by Alex English
Another sky pirate stood with his blue-fur-clad back to them, his shaggy grey hair twisted into beaded ropes beneath his tricorne. He took a seat in the shark chair, his back to the window seat where the two children were hidden. The hairs on the back of Echo’s neck stood up and she shrank back further behind the drapes. So this was the terrible Old Gus.
‘Welcome to this meetin’ of the Seven Skies Alliance,’ said the man in a voice like gravel. ‘And welcome to Shark’s Fin Peak. I’m sure I don’t need to remind yer that, under the Treaty of the Seven Skies, no weapons are permitted and every pirate may speak freely.’ He raised his tankard of grog. ‘Live by the sky, die by the sky!’
‘Live by the sky, die by the sky!’ echoed the others, raising their own glasses. Echo strained to get a look at them all, but most of their faces were hidden in shadows and Old Gus still had his back to them. Echo’s jaw clenched in frustration. If only she could get a better view! She shifted in her hiding place and almost toppled forward, grabbing on to the edge of the window seat just in time.
Horace’s eyes widened in horror and Echo grimaced. It would be bad enough if her own mother found her here, let alone a whole roomful of the most fearsome sky-pirate leaders! She sat back down and bit her lip, promising herself that, even if she didn’t get to see much, she would at least remember everything that was said.
‘Now, yer might be wonderin’ why I called this meetin’.’ Old Gus put his tankard down for a moment. ‘Grub!’ he yelled over his shoulder. ‘Where yer got to? Do I ’ave to come and wring yer scrawny neck—?’
There was a crash from outside and then Grub came struggling through the doors with his arms wrapped round something large and heavy-looking, concealed beneath a navy velvet drape. ‘S… sorry, Cap’n.’ He put the contraption down on the table with some difficulty, then retreated backwards from the room.
Old Gus cleared his throat and drew back the velvet covering.
Echo squirmed and craned her neck to see what Grub had placed on the table. ‘What is it?’ she whispered to Horace.
‘Looks like some kind of metal creature,’ murmured Horace, peeking through a gap in the curtain.
Gilbert braced himself on Echo’s shoulder to take a look too.
Echo peered out, but Old Gus’s bulk concealed whatever it was that the others were all staring at. What she could see, however, was the surprise on their faces as they leaned forward. The man with the robotic eye was zooming in and out to study it. And, although Echo could see that Lil was trying not to show it, her mother’s brow was creased with worry.
‘The septopus,’ said Old Gus. ‘It’s been a long time since we’ve needed to use it.’
A murmur went round the room and, as the pirate shifted, Echo caught a glimpse of a metallic, seven-tentacled creature with a bulbous head in the centre of the table.
‘As yer all know, Sabre-toothed Sascha died several months ago, after fallin’ into a pit o’ vipers.’
There were murmurs of, ‘May she rest in peace,’ from the other pirate captains, and Old Gus removed his tricorne hat and bowed his head.
‘May she rest in peace,’ he repeated, and cleared his throat. ‘Before she died so tragically, she left a message for the remainin’ pirates of the Seven Skies Alliance, but on condition that all of us ’ad to be ’ere to receive it. So she sealed it in the septopus, as is tradition.’
‘What message?’ said a dark-skinned pirate with hair in long locs and a red jerkin encrusted with jewels, who sat with his back to Echo.
In answer, Old Gus leaned forward and turned a small wheel on the head of the septopus. ‘Everyone remember what to do? State yer name and yer faction, and give yer fingerprint.’ He sat down.
In the centre of the table, the septopus began to slowly turn before stopping and extending a tentacle to him. He placed his forefinger on to the sucker, which glowed red.
‘Old Gus of the Thunder Sharks,’ he said.
Cogs whirred and the red-lit sucker turned green. The septopus’s head swivelled round to face the next pirate, a woman with fiery red hair and a green cloak, who stretched out one elegant green-nailed hand.
‘Miranda Vossberg of the Scurvy Sea Snakes.’
The septopus turned again.
‘Ozwald the Terrible of the Pitiless Plunderers,’ said the man in the red jerkin with his back to Echo.
‘Madame Maja of the Darkhearts,’ said the orange-robed woman, her bangles jangling as she reached out to place her fingertip on the mechanical creature’s tentacle.
Another tentacle unfurled as Lil gruffly said her name. Echo’s scalp prickled as Lil extended her hand and placed her finger on the tentacle. She held her breath as the cogs whirred. Finally, the sucker lit green and Echo exhaled.
So far so good. Lil didn’t seem to be in any trouble yet, but Echo still needed to be on high alert. She put her hand to Stinger’s hilt.
The sky pirates continued round the table. ‘Steel-eyed Seth of the Stormshakers,’ said the man in yellow with the mechanical eye.
Finally, the septopus extended its seventh tentacle to the last pirate. All Echo could see of her was her deep purple waistcoat and the shiny black plait snaking down her back. ‘Rashmi the Ruthless of the Heartless Violet Pilots,’ she said.
Echo held her breath as the septopus’s head rotated, slowly at first, then faster and faster, until it finally opened like a flower to reveal a small envelope sealed with a shiny blob of black wax.
For a moment, the pirates all sat in silence, then Rashmi the Ruthless lunged forward to grab it.
‘Hey!’ yelled Steel-eyed Seth, his eye whizzing in and out in fury. ‘What d’you think you’re doing?’
‘Someone’s got to read it,’ said Rashmi, with a shrug of one velvet-clad shoulder.
‘And why should it be you?’ Miranda Vossberg gave Rashmi an icy glare.
‘I should read it.’ Madame Maja made a grab for the envelope, but Rashmi elegantly moved out of her way.
‘Someone just read it!’ Ozwald the Terrible banged his fist on the table, his locs jumping in rage.
‘ENOUGH!’ yelled Old Gus. ‘Remember the terms of the treaty. There’s no fightin’ at an alliance meetin’.’ He smiled nastily. ‘We’ll save that for later.’
‘But—’ started Steel-eyed Seth.
‘And anyone who forgets ’ow to behave will get marched on to Obsidian and fed to my shark,’ added Old Gus.
A hush gathered over the pirates as they sat back down, still glaring at one another.
Rashmi tossed her plait over her shoulder and ran one sharp violet-lacquered fingernail under the seal, releasing it with a papery rasp.
Echo held her breath as the pirate captain pulled out a crisp piece of cream-coloured parchment and began to read.
‘To the members of the Seven Skies Alliance. I spent my life searching for treasure, but never once did I manage to find the Cutlass of Calinthe.’
A surprised murmur went round the room.
‘But the Cutlass of Calinthe was destroyed,’ said Lil, her face ashen.
‘Let me finish,’ Rashmi snarled. She cleared her throat and continued to read. ‘When Indigo Vi vanquished Calinthe Casterbrook, she hurled the cutlass into the flames of Mount Flameflux and we all thought it had been destroyed for ever. But I have since found out that there was a dragon nesting in that volcano. That dragon escaped with the cutlass and took it for its own treasure hoard. The Cutlass of Calinthe remains intact.’
A gasp erupted round the table.
Rashmi continued. ‘I am too old and ill now to chase after it, but I have found out where it lies. I have drawn a map that shows the exact location of the dragon’s new lair. Whoever can solve my riddle, find the map and retrieve the cutlass first is its rightful owner and leader of all the seven skies.’
A hush descended on the room and the sky pirates shot fierce glances at one another.
Rashmi paused for a moment and then continued to read silently.
Gilbert tensed on
Echo’s shoulder. She snuck a glance at Horace, whose face was pale in the moonlight. What did it mean? Leader of all the seven skies? Did that mean if the Black Sky Wolves found this fabled cutlass, Lil would be a sky-pirate queen? Echo’s insides fizzed with excitement. Dragon lairs! Legendary treasure! This would be their biggest adventure yet!
‘Oi, read it out loud so we can all hear!’ yelled Ozwald the Terrible.
Rashmi cleared her throat.
‘To find the way to dragon caves,
Seek knowledge underneath the waves.
For seventy rungs you’ll need to climb,
If you’re to find the map in time.
Face up to me and hold my hand,
A trio and quarter’s the place to land.’
After a moment of silence, the rest of the pirates all got to their feet and made for the door, looking daggers at one another.
As they disappeared down the stairs and their voices and footsteps faded, Echo sank back on her heels. What did the riddle mean? She bit her lip and waited until the heavy-booted footsteps died away at the bottom of the staircase before flinging aside the curtain and uncoiling herself from their hiding place.
‘Come on,’ she said to Horace. ‘We’ve got to get back to the Scarlet Margaret. There’s a cutlass and dragon treasure to find!’
‘Dragons,’ said Horace, with a shiver. ‘I don’t like the sound of that.’
‘Lil will know what to do,’ said Echo. ‘I bet she’s solved the riddle already. Come on, back to Cloudcatcher.’
‘Finally, you’re saying something sensible,’ said Horace, hugging himself. ‘The sooner we’re back on the Scarlet Margaret, the better.’
Echo took one last look at the septopus before easing the door open. She listened for a moment, then crept back down the stairs. There was no sign of Grub, but that was just as well thought Echo guiltily. After all, he was bound to realize the aethernet she’d given him wasn’t real sooner or later, and they needed to be long gone by the time he did.
They made their way back through the snaking corridors to the door that led out on to the ice.
‘What about the dogs?’ hissed Horace, as Echo pushed the door open. But there were no dogs or people to be seen on the path.
‘Come on,’ said Echo. ‘We’ve got lucky.’ They hurried round the corner. ‘We’ll have to go down backwards with the net again,’ she said, pulling it out of her knapsack and fastening one end to the rocks.
‘Er… Echo.’
‘What?’ she said without looking up.
‘Where did we leave Cloudcatcher?’
Echo jerked her head up, taking in Horace’s ghost-white face and following his gaze down the mountain. Fear rippled through her.
Cloudcatcher had disappeared.
CHAPTER TWELVE
‘Where is it?’ Echo frowned in confusion and leaned as far as she dared over the edge of the icy slope. She peered through the white flurries of snow. It must be hidden under the snowdrifts. After all, it had to be there somewhere! But, however hard she looked, she just couldn’t see the little machine. She swallowed the lump of panic that had formed in her throat. What could have happened to Cloudcatcher?
Horace pulled the spyglass from his satchel and peered around. After a moment, he took a deep, shuddering breath. ‘I think I can see it.’
‘Where?’
He silently pointed down the mountain and passed the spyglass to Echo.
As she put it to her eye, her heart dropped. There was a trail of blackened snow and debris where something had fallen and skidded down the mountainside. She followed the trail and saw Cloudcatcher, or what remained of Cloudcatcher, lying upside down in a crevasse. She bit her lip. It was unreachable and, even if they could get to it, the propeller was clearly bent out of shape. No, the little vessel was damaged beyond repair.
Echo put down the spyglass and looked at Horace, whose face was almost as white as the snow that was falling.
‘What are we going to do?’ he whimpered. ‘How will we ever get back to the Scarlet Margaret?’
‘I don’t know.’ What would they do? Echo frowned and looked around for something – anything – that might help her. How could she have been so stupid! Lil had been perfectly fine without her, and now they were stranded here, without Cloudcatcher and without a plan. Lil would be furious when they got back to the Scarlet Margaret. If they ever did get back.
‘Echo, there’s no way off this mountain except by air, and our only vessel’s…’ Horace trailed off and took a deep, tearful breath.
‘Maybe that’s it,’ said Echo, frowning in thought. If the only way off Shark’s Fin Peak was by airship, then that was how they had to leave, and there wasn’t much time if they were going to catch up with Lil. She shoved the aethernet and spyglass back into her knapsack. ‘We need to get to the aerodock.’
* * *
Echo and Horace retraced their steps to the icy tunnel and its heap of ancient-looking wooden sledges.
Horace eyed them nervously. ‘I’m not sure about this, Echo. Who even knows where the tunnel comes out?’
‘Grub said it leads to the aerodock.’
Echo peered into the tunnel. It was lit with the same strange blueish lights as the fortress, but, as it curved its way through the heart of the mountain, the exit wasn’t visible. Doubt gripped her. They could be sliding straight into danger. But she had to find Lil and get them back to the Scarlet Margaret. She took a deep breath. It was this or freeze on Shark’s Fin Peak.
‘Come on.’ She nudged Horace into one of the sledges, got in the front seat and grabbed the ropes with both hands. ‘Here we go.’
Echo pushed away with one foot and the sledge slowly slid forward into the icy tunnel. She braced both feet against it as they picked up speed, and soon they were whizzing soundlessly on the slick ice through the very heart of the mountain.
Faster and faster they went, until the sides of the tunnel were just a blur and the ice-cold wind made Echo’s cheeks numb.
‘Oh help,’ whimpered Horace, as they careered ever more wildly through the ice tunnel.
Echo blinked tears out of her eyes to see yellowish lights up ahead. They were approaching the opening to the aerodock. They had to slow down! She glanced down to find a brake, and realized there wasn’t one. ‘How do we stop this thing?’ she muttered.
‘I thought you were driving!’ Horace squealed.
‘Stick your foot out!’ Echo thrust both her booted feet out to slow them down, sending a spray of ice up into the air.
‘Aaagh!’ yelped Horace, as the sledge skidded sideways across the ice and thudded heavily into the side of the tunnel, rolling over three times before finally tipping them out into the snow.
They lay for a moment, panting, then sat up.
‘Well, I guess that’s one way of doing it,’ Horace said. ‘What now?’
‘The aerodock,’ said Echo. ‘Let’s find Lil and get out of here.’
As they crept towards the tunnel mouth, Echo heard rough voices up ahead. She peered out round a large boulder and her heart clenched with worry as she saw the aerodock was empty, save for one ship. In the distance, the lights of the last transport ships were disappearing into the night. So Lil had gone. Echo’s lip trembled. She had hoped beyond anything that Lil would still be here, that she’d be able to explain what had happened and Lil would have taken them back to the Scarlet Margaret with her. But her hopes had been dashed.
Echo rubbed her eyes on her sleeve and forced her mouth into a firm line. She couldn’t let Horace see how scared she was, or he’d panic and they’d never get out of here.
She scanned the aerodock again. The remaining ship was shaped like a great black shark, with a charcoal-grey balloon envelope bobbing above it. That had to be the Thunder Sharks’ own airship. All the other sky-pirate leaders seemed to have left, but the whole dock was still abuzz with activity.
Horace peered out too. ‘They look like they’re about to go.’
Echo nodded. Horac
e was right: they did seem as if they’d leave at any moment now that the race was on for the treasure. Blue-fur-clad sky pirates ran here and there, loading up the ship with barrels and crates. One buck-toothed boy dangled from ropes to inspect the balloon, while two more polished the portholes and a girl with her hair in a thick blonde plait oiled the tail-shaped rudder.
Echo straightened herself up. Maybe there was a chance for them to get away. ‘We have to get onboard,’ she said.
‘Onboard! We can’t!’ Horace gasped.
‘We’ll sneak on. They won’t see us.’
‘But we don’t even know where they’re going.’
‘It doesn’t matter,’ said Echo, already creeping forward, her heart pounding.
‘B… but what if they take us even further away from the Scarlet Margaret?’ Horace whispered.
‘They’re going to find the first clue,’ said Echo, thinking out loud, but trying to sound as if she had some kind of plan. ‘And that’s on land somewhere. If we can stow away, we can escape and run for help when they get there.’
‘If you say so.’ Horace wrapped his arms round himself in a hug, his teeth chattering.
‘Do you have a better idea? We can’t stay here.’
‘Fine.’
Echo turned back to the airship and kept going. As they crept closer, Echo saw a plaque on one flank that read OBSIDIAN. She and Horace watched in silence as the front section of the ship opened like a great set of jaws. A waiting sky pirate, with the blue-fur uniform of the Thunder Sharks and a lurid red scar zigzagging down one cheek, hefted his barrel under one bulging arm and marched onboard.
‘That’s our way in,’ said Echo.
‘There!’ Horace shook his head. ‘Oh no, Echo! We can’t! Not right at the front!’
