“Be careful what you say,” Aden whispered urgently to them. “He’s a wizard as well.”
Jonas made an unhappy sound at the news, while Twist gave Aden an incredulous look.
“Shiva,” Aden greeted the Cypher tightly as he and his men came to join them.
“Lord Shiva,” the Cypher grumbled, glaring at Aden. He waved a bare blue hand at the Rooks. Aden and his captains all fell instantly to one knee—their heads bowed and hands on the ground—as if they were being forced into the position by an invisible hand. Twist watched in confusion as the men clearly struggled to rise again but remained bowed nonetheless. Skye’s hands clenched into fists at her side, her blue eyes burning hate for the wizard, but she stayed where she was at Twist’s side.
“Masters?” Shiva asked casually, turning to the dragons. “May I ask why these impudent pests are still alive?”
“Both of you engaged in battle above our heads,” Draig answered. “Neither of you are free from blame. Be careful you don’t assume too much, Shiva.” Twist saw the frustration clearly on Shiva’s blue face, but the Cypher didn’t make a rely.
“We invited these ones,” Everest said, gesturing to the Cyphers. “What the devil are you doing here, Rook?” he asked Aden. “You’re not even supposed to know about this base. Or our existence, for that matter,” he added, shooting a glare at Twist and Jonas.
Aden let out a muffled grunting sound but no words. Everest shot a chilly glare at Shiva.
“Oh, my apologies, Master,” Shiva said politely. He pointed a finger at Aden and then lifted it. Aden’s head lifted as well, in direct response, and he opened his mouth in a gasp. Despite the obvious fact that he was fully at the wizard’s mercy, Aden’s anger at Shiva was clear on his face. He seemed to take a moment to clear his thoughts—still on one knee like his captains—before he looked to the dragons.
“It is possible,” Aden said graciously to Everest, “that you have done yourselves a disservice in hiding yourselves from us. My people have much to offer. Surely as much, if not more, than the Cyphers—” His words ended abruptly, his mouth snapping closed, as Shiva closed a fist and chuckled to himself.
“All a Rook has to offer you, Masters,” Shiva said, turning to the dragons, “is a lovely crunch and a sooty aftertaste.”
“Felling threatened now that we know about them, too, Shiva?” Skye asked acidly.
“It’s Lord Shiva, peasant,” Shiva returned, looking at Skye as if she were an ugly stain on the bottom of his shoe.
“How am I supposed to respect a man who paints himself blue?” Skye shot back instantly. Aden made an urgent tone, though his mouth remained closed.
“Just who do you think you are talking to?” Shiva scoffed, clearly more confused than insulted by her.
“A loony who’s never heard of a shirt,” Skye replied, crossing her arms. Shiva’s eyes opened wide in shock. Draig snickered; Shiva’s shock took on true anger at the sound of it.
“Shut up, Skye,” Jonas muttered at her. Twist felt Jonas’s alarm in the buzz at his neck, mirroring his own.
“No, no, I want to see what slimy animal Shiva will turn her into,” Draig said brightly. “Please, go on, Skye.”
Everest gave a noisy sigh. “Draig, don’t encourage the monkeys. Honestly, why don’t we just eat them both and save ourselves a load of bother?”
“We need the Cyphers to finish building the ship,” Draig said with a shrug. “It’ll take us another two weeks if we do it ourselves.”
“Yes, yes…” Everest said unhappily. “Damn those quick, industrious little hands…”
Aden made another sound, looking at Everest imploringly.
“What?” Everest asked. He gave a sigh, turning to Shiva. “Let the Rook speak.” Shiva reluctantly released his closed fist, and Aden’s mouth opened once again.
“If it’s building you want done,” Aden said to Everest, “I’ve brought an armada’s worth of aeronauts with strong backs and diligent hands. Just how many men can you even fit in that silly flying bobble of yours, Shiva?”
Twist looked at Aden in confusion. Why should he offer so much help to creatures that he hardly knew?
“It’s Lord—” Shiva began.
“Shut up, Shiva,” Everest snapped. Shiva’s jaw tightened. “How many men, exactly, have you brought with you, Rook?” Everest asked Aden.
“Masters, you can’t trust a Rook,” Shiva began urgently.
“I don’t trust you, either,” Everest growled. “Now be silent!”
Shiva’s eyes flashed with fire, but he held his anger in check.
“The present men number over twenty thousand, Master,” Aden mentioned politely. “If we can help you in any way, you need only let us know.”
The two dragons shared a delighted glance. “That will more than double our workers,” Draig said to Everest. “We could be leaving in days!”
“How is the astrolabe?” Everest asked Samay, who stood with Twist and his companions, in his human form.
“It was unharmed by the attack,” Samay answered. “How much longer do you think it will take you to finish?” he asked Twist and Jonas. Jonas looked to Twist to answer.
Twist’s mind flew quickly over guessed numbers and hours. “If we continue at this speed, we should finished in two days,” he said, careful to give himself a workable margin for error.
“Really?” Samay asked in surprise. “You’re sure it’s not more like a week?”
“Oh, certainly,” Twist answered without hesitation. “I’m not repairing much of the machine. We’re only calibrating it. It shouldn’t take that long at all.”
“Well,” Samay muttered, glancing back at the other dragons, “I’ll need time to ensure they’ve done it correctly. Let’s call it three days.”
Twist glanced at Shiva to find him looking at Twist through thoughtful eyes. “Masters, may I ask,” he said slowly, “who is this man?”
“Some clockmaker from London,” Draig said easily. “Apparently, he mended the clockwork princess.”
Myra’s dread poured into Twist’s Sight from where she still huddled, hidden against Twist’s back. Shiva looked at Twist in shock.
“Twist?” Shiva asked, his voice painted with apprehension.
“Yes,” Samay said. “How do you know his name?”
“Not the same Twist who nearly killed Lord Loki twice,” Shiva muttered, looking over Twist, disbelieving.
The three dragons and Skye all looked to Twist in amazement.
Twist knew his response needed to be flawless, if he were to retain any of Shiva’s apprehension. When the Cypher learned that Myra was with them, he would surely try to take her, with or without Loki’s warnings. Twist’s only chance to win a fight with a wizard would be to avoid fighting at all. He needed Shiva to want to avoid a fight as well. He struggled to hold his face clear of emotions, and his posture relaxed.
“At your service, sir,” Twist said, keeping his voice smooth as he gave Shiva a cordial but casual nod. A sudden flash of pride at the base of his neck nearly put a smile on his face, but Twist held on to his calm. Shiva stared back at him, clearly unnerved, while Skye appeared delighted.
“Well,” Aden said brightly, drawing everyone’s attention. “It sounds to me like we have a plan. Twist can finish the astrolabe in a few days, my men will help you to build your ship, and you will be on your way in no time at all.” The dragons smiled at this. “Though I wish we could have met sooner, and under better circumstances,” Aden went on, “you must agree that our meeting today was fortuitous. And in return for the help of my men, I ask only that you don’t eat any of us.”
Twist suddenly realized the true nature of Aden’s reason to offer the dragons help. Just as he himself had done to save his friends from Samay’s anger, Aden was merely misdirecting the dragons’ attentions away from any thoughts of vengeance for battling over their palace.
“I suppose that’s not an unreasonable request,” Draig said lightly to Everest.
“
I suppose not,” Everest said with a nod. “At least the Rook is offering some recompense for disturbing our peace. What about you, Shiva? How do you intend to atone?”
“My Masters, we were attacked,” Shiva said, a picture of innocence.
“You didn’t have to fight back or fire cannonballs at our home,” Everest snapped.
Shiva looked to Aden with the purest hate Twist had even seen in another man. He then looked back to the dragons with a smile. “Well, since you won’t be eating the magpies, allow me to offer you some of my slaves, once they are finished building the ship.” Twist looked to Shiva in horror.
“They’ve all been working for months,” Everest said, shaking his head. “They’d be all stringy and dry. Have you got any plump English aristocrats?”
“Oh, they taste lovely with marmalade, don’t they?” Draig asked Everest with a smile. Everest nodded happily with a pleased-sounding tone. Twist’s stomach turned uncomfortably.
“What can I offer you, my Masters?” Shiva asked. “I so wish to mend our relationship after our unfortunate morning.”
“This Rook is giving us his entire fleet to help with construction,” Draig said thoughtfully. “Now that I think about it, why have you only offered us your slaves, Shiva?”
“Of course,” Shiva said, clearly forcing a smile. “I lack your wisdom, Master. I’m sure that is why I never thought of it. Please, take every man I have with me to help finish construction.”
Skye gave Shiva a level look. “Really?”
Shiva shot her a glare, but Draig chuckled again.
“I’ll accept that, if you will,” Draig said to Everest. Everest nodded.
“Where shall I send my men, Masters?” Aden asked the dragons brightly.
“I’ll show you how to get into the volcano,” Draig said as he stood up on his back talons. “Shiva, let them up.”
Shiva waved a hand vaguely at the Rooks. They all fell limp instantly and then got to their feet once again. Draig walked closer and began to lead Aden and his Rooks away.
“What about this one?” Samay asked Everest, gesturing to Skye. “She’s the one who brought the Rooks here in the first place.” Shiva turned his hateful gaze on her.
“Well, that turned out to be helpful, so I suppose there’s no need to punish her,” Everest said flippantly.
“She betrayed your trust, Master,” Shiva said to Everest. “Surely that deserves some retribution.”
“What have I ever done that gave you such a pervasive belief that I trust a single living human being at all?” Everest asked him. “It’s impossible to betray a trust that doesn’t exist. You, on the other hand, are trying my patience.”
Shiva appeared startled. “My apologies, Master.”
“Go back to your ship and collect your men,” Everest said to him with a sigh.
“Right away, Master,” Shiva said, bowing before he and the other Cyphers turned to leave.
Myra peeked slightly over Twist’s shoulder to see the Cyphers all no longer looking in her direction as they departed. Twist felt her emotions relax and turned to put a supportive arm around her.
“There, there, dear,” he said soothingly while she smiled gratefully to him.
“Samay,” Everest said with a sigh, “take those ones away as well. I’ve got to get away from all of these troublesome creatures to collect my nerves…”
“Come along,” Samay said, leading Twist and the others from the plaza.
As they walked back toward the astrolabe, Twist could hardly believe that things had turned out as well as they had.
Thanks to Myra’s insistence, Samay sent for breakfast to be brought to the astrolabe workshop. This time, rather than seared meats and sweet icy treats, a pair of the small red dragons brought them boiled eggs with black, sulfur-scented shells, along with rough chunks of fried potatoes.
“It’s sort of a vegetable,” Jonas said, holding up a chunk of seared potato to examine it. He and the others stood by the worktable under the astrolabe, picking at the large platter of food. Samay took a talonful of the black eggs and gobbled them up whole as he looked over the star maps and clockwork charts that covered the rest of the worktable.
“I’m just glad the eggs aren’t black on the inside, as well,” Twist muttered, beginning to peel the gritty shell off of one of them. Myra snatched it out of his hand with a smile and began to swiftly complete the task. Twist was somewhat startled by her eagerness but made no complaint.
“Why are they black at all?” Skye asked, frowning at her own egg.
“They’re cooked in hot springs around this mountain,” Samay answered, not looking up from the star chart he was reading. “The shell is the best part,” he added with a smile, licking his pointed, green-scaled lips with a purple tongue.
Twist looked at the dragon skeptically.
“So, Twist…” Skye said while peeling her egg. “What’s this about you almost killing Loki?” Samay glanced up at Twist, while Jonas and Myra smiled quietly.
“Oh, that,” Twist muttered. “Well, he tried to attack us, and I…sort of fought him off.”
Jonas chuckled. “Yeah, that’s what happened.”
“Well, how would you describe it then?” Twist grumbled.
“I would say that you found your inner ruffian and let loose on the blighter.”
Twist shook his head with a sigh. “I don’t think I have an inner ruffian.”
“You left the man blackened and smoking on the floor, the first time.”
“No way!” Skye gasped in delight. “Cute little Twisty did that?”
“What did you just call me?” Twist balked, though no one seemed to notice.
“Loki meant to strike our friend Niko,” Myra joined in excitedly, with all the appropriate gestures, “and Twist took his electric walking stick and jammed it into Loki’s back!”
“Left Loki a singed and pitiful heap,” Jonas agreed with a wide grin.
“Damn, Twist!” Skye exclaimed approvingly.
“It was nothing so heroic as all that!” Twist said quickly. “I just reacted.”
“And the second time he almost killed Loki…” Jonas said to Skye. “Oh, it still gives me chills.”
“I wasn’t there,” Myra said, looking eagerly to Jonas. “Tell it again.”
“Well, Loki gave Twist the Cypher drug, the same one you gave me in orbit,” Jonas began, while Skye and Myra settled in for the tale. Twist rolled his eyes and busied himself with nibbling at a potato.
The women gasped and cheered as Jonas dramatically told of Twist using the amazing abilities that the drug had given him: stopping Loki’s breath in his chest, threatening to blind him if he didn’t promise to warn all other Cyphers off of Myra, as well as tossing people about like rag dolls with the power of his thoughts and singlehandedly saving the entire Vimana crew from the Cypher prison aboard Loki’s airship. Samay stopped eating to listen as well, occasionally glancing at Twist in amazement.
“But there wasn’t enough time to get the balloon ready,” Jonas went on. “So what did Twist do? He pushed it right over the edge only half full and used his powers to slow the little airship as it plummeted into the Caribbean!” Skye and Myra gasped and clung to each other in fright. “The balloon’s basket bounced on the surface and then floated, finally, with just enough hot air to keep us out of the waves. Then, while the Rooks blasted away at Loki’s airship overhead, and we drifted safely away, Twist let go of his powers and gave me back my soul. I woke up with him passed out on top of me,” he ended with a laugh.
“Oh, how thrilling!” Skye exclaimed. “The whole thing sounds like the epic ending of some adventure novel.”
“I wish I’d been there,” Myra said with a wistful sigh. “But I was sitting on a pile of Spanish doubloons under the sea, the whole time.”
Skye laughed. “Poor Myra,” she said, smiling as she patted her hand.
“You really did all that?” Samay asked Twist.
Twist glared at Jonas. “He rather exagger
ated most of it.”
“I did not!” Jonas countered. “You’re just too stuffy to admit how amazing you were.”
Twist rubbed at the frustration in his brow. “Can we get to work yet? We’ve got a lot still to do, you know…”
“Oh, one more story,” Myra whined to Jonas. “I want to hear of another time Twist was devilishly dashing.”
“There was another time?” Twist scoffed.
“Sure!” Myra said brightly. “There was the time you slayed a monster in Japan, and the time you nearly fell off of a cliff to save my heart from shattering on the rocks below, and the time you attacked a whole Cypher den to rescue me, and then you also fought Vane with nothing but your pocket watch as a weapon—”
“Myra, Myra, please,” Twist said, desperate to stop her.
“What?” Myra asked innocently.
“He’s very modest,” Jonas said as if only to her, though everyone could easily hear him. “You’ll only embarrass him to list off all of his dashing moments.” Twist shot him a glare.
“Oh, I’m sorry, darling,” Myra said sweetly to Twist. “But you shouldn’t be embarrassed. You should be proud to be so magnificent.” Skye sniggered into her hand.
“Thank you, dear,” Twist said tightly. “But really, shouldn’t we get to work?” he asked, looking imploringly to Jonas.
“All right, all right,” Jonas said with a sigh. He glanced up at the clear dome of crystal above them and the perfect blue sky beyond.
Grateful for any distraction from his own frightening accomplishments, Twist turned his attention onto the clockwork behemoth that filled the room. He and Jonas climbed inside the cage of crystal constellations and on up to the platform one third of the way through the airy globe, where it was easy to reach the solar system of clockwork planets. Twist rolled up his sleeves and pressed his palms onto the cool metal gears that controlled the planet Mars. His Sight swept into the fine inner workings of the device with ease. As Twist let the machine’s details rest gently on his mind, he caught a subtle shade of emotion lingering on the surface. It seemed instantly familiar and yet clearly not his own.
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