Destroy Troy Read online

  The Greek hero landed on a group of soldiers far below.

  The Trojans cheered!

  The Greeks were stunned.

  Their greatest hero – beaten by a boy!

  They began to flee, and the men of Troy chased them all the way back to their ships.

  Napoleon dusted his hands together. ‘I bet King Priam will want to see me now, Skin.’

  There was a great feast in the banquet hall that night.

  Warriors raised their swords in triumph as the king and queen took their place at the grand table laden with pheasants, ducks, breads, cakes and fine wines.

  A huge pig on a spit sizzled over the fire.

  It was the feast of all feasts.

  Napoleon sat next to the king. Priam was clothed in a rich tunic decked with rubies.

  ‘This young man saved our city today,’ he announced. ‘I hereby make him a Prince of Troy. Hail, Pelarcus!’

  Everyone cheered the new prince.

  And the celebrations began.

  Napoleon tucked into the succulent pork and delicious breads.

  Between mouthfuls, he met princes, chiefs and warriors, princesses and priests.

  Skin could only just keep up collecting all the DNA. ‘Data banks reaching maximum capacity’.

  Halfway through the evening, Napoleon realised that a dark-eyed man was glaring at him.

  ‘That man standing next to the pillar,’ said Napoleon to Skin. ‘He keeps staring at me.’

  ‘That is Antenor,’ said Skin. ‘He is chief advisor to King Priam. But he is a traitor. He plans to steal the king’s crown with help from the Greeks. That is why he is staring at you. You are thwarting his plans.’

  Napoleon saw Antenor whispering to a guard, then the two of them scowled in his direction.

  ‘I think they’re up to no good, Skin,’ he said.

  ‘I am monitoring their movements, BB,’ said Skin. ‘I will alert you to danger.’

  ‘Pelarcus,’ said a soft voice behind Napoleon. He turned.

  It was King Priam’s youngest daughter, Polyxena.

  ‘Thank you for saving our city,’ she said.

  Napoleon smiled. ‘No problem, Princess,’ he said.

  She smiled too. But then her face changed. ‘I fear, though, that we are doomed. My sister says Troy will be destroyed and we will perish. No one believes her, but I feel she might be right.’

  She stared at him, waiting for him to respond.

  But as Napoleon looked into her sad eyes, he could not reply.

  How could he tell her what he knew?

  The hours of eating and drinking and cheering finally ended.

  The king’s servant showed Napoleon to a room in the castle and Napoleon fell into an uneasy sleep – filled with cries and burning cities.

  He woke with a start.

  ‘Skin. Are you awake?’ he said, sitting up.

  ‘Affirmative,’ said Skin. ‘Cerebral activity indicates you have a question.’

  ‘What happens to the Trojans?’

  ‘The war will end,’ said Skin. ‘By this time tomorrow night the city of Troy will be burning.’

  ‘Do many of the Trojans survive?’

  ‘Very few. Those who do will become slaves.’

  ‘And Polyxena?’ said Napoleon, even though he wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer.

  ‘You cannot change what has already happened, BB,’ said Skin.

  ‘I know,’ said Napoleon.

  He lay back on the bed.

  Sometimes he couldn’t quite believe that any of this was really happening.

  Maybe Operation Battle Book was just one really long dream.

  Tomorrow he’d wake up and everything would be okay.

  He rolled over and closed his eyes.

  He had just drifted off to sleep when he felt a warning buzz from Skin.

  Moments later a thought message followed:

  Intruder. Large male at the window. He has a dagger. Prepare to respond with force.

  Napoleon silently shifted sideways across the bed, pulling his pillow into the position where he had been lying.

  Do we laser or Taser him? Napoleon asked.

  Neither, Skin replied.

  But he’s very close.

  Napoleon could see the intruder’s shadow through the silk curtains hanging around his bed. He rubbed his eyelids, activating Skin’s Night Eyes.

  Now he could see the man clearly.

  It was the guard he had seen talking to Antenor.

  The man was only metres away, his dagger ready to strike.

  Recommend use of hologram, Skin said. Monster 4981 should scare him into retreat. Downloading now.

  Napoleon rubbed his hands together to activate the HH5.2 LCD screen.

  A hand was reaching around the bed curtains and quietly drawing them back.

  Napoleon saw the glint of a dagger in the moonlight.

  He waited until it was about to come stabbing down, then opened his palms and pulled them apart.

  A hideous creature leaped from his hands.

  It had four heads, each with snarling mouths full of razor sharp teeth. The heads roared and shook as the creature flew up at the intruder.

  The guard screamed, dropped his dagger and ran.

  As he reached the window Napoleon zapped him with the Taser.

  The guard leaped straight out of the window.

  Napoleon heard a painful thud on the ground below, and then footsteps limping off into the night.

  ‘Intruder removed,’ Skin said. ‘Well executed, BB.’

  A moment later Napoleon heard the low hum that told him Skin had slipped into sleep mode.

  The danger was over. For now.

  Soon, he was asleep too, dreaming of how to save Polyxena.

  ‘They’ve gone!’

  Napoleon was woken by a cry from the watchtower.

  Soon there were similar shouts all over Troy.

  ‘The Greeks have gone! The war is over!’

  Napoleon rushed down to the city gates.

  People were cheering, laughing and hugging each other.

  The city gates were flung open in joy and then – all noise stopped.

  On the plain in front of Troy stood a huge wooden horse.

  The massive, silent steed had the solid, barrel-like body of a draught horse.

  It towered high above the people gathering around it.

  Napoleon too stared at the beast.

  ‘Excellent view,’ Skin said. ‘Please hold steady.’

  Napoleon walked around the horse as Skin recorded a 360-degree image of it.

  ‘Irrefutable proof that the Trojan Horse existed,’ said Skin. ‘And it is full of soldiers.’

  ‘I know,’ Napoleon said.

  He pressed his hand against the wooden horse. The tiny receiver in his small finger amplified the anxious breaths of the soldiers sealed inside.

  He pulled his hand away and shuddered.

  And then the professor’s voice was in Napoleon’s ear. ‘Mission accomplished, BB005,’ she said. ‘Time to leave.’

  ‘But—’ said Napoleon. He still hadn’t worked out how to help Polyxena.

  ‘We have all the data we need, BB,’ the professor said. ‘Time to move out. We know what happens next and you don’t want to be in the middle of that.’

  ‘But it doesn’t seem right.’

  ‘This has nothing to do with right or wrong. It’s history. This has happened already. You can’t change that. Move, BB!’

  As the professor spoke, Napoleon heard trumpets and drums. King Priam and the royal family had arrived.

  Polyxena was with them.

  She smiled when she saw Napoleon in the crowd.

  Who said I can’t try to change it? he thought.

  Priam was surrounded by priests and counsellors. Antenor, the evil advisor, was at his side.

  ‘It’s a gift from the Greeks, my king,’ Antenor said. ‘We must bring it into the city as a symbol of our victory.’

&nbs
p; ‘YES!’ cried the people of Troy. What a fitting tribute to the might of the Trojan people.

  ‘NO!’ Napoleon yelled. ‘Don’t do it, King Priam.’

  The shouting hushed and people turned to look at him.

  Antenor stepped forward. ‘The boy is evil,’ he said. ‘His power comes not from the gods, but from monsters and demons.’

  ‘How do you know I have monsters, Antenor?’ challenged Napoleon. ‘Is it because you sent someone to kill me last night?’

  The crowd gasped.

  ‘What is the boy saying, Antenor?’ said King Priam.

  Antenor smiled at the king. ‘His words are false, King Priam. He comes to destroy Troy, not to save it.’

  The Trojans booed and hissed at Napoleon.

  He could feel them surrounding him, threatening him.

  ‘Extreme danger detected,’ said Skin. ‘The Trojans do not like traitors.’

  ‘I’d kind of worked that out for myself, thanks, Skin,’ said Napoleon nervously.

  ‘BB005!’ snapped the professor in his ear. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’

  Priam raised his hand to silence the crowd. ‘Let the boy speak.’

  He turned to Napoleon. ‘Tell us, Pelarcus. Why should we not bring this gift into our city?’

  ‘Because it’s a trick,’ answered Napoleon. ‘The horse is filled with Greek warriors.’

  The king frowned as Napoleon spoke. He didn’t seem to understand what he had said.

  Napoleon knew at once what had happened. Skin’s translator had stopped working.

  Maybe the prof has deactivated it on purpose, he thought. That’s one way of getting me out of here.

  But then Skin sent him a message on his Battle Watch.

  Now when Napoleon spoke, the people of Troy heard plain English, not ancient Trojan.

  And when the king replied, Napoleon couldn’t understand anything he said.

  ‘It’s filled with soldiers,’ Napoleon shouted again, pointing at the horse. ‘They’re inside, and they’ll attack you tonight in your sleep. Believe me! Please.’

  It was no good.

  Antenor pointed an accusing finger at him and yelled something that sounded bad. Really bad.

  The people yelled too, and some threw stones.

  The king frowned. He raised his hand and gave a command.

  Napoleon felt rough hands grab hold of him.

  Polyxena tried to speak to her father but he waved her aside.

  She stared at Napoleon, helpless, as the soldiers dragged him away.

  The dungeon was cold and dark.

  Napoleon huddled in a corner.

  He could hear rats scuttling through the straw on the floor.

  A long tail brushed against his leg.

  He shuddered.

  ‘BB, where are you?’ said Professor Perdu. Her voice was faint and full of static.

  ‘I’m in a smelly old dungeon,’ Napoleon said. ‘Deep under the city.’

  ‘The signal is too weak, I can’t get a proper beam on you,’ she said. ‘And until I do, I can’t get you out of the Battle Book. We’re approaching Omega Phase and we’ll have to move soon.’

  ‘What can we do, then?’

  ‘You have to get out,’ the professor’s voice crackled. ‘It’s your only —’

  Her voice stopped. The signal was lost.

  Everything was going wrong, thought Napoleon.

  Skin had fixed the fault in the language circuit but now there was no-one to talk to.

  He lay back in the straw and sighed.

  Skin was recharging in sleep mode, so Napoleon was completely alone in the dark.

  He rubbed his eyelids to activate the Night Eyes, and looked around.

  He couldn’t see much to cheer him up.

  The walls were made of thick stone, there was only a small window, and the door was bolted.

  Escape seemed impossible.

  A skeleton hung from the wall. It made him shiver. He could see heaps of rats, their red eyes like tiny flames.

  Spiders scaled the walls and someone was moaning in a cell nearby. A prisoner left to rot.

  Would he be left to rot too?

  He moved his legs and felt the aches in his body.

  The guards had kicked and shoved him through the steep tunnel down to the dungeon, yelling at him. He hadn’t understood a word they’d said.

  Then he heard something. A voice. In the distance.

  It sounded like one of the guards, and it was coming closer.

  There was a second voice too – a young voice.

  Napoleon leaped to his feet and pressed his ear to the door.

  He recognised the voice. It was Polyxena!

  But why was she here? What was she saying?

  He rubbed his sides to activate Skin. A faint tingle passed through his body.

  ‘Operation Mode activated,’ Skin said. ‘You require something, BB?’

  ‘The translator!’ Napoleon said. ‘I need it urgently.’

  ‘Power recharge incomplete—’

  ‘Please, Skin. Polly is coming to help me. I need to talk to her.’

  There was a soft humming in Napoleon’s ears, and a moment later he could hear everything that was being said outside the dungeon door.

  ‘How many times do I have to explain?’ Polyxena was saying angrily to the guard. ‘My father, your king, has sent me to fetch Prince Pelarcus.’

  ‘But I need the orders in writing from the king himself.’

  ‘Do as you’re told, you oaf! This is a matter of the greatest importance. Free the prince at once.’

  The guard grumbled. ‘I don’t like this.’

  But Polyxena became even angrier. ‘At once!’ she shouted. ‘Free Prince Pelarcus this minute or I’ll have you thrown into the dungeon.’

  There was more mumbling from the guard, but then Napoleon heard a wonderful sound – the opening of the door.

  Polyxena rushed in and grabbed his hand.

  He was free.

  They ran as fast as they could through the dark tunnel.

  Their frantic breaths left whispers of fear behind them.

  When they reached the end Napoleon stopped. A full moon lit the sky with a silver glow.

  ‘Thanks for saving me,’ he said to Polyxena.

  She smiled. But it was a sad smile. ‘You are not from here, are you?’ she said. ‘You are not one of us.’

  ‘No. I come from another place.’ He paused before adding, ‘And another time.’

  ‘Another time?’ Polyxena shook her head. ‘How can that be?’

  ‘I come from the future, many years from now.’

  She frowned. ‘So you know what will happen to us?’

  They heard shouting from somewhere in the city. Then cries for help, and the smell of fire.

  ‘Yes,’ Napoleon said. ‘Your city will be burned to the ground. Your people will be killed or turned into slaves. Only a few will escape.’

  Polyxena’s face twisted in horror.

  And then the professor’s voice was in his ear like a buzzing bee.

  ‘Thank goodness. You’re out at last, BB. You must leave now! There’s not a moment to lose.’

  Napoleon knew he had to leave. But the sadness in Polyxena’s eyes made him linger.

  He didn’t care what the prof said.

  Polyxena had saved his life.

  He had to save hers.

  ‘Come with me,’ he cried.

  ‘You know she can’t, BB!’ Professor Perdu snapped.

  ‘Quick, Princess!’ he said again. ‘Come!’

  Polyxena hesitated. But then she turned to him and nodded. ‘Very well. I will.’

  Napoleon grabbed her hand. ‘We have to hurry!’

  But before they’d taken a single step their escape was barred.

  ‘Going somewhere?’ The evil Antenor stood in their path, two soldiers at his side with swords drawn.

  ‘Out of our way,’ Napoleon demanded.

  Antenor laughed. ‘Did you
hear what the boy said?’ His henchmen laughed too. ‘Sorry, Prince Pelarcus, or whoever you are, I can’t let you go. I need to be rid of you. And you too, Princess.’

  ‘I mean it!’ Napoleon shouted. ‘Out of our way, Antenor.’

  Antenor laughed even louder. ‘And what will you do if we don’t get out of your way?’

  Napoleon flexed his left hand. He knew there wasn’t much power left in Skin’s energy bank, but there was still enough to make an impression on Antenor and his thugs.

  ‘This,’ he said. ‘For starters.’

  Napoleon pointed his laser finger at the guards, blinding them both with its searing light. They dropped their swords and rubbed their eyes.

  ‘Darkness is upon us!’ they cried. ‘The young prince has stolen our eyes.’

  Then Napoleon turned his Taser finger on Antenor.

  ‘Tickle mode,’ he said to Skin. ‘Give him something to really laugh about.’

  ‘But the energy, BB,’ Skin warned.

  ‘Please, Skin. Just do it! Or we’ll never get out of here.’

  A thin blue beam zapped from the end of Napoleon’s middle finger. In an instant Antenor began chuckling. Soon he was rolling on the ground, cackling like a clown and wriggling like a worm.

  Polyxena looked at Napoleon with wide eyes. ‘Is this magic?’ she asked.

  ‘I’ll tell you one day,’ Napoleon said. ‘If we’re lucky. But right now we have to run.’

  He grabbed her hand again and they raced away, leaving Antenor and his men laughing and crying at the same time.

  ‘Left turn in twenty metres.’

  Skin was using the GC-Locator to give Napoleon exact directions as he and Polyxena ran through the burning city.

  Professor Perdu had set up the Exit Beam on the wall above the city gates.

  All around them, people were fleeing from their homes.

  ‘Turn left.’

  Napoleon turned into a narrow alley.

  ‘Stay in this lane to the end, then turn right.’

  Skin suddenly gave a loud beep. Napoleon knew exactly what that meant.

  It was a warning.