Arthur Quinn and the World Serpent Read online

  ‘How about some dessert?’ Ash’s mum said, clearing away their dishes. ‘Some ice-cream?’

  ‘No thanks,’ Arthur said.

  ‘Really? It’s Triple Choc Swirl.’

  ‘No, it’s all right, Mom,’ said Ash, ‘we have homework to do.’

  ‘That’s a first,’ joked her dad as the three of them bounded up the stairs to Ash’s bedroom.

  ‘How’s your dad?’ she asked Arthur, shutting the door behind her.

  ‘The same,’ he replied. He sat down on her bed next to Will.

  ‘And are you sure it was Loki?’ she said.

  ‘Of course it was Loki!’ Will said. ‘Who else could it have been?’

  ‘He’s right,’ Arthur said. ‘It can’t be a coincidence. What about you two? Any luck with what we talked about?’

  Will and Ash looked at each other.

  ‘A little bit,’ Ash said. ‘Are you sure you want to go through with this tonight?’

  ‘Of course I am.’

  ‘Well it’s just … it’s so soon after your dad –’

  ‘I’ve never been more ready for anything, Ash.’

  ‘Okay. Well I found this.’ She handed him a computer printout from her desk.

  Arthur looked at the confusing graph. It looked like a map or blueprint but he didn’t know what of. He raised his eyebrows quizzically at her.

  ‘It’s a map,’ she explained, ‘of the Metro site. Do you see those red squares? They’re storage containers; it’s where they keep all their equipment. And that container I’ve marked with the “X” is the one with the dynamite.’

  ‘Wow,’ he said, impressed. ‘This is great. Where’d you find it?’

  She blushed slightly. ‘I hacked into the Citi-Trak website and got access to their internal server. It was all pretty easy. I also made us these …’

  She threw a torch into his lap. The seams had been sealed tightly with duct tape.

  ‘Waterproof flashlights,’ she explained, ‘just in case.’

  ‘These are great,’ Arthur said, admiring her work, ‘but hopefully, if we time it right, we won’t need the waterproofing.’

  ‘That shouldn’t be a problem,’ said Will. ‘We’ll have about three and a half hours. I checked in the school library. I remembered they have this book that I saw before, called the Almanac or something. It predicts the weather for every day of the year, stuff like that. And it also tells you the times of the tides. The tide will be at its lowest in the Poddle at 4.05 in the morning and it’ll start flooding in again at 7.23.’

  ‘That should be lots of time,’ Arthur agreed.

  ‘So we were thinking,’ Ash said, ‘if we sneak out at two in the morning, it’ll take about an hour to get to Usher’s Quay, giving us another hour or so to break in and “borrow” the dynamite.’ She preferred to say ‘borrow’ rather than ‘steal’, even though she didn’t imagine they’d be bringing it back.

  ‘Sounds good to me. We should get some sleep soon then.’

  As they continued to work out the finer points of their plan, none of them heard the creak outside Ash’s bedroom door. And none of them noticed Max, his ear pressed to the keyhole, listening to every word they were saying. And coming up with his own plan.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Beep-beep-be–

  Ash switched off her alarm clock midway through the third ring. She turned on the bedside lamp and rolled out of bed, already fully dressed. Arthur and Will were climbing out of sleeping bags on her floor, both also in warm clothing and both rubbing sleep from their eyes. No one spoke as they readied themselves and left the house, taking each step carefully to avoid creaking.

  The night sky was cloudless – no doubt part of the reason that it was so cold – and the moon hovered brightly above the city. They went around to the side of the house where Ash had hidden two bicycles earlier in the evening; Arthur was going to ride Stace’s bike, which she rarely used any more, with Will sitting on the crossbar. This arrangement worked out well since Will had never learned to cycle. He was carrying a backpack on his shoulders as they got onto the

  bikes.

  ‘What’s in there?’ whispered Arthur, tapping the bag.

  ‘School uniforms and stuff. I figured we’d have to go straight from the tunnel.’

  ‘School really wasn’t on my list of priorities. But good thinking all the same,’ Ash said in a low voice as they rode off.

  Cycling through the quiet city at 2 a.m. on a Wednesday morning was an experience Arthur wouldn’t soon forget. The route they’d mapped out took them down side streets and back alleys. They chose this rather than the busier main roads to avoid being spotted by any curious gardaí. All was silent and still. The only thing Arthur saw moving the whole way to Usher’s Quay was a fox scavenging in some bins. As the bikes approached, the fox looked up, its eyes shining green under the streetlights, and ran off into some nearby bushes.

  A high wall, constructed from chipboard and painted with a repeating pattern of the Citi-Trak logo, ran around the entire perimeter of the Metro site. They skidded their bikes to a stop along the gravelly, unfinished path and surveyed the wall.

  ‘How will we get over?’ Ash wondered out loud.

  Will got off the crossbar and pointed to a rubbish bin by the side of the road. ‘We can stand on that and pull ourselves up. We should be able to make it.’

  Just then, a third bike skidded around the corner next to them.

  ‘Hi guys!’ said Max, bounding off the bicycle happily.

  Ash let her own bike crash to the ground. She grabbed him and shook him by the shoulders. ‘What are you doing here? Did you follow us?’

  Arthur pulled her away, allowing Max to explain himself.

  ‘I heard you talking about going out. So I just hid in the hallway and followed you here. I almost lost you. You’re a fast cycler, Arthur.’

  ‘Max,’ said Ash, kneeling down to get eye-to-eye with him, ‘this is dangerous. Really dangerous. You have to go home.’

  ‘He can’t go home on his own, Ash,’ Arthur reasoned.

  Will laid his hand on her shoulder. ‘He can come in with us. We’ll take care of him. It’s safer than making him wait out here or going home alone.’

  ‘Really?’ she sneered sarcastically. ‘Is it really safer?’ She took a deep breath, considering the options and quickly realised that, although she hated to admit it, Will was right in a way. It would be very unsafe for Max to cycle all the way home on his own at this time of night in what could be a dangerous city – if something happened to him there would be no one around to help him. And they couldn’t leave him on the site: the security guard might find him and that would blow all their plans. Reluctantly she realised they had no other option than to take him along. ‘All right. I guess we don’t really have a choice. Max, stay close to me at all times. And don’t touch anything.’

  ‘I won’t,’ he promised.

  She looked him straight in the eye again. ‘And if something happens, just get out of the tunnel and run straight to the security guard on the site. Okay? Get help.’

  ‘I will,’ he said, starting to look a bit scared. ‘Don’t worry.’

  They locked their bikes and clambered onto the bin one by one. Will went first, balancing precariously on the top of the wall to help Max over. They were quickly followed by Ash, then Arthur was the last to vault over the wall. He landed heavily on some dried mud. Ash was already consulting the map, working out the best way to reach the storage containers without being caught by security.

  The work lights mounted on thirty-foot poles throughout the site cast their shadows deep and dark as they scuttled towards the storage area. Finding their way around the site had been easier than they’d thought and locating the storage units was even simpler than the confusing map had hinted. On their way they passed the prefab office they’d been in on their school tour. The lights were on inside. Arthur waved to the others to duck down. He put his finger to his lips then walked sideways like a crab, inching h
is way along the outside wall of the office. His fingers gripped the edge of the windowsill and he cautiously pulled himself up then peered into the office. The young engineer, Ruairí, was inside. He was keeled over at one of the desks, fast asleep. His head rested on a pile of plans and blueprints and drool from his mouth slowly dripped onto the paper. He held a half-eaten fried chicken leg in his left hand while his right arm was wrapped around a cardboard bucket of chicken pieces.

  Arthur turned back to his friends. ‘It’s okay,’ he whispered, ‘he’s fast asleep.’ They crept past the prefab and on towards the storage area.

  ‘This is it,’ said Ash, as they came across the rows of containers. The one marked on the map with the dynamite was the centre container in the third row. Arthur shone his flashlight on the shut door. The word ‘danger!’ was painted there. It was like a warning for the rest of the night.

  ‘Great,’ he muttered sarcastically when he saw the thick padlock that was keeping the door shut.

  ‘No problem,’ said Will, pulling a long instrument from his backpack. It consisted of a pair of steel blades at the end of two long arms. Joe owned a tool just like it: a bolt-cutter. Will positioned the blades over the lock then the four of them pushed the arms together. It took quite a bit of effort but they managed to snap through the lock.

  The entrance swung open with a loud, rusty screech. Arthur’s torch wasn’t strong enough to light up the inside properly, so Will switched on his flashlight as well, illuminating the interior of the container. Wooden crates were stacked neatly against the back wall. ‘Warning!’ was painted across each box in bold red letters, ‘explosives’.

  ‘Guess we’re in the right place,’ Arthur said, taking a large canvas shopping bag out of his backpack. They started filling the bag with the bright red sticks of the explosive.

  ‘Who’s there?’ someone called from outside. ‘Is someone in there?’ It was Ruairí. The screeching of the container door must have woken him. It sounded like he was still a little way off and was probably just outside the office prefab. Arthur looked at Ash, Max looked at Will, then they all looked at each other. None of them so much as took a breath.

  ‘Hello? I heard something. Who’s there?’

  Arthur frantically pointed at the bag of explosives and then to the door. He kept his finger to his lips so they’d know to be quiet. He picked up a handle of the bag but it was so heavy that he could barely budge it. Will took the second handle and, between them, they carried it out into the night air, their feet treading as lightly on the gravel as they could. They could hear Ruairí’s approaching footsteps.

  As Arthur and Will carried the bag in the opposite direction to the footsteps, Ash and Max carefully pushed the container door shut. They all winced as it creaked slightly, and Arthur turned and waved for them to leave the door and just follow him.

  All four of them managed to tiptoe around the side of the last container just as Ruairí entered the row.

  ‘What’s this then?’ he murmured to himself when he saw the half-open container. ‘Is somebody there?’

  They pushed themselves against a container wall, each too afraid to even blink. As Ruairí slowly approached the open door, his footsteps grew louder. In the tense silence Arthur could hear his heart pounding loudly in his ears.

  When Ruairí got to the container, he eased the door open and peered carefully inside, ready to jump back quickly if anyone took a swing at him. Upon finding it empty save for the wooden crates, he pushed the door all the way shut. It made a slamming sound that echoed all over the site.

  ‘Huh,’ he said to himself, ‘must have just been the wind.’ Someone should really make sure these things are closed and locked properly, he thought. Looking around one final time but seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he proceeded to walk back to the office – and his bucket of fried chicken. Arthur counted a full two minutes in his head before he turned to the others and nodded. As silently as they could, they all lifted the bag and started to retrace their steps. As they returned through the corridor of containers, they slunk further into the shadows. When they passed the office, they weren’t surprised to find Ruairí asleep once more. They hurried on.

  ‘Do you think we have enough?’ asked Ash, looking into the bag between them.

  ‘I guess we’ll know when we get down there,’ answered Will.

  ‘Get down where?’ asked Max as they walked towards the dark opening to the Metro tunnel.

  The drill lay dormant in the tunnel when they got there. Max ran to it for a closer look but Ash briskly called him back, reminding him of his promise to stay close. They rested the bag of dynamite beside the grate to the Poddle. Will prised it open. Straight away, they could smell the familiar stench and feel the cold air rising. Shivers ran up Arthur’s spine at the memory of his last visit to the river. Ash leaned in for a closer look. Her hand rubbed against his. He looked up at her, surprised. She blushed then went to move back but he took her hand and squeezed it once. She smiled in gratitude and Arthur let her go.

  ‘Scared, Max?’ Will asked, stepping back from the hole in the ground.

  ‘No,’ replied Max, his eyes wide and fearful. He was beginning to regret his decision to join his sister and the two older boys on their night-time adventure. ‘I’m not scared of anything.’

  Will took a rope out of his backpack and handed it to Arthur. He then climbed down the ladder first, as Arthur and Ash tied one end of the rope to the bag with the dynamite.

  ‘Ready!’ Will shouted up. The others twisted the rope around their arms and slowly lowered the bag of explosives down the shaft. Even Max took up the slack at the end and gave a hand.

  ‘Slowly, slowly!’ Will yelled up again. ‘Okay, I have it!’ He guided the bag onto the damp stone floor then looked back up. ‘Come on down.’

  They climbed down, first Arthur, then Max and lastly Ash, Will shining his flashlight up the shaft to make it easier for them to see the rungs of the ladder. Max didn’t complain once on the way down and Arthur and Ash were relieved that he seemed to be taking it all in his stride. Arthur assumed that he was just happy to be spending time with them and made a mental note to play with Max more after this was all over – that was if they all made it out. He quickly pushed that thought away.

  They all switched on their torches. The improved lighting didn’t show up much of interest apart from a clearer view of the brick walls. The water was just above ankle height and already soaking into their socks. Arthur checked the time – it was 3.52, which gave them over three hours to get out before the place flooded. They started walking down the tunnel, now familiar with the slippery terrain. Arthur and Will carried the heavy bag between them.

  ‘Don’t let it get in the water,’ Arthur warned. ‘I remember Dad saying that it made dynamite useless.’

  Before they knew it, they’d reached the fork in the tunnel. Again, they took the stone tunnel leading to the right. With the flashlights, Arthur could make out the strange carvings on the wall. The pendant was, as always, in his pocket and, even without its power hanging around his neck, he knew what the runes said. He’d written it himself in class thanks to the pendant: ‘beware the jormungand’. It really was just like the ‘warning’ sign on the explosives container.

  ‘Wow,’ Max said, noticing the runes. ‘This place is kind of creepy.’

  ‘Are you okay?’ asked Ash. He nodded with a smile but still reached for her hand. She held it tight. ‘I’ve been wondering, why did the Vikings divert this part of the Poddle underground?’ said Ash.

  ‘It was the only way they’d be able to transport the Jormungand,’ Will explained. ‘It’s massive, remember, and very heavy. Easier to move on rafts. And then, I guess, when the engineers made the rest of the tunnel during the last century they just left the Viking part as it was.’

  ‘That would explain why the other part of the tunnel seems newer,’ Arthur said.

  They continued further than they had the last time, although Arthur had travelled this far in his
vision. He recognised the carvings on the wall and looked ahead for the turn to the right that he knew should be coming up. His heart pounded faster as he thought of the men who’d travelled down here a thousand years ago to keep the Jormungand imprisoned.

  ‘It’s just around the corner,’ he said.

  ‘What is?’ asked Ash.

  ‘Wherever the Jormungand is. I saw it in that vision in class.’

  They cautiously turned the corner and came face to face with –

  ‘A dead end!’ Ash exclaimed.

  They rushed forward to the stone wall ahead of them. It was indeed a dead end: a completely solid rock surface with the same runes carved deep across it. But aside from those and a small groove in the centre, the wall was smooth and seamless. A drain to the left made a soft trickling sound as the the water from the Poddle escaped.

  ‘We came all the way here for nothing?’ cried Ash in dismay.

  ‘No,’ Arthur said, ‘it can’t be. In the vision, they went down the tunnel, turned the corner and went through here.’

  ‘Arthur, look,’ said Will, pointing at his jeans’ pocket. When Arthur looked down, he was shocked to see it was glowing green. Or, rather, the pendant inside was glowing green. He took it out. It was glowing brighter and more vividly than it ever had before. He studied the dead end again. He put the pendant up to the letters and it glowed brighter still. Then he moved it closer to the groove in the wall. The green light pulsed off it rapidly.

  He pushed the pendant into the groove – it was a perfect fit. He counted in his head to ten but nothing happened, so he tried turning it left and then right, but still nothing happened, so finally he pulled the pendant out and dropped it back into his pocket, dejected.

  ‘Guess we’ll have to try something el–’