3 Shipwrecked!

CHAPTER Three Shipwrecked! Eric's world went black and bubbly. No! he thought. This can't happen! I can't sink! He clawed at the icy water, trying to reach the surface. Then the waves opened above him. Eric lifted his head out of the water. His fingers felt something soft. Was it… sand? Yes! It was sand. Eric scrambled up onto it. He sucked in a deep, deep breath. He opened his eyes. He was on land, on a beach. He was alive. "Julie! Neal! Keeah!" he called out.

No answer. Eric looked to his left. All he saw was the beach stretching away until it curved out of sight. He looked to the right and saw the waves splashing against piles of rocks. Ahead of him was a thick jungle full of odd-shaped bushes and tall trees. A dark haze hung over the treetops. The whole island was covered in fog. "What is this place?" he said to himself. Splursh! Another wave crashed against the nearby rocks. Something tumbled onto the sand. Eric ran to the rocks. The waves had washed up some broken boards and a torn piece of cloth. They were from Keeah's ship. Next to them, half covered by sand, was… "The golden chest!" Eric gasped. With the Eye, he knew, anything was possible. Maybe he could use it to find his friends. Maybe even to fight Sparr. But where was Galen? Where was everybody? Carefully, Eric lifted the chest from the sand. He opened it. But instead of finding the black glove with the red stone, flames jumped up at him. "Ahh!" Eric cried, nearly dropping the chest.

Suddenly the fire changed. Before his eyes the fire became hundreds of snaky creatures, slithering over one another. They gleamed red, then silver, then red again. Sometimes they looked like flames. Sometimes they looked like rippling ropes of water.

"Don't eat us-s-s!" the creatures pleaded.

Eric set the chest carefully on the sand. "I'm not going to eat you. But… who are you?" Many tiny silver heads twisted toward him. "We are s-s-silfs. We have lived-d-d for centuries in the ss-seas of Droon. Demither-r-r is our queen." The sound the creatures made was more like singing than speaking. Their bubbly voices sounded as though they were talking underwater. "Demither sank our ship," said Eric. "Sparr has put a curse on her-r-r," one silf sang. "She must do things she doesn't want to-o-o. The Eye will give Sparr even more power-r-r." Eric shook his head. "The Eye was lost at sea." "No!" the silfs sang. "It is on this-s-s island. This is one of Demither's-s-s many islands." "The Eye is here?" Eric asked. "Where? I have to find it. I have to help Princess Keeah get it to Jaffa City." Thwomp! Thwomp! A deep thumping sound came from down the beach. "Hide," the silfs cried. "Ninns-s-s are coming!" "Wait," Eric called out. "Help me find my friends. And tell me where the Eye is!" "If we can-n-n help you, we will-l-l…." The creatures turned fiery red, then silver. Then they slid over the sand and away into the waves.

Thwomp! Dozens of heavy, red-faced warriors came marching slowly up the beach. "Ninns!" Eric gasped. "I am out of here!" Eric ran quickly into the thick jungle. Strange and wild plants slapped him in the face as he raced. Slippery yellow vines coiled down from above and dangled in the paths. The Ninns' thumping got louder. Eric ran faster. Suddenly the ground turned soft beneath him. "Huh?" He stumbled and fell. Fwit! A sticky web surrounded Eric like a sack. It pulled tight around him. He couldn't get out. Then the sack—with Eric inside—flew into the air. It went up high into the yellow trees. "Please, no!" he yelled. "Help, I'm trapped!" He couldn't escape. Thwomp! Thwomp! The Ninns marched closer.