Skyrider of Renegade Point

by Erik Christensen

  “What about the rebels?” asked William. “Did we capture any?”

  “A handful,” said Vincent. “Most escaped on the ships’ lifeboats when they saw the guards approaching. A few jumped overboard, although I doubt they could have swum to land from there—poor souls. They may have been criminals, but I wouldn’t wish death by drowning on anyone. Plenty of oarsmen were captured, but they appear to have been hired hands with no clue of what was going on.”

  “Anyone else?” asked William.

  “Three commanders who tried to pass themselves off as oarsmen. As you can imagine, the real oarsmen were happy to point them out in exchange for leniency.”

  “And did they say who they were working for?” asked William.

  Vincent shook his head in disappointment. “They all claim Bird was the boss.”

  “That’s a lie,” said William. “You heard what Bird said—someone else was pulling the strings, someone he was scared of.”

  “I know,” said Vincent. “But what can we do? For all we know, Bird may have been the only person to speak to Zander Bertrand—if, in fact, that’s who was behind this.”

  “He was,” said Rachel. “This whole affair reeks of him. Not only does he not get his own hands dirty, he won’t even let his closest allies get near the action. Believe me, anyone with any real knowledge got away—plausible deniability is his number one rule.”

  “But what about Bird?” asked Jack. “If he was so scared, that means he must have known something. If it wasn’t for Clyde’s—mishap—he would have been captured. Maybe your father isn’t quite as meticulous as you think.”

  “Not a chance,” said Rachel. “If Bird got caught, or nearly got caught, it was because my father allowed for the possibility. You can be sure he had something over Bird, some threat to his family or someone else important to him. If you search Bird’s body, I have no doubt you’ll find a suicide pill.”

  “You mean this?” asked Vincent, holding up a small glass vial with a tiny tablet inside. “Major Bentsen’s men found this in his shirt pocket.”

  “Kirby Elric had one just like that!” said William. “Although his reason for dying was different. Speaking of dying,” he continued, “were any lives lost at the choke point?”

  “Thankfully not,” said Vincent with obvious relief. “Harbormaster Ungless instructed them not to put up a fight, and that probably saved their lives, although it made your job more difficult. Which reminds me—given what has happened, and since the tax money wasn’t lost, I’m ordering new fortifications built at the choke points, including defensive structures to prevent this sort of attack. When it’s complete, I’d like to rename the northern point in your honor, to celebrate your bravery in stopping these rebels. What would you say to Whitehall Point?”

  William looked around at his friends, barely able to meet their gazes, even though they shot him encouraging smiles. He turned back to Vincent and shook his head. “Thank you, your grace, but I don’t want my name on it. I didn’t stop them alone—we all had a part in this, including Oz, and I couldn’t bear to look at a map if I was named on it and my friends weren’t.”

  Vincent grinned back at him. “Your friends told me you would say that. Luckily, I have another name in reserve, one I hope you won’t object to. Unfortunately, we can’t use the word ‘rebel’ now, not without drawing attention to our secret mission.”

  “Besides, we already used it for Rebel Falls,” said Jack.

  “Exactly,” continued Vincent. “But Charlie suggested another word to describe them: renegade.”

  “Renegade Point,” said William, smiling and nodding at Charlie as he mulled the words over. “I like it.”

  “I know this is all important,” said Catherine. “But you folks can redraw the map of Azuria later. Our patient has gone through a lot, and he needs his rest.”

  “One more thing,” said William. “How is Adonis? I need to know, or I won’t be able to sleep.”

  “You won’t believe this, but his wing is completely healed,” said Jack. “Good thing, too, or he’d be stuck here for a while.”

  Maya and her mother exchanged glances. “That’s suspicious,” said Maya.

  “Suspicious?” asked Jack. “How?”

  “Well, here we are trying to figure out how William even survived, let alone healed so quickly, because we knew of no precedent for it. But it turns out there was a precedent after all.” She turned to William with a hesitant look. “Will, after the battle at Rebel Falls, you went to visit the dragon hive alone, and you met the queen. When you came back, you didn’t talk about it much. I pushed it out of my mind at the time, thinking maybe you were reluctant to brag. But I remember you rubbing your arm and then hiding it when I asked about it.”

  William said nothing, but glanced around the room at the others, imagining what they might think if he told them the truth. He couldn’t share it with them—not yet, anyway.

  “Okay, I need everyone out,” said Maya, taking the hint. “I need a private conference with my patient.”

  “Private?” asked Jack. “About what?”

  “About something he’s obviously not going to talk about in front of us,” said Rachel as she punched Jack’s shoulder.

  “I wish you would stop doing that,” said Jack.

  “Then stop giving me reasons,” answered Rachel as she pushed him through the door.

  “I’ll say my good-byes now, Lord William,” said Vincent as he shook William’s hand. “I hope you’ll visit the manor before you leave, but I’ll understand if you prefer to get home right away. Do stay in touch, though.”

  Charlie followed them out with a friendly wave. Melissa stood to leave as well but William grabbed her hand. “No, this involves you. I need you to hear this.”

  She stopped and stared at him before taking her seat again. “How can this possibly affect me?”

  William took a deep breath, waited for the door to close, then exhaled slowly. He stared at his feet at the end of the bed rather than looking at anyone, but he kept his hand on Melissa’s for support. “When I visited the hive, I expected to speak with the Elder, as I had every time before. When we passed his den, I guessed where we were going, but no guess could have prepared me for what I saw. She was beyond beautiful. I’m not even sure what the right word is.”

  “Mesmerizing?” suggested Maya.

  “Yes, that’s it!” said William, nodding excitedly. “You’ve met her too, Maya, so you know what I’m talking about. Among other things, she shared some dragon history, things the Elder and Ambassador left out, including the fact that they manage their own evolution.”

  “Manage how?” asked Catherine.

  William swallowed hard and continued. “On every planet they colonize, the queen selects a representative of that planet, one that displays a characteristic she believes might be useful in her people, and asks for a sample from their body—blood, muscle, skin—and uses it to enhance their own features.”

  “And she chose you?” asked Maya.

  He nodded, rubbing the crook of his elbow at the memory. “Physically, I barely felt a thing. But emotionally, it touched me deeply—that somehow, I might be responsible in some tiny part for a future generation of dragons.”

  Melissa wrenched her hand from William’s and stared at him in disbelief. “Are you Clyde’s father?” she asked as the blood drained from her face.

  “No, it’s nothing like that,” he said quickly. “At most, I’d be a remote relative, like apes are to us, or even fish.”

  “In fact, it’s probably not even like that,” said Catherine. “Gene splicing is a technology we haven’t recovered yet, but plenty of books from Earth have survived on the subject. It’s likely similar to a viral transfer of—”

  Maya placed her hand on Catherine’s shoulder to interrupt her. “Mother, we’re collecting patient data, not giving a lecture.”

  Catherine stopped short. “My apologies—old habits. Continue, William.”

  William nodded
and turned back to Melissa. “I asked Padma, and she assured me I would never be considered a father to any dragon. But she did acknowledge a certain relationship, which is why she called me ‘brother’.”

  Melissa nodded, slightly mollified, but still upset. “I was silly to think you cheated on me with a dragon, but you still should have told me about this. What else should I know?”

  “That’s all, I guess,” said William. “I don’t know if Clyde is any more related to me than any other offspring she’s had, and I doubt we’ll ever know, but he seems to be the only one who didn’t fit in with the other dragons.”

  Maya cleared her throat. “Will, do you think there’s any chance she did more than take a sample from you?”

  “What do you mean?” he asked.

  “I mean she might have given you something as well.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like something that causes you to heal abnormally quickly. That day back in Rebel Falls, when you rubbed your elbow, I thought maybe you had a sore arm from the battle, or the fight against the hornet, or Kaleb Anthony, or—or any one of the ridiculous number of fights you got into. But I saw no injury, and you made no complaints, so I ignored it. But maybe it simply healed before I had a chance to see it.”

  “You’re right,” said William, nodding to himself. “I had a little mark on my arm right after she did it, but it disappeared by the time I got back.”

  “Have you always healed quickly?” asked Catherine. “Or has it been faster since that day with the queen?”

  William pondered the question for a moment. “Well, there was one thing recently. When the millstone fell, Jack pushed me out of the way and I gashed my forehead. A couple of days later there was barely a mark. Oh—and I was shot in the foot by an arrow when we were harassing the rebels’ ships, but I could walk by the time we landed on the ship. Do you think this is Padma’s doing?”

  Maya drummed her fingers on the table beside her. “Will, if she introduced something into your system without your permission—without your knowledge, even—then that was both irresponsible and reckless, not to mention a violation.”

  A chill passed through him. “Do you think it could hurt me?”

  “How can we know?” asked Maya. “You need to talk to Padma and find out for sure, because we don’t know what else it does, either good or bad. We don’t know if it has any side effects, like a shorter life span, unexpected interactions with food or medicine, or some diminished capacity we don’t know about. Is it responsible for your increased appetite? Will it spread to other humans, or livestock, or—”

  “Or my friends and family,” said William. “Believe me, I’ll talk to Padma about it. I suppose I should just be happy that whatever it is probably kept me alive, but honestly, I feel scared.”

  “I don’t blame you,” said Maya. “I want to know everything Padma says. We’ll need to monitor this for years—for the rest of your life, probably. But for now, if you want something to be happy about, I suggest you speak to your wife.”

  William’s head whipped around. Something about Melissa’s expression set his heart pounding with unexpected anticipation. “Are you…?”

  She nodded, shyly at first, and then with beaming enthusiasm. “Yes. I’m pregnant!”

  “But how?” he asked. “We only had the one night to…you know.”

  “Our wedding night,” said Melissa. “Yes, dear. I remember. I was there.”

  “But doesn’t it usually take longer?” he asked, his face burning at discussing such intimate details in front of Maya and Catherine.

  “Sometimes once is enough,” said Catherine with no trace of amusement at William’s discomfort. “For other people it never happens at all. The human body is frustratingly complex.”

  “Aren’t you happy, Will?” asked Melissa with a pout.

  “Of course I am,” said William, quickly grabbing her hands. “But even more surprised. How do you even know? It’s only been about a week, hasn’t it?”

  “Ten days,” said Maya. “She showed all the usual symptoms, including morning sickness. And while we don’t normally administer a test this early, your own condition was an extenuating circumstance. And my father has developed a particularly sensitive test that—”

  “We’re having a baby!” said William, overcome with emotion as he pulled Melissa close.

  “Don’t get too excited yet,” said Catherine. “Many pregnancies don’t last beyond the first couple of months, which is one reason we don’t often test this early.”

  The joy faded from William’s face. “Why? Is something wrong?”

  “No,” said Maya. “Melissa is young and healthy, and if she restrains herself from leaping from flying dragons into the ocean, she stands as good a chance as any woman to carry to term. But my mother is right. Sometimes it simply doesn’t work out.”

  William nodded soberly. “Okay. We won’t get our hopes up yet.”

  “It’s too late for that,” said Melissa with a giggle.

  “So, when can we go home?” asked William. “I have a family to prepare for.”

  Maya looked to her mother. “What do you think?”

  Catherine shrugged and said, “They’re your patients. I’d like to keep William for examination a little longer, but more for curiosity than concern.”

  “Me too,” said Maya with a sigh. “But as unsettling as your injury and recovery have been, I can’t see any reason to keep you longer than a day. If you’re still feeling well, you can leave tomorrow.”

  “What about Melissa?” asked William. “Can she fly home?”

  Maya scratched her chin for a moment. “Well, I definitely don’t recommend the stagecoach. It’s fast, but bumpy—not what a prospective mother needs. And a ship will take too long. Yes, I think flying is your best option. But as for you, no more adventures for a while. You need to fly straight home.”

  “I can’t do that,” said William with a shake of his head. “I have one more place to go first.”

  Maya sighed. “Not another adventure. Doctor’s orders.”

  “No, not an adventure,” said William. “The dragon hive. Padma and I are going to have words.”

  Chapter 36

  A strange and powerful mixture of emotions swirled in William’s head as he trudged through the hive’s tunnels alone. Foremost among them was relief—the duke had been rescued, and a great crime thwarted, and he could get back to his barony, safe in the knowledge that he could proceed with the new millstone without risk of bankruptcy.

  His impending fatherhood pressed on his mind, imparting a sense of both euphoria and anxiety. The responsibility of managing a barony, or even caring for a foster dragon, were nothing compared to the monumental task of raising another human being. He could only hope he was equal to it.

  And then there was anger. What Padma had done to him—what he assumed she had—had festered at the back of his mind ever since Maya suggested it. Would Padma deny it? Brush aside his concerns? He rehearsed his arguments in his head, preparing for any objections she might make.

  On top of all these feelings was a deep weariness, weighing on him heavier than the pack on his back, fogging his brain and slowing his stride. Three days of unconsciousness did little to reverse the effects of the lost sleep, worry, excitement, danger, and exertion that had gone into chasing and battling the rebels. When he reached Padma’s den, he was dog-tired, and in no mood to be patronized.

  “It is good to see you again, William Whitehall,” she greeted him. “I hope your crisis was averted, and that my drones comported themselves well.”

  She was as beautiful as ever, and his resolve crumbled with an inaudible sigh. “Hello, Padma. It was, and they did. In fact, we wouldn’t have succeeded without them. I am grateful for your help.”

  “It is the least I could do,” she said with a slight bow. “Especially after all you’ve done for my people.” She hesitated a moment, as though choosing her words carefully. “I spoke with the drone you call Adonis. He tells m
e you’ve recently become mated. Will you be expecting any hatchlings soon?”

  William turned crimson, although he doubted it showed in the dim light. “A little under nine months from now, if all goes well.”

  “I congratulate you. It is gratifying to see you prosper. But I am keeping you from your true purpose, for you would not be here unless something troubled you. What is it?”

  How could such a young being, one who rarely stepped foot from her cave, have developed such an acute sense of another species’ emotions? He sighed and searched his brain for the right words. “The reason I needed the drones was to chase and catch the criminals who stole money from my town. Before you say anything about that, I’m aware your people have no criminals, that everyone does your bidding, and everyone is nice to each other. But humans aren’t like that. Every person is a free agent, capable of choosing to do good or bad.”

  “And did you find these criminals?”

  “Yes. We caught them just before they escaped to the open sea.”

  Padma gave a nearly imperceptible sigh. “I would like to visit the sea one day. The descriptions I’ve read make it sound beautiful.”

  “It is,” he said. “But my first visit was mixed, to say the least. When it came time to confront the criminals, there was a—a mishap. I won’t go into how it happened, but a large piece of wood impaled me through the stomach. I don’t know about dragons, but for humans, that’s a fatal wound. Yet somehow, I survived.”

  “You are most fortunate. As am I, for I would not want to lose you.”

  “Are you sure it was just good fortune, Padma?” asked William, his voice rising more than he intended.

  Padma remained silent for a moment, the sparkles of her crystalline scales changing in some subtle way, almost dimming. “Are you accusing me of something, William?”

  “I’m asking if you had anything to do with it.” He waited for her answer, and when she said nothing, he continued. “When we first met, you asked what you could give me in exchange for the blood and muscle you took. I’ve seen how quickly a dragon can heal—Adonis’s wounded wing was good as new in less than a day—but humans don’t, and neither did I before I met you. But now, a gash on my forehead is unnoticeable a day later. An arrow through my foot doesn’t stop me from walking. A spike through my gut doesn’t kill me. I don’t have proof, but I’d bet everything I own that it was your doing.”