Fox began hopping, one front leg raised.
Alex pretended not to see him. “Let’s see, so that leaves Samheed, Kitten, Simber . . .”
The fox hopped higher.
“And Florence.”
Fox deflated.
Alex grinned. “And Fox, of course.”
The fox beamed.
Simber rolled his eyes. “Perrrhaps I’ll sit this one out.”
“Alex,” Samheed interrupted. “Everybody. Check it out.” He pointed to land, where the sea monster from the Pirate Island aquarium was climbing onto the sandy shore. Her short, stout legs and flippers made her waddle from side to side as she walked.
“So she’s a land monster too,” Alex mused. “She looks a little like a girrino, only with shorter legs and no fur.”
“And her face is more horselike,” Lani added.
Alex didn’t really know what a horse looked like—he’d only ridden on invisible ones. But he took Lani’s word for it. And he hoped the monster was friendly.
As Alex and the others went about planning the safest way to visit the island, Carina and Sean surfaced for air. Spike circled around, her spike catching the light and sparkling as she turned.
“We’re getting the squid’s tentacle all fixed up,” Carina reported.
“Spike talked to the squid a bit more,” Sean said. “I guess the eel has been terrorizing all the water creatures who live around this island.”
“All the water creatures?” Alex asked. “Are there more than just the squid and the sea monster?”
“There are a few more,” Carina said. “And some land creatures too. We’re trying to get the scoop. But the important thing is that this island seems to be safe for us to approach—especially since we saved two of its inhabitants.”
“Yeah,” added Sean, “Spike saw the sea monster and told her that you guys were going ashore, so she went ahead to tell some guy named Talon that you’re friendly.”
Alex felt a surge of excitement. It was a relief knowing there were some nice places out here. And people, too? He couldn’t wait to meet this Talon guy.
Carina and Sean went back underwater to work on the squid some more, and Alex had Ahab swing the ship around and pull up along the reef so that Florence could get out.
As the small group disembarked and Florence carefully stepped one foot out of the ship, something glinting in the sun caught her eye. She looked up.
Standing on the shore was a gorgeous, shirtless giant. He had wings on his back. And he was made entirely of bronze.
Florence gasped. Her foot clipped the edge of the ship. She lost her balance and fell, grabbing on to the reef with one hand as her lower half hit the water.
Without a second’s hesitation, the reef curled around her. The end of it opened up like a giant claw. It grabbed Florence around the waist, lifted her up into the air, and set her effortlessly on the shore next to the man.
The bronze man observed Florence for a moment, and then he bowed before her and offered his hand. “Greetings, beautiful stranger,” he said in a deep, musical voice. “I am Talon. Welcome to the shell of Karkinos the crab, known to some as the Island of Legends.”
A Brief Respite
Once Florence had gotten hold of her senses, she introduced herself, Alex, Samheed, Fox, Kitten, and Simber to Talon.
As they were greeting each other the sea-and-land monster from the Pirate Island cage waddled over to Talon’s side. “This is Issie,” Talon said. He reached out his enormous hand and scritched her long neck. Issie bobbed her head in greeting and continued walking to the edge of the island. She slid into the water, her head above the surface, the humps on her back rippling as she emitted a mesmerizing, forlorn call, looking this way and that.
“What’s wrong with her?” Alex asked in a hushed voice.
Talon gazed after the beast. “She’s looking for her foal.”
Fox hopped. “Kitten and I can help her look for it.”
Talon looked down at the fox, a sad smile on his face. “That’s very kind, but I doubt you’ll find it. Issie has been looking for her foal for quite a long time.”
“How long?” Florence asked. “Was it captured by the eel as well?”
Talon turned his gaze to Florence and made no attempt to hide his admiration of her sleek muscles. “No It’s been seven hundred years,” he said.
Alex and Samheed exchanged a glance. Was this guy joking? They didn’t think so. And what was the deal with the crab?
Simber walked gingerly over the island, sniffing and checking things out. The colossal crab was obviously alive but had clearly been here for a very long time, floating on the sea. Its shell and its claws—the twin reefs—were covered with sand and plants and trees, though the deep red color of the crab’s shell dominated along the edge of it.
Suddenly Simber growled and crouched, his ears flattened against his head.
Alex whirled around, pulling components from his robe. “What is it?” he said.
From behind a clump of trees came two majestic creatures. A furry white lioness with blue accents, who seemed to be floating just above the ground, and a white deer with stunning golden horns.
Talon held his hand out to Simber and Alex. “We are peaceful here, friends,” he said. “We wish no harm to anyone who comes here. May I introduce Lhasa the snow lion? She is our queen. And this is Bock.”
“Hello,” Lhasa said. She smiled brightly. Bock was silent, but he nodded politely.