Firestorm (2 page)

‘
Fool!
’ he heard the dragon exclaim in his mind. A yell formed in his throat, triggered more by the dragon’s sudden surge towards him than any anticipation of the long
fall. Her jaws opened wide as she lunged. She missed – barely – but during his first tumbling revolution, Elian realised she had not given up on her prey. The dragon had dived off the
cliff and was also in freefall, arrowing down in pursuit.

Even though he was yelling uncontrollably, inside, Elian felt strangely calm. He was going to die – that was accepted. What was more difficult to decide was if his fall had lengthened his
life, or shortened it. How long could he have kept the dragon talking before it killed him? He knew he had a slow count of approximately twenty-one (if his experiments with stones were
representative) of life remaining. His yell petered out as his lungs emptied, but his thoughts raced on as he plummeted towards the valley below.

Air dragged at his clothing and roared in his ears. His fair hair, normally clean and neatly brushed at the insistence of his mother, felt as though it was being pulled from its roots. And his
vision was blurred – not by tears, for no tears could form without being blasted away – but by his eyes drying and distorting in the pummelling airflow. What was more, he was still
accelerating. He could feel it.

Turning face down, his cheeks billowed and flapped in a most insane manner. He could stop them by clenching his mouth shut and tightening his cheek muscles, but in a crazy sort of way it felt
good to relax and experience a few new things. Would he have time to register pain before he died? No. When he hit the ground, it would end in an instant. Another revolution and it felt as though
the air had lifted the eyelids from his eyes. The pressure in his ears was building painfully and occasional flashes of blurred vision revealed the dragon catching up fast. Would he be allowed to
meet his end on the rocks, or would he be torn apart by the dragon first?

‘Got you!’

The female voice in his mind again. So he, Elian, son of Raim, was to be dragon food. But how many others from the village would have such a spectacular death? he rationalised.

A fearful, wrenching force squeezed and twisted his body as a double cage of talons snapped shut around him. The shock as the simultaneous slap of air met the dragon’s unfurled wings felt
like a crushing body punch. The impact spawned flashing stars of light that danced before his eyes as she deflected them out of the headlong dive.

Once in level flight, the pressure on Elian’s chest, stomach and legs reduced until he felt as if he were simply laid across the talons like a sparsely slatted bed. With surprise he
realised the grip of the dragon was most gentle.

He swallowed and his ears popped painfully. Elian winced, but the pain receded quickly and his hearing was abruptly restored. The air-rush died down, and as his eyes rediscovered their focus, he
found he was face down, gliding noiselessly southwards across the treetops in the Haleen Valley basin. It was the most exhilarating feeling he had ever experienced. For a moment he felt like
hooting for joy, but then the thought of his imminent fate reasserted its hold.

In his mind he heard the dragon chuckle.

It’s not fair, he decided. It’s bad enough that I’m going to be a dragon’s lunch, but listening to her amused anticipation of eating me makes it so much worse.

A clearing in the trees opened up ahead of them.

‘Prepare yourself. We’re going to land.’

They swooped down into the clearing until Elian was all but being brushed against the long grass. Then, in an instant, the dragon back-winged almost to a hover and dropped him. He fell no more
than the length of a forearm into long, soft grass, his forward momentum so small that he only rolled over twice before coming to rest on his back. In dazed amazement he stared up at the sky.

For several heartbeats he remained still, his body tense, waiting for the dragon’s head to descend, its jaws gaping. When after a short time nothing had happened, Elian eased himself up on
his elbows to see over the top of the grass. The dragon was curled nearby with her long, wedge-shaped head angled in his direction and her huge, amazing eyes watching his every movement.

Something inside Elian snapped. ‘What do you want?’ he yelled suddenly, forcing himself to his feet. ‘Am I supposed to run now? Can’t you just eat me and be done with
it?’

The enormous head rose slightly and the eyes fixed on him. If Elian had not known better, he would have thought the dragon was looking at him with mild disapproval.

‘I’d really rather you didn’t run,’
she replied in his mind,
‘for then I’d be forced to come after you. Perhaps it would help if we were properly
introduced. Elian, I am Aurora
. . .
your dragon.’

Chapter Two

‘What’s wrong, Nolita? You look like you’re expecting to see a ghost behind every tree.’

‘I . . . I’m not sure, Sable,’ Nolita replied, her eyes constantly on the move and her body taut. ‘It’s just a feeling, but it’s growing stronger. It’s
as if someone’s watching me. I . . . it’s . . . well, it’s not nice.’

Sable looked around. The tree trunks were well spaced here, so she could see a fair distance either side of the path. Nothing moved. It looked as if her younger sister’s imagination were
getting the better of her. Sable gave Nolita a comforting smile and caught hold of her hand to give it a squeeze.

‘It’s all right,’ she said, looking straight into Nolita’s darting blue eyes. ‘It’s probably just Balard messing around. He’s taken a mischievous turn
recently. I’ll have words with him later. If necessary I’ll get Father to talk to him.’

‘It’s not Balard,’ Nolita replied instantly. ‘I . . .’ Nolita shook herself and gave a nervous giggle. ‘Oh, I’m probably getting all upset over nothing.
If it
is
Balard, or one of the village boys playing games, then they’ll regret it,’ she added, deliberately projecting her voice to make sure it could be heard some distance
away.

‘That’s for sure!’ Sable agreed. Nolita had her problems, but she could hold her own. She may have only seen thirteen summers, but few of her peers would face her with
confidence when she was angry.

Nolita had always been able to cope with rats, spiders and snakes, which sent most girls, and a lot of the boys, running. But try to take her near a cow or a horse and she became a quivering
wreck. She was similarly affected by heights and had never joined in with climbing games. Even watching others in the branches of trees was enough to set her shaking.

Until now her worst fears had been related only to heights or large animals. People, no matter how big, had never been a problem. Today marked a new and worrying development.

Sable turned back to the path, but kept hold of her sister’s hand. Nolita gave her fingers a grateful squeeze as they set off again. The neighbouring village was not much further. Mother
had sent them to deliver a batch of herbs to the wise woman there. It was one of the few chores that no one minded, for the wise woman was well known for her cooking and her generosity. Those who
visited her on errands often left with delicious cakes and sweetmeats to eat on the way home. Sable’s stomach was grumbling at the thought.

‘Look!’ Sable exclaimed. ‘There’s the edge of the wood up ahead. Come on. You’ll feel better once we’re clear of the trees.’

A sudden rush of wind through the treetops above them caused both girls to look up. The air had been still and the thick canopy of leaves silent, until now. Was the weather on the turn? The
surge of wind through the upper branches died as quickly as it began. Nolita tightened her fingers around her sister’s, drawing comfort from the contact. It was eerie. A simultaneous gust of
dread had swept through her as the rustling wave passed overhead.

‘You’re right, Sable. Let’s run to the village. I feel so tight I might snap.’

The two girls sprang forwards, still holding hands. The first few strides were awkward, but they quickly matched their running rhythm, until each could feel the beat of the other’s
footfalls. It was less than two hundred paces to the edge of the wood, so they dashed through the trees at high speed. The release of energy felt good and Nolita’s tension was just beginning
to ease as they burst from beneath the trees into the open sunshine. Once clear of the wood, however, they skidded to an abrupt halt.

‘Gods alive!’ breathed Sable, totally awestruck.

Nolita made a noise like the yelp of a small dog whose tail had just been trodden on. She paused for the briefest of moments, and then she sprinted back into the trees faster than she had ever
run before. Sable glanced after her sister, but was too filled with wonder to follow. It was as if she were under a spell. She rubbed at her eyes to make sure what she was seeing was real. It was.
There, directly between her and the nearby village, was the most magnificent creature she had ever seen – a day dragon with gleaming blue scales and horns of creamy white. And he was looking
right at her.

A continent away, Elian was similarly awestruck.

‘
I am Aurora, your dragon,’
the dragon repeated after a short pause.
‘But you may call me Ra, if you wish.’
She chuckled. ‘
Ra! I’ve so looked
forward to being called Ra. There was a place I once visited where Ra was worshipped as the god of the sun. It’s a good name.’

‘“Your dragon”?’ Elian asked, his mind struggling with the idea. ‘What exactly do you mean by “your dragon”? And how do you know my name?’

‘It is quite simple, Elian. I am a dragon. You are my dragonrider. I am your dragon. I waited a long time for you to be born and grow up. Now you are old enough, we have much to do
together, you and I. As for your name, I heard it in your mind as you fell.’

Elian’s jaw dropped slightly as his mind echoed with the dragon’s words.
‘You are my dragonrider
. . .’ You are my dragonrider? How could he be a dragonrider? He
had never even met a dragon before!

‘Me? A dragonrider?’ he squeaked eventually. ‘Why me?’

‘Ah, the “why me” question! I was warned about those. Listen, Elian, there are no definitive answers to some questions. As far as dragons are concerned, humans are good for
only two things. The first is to be dragonriders. The second is to be lunch – preferably lightly toasted.’

Elian gulped and Aurora’s laughter sounded clearly in his mind.

‘Sorry! Excuse my little joke, but after all your recent thoughts about being eaten it was hard to resist. Humans don’t actually have much flavour. They’re all right as a
last resort, but a nice plump deer is much tastier. Suffice it to say that a dragon always knows her rider. It’s instinctive. I knew the moment you were birthed, Elian. I waited centuries for
that instant. As soon as I felt it, I knew my time was approaching. It was hard to wait these last few years for you to grow to transition. Every dragon has but one rider, Elian. You are mine. I am
yours. We are destined to be together. Can you deny the bond? Did you not recognise my voice?’

It sounded so simple, yet also beyond comprehension. Elian was not ready to answer the dragon’s questions yet, so he avoided them by asking more of his own.

‘Centuries? Just how old are you? And, I hear you in my head, but you understand me if I speak aloud. I don’t understand. How does that work?’

‘Did no one ever tell you that it’s rude to ask a lady her age?’
Aurora answered, giving a little snort of disapproval. ‘
I know your mind is brimming with
questions and I’m sure we’ll get around to them all eventually. As for how I understand your strange speech – that’s easy. The noises you make with your mouth are mirrored
in your mind with images and words. It is unnecessary to speak aloud, but if you’re more comfortable with this, I understand. It takes practice to discipline your thoughts.’

‘So do dragons speak to one another in the same way? Or do you sort of look into one another’s minds and take the information you need?’ Elian asked, fascinated by the
concept.

‘We speak to one another by projecting thoughts, as I am speaking to you now,’
she replied.
‘We cannot read one another’s minds as you read a book – well,
we can, but only under very special circumstances. Our thoughts remain private unless we actively make them public. A dragon with a strong mind can overcome another and search through his thoughts
at will, but to do so is forbidden under dragon law. Likewise, a dragon can overcome a human mind by force, but that is also forbidden. Reading surface thoughts, or the thoughts of a dragon who
chooses to open their mind, is different. Similarly, our bond opens a channel that will develop until we each instinctively know what the other is thinking. Tell me, Elian, how much do you know
about dragons?’

It was a good question. One that left Elian pondering on what little he knew.

‘That’s hard to say, exactly,’ he answered slowly. ‘The village teacher said to meet a dragon without a rider was to face a danger without parallel.’