Monster Madness Read Online Free PDF

what type of artifacts the remaining two Named possessed, but he did know that if all four of them got together on Earth, they could use their artifacts together to summon a creature they called “The Fifth.”
    “What is it, exactly?” Violet asked.
    “We don’t yet know,” the Headmaster replied. “But if the Named want to bring it here, it must be a monster of unimaginable evil.”
    “Then we’ll monkey-stomp it!” Theodore blurted.
    Everyone turned to him.
    “Zipping the old lip, now,” Theodore said, laughing uneasily. He pretended to zip his lips and throw away the key.
    “The entire plan,” the Headmaster continued, “hinges on Slagguron and Tyrannus being able to escape from the Nether to join Barakkas and Verminion here on Earth. Right now, the Guardian is the only thing preventing that from happening.”
    “What’s the Guardian?” Charlie asked.
    “A very unusual creature with a very unique ability: Any monsters that come near it are instantly crippled. It protects a weak spot between our world and the Nether called the Anomaly. Slagguron and Tyrannus are desperate to come through the Anomaly to Earth, but as long as the Guardian is there, they can’t.”
    “What I don’t get,” Violet said, “is what all of this has to do with Dangeroos stealing kids.”
    The Headmaster turned to her. “That’s quite simple. Just as the Guardian is poisonous to monsters, humans are poisonous to the Guardian. One touch from a human is enough to kill it.”
    “Which is why we think the Named plan to steal kids during their nightmares,” Tabitha added, “and then bring them near the Guardian.”
    “Of course!” Theodore exclaimed. “Then the kids will run to the Guardian for protection. If they touch it, they’ll kill it, and Slagguron and Tyrannus can escape to Earth through the Anomaly! That’s brilliant!”
    Violet stared at him, aghast.
    “In a totally sick and evil way, I mean.”
    “Well, here’s the million-dollar question,” Rex said, scratching the stubble on his chin. “Are we too late? What I mean is, have ol’ Slagguron and Tyrannus gotten to the Guardian already?”
    “Let’s find out.” The Headmaster walked to the center of her study. Her white dress flowed behind her, highlighting her lovely dark skin, the color of burned caramel. She held out her right hand. Purple flames instantly crackled across her.
    “What’s she doing?” Theodore asked.
    Charlie shrugged. “No idea.”
    Rex drew his gleaming short sword. “Y’all might want to step back—this could get ugly.”
    Charlie knew from experience that when Rex said something could get ugly, it could get really ugly. He, Theodore, and Violet stepped back.
    “Be ready,” the Headmaster said darkly. With startling ease, she opened a large portal. Through it, Charlie could see sharp, mustard-colored crystals glowing gloomily in the Nether.
    “That’s the 5th Ring,” Theodore whispered. “Why did she open a portal to there?”
    Before anyone could venture an answer, a Class-5 Silvertongue scuttled through and into the Headmaster’s study. It looked like a giant scorpion, its poisonous stinger raised high above its head, ready to strike. Rex’s short sword glowed brightly blue as he moved toward the monster to fend off an attack, but before he even got near it, the Silvertongue shrieked in agony and then dropped to the floor of the study, shuddering.
    “What’s happening?” Violet asked.
    “That’s what the Guardian’s aura does to monsters of the Nether,” Tabitha replied. “That’s how we stay protected from them—no Nethercreatures can get to us here at the Academy as long as the Guardian is healthy.”
    That left one giant question: How did the Guardian’s aura protect the Academy? The Academy wasn’t in the Nether and certainly wasn’t anywhere near the Guardian—or at least Charlie didn’t think it was—so how did the Guardian’s aura reach it?
    As Charlie pondered that, Rex walked up to the