by Linda McNabb
Seth looked at the small man-sized door. There was no way the immense cat would fit through, although it might give it a go, looking at the hatred it appeared to have for the apprentice and wizard.
Seth hurried to the door, slipped the latch and let himself out quickly, in case the cat did try to follow.
‘Why didn’t it take your life-energy?’ Ryker asked. He took a step back as the night-shadow stalked to the edge of the cage.
Seth shrugged. ‘Maybe it’s not hungry, but I am. Can I go?’
Ryker snorted his disgust at Seth’s answer, but waved at the door to give permission to leave.
Seth looked over at the night-shadow as he walked to the door. The cat was still poised as if ready to pounce and Seth wondered if the cage would actually hold it for long.
**
Chapter Two - High Gate
Something was different. Rem could sense it as High Gate began to settle back to its daily routine. Of course, there were many more soldiers patrolling the pass and manning the heights, but the rest of the town appeared to have shrugged off the excitement of several weeks ago.
She caught up with StarFire as he landed in his stone lair in the middle of the town square.
‘Has your injury healed?’ she asked and looked at the seemingly unblemished hindquarter that had been slashed by the night-shadow.
StarFire looked offended at the question. ‘If I need your assistance I will let you know. You were far more at risk from the night-shadow.’
Rem nodded her agreement as she recalled the vigour of the night-shadow’s attack. Was it her imagination or had they seemed more interested in her than the other soldiers?
The white dragon turned his back to her and was settling down to rest. Clearly she had been dismissed. Rem walked away and went to find Eagan. She hadn’t seen the old man much since the attack and she needed to talk to him about going to find Seth. He wasn’t in his rooms and nobody she asked had seen him. It felt like he was avoiding her but she knew he was probably just busy with making sure the pass was secure.
She left High Gate in search of the old man and as she neared the river she looked across at the perfect circle of dead grass and marsh shrubs. She frowned as she remembered Seth’s unusual mood. Her frown deepened as she realised that he hadn’t even said goodbye. Did she mean so little to him that she wasn’t even worth a farewell?
Why did he let his control go so much? Even more important was how he had managed to hatch the dragon. Not to mention the night-shadow and why he took it! She had so many questions and she wanted answers so she had to find Seth.
Her pulse raced just remembering the huge black cat. It had only been a second away from pouncing on her when the two dragons caught it. Had it really been making a beeline for her? Perhaps it was because she was the only person around? She shook her head, instinctively knowing there was more to it.
She stood by the river, watching it gurgle over the rocks, sounding happy and carefree as it raced past the scene of the recent skirmish.
‘Rem,’ a voice called.
She turned, expecting to see Eagan, but it was Marrik. She smiled at him and nodded a greeting. He had become the only father figure she had known. She owed her rescue to Eagan, but she barely knew the old man.
‘Have you seen Eagan?’ she asked as the guard joined her by the river.
Marrik didn’t reply straight away. Instead he picked up a stone and tried to skip it across the river. It vanished below the surface after the first bounce.
‘He is getting ready to leave,’ Marrik said, looking out across the marshes with a small frown.
‘Is he going to find Seth?’ Rem asked. Surely he could have taken her with him? StarFire would have been able to fly ahead and find him easily.
‘He didn’t tell me and I didn’t ask. He said he would be gone by nightfall. No doubt he has business that does not involve us.’
Rem could tell that the guard was a little more than disappointed that the old man was going so quickly. Marrik glanced back at the pass and didn’t seem terribly reassured by the dozens of guards patrolling around.
‘Where is he?’ Rem asked.
‘He’s probably down in the kitchen getting supplies to take,’ Marrik replied, attempting to skip another stone on the turbulent water and shrugging as he failed again.
‘I need to talk to him before he goes,’ Rem said, bobbing a polite farewell and backing away before hurrying up to the gate. She was about to head to the kitchen when she saw the door to his rooms was ajar and she paused to see if he was there.
‘There just has to be a way! I know it’s never been done before, but we have to find a way.’
Yes, that was Eagan’s voice and he sounded angry. She didn’t know who he was talking to but she decided to wait until their conversation was finished before going inside.
There was no reply from whoever the old man was talking to then Eagan spoke again.
‘If we can find a way to break the bond we should be able to at least diminish a lot of the danger.’
Ah, so he was talking to the invisible man that was always with him. Rem had never heard him talk to Darius this loud before. Usually it was a muttered conversation. She assumed they were talking about Seth. Were they worried about Seth being in control of a dragon?
There was another silence while Darius gave a long speech.
‘…and then we can take her as far away as possible and hope she never finds her way back. I’m not sure we want to take her back to her own kin though as she knows too much.’
Her? Rem frowned and took a step away from the door. They were talking about her? And they knew where she came from? Why hadn’t they told her?
‘Yes, yes, I’ll go and find her in a minute. I’ll tell her we’re going to find Seth, that will get her to come with us but I don’t know how we’re going to make the dragon stay behind.’
Rem backed away into the narrow street and walked off, dazed and confused. Why did Eagan want to split her up from the dragon and where was he taking her if it wasn’t to find Seth?
‘StarFire,’ she called in her mind, knowing that the dragon would hear her. ‘We’re leaving High Gate – now!’
**
Eagan sighed. It was hard to get time alone to chat with Darius these days. Peiter, his newly-found apprentice-in-waiting, seemed intent on remaining by Eagan’s side day and night – just in case he was needed.
‘He will make a good apprentice,’ Darius said with a shrug.
Eagan just scowled. He didn’t know if he could handle several hundred years with only the over-eager youth for company.
‘It may have been better if we never found Rem?’ Eagan said, not really meaning it, but still there was a small thread of truth to the statement. He felt ill just thinking about what her pendant meant. If her memory ever returned she would have the control of a dragon to use against them.
Eagan sank onto a chair that looked out across the marshes, and stared at the last hint of light mist that covered it. It should be completely gone in the morning and it would be time to go. He had a lot of questions running around in his mind about Seth, but right now the boy was far less dangerous than Rem, even if he had a dragon and the ability to destroy a small town with ease.
He stood up and paced across the room. Darius hovered near the door and appeared to be deep in thought.
‘You’re right though, it’s the only answer really to her origins. She has to be from one of the clans of Yarris supporters that retreated to the deserts in the south many centuries ago. She might not even know what the pendant means even if she gets her memory back. Perhaps none of her people even remember the old days?’
Eagan just snorted. He wasn’t willing to take the risk that Rem might be just a distant relative of rebels that supported a clan that long ago ruled the lands.
‘We’ll take her to the west as far as we can, deep in the heart of the plains. But first we need to get her away from her dragon, and get rid of that necklace. It’s on
ly a matter of time before someone else sees it and recognises it. How she kept it hidden for so long is a mystery. I’ve only glimpsed it twice myself since I met her. If it hadn’t been for that marshland fog I would have recognised it straight away and none of this would ever have happened.’
Eagan paced back across the room and paused at the window as he saw StarFire flying out along the edge of the marshland. ‘Is that Rem on the dragon’s back?’
Darius appeared next to him and floated out the window a short distance. ‘At the speed they’re going I don’t think they’re coming back. We need a new plan.’
Eagan had his bag packed early the next morning. Darius floated behind him as he tucked away a few things in his rooms. He wanted to leave the place tidy as he had no idea if he would be coming back. It was entirely possible that he would have to take up residence in the staff before the opportunity to return to High Gate came along. He made a mental note to make sure he said a personal farewell to those that he would miss.
‘We don’t even know which direction to look,’ Darius pointed out, wiping at some dust on the table with his hand and looking frustrated when it didn’t move.
‘If we find Seth, we’ll find Rem. I’d say she’s gone to look for him and we saw him fly off to the south with the night-shadow,’ Eagan pointed out.
‘So we’re going to look for a night-shadow, two errant dragon masters and two dragons that are probably out of control by now? Once StarFire tastes freedom, and fresh meat, he will be too hard for Rem to manage.’
‘All the more reason to get moving sooner rather than later,’ Eagan said firmly. He had no idea what they would do when they found any of them. Darius’ magic was all but gone, and the new apprentice-in-waiting was far from ready to take over.
As if thinking about Peiter had made the eager young man appear, a quiet knock sounded on the large wooden door.
‘Your Wizardness…’
Eagan suppressed another sigh as he opened the door.
‘Is Darius in here too? I still can’t see him.’ Peiter said, peering into the darker corners of the room.
‘You will never see, nor hear Darius,’ Eagan pointed out yet again. The young man still hadn’t grasped the concept of apprentice and wizard fully and Eagan was growing tired of explaining.
Peiter nodded, but there was a hint of confusion in his eyes, then he appeared to remember the reason for his visit.
‘Wagons have arrived from Relga,’ he said, looking over-excited and pointing back towards the main gate.
‘And…’ Eagan prompted. A delivery of food just after the mist was nothing unusual.
‘They were attacked by a dragon,’ Peiter replied.
Eagan drew in a long breath. This was one of the things he had feared. Feral dragons were often worse than the night-shadows they were used to fight off.
‘Black or white?’
Eagan was still staring at Peiter blankly as visions of screaming people running away from dragons filled his mind.
‘Black or white!’
Eagan blinked and let his breath out slowly then turned to Peiter. ‘Was it a black dragon or a white one?’
‘White, Your Wizardness.’
With a nod, Eagan pushed his way past the young man and headed towards the wagons. Had StarFire gone feral so soon? He may even have turned on Rem! The thought chilled him to the bone as even though he now knew her true heritage he could not see her as just an enemy.
The wagons definitely looked as if they had been attacked, the cloth covering on the back was torn to shreds and the wooden framework crushed. The driver of one was shouting at Marrik and gesturing wildly with his hands, first at the wagon then up at the sky.
‘What are you going to do about it? It’s your dragon isn’t it? It lives at High Gate. I want compensation for my wares,’ the trader demanded and glared around at the other two wagon traders for support.
‘Yes, you probably sent the dragon out to steal the food so you wouldn’t have to pay for it!’ another accused.
‘Was anyone harmed?’ Marrik asked, looking calmly back at the men, unfazed by their verbal attacks. He waited while the men looked at each other and then shook their heads. ‘So, the only things damaged were the wagons, and the supplies stolen?’
Marrik’s tone made out that it was simply a small matter and easily fixed. The men looked confused for a second and then the third one spoke up.
‘And the dragon could have eaten us!’
‘Did he?’ Marrik asked the obviously negative question with a completely straight face.
‘Well, no,’ the man replied. ‘But he could have.’
‘What exactly were you carrying in your wagons?’ Marrik asked.
Eagan stayed just far enough away to be kept out of the conversation but close enough to hear. He pulled Peiter back when the apprentice-in-waiting went to go and join in. Marrik was doing a fine job of calming down the situation and didn’t need anyone interfering.
‘Fruit,’ one replied.
‘Vegetables. The finest early crops from our fields,’ the second added.
‘Cloth and leather supplies,’ the third said as he looked at his wagon.
Eagan could see the supplies of the first two wagons were completely gone, but the third was still quite full, even if the contents were messed up and ripped.
‘So the dragon was hungry. Did he eat the horses?’ Marrik asked and looked pointedly at the clearly still-alive animals.
‘No….’ one replied slowly.
‘So he wasn’t likely to eat you either,’ Marrik said with a smile. ‘Let me get the purser to settle up your damages and losses and we’ll even add in a sum for you if you’re all willing to let this matter drop without spreading the tale to others.’
The last was said with the lilt of a question in his voice.
‘How much extra?’ the third man asked and appeared to have forgotten his almost-demise at the teeth of a dragon.
‘Equal to the load you carried,’ Marrik replied without a change of expression. ‘The offer only stands until the sun rises over the wall and only if you all agree.’
‘But what will we tell our families about the wagons?’ the first asked.
‘You really should know better than to take the steep mountain road along the edge of the marshes. Wagons have been known to fall off the edge where the land slips away?’ Marrik suggested with a shrug. ‘The winter rains make the road unstable and we had a very wet winter.’
The men huddled together and talked quietly but from the almost instant nodding it was clear that money would win them over.
‘Despite his age, he’d still make a much better apprentice,’ Darius muttered and Eagan had to nod in agreement.
‘So are we going to hunt down and kill the dragon?’ Peiter asked, with his hand already on his sword.
‘No. He was just hungry. We’re going to feed him.’
**
Chapter Three - An Unusual Delivery
Rem looked around the cave with a critical eye. It wasn’t big, but it would do for now. StarFire had found it just before nightfall and insisted that he sleep. Now that it was morning she could see the view from the mouth of the cave was spectacular. From here, a good climb from the plateau, she could see right across the marshes and in the shimmering distance she could just make out the town on the other side. She had no idea what town it was as the only place she knew was High Gate. She frowned at the blank in her memory of anything before the old man found her. Surely she should remember something, anything, about who she was?
She rubbed the sides of her forehead with frustration as she tried to recall any small part of her past. She touched the pendant and looked down at it. Who had given it to her and what was the meaning behind it?
Her hair was coming loose from its plait and she pushed it out of her eyes. If she was to live in the mountains now it would have to go. Besides her long hair was part of her past, a past that she had no memory of. She drew her sword, and in one quick motion
she held her plait out and sliced it off cleanly, not far from her scalp. She ruffled up her new short hairstyle and was a little surprised at how light it felt.
She looked out at the tip of the white tower in the distance. What did Eagan know of her past for clearly he knew something; enough to want to get rid of her? Why hadn’t he told her what he knew? She had heard the edges of fear in his voice so it must be something that scared him.
She wouldn’t really miss High Gate, even though it was her only memory of home, but she would miss Marrik and Seth.
Marrik had been like a father to her since she arrived at High Gate. Perhaps she should have gone to him to find out what was going on before running off so quickly. Her mind shifted to the only other person who had an impact on her life, Seth.
She could not help the frown that creased her forehead as she thought of him. Dari’s death had obviously upset him more that she thought. She still wasn’t convinced that the bird’s death was his fault but he obviously blamed himself. Where was he now and what was he doing with a night-shadow?
She shook her head to dispel the thoughts. She had no answers and it was doing her no good to dwell on them. She would have to go and find Seth to ask him.
She looked over at StarFire who still slumbered at the back of the cave. Sated by a huge meal last night he looked likely to sleep all day. Would he agree to take her on a search for Seth? She may be the one with the power over the dragon, but it didn’t mean he was going to obey her!
A small pile of fruit lay to one side of the cave. It was all that remained from the wagons StarFire had attacked yesterday. It would be enough to feed them both for today, but what about after that? The mountains weren’t great for foraging food. Very little grew on the rocky slopes and the dragon ate a lot!
The dragon stirred, almost as if he had heard her thinking. Rem had to remind herself that StarFire could indeed hear her thoughts and tried to clear her head of the constant chatter that was running through her mind. It wasn’t as easy as it sounded so she focused on the pile of food instead, counting the pieces of fruit and sat next to them to sort them into groups by colour and type.
