2. The Land of Living Trees

CHAPTER Two The Land of Living Tress "Now I know what they mean by plant food," Neal groaned as the tree holding him swung around. "And I think we're it!" Julie's tree shook her up and down. "I promise I'll never eat a vegetable again. Just let us go!" But the trees didn't let go. They swung the kids high over the ground. "Oo-oo-oo-oh!" Eric moaned. "I feel si-i-ick!" The branches only coiled more tightly around him. He felt his strength slipping away. "This can't happen!" he cried, gasping for breath.

"This is Droo-oo-oon," Neal cried. "Anything can happen!" "I wish Keeah and Galen were here," Julie yelped. "They'd make these trees act like trees!" At that moment, the sun began to rise. Golden light slanted across the treetops. Suddenly, the trees lowered their branches. They loosened their grip, and the children slid to the ground. The trees coiled back to their original shapes. And went completely still. It was a quiet circle of trees once more. Eric scrambled over to his friends. "Are you guys okay?" he asked. "Ask me later," Neal coughed. "For now, let's just get out of here." "I agree," Julie said, rubbing her arms where the branches had clutched her. "That sure was a Droonian moment." Eric pointed to the lake at the bottom of the hill. "Let's get down there. Fast!" They hurried to the sandy shore. The lake water glistened like glass. A light breeze rose off the surface. "Peaceful," Julie said. "I wonder where—" Splish! Splorsh! The center of the lake began to bubble. Neal stepped back. "Okay, now what?"

The water splashed. A small round eye pierced the surface. Then a long curved neck. "Now—we hide!" Eric said, pulling Neal and Julie facedown in the sand. "Sppp—ah!" Neal spit out sand as he looked across the water. "Terrific. Weird eyeball, long neck. This means only one thing. Sea serpent!" "It's a lake," said Julie. "Lake serpent!" Neal cried. Soon, a body rose from the water. It was green and short and stubby, about the size of a small car. Sunlight flashed off its wet side. "That's not a serpent," Julie said. "It's a…" Vrrrm! It rumbled up onto the beach on fat green wheels. It lurched to a halt in the sand.

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"A lake serpent with wheels?" Eric said. Boing! A hatch on the side popped open. A head appeared. Then a face. The head had bright orange hair that stood straight up. In the middle of the face was a little pug nose. "Max!" Julie exclaimed, jumping up and running over to the green machine. Eric nudged Neal. "You were so afraid. Can't you tell the difference between a serpent and a submarine?" "Afraid?" Neal shrugged. "I call it being careful." Max clambered down from the hatch. He saluted with three of his eight legs. "Your favorite spider troll—at your service!" He tapped the side of the sub. Boink! Boink! Two more heads appeared from the hatch. One was a young girl with long blonde hair. She was wearing a jeweled crown. The other was an old man with a long white beard and frizzy hair. "Princess Keeah! And Galen!" Eric said. "Boy, are we glad to see you guys!" "As we are to see you," Princess Keeah said. "You've come just in time to help us again." "But we almost didn't make it," Neal said. "Some trees attacked us!" "Then the sun rose and they let us go," Eric added.

"But mostly, I had the greatest dream," Julie said. "I even had a crown!" Then she told them all about it. "Time will tell what it all means," Keeah said. Galen smiled. "And what do you think of my latest invention? I call it my Below-Water-Motor-Powered-Transportation Vehicle." Neal frowned. "You mean… a sub?" "Sub?" Galen looked quizzically at Neal. "I like that name. Sub. It certainly saves time." "Which is good," Max chirped. "Because our time is running out. We're on a mission to find Lord Sparr!" "Come aboard," Galen told the children. "I will explain." A moment later, the three friends joined Keeah, Max, and Galen inside the small ship. "Very cool!" Eric said as they took seats in a small round cabin. A control panel circled the front wall under a large window. Max took hold of the controls. He pushed a large green button. Motors whirred behind them. The small ship rumbled down the beach to the water. "We're on our way to Panjibarrh," Keeah said. "It's where the terrible giant, Zor, is supposed to have been buried. Lord Sparr is there." "Dive, Max!" Galen commanded. "Dive!"