by Mark Robson
‘We’re not when we thought we were,’ she said cryptically.
Elian thought about that statement for a moment. It made no sense. ‘What do you mean not when?’ he asked. ‘Surely you mean not where?’
There was a long pause in his mind. Elian could feel Ra’s presence and a little of the emotion in her hesitation to answer.
‘The dragonhunters last night were the same group that we met in Racafi,’ she said slowly.
‘Impossible!’ Elian answered immediately. ‘There’s no way they could have got here in the couple of days since we escaped them.’
‘That would be true if it had been just a couple of days, but it hasn’t. I pondered on it last night. It was Shadow who confirmed my suspicions. When we came through that last gateway I made a mistake that is likely to make our lives rather difficult for a while.’
‘What sort of mistake?’ he asked, his mind replaying the last transfer.
‘Well when I explained the nature of the gateways and my ability to travel through them, I omitted one rather important fact. The relationship of time between our world and the one on the other side of the gateways is not linear.’
‘Not linear? I don’t understand. What do you mean?’
‘Whenever I go to the other world, I allow my dragon-sense to lead me to where and when I’m supposed to be,’ Ra explained. ‘However, when I come back I normally concentrate on emerging here in our world on the day after I left. On that last jump the strain of making the gateway took all my concentration, so I allowed my dragonsense to lead me. I expected to arrive here the day after we left Cemaria, but we didn’t. We effectively spent three weeks in France. The dragonsense is a strange instinct. We dragons believe it is tied in with our destiny.’
‘Three weeks! But I thought we had lots of time before the harvest moon. If you’re right we only have . . .’
‘Just over six weeks to complete the quest,’ Ra finished.
Elian nodded as he checked her calculation. This did not give them long to find the four orbs and get back to the Oracle. They would only have about ten days to track down each orb. Then a thought struck him.
‘What if . . . what if next time when you take us through the gateways you concentrate on bringing us back here before now? Go back in time! We could get the three weeks back,’ he said excitedly.
‘It can’t be done,’ Ra answered. ‘When a point in time has passed, it’s gone for ever. If I concentrate I can emerge an instant after we left, no matter how long we spend on the other side. But I cannot take us into the past. The time is lost to us. I’m sorry.’
Elian nodded. ‘Well, we must trust your dragon-sense. If we’re meant to succeed, we must still have time. We’ll just have to make the most of every heartbeat from now on.’
‘Then we must leave now. It’s a long way to the enclave of the day dragons and I won’t be able to open another gateway safely for some days yet.’
Elian did not need to ask why this was the case. He could still feel an echo of the mental fatigue he had experienced through the link when they came through the last gateway. He did not want to use the gateways again until Ra was recovered sufficiently. The dangers involved in getting stuck in the other world were too great.
To Elian’s surprise, when he returned to the campsite, Nolita was ready to go. There was a glint of determination in her eyes, which before had only been displayed in denial of her destiny. Now she seemed set on continuing the quest.
They struck camp, taking care to ensure the fire was totally extinguished, but leaving the shelter intact. Assuming they found the orbs, they would be coming back this way, and having the framework in place would save them a lot of effort when they returned.
Buoyed by her triumph of the previous evening, Nolita tried again to approach Firestorm. She needed to ride a dragon to continue the quest. It made sense that she ride Firestorm, but no matter how hard she tried, it was as if an invisible force repelled her, making her stomach heave the moment she began to move in his direction. The nausea, frustration and fear brought tears to her eyes as she was forced to accept defeat.
Some heroine! she thought.
Firestorm crouched quietly on his haunches and watched her silent battle. It was frustrating to be so powerless, but he knew that anything he did would only make it harder for her.
Elian noted that the fear in her eyes looked as strong as ever as he helped her up onto Ra’s back. He could see the muscles around her jaw bunching as she clenched her teeth together in an effort to control her emotions. Her face was deathly pale, but there were no protests today. She took her place silently and clamped her hands tightly around the pommel of the saddle.
Pell refused to abandon his solo quest for the night orb. He launched first on Shadow and as soon as she was airborne the night dragon turned eastwards. Pell gave them a final wave as Shadow powered upwards in the long climb over the mountains, and on towards the great continent of Isaa and the enclave of the night dragons.
In resignation, Kira shrugged and took the lead, leaping across the meadow on Fang. Elian adjusted the dragonhunter’s sword that he had rigged across his back. Shadow had eaten the scabbard, so he had been forced to improvise. Since Elian had lost his sword to the dragonhunters during their first encounter it felt right to take this one in recompense.
‘Just you be careful with that thing,’ Ra warned, her voice disapproving. ‘I don’t want you inadvertently sticking me with it.’
‘I’ll do my best,’ Elian said, chuckling. ‘Hold tight, Nolita. We’re off.’
Once more, Elian delighted in the thrill of the take-off run and the feeling of wonder as the ground fell away beneath him. He sensed that Nolita was rigid with fear, but she did not cry out. He felt strangely proud of her. Her actions the previous evening – warning them of the approach of the dragonhunters through Firestorm – had shown considerable bravery.
Her calm account of the encounter had given cause for amusement. Firestorm confirmed through Ra that the conversations she had described were accurate. ‘Mmm, crunchy!’ Elian smiled to himself. Nolita had plenty of nerve when it came to facing down people. Pell had not been able to see it, of course, but Elian suspected that Pell often only saw what he wanted to see.
The morning mist was thin. Above the murky layer the sky was totally clear of cloud. The white-capped mountains, shouldering into the vast ocean of blue, made for breathtaking views. The wind had dropped overnight, so the turbulence of the previous day was no longer a cause for concern. Today the air was smooth, clear and crisp. Perfect, Elian thought. If Nolita could just relax when it’s like this, she might learn to enjoy flying.
They turned southwards and westwards, away from the mountains and towards the lowlands that predominated the landmass between here and the sea. They would have to cross the water back into northern Racafi, before heading further south and westwards towards the far western coast where the continent met the ocean. Firestorm had told them that the enclave of the day dragons was located in great caves to be found in the side of one of two ancient volcanoes near the coast. The volcanoes had been extinct for many hundreds of years, leaving them as perfect homes for large groups of dragons. Local human population was sparse, so the dragons were able to hunt the lands nearby with little worry of accidentally eating livestock or domesticated animals.
Even on dragonback it would take at least five days to cover the distance to the enclave. They cruised at no more than a thousand spans above the ground, keeping within relatively warm air. As the sun climbed, the temperature warmed significantly, allowing them to climb a little higher without getting too cold. Despite the smooth ride and the pleasant temperatures, Nolita remained rigid in the saddle throughout the morning.
They landed for a short break in the middle of the day to take lunch. By the time they began their descent the morning mist had long since burned off, leaving the countryside spread beneath them like a giant patchwork quilt of many colours. In some places great squares of land had been ti
lled and set to crops. In others, the contrasting greens of woodland, pasture and swampy marshlands offered many pleasant patterns. They landed where a meadow met a stand of trees. There was no visible sign of human habitation in sight. When Elian helped Nolita down from Ra’s back, she was stiff and silent. On setting foot on solid ground, she was quick to move away from the dragons, sit down and wash her hands with water from her drinking bottle.
Elian collected some deadwood from amongst the trees, while Kira prepared food. Once they had an appropriate amount of kindling, she set about building the fire and cooked them a meal. There was still plenty of mutton left from the previous evening, so Elian and Kira ate heartily in preparation for another long flight in the afternoon.
Nolita picked at the food, her complexion almost grey despite the bright sun. She said little throughout the meal, her eyes appearing distant as Elian and Kira chatted about the quest, the incident with the dragonhunters and the journey ahead. But when it was time to move on she remounted Ra without any fuss and her jaw set in a determined line as she climbed back into the saddle. She was clearly still terrified, but she did it anyway.
The afternoon’s flight was every bit as smooth and pleasant as the one they had made in the morning. When the coast of the Pascian Sea appeared ahead of them in the late afternoon, Ra informed Elian that they would land. To continue further meant flying through the night in order to make landfall on the far shore. Having ridden bareback behind his saddle all day, Elian was more than happy with that decision. His backside was numb after the long trip. A dull throbbing pulsed through his lower back, and the muscles in his groin had long since crossed the point of discomfort into active pain.
For Nolita the day had been a waking nightmare. She spent the entire time forcing her eyes to focus on the back of Aurora’s head and telling herself over and over not to look down. Without the security of Elian’s arms around her, she felt sure she would have fainted and fallen to her death.
They landed on the beach near a small village. As soon as the riders had dismounted, the dragons were quick to dive into the surf. The local children ran out in a great gaggle to watch in delight as the three enormous dragons proceeded to cavort in the water. Great fountains of spray exploded into the air as they leaped and plunged, rolling and diving with surprising speed.
Elian found himself amused by Aurora’s excesses in the water. For all her regal tones and superior manner at times he was pleased to discover that she was not beyond having some fun. For an instant he felt he could see past her imperious air, her strange abilities and her physical size and shape, and the sight of her behaving like a happy child, playing with water, made her seem a little more human.
Nolita did not see the dragons playing. She could hear the thunderous splashes, but ignored them. The moment she dismounted she turned her back on the dragons and staggered quickly across the sand towards the nearest cottages, thankful that today’s flight was finally over. Her knees were weak with relief and the desire to wash her hands was overwhelming. The sea was the nearest source of water, but her need to get away from the dragons was even stronger than her need to wash.
The welcome from the villagers was warm. Nolita was led to a washroom and later the three companions were given food and lodging for the night, with nothing asked in return except stories from their travels. With all that had happened over the past week, Elian and Kira found no difficulty in entertaining the crowd, though Nolita made her excuses and sat in silence.
The next day the entire village came out to watch them depart. After a good night’s sleep in a real bed, even Nolita managed a stiff wave as they powered up into the bright morning sky and turned south and west across the seemingly endless expanse of water. The flight across the sea was without incident, as were the next two days as they crossed the edge of the great North Racafian Desert. The heart of the vast desert was to the east of their track, for which they were all grateful. The desert was renowned to be one of the most hostile places on Areth. Even dragons hesitated to cross the centre of the desert, unless dire need drove them.
When the fifth day dawned, there was an undercurrent of excitement and anticipation. If all went well, this would be the last leg of their journey to the day dragon enclave. As they shared a modest breakfast, Nolita looked nervous, but there was a sense of energy about her that had been lacking on previous mornings.
Shortly after sunrise they took to the air. The cloudless early morning sky promised another beautiful day for flying, but it did not remain that way for long. They had been flying for no more than an hour before the first isolated cumulus clouds began to form, mushrooming rapidly into towering columns with great cauliflower heads. They looked bright and clean, with hard edges that could almost have been solid.
The storm clouds continued to grow throughout the morning until the great pillars of cloud hit their natural ceiling and the tops began to dissipate into enormous anvil-shapes. The dragons were forced to make long diversions in order to keep a safe distance away. Occasional rumbles of thunder gave Nolita something new to be frightened about. Was the threat from fiery bolts of lightning greater when up in the sky than it was on the ground? She did not ask Elian if he knew, as she suspected she did not want to know the answer. The reason for the dragons’ caution became apparent when they began to encounter turbulent air several leagues from the edges of the clouds.
Nolita had begun to relax into the saddle a little during the past few days, but the first of the stomach-churning lurches had her white-knuckled and bolt upright in an instant. The mind-numbing fear that she had experienced during the turbulent flight to the Oracle’s cave smashed through her mind again with terrible force. Elian tensed behind her, which did not help. If he was scared, then she knew her fear was not irrational. The following two hours were uncomfortable and terrifying beyond belief.
Periods of several minutes at a time where the air was smooth were followed by spells when the air seemed alive with currents almost actively intent on bouncing the riders from the dragons’ backs. If time had not been pressing the riders would have landed and waited out the difficult conditions, but they knew they could not afford to waste a moment. The faster they obtained the day orb, the more time they would have to solve the rest of the riddles.
‘Firestorm is taking the lead. He says he can see our destination,’ Elian said suddenly, his voice making Nolita jump.
She did not respond. She couldn’t. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Her brain felt scrambled.
They began to descend. There were some large gaps between the clouds, but as Firestorm powered ahead, Nolita could see that he was not heading for one of them. The day dragon entered a shallow dive and turned towards a narrow slot between two shelving layers of cloud. The ground visible through the narrow gap looked to be in deep shadow, but as they raced downwards, almost skimming the surface of the cloud layer beneath them, they soon discovered it was not shadow alone that made the ground appear dark.
The rain began abruptly. Large warning spots were followed by a wall of pounding water-droplets that carried the sting of a bee with every impact. Nolita might have cried out with shock and pain, but instead she found herself closing her mouth tightly and holding her breath as they drove ever faster into the ocean of biting water-darts. The saddle became slick beneath her and she clung with a growing sense of panic to the pommel as the wind caused Ra to buck and roll beneath her.
She could no longer see ahead. Initially she tried to squint, but it was useless. The raindrops were so big and densely packed that they blurred her vision and stung her eyes.
‘Hold on. We’re nearly out of this.’ Firestorm’s voice in her head was a lifeline. She had never thought to be glad to have the dragon speak to her, but his voice lifted her spirit. ‘Another few heartbeats and we’ll be clear.’
As suddenly as it started, the stinging rain stopped. The vicious turbulence also eased to a less frantic tempo and Nolita cautiously cracked open her eyes. Ahead was a sight that set he
r pulse racing even faster. The broad base of a huge volcano loomed in front of them, its crown lost in clouds. Firestorm began to adjust his course and Nolita saw the opening ahead – a vast gash in the mountainside that looked as if a giant had stabbed it with some weapon of gargantuan proportion.
Nolita did not need Firestorm to tell her they had arrived at the day dragon enclave.
Chapter Twenty-One
Day Dragon Enclave
‘Welcome, dragonriders. I am Barnabas, eldest of the day dragonriders at the enclave. Come. Join us. It’s almost time to eat and I’m sure you must be ready for a good meal. My dragon tells me you have come directly from the Oracle’s cave.’
The young riders eyed Barnabas with wonder. He was tall and slim, with long white hair tied back in a ponytail. His neat, short-cropped white beard contrasted with an impressive moustache, long and drooping. His eyes were the brightest of blues, sparkling with life and merriment from his lined face. Despite his obvious age he walked like one twenty rotations his junior, and his bright eyes and warm smile soon put the three companions at ease.
‘Thank you, sir,’ Elian responded. ‘I’m Elian and this is Kira and Nolita. We appreciate your welcome, but we’re here on an urgent quest. Our duty to the Oracle must come first.’
Barnabas nodded. ‘Of course,’ he said. ‘I fully understand. However, I’m already aware of the nature of your quest. A crystal orb formed on the sacred plinth in the Sun’s Steps chamber not two weeks ago. We’re not ignorant as to its significance. When my dragon, Sharphorn, and I visited the Oracle many years ago we were tasked with testing the worthiness of the rider who would come to our enclave seeking such an orb. We have spent much time over the years researching previous orb quests, so, as you can imagine, we’ve been awaiting your arrival these last few days with a certain amount of anticipation. I must admit, though, I’m a little confused. In the past, four riders have undertaken this quest. Where is the fourth member of your party?’
