The Dragons of Noor

by Janet Lee Carey

  Miles fingered the pearly Arnun seeds in his pocket. Sweet, luscious, life-giving, the silver fruit had restored Meer Eason’s strength. “They taste like peaches,” he’d said.

  “Not at all,” Zabith argued. “They’re more like papayas.” Whether they were more like one or the other didn’t matter in the end, for everyone agreed they were the finest fruit in all of Noor and likely Oth as well. As the sun rode across the sky, they’d gorged themselves on the fruit, washed their sticky hands in the river, and saved thousands of pearly Arnun seeds for future planting.

  Now, in the bright moonlight, Miles could see more fruit twinkling high in Kwen-Arnun’s branches. His mouth watered. He couldn’t get enough of it. Before the towering tree, he felt the spreading branches like a splitting in his chest. He lifted his hands and spread his arms wide. Hanna, Zabith, Taunier, and Eason followed the gesture. Meers greet touching their foreheads, but this was the way to honor the great tree.

  They had little to wear to mark the occasion, so Hanna loaned Taunier her terrow-scale cloak. The cloak flailed in the breeze as, one by one, he lit the children’s torches. Hanna’s slender crown caught the torchlight, and her face shone in the flitting gold. She is changed, Miles thought. He couldn’t name the change, but he could see it in the confident way she held her head, the way she returned his glance, gazing straight into his eyes with ease. He read love and sorrow there. The dragons were leaving.

  “We will begin,” said the Damusaun.

  In her claw, the Dragon Queen held the wing bone of a long dead warrior, retrieved from the cave of bones. He knew the bone had belonged to her brother, Therros, the Wanderer. She’d sung at the entrance of the cave and again when she took it from the rocky shelf. I will take you to rest in Shangor Mountain, where the foothills meet the sea. Where the waves speak.

  Miles fingered the ervay at his side, remembering the queen’s haunting song. He would learn to play it if he could. It was a private song from sister to brother, but he would find the notes. The Damusaun had kept the promise she’d made her brother when he’d died in the dragon wars. She would bring the inner branch of his wing bone to rest in Oth.

  After he’d left the cave with the Damusaun, he’d seen more elder dragons entering to gather wing bones. All the warriors, the living and the dead, would enter Oth tonight.

  Tails drummed the earth louder as two terrows marched down the long line. They gave a last look at Noor, the world they’d known all their lives, and turned to Kwen-Arnun. The taberrells and terrows behind them breathed bright blue flames as the Damusaun chanted, “Eldessur kimbardaa. You are called. Come home to yourself.”

  The terrows addressed Kwen-Arnun. “Dragon Bridge, Vessa kemun dey. Open the way for us.”

  The World Tree sighed, and its branches lowered, touching the earth at the terrows’ feet. They climbed onto the boughs one after the other, their golden scales shining amid the leaves in starlight, torch, and dragon fire.

  The younglings stepped up next, accompanied by Kaleet. Their parting took longer, for the smallest of them was afraid of the great tree. Still, they spoke to Kwen-Arnun, asking for passage, and they went. More stepped up, all turning before they parted, but none choosing to stay behind.

  The Damusaun was last to approach the World Tree. No dragons were left to drum their tails for her or send their warm blue fire, but the moon and stars glowed over Yaniff, and the children who had bound Arnun with their hands held their torches high to light her way.

  The queen turned to look back at Noor as the rest had done. Miles’s eyes burned. He wanted to say, Don’t go, but he couldn’t ask her to stay.

  “I see you share your terrow cloak with the Fire Herd, Kanameer,” she said bemusedly. “It’s only right. You both did all that was asked of you and more.”

  “Will you ever come back to Noor?” Miles hadn’t meant to ask her that, but he couldn’t bear the thought that he might never see her again.

  The Damusaun tipped her head, the gesture neither a yes nor a no, but a we shall see.

  She lowered her long neck. “Thriss,” she said gently. “Come now.”

  Thriss flicked out her tongue, hesitating.

  Hanna’s voice was hoarse. “She’s right, Thriss. It’s time for you to go.”

  The queen added, “You will have lots of pips to play with in your new home, little one.”

  Miles thought of the egg the Dragon Queen carried. Soon Thriss would have an infant queen to frolic with.

  “Go on, now.” Hanna gave her pip a push, though her eyes were brimming. The pip licked her cheek, wrapped her tail around a lock of hair, and swung herself over to the Damusaun.

  “Ouch!” Hanna winced, then gave a quick, startled laugh. Thriss folded her wings and sat atop the Dragon Queen’s neck. Now that the Damusaun had the last pip, Miles thought she would call the bough down for entry, but she faced him, saying, “And now your gift for me.”

  Miles hesitated, feeling her heated breath. Hanna had a terrow to send to Oth, but he had nothing in his hands or his pockets except for a handful of seeds and Enoch’s empty brown bottle: not a proper gift for the Damusaun.

  “I have none.” Miles waited out the silence that followed, hoping it would pass quickly. It didn’t.

  “You do not tell the truth,” said the Damusaun.

  Was she calling him a liar? A jolt of anger shook his spine. He gulped a breath of crisp night air to quell the burning.

  The she-dragon recognized his fire. It was a thing they shared. Learning to control his inner fire was the gift he’d taken from his dragon shifts. The queen watched him without blinking and waited for him to settle.

  “You have many gifts to offer, Miles,” she said. “And you gave the one that matters most inside the heart of the World Tree.”

  Miles couldn’t hide his surprise from her. He’d told no one about his transformation in the heart of the tree. It was too personal somehow and would be hard to speak of. But the Damusaun had known about his long struggle with anger. She seemed to know this, too, and it was much more secret. He’d let go of everything to find Kwen’s heart, let go even of himself. And somehow, by doing that, he’d come into his own.

  He was just now beginning to understand how the Damusaun had led him away from the fear of his own power to bring him here.

  “Do you remember the one I spoke of the day you were blue-palmed?” she asked.

  Miles gazed up at the constellations, where Mishtar’s Ship sailed east of Breal’s Moon.

  The Dragon Queen brought her face down close enough for Miles to see himself doubly reflected in her eyes. “I see you know the one I mean,” said the Damusaun. “Essha, shape-shifter,” she whispered. “You were hiding your powers when we first met on the ship. And it took you time to come into yourself.”

  Miles blinked. He was all the stronger for her constant challenges, her harsh discipline, her restraint. Only now did he see that she was his teacher, that she had been his teacher all along. Now she was leaving him.

  The Damusaun raised her voice so all could hear. “Long ago, the dragon’s friend, the Mishtar, took up arms to fight alongside the dragons, but when the war was over, he put away his sword and turned his hand to music.

  “Here is the new Mishtar. He joined the Kanameer, the Fire Herd, and the Wind-taken to bridge the worlds for us. But in the days to come, the new Mishtar must bridge the way between men and dragons. He must learn our history and play dragon songs wherever he goes.” She looked down at Miles. “Do you accept this?”

  Her question sent a tremor across his skin. He shook, and it was as if the world was shaking. For once he did not try and control it.

  The bright moonlight, and the starlight falling from Mishtar’s Ship, fell on the Damusaun’s proud face. It crossed the ground between them, the very edge of it touching the backs of his hands.

  “I accept it.”

  There was no cloak or crown for the new Mishtar to wear, only this moonlight and the cold and glittering stars above. Th
at was enough.

  “Now, Mishtar,” she said. “Your gift.”

  Miles took out his ervay and polished the silver flute on his sleeve.

  Taunier clicked his fingers. The soft glow above his hand illuminated the broad trunk as the Damusaun asked entry from the World Tree.

  “Old Friends Parting” was a simple tune, but the song floated easily from the ervay as the Damusaun climbed the bough. She left too quickly and too soon. As the twin pipes played, they all watched her disappear beyond the shimmering leaves.

  They sailed homeward the next day with crates full of Arnun fruit, and folk celebrated in every land when the Wind-taken children arrived home. There was such food and feasting as they had never had before, and the Arnun fruit was by far the sweetest delicacy at every table.

  Back on Enness Isle, after Mother had hugged all three of her children for the tenth time and wiped away her happy tears, she got out her mixing bowls, made her special crumb cake, and served it on the green platter Tymm had mended the day Hanna first saw the dragon.

  Hanna cut her younger brother a thick slice of cake and smiled as he stuffed a huge hunk of it in his mouth. Tymm gobbled it up and asked, “May I have another?” His mouth was still so full he sprayed crumbs across the table at Da.

  Da swept the crumbs up with the side of his hand and gave a hearty laugh. “Do you hear that, Mother? What do you say to the boy?”

  Mother clucked her tongue but took the knife from Hanna and sliced her youngest boy a second piece. And before she knew it, she was handing out seconds to Hanna, Miles, and Taunier, which was not like her at all, but then it was a celebration.

  Many shining seeds were gathered as the Arnun fruit was devoured at table after table throughout Noor. The children who’d been called by the Old Magic knew what to do with them. In every land, the Wind-taken returned to the fallen forests, where they planted the Arnun seeds. Under their tender care, new Waytrees sprang up in Othlore Wood, in the forests of Emberlee and Reon, and every land where the children lived.

  On Enness Isle, Hanna hiked up Mount Shalem with Taunier and her brothers. She knelt by a fallen Waytree, the shiny white seeds in her palm glistening like pearls. A green-scented wind blew her hair as she planted them and scooped brown earth on top.

  Less than an arm’s length away, wood beetles were chewing patterns in the pine log. The decaying ancients here in Shalem Wood would enrich the soil and nourish Arnun’s seeds. In time, the trees of Enness Isle would grow tall again.

  She joined the others on the ridge overlooking the bay. “Da wants us to bide with him through lambing season.”

  “It’s only right we do before we go to Othlore,” said Taunier.

  Miles placed his hand on Breal’s furry head. “I can stay on until then.”

  Hanna was glad they’d both stay on. She wanted to see the lambing season out before sailing to the meer school with them.

  The sun came out from behind the clouds. “Look.” Tymm pointed at the morning moon.

  Hanna looked out over the water where the moon shown pale white as an Arnun seed. Taunier took her hand. His palms were damp with soil. So were hers, but they linked fingers all the same.

  New trees with patterned black and white bark sprang up all over Noor. The trees’ roots were deeper than most Noor folk guessed, deep enough to find the ancient world songs and help Kwen-Arnun bind Noor and Oth together. The saplings were called Kwen-Arnun trees, but as they grew in height and girth, towering in forests across the land, many Noor folk simply called them honey trees, for their fruit was the sweetest in the world.

  FROM THE FALCONER’S BOOK

  In the beginning when eOwey sang everything into being, Kwen-Arnun, the World Tree, held the world of NoorOth together. Kwen, white-barked and strong, embraced his tree-wife, Arnun, her branches black and shining. Male and female under the NoorOth sun, trunks and branches intertwining, together they were one.

  Kwen-Arnun’s roots grew deep as the earth, binding all to all. Then eOwey created dragons with hearts of fire to guard the sacred World Tree. Green taberrell dragons and golden terrows wheeled above Kwen-Arnun night and day and tended the rich soil beneath the giant boughs.

  In the second age a great quake shook the world of NoorOth, breaking Kwen-Arnun in two. As the World Tree fell, NoorOth split into two worlds. As NoorOth loosened into the seen and unseen worlds of Noor and Oth, the rift tore a black hole in the heart of the Old Magic, and a Wild Wind awakened with the breaking of the worlds.

  Storms blew over Oth, where Kwen’s tree-wife, Arnun, was shattered on the ground. Her shining black trunk lay in pieces. Tempests swept through Noor, where Kwen fell, his branches twisted, his broken heart turning slowly to stone.

  Yet the worlds of Noor and Oth did not completely split apart. For trees of every kind rose up, all descended from Kwen-Arnun. eOwey called them Waytrees and sent more dragons to protect them. As the years passed, the Waytrees grew taller, and their roots were deep enough to bind the broken worlds.

  —The Way Between Worlds

  GLOSSARY

  Abathan—Peace.

  Abb nayn kwii onan. Zuss—We gift you with our warmth. Awaken (DragonTongue).

  Anteebwey—Devil.

  Attenlore—Enness Isle as it appears in Oth.

  Azure trees—The most ancient Waytrees of Noor.

  Breal—Legendary hero who killed Wratheren, the serpent who swallowed the moon.

  Breal’s Moon—The first full moon after an eclipse. In the legend, the darkened moon represents the moon swallowed by Wratheren. The way between worlds is more passable on Breal’s Moon, a traditional time to cross from Noor to Oth and back.

  Brodureth—The Oak King of Oth who has turned to stone. Brodureth once served as the ancient western dragons’ bridge between Oth and Noor.

  Damusaun—DragonTongue for Queen. The Damusaun is the revered Dragon Queen.

  Deya—Tree spirit.

  Dreamwalker—A sleepwalker with powerful dreams that can foretell the future.

  Eldessur kimbardaa—You are called. Come home to yourself.

  eOwey—One who sang the universe into being, also called the Maker.

  Ervay—A Y-shaped flute with two pipes made of sylth silver.

  Eryl—Human male. Term deyas attach to a male’s name. Example: Mileseryl.

  Esh ell ne da. Ne da rumm pe—Listen to my heart. My heart beats for you.

  Esper—A wind spirit or wind woman of the west, also called Wild Esper.

  Essha—Listen with understanding.

  Grandtree—Ancient Waytree that houses a deya.

  Isparel—Wind spirit of the east.

  Kanameer—Servant of magic (DragonTongue).

  Kaynumba, eOwey, kaynumba—“The ending comes, O Maker, the ending comes.” A death knell sung to honor the dead.

  Keth-kara—The sacred sound eOwey voices to each individual while they are in the womb. Literally, sound that helps to form the person. A keth-kara can be sung when one is in need of healing, but only when in great need.

  Kith—Friend or spirit friend.

  Kwen-Arnun—The World Tree that was split in two at the breaking of the worlds. Kwen, the male half of the tree, fell in Noor. Arnun, the female half, fell in Oth.

  Lyn—Human female. Term deyas attach to a female’s name. Example: Hannaeryl.

  Masayan trees—Trees that grow in the dragonlands of Oth.

  Meer—Literally “one who wields magic.” A title given to one who has studied magic and is blue-palmed.

  Mishtar—Hero who fought alongside dragons and eventually helped to negotiate an end to the dragon wars. Also the first High Meer of Othlore.

  Noor—Name of the world.

  Noorfest—Holiday celebrated at winter solstice.

  NoorOth—Name when the two worlds were one.

  Noorushh—Wind spirit who rides the sea winds.

  Oth—Name of the magical Otherworld.

  Otherworld—Another name for Oth.

  Othic—Ancient l
anguage formed when Noor and Oth were one world.

  Othlore—Island in Noor where meers and apprentices study magic.

  Quava-arii—Combines two Othic words for loss and renewal into a term translated as “ever changing.” The symbol rune for the word is a spiral shape with a crescent in the middle. The crescent stands for loss, the spiral for renewal.

  Shriker—Name of cursed dog, a shape-shifter who was out for revenge.

  Sprite—Tiny winged fairies of Oth.

  Sqyth-born—One whose eyes are different colors, as in one blue eye and one green. Also called sqyth-eyed. The word sqyth was formed from sqy (sky) and –th (from ear-th or O-th).

  Sylth—Winged fairies of Oth that are human size.

  Taberrell—The largest of the dragons, with blue-green scales and golden chests. Females have a ring of purple scales around their necks. Males have a red ring.

  Terrow—Smaller dragons with golden scales and same neck rings for male and female.

  Tesha yoven—Bind the broken (DragonTongue).

  Therros—Name of the Dragon Queen’s brother. The word in DragonTongue means “wanderer.”

  Thool—Dark brown drink served hot and sweetened like cocoa.

  Thriss—Othic word meaning “courage.”

  Twarn-Majas—The dragonlands in Oth.

  Vessa kemun dey—Open the way for us (DragonTongue).

  Waytree—Ancient, deep-rooted trees large enough to house a deya spirit.

  Wratheren—Legendary serpent who swallowed the moon, from Breal’s heroic tales.

  THE OTHIC ALPHABET

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Dear reader,

  This book would not be in your hands were it not for the gifted mentors, colleagues, and friends listed below. I owe my warmest thanks to Regina Griffin and Ruth Katcher for extraordinary story insights, sharp eyes, and pruning shears. Thanks to Nico Medina and all the people of Egmont USA who continue to do six impossible things before breakfast every day; to Paul Young for the gorgeous cover illustration; to Susan Burke for early consults; and to my agent, Irene Kraas, who is my lioness.