Children of Tartarus
Milkshakes and Dragons
By
Clark Merchant
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Published by: Clark Merchant
Copyright © 2011 by Clark merchant
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This book may not be reproduced or copied. This book may be distributed in a non-commercial manner only, unless written permission from the author has been granted. This book is for reading and entertainment purposes only and may not be changed in anyway unless by the author.
Copyright © 2011 by Clark Merchant Children of Tartarus Milkshakes and Dragons. All rights reserved. This story is a work of fiction and a product of the author’s imagination. Resemblance to any actual person living or dead is purely coincidental
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Children of Tartarus
Episode One
Milkshakes and Dragons
Chapter One, Dark and Mysterious
“Ah!” “What?” Kelly asked Bella. “Nathans eye has fallen out.” Kelly swung around to get a look at Nathan. Bella was right, Nathans eye had fallen out.
Nathan was really worried. It was his favourite eye and he now realised how much he needed both. “Oh crap” he said cupping his eye in his hands and swinging himself backwards and forwards. “Maybe you should try to push it back in” suggested Steph. The three of them were now giggling away at his expense. Bella turned to Steph and whispered “I didn’t want to say anything, but he has been starting to smell a bit.” Steph unforgivingly let Nathan know just what Bella had said, “She says you smell Nathan” “What? No I don’t” He replied still cupping his eye and now muttering pitifully. Kelly butted in “yeah you do.” Nathan soon received another round of giggling. He’d had enough, “Okay, shut up. I’m going to try push it back in.” He tilted his head upright and gave his dangling eye socket a good push. The eye returned to its place.
Just as Nathan was coming to his senses, someone approached from within the forest. “You’re one of the undead” said the stranger. The four of them found themselves creeping closer to each other with every step the stranger took. Slowly he came closer and closer towards them. He was dressed in black and had short black hair. Tall, dark and mysterious - his eyes were a whirling array of green, red and blue. If you really stopped to look at them you would be sure to think the colours moved and twisted with the changing of his moods. The stranger stood in front of Kelly and Bella’s old house. He stared intensely into Steph’s eyes. Kelly couldn’t help but notice something familiar about him. She stepped forward, still not very sure of herself, She muttered “Connor. Is that you?” The stranger answered with a nod. It was certainly Kelly and Bella’s long forgotten brother. Bella’s memories were also starting to come back, as Connor soon found out when she shouted angrily, “you so stole my toast when I was five.” After Bella was finished shouting at Connor, she followed with a sharp kick to the shin. So much more painful now she had a new found ability to kick properly.
Connor’s super cool and mysterious appearance was over. As he hopped around holding his shin in pain, he began to explain why Nathan smelt, and why his eyes were falling out for no reason what so ever, “as I was saying. Nathan has obviously taken something that doesn’t allow him to die. He has then gone and died without letting whatever he used, know about it. His body was transferred here, but unlike the rest of you, he wasn’t allowed to die. Hence a living soul in a dead and rotting body.” He paused for effect, and then he added “He is one of the undead.” Nathan in a single sentence explained the rest, “The fountain of youth.” It wasn’t long before Bella simplified matters further. “So, Nathans an idiot, and now we have to save him.” “Yes” replied Connor. “How?” asked Kelly. Connor sat down letting the rest of them copy him. He began to explain “Nathans body is going to keep rotting if we don’t act soon - so I need you all in on this.” Bella looked over at her home and gazed for a moment. She couldn’t help but think of how nice it would be to have her mother hold her in her arms again, or to have her father bring a surprise present home from work again. The truth was, any life Kelly and Bella once had was no more. No one lived at that house anymore, and even if they could find their parents, who is to say they would remember them. Kelly and Connor was all Bella had left. That was her family and she would stick by them. Kelly nodded at Connor. Steph did so too, before slipping awkwardly into a more comfortable position and batting her eye lashes at Connor. Nathan was obviously in, and now Bella had also made up her mind. Connor continued to explain the plan “Okay great. Nathan just needs to be reborn. Normally a simple swim in some holy water would do the trick but you happened to have drunk from the waters of Tartarus. We need to get our hands on the Holy Grail. Drink from that and you’ll be your sweet smelling self again.” Kelly glanced lovingly at Nathan before she stopped herself from ;-) him, realising his face had began to show signs of rotting already. Connor finished off by saying “We need to get transport. Let’s take a walk in the forest shall we?”
Chapter Two
Dragons
The following morning and after a horrifying journey through a pitch black forest, Bella followed Connor, Nathan, Kelly and Steph up a very large hill, in a very large field, pulling broken twigs from her hair. She had collected them under protest whilst walking through the forest. In fact she would be protesting now if it wasn’t for the threat of storm clouds up ahead. She knew that if she said something like, I can’t believe this, how could it possibly get any worse. It would start raining. So she was keeping her mouth shut.
Connor was first to reach the top of the hill, followed by everyone else. They stood staring in ore of what they could see. Mouths gapping open, Kelly stepped forward. “Okay - that’s cool.” She said leaving everyone else lost for words. Connor turned to Kelly with a smile then said, “Betsy’s her name - and she is all yours. I heard about the ship. I know how much you loved it – I mean her – the ship that is.” “That’s a spit fire – I mean a real aeroplane” Steph said whilst looking very shocked. “Oh yes it is” answered Nathan. It stood proudly facing the sun with its nose turned up. The chrome propellers reflected light beams across her body, making her racing green colour shimmer with life. Along the side was Betsy written in flames. Kelly walked silently towards her and stroked the side of Betsy’s belly. It was almost as if Kelly could sense her breathing. “Umm, Shotgun” said Nathan. “No way, I’m sitting in front” objected Bella. Connor stood between them before Nathan lost another eye, “There is an extra two seats behind the drivers. Either way it’s going to be a bit of a squeeze. I wouldn’t worry too much. Betsy has a way of making things work.”
Nathan ran towards Betsy laughing loudly as Bella followed behind screaming “I hate you, at the top of her lungs.” Soon after the two of them had squashed in and fought over seat belts and smells, Steph seized her moment of opportunity and sat down on Connors lap. Kelly was strapped in ready the fly too. She knew how, but the hill looked much too steep to take off, so she turned to Connor for help. Connor replied with “Just push the big button shaped like a flame.
Kelly pushed the button without a second thought. A great loud groaning noise came from within Betsy. Everyone went silent. Bella was getting a little bored. She looked out of the window and sighed. Just then Betsy reared up as if alive. Bella screamed. It wasn’t over. During the next few seconds Betsy the spitfire transformed herself into a beautiful green dragon and flew off into the clouds above, with Bella clutching to her back and screaming loudly into Nathans ear. His eye came out again.
After everything had settled and they all were other the fact that Kelly had an awesome transformer Dragon, Connor began to explain the plan, “Okay guys we need to go to Salisbury. There is a Cathedral there. That’s where we will find the Grail. It shouldn’t be too hard.” Betsy looked back at her new master and Kelly stroked her head as they headed off into the sun set.
Chapter Three
Milkshakes
Night had fallen by the time Betsy had landed them safely outside the cathedral. She transformed once again. This time into a fantastic golden bracelet covered in mysterious and ancient carvings, made up of dragon text. This was quite mundane compared to the giant crystal resting in the middle. It looked remarkable like Betsy’s eye. Kelly put the bracelet around her wrist as Steph and Bella stared with their jaws dropped wide open, trying desperately to hide their jealousy. “Okay let’s go” Whispered Kelly. They all followed her through the massive cathedral doors and down through the nave. That’s fancy speak for the aisle in the middle of the chairs. They got only half way when Bella felt a hollow slab under her foot. “Stop!” She shouted. The team quickly ran to check out what Bella had found. “That’s it” said Connor. He added “the Holy Grail is down there – Come on.” Connor looked around for some kind of leaver hoping to ply open the slab. He turned back from his search, only to find the girls and Nathan had already lifted the slab and put it to one side. They were ready to venture inside. He couldn’t help but ask “How did you do that?” “Fingers” they all answered together casually.
They all peered into the hole, looking down at its endless blackness. “Okay Bella – you first” said Kelly. “What - Why me? There could be spiders you know.” “Because you’re the bravest” answered Steph. Connor puffed out his chest and said “I’ll go – it was my idea” “be careful” said Steph. At that very moment Bella pushed Nathan who was leaning over the hole a bit too far. Down he fell. All you could hear was a shi sound as he disappeared into the black. Kelly was not pleased with Bella and gave her a look that could kill. Bella tilted her head innocently, smiled and said “What, it’s not like he isn’t dead already.” “That’s not the point” Kelly said angrily. “Guys – I’m fine just jump, it’s totally cool – and Bella, I’m going to kill you” said a voice from within the hole. Bella quickly retorted “You can’t - I’m a girl.” Just as Nathan was mumbling, “Yeah – one that kills werewolves and Piemaker’s by the hundreds.” Steph had, had enough and somersaulted straight into the hole landed elegantly at the bottom missing Nathan by an inch. The rest of them soon followed down into the dark.
“Anyone got a light?” Bella asked. Connor pulled a torch from his coat and led the way. “Don’t worry guys it’s just a corridor we will have the Grail soon” he said. Steph asked “How do you know all this?” Connor smiled whilst ducking beneath a cob web, he said “I helped build this place around two hundred A.D.” Bella sharply cut in “No you didn’t. You weren’t even born then.” “No, I was born in 1995 but I got sent back in time when I escaped Tartarus – That was about six thousand years ago. – I tell you, it’s been a hell of a long wait.” Connor answered “Bull” shouted Kelly “you’re not a day over fifteen. You always did make crap up.” Connor decided to ignore Kelly’s comment and continued leading them on.
They had stopped and Connor shone his torch towards a stone podium resting at the end of the path. On top of it was a large glass holding in it, a Banana milkshake and a red straw. “There it is” said Connor. All of them looked at Connor like he had gone mental. Except Bella, who jumped straight forward, grabbed the shake and took a large slurp, just before Kelly snatched it straight off her and turned to Connor enquiring “have you gone mental?” Connor Answered “It’s not the Holy Grail – it’s the entrance to the temple of the Grail. You drink from it and then you get transported.” Kelly wasn’t convinced “I’m not convinced.” Connor replied “It only takes the worthy.” Bella was not happy about that and snatched the milkshake back off Kelly, taking another sip. Nothing happened. Kelly snatched the milkshake back and added “See, not worthy.” She turned to Connor and asked “So who’s worthy then?” Connor replied “Don’t know – we have to try one at a time.” “I’m still not convinced.” Kelly took a sip of the milkshake and passed it to Connor. Just as the milkshake glass left her hand, she froze stiff with her hands to her side and fell backwards hitting the floor with a thud. The rest looked bewildered and stared at the now frozen and unconscious Kelly. Nathan couldn’t help but say “Can I just point out that the Holy Grail is a Christian relic and Tartarus is form Greek myth?” Connor now looked at Nathan like he had gone mental. After a moments silence that seemed like an eternity Connor answered with a tone that would make anyone feel like a fool “It’s thousands of years of history Nathan – stuff gets mixed up.”Nathan looked a Kelly lying helpless on the floor and muttered “alright, no need to get moody” as he thought of where Kelly might be and whether or not she was in danger. Nathan cared deeply for Kelly. He really did.
Chapter Four
Tickets Please
Kelly found herself falling towards the ground fast. She tried to correct herself but hit with a massive force. It wasn’t like when she had fallen in to Tartarus. This time it hurt and she lay in pain for some time. She finally stood up and brushed herself off. It was hot now. Very hot compared to the cold Cathedral she was used to. The bright sun ate at her eyes and her body felt looser and more nimble, just like in Tartarus. She could feel the Sun’s rays warming her bones and relaxing her mussels. The knees and shoulder she had cut during the fall began to feel a little better and had stopped stinging her. She waved her hands at a passing fly and let her eyes adjust to the light. The floor was made of hard red gravel around her were a few trees scatted throughout the landscape. But what was more striking was the ruins of an ancient palace just up ahead.
Kelly headed toward the palace and soon caught site of a small turn style with a crudely written sign saying ‘Out of order.’ Beside the turn style was an elderly fat man sat on an old box fanning away the flies with an even older newspaper. Kelly walked up to the man and stood staring at his paper. The title was Hades Times. The man placed the paper on his lap and said to Kelly “Ticket?” He placed his hand out expecting a ticket. Kelly raised her hands and said “I don’t have a ticket.” The man grew angry and started saying “Ticket, Ticket. No Ticket, no admission.” His accent was implacable but clearly English was not the language he was used to speaking. Kelly was getting scared. She drew her sword from behind her back and pointed it at the man’s throat. Little did she know, this wasn’t going to be as easy as waterloo station. “Okay, dick head. Let me pass” said Kelly still holding her sword to his throat. The man stood up slowly as he did this he grew larger and larger with every second. Before Kelly knew it, the man now turned into a giant, kicked her with massive force. Kelly flew back at least fifty feet. She landed on her feet but slid backward for sometime before managing to stop herself. She took another look at the Giant. His skin was turning green and hard and his two eyes had now become one larger than life fiery red eyeball that could only belong to a Cyclops. Metal armour covered his already hard and scaly skin and a massive sword hung from his waist. Kelly muttered to herself “Shouldn’t be too hard he says – I’ll kill him.” She took up her sword and charged as fast as she could towards the Cyclops, thirsty for the kill. “Ah!”
To be continued...