Read Online Gregor and the Curse of the Warmbloods-3 by Suzanne Collins - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Suzanne Collins
Tags: Fiction, General, Fantasy fiction, Fantasy, Medical, Action & Adventure, History, Family, Juvenile Fiction, Fantasy & Magic, Epic, Brothers and sisters, Large Type Books, Animals, Siblings, Plague, Health & Daily Living, Diseases; Illnesses & Injuries, Civilization; Subterranean
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the current circumstances," said Lapblood.
"Please!" said Vikus, cutting off their bickering.
"Remember all of our lives are now at stake. This plant, Neveeve, it grows nowhere else?"
"They attempted.to transplant it to the fields of Regalia, but it died almost immediately.
We have no choice but to harvest great quantities of it from the Vineyard and distill it into a medicine."
"You want us to go into the Vineyard and help you find this cure, but what guarantee do we have that we'll ever see it?" said Lapblood. "We gnawers starve now! At your hand! The plague runs like wildfire through our tunnels! Today we learn you have yellow powder to stop the fleas that spread it! But do you send it?"
"You attacked us," said Solovet in a steely voice. "And now whimper when you must suffer the consequences."
"Whimper?" snarled Lapblood. She and Mange crouched to attack. Solovet's hand flew to the hilt of her sword.
Gregor didn't understand exactly what was going on, but he could tell things were about to get ugly.
Ripred stepped between the seething rats and Solovet.
"Tides turn, Solovet," said Ripred quietly. "Remember this moment when your own pups cry with hunger and the plague stills their hearts. Even now, your grandson lies behind glass in the hospital."
"And what of my granddaughter, Luxa? Where lies she, Ripred?" spat out Solovet.
"I don't know! But you must set it aside, Solovet, or go back and tell your people to make their graves. At this moment, we have great mutual need!" said Ripred.
Gregor never knew how Solovet would have responded, because at that moment the horns began to blow. The warning came from the tunnels leading away from Regalia. A dozen humans on bats appeared and headed across the arena for the tunnels.
"What are they blowing that for? No rats are invading," said Ripred in a puzzled tone.
"There must be some threat, or they would not give the signal," said Solovet.
"But who would be attacking Regalia now?" said Vikus.
The answer came out of the tunnels. It was a bat with a bright orange coat that Gregor had never seen before. Something was wrong with it — its wings beat erratically and it was careening around in a bizarre fashion.
"It is Icarus! But what ails him?" said Nike. As Icarus swooped down over them, Gregor saw the purple bumps oozing fresh blood into his orange fur, the white tongue wagging from his mouth, the delirious look in his eyes.
"It's the plague!" he cried. "He looks just like Ares does!"
Icarus twisted in the air, his wings fluttering out of sync, and then lost control. A general cry of alarm went up as the bat plummeted straight down at them.
***
CHAPTER 9
As Icarus hit the ground, Gregor could hear the crack as the bones in his neck broke. He died instantly. There was no movement except the leaking of blood from the purple bumps.
"Do not touch him!" warned Neveeve. But this was unnecessary since almost everybody was instinctively scrambling away from the bat's ravaged body. Gregor backed into a roach, lost his footing, and fell over it onto his rear end. Two bats collided on takeoff. Only his mother, who was within a few feet of the ghastly creature when it landed, hadn't moved. She was clutching Boots in her arms, rooted to the ground in terror. Gregor got to his feet and ran for her.
"Torch the body!" ordered Solovet.
"No!" shouted Ripred, but three torches had already left the hands of the soldiers above.
"No!" Ripred was literally gnashing his teeth in frustration.
"Get out of here! Everyone! Run!" he screamed.
When the torches hit Icarus, Gregor understood Ripred's frantic reaction. The flames had only rested on the fur a moment when a wave of small, black specks began to abandon the dead bat's body.
"Fleas!" cried Vikus. "Get you gone!"
Gregor grabbed Boots, caught his mother's arm, and pulled her onto the back of the nearest bat, who happened to be Queen Athena. Probably you weren't supposed to hop on a queen without asking
"Please!" said Vikus, cutting off their bickering.
"Remember all of our lives are now at stake. This plant, Neveeve, it grows nowhere else?"
"They attempted.to transplant it to the fields of Regalia, but it died almost immediately.
We have no choice but to harvest great quantities of it from the Vineyard and distill it into a medicine."
"You want us to go into the Vineyard and help you find this cure, but what guarantee do we have that we'll ever see it?" said Lapblood. "We gnawers starve now! At your hand! The plague runs like wildfire through our tunnels! Today we learn you have yellow powder to stop the fleas that spread it! But do you send it?"
"You attacked us," said Solovet in a steely voice. "And now whimper when you must suffer the consequences."
"Whimper?" snarled Lapblood. She and Mange crouched to attack. Solovet's hand flew to the hilt of her sword.
Gregor didn't understand exactly what was going on, but he could tell things were about to get ugly.
Ripred stepped between the seething rats and Solovet.
"Tides turn, Solovet," said Ripred quietly. "Remember this moment when your own pups cry with hunger and the plague stills their hearts. Even now, your grandson lies behind glass in the hospital."
"And what of my granddaughter, Luxa? Where lies she, Ripred?" spat out Solovet.
"I don't know! But you must set it aside, Solovet, or go back and tell your people to make their graves. At this moment, we have great mutual need!" said Ripred.
Gregor never knew how Solovet would have responded, because at that moment the horns began to blow. The warning came from the tunnels leading away from Regalia. A dozen humans on bats appeared and headed across the arena for the tunnels.
"What are they blowing that for? No rats are invading," said Ripred in a puzzled tone.
"There must be some threat, or they would not give the signal," said Solovet.
"But who would be attacking Regalia now?" said Vikus.
The answer came out of the tunnels. It was a bat with a bright orange coat that Gregor had never seen before. Something was wrong with it — its wings beat erratically and it was careening around in a bizarre fashion.
"It is Icarus! But what ails him?" said Nike. As Icarus swooped down over them, Gregor saw the purple bumps oozing fresh blood into his orange fur, the white tongue wagging from his mouth, the delirious look in his eyes.
"It's the plague!" he cried. "He looks just like Ares does!"
Icarus twisted in the air, his wings fluttering out of sync, and then lost control. A general cry of alarm went up as the bat plummeted straight down at them.
***
CHAPTER 9
As Icarus hit the ground, Gregor could hear the crack as the bones in his neck broke. He died instantly. There was no movement except the leaking of blood from the purple bumps.
"Do not touch him!" warned Neveeve. But this was unnecessary since almost everybody was instinctively scrambling away from the bat's ravaged body. Gregor backed into a roach, lost his footing, and fell over it onto his rear end. Two bats collided on takeoff. Only his mother, who was within a few feet of the ghastly creature when it landed, hadn't moved. She was clutching Boots in her arms, rooted to the ground in terror. Gregor got to his feet and ran for her.
"Torch the body!" ordered Solovet.
"No!" shouted Ripred, but three torches had already left the hands of the soldiers above.
"No!" Ripred was literally gnashing his teeth in frustration.
"Get out of here! Everyone! Run!" he screamed.
When the torches hit Icarus, Gregor understood Ripred's frantic reaction. The flames had only rested on the fur a moment when a wave of small, black specks began to abandon the dead bat's body.
"Fleas!" cried Vikus. "Get you gone!"
Gregor grabbed Boots, caught his mother's arm, and pulled her onto the back of the nearest bat, who happened to be Queen Athena. Probably you weren't supposed to hop on a queen without asking
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