Longfang (12 page)

Jack thought for a moment. The boy appeared genuine. But the older boy, Pell, had said nothing. Throughout the conversation he had stared straight ahead, apparently unhearing and uncaring. It
looked as if he was in a severe state of shock after his experience of no-man’s land.

‘I don’t want you to get the wrong idea about me, but I think I should tell you that my superiors want you to help us win the war we’re fighting,’ he began slowly,
remembering the communiqué he had received from the General after his last report. ‘Your dragons appear immune to our weapons. The Generals would give a lot to have you on our side.
I’m supposed to use whatever means possible to get you involved as our allies.’

Elian stopped walking and turned to face Jack in the fading light under the trees.

‘Is that what
you
want, Jack?’ he asked bluntly. ‘We don’t use the gateways by choice. We’re involved in a dangerous quest. We’ve got precious little
time to complete it and without using the gateways it would become impossible. To be honest your world scares me silly. I can’t imagine what caused your people to begin fighting on such a
massive scale and I don’t want any part in it.’

Jack nodded. ‘I don’t blame you,’ he said. ‘Only a fool would get involved in a war that wasn’t his own. This war has dragged on for years. The propaganda would
have us believe we’re winning, but I’m not convinced. These past months the Germans have been all over us in the air. Their tactics have been superior and it’s hard to see what we
can do to turn the tide. What I don’t understand is why you keep appearing and helping
me.
You talk of destiny. Is there something you want in return?’

The two dragons had found places where they could lie comfortably between the trees. Elian did not answer straight away, but continued walking until he was alongside his dragon. He had the far
away look in his eyes that Jack had noticed when they were in the air. Then it struck him. The boy was communicating directly with his dragon by a kind of mental link. If the dragon could mess with
their minds to make the boy and Jack understand each other, then why should the boy not talk directly to his dragon’s mind?

‘Our two dragons alone wouldn’t make much of a difference here, Jack,’ Elian told him. ‘Your war is beyond our ability to end. But you might be able to help us. Have you
ever heard of a place where shadows dwell? Or anything about a dragon orb?

Neither question meant anything to him. Jack shook his head.

Elian shrugged and then rubbed his hands together to warm them. It was getting cold now the darkness was setting in.

‘Aurora feels you must be tied up with our quest somehow,’ Elian said, puzzled. ‘The gateways keep opening near you. But what’s the connection?’

Jack watched the boy as he concentrated on the conundrum. He looked serious beyond his years. Was it normal for youngsters in the world of dragons to embark on dangerous quests?

‘Perhaps I could help if I knew a bit more about this quest,’ he said. ‘What is a dragon orb?’

With a suddenness that startled him, Pell spun round, a look of unbridled fury on his face.

‘You don’t want to know about dragon orbs!’ the older boy spat. ‘They’re cursed. Death and misery follow them. The sooner I get rid of the dark orb, the
better.’ As abruptly as his hostile outburst began, Pell’s focus disintegrated again and his voice became distant as he continued. ‘It’s killed too many. Maybe Segun was
right in wanting to destroy it.’

‘We’ll reach the Oracle tomorrow, Pell,’ Elian told him soothingly. ‘Don’t worry. The orb has claimed its last victim.’

‘So many . . .’ Pell continued, showing no sign of having heard Elian. His eyes stared into space and tears rolled unchecked down his cheeks. ‘So many men. Young and old. It
killed them all. So many . . .’

Elian drew Jack away, leaving Pell next to his dragon. He was muttering incoherently now. Jack had seen the reactions of enough newly arrived pilots, fresh to the horrors of battle, to recognise
the look in his eyes. The boy looked on the edge of losing his sanity.

They moved a short distance away and Elian began to speak in a low, urgent voice.

‘Our quest is to find four dragon orbs and use them to restore a spirit creature known as the Oracle,’ he said. ‘We have found two so far, but each has harboured a danger that
has taken us by surprise. The first caused the incident you referred to last year with the dogs. Pell has recovered the second, but it has a deadly quality unlike anything I’ve ever seen.
Immediately after we flew away from your broken machine the orb killed many men on both sides of the battle lines. I expect someone will soon link these deaths to sightings of our dragons and
you’ll be asked more questions. Please believe me, we don’t come here to cause harm. We’re just travelling through.’

‘How did it kill them?’ Jack asked, instantly wondering if this orb could be used as a weapon.

‘We don’t know and we don’t want to know. We just want to get it to the Oracle before it kills again. It’s deadly.’

‘So why don’t you go now?’

‘I told you,’ Elian said patiently. ‘We have to wait until dawn when my dragon can open another gateway.’

Jack fell silent. It was a lot to take in. Dragons, deadly dragon orbs, gateways to another world that only opened at dawn – it sounded like something from a fairy story. However, he could
not deny the reality of it all. He had just flown here on a dragon’s back. That was an experience he would never forget.

It was hard to know what to believe. Jack had never believed in God, yet there had been times in the air when he had prayed . . . just in case. He had even muttered a ‘thank you’ on
occasion, after particularly close encounters with death. The dragons and their riders had acted like guardian angels on three separate occasions, arriving in the nick of time to save his life.
Coincidence? It seemed highly improbable. They claimed they had no control over when they arrived, and that they were not deliberately opening their gateways near to him. If they were not doing it,
who was?

He felt a strange connection with Elian and a prickle ran up and down his back as he accepted this fact. Was there such a thing as predestination? Had some higher force already mapped out his
life? This scary thought made him want to know more.

‘Elian,’ he said aloud. ‘Tell me more about this quest you’re on. I want to know as much as you can tell me.’

Chapter Eleven

It had taken three-and-a-half days of hard flying, but when the city of Harkesis finally came into view the sight of it took Kira’s breath away.

‘Gods alive!’
she thought, directing her exclamation through the bond to her dragon.
‘It’s huge!’

‘I imagine the High Lord of Harkesis will be pleased by your reaction, Kira,’
Fang said, his voice sounding amused.

Kira laughed aloud.
‘And why would the High Lord care what I think?’
she asked.

‘The people of Harkesis are very proud of their city, and none more so than the High Lord,’
Fang replied, his tone turning serious.
‘ You are a dragonrider. The
dragonrider community wield a lot of influence across Areth. Your opinion is more sought after than you might imagine. Do not be surprised if you are invited to attend the High Lord’s court
while we are in Harkesis. It is a courtesy often extended to riders.’

‘But I don’t know the first thing about how to behave in a nobleman’s presence,’
she said, horrified by the thought of being expected to mix with the
aristocracy.

‘You will do fine, Kira,’
Fang told her.
‘If an invitation is extended, I will guide you through the experience. The courtesies required are not too difficult
here.’

The bright white of the city buildings sprawling across the two coastal hills was reminiscent of the snowy mountains the girls had left behind. They stood out amongst the lush green of the
countryside and against the bright blue backdrop of the eastern end of the Capsian Sea. Numerous buildings of all shapes and sizes covered the hillsides and flooded the valley between, but rather
than being set in ordered rows, there was a chaotic look to the city’s construction. The only consistent element was the colour – every building was as white as purest porcelain.

‘Can you see the large building on the summit of the hill to the left?’
Fang asked.

‘Yes.’

‘That’s the library.’

Even though they were still leagues from reaching the edge of the city, Kira could appreciate the scale of the Grand Library building. It was an enormous structure: rectangular, but with a roof
that sported five huge domes and high minarets at each corner that reached into the sky with needle-sharp points. There was no other building in the city that came close to matching it for size, or
elaborate architecture.

‘I assumed that was the High Lord’s palace,’
she admitted.
‘I’m amazed that a library is the largest building. There are only two books in our tribe and
both belong to the medicine man. One is a book of herb lore and the other is a collection of stories from the tribe’s history.’

The thought of the storybook instantly brought memories flashing back through her mind. Only a very few people were taught to read in her tribe. It was not a skill that had much application to
everyday life in the savannah. Every rainy season the Chief’s wife would borrow the book of stories from the medicine man and read them to the younger children.

Kira remembered those days with a special fondness. The stories were colourful and exciting, and the Chief’s wife read them with passion. The debates afterwards on the morals of the tales
were always lively and Kira had enjoyed vivid dreams for many days afterwards.

‘Learning is of primary importance to the people of Harkesis,’
Fang told her.
‘The Grand Library has given the city a reputation for being the seat of learning in
Areth. People travel here from all over the world to find answers to their questions. Even the lowest street urchins pride themselves on the combined knowledge of those within the
city.’

‘Any sign of night dragons?’
she asked.

There was a pause as he searched ahead with his mind.

‘No. None,’
he said.

‘Good.’

They flew on, angling towards the Grand Library and slowly descending until they were level with the hilltop on which it stood. As they swept in over the city, a closer view of the buildings
dispelled the earlier image of purity. All of the houses had been whitewashed, but even from a hundred spans up, Kira could see the ramshackle construction of the tiny box-like hovels and the filth
on the streets. Once they were over the city proper, Kira could smell it as well. The stench created by inadequate sanitation mushroomed up in a great bubble.

‘How can they live amongst that?’
Kira asked, horrified. She covered her mouth with her sleeve, gagging at the ripe aroma. Nolita, who was flying alongside her on Firestorm,
was also filled with disgust.

‘They become hardened to it,’
Fang explained, sounding matter-of-fact.
‘Smell something for long enough and eventually you will stop noticing it. At the moment the
weather is stable and the pressure is rising. This makes the air descend, trapping the smell of the streets and allowing it to intensify. The people who live here are grateful for days when the air
is less stable, or when there is a stiff breeze blowing.’

‘But what makes so many people want to live here in the first place?’
she asked.
‘How do they find food? Surely the countryside has been stripped of game with so many
people to feed.’

‘They live here because they feel it brings them status.’
Fang sounded contemptuous of the idea. Kira found her own emotions mirroring those of her dragon.
‘The
academics have found solutions to the problems of food and water. They have developed a clever system of intensive farming that produces far more food than the land would normally yield. What they
cannot grow, they buy through traders. It is a complex system.’

‘Sounds like madness to me,’
Kira observed.
‘What if the trade routes were disrupted? The city would starve.’

‘It would not be the first time such a thing has happened,’
Fang said sadly.
‘Wealth is relative. Who is better off: a dragon with a comfortable cave and a mountain
of gold, or a dragon with nowhere to shelter, but who has a ready supply of fresh meat? The correct answer will depend on the circumstances.’

Kira fell silent and surveyed the city with a mixture of wonder and disgust as the ground ahead rose towards the enormous structure perched on its peak. The courtyard in front of the Grand
Library was a perfect square. The colonnade around its perimeter was topped with a string of eight small domes on each side, and was supported by delicate arches of pure white stone.

The enclosed area was large enough for the two dragons to land safely, though they had to slow to a brief hover before touching down to avoid inadvertently hurting anyone. A large number of
scholars were milling in the courtyard as they approached. They scattered like frightened sheep at the sight of the dragons.