The Swamp Boggles Read Online Free Page B

ickle-wickle Fluffy?”
    Sophie saw the glee in his face. She started towards him, but he was too quick for her. Still chuckling, he grabbed a biscuit and darted out of the room.
    â€œNever mind him,” muttered Sophie to Sam. “Come on, let’s go and check out The Shadow Files. ”
    Grabbing their drinks and biscuits, they went up to Sophie’s room and closed the door. Pulling The Shadow Files out from under her bed, Sophie opened the book up and Sam quickly started leafing through.
    â€œNo, not a Marsh Goblin,” he muttered. “Or a Slime Troll, or a Snail Gnome… Yes!” he exclaimed suddenly. “Look, here it is! Ithought I’d seen one in here.”
    Sophie stared. The creature on the page Sam was holding out looked exactly like the thing they had seen that morning!

S am read out. “‘ Beware the vicious, rotten-breathed Swamp Boggles who come from the swamps and marshes. For they are hard to injure and almost impossible to fight. Their skin is filled with water and blows will cause them no harm. They fear not humans, often travelling between houses andbuildings using drains and underground waterways.’ ”
    Sophie listened with mounting dread. “That’s really not good. If they can travel through the town, they’ll be able to find the gems. Because the key glows whenever it’s near one of them, remember?”
    â€œThere’s another note here.” Sam pointed to the bottom of the page. “It looks like your grandpa’s handwriting. ‘ Fighting a Swamp Boggle ’,” he read out. “‘ See Fighting Slime Trolls and Marsh Goblins. Many similarities. Same things may work?’ ”
    Sam quickly found the Slime Troll page.
    â€œWhat does it say?” Sophie looked at him hopefully.
    â€œâ€˜To fight a Slime Troll, one must first dry out their skin through use of wind or heat for thenthey will become vulnerable to blows.’” Sam looked at Sophie. “We could try that on the Swamp Boggle!”

    â€œBut how?” said Sophie.
    Sam scratched his head; Sophie could sense his brain whirring. “Let’s see… we could rig upa massive fan. It would need to be on wheels so we could transport it, and battery powered of course, so it wouldn’t need a cable, and then…”
    â€œWhoa!” Sophie broke in. “Where are we going to get a massive fan from, let alone a battery pack to power it?” She sighed. “I wonder if the page on Marsh Goblins is any more use.”
    Sam flicked the pages. “Here it is! ‘ When a Marsh Goblin is terrified it will dissolve into a puddle of water and never recover.’” He looked up at Sophie. “So we have to scare one to death!”
    Sophie raised her eyebrows. “Let me see. Hands the size of bicycle wheels, teeth like a ninja piranha, body that can’t be hurt. Oh, yeah, a Swamp Boggle is going to be so easy to terrify!” With a groan, she got up and wentrestlessly to the window, looking across the lawn to where the woods pressed up against the fence. The washing was fluttering on the line, but then another movement caught her attention. What was that? She peered more closely at the trees. Surely it wasn’t…
    But it was.
    â€œSam!” she hissed. “Look! By the fence!”
    Sam joined her and followed her gaze. “Oh, no – it’s the Swamp Boggle!” he said in dismay.
    They watched as the Swamp Boggle stared over the fence towards the house.
    â€œSophie!” said Sam suddenly. “What if Mrs B goes into the garden to get more washing in?”
    They looked at each other in horror and the next minute were both racing down the stairs.
    â€œWe’re just going outside!” Sophie gabbled as she and Sam ran past Mrs B, who was stillstanding at the ironing board. “Stay here! Don’t go out!”
    â€œOke-dokey. But could you bring the rest of the washing in