Gythe drew near him, gazing up at him. She began to sing. Perhaps the song had been suggested by their encounter with Captain Northrop, for she sang the old Trundler song about the Pirate King, one of the young dragon’s favorites.
Slowly, little by little, Petard’s head lowered until his chin touched the deck not far from Gythe, and he closed his eyes. Gythe walked over to the dragon. Resting her hands on his snout, she laid her head on the glittering green scales. Dragons could not cry; they couldn’t shed tears. Stephano had the feeling that if they could cry, he would be seeing tears falling from the young dragon’s eyes.
Gythe remained with him for long moments. There was no longer any doubt in Stephano’s mind that she and the dragon were talking. At last, she gave Petard a loving pat, then drew back from him. Petard hoisted himself up and raised his wings. He hovered just above the deck, letting the Sommerwind glide out from underneath him. His eyes were fixed on Gythe. Then he turned and flew off to join the others.
She walked slowly back to Stephano. Her head drooped. She was downcast, unhappy. She came to Stephano and raised her eyes to meet his. Her words were in her sorrow.
“The dragons are leaving us,” she said.
“Why?” Stephano asked.
Gythe began to sign so rapidly that he couldn’t follow her.
“The dragons know you are upset with them,” said Miri. “They are sorry they fled the battle. They had made a promise to the elders that they would come back safely, but they didn’t want to leave us. You see…”
“The elders?” Stephano recalled the elder dragon who had flown over their boat. “They said they ran away.”
“They did not tell the truth.” Gythe signed the words. “They are the last.”
“The last what?” Stephano asked.
“The last young dragons,” said Miri. “There are no more hatchlings. They have all died. The dragon magic is failing. They didn’t know why. The elders thought perhaps the Bottom Dwellers came from our world, that we were the cause. They sent the young to find out. Now they know differently. They will take this information back to their elders.”
“I had no idea,” said Stephano remorsefully. “I wish I’d known. I wished they had trusted me.”
He walked over to the rail and waved to Viola, giving her their private signal. She led the other two dragons close to the ship. She was troubled, regarding him with concern. She was uncertain how he would react.
Stephano could not communicate with dragons, not the way Gythe could. But he knew what Viola was thinking. She wanted him to understand. She had not been afraid. She had made a promise to return with information and she needed to keep that promise. She needed him to understand and to forgive.
He looked at the three, the last of the young dragons, and there was nothing to forgive.
“Thank you, Lady Viola!” Stephano called. “Godspeed.”
The dragons dipped their wings and bowed their heads. They turned as one unit, in formation, as Stephano had taught them, and flew to the west, toward their home.
Gythe wept bitterly, clinging to her sister. Rodrigo blew his nose. Dag cleared his throat and brushed his hand across his eyes. They watched in silence until long after the dragons were gone.
Twilight drifted into evening. The air was moist and soft. The Sommerwind sailed as rapidly as she dared through the darkness, with lookouts posted to keep watch for the floating buoys that marked the channel. The air screws whirred, the wind sang in the rigging.
Doctor Ellington came strolling up on deck, tail twitching. Coming to Dag, the cat twined about his ankles and gave a defiant “yeowl.”
“At least the Doctor is happy to see the dragons go,” said Stephano.
“He is that, sir,” said Dag. He reached down to scoop up the cat and place him on his shoulder.
“Come, dear,” he said to Gythe. “I’ll take you back to your cabin.”
“I’ll come with you,” said Rodrigo. “I need to make some notes on my magical balloon. I believe there is a way to expand the radius of the protective magic.”
“And you, sir, need me to look at those wounds,” Miri told Stephano sternly.
Stephano followed her below. She wrapped his injured knee and smeared him from head to toe in yellow goo. He stank to high heaven. Rodrigo took one sniff and banished him from their cabin. Even the Doctor shunned him.
Stephano went back on deck to stand by the rail, gazing out into the night, at the few stars that could be seen through the mists. He was surprised when Miri joined him. She wrapped her hands around his arm and leaned her cheek against his shoulder.
Stephano clasped her hand, grateful for her comfort.
“I was wrong, Stephano,” said Miri. “The dragons didn’t stay with us for the adventure. They stayed out of love.”
“And they left out of love,” said Stephano.
“Which means they’ll be back,” said Miri.
They stood in companionable silence, watching the Breath slip away beneath them.
“The young dragons listened to our stories and songs of glory,” Stephano said. “I wonder if they will tell their own story when they reach home.”
“Not if they know what’s good for them,” Miri said crisply. “The elders would not be pleased to hear stories of their young fighting human battles.”
She glanced at Stephano. “You’re in a good mood tonight. What’s the reason?”
Stephano smiled. “Other than being roasted and shot at and losing the dragons, our own story ended well today.”
“For a change,” said Miri with a sniff.
44
Our tragedy lay in the fact that your father and I loved … but we could not trust.
—Countess Cecile de Marjolaine, Last Will and Testament
The return voyage of the Sommerwind proved to be blessedly uneventful. The weather was delightful with sunny days, mild winds, and clear skies. The refinery survivors disembarked on Braffa. After talking with Stephano, Captain Leydecker agreed that the Braffans should receive payment for the crystals. He turned the money over to Frau Aalder, who left still firmly convinced that Stephano was a scoundrel and a vagabond.
Sailing through the Straits de Domcáido, they noted with interest that the Freyan navy had departed. The ships had vanished in the night, or so they heard when they stopped at an Estaran port to pick up a shipment of wine, bales of silk, and barrels of creosote used in the preservation of wood.
The Estarans were eager to relate how the Freya ambassador had told the Estaran king that the Braffan refineries had come under attack by the Guundaran mercenaries in the name of Travia. Freya had been asked by the Braffans to liberate them.
The Estaran king had sent an indignant letter to his Travian counterpart and withdrawn his ambassador. The Travians had responded by sending their own indignant letter denying the charge and withdrawing their ambassador.
King Alaric of Rosia was said to be on the verge of going to war against Freya and Estara. Queen Mary of Freya was said to be preparing her people for battle.
“I see Sir Henry’s hand in all this,” said Stephano. “He won’t want to start a panic by revealing the truth about the Bottom Dwellers taking over the refineries and yet he does want everyone making preparations. The royal court of Rosia must be in chaos. My mother will be extremely busy these days.”
The Sommerwind, with its hold filled, continued on to Rosia. The barrels containing the Tears of God resided safely in Stephano’s cabin. He and Dag took turns guarding them, which proved to be unnecessary. None of the crew had the slightest interest in them. The casks of wine were in far more danger of being stolen than were the crystals.
Stephano’s biggest concern was what to do with the Tears of God when they landed.
He gave that matter a great deal of thought and then called a meeting in the cabin, which was even more cramped than usual because the four barrels of crystals took up most of the space. Miri and Gythe sat in a hammock. Rodrigo was forced to sit on one of the bar
rels, which he dusted with his handkerchief. Dag and the Doctor guarded the door. Stephano remained standing.
“Sir Henry warned me that we can’t let the crystals fall into the wrong hands,” said Stephano. “We have to figure out who the buyer is. Judging from the amount of money the person paid for them, whoever bought them is very rich, very powerful—”
“And very dangerous,” said Rodrigo in gloom-laden tones.
“Any ideas?” Stephano asked.
“A proxy for the Bottom Dwellers,” Miri suggested. “Maybe that Sorceress woman Wallace told you about.”
“Wallace himself,” Dag said. “His plan to buy the crystals fell apart because he didn’t expect the Bottom Dwellers to attack, so he feigned ignorance.”
“The Travian cartel,” said Rodrigo. “They would make a fortune selling these crystals on the black market.”
Stephano nodded in agreement to each of these. He was silent a moment, then said with an embarrassed air, “The truth is I want those crystals myself. One barrel. Maybe two.”
“While that would help our desperate financial situation,” said Rodrigo, “I don’t see—”
Stephano raised his hand. “Let me finish. Sir Henry was right in something else he said. Rosia and Freya, Travia and Estara—the nations of the world can no longer afford the luxury of being enemies. We have to stand together against this foe. The Bottom Dwellers are destroying our magic, knocking down our buildings, blowing up our ships. We have to find a way to stop them. And I think I’ve found it. The idea came to me back on the refinery, when I first heard about the Tears of God. The Bottom Dwellers have thus far attacked us with impunity. We should take the fight to them.”
“That assumes we know where they are,” said Miri.
“We could determine that easily enough from the last known position of the sunken island,” said Stephano. He began pacing in his eagerness, forgot he was in a small cabin, and bumped his head smartly on a beam in the ceiling.
“My plan is only half thought out,” he continued apologetically. “We could use that fortress, the one the navy shot down. Where Lady Cam died and Dag and I first met. What was the name?”
“Fortress de Ignacio Orales,” said Dag. “Named after an Estaran hero or king or something. We called it Fort Ignacio.”
“You said the fortress survived the crash in relatively good condition.”
Dag grinned. “That was the only way I survived in relatively good condition. The fortress was well built. Our crafter, Master Antonius, who maintained the walls, knew his business. When the naval bombardment shot us down, he managed to lower the fortress in a controlled landing. The building is mostly intact.”
“With Rodrigo’s magical constructs, Alcazar’s steel, and the crystals to give it lift, we could travel inside the fortress down through the Breath. We would catch the Bottom Dwellers completely by surprise!”
Dag was excited. “I think your plan would work, sir.”
“I might even ask some of the noble dragons for help. Former members of the Dragon Brigade—”
Rodrigo cleared his throat. “I feel I should point out a serious flaw in the plan—the crystals don’t belong to us. And while we may have on occasion bent the law, we’ve never actually broken it. We have not stooped to thievery. At least, most of us have not—”
He cast a glance at Dag.
“I did a lot of things I wasn’t proud of, but I was never a thief!” Dag said angrily.
“I rest my case,” said Rodrigo with a grave aspect. “None of us are thieves.”
Gythe’s hands flashed in a question. Miri translated.
“Gythe wants to know if stealing something that was stolen is really stealing.”
“I’m afraid it is. Captain Leydecker has a contract to deliver the crystals to the person who paid for them. The Travian cartel would not look kindly on him if we walked off with the cargo.” Stephano sighed and ran his hand through his hair. “He might even be suspected. Leydecker’s been good to us. I won’t put him in that situation.”
“The only thing we can do is to see who comes to the docks to take delivery,” said Dag.
“And then ask them nicely for the loan of a barrel of priceless crystals,” said Rodrigo. “I’m sure that will work.”
* * *
By the time the Sommerwind was heading toward the port of Evreux, Stephano had formed a plan.
“We’ll see who arrives on the docks to purchase the crystals,” said Stephano. “He’ll be an errand boy, not the true buyer, who wouldn’t risk being seen. We let the errand boy leave with the crystals. Miri and Gythe and Dag will follow him and he will lead them to the purchaser.”
“While you three are on the trail, Rigo and I will go to my house, find out if it’s still being watched. If it is, we’ll go to the home of the Han brothers. I’ll send Benoit to tell my mother I need to talk to her. I’ll be honest with her, tell her the truth—”
“She may die of the shock,” Rodrigo said.
Stephano cast him an annoyed glance. “Dag stays with the crystals. Miri and Gythe report back to me. Once we determine who has the Tears, we make our decision on what to do to try to obtain them.”
“I hope the warrant for our arrest has been lifted,” said Rodrigo. “I’ve already missed the summer season at court. I simply can’t miss the fall.”
* * *
The next day dawned with a crack of thunder and a steady rain. Water dripped from the masts and the rigging, rolled in sheets off the balloon, and drenched everyone on board, including the Doctor, who ventured out for his morning constitutional without first checking the weather and came back wet and irate.
Despite the fact that they were all soaked to the skin, passengers and crew on the Sommerwind were in good spirits. The ship was going to be in port for several days, which meant shore leave for the sailors. Stephano and his friends were thankful to be home, and looking forward with impatience to reaching some resolution regarding the Tears of God.
Traffic was heavy around the Evreux dockyards. With no further attacks by the Bottom Dwellers, merchants were once more daring to set sail. The Sommerwind sent word of her return to shore and messages to those expecting cargo. The ship had to wait most of the morning for the pilot to come guide her to her berth. Stephano paced the deck, soaked to the skin, water dripping from the brim of his hat, chafing at the delay.
When the harbor pilot finally came on board, he met with the Sommerwind’s sailing master to guide the big ship safely through the multitude of vessels to its designated berth.
The rain had let up slightly by the time the ship arrived at the wharf, changing from a downpour to a desultory drizzle. The dock came into sight, gray against a gray background of dingy warehouses. Stephano was on the deck with a spyglass, hoping to catch a glimpse of the person waiting to pick up the crystals.
Dag was down below to keep watch on the barrels. Miri and Gythe, dressed as well-to-do passengers, were waiting to disembark. Rodrigo was still packing.
The merchants had sent conveyances of various types to pick up their cargo. Stephano noted several hansom cabs for hire, their drivers hoping the Sommerwind might be carrying passengers who needed a ride to their destination. The cabs’ drivers lounged about on the dock, talking to each other. The dockworkers waited resignedly in the rain for the Sommerwind to land. A few idlers lounged about, hoping to pick up some extra money by offering to help load the wagons. Two men, both with umbrellas, which marked them as gentry, stood talking together. Stephano observed the two closely, then shook his head. Merchants—probably the owners of the wine, the silk, or the creosote.
The Sommerwind floated down to the dock. Captain Leydecker was on deck to supervise the landing, standing near his helmsman who had to reduce the lift enough, but not too much, to bring the ship down safely. When the ship was level with the wharf, the crew threw the mooring lines to the dockworkers, who tied the ship down.
Once the Sommerwind was secure, Leutnant Baumann appeared on deck carrying
a large ledger, pen, and ink. Two crewmembers came behind lugging a writing desk and a chair. They placed the desk on the deck underneath a canvas awning, to protect it from the rain. Captain Leydecker and the lieutenant sat down at the desk and indicated they were ready to conduct business.
The Sommerwind, like most merchant ships, took on passengers. Miri and Gythe appeared in gowns and hats they had purchased in Estara. Rodrigo was attired as a traveling gentleman in a greatcoat and hat. Gythe carried a basket containing the Doctor, whose muffled growls expressed his objection to this mode of conveyance.
The three descended the gangplank and went ashore, where Rodrigo secured a cab for himself and Stephano and another for Miri and Gythe. Sailors brought their bags and Rodrigo’s crate of books. Stephano saw them all secure in their cabs, then went back on board. The others settled back in the cabs to keep watch.
At a word from Captain Leydecker, Dag hauled the four barrels up on deck. He and Stephano stood near them, waiting for someone to board to claim them. The dockworkers and the crew of the Sommerwind unloaded the cargo, swinging the heavy bales and barrels up out of the hold. The two men Stephano had marked as merchants boarded the ship. They took charge of the silk and creosote, closed out their financial transactions with Captain Leydecker, and left with their cargo. Another merchant arrived to claim the wine.
The Sommerwind’s hold was now empty and no one had come to claim the crystals. Captain Leydecker was toting up numbers in his ledger. The lieutenant was counting out the money.
“Likely the buyer wouldn’t want to come when there’s a crowd here, sir,” Dag pointed out.
Stephano agreed, but he was growing uneasy. What if the buyer didn’t come? He hadn’t made plans for that. Miri and Gythe and Rodrigo were still in the cabs. Stephano could hear the Doctor’s howls from this distance.
A horse-drawn carriage rolled up to the wharf and stopped in front of the Sommerwind’s berth. Stephano relaxed, his pulse quickened.
Storm Riders Page 64
