Epos the Winged Flame Read Online Free PDF Page A

it might plug the fiery heart of the volcano — and ruin Malvel’s plans.
    “You are too late, boy,” came an icy whisper. “Your Quest ends here.”
    Tom spun around to find that the sinister, hooded figure of Malvel had reappeared on the plain in front of him.
    Then Epos came swooping down from the rim of the volcano. Tom saw two red eyes glaring down at him. The Beast’s giant beak snapped open. Her dark, glowing wings unfolded, and her talons glinted in the dim, crimson light.
    The flame bird lunged forward, ready to tear Tom to pieces.

C HAPTER N INE

T HE F IRES OF D ESTRUCTION
    W ITH A GRUNT OF EFFORT, TOM THREW himself out of Epos’s path. The Beast was going too fast to stop and crashed into the rock face. Tom scrambled back up.
    Tom tried to escape from the ledge. But Epos was too fast. She lashed out with one wing and caught Tom on the back of the neck. Tom gasped as he was knocked forward, landing with a thud. Before he could rise, Epos grabbed him with her enormous beak. Tom shouted out with pain — it was like being gripped in a vice. Then the Winged Flame flung him to the ground. Every muscle ached. His body burned with bruises.
    But still he forced himself back to his feet.
    Tom stared as Epos hovered above him. Even in his fear, he found the giant flame bird a breathtaking sight.
    Suddenly, Epos dropped down and grabbed Tom’s chest in her huge talons.
    Tom cried out in pain as the giant Winged Flame began to squeeze, crushing his ribs.
    “Look at the great young hero,” Malvel sneered. “You are as weak as your father.”
    “You’re not fit to speak of my father,” Tom gasped. He wrestled with Epos’s claws, trying to weaken the Beast’s grip. The pain was incredible, and the world was starting to spin. “I believe in him,” he said through gritted teeth, “as I believe in the Beasts’ right to be free!”
    Epos’s grip on Tom grew tighter still. The ground groaned and shook as the volcano prepared to explode.
    “And I believe,” Tom croaked, clutching
    desperately at the Beast’s leg, “that it’s my destiny … to beat YOU!”
    Tom’s right hand — the one on which he wore his father’s chain mail gauntlet — closed on the locked golden band around Epos’s neck.
    To Tom’s amazement, it tore through the band as if it were wet paper. He stared at the scraps of gold in his hand.
    Epos let go of Tom and shrieked. It was a noise like the earth’s core cracking open. She shook violently, thrashing her wings, then rose up gracefully into the air, released at last.
    “No!” bellowed Malvel, backing away. “It is not possible!”
    Then Epos flew straight at Malvel, grabbing him with her lethal talons and lifting him up above the volcano.
    “This is not the end, Tom!” Malvel screamed. “We shall meet again!”
    Epos held the dark, struggling figure above the flames exploding from the mouth of the volcano.
    Then the Dark Wizard disappeared in a haze of white light, and the Beast’s talons were left clutching empty air. Had Malvel’s dark magic destroyed him? Or had he somehow transported himself to safety? Tom didn’t know.
    With a rasping shriek, Epos plunged down inside the volcano. Tom heard the echoes of the shriek hang in the air for a few moments. Then they too were gone.
    “I’ve done it,” Tom murmured. His body was burned and bleeding, but he couldn’t stop smiling. “Whatever has happened to Malvel, his plans have been defeated — because I’ve set Epos free!”
    Just then the ground bucked beneath him, and a split opened up, belching fire and thick yellow smoke. Tom sat up in sudden terror. This was notime to congratulate himself. The volcano was about to blow. The kingdom of Avantia was still in danger!
    Panting for breath, Tom stared at the steep slope of rock shielding him from the fiery force of the volcano. So many cracks were running across it, and he remembered his desperate plan. If he could topple all that rock, it just might plug the