Double Dragon Trouble Read Free Page A

battle had taken place inside this cave.
    â€œListen!” whispered Angus.
    Far away, Wiglaf heard clanking. And—was that a shriek? Yes! And there was another! He tightened his grip on Surekill and took another step.
    The tunnel widened. Wiglaf saw a fire flickering in the distance. They kept on. As they got closer to the fire, the cave grew brighter. And the clanking and shrieking grew louder.
    â€œWhy did we come here?” whimpered Angus.
    â€œShhhh,” cautioned Wiglaf. “We must take the kidnapper by surprise.”
    â€œBut what if there’s more than one?” Angus squeaked. “What if there’s a whole gang of them? What will we do?”
    A sudden screech split the air.
    â€œZounds!” cried Wiglaf and Angus together.
    They threw their arms around each other and held on tight.
    They waited. But all was quiet.
    Clutching each other, they took one step. Then another.
    Suddenly the cave floor gave way beneath their feet.
    â€œAHHHHHHHHH!” screamed Wiglaf.
    â€œAHHHHHHHHH!” screamed Angus.
    They kept screaming as they tumbled down, down, down.

Chapter 4
    T HUD!
    Wiglaf hit the hard, rocky bottom.
    THUD!
    Angus landed beside Wiglaf.
    The mini-torch went out. Wiglaf blinked in the dim light. He wiggled his fingers. Shook his arms and legs. Rolled his head around. Nothing broken. He sat up and asked in a whisper, “Angus? Are you all right?”
    â€œUhhhh,” said Angus.
    Pounding feet sounded from high above. Then BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Was someone banging a gong? Wiglaf heard whooping and shouting and shrieking. Now what?
    â€œAngus,” whispered Wiglaf. “I think maybe we have been kidnapped, too.”
    â€œThis is the end!” wailed Angus. “Bye, Wiglaf. Nice knowing you.”
    â€œDo not give up,” said Wiglaf. “We may yet escape.”
    â€œEscape?” shouted a voice above them. “I don’t think so.”
    A small daggerlike stone came zooming down into the pit. And then another. And another! Wiglaf and Angus shielded their heads with their hands as the pointy stones rained down on them.
    â€œOw! Ow! Ow!” cried Angus and Wiglaf.
    At last the stones stopped falling.
    â€œAre you all right, Angus?” Wiglaf asked.
    Angus nodded. Then he shook his fist at the enemy above them and shouted, “You are the world’s meanest kidnapper!”
    A face jutted over the edge of the pit. A pair of eyes looked gleefully down at Wiglaf and Angus.
    Wiglaf gasped. He had expected to see a cruel villain. But he found himself looking up at the face of a lad. A little lad! He looked about his brother Dudwin’s age—six, maybe seven. The lad wore a bucket-shaped helmet, held on with a metal chin strap. Tufts of bright yellow hair stuck out from under the helmet.
    â€œWho are you?” shouted Angus.
    â€œNone of your beeswax!” the lad shouted back. And he vanished from above them.
    Wiglaf’s head was spinning. What was going on? Why was this little lad shouting at them? He could make no sense of it at all.
    â€œHave you been kidnapped?” called Wiglaf.
    â€œHave you been kidnapped?” mimicked the lad.
    Wiglaf looked up. There he was, peering down at them again. He had put on another helmet. This one had a metal nose-guard. All Wiglaf could see were his eyes and his grinning mouth. He was missing a front tooth.
    Now a second head appeared beside the first. This one wore the bucket helmet. Wiglaf blinked. Zounds! There were two little lads!
    Angus began shouting, “No! Oh, no! Oh, woe is us!”
    â€œAngus! What is wrong?” cried Wiglaf.
    â€œI wish it were a pair of demons!” cried Angus. “Anything would be better than this!”
    â€œWhat!” cried Wiglaf. “Do you know these lads?”
    â€œYesssssss,” wailed Angus. “They are my cousins, Bilge and Maggot!”
    Wiglaf looked up. Bilge and Maggot stood at the edge of the pit, grinning down