Cyrus LongBones and the Curse of the Sea Zombie
Chapter 40

THE END?

CYRUS’ BODY SAGGED with relief. The vessel began to take on water. Great clouds of raging steam swirled and wound with the black smoke. Cyrus breathed deep. They would not have to turn back, and Rorroh could not follow them.

He watched for a long time as the boat burned, slowly slipping deeper and deeper beneath the sea.

He could not believe he had done it. Somehow Fibian had been right. Cyrus had defeated the Sea Zombie. He could never have done it alone, but he had done it.

He thought of his home. He thought of his brother Niels, of Sarah. He missed them so much. He thought of his stepmother and Hoblkalf. He pictured the villagers. They had caused the island to cave in and had blamed him for it. They had run him off, tried to murder him. But was it really their fault? By Rorroh’s own admission, wasn’t she truly to blame? Was it not she who had first murdered the very giant his people had called home? Was it not she, all those generations ago, who had haunted and terrorized his people, confused and disfigured their past, made them petty and weak?

Cyrus had been chased from his own home. He had been run off, right into Rorroh’s child-eating grasp. If it had not been for Fibian, he and Edward would surely be dead.

But they had not died. They had escaped, escaped to a once two-headed dragon. They had made a deal with the beast. If the dragon would fly them north to the Yeti Kingdom, Cyrus and company would rid the seas of Rorroh’s tyranny.

It had been a fool’s bargain, and in the end, they had been double-crossed. Instead of being taken to the safety of the yeti, they had been dropped in hostile territory, surrounded by the blood-sucking klappen. And to make things worse, Cyrus and Edward had lost their leader. The only one who knew what to do, the one that had taught them everything, gone, captured by those vile creatures.

But somehow, Cyrus and Edward had discovered the klappen’s lair. And somehow, even after learning of Rorroh’s presence, they had found the courage to go in after their friend. And Fibian had been right. Not only did the dragon’s blood not kill Cyrus, but it also saved his life. When all hope was lost, it mended his broken body. It gave him strength beyond any he could imagine. He had fought Rorroh hand-to-hand, eye-to-eye, and he had taken her head…

He thought of his broken bones and felt his nose. What had once been narrow and straight felt jagged and scarred. His nose had healed, but would forever be marked. A small price to pay compared to what Fibian had lost.

And what of Edward? Edward had thrown himself at the witch and attacked her without fear or mercy. Cyrus drew the small spider from his pocket. He stroked the blue skull-and-crossbones marked across his now white fur. Would he live? Would he ever be the same?

Cyrus thought of Rorroh, lying in pieces on the floor of that savage torture chamber. According to Fibian, she was not dead; could not be killed. That meant she was coming; would never stop coming, until Cyrus’ people were enslaved in her soulless hell.

Cyrus gritted his teeth and felt a low ache in his mended jaw. He would die before he let that happen. He would give every last piece of himself before he let Rorroh take another life from him.

Cyrus walked to the mast, untied the rigging and set the mainsail. They were heading out into the North Sea. They would weather whatever the winter sea could throw at them. They were going in search of the Yeti Kingdom, the giant hune, and they were going to rescue Cyrus’ people. And if Rorroh got in their way, he would cut her up into so many tiny pieces that even the Angel King would not be able to make her whole.

There was only one problem with Cyrus’ plan. He did not know how far the Sea Zombie’s crippled grasp reached, did not know how far her lies and curses had traveled on the wind. For if he did, maybe, just maybe, he would have chosen a different path by which to replace their wayward hune. Instead, Cyrus had set a course for sure disaster, and Rorroh’s vengeance grew ever near.

*

Greetings adventure seeker, from the treacherous, frozen north.

It’s your independent, underdog author here, Jeremy Mathiesen, hoping that you’ve enjoyed Cyrus LongBones and the Curse of the Sea Zombie.

Reviews are how I get the word out and keep this old, dusty typewriter tapping. If you could click here and leave just a couple of words, I would be mightily grateful.

GET A SNEAK PEEK AT BOOK 2:

Cyrus LongBones and the Yeti Kingdom

BOOK 3:

Cyrus LongBones and the Battle Hune