by Linda McNabb
‘Then why?’ Toby asked.
‘Morgain was the reason I had to leave the valley. She told father what I had done — he wouldn’t have known it was me if she had kept her mouth shut.’ Lark’s calm manner was gone and he scowled as he spoke. ‘I lived for years wandering from place to place, looking for somewhere to settle down. It was all her fault.’
‘But it was my idea to trap her in the pendant,’ Blaise insisted, looking confused and seeming to forget the real reason they were up by the waterfall.
‘Do you remember when you met me?’ Lark asked Blaise, who thought for a moment then nodded.
‘I was about nine or ten years old. You were in the next town when I went for supplies for the farm,’ he replied. ‘I sat and watched a show you put on.’
‘And even though you were a selfish boy, you had never once thought about becoming a king or hating your mother for not letting you do so.’ Lark laughed. It was a nasty, sharp bark that echoed around the valley below. ‘It was easy to convince you that you deserved better. I moved closer to your village and kept whispering in your ear. Convincing you that everyone was denying you your birthright.’
Blaise stayed silent and a confused expression showed he was trying to piece his memories together to see if they matched what he was being told.
‘I had a lot of fun turning you against your mother. It almost made up for what she had done to me. When you came up with the idea to put her in the pendant, it seemed a perfect punishment. Why should she live where she wanted when I was stuck somewhere I didn’t want to be?’
Lark’s good humour had returned and his grin lit up his eyes with an evil glint that made Toby take a step back. He had been wrong to trust his father after all. Was Lark really here to heal the valley? Toby didn’t think so.
‘And now you want to rule the dragons yourself?’ Blaise asked, looking angry and annoyed at having been fooled.
‘No,’ Lark said simply. ‘I want to destroy them, and when Morgain hears about it she will think you are responsible. It will devastate her to think her son destroyed the valley. My revenge will be complete.’
Even Blaise was left speechless by the little man’s confession — he was planning the destruction of all his relatives and every dragon, yet it did not seem to bother him.
‘We’ll see about that,’ Blaise said. He seemed to have taken in everything that had happened and had now decided what to do. ‘I will rule the dragons and you will stop the valley from being destroyed. You forget that I, too, have magic.’
‘You think yours is stronger than mine?’ Lark said with a laugh that showed he wasn’t bothered in the slightest. ‘I’ll tell you what. We’ll open the gateway, and you go in and see if you can overthrow the dragons before I destroy the valley.’
Blaise went red and a nerve in his cheek began to twitch. ‘The dragons can live in this world, too. I will bring some of them here and they will help me take over the kingdoms in this world.’
‘Fine.’ Lark shrugged as though he was bored with the conversation and didn’t really care to continue it. ‘You can have a couple of dragons if you want, but I’m destroying the valley.’
‘Agreed,’ Blaise said, nodding just once.
Toby couldn’t believe he was hearing all this. The two men were dividing up the spoils of a dying world as if they were sharing out marbles.
‘I won’t let either of you do it!’ Toby shouted, stepping forward and folding his arms. ‘I know a bit of magic, too.’
‘So do I,’ Sanelle added, coming over to stand next to Toby.
Blaise shook his head, then quickly grabbed hold of Kaylene and dragged her to the edge of a steep cliff that stretched halfway down the mountain. ‘If you even start to speak a spell, I’ll throw her off the cliff.’
Toby’s mouth dropped open. He stared at Kaylene who was attempting to remain brave, but her bottom lip was quivering. ‘Stop them, Toby. Don’t worry about me.’
Sanelle looked just as upset at the choice they had to make. There was no way they could let Kaylene be thrown down the cliff — but how could they stand by and watch Lark and Blaise finish off the ailing valley?
Lark reached into the wagon. He pulled out the neckband of gems that he had made. He held it up and began to speak the words to open the gate.
Everyone stared at the waterfall as Lark finished the incantation. After several seconds, Toby put his hand to his mouth to hide a small grin. Lark had failed. The gateway remained sealed. Toby knew the words to open a gateway, and his father had missed several of them out.
‘Maybe I need more gems,’ Lark said, looking annoyed. He took the small chest of gems out of the wagon and opened it. He dug through for a few blue ones and held them in his hand as he tried the dragon words again.
Once again the gate failed to open, but to Toby’s horror he realised that his father had almost succeeded. The gateway had glowed for a brief second. Thankfully nobody else seemed to have noticed it.
Lark thrust the neckband of gems at Toby and pointed at the waterfall in front of them.
‘Open the gateway,’ Lark insisted.
‘No,’ Toby refused with a single shake of his head. There was no way he was going to let Lark destroy Dragon Valley.
‘Oh, I think you will.’ Lark looked back to where Blaise pushed Kaylene a little closer to the edge.
Before Toby could reply, the ground beneath their feet began to tremble. A roaring sound filled the air and built up until a large crack of thunder boomed across the sky. Lightning flashed and Toby’s heart sank. It was the loudest and longest yet, and Toby saw the gateway open. Was it because he was near it?
He was still staring at the open gateway when he felt someone grab his arm and drag him forward. He tried to pull away as he turned to see who was pulling him towards the gate. Then he saw it was Kaylene and Sanelle. Riko was behind him, pushing him along. He could hear Oska barking somewhere, but he couldn’t see the little dog.
‘Hurry, we have a plan,’ Sanelle said as Toby let himself be propelled into the waterfall and through into Dragon Valley. ‘The earthshake made Blaise let go of Kaylene.’
‘And I took the chest of gems so he can’t use them,’ Riko said, holding onto the small chest under one arm. He also had the neckband of gems in his hand.
Toby was used to going through gateways into Dragon Valley. A mere sprinkle of water as you passed through, and then the comforting heat and sense of peace inside the valley. This time it was different. The sprinkle of water was the same, but one more pace brought them to a place that didn’t even resemble the valley he knew so well.
The sky was a mass of grey clouds, and a freezing cold wind whipped at his face. Snow lay thickly on the ground for as far as Toby could see.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
BACK IN THE VALLEY
‘Close the gateway!’ Kaylene was tugging at Toby’s sleeve to get his attention.
‘They can’t open the gateway themselves, and if you are in here they can’t force you to do it either,’ Riko explained as Toby frowned.
Toby knew he shouldn’t be in here — he was a danger to the valley just by being here. He looked back to Arandyl and saw Lark running at the gateway with an evil grin. Toby knew that, if his father got into the valley, Lark was going to cause more trouble than he himself could.
Toby shouted the words in dragon tongue that instantly closed the gate, and Lark ran into a rock face at a full, running pace. The small man fell back into the pool of water, looking furious and nursing a cut to his forehead.
Satisfied that his father was no longer an immediate threat, Toby turned his attention back to Dragon Valley. The icy wind stung at his cheeks as he surveyed the white landscape below. There was no sign of anyone moving, and he could barely make out the houses that he knew were at the bottom of the hill.
‘You should have seen it before the snow,’ Toby told Riko. ‘It is the most wonderful place you’ve ever seen.’
‘Is there anyone left here?’ Riko asked.
‘It looks deserted.’
‘Let’s find out,’ Sanelle suggested. ‘We should at least let them know that Farren is trying to find a way into the valley.’
‘They might be able to use the gems that Riko took from Lark,’ Toby added. They opened the chest and put the neckband in with the gems. Toby carried the chest as they worked their way slowly down the hill to the village below. Even when they arrived at the outskirts of the snow-covered houses, there was no sign of life.
Toby stamped his way through the deep snow. It was bitterly cold, but he ignored his frozen feet and numb hands as he searched each building. He feared that they would find the valley completely abandoned when finally a noise gave him hope and made him almost weep at the same time.
It was a dragon keening. A long, high-pitched sound that made Toby’s teeth ache after a few seconds. It drove into his head and made him cover his ears.
‘It’s coming from the cone,’ Toby said as the sound faded away.
They continued to trudge through the village, heading for the largest cone where the villagers usually met. Toby remembered the last time he had been there, when they had stripped him of all his magic.
The entrance at the bottom of the cone was totally blocked by a drift of snow, and it was clear that nobody had gone in or out of the cone by that way for some time.
‘I guess we go up the side,’ Sanelle said, leading the way up the steep, slippery steps. The cold weather had iced up the steps and they had to go carefully to avoid falling.
They paused just before the small door at the top of the steps. The wind was so strong it was almost blowing them over, and they had to squint to be able to see through the snow that was whipping around the side of the cone.
‘Maybe I should wait out here,’ Toby suggested. He didn’t really want to stand in the freezing-cold, snow storm, but he knew that he would not be welcome inside either. He could hear a low buzz of voices drifting out the doorway and was suddenly not so keen on going in.
‘And you’ll die from the cold,’ Kaylene said, pushing him ahead of her. ‘We all go inside.’
Sanelle went in first, followed by Toby and Kaylene, with Riko last to enter. The temperature inside the cone was markedly warmer, but all conversation stopped abruptly as they entered. The entire village and population of dragons were crowded into the cone.
‘What is he doing here?’ a voice yelled from below. It was an angry, bitter voice that made Toby wish he had stayed outside after all.
Toby could feel hundreds of eyes on him; many of them were huge dragons’ eyes. He gulped down his fear and stepped forward onto the rope bridge. By the time he reached the rock that formed a platform in the middle of the cone, the crowd below were shouting angrily. Several dragons were breathing flames and preparing to launch from their perches.
One flew down from up high, and Toby was about to bolt back to the bridge when he saw it was Klel. Tryx flew down as well, and the dragons landed either side of him as if protecting him from their kin.
Toby put the chest of gems down on the stone and looked down at the crowd and then around at the dragons. ‘I have—’
Before he could continue, the people below yelled and several dragons launched from their perches.
‘How dare he address us!’
‘He was banished. He should not be here!’
‘Someone should fetch Brax and Jerrik.’
‘Leave him be. He’s been punished enough!’ Toby recognised the last voice as that of Merryn, and he smiled at her unconditional support of him. He peered over the edge of the rock and saw Merryn looking up. She smiled when their eyes met, which gave him the strength to ignore the other remarks.
Klel stepped forward and spread his wings to prevent the other dragons from approaching. Toby’s friend was much paler now, but his eyes whirled with red as he protected Toby. Toby noticed that all the dragons’ neckbands were dull and lifeless, as if all the magic had been drained from them.
Let Toby speak! he bellowed. Reluctantly, the crowd fell silent and the dragons returned to their perches but kept their wings spread and ready to fly. Klel turned to look at Toby, and then stepped back and folded back his wings. Toby speak now.
Toby tried to clear his throat, but his mouth was so dry that his tongue seemed stuck to the roof of his mouth. A dozen heartbeats echoed in his head before he finally found the courage to speak to the people of Dragon Valley.
‘I know I have caused much harm,’ he said in a sad voice. ‘I did not mean to do so. If I could fix it, I would. These may bring you a small amount of comfort.’
Toby opened the chest of gems and tipped them out onto the stone. The neckband broke apart as it struck the rock and the gems scattered apart. The gems glittered and glowed and the music from them flooded into Toby’s ears. Klel picked one up and closed his clawed foot around it. Almost at once his scales regained a small amount of their golden colour.
‘Some of them are quite small,’ Toby said apologetically, but Tryx had already scooped up a dozen gems and was flying them up to the nearest dragons. When every dragon had a gem of their own, there were none left on the stone in front of Toby.
‘What about Brax?’ one of the Elders of the village asked. ‘He needs a stone as well.’
‘I have one left,’ Toby said, taking the tin box from his pocket. ‘My father stole this, but I cannot return it in one piece.’
Toby opened the box and the deep purple-blue gem shone out for all the dragons to see.
Father? Klel queried. He looked intensely at Toby and then nodded. Farren your father? Explains why magic too strong. Is reason Dragon Valley destroyed.
‘What is he talking about?’ Several Elders had been carried up from below by dragons and were now on the stone platform with Toby.
‘Farren is my father,’ Toby said quietly. ‘I did not know.’
One Elder hurried forward and took the box, staring at the broken gem. ‘Klel said it had been damaged, but how does this explain about why Dragon Valley is being destroyed?’
Toby’s family word very strong. Strongest of all human. Toby given wrong word to use for magic. Created bad magic. Klel shook his great head sadly. Klel reason valley destroyed — not Toby.
‘Is that all that was wrong?’ Toby asked, totally stunned. ‘I was using the wrong word?’
‘Can’t we fix it then?’ Sanelle asked. ‘Take his word away and give him the right one.’
‘It doesn’t work like that,’ Porthan said ruefully.
Once a word is given cannot be changed, Klel explained. The dragon looked sad that it could not be done.
All of the dragons were almost fully restored to their natural colour and not one of them seemed willing to continue to condemn Toby. Even the crowd below remained silent.
‘There’s something else we need to tell you…’ Sanelle broke the silence, but her voice was hesitant as she searched for the words to explain about Farren.
‘My father is trying to break back into the valley so that he can destroy it,’ Toby took over when Sanelle looked to be struggling for the words.
‘He won’t have to do anything — Toby has already destroyed it,’ a villager called out. The crowd below began talking loudly, but Porthan raised one hand to silence them.
‘Why?’ Porthan said, frowning and coming closer to the children.
‘He blames the dragons for him having to run away when he was younger,’ Sanelle replied.
‘Did you bring him here?’ someone shouted from below. Toby knew that, even though he was no longer directly responsible for what had happened to the valley, nobody would ever let him forget the damage he had unleashed.
‘No. Toby kept him out and closed the gate,’ Kaylene spoke up in Toby’s defence.
‘All Toby wanted to do was save the valley,’ Riko added.
Klel take stones to Brax, Klel said loudly so that the crowd below would hear. Then he lowered his voice so that only those on the platform could hear. He need them by now. Watching unstable g
ate. He not allow anyone else suffer the cold outside. Thank you, Toby.
‘Can we come?’ Toby asked. He didn’t really want to stay in the cone once his friend left. The people of the valley may not be as angry at him any longer, but he still felt unwelcome and disliked. Even the driving snow and wind outside were more appealing than staying in the cone any longer.
Klel nodded and flattened his wings to allow Toby to climb up. Kaylene climbed up behind him.
Tryx come, too, Tryx said, bending one knee to allow Sanelle and Riko to climb up. The two dragons flew out the top of the cone, where the full blast of the icy wind hit them like running into a brick wall. Toby had to squint to be able to see as the wind numbed his face almost instantly. The dragons dived straight across the valley, not making any attempt to slow their speed for the comfort of their passengers.
Klel and Tryx landed by the arched gateway that led through to the blue dragons’ home of Shaldoh. Brax stood to one side of the stone arch. He was so pale that he was only just visible against the snow. Beside him stood Jerrik, sheltered slightly from the weather by the huge dragon.
Beyond the gate, Toby saw a dozen blue dragons scrabbling at the gateway, desperate to find a way through.
Gate failed three times. Only just kept dragons out, Klel said, as Toby and Kaylene slipped from his back.
The snow was so deep that Toby sank up to his knees when he slid down from the dragon’s back. Brax looked at the improved colour of Tryx and Klel, and his eyes narrowed suspiciously.
‘What are you doing back here, Toby?’ Jerrik asked. He didn’t look angry or upset; instead he looked very tired, and defeat showed clearly in his eyes. ‘Dragon Valley will be no more in a very short time.’
‘We brought Brax a stone to help his magic,’ Sanelle said, taking the pieces of the broken dragon stone from the box Toby held and stepping forward. She handed all three pieces of purple-blue stone to her grandfather. He looked at them carefully, knowing instantly what they were.
Jerrik passed the stones to the king of the dragons without commenting, and seemed pleased to see the colour return to the huge dragon. Brax’s recovery was almost instant and he stood up straighter, poised ready to defend the gateway.
