Read Book 1: The Crown Prince (The Kid Emperor of Occultoria) Page 23
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“How’d you know I could do it?” said Max.
They were hurrying throughout the crisp night air, crossing a field.
“You wouldn’t be your father’s son if you couldn’t,” said Ariel.
Max thought about his father. There was so much he didn’t know about him.
He asked, “Was my father clever? Confident? Quick-witted?”
“All of that,” replied Ariel. “I see a lot of him in you. That’s why I had confidence in you.”
Max nodded. He felt his own confidence in himself grow tenfold, especially due to his recent victory against the owners of Glutton’s cafe.
Eddie put a friendly hand on Max’s shoulder. “Great job, sire. I knew you could do it.”
The dragon spirit made no mention of his own stupidity in having eaten the fake sandwiches.
“Thanks, Eddie,” said Max.
But he was careful not to allow such praise to go to his head. He had a very important mission and he needed to focus.
“Now, which way to the Queen’s castle?” said Max.
They were now standing at a crossroads which consisted of two paths. One led far off into the distance where the moon was waiting in the horizon. The other led onto a rickety bridge.
There were two signs, but neither made any sense to most of the group.
Ariel poked Max with her paw. “Can you read that?”
Eddie said, “It’s just a bunch of gibberish to me.”
Max squinted at the signs.
The one pointing into the distance read ELTSAC S’NEEUQ.
The one pointing onto the bridge read TIRIPS EGDIRB.
At first, Max was confused.
But to Max, due to his dyslexia, he read them backwards.
That was when they made sense.
The one pointing into the distance read QUEEN’S CASTLE.
The one pointing onto the bridge read BRIDGE SPIRIT.
He pointed in the direction of the Queen’s castle. “That way!”
Unfortunately, Eddie and Ariel had already wandered in the direction of the bridge. They were only steps away from the churning water.
A nasty wail filled the air.
Eddie and Ariel stopped and glanced toward the bridge. A spirit floated up from the bridge. The hideous old man with rotting skin shrieked, his blackened teeth spilling out of his mouth. He looked so tortured.
The pair of them raced back toward the signs.
The cat leapt onto Max’s shoulder. “Your dyslexia comes in handy, doesn’t it?”
The cat was right. Max realized that his dyslexia was actually an advantage in Purgatorio. It allowed him to read backward sentences.
He smiled. He felt so competent and at home here.
The three of them continued along the dirt path until there was only one way to go: into a maze made of miniature valentine candy hearts.
They stopped. The maze reached all the way up the skies. It was so high up. They couldn’t see anything beyond it.
All around them was silence - too much silence.
Max whispered to his cat, “Where are we?”
“I think we’ve stumbled into the home of a very nasty spirit.”
“What do you know about it?”
Just then, wails broke the silence.
Strange raspy voices were saying, “I want my life back! I want my Emma back! I want my Eric back!”
Max looked around, but could see nothing.
The spirits wailed louder. It sounded like they were coming closer.
Max was beginning to get chills.
Ariel said, “I know that we should probably take our chances in that maze. Maybe the spirit isn’t home.”
So on they walked, turning corner after endless corner.
Ariel was about to speak again when they heard something rumble in the near distance.
They paused.
The ground shook in front of them.
It was as though they were at the epicenter of an earthquake.
The three of them exchanged nervous glances.
Max tried to swallow, but a lump had formed in his throat, preventing him from doing so.
Soon, the rumbling stopped, but then it started up again.
Max was about to speak when he heard heavy breathing in front of him.
There was a terrifying sound. Something roared, sounding like a fearsome and starving T- rex.
The sound made Max’s skin break out in goosebumps.
And then, deep labored breathing.
The group glanced up.
The sight that awaited them nearly made their hearts stop.