Snowbone (21 page)

The guards looked at each other, dropped their swords and ran. And Snowbone leaped forward, grabbed hold of the Tongue, thrust it into her pocket and ran after them, with Manu and Blackeye stumbling behind.

“Come on!” she yelled over her shoulder. “Faster!”

She ran to the end of the tunnel and skidded to a halt. The Core was packed with people, pushing and jostling, fighting to get up the Solitary Way.

“Push!” shouted Snowbone, and threw herself bodily at the crowd.

“No!” cried a voice behind her.

Snowbone stopped fighting and spun round.

“What do you mean, no?”

“I can't,” said Manu. “I have to go back for Filizar.”

“You can't!” said Snowbone. “There's no time! You don't even know him.”

“He's my brother,” said Manu desperately.

“Blessed moons!” cried Snowbone. “What is it with people and families? Oh, go on, then! But be fast. We'll wait here.”

Manu nodded and began to force his way through the crowd. And as Snowbone watched his dark, curly hair disappearing into the distance, she wondered whether she would ever see him again.

anu had to fight for every step. A panic of people pushed against him.

“You're going the wrong way!” they shouted angrily. “Go back! Go back!”

But still Manu fought on, taking every punch, kick and blow the terrified Finoans threw at him. On he went, searching, searching for the royal bedchamber. And when he found it—when he tore himself out from the stream of bodies and threw himself, gasping, into Filizar's cave—it was like entering another world. It was quiet. So quiet. Everyone had gone. But there was his brother, sitting on the couch, rocking backwards and forwards, staring at nothing. Abandoned.

“Filizar!”

Filizar awoke as if from a dream. He looked around and saw Manu. “Leave me,” he said. “Save yourself.”

“No,” said Manu. “I won't leave you.”

“You must,” said Filizar. “I can't run.”

“I'll carry you,” said Manu.

“No,” said Filizar. “No.”

“Yes,”
said Manu. “You're my brother.” He squatted in front of the couch. “Put your arms round my neck. Hold on tight.”

Filizar climbed onto Manu's back. Manu took his brother's flat legs into his hands and, with a deep breath, launched himself back into the river of Finoans.

“Where is he?” said Snowbone for the fifteenth time. “Where is he?”

Blackeye didn't reply. He just kept looking. “There!” he cried at last. “He's got him!”

The tiddlins kicked their way through the crowd. When they reached Manu and Filizar, they started up the Solitary Way together. But they were no more than halfway up when the unceasing screams from below became one unbearable, deafening howl of anguish. The whole volcano shook like a baby's rattle and a hot sea of molten rock rose into the Core.

Terror gripped the Finoans. They cried, screamed, stampeded, but that made things infinitely worse. People were falling over the edge of the Way. Tumbling like pebbles into the deadly magma sea below.

“We've got to get out!” shouted Snowbone. “We'll burn!”

Blackeye nodded furiously and pushed ahead.

“Filizar!” cried Manu suddenly. “Hold on!”

“What's the matter?” said Snowbone, somehow managing to turn round.

“He nearly let go,” said Manu, clearly shaken. “He was holding on with only one hand.”

“We're nearly there,” said Snowbone. “Just keep going.”

Finally, miraculously, they reached the tunnel that led to freedom, and when they emerged, breathless, into the
starlight, Manu and Blackeye hugged each other wildly. Even Snowbone let a tear fall. She was just so glad to be alive.

But the danger wasn't over yet.

“The volcano's going to blow,” said Manu. “We've got to get down before the lava starts flowing.”

The Finoans were streaming down the flanks of the volcano. Manu and Snowbone joined them.

“No!” cried Blackeye. “Wait!” He was staring at the horizon. His eyes were screwed up, piercing the night. “We need to go up,” he said. “To the summit.”

“Are you mad?”
cried Snowbone. “When it blows, we'll be blasted to bits!”

“Trust me,” said Blackeye.

And Snowbone looked into his face and knew that she did trust him. With a sigh, she began to follow, with Manu bringing up the rear.

For a moment, the Finoans around them wavered. They saw their king going in the opposite direction … but there was no time to wonder. Shaking their heads, the Finoans turned away and began the long climb down.

Blackeye hurried onwards and upwards, scrambling over the rocks like a mountain goat. Snowbone kept pace behind him. Manu struggled on, with Filizar feeling heavier by the minute. The volcano was still rumbling and roaring beneath them, as if a dragon had awakened to find his gold missing. Loose boulders were somersaulting down the mountainside in a cannonade of stones and pebbles. But then there came another noise. An insistent drone, like a swarm of angry bees. Their clothes started flapping in a wind that came from nowhere. And as the tiddlins looked up, the
Stormrunner
swept in from the sea and stayed there, hovering above them.

A ladder came down from the sky. It danced in the sunlight. Wiggled enticingly like a worm on a hook. And still it came down, closer, closer.

“Come on,” said Manu urgently. “Come on. It's going to blow.”

The ladder was within reach. Blackeye caught hold and beckoned to Snowbone. He held it steady while she clambered on and started climbing. Manu followed, with Filizar still clinging to his back. As Blackeye brought up the rear, there was a shout from above—
“Go!”
—and the
Stormrunner
accelerated away, with the ladder swaying beneath and everyone desperately holding on.

And Snowbone was just about to curse Skua for flying recklessly when the sky exploded so violently, she thought the end of the world had come. The
Stormrunner
rocked uncontrollably. The air spun in a cauldron of smoke and ash and cinders. And down below, red rivers of death began their spidery descent.

But in the distance lay the ocean, winter-wild beneath the midnight sky. And that was where the
Stormrunner
was heading, with everyone safe on board.

“
ight, then,” said Skua. “Which one of you has the Tongue?”

Snowbone glared at him. “We didn't get it. What was it you said? Oh, yes—I remember.
The island is uninhabited.
Well, it wasn't, and guess what? The natives didn't want to give their sacred relic to a bunch of thieves.”

Skua smiled dangerously. “Is that so?” he said. “Then you've got a long swim home, ain't ya?” And, without warning, he grabbed hold of Filizar, lifted him high in the air and dangled him over the side of the flying machine.

“No!” cried Manu. “Snowbone!”

“That's more like it,” said Skua, returning a furious Filizar to the deck. “Right, little lady. Hand it over.”

“You don't deserve it,” spat Snowbone.

“Don't I?” said Skua. “If it weren't for me, you'd still be on the volcano, burned to a crisp.”

“If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have been anywhere
near
that volcano.”

“You're right. You'd still be in Spittel Point lookin' for some mug who'd fly you halfway across the world for free.”

“Enough!” said Figgis. “Snowbone, give him the Tongue and let's be done with it.”

With one last scowl, Snowbone reached into her pocket, brought out the Tongue and handed it over.

Skua cradled it in the palm of his hand and stared at it greedily. “You missed your chance then, Snowbone,” he said. “You could've wished me dead.”

“Don't tempt me,” said Snowbone.

Skua slid the Tongue into his pocket.

“Oi!” said Figgis. “Aren't you going to make your wish?”

“No,” said Skua mysteriously. “Not now. Not here.”

And though the tiddlins badgered him for a full hour, he said no more.

or six uneventful days and nights, the
Stormrunner
flew over the ocean. Everyone settled into a daily routine. Figgis couldn't sit idle, so he tinkered around, repairing bits of the machine. Blackeye climbed to the top of the rigging and pretended to be a pirate. Tigermane found a broken feather blade down in the hold and spent many happy hours repairing it. She loved the feel of the feathers between her fingers and liked to imagine the exotic places the
Stormrunner
had visited over the years. Manu and Filizar just talked. They had so much to say and so many memories to share, the days flew by without them even noticing.

Snowbone simply watched the sea. She liked the emptiness: it was full of possibilities. She breathed in the briny air and savored the salt on her tongue. Sometimes her head felt tight and the sea soothed her. The endless blue bathed her eyes and eased her soul.

No one realized how troubled Snowbone was. She kept her worries well hidden. But late at night, sitting under the stars, she would think about things. It was something Manu had
said:
A king is responsible for the safety of his people.
She wasn't a king, but she was a leader. People were following her orders, accepting her decisions, trusting her judgment. With trust came responsibility. Why hadn't she realized that before? Thinking back to the raid … had she been reckless? Should she have planned it better? Cared more? She could have lost them all.

But at the time she had thought she was doing the right thing. She had believed her army was invincible. Wood was stronger than flesh, right? But it hadn't been about strength in the end. It had been about experience. The slavers had bucket-loads of that. She had none. She was young. So young.

Now she was leading her friends into danger again. They trusted her to keep them safe. How could she promise to do that? Three of them were Ashenpeakers and the Nova Land dealt in slaves. She couldn't guarantee her own safety, let alone theirs.

And why had she ever doubted Manu? He was so brave and noble and wise. Everything a prince should be. She knew that when he became king, his people would adore him. Follow him anywhere. She used to think she deserved that, but now … no.