Drakonika (Book 1) (5 page)

Magnus made a few steps forward, but he was forced to stop again.

“
One more step an' I'll cut her throat!” roared the thief fiercely as he drew a large knife out from the sheath on his belt, placing it right at the poor girl's throat. Its sharp blade gleamed even in the deep darkness.

No one moved for a moment.

Somebody screamed all of a sudden, “Hey, you! You with that knife!”

Both Magnus and the thief looked around in confusion. There was a rather strong echo in the street since the whole town was ruled by a deathly silence.
All three of them understood that somebody was quite close to where they were standing. And it appeared this somebody could also see them very well.

The mysterious stranger continued, “Yes, you. Listen, you imitation of a thief, do you even know how to hold a knife?”

The thief became hesitant and toyed with his knife slightly. The blue eyes of the terrified girl were peeping out from between his fingers.

At this point, Magnus finally understood what was going on. He recalled how Valezar's gingerbreads suddenly disappeared - into his backpack! He gave a short snigger but although he stopped immediately, he had already drawn their attention to himself.

“And you, scrub, don't think that we're done with you!” cried a highly threatening voice.

The smile on Magnus' face vanished immediately when he realized that now they would start poking fun at
him
.

The shrill voice rolled out again,
“You're the worst hooligan far and near, that's for sure! Just wait you, we'll give you a lesson of good manners right away!”

Whoever it was, he was speaking as if there were others with him and the thief didn't seem to have the slightest intention in getting in the way of a gang that was taking care of some issues with this “insignificant brat”. Moreover, he felt they were uncomfortably close.

“We're going to get that backpack! Hand it over or you won't live to see the dawn of this day!”

That was enough for the thief to loosen his grip and the girl instantly tugged herself free. She bolted out from him with such force that she ran into Magnus at full speed, almost knocking him down to the ground. In that moment, she was not capable of apologising, as she was still breathing heavily. Obviously, this wasn't a regular experience for her!

Another thing that flew against Magnus was his backpack which he seized to his chest in the last second before it could splash on the slippery pavement. He didn't even realise that he had let go of his jacket which fell onto the ground and the cold raindrops started penetrating his hair and clothes.

“
Keep your problems,” growled the thief. Then his frowning expression suddenly changed into a malevolent smile, saying: “Have a pleasant death.” He disappeared as suddenly as if the shadows themselves had swallowed him. He didn't even wait for the kids to say
thank you
.

Magnus felt a strong tug on one of his sleeves and then there was an indignant whisper.

“We have to leave right now, it's not safe here! Did you hear those bandits?” the girl implored, but Magnus didn't move a limb. “Pleeeaaaase!” she said, her big blue eyes fixed on him.

Bandits? So that's what the inhabitants of Ragna are so afraid of?
thought Magnus and a faint smile finally appeared on his face. He was acting like a snail. “Calm down, it's okay. There are no bandits here, the sounds were coming out from my backpack,” said Magnus calmly.

The girl glanced at him as though he was the strangest person she had ever seen. Actually, there was a good chance that he was. “What? Don't be silly! How could anyone's backpack talk?” she said, shaking her head in disbelief and if her sopping hair wasn't plastered to her face, her two long blonde ponytails would have shook as well.

“You'll see. One day I'll show you,” Magnus promised and hoped that the gingerbreads would not be sulky when that day would come. After all, they were surely capable of doing a lot of witty stuff.

“
I am Maren. Maren Samai,” said the girl suddenly as she stretched her arm towards him, ignoring Magnus' promises about his talking backpack.

Magnus took her hand gently, but she shook his whole arm wildly as if they were good old friends. When Maren let go of his hand at last, Magnus said hesitantly: “I am Magnus. Magnus... Il'idiel.” It sounded almost as though he was not even sure of what he had just said, but he was determined not to mention his blank memory.

“Magnus? Il'Idiel? Have you made that up just now?” said Maren unbelievingly and let out a hearty giggle, as if she had suddenly forgotten what could have been lurking in the dark streets.

Magnus felt his face turning red, but Maren didn't stop questioning.

“You aren't from here, are you?” she asked curiously.

How could she have known?
Magnus asked himself in his mind. His responses were growing slower and slower. Before he could give the girl any answer, another question came.

“
What are you doing out here anyway? Don't you know that Ragna is haunted at night?” Maren said.

It seemed she had finally made Magnus talk.

“I think it's pretty obvious what I'm doing here,” he said shortly, tossing his backpack over his shoulder. “But what are
you
doing here, I don't understand.”

“
Me?“ Maren jabbed herself with a finger, giving Magnus the kind of look as if he didn't know that one and one made two. “I happen to be a born mage and I am looking for adventure out here, to practice my powerful spells,” she said proudly in a slightly superior tone, and with her eyes shut, she pulled the black hood of her mage robe over her head.

Magnus turned slowly in the direction he had come from. “All right Miss Sorceress, if you know some powerful spells, now would be the time to use them,” he said with his voice shaking.

Magnus, the brave boy who had taken care of a dangerous robber sounded terrified. That forced Maren to forget about her bloodline of mighty mages at once as she turned in Magnus' direction.

There was a pair of huge yellow eyes glancing at them from the darkness which gleamed like polished crystals. The only source of light in the whole of Ragna was the two moons in the black, cloudy sky, for all of the house windows were well boarded. And apparently with a good reason.

“No matter what happens, stay behind me,” said Magnus resolutely, yet his terrified voice suggested he wasn't exactly a hero.

“
And if it kills you?” Maren whispered as her breath quickened. The only answer to this question was Magnus' bulged eyes.

The shadowed monster narrowed its eyes with hatred. That was all they could see of it.

“You can finish this conversation in the after-life,” it hissed coldly and Maren shivered even more, crouching behind Magnus, who looked just as horrified as she was.

Neither Magnus nor Maren expected the monster to talk and certainly not that it would honour them with their own language! They were both shocked that they understood each word it uttered. But from what they had heard, perhaps it would have been better not to understand.

The gleaming eyes were rising higher and higher, making it look like a huge snake measuring its prey.

It was time to run.

Maren didn't wait a second longer. She sped off to the first turn on the street, but when she jerked her head around she saw that Magnus wasn't making the slightest move.

“
Magnus, come on! What are you waiting for?” Maren shrieked, but there was no answer from Magnus. She had no idea what was going on with him but she could see very well what was going on in front of him. The dark monster opened its jaws wide, making it look like a volcano gap that would explode at any moment.

The hot air growing from the great chops reached her. Right now she was more than sure about what was going to belch out from there. But what scared her even more were the huge sharp fangs with which the monster prided itself.

Magnus' death or salvation was a matter of seconds but Maren couldn't see how she could help him. Her mind was already preparing her to see a pile of dust in place of where Magnus was standing when she got a sudden idea. It was the only thing she could have done anyway.

“
Fire shield!” Maren squealed from the top of her lungs and with her right hand she made a sharp move towards Magnus. It was in this very moment when a destructive flare blazed out of the monster's jaws right at Magnus, irradiating such a hot glow that even Maren had to turn away to protect her face.

Whatever happened, there was complete silence now. Maren didn't have the courage to look over her shoulder. Her knees buckled at the dark thoughts that flew through her mind.

“Maren? Are you all right?”

Even though she had known him only for a few minutes, Maren would have never mistaken his voice. Hope was telling her to look around but her senses didn't see a way he could still be alive. In the end, she did turn around. And Magnus was standing there, alive. On the other hand, the monster had disappeared.

Maren gaped at him incredulously. “H-how...? How is this possible?” she said through trembling lips. But Magnus had no time to answer. She dashed towards him and hung herself around his neck. “How could you survive?”

“
I think it was that shield of yours that saved me. Thanks to you I didn't become a roasted banana just now,” said Magnus, smiling. What happened moments ago was utterly strange. Magnus was hit by a huge destructive flame but he didn't have a single burnt hair on him. Moreover, he felt as though the fire bath had recharged his energy.

Maren looked incredibly happy with her success. “But where is that... creature?” she whispered, releasing Magnus and looking around in fear.

“I don't know,” Magnus said, picking up his soaked coat from the ground. “Probably ran away, seeing your mighty spell,” joked Magnus lightly, but Maren gave him the strict glance of a teacher.

“
Stop it, will you? It's not funny. I really thought you turned to dust. Anyway, could we finally get out of here?!” She screamed impatiently.

Magnus felt a little shaken up. This girl had really strong lungs!

“Just calm down... it was you who wanted to look for adventure to get some exercise in magick in the first place and now you found one. Why are you mad at me? Seconds ago you were embracing me and now-” he said carefully in an effort to set things right. But unfortunately, he only made it worse.

Maren turned red from anger, as though hot flames crawled up her face. “You know what? If you don't get killed by the monster tonight, you'll sure get killed by
me
!”

And so begun the Ragnan street marathon. For Magnus it was the second time in one day.

The chasing lasted for quite a while. With angered Maren on heels, Magnus didn't have the slightest intention to stop. Now she seemed much creepier to him than any fire-breathing monster.

It didn't take long for Magnus to start feeling the unpleasant coldness of rain again. His legs felt as if they were wooden and he couldn't move them properly any more.
In a feeble attempt to lose Maren, he took a turn in the dark street and stumbled over a cobblestone.

Maren followed straight after.

“Come on, just give up already! I can cast
Haste
on myself!” she threatened him, and stumbled as well - over Magnus' leg, motionlessly lying on the ground.

She
gave a surprised yelp and balanced her body with difficulty. She groaned and was about to chide him again but when she saw him she changed her mind. Magnus was rigid like a doll.

“
And what's wrong with you
now
?” she murmured, crouching next to him.

Magnus continued his dead-pan stare.

“All right, all right, I'm not going to use any magick on you. Now let's go!” Maren shouted as she groped at his hand, but she jerked back in shock. Magnus was cold as ice.

Now she got seriously alarmed. She had to do something - at once! But what? She didn't even know this boy, who was he?  Where could she take him? Where could he live?

That was it!

“
Where do you live, Magnus?” she asked hastily, but there was no response. She shivered at the feeling that they were still being watched by the terrifying monster. It was time to move. However, the only place she could take him was her home and frankly, she was afraid of her mother's reaction. Just as she grabbed Magnus' coat and was about to pick him up too, she heard a weak, clinking sound. Something just fell out of the pockets on his coat.

The clouds started to tear apart and the rain was slowly stopping.

Maren looked around cautiously and then crouched down. Among blank paper scraps lying flat on the wet cobblestones, she found a single key with a key-chain with lettering “Merry Pigeon” that was gleaming in the moon-light. Salvation!

“
That's not far from here!” Maren said, her eyes brightening. With all her strength, she raised Magnus off the ground with his backpack hanging over his shoulder and, supporting him, she dragged him through the narrow lanes of Ragna. The streets were so dark that she managed to get to the tavern just from her memory, more or less. She had already felt that thanks to this weird stranger, her muscles were going to hurt for quite a few days. If she were to walk just a minute longer, she probably wouldn't make it.