by Steve Cole
“Come on, lads, let’s get out of here!” cried Tonka, shaking Iggy off his leg. His mammoth wrecking crew were already speeding for the exit, ears pressed down against their heads and trunks rolled up tight as the dimorphodon hit them on the bottom with their own shovels.
Teggs and Iggy threw Marvin after them. “Don’t forget to take your rubbish home with you!”
Marvin landed with a mammoth thud. Tonka crossly helped him up. “You haven’t won, Captain,” he snarled. “You’ll see!” Then they both vanished through the door.
“Iggy, take the dimorphodon and Alass and get after them,” said Teggs. “I’ve got to get to Aggadon and rescue Gipsy and Abbiz!”
“Yes, sir.” Iggy saluted and charged off with Sprite and his flock.
Teggs galloped off to the lift and returned to the flight deck, where Arx and Chas were working at the controls. “Thanks for sending the dimorphodon down to help us!” he said.
“I was listening in to your conversation,” Arx explained. “And don’t worry, I’m already taking the Sauropod back into Aggadon’s orbit.”
Chas nodded. “We must get Abbiz and Gipsy back safely.”
“Is there any way we can stop that wrecking-ball moon?” asked Teggs.
“There’s just one chance,” said Arx. “The mammoths are steering it by remote control. If we can only make a stronger remote control, we can steer away the moon harmlessly into deep space.”
“Can you do that, Arx?” Teggs asked hopefully.
“No,” Arx admitted. Then he patted Chas proudly. “But luckily Chas here is a remote-control expert, remember?”
“Of course!” exclaimed Teggs, remembering the remote-controlled dinner-bots in the camp canteen.
“I’m on the case,” Chas promised, holding up a homemade gadget with wires hanging out. “Working as fast as I can!”
Just then, the alarm pterosaur gave a piercing squawk. “Intruders retreating! Mammoths pushing off!”
“They gave up very easily.” Teggs frowned. “They had us on the run before.”
But suddenly the Sauropod went BOOM! It shook like a star had gone supernova at its centre. Teggs staggered about as the ship started to spiral and spin and alarms went off everywhere. “What’s happening?”
Iggy’s heartbroken face appeared on the scanner screen. “Those evil mammoths must have hidden a gravel-grenade in the engine room, set on a timer. Now it’s gone off and demolished the engines!”
“No wonder they were in a hurry to get back to their ship,” Teggs realized. “Can you fix the damage, Iggy?”
“It’ll take ages,” said Iggy. “And we don’t have ages. Without engines, we’ll start falling out of the sky!”
Teggs felt his stomach lurch as the Sauropod started to dip.
“Iggy is right,” Arx shouted. “If we don’t land on Aggadon soon, we will crash into it! I’m losing control!”
Chas almost ate his own hat with fear. Just then, the lift doors swooshed open and the dimorphodon flew back inside. They went straight to their stations to help Arx land the stricken Sauropod.
Teggs gave a crooked smile. They hadn’t given up yet, and neither would he. As the ship zoomed wonkily down to the planet’s surface, he staggered over to Gipsy’s loudspeaker. “Attention, crew!” he shouted. “Hold on tight. This landing is going to be a bit bumpy!”
The dimorphodon couldn’t keep the ship in the air a moment longer. WHAM! It dropped like a stone, deep in the overgrown heart of a far-reaching forest. Trunks splintered. Leaves exploded into the air like confetti.
But the Sauropod landed in one piece!
The sound of cheering all over the ship carried up to the flight deck. The dimorphodon clapped their wings and whistled a joyful tune.
But then a woolly face with a long rubbery trunk zapped into sight on the scanner.
“Tonka!” snarled Teggs. “You sneaky ship-scuttler, what do you want now?”
“I’m so glad you landed safely, Captain,” said Tonka, slurping tea from a large bucket. “You see, I’m very proud of my remote-controlled wrecking-ball moon, but I’ve had to keep it secret. Now you, your crew and your rotten little parakeets can admire it for yourselves – close up!” He sniggered. “That moon will come crashing down on your heads in precisely ten minutes. You will be squished, Aggadon will be crushed, we’ll suck up the slodge and be on our way.” He waved at them with his trunk. “Enjoy your last moments, astro-fools. This time there is no escape!”
Chapter Ten
REMOTE OUT-OF-CONTROL!
“We’re not beaten yet,” cried Teggs as the scanner went dark. “Chas, how’s your special remote-control thingie coming along?”
Chas was working furiously. “There! It’s finished.”
“Then let’s get outside,” said Teggs, hooking his tail round Chas and dragging him into the lift. “Quick!”
Together with Arx, they ran to the ship’s main hatchway, picking up Iggy on the way. Once there, to Teggs’s delight he saw two familiar faces waiting to greet him – and an awful lot of giraffes.
“Gipsy! Abbiz!” he cried. “It’s great to see you.”
There were quick hugs all round. “We were feeding the giraffes in the forest when we saw you make a forced landing,” Gipsy explained. “We came running. What’s going on?”
“And what has happened to the moon?” asked Abbiz, pointing up at the sky.
Teggs turned, and a spine-chilling tingle ran through every armoured plate on his back. The moon very nearly filled the whole sky. It looked like a giant glowing green bowling ball about to flatten them.
“The mammoths are behind everything,” Teggs explained. “That moon is really a remote-controlled wrecking ball. And only Chas can stop it.”
Chas switched on his strange device. “I hope to send a more powerful remote-control signal that will let me steer away the runaway moon.” He pulled out the aerial. “Here goes!”
Everyone watched as he switched on the device and pointed it at the wrecking ball.
But nothing happened!
“Is it broken?” asked Gipsy.
“I don’t think so.” Chas groaned. “It must be these tall trees all around us, blocking the signal!”
“There are only five minutes left before the moon hits!” cried Teggs. “We must get out of this forest, and fast!”
“That will take ten minutes at least,” said Abbiz quietly. “We’ll never make it.”
“Then I guess it’s all over.” Arx sighed, hugging Abbiz close. “The mammoths win after all.”
Everyone waited in tense, helpless silence as the moon loomed ever-larger overhead.
“It’s the giraffes I really feel sorry for,” said Iggy unexpectedly. “First they were abandoned by the space circus. Then they were kidnapped and dressed up. Now they’re going to be squashed flat by a mammoth moon. What rotten luck!”
“Space circus?” Gipsy frowned. “Whatever would giraffes be doing in a space circus?”
“Acrobatics, apparently,” said Arx. “According to space records, Joko – the owner of the circus – was a genius at training all kinds of animals . . .”
Then, even as he spoke, six of the giraffes grouped together in a line, so that five more could jump on their backs! The dinosaurs gasped as four more giraffes scrambled up onto their backs. And then three more did the same . . .
“Bless my horns!” said Arx. “They really are acrobatic giraffes. Joko was a genius. Look, they’re making a giraffe pyramid!”
Iggy led a round of applause. “Show us another trick!”
“Wait!” Teggs shouted. “Don’t you see? The giraffes at the top are taller than the trees! If we could only work the remote control from up there, nothing could block the signal!”
“I’ll do it,” said Gipsy, taking the device from Chas. “I’m the lightest here.” And before anyone could argue, she started to climb up the pile of giraffes.
Abbiz spoke soothingly to the animals and they held very still for her. Some of the
m even licked Gipsy as she went – they trusted her because she had been kind to them. Up she went, treading as lightly as she could, heading for the very top of the giraffe pyramid.
But the ground was starting to shake as the moon got nearer and nearer. Gipsy struggled to keep her balance as she climbed up onto the back of the highest giraffe.
“Quickly, Gipsy!” Teggs yelled. “Try it now!”
Gipsy switched on the device and wiggled its joystick. “It’s no good! It still won’t work!”
“Keep trying!” he urged her. “It’s our only chance!”
In desperation, Gipsy held the remote high above her head. Teggs gulped. She and the giraffes looked tiny, silhouetted against the great, green moon. Could the extra height she had gained make any difference at all?
YES, IT COULD!
Suddenly, with a sound like the screech of brakes, the mighty wrecking-ball moon stopped in its tracks. It grew no bigger, and the ground stopped shaking.
“It’s working!” hooted Gipsy excitedly. “Look, I can steer it! Wheeeee!”
Everyone gasped as the moon started to move about above them – first in a circle, then in a figure of eight.
“Er, very good,” Chas called nervously. “But can you press the big blue button? With any luck, that should put the moon into reverse!”
Gipsy did as he asked. “Here goes!”
And with a whooshing, swooshing noise, the moon began to fly away from them. It seemed to grow smaller and smaller as it retreated faster and faster. Then it started to judder and wobble about, like it wasn’t sure which way to go.
“It must be getting out of range,” murmured Chas. “Our signal and the mammoths’ signal are mixing together, and scrambling its circuits.”
Suddenly Teggs’s communicator beeped. Tonka’s voice rang out furiously. “Oi! What d’you think you’re doing? Give me my ball back.”
Teggs grinned and shook his head. “If you can’t play with it nicely, you can’t play with it at all!”
“That moon’s going mental!” Iggy cried. “Look!”
The bogus moon jerked about like invisible hands were tugging it this way and that.
And then . . . it blew up!
For a moment the whole sky burned brightly. Then a million green fireworks were left hanging in the sky above them, mingling with the stars.
“It worked!” Teggs murmured, barely able to believe it. “It actually worked!”
“We’re safe!” whooped Abbiz, bouncing around with glee. “The whole planet is safe again!”
Chas beamed. “We may not have one big moon any more – but we’ve got hundreds of little ones to make up for it!”
“Well done, Chas!” roared Iggy. “And well done Gipsy and her amazing performing giraffes!”
Everyone clapped and cheered madly. Gipsy jumped down from the top of the pyramid and Teggs made sure he caught her. She gave him a big, happy hug as the giraffes scrambled down from each other’s shoulders and took a bow.
But then Tonka’s voice crackled over Teggs’ communicator. “You will pay for spoiling our plans like this!” bellowed the maddened mammoth. “Now we’re going to whizz over and wreck you – ARGHHH!”
“I don’t think they will!” Arx grinned, holding his own communicator to his ear. “The dimorphodon tell me that a big lump of that exploding moon has crunched into Tonka’s flashy spaceship! The mammoths are spinning out of control – and out of this solar system.”
“Wrecked by their own wrecking ball,” said Teggs happily. “Serves them right!”
“Shame I never got a chance to thank Tonka,” said Iggy, much to everyone’s surprise. “I won’t need the shuttle to take all the triceratops back to their camp any more – now we’ve landed, they can walk!”
Abbiz smiled. “Thanks to you, we’ll soon have this planet up and running,” she said. “And then, who knows? Perhaps I’ll join the Astrosaurs Academy and go on my own space adventures – just like Uncle Arx!”
“You’ll be a star,” Teggs predicted.
“Just don’t be a moon!” joked Iggy.
“What about the giraffes?” asked Gipsy, looking worried. “What will happen to them now?”
“Don’t worry,” said Teggs. “Once Iggy has fixed the Sauropod, we’ll take them somewhere nice and quiet.”
“No need,” said Chas. “They can stay here on Aggadon as our honoured guests!”
The giraffes did backflips, and then bowed again gratefully.
Teggs grinned. “Well in that case, we’d better take away those performing circus fleas and find them a new home. Hey, perhaps I could give them to Admiral Rosso to keep as pets?”
Arx frowned. “Giving fleas to your commanding officer is never a good idea, Captain!”
“Oh? Sounds like fun to me,” said Teggs with a naughty smile. “But here’s an even better idea – the moment the Sauropod is fixed, let’s set off on another adventure.” He stared up at the starry sky and smiled. “There are a million places to see out there, and I’m itching to visit them all!”
THE END
About the Author
Born in 1971, Steve Cole spent a happy childhood in rural Bedfordshire being loud and aspiring to amuse. He liked books, and so went to the University of East Anglia to read more of them. Later on he started writing them too, with titles ranging from pre-school poetry to Young Adult thrillers (with more TV and film tie-ins than he cares to admit to along the way). In other careers he has been the editor of Noddy magazine, and an editor of fiction and nonfiction book titles for various publishers. He is the author of the hugely successful Astrosaurs, Cows in Action and Astrosaurs Academy series.
ALSO BY STEVE COLE:
Read all the adventures of Teggs, Gipsy, Arx and Iggy!
1 Riddle of the Raptors
2 The Hatching Horror
3 The Seas of Doom
4 The Mind-Swap Menace
5 The Skies of Fear
6 The Space Ghosts
7 Day of the Dino-Droids
8 The Terror-Bird Trap
9 The Planet of Peril
10 The Star Pirates
11 The Claws of Christmas
12 The Sun-Snatchers
13 Revenge of the Fang
14 The Carnivore Curse
15 The Dreams of Dread
16 The Robot Raiders
17 The Twist of Time
18 The Sabre-Tooth Secret
19 The Forest of Evil
20 Earth Attack!
21 The T. Rex Invasion
22 The Castle of Frankensaur
Read all the adventures of Teggs, Blink and Dutch at the Astrosaurs Academy!
1 Destination: Danger!
2 Contest Carnage!
3 Terror Underground!
4 Jungle Horror!
5 Deadly Drama!
6 Christmas Crisis!
7 Volcano Invaders!
8 Space Kidnap!
Meet the time-travelling cows!
1 The Ter-moo-nators
2 The Moo-my’s Curse
3 The Roman Moo-stery
4 The Wild West Moo-nster
5 World War Moo
6 The Battle for Christmoos
7 The Pirate Moo-tiny
8 The Moo-gic of Merlin
9 The Victorian Moo-ders
10 The Moo-lympic Games
11 First Cows on the Moon
12 The Viking Emoo-gency
If you can’t take the slime, don’t do the crime!
1 The Fearsome Fists
2 The Toxic Teeth
3 The Cyber-Poos
4 The Supernatural Squid
5 The Killer Socks
6 The Last-Chance Chicken
7 The Alligator Army
8 The Conquering Conks
Visit www.stevecolebooks.co.uk for fun, games, jokes, to meet the characters and much, much more!
ASTROSUARS: THE PLANET OF PERIL
AN RHCP DIGITAL EBOOK 978 1 448 17354 9
Published in Great Brita
in by RHCP Digital,
an imprint of Random House Children’s Publishers UK
A Random House Group Company
This ebook edition published 2013
Text copyright © Steve Cole, 2007
Cover illustration by Dynamo Design © Random House Children’s Books, 2010
Map visual © Charlie Fowkes, 2007
Illustrations by Woody Fox, copyright © Random House Children’s Books, 2007
First Published in Great Britain by Red Fox in 2007
The right of Steve Cole to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
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