Bang Goes a Troll by David Sinden, Matthew Morgan, Guy Macdonald, Jonny Duddle Read Free Book Online Page B

around, drips began splashing on to the floor of the Troll Chamber. It was as if it was beginning to rain deep inside the mountain. He wiped his hair. Black liquid clung to his fingers. “What’s happening?” he asked.
    Dr. Fielding shone her flashlight on the roof of the chamber. “It looks like oil,” she said.
    Ulf could hear it trickling down the walls.
    â€œWhere’s it coming from?” Orson asked.
    Trolls started beating their chests. “Oof! Oof! Oof! Oof!”
    Some banged the walls with their fists.
    As more oil poured down from the roof of the chamber, Tiana darted into Ulf’s pocket to protect herself.
    Suddenly, there was a roaring sound as the oil caught fire. Flames swirled around the ceiling and spread down the walls.
    â€œTake cover!” Orson yelled. He threw his arms around Dr. Fielding and Ulf, shielding them as flaming oil splashed to the ground.
    The trolls charged for the exits.
    The chamber was filling with smoke – thick, black smoke that made Ulf’s eyes sting and bit into the back of his throat. He pulled his T-shirt up over his mouth.
    â€œGet out!” Orson shouted. “I’ll get the trolls.”
    Ulf tried to run, but in the thick smoke he couldhardly see. He was coughing and choking. Flames were roaring around him. Trolls were crashing past him, barging him to the side as they raced to escape.
    â€œUlf! Over here,” he heard.
    Ulf caught a glimpse of Dr. Fielding’s flashlight and staggered toward it. But at that moment, a sheet of flames fell in front of him. He shielded his face from the fire. “It’s no use!” he called. He was being pushed back by the heat.
    A troll thumped into him and Ulf was knocked to the ground.
    â€œGet up, Ulf,” Tiana called from his pocket.
    He scrambled to his feet and staggered to the back of the burning chamber, following a group of stampeding trolls into a narrow exit. He’d lost Orson and Dr. Fielding.
    â€œWe’ve got to get outside,” Tiana called. “Run!”
    Ulf ran as fast as he could up a back tunnel, slipping and sliding over the rocks. He heard a blast and glanced back as the chamber erupted in afireball behind him.
    The fireball hurled him through the air, and he landed with a thump, his head crashing against the tunnel wall. The lamp on his head was smashed.
    â€œUlf, are you okay?” he heard from his pocket.
    But everything was a blur. The bang to Ulf’s head had injured him. He felt dizzy.
    Then he felt his ankle being gripped by a bony hand. He was being dragged along the floor of the tunnel, and pulled into a cool dark cave. He heard a boulder being rolled across the entrance, cutting off the smoke.
    Ulf felt himself losing consciousness. Tiana flew from his pocket, and in her glow he could just make out the face of a beast with white eyes, pointy ears, and a fat snout.
    A goblin was leaning over him.
    â€œGumball!” Ulf managed to say. Then everything went black.

Chapter 11
    U LF OPENED HIS EYES. H E WAS LYING ON HIS BACK , staring up at the roof of a cave. He sniffed. The cave smelt musty. He felt his head. There was a big bump on his scalp.
    â€œGive that back!” he heard.
    Ulf sat up and coughed. His mouth tasted of smoke. At the back of the cave, he saw Tiana’s light. She was buzzing angrily above Gumball. The goblin was in the shadows, his bony hands clutching Ulf’s broken headlamp.
    â€œMine now,” the goblin said. “My shiny.”
    â€œIt’s not yours,” Tiana said indignantly. Shepulled the strap of the headlamp as hard as she could. “It’s Ulf’s.”
    â€œTiana, what’s going on?” Ulf asked.
    Tiana glanced over at him. “Ulf, you’re awake! You’ve been out for hours,” she told him.
    At that moment, the goblin yanked the strap of the headlamp from Tiana’s grip. “Bad luck, fairy,” he told her. “My shiny now.”
    Ulf