Creatch Battler
Page 15
The river grew rougher and louder as they entered the rapids. The murgwod darted between the rocks with ease and assurance. How many times had it gone over these falls before? Hundreds? Thousands?
The murgwod surfaced long enough for Billy to catch sight of a battered tree trunk jutting out of the water, just yards from the edge of the falls.
Gotta grab hold of that sucker. It's my only chance.
Billy jammed his klimper dart into his mouth and clenched it between his teeth, freeing up both arms to take hold of the tree trunk. He dug his heels into the murgwod with all his might, causing it to leap up out of the water as it sped toward the falls. Thrusting his arms out as far as he could, he flung them around the tree trunk just as they flew past it.
“Yyyyaaaaggghh!” Pain jolted through Billy's arms as they smashed into the tree trunk, sending splinters flying. It was pure agony, but he held on with all his might. There, no more than five yards in front of them, was the edge of the falls, roaring and churning and threatening to pull Billy and the murgwod over if he lost his grip for even an instant.
The murgwod growled its disapproval. It locked its tail even more tightly around Billy's waist, yanking on him, trying to make him let go and join it in hurtling over the edge of the falls.
No! We are not going over!
The water pounded against Billy's thighs and torso, bearing down on him like an endless avalanche. Billy's muscles were tensed to their limits. He knew he wouldn't be able to hold on like this for more than just a few seconds.
Using his tongue and teeth, he maneuvered the klimper dart into position as best he could, then stared at the spot on the murgwod's skin where he'd seen the cranial artery pulse moments before.
No time to wait until it pulses again. I'll have to do it from memory.
Fortunately Billy had noticed a slight discoloration in the skin precisely one inch from where the cranial artery lay.
This is it. Do or die.
Billy pulled his head back as far as he could and slammed the klimper dart down into the fold of flesh at the base of the murgwod's neck. Even without seeing it, Billy sensed he'd hit the bull's-eye.
GGGRRREEEEEEE-YYYYOOOOGGGHH!
The murgwod let out a piercing scream as it loosened its grip on Billy and drew its lips back into a grimace of pain. It closed its eyes, slipped under the water, and went over Urubamba Falls for the very last time.
About the Author
Mark Crilley is a senior member of AFMECT (the American Federation of Moderately Eccentric Creative Types), an affiliation his wife was not aware of when she agreed to marry him. A graduate of Kalamazoo College, he taught English in Taiwan and Japan for five years, during which time he never battled anything more frightening than a bad cold. Crilley is the author and illustrator of the Akiko series of comic books and novels for young readers and is a regular contributor to Nickelodeon Magazine. He lives in Michigan with his wife, Miki, and son, Matthew, who is extremely fond of monsters, as all good children should be.
Visit the author at www.markcrilley.com.
Published by Yearling, an imprint of Random House Children's Books a division of Random House, Inc., New York
Copyright © 2004 by Mark Crilley
Billy Clikk logo copyright © 2004 by Mark Crilley
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eISBN: 978-0-307-51423-3
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