Dragonseers and Airships

by Chris Behrsin

  Dragonheats, the man had gone stark raving mad. Meanwhile, the ground shook underneath my feet and I half expected a chasm to tear up the earth beneath us and swallow us into the abyss. That would be ironic, after how far we’d come.

  Everything was shaking so hard that even the panther looming nearby didn’t seem to know what to do. One moment it was lying down on the ground trembling, the next it was trying to lift itself on two legs, and then tumbling across the plateau, the next it stood up on all fours and leaped across the ground as if trying to fly away from the earthquake. But, of course, gravity prevailed.

  It was lucky we were on a plateau, really. Otherwise, I’m sure we’d all be tumbling down the mountain. But that thought gave me a little idea. Here I was cowering in Wiggea’s arm and, despite how good it felt to be pushed up against a little muscle, I had an opportunity to get rid of that panther automaton.

  I let the hip flask slip from under my armpit and took a swig from it. Well, I say a swig. With my jaw chattering and the world rumbling about me, I spilled much over my face. Some splashed into my eyes, stinging them. I would have thought it a huge waste, if it didn’t give us a chance to dispose of our captor. But soon enough the world ghosted green, and I felt some strength and agility return to me.

  I no longer felt paralysed by the rumbling ground, but instead I felt a certain synchrony with the resonance. I could feel the rhythm of the earth and I knew exactly when I could leap and when I should crouch. The panther now had also found a little more balance and through my augmented vision I could see it glowing even greener than before. A ball of light began to emerge from its mouth, but the earthquake soon knocked the panther down again, and that ball dissipated into the dust.

  I got down onto all fours, knowing that I’d move faster along the shaky earth in this posture. I stalked forwards just as the panther started to get up again.

  “Dragonheats, Pontopa,” I heard Faso call out from behind me. “Stop it! You’re going to get us killed.”

  Really, that man needed to learn to have more faith in ladies like me. Particularly, as I was the dragonseer here, and he’d already admitted himself to be crippled without the aid of his inventions.

  So, I tried my best to ignore him as I leaped upon the back of the panther. It tossed its head to the air and let off a huge roar which sent shivers down my spine. I fastened one arm around its neck, as it tossed and bucked and tried to throw me off. Still the secicao made me strong and the added agility gave me a certain ability to sense the panther’s movements ahead of time.

  With my free hand, I felt around for an opening where there might be a power core. That was the way Ratter worked – Faso had installed a hatch on his back, beneath which ran an intricate array of wires and other devices I didn’t understand. But even the most foolish of fools knew how to remove a power core.

  The earth bucked again, sending me and the panther into a tumble. We roly-polied down the plateau, accelerating towards a massive drop. As we rolled, the sharp volcanic rock tore at my skin, causing me to yelp out in pain. But the secicao oil numbed my senses a little, which at least made the pain manageable.

  The panther tossed again, and it managed to throw me off the front of it and get itself free of my grip. It darted away and then turned in a sharp circle towards me. As it leapt, it revealed two sharp claws that could have easily torn me apart. I rolled out of the way, and then turned to face it. I caught sight of a hatch on its derrière. If I could only open that, I could disable the thing. But the thing was so fast to turn around, I doubted I’d have the remotest of chances to do so.

  “Hoooooiiieee,” the call came from the tribal chief. The mask had been shaken off his face and so for the first time I caught sight of his pockmarked skin, dry lips, and a huge smile. He threw his spear towards me. Presumably an accomplished hunter, his aim was true. I caught the spear in mid-air and brandished it at the beast.

  But the panther automaton had already launched itself off the ground towards me. This time, forward rolling underneath it would have sent me tumbling off the cliff. So instead, I ducked to the side. As the ground rocked, the panther stumbled when it landed, but it didn’t fall over this time.

  Before the beast could recover, I swung the haft of the spear, hoping to at least stun the thing. I hit it in the mouth hard enough to snap the spire protruding out the thing. Meanwhile, the panther automaton caught the spear in its mouth and wrenched it away from me. But surprisingly, instead of discarding the spear, it kept it clenched in its teeth. As I looked behind me, I realised why. I was right against the edge, and the spear shaft would readily knock me off it.

  The beast scuffed its back paws into the ground and charged. Time dilated in my mind’s eye – an effect of the secicao. As I watched the panther sprinting towards me in slow motion, I considered my options. I could try rolling under the haft or vaulting over it. But the panther had wisely kept the spear at an angle making both moves risky. Because the spear now gave the automaton additional width, I wouldn’t be fast enough to run around it. I had no option but to let it knock me off the edge. Perhaps I could catch myself on the way down.

  As the thing ran, it hugged the cliff face with cat-like balance, not once stumbling, even as the ground shook. In just moments I would fall to my fate and I’d never see Taka again.

  A loud bang came from my right, something like the sound of a crashing boulder hitting the floor. All of a sudden, the panther tumbled to the right and started to slide down the rock. The shaft rose up as the panther fell and just missed my head by mere inches. Then, the panther plummeted down the side into the abyss.

  Without even thinking, I made towards Wiggea and the rest of the party on the plateau. It took me a moment to notice that Wiggea was holding the Pattersoni rifle in his hands that the tribal chief had been carrying on his back, smoke trailing up from the barrel. The green outline in my vision was fading now, the effects of the secicao wearing off. As the sensation faded, my eyes started to sting a little too, as well as the parts of my skin that had been grazed by the sharp rocks. I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hands and looked up at Wiggea.

  The ground bucked again and Wiggea stumbled to the ground. I teetered backwards and I almost went over the edge myself. I crouched down and planted the palm of my hand into the earth to stop myself falling over. Then, I pulled myself up towards Wiggea and the rest of the party. Another quake rocked the ground, and I stumbled forwards. Wiggea caught me in his arms and held me there a moment. I found myself staring into his soft hazel eyes.

  “Lieutenant Wiggea,” I said.

  “Maam?” He cocked his head and a smile spread across his face. The rifle lay on the ground beside us now and slid across the ground as the earth shook some more. Wiggea and I crouched down together, and I buried my head in his shoulder and let the emotions come out. I don’t know if I cried tears or I cried pain, but so much flooded back to me. King Cini sending soldiers to destroy my farmhouse. My father taking a bullet in the Five Hamlets to protect me. Sukina dying in her sickbed from a poison dart, all because she stayed in the palace to battle King Cini so Faso, Taka and I could make our escape. All the lives dragons and men had lost so I could live. So many sacrifices made, and I almost threw it all away by falling off a precipice.

  “We did it,” I said to Wiggea. “That panther hopefully won’t bother us any longer.”

  “I hope so, Maam,” Wiggea said. He hesitated for a moment. “I almost thought you were Sukina then, the way you moved.”

  I nodded and fought back a smile. “Thank you, Lieutenant.” I guess all that training hadn’t been for nothing.

  The quakes were now dying down, and I was confident the earthquake would soon pass. Faso had lifted himself off the ground, no longer cowering in a foetal position. I noticed an expression of scorn on his face when he saw Wiggea holding me in his arms. Wiggea turned his head a little and then remembered himself. He let go of me, and he tugged at the collar of his robe. “I think the danger has passed now.”
r />   “I think so,” I said.

  But Faso looked livid. “Pontopa, there was no way of you knowing you could have defeated that thing. If it wasn’t for the chief throwing the rifle to Wiggea it would have killed you and then turned on us. What were you thinking?”

  I clenched my teeth and tried to not to let this buffoon get under my skin. “I saw an opportunity and I took it, Faso,” I said, keeping my voice as calm as I could, even though I was seething underneath. “We need to take some risks if we’re going to survive this.”

  “Well, you’re going to need to start making more sensible decisions, Pontopa Wells. From now on, I think you need a stronger leader.”

  I shook my head and put my hands on my hips. “Faso, I’m still in charge of this operation. Your advice is noted, and your temper isn’t appreciated right now. Pull yourself together.”

  A crackle came again from no determinate direction. Wellies knows how many of those speakers Colas had installed here. But now the earth had stopped growling, the old man had decided to speak in his robotic, modified voice. “What the dragonheats did you do to my panther, Dragonseer? I saw you augment, and I saw you lunge in. And now… Dragonheats, if you think you’re going to climb the mountain without an escort, you’re wrong. I have plenty more automatons where that came from.”

  The fact that he didn’t seem so happy caused me to smirk a little. It also seemed to cause a little elation in the tribal chief, who had lifted himself off the ground, and began cartwheeling around while he let out waves of hysterical laughter. Colas started to speak in the tribe’s own language, but the chief raised his fist to the sky and screeched out what I presumed to be an expletive with all the power of his lungs.

  The realisation suddenly dawned on me that Colas could no longer hear us. Perhaps he couldn’t see us either. Maybe he only had cameras within the panthers after all. And I’d also shown the tribespeople that the panther automatons could be defeated. That, if anything, had to give them hope.

  “I’m sending another panther up to punish you,” Colas said. “And this time, if you try anything, I’ll kill one of your own.”

  I looked at Wiggea then Faso. “You better listen to him,” Faso said. “He’s a madman.”

  But the tribal chief was also behaving like a madman, clutching his belly while lying on the ground and kicking at the air as Colas continued to say something in the tribal language.

  Once Colas had finished speaking, the leader turned to the guides who now stood with their backpacks on their shoulders. He looked up the mountain and then he motioned them along the edge of it. He started to traverse the terrain and then beckoned us onwards.

  I decided it best to follow him, and as we moved, I kept an eye out for any sign of panther automatons bounding up the rockface from below. We were pretty exposed, so the automatons might be able to spot us if we didn’t find a place to remain concealed. But the earthquake had kicked up a lot of volcanic ash from the ground, limiting visibility. It seemed that this time, nature had looked upon us favourably.

  And so I hiked onwards with a feeling of renewed hope.

  16

  We traversed the mountain for a while as the dust lifted up from the earthquake settled on the ground, and the sky went from grey to red to twilight blue. Just before it then plunged into a moonless pitch-black night, the tribal chief motioned for us to halt. He and all the tribespeople with us had discarded their masks. Clearly, now they’d seen the mortality of the panther automaton, it was no longer a deity in their minds.

  The chief pointed towards a cave mouth that opened up into the rock face. From it came a roaring sound and a warm draft carrying a sulphuric smell upon it, almost as if a dragon lived within.

  The tribal chief and tribespeople led us down a long almost cylindrical cavern with slimy floors which got darker as we progressed inside. I found it difficult not to slip as I walked, and I half wanted to augment so at least I’d be able to see my way through here, but I resisted. I only had a small amount of secicao oil left in my flask after spilling it during the earthquake. I figured I might need this for another occasion, like if I had to fight any more panther automatons, or whatever else Colas might have in store for us at the top of the mountain.

  Soon enough, the darkness transgressed into a natural red light that bounced off the walls. And as we pushed on, the heat intensified, and the roars became even louder, occurring intermittently. I expected to see a huge bonfire at the end of this, the amount of energy that was coming off the walls. But instead the passageway opened up into a brilliant display of red coming from a massive lava lake, deep enough below us fortunately that it didn’t pose any apparent threat. Every so often, fire would flare out of the lake, sending out a massive boom with it and letting off a significant amount of heat.

  Faso was the first to say something. “Amazing. We’ve just passed through a veritable lava tube into the source of the volcano itself. You know, up until now, we only knew about two accessible lava lakes in the world.”

  “I thought you said that this volcano was dormant?” I asked.

  “So I thought,” Faso replied. “So I thought…”

  “Colas… Could he possibly?”

  “I doubt it,” Faso said. “No, this place for some reason has remained largely unexplored. Or if not, at least undocumented in the scientific journals.”

  “You didn’t come here.”

  “No…” Faso looked down at the magma lake and I could see it glowing in the reflection in his eyes. “I conducted my studies much further north.”

  The tribal chief smiled and nodded as if he understood. I doubted he did, but he was probably instead acknowledging the expression of awe on our faces.

  And I could only describe it as awesome myself, as I watched the blackened rocks bubble and melt on the lava lake’s surface. Outside, the temperature had dropped quite significantly as the coolness of the evening approached. But now, I was starting to sweat again.

  We traversed further along the narrow passageway that looked down over the lava lake until we reached an alcove. There, three old men stood around a firepit, and these men didn’t have the dark skin of the tribespeople, but fairer skin like many of the natives of Slaro. Except they also each had hardened natural tan to them, clearly after being exposed to hours of sunshine outside. They also looked remarkably similar, like identical twins, or I guess triplets.

  The firepit had a pot in the centre, but the fire wasn’t lit and probably not necessary for anything but cooking due to the heat given off by the lava lake. Some tree stump stools had been arranged around the firepit, and around the walls of the alcove, a dozen or so feathered mattresses had been laid out on the floor. Above these mattresses, strange symbols had been etched into the wall. As I looked closer, I noticed them to be lit by some kind of magmatic light, almost as if they were on fire.

  One of the old men turned to me as we approached. This man, unlike his brothers, had a mole that stuck out of the beard at his chin. He stepped forward and offered me his hand. “Dragonseer,” he said. “Welcome to our temporary abode.”

  “Hooooooieeee,” the tribal chief said. “Elders speak.”

  I looked at them in astonishment. “You speak Towese?” I asked.

  The first man turned to the second of the men who’d now placed himself by the firepit and was bending down to strike a match. He threw it onto the firewood, watching it erupt into flames. He then poured some oats into the pot from a sack, followed by some water from a gourd.

  Then he turned to me. This second man had a birthmark that ran diagonally across his left cheek and disappeared into his beard. “We speak many languages, Dragonseer Wells, for we are students of old with much knowledge of the world. My brother here is an anthropologist.” He indicated the man standing next to me. “I’m a biologist. And our third is a linguist.”

  I regarded them in curiosity. “The three of you look the same,” I pointed out.

  The third man’s grey beard had now gained a red tint, due to
the light of the fire. This man’s distinguishing feature was a very slightly cleft top lip. He took hold of ladle from beside the firepit and used it to stir the porridge in the pot. “We’re identical triplets of the Dragonseer line,” he said. “Much like you.”

  I opened my mouth in shock. No, this wasn’t possible. “But all dragonseers are female, and they can only birth a single female offspring.” Gerhaun had taught me that.

  “Are you so sure about that?” The question came again from the first of the men, the anthropologist with the mole on his chin. “Can you trust your sources.”

  I tried to recall Gerhaun’s words. It had been so long ago, but I’d relived the moment I first met her many times in my head. “A dragonseer will always have one child, no more, no less, always female,” she’d said. I repeated the words exactly as I remembered them.

  That caused the three elder triplets to look at each other and erupt into laughter.

  “That sounds exactly like Gerhaun Forsi.” This time the biologist spoke. “She was always very careful about her words. Yes, we heard she’d taken you under her wing. But notice she said will, not was. She spoke about the future, not the past. Because she plans never to let it happen again.”

  Faso had just joined us by the firepit. He sat down and looked at the three men in turn and then at the porridge now bubbling in the pot. “I thought I’d heard enough baloney for one day. Given the three of you are men of learning, I expected to hear something worthwhile rather than the myths and nonsense, I often hear from Pontopa here.”

  The linguist then turned to Faso and a sly smile stretched upon his face. He spoke with a little bit of a lisp, presumably because of his cleft lip. “I’d listen to us, Mr Gordoni. For like us you are a male component of the dragonseer line. You are more special than you might think.”