Astro-Knights Island

POPTROPICA

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ISBN 978-0-448-46199-1

Chapter One

Strange Disks in the Sky

Cock-a-doodle-doo!

Simon Cobb groaned at the sound of the rooster's loud morning crow.

If he had a pillow, he would have pulled it over his head, rolled over, and gone back to sleep. But the young stable boy slept on a thin mattress stuffed with straw, without a pillow or even a blanket. Besides, he didn't want to be late for work. That always put Edmund, the stable master, in a bad mood—and working in the stable was bad enough without Edmund stomping around.

He yawned and stood up, brushing a strand of brown hair from his eyes. The rooster strutted through the hut's open door and stared at Simon with accusing yellow eyes.

“Give me a break,” Simon told the rooster. “The sun's not even up all the way.”

A red-haired girl poked her head inside the hut. “Aren't you up yet, Simon?” asked Alice.

“It's not even daytime yet,” Simon protested. “Anyway, why aren't you in the Castle?” Simon didn't know much about Alice's job in the Castle as a scullery maid, but he knew she had to be up even earlier than he did to help make breakfast for everyone in the royal court.

“I snuck out,” she said, stepping inside. Her green eyes were shining. “I thought you'd want to know—the knights are riding out today!”

The news jolted Simon awake. Nothing much exciting happened out in the stables, but he always loved it when the knights came. Sir Pelleas, Sir Cador, and Sir Gawain were the superstars of Arturus. They were tall and strong, and they lived exciting lives, protecting the kingdom from danger.

Simon had been eagerly awaiting their next visit to the stables. He hoped to impress them so that one of them might make him a squire. Then he'd be able to leave the muck and horse manure behind and travel with the knights, helping them—and maybe even riding his own horse.

“They're riding out? Where?” Simon asked. He ran past Alice to the water bucket outside and splashed cold water on his face. The hut didn't have a mirror, so he gazed at his reflection in the water. He scrubbed a patch of dirt off his cheek and used some more water to smooth down a lock of hair sticking up on top of his head.

Alice shook her head. “Are you actually trying to impress them?”

“Just watch. I'm going to be a squire someday,”
he said confidently. “I'm not going to spend my whole life mucking out stables. I'm going to have a horse of my own.”

“Well, you'd better let me ride it, then,” Alice said. “I never get to do anything fun.”

She thrust a hunk of bread and a hard-boiled egg into his hands.

“From the kitchens,” she said. “Those royals have more food than they need.”

“Thanks,” Simon said.

His friend grinned. “No problem. Good luck impressing the knights! I'd better get back before they figure out I'm gone.”

Alice ran off, and Simon shoved the breakfast in his mouth as he headed in the other direction. He sprinted across the field, the moist grass squishing under his bare feet. He lived close to the stables, which was a good thing when he was late and a bad thing when a breeze sprung up, sending the smell of manure his way. Simon swore he'd never get used to the smell as long as he lived.

When he arrived at the stables, he saw Edmund, the stable master, carrying a heavy bucket of water.

“I'll take that,” Simon said quickly, but Edmund pushed him away.

“Go find Tobias,” Edmund said gruffly. “He needs some help mucking out the stalls in the back.”

Simon sighed and made his way to the back stalls. Three horses were tied to posts outside, and from inside the stalls Simon heard a familiar song.

“Muck, muck, muck, oh yes, it's time to muck.”

Simon grabbed a shovel and headed toward the song. Tobias, the other stable boy, greeted him with a cheerful smile.

“Good morning, Simon,” he said. “Isn't it a beautiful day?”

It wasn't right to call Tobias a stable boy, exactly. At twenty-seven years old, he was practically an old man. He'd been working in the stables since he was five, and he loved his job more than anything.

“Um, yeah, it's nice out, I guess,” Simon mumbled. “So, Tobias, I heard the knights are coming today.”

Tobias nodded. “That's right. Gotta get the stables nice and clean!”

“Do you know where they're going?” Simon asked.

Tobias shrugged. “Agnes down at the mill said that the King was sending them to look for Mordred again. But you know how it is. You never can believe everything you hear at that mill. It's a regular rumor mill, it is.”

Simon nodded. The lazy gossips at the mill spread a lot of crazy stories around Arturus, but the stories about Mordred the inventor were the craziest. Simon never paid too much attention to them. Some people in the village practically worshipped the guy, but Simon thought Mordred's fans were fools. In his eyes, Sir Pelleas, Sir Cador, and Sir Gawain were the only heroes that Arturus needed.

“Well, if the knights really are going after Mordred, I'm sure they'll get him,” Simon assured Tobias.

A dark look crossed Tobias's face. “If you ask me, I hope he stays lost,” he replied. Then his smile returned. “Best get back to mucking! Muck, muck, muck! Muck, muck, muck!”

Simon lifted his shovel and began to fill a wheelbarrow with mounds of stinky horse manure. The more he shoveled, the dirtier he got. He'd never make a good impression on the knights now.

“We're full up!” Tobias called out, dumping one last shovelful into the wheelbarrow.

“I'll take it,” Simon offered. He grabbed the wood handles and pushed away from the stables.

All the manure was composted in the muddy field behind the windmill. In the spring, the farmers would use it to cover the fields. Until then, it was just one big, stinking mess.

At least it's a nice day,
Simon thought as he pushed the wheelbarrow. There was nothing worse than mucking out a stable in the rain. He looked up. The yellow sun shone against a blue sky dotted with puffy white clouds and shiny silver disks.

“Shiny silver disks?” Simon stopped in his tracks and shaded his eyes against the sun. What were those things? Birds?

The disks got closer and closer to Arturus, and Simon saw that they didn't look natural. They looked man-made.

He stared, frozen, as the flying disks hovered in the Arturus sky. Then round, flaming balls shot out from the disks, and Simon realized they were aimed right at the kingdom.

Something deep inside him kicked in, and he ran behind the nearest manure pile and ducked, covering his head with his hands.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

All around him, the world began to explode.