Akiko in the Castle of Alia Rellapor Read Online Free PDF

imagined him saying with a big toothy smile. “I
told
you you were the perfect person for this job!” 
    Ten more yards to the gate. I thought there would be another robot camera thing asking us questions before we left, but it was actually much simpler to leave the castle than to get in. By merely approaching the door we somehow triggered it to open, just like an automatic door at the supermarket. We all peered out excitedly as the enormous gate began to rise, piercing the air with a rusty screeching. I had to squint as my eyes readjusted to the bright light of the outdoors. Gax made the Torg take the last few steps out into the snow, then suddenly stopped.
    “I
knew
it,” said Spuckler.
    My heart sank as I looked out the half-open hatch. It was Throck. He was standing there waiting for us.

 Chapter 10 

    HHSSSSSSSSHHH!

    He stood with his arms folded, his powerful legs ankle-deep in the snow, his black-and-gray armor every so often sending a great cloud of steam up into the pale sunlight. Behind him were more than a dozen Torgs, spread out like a battalion of tanks.
    They were armed with all sorts of guns and missiles and stuff, and every last piece of their weaponry was aimed directly at us.
    HHSSSSSSSSHHH!
    Another cloud of exhaust rose from behind Throck’s head as he savored his moment of victory. His short-cropped hair was nearly as white as the mountain peaks above him. His scar-ravaged face was scrunched up in an expression of disdain.
    “Leaving so soon?” he sneered. “Rather impolite of you, don’t you think?”
    Spuckler opened the hatch and rose to his feet. Mr. Beeba gasped hoarsely and crouched farther down on the floor of the compartment.
    “Out of our way, Throck,” Spuckler shouted without the slightest trace of fear. “We got the Prince, and we’re takin’ him back home where he belongs!”
    HHSSSSSSSSHHH!
    Throck squinted and clenched his teeth.
    “You’re going
nowhere
!” he growled.
    Raising one hand in the air, Throck ordered the group of Torgs to open fire on us.
    With lightning-fast reflexes, Spuckler pulled the hatch firmly shut. A split second later our Torg began rocking from side to side under a barrage of laser fire. With the hatch closed the compartment was pitch-black. The noise of laser blasts grew louder and louder, and our Torg shook violently under the strain. We were thrown first in one direction, then another, before finally whirling around and slamming to the ground.
    Throck barked an order and the shooting stopped.
    I lay there in the darkness almost unable to breathe. The compartment filled with oily-smelling fumes. I could feel the Prince’s face pushed up against me on one side. Mr. Beeba’s oversized feet jabbed into my ribs on the other.
    T- T- K’CHAK!
    Throck pried the hatch open and we all tumbled out into the snow. Encircled by Torgs, their weapons still smoking from the attack, we huddled together on our knees in the hazy midday light. The Prince, now wide awake, quivered and curled up next to me like a small frightened animal. Only Poog seemed unconcerned by this latest turn of events. He floated proudly above us, staring at Throck with an expression of unshakable determination.
    HHSSSSSSSSHHH!
    “I’ve got to hand it to you people,” Throck muttered, carefully directing his gaze away from Poog. “Your persistence knows no bounds.”
    He began slowly walking around us with his hands tucked behind him, circling again and again like a prowling tiger.
    “You scaled the Great Wall of Trudd. . . . You marched for hours through slush and snow. . . . You even had the
audacity
to enter this castle uninvited,” he said, shaking his head in disbelief. “You’ll do
anything
to rescue this dear little boy, won’t you?”
    “That’s right! We will!” I heard myself say, startled to realize that I was now standing up and pointing my finger right in Throck’s face. “And that includes putting
you
behind bars!”
    Mr. Beeba and Spuckler looked at