Shane Hegarty - Worlds Explode

First published in Great Britain by

HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2015

Published in this edition 2017

HarperCollins Children’s Books is a division of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd,

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London SE1 9GF

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Text copyright © Shane Hegarty 2015

Illustrations copyright © James de la Rue 2015

Design by HarperCollins Publishers © 2017

Character illustration © James de la Rue; claw mark illustration © Peter Crowther

Shane Hegarty asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of the work.

James de la Rue asserts the moral right to be identified as the illustrator of the work.

A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.

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Source ISBN: 9780007545674

Ebook Edition © 2017 ISBN: 9780007545759

Version: 2017-02-14

For Oisín

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Maps

Previously in Darkmouth

‘The Arrival of the Human’: From The Chronicles of the Sky’s Collapse , as told by inhabitants of the Infested Side

Chapter 1: Thirty-Two Years Later

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

‘The Arrival of the Human’: From The Chronicles of the Sky’s Collapse , as told by inhabitants of the Infested Side

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

‘The Execution of the Human’: From The Chronicles of the Sky’s Collapse , as told by inhabitants of the Infested Side

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

‘The Three Explodings of Niall Blacktongue’: From The Chronicles of the Sky’s Collapse , as told by the inhabitants of the Infested Side

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

‘The Purge’: From The Chronicles of the Sky’s Collapse , as told by the inhabitants of the Infested Side

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Chapter 56

‘Hugo’s Rescue’: From The Chronicles of the Sky’s Collapse , as told by the inhabitants of the Infested Side

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Chapter 62

‘The Leaving of Niall Blacktongue’: From The Chronicles of the Sky’s Collapse , as told by the inhabitants of the Infested Side

Chapter 63

Chapter 64

Chapter 65

Chapter 66

Thank Yous

Keep Reading …

About the Author

Books by Shane Hegarty

About the Publisher

It was, everyone on the Council of Twelve agreed, a bit of a mess.

Actually, it was a lot of a mess. In fact, ‘mess’ understated things a little. It was more of a disaster really. A catastrophe. A complete catastrophe.

It was, everyone on the Council of Twelve eventually agreed, a complete catastrophe.

What was the worst part of the catastrophe? There was so much to choose from.

Darkmouth was the last town left on Earth where Legends of myth still invaded, but Hugo the Great, the only active Legend Hunter left to fight them off, was lost on the Infested Side.

As if that wasn’t bad enough – and it was very, very bad – Darkmouth had been left in the hands of his son Finn, a boy still almost eleven months away from his thirteenth birthday when he would become Complete as a Legend Hunter.

Worse yet, this boy was not exactly top of his Legend Hunter class. Which was some achievement given he was the only boy in his Legend Hunter class.

Somehow, that wasn’t even the end of the mess.

The Twelve had managed to plant a spy in the town. Steve, a Half-Hunter from a long line of Legend Hunters, had never properly hunted until he arrived in Darkmouth. It turned out he had never properly spied either, as his cover was blown by Finn, the very boy he was supposed to be keeping a close eye on.

There should have been a positive in the form of Steve’s daughter, Emmie, who not only befriended Finn, but also showed a desire and heart for fighting Legends that the boy lacked. Except it was increasingly clear that her enthusiasm would cause trouble someday – and that day came when she helped a Legend, Broonie the Hogboon, escape back to the Infested Side from which all Legends come.

And then, just to add icing to the whole cake of catastrophe, Darkmouth turned out to be harbouring a traitor. Mr Ernest Glad was supposed to be a Fixer, a helper, a lifelong friend to Hugo. Instead, he was collaborating with the Legends and helped them invade. And he ended up opening a gateway to the Infested Side and pushing Finn’s mother, Clara, through it. Eventually, Clara was rescued by Hugo, but he became trapped in the world of the Legends.

Yes, Finn did shove Mr Glad into the gateway, trapping him and turning him into a million points of light. And yes, he did admittedly defeat a Minotaur and stop an all-out invasion of Legends.

But buildings were destroyed. People were hurt. Every goldfish in Darkmouth disappeared. Hugo the Legend Hunter was gone.

And it would not help matters at all if the boy tried to get him back. No, that would only end in further, final catastrophe.

Or something far worse.

‘The Arrival of the Human’ From The Chronicles of the Sky’s Collapse , as told by inhabitants of the Infested Side