaked across the clouds.

  “Uh-oh,” Neal said. “Unless I’m crazy, Lord Sparr has found us! And he’s not alone!”

  “Groggles!” Eric hissed. “Hundreds of them.”

  The sea bubbled suddenly like a cauldron. Waves splashed up higher and higher. Rain fell on the deck in big icy drops.

  “Looks like he is bringing foul weather with him, too!” Max snapped. “Prepare for battle!”

  The swarm of groggles flew low over the ship.

  One of the flying lizards swooped down and landed on the deck. On its back was the evil sorcerer himself — Lord Sparr.

  “Get away from my ship!” Keeah cried.

  The sorcerer snarled as he slid off the groggle. His bald head gleamed. The fins behind his ears turned from purple to black. In his hand he held a long staff.

  “Beware, Sparr,” Galen boomed. “You are outnumbered.”

  “Right,” said Julie. “And we’re keeping the jewel! So you can forget about taking it.”

  Sparr’s eyes flashed at the children. “Ah, the magic stairs brought you again? When the Eye is mine, I’ll climb those stairs to the Upper World!”

  Eric shivered. Sparr? In my world? My house?

  Without warning Sparr thrust his magic staff at the golden chest.

  Ka-blam! The box blasted open, and a black armored glove tumbled across the deck. Fitted into the glove was the Red Eye of Dawn.

  “You wicked creature!” Galen cried. “I will not let you have it!” He threw a sizzling bolt of blue light at Sparr. Ka-koom!

  But Sparr’s staff sucked up the light and threw it back at Galen.

  Then the sorcerer grabbed the glove and slipped it on. Bright red light shot from its fingertips. “Your powers are weak, Galen. Now — Red Eye of Dawn, show me your power! Create for me a sea of fire!”

  Ka-whoosh! A wall of fiery water rose up suddenly. The kids tumbled to the deck.

  “Keeah!” yelled Eric. “Do a spell!”

  “Break something big!” Julie cried. “Real big!”

  Keeah struggled to her feet and aimed her fingers at the giant mast. “Bembo — switt!”

  Suddenly — crack! — the towering mast split in half and fell toward Sparr.

  Whoomf! Sparr was slammed back against the main cabin. The black glove was thrown from his hand.

  “Yes!” Keeah shouted.

  Galen leaped across the deck. Grabbing the glove, he flung it into the golden chest and held the lid down tight.

  Sparr’s face wrinkled in horror. “That power belongs to me! Rise, O Demither!”

  “Demither?” Eric cried. “The witch?”

  The waves thundered below. A huge green serpent burst through the water. It had sawlike teeth, two powerful claws, and a long, spiky tail.

  “The witch is a sea monster now!” Neal cried.

  The serpent twisted her mighty tail around the ship and pulled tight.

  Crack! The ship’s planks began to break.

  “The hull is splitting!” Max yelled out.

  “And you will all drown!” Sparr howled, jumping back onto his groggle.

  Keeah threw a thick rope to Julie. “Everyone hold tight!” Neal lunged and grabbed the rope.

  “Eric,” Keeah yelled. “Take the rope!”

  “I can’t reach it!” he cried.

  The serpent witch lifted the ship high above the waves. She held it there for a moment and then threw it back down into the water.

  Krrrrunch! The wooden hull shattered into shreds. And the Jaffa Wind, with everyone aboard, broke in two.

  The ship sank instantly beneath the waves.

  Eric’s world went black and bubbly.

  No! he thought. This can’t happen! I can’t sink!

  He clawed at the icy water, trying to reach the surface. Then the waves opened above him. Eric lifted his head out of the water. His fingers felt something soft.

  Was it … sand?

  Yes! It was sand. Eric scrambled up onto it. He sucked in a deep, deep breath. He opened his eyes.

  He was on land, on a beach. He was alive.

  “Julie! Neal! Keeah!” he called out.

  No answer.

  Eric looked to his left. All he saw was the beach stretching away until it curved out of sight. He looked to the right and saw the waves splashing against piles of rocks. Ahead of him was a thick jungle full of odd-shaped bushes and tall trees.

  A dark haze hung over the treetops. The whole island was covered in fog.

  “What is this place?” he said to himself.

  Splursh! Another wave crashed against the nearby rocks. Something tumbled onto the sand.

  Eric ran to the rocks. The waves had washed up some broken boards and a torn piece of cloth. They were from Keeah’s ship.

  Next to them, half covered by sand, was …

  “The golden chest!” Eric gasped.

  With the Eye, he knew, anything was possible. Maybe he could use it to find his friends. Maybe even to fight Sparr.

  But where was Galen?

  Where was everybody?

  Carefully, Eric lifted the chest from the sand. He opened it. But instead of finding the black glove with the red stone, flames jumped up at him.

  “Ahh!” Eric cried, nearly dropping the chest.

  Suddenly the fire changed. Before his eyes the fire became hundreds of snaky creatures, slithering over one another.

  They gleamed red, then silver, then red again. Sometimes they looked like flames. Sometimes they looked like rippling ropes of water.

  “Don’t eat us-s-s!” the creatures pleaded.

  Eric set the chest carefully on the sand. “I’m not going to eat you. But … who are you?”

  Many tiny silver heads twisted toward him.

  “We are s-s-silfs. We have lived-d-d for centuries in the s-s-seas of Droon. Demither-r-r is our queen.”

  The sound the creatures made was more like singing than speaking. Their bubbly voices sounded as though they were talking underwater.

  “Demither sank our ship,” said Eric.

  “Sparr has put a curse on her-r-r,” one silf sang. “She must do things she doesn’t want to-o-o. The Eye will give Sparr even more power-r-r.”

  Eric shook his head. “The Eye was lost at sea.”

  “No!” the silfs sang. “It is on this-s-s island. This is one of Demither’s-s-s many islands.”

  “The Eye is here?” Eric asked. “Where? I have to find it. I have to help Princess Keeah get it to Jaffa City.”

  Thwomp! Thwomp! A deep thumping sound came from down the beach.

  “Hide,” the silfs cried. “N
inns-s-s are coming!”

  “Wait,” Eric called out. “Help me find my friends. And tell me where the Eye is!”

  “If we can-n-n help you, we will-l-l….”

  The creatures turned fiery red, then silver. Then they slid over the sand and away into the waves.

  Thwomp! Dozens of heavy, red-faced warriors came marching slowly up the beach.

  “Ninns!” Eric gasped. “I am out of here!”

  Eric ran quickly into the thick jungle.

  Strange and wild plants slapped him in the face as he raced. Slippery yellow vines coiled down from above and dangled in the paths.

  The Ninns’ thumping got louder.

  Eric ran faster.

  Suddenly the ground turned soft beneath him.

  “Huh?” He stumbled and fell.

  Fwit! A sticky web surrounded Eric like a sack. It pulled tight around him.

  He couldn’t get out. Then the sack — with Eric inside — flew into the air. It went up high into the yellow trees.

  “Please, no!” he yelled. “Help, I’m trapped!”

  He couldn’t escape.

  Thwomp! Thwomp! The Ninns marched closer.

  Eric pushed and pulled as hard as he could to break out of the sack. The more he struggled, the more he got tangled in its sticky web.

  “Get me out of here!” he cried.

  And still he was pulled higher into the yellow trees.

  “Stop making so much noise!” hissed a voice from above. “Do you want the whole Ninn army to hear you?”

  Eric stopped going up. The sack swung back and forth from a high branch. A branch someone was sitting on. “Keeah?”

  The princess smiled at him. “And Max, too.”

  “Of course!” Max chirped from the branch above. “Who do you think spun this little trap?”

  “Boy, am I glad to see you,” Eric said. He told them quickly about the silfs.

  “I’ve heard of the silfs, but I’ve never seen them,” said Keeah.

  “They told me the Red Eye is on this island,” said Eric. “We need to find it.”

  Thwomp! Thwomp! The Ninns crossed the beach and marched into the jungle right below them.

  “Galen is on the island, too,” Keeah said. “But, look —”

  In the middle of the troop of Ninns was the wizard, wrapped from head to foot in thick chains.