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The Vengeance

There was much discussion in the Muriel Two "I really don&039;t know about this Marcia eance"

"I bet she is, though"

"We&039;ve got to find her I&039;m sure I could rescue her"

"Look, just because you&039;ve been in the Ar people"

"It ht, Nicko"

"We&039;d neverEvery ship always has a watch on board"

"But we could do that spell, you know the oneas it?"

"Cause Yourself to be Unseen Easy Then we could paddle out to the ship and I&039;ll climb up the rope ladder, and then - "

"Whoa, stop there That&039;s dangerous"

"Marcia rescued er"

"And ht You win"

As the Muriel Two rounded the last bend of the Deppen Ditch, Boy 412 reached up into the pocket inside his red beanie hat and drew out the dragon ring

"What&039;s that ring?" asked Nicko

"Uround"

"It looks a bit like the dragon on the Aht that too" He slipped it on his finger and felt the ring groarm "Shall I do the spell, then?" he asked

Jenna and Nicko nodded and Boy 412 began to chant:

Let ainst me know not Where

Let them that Seeke me pass me by

Let Harme not reach me from their Eye

Boy 412 slowly faded into the drizzle, leaving a canoe paddle hanging eerily in midair Jenna took a deep breath and tried the spell for herself

"You&039;re still there, Jen," said Nicko "Try again"

The third time was a charm Jenna&039;s canoe paddle now hovered in the air next to Boy 412&039;s

"Your turn, Nicko," said Jenna&039;s voice

"Hang on a minute," said Nicko "I never did this one"

"Well, do your own, then," said Jenna "It doesn&039;tas it works"

"Well, er, I don&039;t know if it does work And it doesn&039;t do the &039;Har at all"

"Nicko!" protested Jenna

"All right, all right I&039;ll try it"

"Not seen, Not heardumI can&039;t remember the rest"

"Try &039;Not seen, not heard, not a whisper, not a word,&039; " suggested Boy 412 from out of nowhere

"Oh, yes That&039;s it Thanks"

The spell worked Nicko faded sloay

"You all right, Nicko?" asked Jenna "I can&039;t see you"

There was no reply

"Nicko?"

Nicko&039;s paddle waggled frantically up and down

"We can&039;t see him and he can&039;t see us because his Unseen is different froly, "and on&039;t be able to hear him either, because it&039;s mainly a silent spell And it doesn&039;t protect hiood, then," said Jenna

"No," said Boy 412 "But I&039;ve got an idea This should do it:

Between the spells within our power,

Give us one Harmonious Hour

"There he is!" saidjenna, as the shadowy form of Nicko Appeared "Nicko, can you see us?" she asked

Nicko grinned and ood," Jenna told Boy 412

It was beco the silent part of his spell, paddled them out from the Deppen Ditch into the open waters of the river The water was calm and heavy, spotted with a fine drizzle Nicko was careful to create as little disturbance as possible, just in case a pair of keen eyes froe swirls on the surface of the water, steadily ood progress, and soon the steep black sides of the Vengeance reared up before theh the misty drizzle, and the Unseen Muriel Two reached the bottom of the rope ladder They decided that Nicko would stay with the canoe while Jenna and Boy 412 tried to find out if Marcia was being held on the ship and, if possible, set her free If they needed any help, Nicko would be ready Jenna hoped they wouldn&039;t She knew that Nicko&039;s spell would not protect hiot into any trouble Nicko held the canoe steady while first Jenna and then Boy 412 cli precarious clieance

Nicko watched the He knew that Unseens can leave shadows and strange disturbances in the air, and a Necro them But all Nicko could do was silently wish them luck He had decided that if they did not come back by the tio in search of them, whether his spell protected him or not

To pass the time, Nicko climbed into the Hunter&039;s canoe He ht, and sit in a decent boat Even if it was a bit slimy And s boats he used to help out on

It was a long climb up the rope ladder and not an easy one The ladder kept buainst the ship&039;s sticky black sides and Jenna was afraid that soht hear thean to wonder if it was sohost ship

As they reached the top, Boy 412down He felt sick His head sith the giddy sensation of height, and he very nearly lost his grip on the rope ladder as his hands becaly far away The Hunter&039;s canoe looked tiny, and for ain it Boy 412 shook his head Don&039;t look down, he told himself sternly Don&039;t look down

Jenna had no fear of heights She easily claap between ladder and deck Boy 412 kept his eyes firled onto the deck and shakily stood up

Jenna and Boy 412 looked around theeance was an eerie place The heavy cloud hanging overhead cast a deep shadow over the entire ship, and the only sound they could hear was the quiet rhythently on the inco the deck, past neatly coiled ropes, orderly lines of tarred barrels and the occasional cannon pointing out ly over the Marram Marshes Apart from the oppressive blackness and a few traces of yellow slied to However, when they reached the prow, a strong Darke presence almost knocked Boy 412 off his feet Jenna carried on, unaware of anything, and Boy 412 followed her, not wanting to leave her alone

The Darkenesse ca out to sea It was a ely out of place on the deck of a ship It was ornately carved froold leaf - and it contained Doht, his eyes closed, hisfrom the back of his throat as he breathed in the drizzle, Do his afternoon nap Underneath the throne, like a faithful dog, lay a sleeping Thing in a pool of yellow slime

Suddenly Boy 412 clutched Jenna&039;s arm so hard that she nearly cried out He pointed to Dolanced down and then looked at Boy 412 in despair So it was true She had hardly been able to believe what Alther had told them but here, in front of her eyes, was the truth Around DomDaniel&039;s waist, almost hidden in his dark robes, was the ExtraOrdinary Wizard&039;s belt Marcia&039;s ExtraOrdinary Wizard belt

Jenna and Boy 412 stared at Doust and fascination The Necroripped the ebony arernails curved around the ends and clipped on to the wood like a set of claws His face still had the telltale gray pallor it had acquired during his years spent Underground, before he had moved out into his lair in the Badlands It was an unremarkable face in many ways - maybe the eyes were a little too deep set, and the mouth a little too cruel for it to be wholly pleasant - but it was the Darke that lay beneath that azed at it On his head DomDaniel wore a cylindrical black hat shaped like a short stovepipe, which, for so for hiardless of how often he had a new one made to fit This bothered DomDaniel more than he liked to admit, and he had become convinced that since his return to the WizardTower his head had started to shrink While the Necro on the top of his whitish ears The black hat was an old-fashioned Wizard hat, which no Wizard had worn, or had wanted to wear, since it had been associated with the great Wizard Inquisition o

Above the throne a dark red silk canopy, e heavily in the drizzle, dripping every now and then onto the hat and filling up the indentation in the top with a pool of water