Monster War by Dean Lorey Page A

Violet said.
    Theodore snorted dismissively. “Aw, he doesn’t scare me. And he better not yell at us that way. If he tries to, I will pulverise that overgrown frog! I’ll Nether-Slap him!”
    “WHAAAAT?” The swollen head of the great creature swivelled towards the boastful boy. “What did you - crooooak! - say to ME?” With one mighty leap, the Smith cleared the forge and landed centimetres from Theodore, who stumbled backwards.
    “I, uh, I didn’t mean anything by it, sir. Or at least, I didn’t think you’d hear me.”
    “I hear EVERYTHING, boy! This is MY forge. I am the - crooooak! - SMITH!”
    “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr Smith,” Brooke said, her voice quaking.
    The Smith looked at her disdainfully. “What are youCHILDREN doing here? This is a serious place for - crooooak! - SERIOUS Banishers.” Then he noticed Violet’s axe, which glowed a dim blue. “How DARE you bring such an inferior trinket to my forge. Is it a TOY? No toys here - WEAPONS! Serious weapons!”
    “That’s what we’ve come for,” Charlie said. “A serious weapon. Maybe the most serious.”
    The Smith swivelled its balloon-like head in Charlie’s direction. Its red eyes narrowed to slits. “You’re different. There’s something ABOUT you, boy. Something…”
    “My name is Charlie Benjamin.”
    The Smith’s eyes widened. “Ah, I’ve - crooooak! - HEARD of you.” Charlie’s ego flared pleasantly, but was quickly doused when the Smith continued: “I’ve heard you’ve caused great TROUBLE. I’ve heard you’ve caused much - crooooak! - TRAGEDY!”
    “That’s not true!” Theodore shouted. “It’s all lies from people who don’t know him, people who envy him!”
    “And what say YOU, Benjamin? Is it all - crooooak! - LIES?”
    “It’s true I’ve made some mistakes,” Charlie said, “and I’m sorry for those. But I never meant to harm anyone. We came here to save people - all of us.”
    “How NOBLE!” the Smith sneered. “Please, I BEG you, how can a simple smith like me be of assistance to such a - crooooak! - WORTHY group as yourselves?”
    Charlie took a breath to steady his nerves. “We need a sword. The Sword of Sacrifice.”
    The Smith stared at him for a moment, then burst into cruel laughter. “Begone, CHILDREN, and waste my time no - crooooak! - further.” It turned to go.
    “Stop,” Charlie commanded. “I need that sword - and you’re going to get it for me.”
    The Smith turned back to him with a look of astonishment in its bulging eyes. “Oh, AM I?”
    Charlie nodded. “Headmaster Brazenhope sent me here. She said I needed the sword to slay the Fifth. She said you would give it to me.”
    The Smith grunted. “Do you know, boy, what that sword would DO to you if you were to TOUCH it?” The creature leaned in so close that Charlie could smell the sour pus that dripped down its cheeks. “It would DESTROY you. Only a DOUBLE-THREAT can wield such a - crooooak! - magnificent weapon.”
    “I am a Double-Threat.”
    “Oh, really?” The Smith seemed far from convinced. “I’d HEARD that you were, but seeing you now, I find it HARD to believe.”
    “He is!” Theodore shouted. “He’ll prove it to you!”
    “Oh, he WILL,” the Smith spat. “He will prove it - crooooak! - or DIE.”
    “Why does everything in the Nether have to end with ‘or die’?” Theodore grumbled as the group followed the Smith up a treacherous trail carved into the face of the tallest peak on the 3 rd Ring.
    “I hate this,” Brooke said, clinging to the mountain face for protection as she slowly edged her way upwards. She glanced down at the distant rocks below and turned ghastly pale. “Oh, boy, do I hate this!”
    “Move it, Brooke,” Violet said - the height didn’t seem to bother her in the least. With the sure-footedness of a mountain goat, she quickly slipped past the tall girl and sprinted up the path to join the boys.
    “In HERE!” the Smith shouted. The bloated creature stood at the