"It might work," said James.

"What might work?" asked Thomas, thoroughly confused.

"Never mind that now," said George. "We're about to get very dirty, so I suggest we get out of these robes."

The boys took off the robes. Underneath, George still wore his suit pants and a white shirt. The other boys were in their island rags. James, a good climber, volunteered to board the ship and unfurl the mainsail. George quickly accepted. The boys spat on their hands and shook for good luck, then James was off, sliding down the timbers into the dry dock, then climbing the netting onto the ship's deck. The sky was now bright with meteor flashes, so he was clearly visible as he began ascending the mainmast.

George told Thomas to keep watch. He and Prentiss grabbed one of the oil barrels and, grunting under its weight, worked it down into the bottom of the dry dock. They stopped alongside the rollers; the ship's hull rose over them, blotting out the sky. The air smelled of tar pitch.

Together, the two boys supported the cask above the rollers. Prentiss pulled the bung plug from its side, and oil glugged out, sounding like a big man swallowing. They slid the barrel alongside the ship's hull, allowing the sweet oil to seep down between the rollers. When they'd finished with the left side of the hull, they climbed out of the dry dock, carried the second cask back down, and oiled the other side.

"She'll slip out of here like a bar of soap in the tub," said George. "I hope."

"But, George," said Prentiss. "If Thomas and I work the forward winches and you unchain the sea gate, how will we get aboard the ship once it's moving?"

"The nets," George said. "We'll have to jump for them."

"Jump?" said Prentiss.

"Yes."

They started climbing out of the trench. George looked up at James, who was high up the mainmast working on one of the sails. There were so many meteors in the sky now that at times he was as clearly visible as if it were daylight.

"George!" It was Thomas hissing at them.

"What?" said George, reaching the top of the trench.

"Those men over there!" said Thomas, pointing. "I think they've spotted James!" A group of men had emerged from a hillside cafe, seemingly to look at the meteors. Several of them were gesturing toward the dry-docked ship and shouting. More men were coming out of the cafe.

"This is it," said George. He pulled the white handkerchief out of his pocket and waved it violently over his head, hoping Ted was watching. The cafe had emptied now; the men, several dozen of them, were starting down the hill.

"They're coming!" said Thomas, unnecessarily.

"What do we do?" said Prentiss.

"You two release the winches," said George, starting to run to the end of the dry dock. I'll get the gate."

"But how do wea" began Thomas.

"There's no time!" George shouted over his shoulder. "Just release those lines!"

Prentiss and Thomas started running for the winches, not sure what they were going to do but quite sure they had better do it quickly. The mob of angry men came shouting down the hill toward them, the fury on their faces very clear under the meteor-flashing sky.

CHAPTER 54.

THE LAUNCH.

THE STREETS OF MAKNAR, normally empty at night, teemed with the city's inhabitants, who'd left their homes to witness the amazing heavenly display. Children shouted and shrieked with excitement as lines of bright light, dozens at a time, streaked silently but spectacularly across the black sky. The adults remained more subdued, muttering to each other, trying to fathom the meaning of this strange phenomenon. Many of them cast nervous glances toward the dark hulking walls of the palace compound.

The mood inside the walls was no less tense. King Zarboff the Third had emerged from his palace to watch. He was accompanied by his personal guards and the two slave boys known as the twins, who were charged with carrying the heavy basket containing the king's beloved Kundalini. A well-cushioned chair had been set up a safe distance from the rocket so the king could sit and watch the launch in comfort.

Lord Ombra had also arrived, appearing suddenly as though materializing from the night itself. He spoke to n.o.body, keeping to the shadows outside the circle of torches surrounding the rocket; but the soldiers were quite aware of his presencea"and the sudden chill in the air. Even Viktor Glotz noticed it, in spite of his preoccupation with the final preparations for the launch.

All watched as Glotz inserted the fuse into the rocket and laid it out on the ground, cutting it at precisely eight and a half feet. He'd calculated it would burn for ninety seconds before reaching the fuela"plenty of time for him to get a safe distance away. Glotz was not particularly worried about an explosion; this was why he'd decided to launch the rocket from the palace courtyard rather than the desert. Compared to the earlier rockets, this one contained surprisingly little black-powder fuel, given its weight. Most of the lifting force would come from the huge quant.i.ty of starstuff; the main function of the fuel was to propel the rocket forward, enabling the monkey to steer it on the correct course.

Glotz glanced at the sky, then checked his pocket watch. The ideal launch time was quickly approaching. He looked around impatiently, anda There!

Soldiers appeared from around the side of the dungeon, escorting the four gold-suited boys who were carrying the trunk of starstuff. They held the trunk by handles at each corner and carried it easily; the starstuff made it essentially weightless.

The gold-lined trunk had been built with great precision; its seams and joints were fitted perfectly, allowing no light to escape. Even so, the air around the trunk hummed and even glowed faintly because of the immense energy it contained. The soldiers kept their distance from it; the gold-suited boys turned their heads away from it as they walked. Ombra drifted back into the deepest shadows as the boys brought the trunk into the torch circle and set it down next to the scaffolding that stood alongside the rocket.

Glotz approached the boys.

"There is an open hatch right above the monkey's chamber," he said, pointing up at the rocket. "You will carry the trunk up therea"carefullya"and set it inside the rocket. Then you will release the trunk lid by pressing the b.u.t.ton on the latch. The hinges are on springs, so the lid will open by itself. As soon as it starts opening you must close the hatch. Quickly. Then come straight down. Do you understand?"

The boys nodded their gold-hooded heads.

"One more thing you should understand," said Glotz. "I will be watching you closely. If you deviate in any way from my instructions, I will order these soldiers to shoot you off the scaffold. Do you understand?"

The boys nodded again. Glotz looked at his watch and said, "You have ten minutes." The boys, two above the trunk and two below it, took hold of the handles and began ascending the steep ladderway inside the scaffolding.

Peter and Slightly were at the upper end of the trunk. When they were far enough from Glotz, Slightly whispered to Peter through the gold mesh.

"What are you going to do?"

Peter had been thinking about just that. His first idea had been to simply dump the starstuff out of the trunk from the top of the scaffolding, but he'd rejected that idea. For one thing, it would get the other boys, and very likely himself, killed. For another, he feared Glotz would find a way to get the starstuff back into the rocket and proceed with the launch. What he needed, he knew, was a way to get the starstuff away from Glotz, Ombra, and Zarboff, but also to prevent it from being released into the sky. He wasn't yet sure how he would do this. All he said to Slightly was, "I won't do anything until we're back on the ground. Keep the other boys close by, and be ready."

"Ready for what?"

"I'm not sure. But you may have a chance to escape. If you do, run to the harbor. Look for James and the others. They're getting a ship."

"They're getting a ship?" said Slightly, his tone suggesting that he found this highly unlikely.

"Well, they're going to try," Peter said.

Slightly nodded. "What about you?" he said.

"I'll be along as soon as I can," said Peter.

They had reached the platform on the top of the scaffolding. They faced a hatch patterned with small air holes. Peter noted it was latched from the outside. Through the holes, he could hear the monkey making soft whimpering noises. Tink, still stuck inside Peter's gold suit, made sympathetic sounds in return.

Above the hatch was an opening just large enough for the trunk, leading into a compartment lined with gold. On the right side of the opening was a small door on hinges. On its left side was a latch attached to a steel cable that snaked down through a hole into the monkey compartment. Peter a.s.sumed this was how the monkey, in the chamber below the trunk, would open the door and release the starstuff.

The boys lifted the trunk and slid it through the opening into the gold-lined compartment. When it was inside, Slightly reached for the b.u.t.ton on the big gold trunk latch. Peter put a hand on his arm, stopping him.

"I'll do it," Peter said. "You three get back."

Slightly, Curly, and Nibs stepped toward the ladder. Peter reached inside the rocket and pressed the b.u.t.ton. With a snick the latch flipped open. The lid began to rise. Instantly, the compartment filled with a blinding light and a roaring sound. Peter quickly grabbed the door and closed it; the latch clicked tight. The air around the top of the rocket hummed and glowed.

From below, the boys heard Glotz shouting at them to come down. The four gold-suited figures hastily descended the ladder. As soon as they reached the ground, a group of soldiers dragged the scaffolding away from the rocket. Glotz looked up into the sky, then at his pocket watch. He shouted for everyone to move back, and proceeded to pull a torch from the earth and walk over to the fuse. The sky was alight with meteors now, the courtyard so bright that even through the mesh Peter could clearly see Glotz's face.

All eyes focused on the scientist as he stood over the fuse, checking his watch. King Zarboff rose to his feet to get a better view, though Peter noted that he kept his guards between himself and the rocket. A movement at the outer edge of the crowd of spectators caught Peter's eye. He looked that way and noted, with a small smile, that Slightly and the other boys, including the twins, had slipped away unnoticed, five shadows trotting toward the palace gate.

Peter's eyes returned to the crowd, scanning the spectators until he found Ombra, a dark shape among the shadows on the far side of the torchlight circle. Peter stared at Ombra for a moment, and as he did, the dark hood shape swiveled and seemed to look right at him. Peter felt a chill and quickly looked away, hoping desperately that he had not been too obvious.

His eyes returned to Glotz. The scientist stood holding the torch and looking at his watch for several long minutes. Then, slowly, his eyes still on his watch, he began to lower the flame to the fuse. The courtyard fell utterly silent as the flickering flame descended until it touched the fuse. Sparks erupted from the ground and began crawling toward the waiting rocket. Glotz watched for a few seconds, then began slowly walking toward the circle of spectators. He stopped near Zarboff and turned back toward the fuse.

Peter was also watching the fuse now, trying to get a sense of when to move. He needed to time it perfectlya"too soon and the soldiers would shoot him out of the sky; too late and the rocket would be out of his reach.

The sparks crawled across the dirt and, reaching the rocket, began to climb the fuse. Peter tensed; it would be in a moment, now. A nagging worry made him risk a look across the circle of spectators into the shadows.

Ombra wasn't there.

Peter looked around frantically but didn't see the dark shape. He heard a roar and turned back toward the rocket. The fuse had ignited the fuel; flames and black smoke billowed from the base. The rocket shook and started to lift. Peter, for a fraction of a second, felt something cold and horrible in his legs. With a shout, he crouched and hurled himself upward.

Glotz saw the gold-clad figure flying toward his beloved rocket. He screamed in rage and shouted at the soldiers to shoot. Transfixed by the rocket's roar, they took several seconds to understand what he wanted, and several more to get their rifles into firing position.

Peter flew straight to the top of the rocket. He searched desperately in the billowing smoke for the latch to the door covering the monkey's compartment. He heard a shot; a bullet zipped past. He yanked the gold hood off his head so he could see better. Another shot went past. He found the latch and yanked the door open, hurling himself headfirst in with the monkey as a bullet clanged off the hatch door behind him.

Glotz screamed when he saw Peter duck into the rocket, which was now off the ground, rising slowly on a cushion of fire and smoke. Glotz shouted incoherently, nearly insane with rage and helplessness as he watched his life's work, the crowning achievement of his genius, being threatened by a boy. He ran toward the smoke, his face twisted in fury.

And then, suddenly, he stopped, and the fury on his face turned to hope. For he saw something in the roiling smoke, a dark shape rising, twisting, and contorting itselfa"now thick, now thin, but always moving upward through the bib lows, upward to the base of the rocket, and then along its sidea"a black blot, oozing in through a seam in between two metal plates.

Glotz smiled.

Ombra was aboard the rocket.

CHAPTER 55.

THE GIANT EYE.

PLEASE GET UP, MR. SMEE," whispered Shining Pearl, glancing nervously back down the jungle hillside. "Hurry!"

Smee lay where he'd fallen, having tripped on a vine for at least the hundredth time. Sweat dripped from his round face; it gleamed in the light of the meteor shower, which filled the normally dark nighttime jungle with an unearthly flashing light.

"I don't think I can keep going," he panted.

"You must!" said Shining Pearl, again looking down the hill. "He's coming!"

Smee turned his head and moaned in fear. The treetops shook as the huge beast shoved his way through the thick jungle growth. Mister Grin had been following Shining Pearl and the seven pirates for hours now, never seeming to tire. At one point he had come so close that Shining Pearl, in desperation, had dropped the lurea"Hook's smelly pantsa"onto the ground, leaving them behind as the little group continued up the mountainside. This had stopped Mister Grin, but only for as long as it took him to gulp down the garment. Then, with a roar, the monster croc had resumed following Shining Pearl and the pirates, who realized to their horror that the beast thought Hook was still among them.

Now there was no turning back; they had to continue over the mountain to the Mollusk camp and hope that Mister Grin would turn his attention from them to the Scorpions.

Shining Pearl looked up the hillside; the other pirates were almost out of sight.

"Help!" she called. "Mr. Smee has fallen again!"

Two pirates, Hurky and Boggs, turned and came trotting down.

"Cap'n," said Hurky. "You have to get up."

"I can't," said Smee. "I'm tooaOW!"

"Sorry, sir," said Hurky, as he and Boggs, one grabbing each arm, jerked Smee to his feet, put his arms over their shoulders, and began dragging the little round man up the hill, with Shining Pearl right behind. She stopped for a moment to glance back at the jungle. The shaking trees were only a dozen yards away. She caught a glimpse of a giant eye glowing red in the meteor light. It seemed to be looking right at her.

Shining Pearl turned and started running again.

CHAPTER 56.

THE SECOND LAUNCH.

LEANING AGAINST THE STACK of barrels, Tubby Ted sucked olive oil off his fingers, his eyes closed, his lips smacking.

"Mmmm," he said, wishing he had a warm piece of bread.

Then, hearing shouts, he jumped to his feet. A dozen men were running down the hill toward the dry-docked ship. Under a sky alight with streaking meteors, Ted saw the angry looks on their faces. Very angry. Some of them were waving knives in the air.

Ted looked down at the ship and saw his mates scattering in opposite directions; George held the white handkerchief in his hand, his arms pumping furiously as he ran.

Ted wondered: Did I miss something?

He couldn't exactly describe George's motion as waving the handkerchief over his head, but he decided it was close enough. He turned and, as George had told him to, kicked at the bottom barrel. It was stubborn, but it dislodged from the stack and rolled down the hill. He jumped back as the entire barrel stack collapsed in an olive-oil avalanche. A half dozen barrels exploded as they struck the ground, sending a wave of slippery oil gushing down the hill, followed by more barrels, rolling and bouncing and spewing their contents as they split open.

Tubby Ted, staying clear of the olive-oil cascade, began lumbering down the hill toward the ship. Ahead, he caught sight of Thomas and Prentiss on either side of the dry dock trench, each struggling frantically with a big winch. As Ted ran toward the ship, the winchesa"first Thomas's, then Prentiss'sa"began to turn, paying out the heavy ropes. At once the whole ship began to shudder, groan, and creak. Behind Ted, the sound of the men's shouting grew louder, more frantic. Thomas and Prentiss started clambering down into the trench, running for the ship.

"Wait!" Ted shouted, but neither boy heard. Reaching the ship, they grabbed on to the nets suspended from the decks and began to climb. There was a loud CRACK as one of the big side supports fell away. Then another. The groaning became deeper, turning into a rumbling noise, and now the ship was moving, rolling on the huge logs beneath the keel.

"Wait!" Ted yelled again, but n.o.body heard him over the sound of the sliding ship. He ran alongside the trench and spotted George at the big wooden gate behind the ship. He was struggling with a chain. The ship was moving toward him, rudder first, but George seemed unaware of the fact that he was about to be crushed.

Ted heard screams behind him. He turned and looked up the hill. The mob of angry men, their eyes on the escaping ship, had run right into the olive-oil cascade. They were tumbling and sliding down the hill, knocking each other over, their knives flying everywhere. Ted turned back and began running toward George, screaming unheard warnings about the oncoming ship.