Hunt for the Pyxis by Zoe Ferraris

Author:Zoe Ferraris
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Published: 2015-08-04T04:00:00+00:00

A few hours later, as she and Santher were sanding the wood panels on the Markab’s new railing, they heard a monkey’s angry squawk and turned to see Herbie coming down one of the aisles.

“Sorry!” he said, his hands in the air. “You came around the corner really fast. I didn’t see you…. ”

The monkey gave an indignant hoot and marched off.

Herbie approached the Markab. “Hi,” he said a bit defensively.

“Check it out!” Emma stood on the new deck and motioned proudly to the boat. Herbie’s eyes roamed over the work they had done. “Isn’t it cool?” she said. “It’s like a real boat now.”

“It was always a real boat.” Herbie sniffed. “Are you sure it’s seaworthy?”

Emma stared at him. He wasn’t usually this grouchy.

“Sure, she’s seaworthy!” Santher exclaimed brightly, his head popping over the railing. “I work on the Argh; I’ve got plenty of experience with—”

“The Markab is a different kind of boat than the Argh,” Herbie said.

“Sure, but—”

Herbie ignored Santher and wandered critically around the boat. Emma leapt down and went after him.

“You’re not mad at Santher, are you?” she asked.

Herbie spun on her. “No. I just want to make sure that the Markab won’t sink when it hits the water.”

When Herbie had done a full circle around the boat, he stopped and crossed his arms.

“So what do you think?” Emma asked.

“I suppose they didn’t have any better materials than this old wood?”

Santher came down from the deck with a smile. “Well, actually,” he said, “this is the best wood on the seas. I chose it for that reason, but I also figured that since the navy was coming after you and all, you’d want a new look for the boat, you know…. ” He motioned to the hull. Now instead of sleek, white, industrial fiberglass, it was a rough-hewn dark-brown wood.

“I personally prefer the way it used to look,” Herbie said.

“…and I don’t think the look is quite there yet,” Santher was prattling on. “I really think we need to go for a full disguise, so I’ve been talking to the monkeys and we’ve come up with a plan.” He turned and gave a loud whistle. In the distance, a few monkeys hooted in response. Moments later, a dozen monkeys came down the aisle, carrying two large but light and shapely objects made of wood.

“What are those?” Herbie asked.

“Wing masts,” Santher said with a grin. “Dragon wings.”

Herbie’s expression went neutral. “Dragon wings?” he asked.

“Yeah, like they have on a dragon-of-war,” Santher said. “I know what you’re thinking: how can a ship fly? But I tell you, if a big, old galleon like the Argh can fly, then a little spit like the Markab will have no problem at all.” Santher patted Herbie on the back. “We’ve got it worked out. We’ve got the wing masts, the propeller system, and the sails. We’re going all out here. I know it’ll just be a baby dragon-of-war, but she’ll be pretty fierce anyway. I was even thinking of a dragon carapace for the hull.

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