by Erica Rue
Dione nodded, but it was Brian who spoke. “Parrots.”
“We’re getting close.”
They followed the chattering birdsong for several minutes, but before she even saw the sitac tree, she could smell it, a fragrance so thick she could taste it. Fruity and sweet, with just enough tang to make her mouth water. Less than a minute later, she caught sight of bright pink blossoms standing out against a background of dark, leafy fronds, with yellow fruits perfectly sized to fit in her hand.
Dione eagerly strode forward, curious to get a closer look at the marvel before her, when a bright blue blur collided with her collarbone, knocking her off balance. She shielded her face with her arms and closed her eyes, but the angry fluttering of wings grew louder until she felt something brush against her arms.
She felt a hand on her shoulder, guiding her backwards, but she didn’t open her eyes and lower her arms until the fluttering stopped.
“They’re singing. Listen,” Brian said.
Sure enough, Dione recognized the melody. Even though the three of them were humans, the hyena song had the parrots’ desired effect. Within the minute, Oliver was leading them away again.
The song had been eerie, and after a few minutes, Dione realized why. “They synchronized their song. All of the parrots sang as one.”
“Pretty cool, huh?” Oliver smiled. “The next tree I know of is a bit of a hike, but we may get lucky and pass a few parrots on the way.”
They did not get lucky. Dione was getting tired, but Brian looked rough, too. She had little scabs all over her arms and legs from the hyenas, and the deeper bites on her legs felt sore as she walked. Between the moss and sundew, Brian’s neck seemed to bother him. Everything ached, and Dione wished she had argued harder for a longer rest period before going back out.
They reached the next tree around midday, shortly after taking a lunch break. This time Dione approached slowly, searching for that sweet spot that would make her a threat to be sung away but not dive-bombed.
Again, the parrots sang in unison, and Dione’s heart sank a little.
“Wait. Do you hear that?” It was Brian. He stepped forward to stand by her, which only made the parrots get louder. Then she heard it. Like that one kid in primary chorus who was always a measure behind, there was a single parrot singing a different tune.
“Can you make it out?” she asked.
He closed his eyes a moment, and she could tell from the creases at their corners that he was straining hard to pick out the errant melody.
After a moment, he replied. “No.”
“Me neither,” she said. She could see him hesitating. “What is it?”
“What about your stun rifle? We could stun birds until we isolated the one we need.”
Dione looked at the branches of the sitac tree. “I think the others would attack or fly away before we could get them all.”
“What if we stunned the one with the different song?” Brian asked.
Dione visualized what might happen if they went that route. “Even if we could figure out which one that is, the fall might kill it. I didn’t think about that before. I don’t want to kill these parrots.”
Dione had learned that there was a time and place for killing, and that had been a hard lesson. She didn’t want to kill anything she didn’t have to.
“What if we eat it afterward?” Brian said. She turned with eyebrows raised to see him trying to hold back a smile. “I’m sorry. I know what you mean. There’s no need. There are more sitac trees, right, Dad?”
Oliver nodded. “I don’t know their locations, but the noise of the parrots and fragrance of the fruit make them a little easier to find.”
Dione took a deep breath. She wanted to remember what these trees smelled like when she made it home.
22. DIONE
The third sitac tree they found was huge, its branches more full of parrots than fruit. The parrots puffed up at their arrival, and a few attacked, flapping and squawking. They seemed more aggressive than the previous two flocks, perhaps as a result of increased threats. She was certain there was a second, maybe even third, melody under the hyena song, but again the familiar tune dominated the area.
“We ought to head back. We’re too close to dragon territory to stay out here unprotected.”
“One more,” Brian said.
Oliver sighed and acquiesced. “Lead the way.”
Brian closed his eyes a moment, considering their next moves.
In the moment of stillness, the ache of exhaustion settled into Dione’s limbs. She hoped the next tree wasn’t far. “Maybe we should head back and rest,” she suggested, “then come out tomorrow, refreshed.”
“We’re close to one. I know it. This way.”
“How do you know?” Dione asked.
“I can’t explain how, but there’s—it’s like a template,” he said. “There’s a place where these trees like to grow. I can’t describe it, but now that we’ve seen a few, I’ll know it when I see it.”
“All right,” she said. She believed him. When they had been on the Ven Marauder, trying to shut down the transmissions array, he had noticed a pattern in the Ven symbols that clued them in to the backups that were preparing to send a transmission. “I’m right behind you.”
Brian led them toward the center of the island. When Oliver had been guiding them, he had kept them from going too far in. They passed a few burnt patches on the ground before Oliver spoke up. “We’re too far in. We need to turn around.”
“If we want the dragon song, we have to find parrots who are in a position to repel the dragons,” Brian said.
“I get what you’re saying, but we can’t defend ourselves right now,” Oliver said. “It might take longer, but we can find the song outside of dragon territory. These parrots clearly travel from tree to tree.”
“We’re close. Just another minute.”
Dione and Oliver exchanged a look. They had to turn back, but how to convince Brian?
Oliver opened his mouth again, probably to reason with his son, but Brian spoke first. “Hear that?”
The parrots. He’d done it, found another tree. Relieved, Dione turned to smile at Oliver, but the smile disappeared from her face when she saw that he’d gone pale. His terrified eyes stared back at her. No, beyond her.
That’s when she heard something else, closer than the parrots. A clicking noise, followed by a loud thump. Dione was already turning when Oliver whispered to Brian. “Dragon.”
When Dione turned all the way around, she caught sight of her very first—and hopefully last—dragon. The first thing that caught her eye was its tail, clicking and thumping, creating sparks, but not lighting anything on fire yet. Its green-brown scaly body was only as large as a medium-sized dog. She guessed it weighed ten to fifteen kilos, but its fat, rounded snout and bright yellow eyes looked mean.
“To the tree,” Oliver said. “Run!” As if it had been waiting for a reason, the dragon opened its mouth and spit, but Dione had already turned to run. She heard something wet smack across the ground. Accelerant. The fumes were unpleasant, but in another moment they were behind her. After another click-thump of its tail, Dione felt the warmth of fire at her back.
In the noise and chaos of their escape, Dione had lost the direction of the tree. Oliver and Brian had, too, judging by their hesitation. All three stopped for just a few seconds, their heavy breathing the only sound they made.
She heard it again, the frantic squawks and chirps of the parrots, their only hope of escaping the dragon that was bounding after them. She looked back to gauge its pursuit and cursed.
Dragons. Plural.
“There are two of them,” she said. “Let’s—”
She turned, expecting to sprint away toward safety, but collided with Brian’s outstretched arm. Good thing, too, because three more dragons had headed them off. The other two dragons arrived a moment later. Brian pulled her close to him, and they put a large tree to their backs.
Before Dione co
uld process even the need to form a plan, all five were spitting accelerant, but not at her. At the ground. Odd. The acrid fumes set her stomach churning, and she felt a little light-headed.
The moment she heard the click-thump of their tails, her heart pounded as she understood. A circle of flames sprang up from the ground around them. The flames were low, but with the dragons just on the other side, there was no escape.
One of the beasts spit again, this time aiming directly at Brian. A spout of flames erupted as the accelerant passed through the ring of fire. Brian dodged, and the flames left a dark scorch mark on the tree trunk.
“Climb!” he said.
“What if the tree catches fire?” Dione asked. The fact that it wasn’t already on fire amazed her, but Jameson had apparently created a few resilient tree species to ensure the dragons couldn’t burn everything on this island. They’d been fortunate to get backed up against one.
“We’re not going to be up there long,” Brian replied. “But we’re toast if we stay on the ground.”
He boosted Dione into the tree like she weighed nothing. She gripped a thick branch overhead and pulled herself out of the way so they could follow. Another jet of flame singed the grass at the base of the tree, catching Oliver’s pant leg on fire. He quickly put it out and climbed into the tree. He was nimble for an older man, but his foot slipped on some loose bark and he toppled backward onto Brian.
She could see another dragon readying its shot. Wrapping her legs around the sturdy branch she was straddling, she leaned back against the thick trunk and aimed the stun rifle. She doubted it could penetrate the hide of the beast, but maybe…
She fired, hitting the ground at its feet, startling it and thwarting its attack. The stun rifle didn’t have much kickback, but holding herself in the tree without using her arms was no easy task. She lowered her weapon and steadied herself with one hand on the branch above her. She relaxed her muscles a moment before again clenching the branch between her thighs in order to fire again.
Her shots kept missing—her aim was mediocre even under the best conditions—but they were enough to agitate the dragons. Brian and his dad made it into the tree. Maybe if she kept it up, she could scare them off. She braced herself with her legs, freeing her hands once again.
Without warning, something struck her right thigh. One of the dragons had climbed up behind her and whacked her with its tail. She screamed, pain radiating through her leg. Her grip on the thick branch loosened, and she began to slip out of the tree. She let go of the rifle in order to try and grab another branch, but the tiny twig she managed to pull against snapped off in her hands. As she slipped around the branch, her left foot caught against the small stub left by a broken-off branch. Her right thigh throbbed with pain, and she was holding almost all of her weight with her left foot.
She was now upside down, the rifle’s shoulder strap digging uncomfortably into her neck. All of her focus should have been on righting herself, but she caught a glimpse of movement above her. In the chaos, she had failed to keep count of the dragons on the ground. That sneaky little beast. She was going to kill it and wear its hide for boots.
“Hang on,” Brian said. “Dad, get Dione. I’ll get the dragon.”
Dione didn’t know how Brian was going to beat the tenacious little beast, but the broken-off stump she was bracing all of her weight against was starting to dig painfully into her foot. She needed to right herself before anything else.
“I’m taking the rifle now,” Oliver said, removing the strap from her neck. It was an immediate, albeit small, relief to have the discomfort and weight removed.
“I’m going to support some of your weight. Try to grab that branch above you and right yourself.” He pushed against her back, and she reached up to grab it. She tried to ignore the sounds of battle up above as she wrapped her fingers around the branch.
“Now see if you can get a foot on this branch down here.”
She saw what Oliver wanted her to do, but now that the blood wasn’t rushing to her head anymore, she could see Brian and the dragon battling. If she could pull herself up, she could help him.
Ignoring the pain in her leg, she climbed back up to her former perch. Brian and the dragon were one level of branches above her, both knocking down bits of loose bark and dead twigs. She moved around to the other side of tree. She knew she wouldn’t be able to sneak up on the dragon as effectively as it had sneaked up on her, but flanking the creature couldn’t hurt.
She climbed up a bit farther and waited. Brian saw her, but didn’t say anything. He looked at home up here in the branches, dodging the dragon’s attacks.
“We need to go, son. Any minute they’ll realize Dione’s not firing on them anymore.”
Oliver’s voice had been the perfect diversion. The dragon had focused in on the new noise, forgetting her. She pulled up on the branch above her and swung her feet forward, catching the wretched little lizard square in its ribs. It flew out of the tree and thudded on the ground. She hoped it hadn’t survived the fall.
“Let’s go,” Brian said.
She followed him through the branches as best she could. Oliver was already on the ground on the other side of the ring of fire.
“Come on!” he said. “They’ve gone to check on their friend.”
Once they were all on the ground, the trio sprinted toward the sitac tree.
They’re right behind us! Dione thought, breathing too hard to shout. Her legs burned from the exertion.
“We’re almost there!” Brian had overtaken his father in the lead position.
When the first cerulean blur charged Brian, she felt relief. He swatted the parrot away with his hands. The next moment, they stopped attacking Brian and focused on a familiar foe, the dragons. The parrots began to sing in eerie unison. The dragons on her heels stopped abruptly, angrily thumping their tails and backing away. Moments later, they ran off into the woods to escape the beautiful, unrelenting power of the parrots’ melody.
Oliver panted, bracing one hand against the sitac trunk. Dione collapsed next to Brian, who was laughing between deep breaths. Eyes sparkling, he pulled her into an embrace and kissed the top of her head.
“We found it, Dione. Drink it in with your ears. The dragon song.”
23. CORA
Cora took a deep breath. They were waiting on her. She’d led them all out here, yet she wasn’t sure what they expected from her. From the conversations she’d had with them yesterday, she got the feeling they were just as angry and heartbroken as she was. But did they have the stomach for what would come? Did she?
“Beautiful morning, isn’t it, cuz?” Lithia tossed her a polla as she approached, Bel by her side. “Big day.”
Cora bit into the fruit. Underripe and a little too tart, but still tasty. “Are you all right? I heard from Felix you didn’t sleep well.”
“Just some bad dreams. Nothing a cup of coffee can’t cure.”
Cora noticed Bel frown at that. She barely knew Bel, but she always seemed to be frowning.
“What kind of bad dreams?” Cora asked. She knew she was prying, but that didn’t stop her.
“The kind I don’t want to talk about.” The smile vanished from Lithia’s lips for a few moments before she changed the subject. “What’s the plan for today?”
“Simple. Get to Raynor Farm, kill the Green Cloaks,” Cora said, counting off the steps on her fingers.
“Are you sure you want to do that? Why not arrest them?” It was Bel who spoke.
“There can be no peace while the Green Cloaks are alive.”
“And you think their deaths will bring you peace?” Bel asked.
“Yes, I do.”
Lithia shifted to stand next to Cora. “I agree with Cora. It’s the only way to be sure. Kill the Green Cloaks. Kill the Vens. Happy ending.”
“I hate the Vens as much as anyone, trust me, but the Green Cloaks are human,” Bel said. “With all of the lies and misinformation floating around this planet, can’t you
see how they were confused? Don’t you think that learning the truth could change their minds?”
Cora stared at Bel a moment. The girl made an interesting point, but truthfully, she didn’t give a damn how confused the Green Cloaks had been or if there was a chance to redeem them. They had set off the flaminaria mines prematurely. They had let the Vens into the settlement. They had earned the deaths that were coming for them.
Her hands curled into fists. “I don’t care if they can be saved,” she said. “They are responsible for killing Aratians.”
“The Vens killed the Aratians,” Bel replied.
“Someone lights a match in a barn, and you want to blame the fire for burning it down?” Cora asked. “The Green Cloaks are responsible.”
“The Vens are more than an uncontrollable force, like fire. Remember, they came here to kill you. They would have found a way, with or without Green Cloak help,” Bel said.
Lithia scoffed. “So we kill the Vens next.”
“Bel, the Green Cloaks killed my father in cold blood,” Cora said. “I don’t have it in me to forgive that.”
Bel had no response to that. Cora watched the girl rub the intricate, floral tattoo that snaked over her hand and up her wrist. She braced herself for the next argument, but it never came. Instead, Theo ordered everyone to break camp. If they left now, they’d reach the farm by late morning.
***
Cora’s stomach churned with nerves. They were coming up on the farm, and Theo had taken his men to scout ahead. They had been gone for a while. Too long. Cora’s heart pounded, pumping her anxiety through her veins.
“Try and relax,” a voice said. Cora recognized it as belonging to a Ficaran. The big one. Colm. “Theo is a capable warrior. He will be back soon.” Then he added in a soft voice, “You are making the others nervous. They look to you.”
She turned to glare at him. Who was he, a Ficaran, to chastise her? When she looked past him toward the others, though, she realized he was right. Many who had joined her had their pila blades drawn or easily accessible by their sides. Lithia, who was standing next to him, nodded in agreement. She relaxed her shoulders and took a seat on a nearby rock.
