Shadow (8 page)

It was unnecessary to say more. Shadow knew his thoughts. She could sense his feelings of love and gratitude. He stayed close for a few seconds before pushing himself upright and stumbling
across to the stream to see what the water was like.

Walking was agony. Spikes of pain originated all up his back. His legs felt weak and the muscles in both his legs and arms burned as if he had overused them, though he had done little other than
sit in the saddle.

He reached the stream. The water was shallow, fast running and clean. He took another swig from his water carrier and then knelt down next to the brook and laid it with the open neck into the
flow. It filled quickly and he tasted from it again. The fresh water was cool and refreshing, but rather than making him feel more awake it pushed him closer towards sleep.

All of a sudden he began to feel dizzy. Jamming the stopper into the carrier, he staggered to his feet and took a few crazy steps back towards Shadow. The dragon blurred and the world spun out
of control. He was falling, or was he? He could no longer tell.

He did not feel the impact of the ground. Nor did he notice his dragon approach and encircle him with her body. The sun dived below the horizon and dusk gave way to night. Shadow tried touching
his mind with hers a few times, but he was totally unresponsive. If she had not been familiar with the feel of Pell’s mind when he was in deep sleep, she might have panicked, but she could
tell his unconscious state was due to exhaustion rather than as a result of his injuries. He pushed himself hard. She respected that, but she knew she would need to watch him closely, or risk
losing him for ever.

‘I didn’t wait centuries to have you burn out in a few short seasons, Pell. Sleep,’
she ordered him.
‘Sleep well, dragonrider. The orb will wait a little
longer.’

For the next few days Shadow flew faster than she had ever flown before. Not because she felt driven by the Oracle’s quest, but because she knew it would minimise her rider’s need to
spend time in the saddle. With mighty sweeps of her great wings she drove them at a tremendous pace over Eastern Orupee, across the sea to Isaa and on towards the great mountain range that
harboured the enclave of the night dragons. Pell was grateful for every rest stop that Shadow made. There was an unspoken understanding between them. The pace when they were airborne was furious,
and even resting at night had a similarly intense air about it.

Day by day Pell’s strength improved until he regained enough stamina to manage longer spells in the air. By the time they came within sight of the home range of the night dragons, he had
lost all sense of time. They might have been travelling six days or sixty for all he could remember. The journey was a blur of mounting and dismounting, frantic flying and breathless rest
stops.

Shadow was nearly as tired as he was. He could feel her fatigue through their bond. She had pushed herself to the limit. But the weather had been kind -the prevailing westerly wind had aided
them all the way and they had gained back the entire day they had lost after his fall. So long as they secured the orb quickly and set a steady pace on the return journey, they should make it
within the fortnight.

For the first time since he had left Elian and the others, Pell suddenly wondered what he would do if he could not find the orb. What if it was not at the enclave, but in some distant corner of
the world? He shook off the thought. The dying Oracle had given them the rhyme to guide their path to the orbs:

The meaning of his verse seemed clear. The ‘dark orb’ must be the orb of the night dragons. He was to seek the counsel of the ‘brave ones’. Who could
that be, if not the leaders of the night dragon enclave? He felt sure the verse did not refer to anyone from the day dragon enclave, no matter what the other riders had said. He was supposed to
come here. He could feel it. He was following his destiny.

The mountains loomed ahead of them; purple-grey with majestic white caps. They were taller and altogether more imposing than the mountains of central Orupee. Excitement warred with nervousness
within Pell’s chest as they drew ever closer. Shadow turned slightly south towards the pass they would need to enter to reach the enclave.

‘The watch dragons have seen us,’
she announced.

‘Already?’
Pell said, more than a little surprised.
‘But we’re still leagues away!’

‘They are ever vigilant. Segun would have them severely punished if they are found to not be so.’

Ah, yes! Segun, he thought to himself. Self-styled, yet accepted, leader of the night dragon riders. Just the thought of him sent a shiver down Pell’s spine that was half fear, half
excitement. The man had a reputation for being both brilliant and ruthless. The senior riders were all loyal to him. He had long since ejected from the inner ring of power any who disagreed with
his thinking. He was not a man to cross. Well I’ve no intention of annoying him, Pell thought. I’m here to impress . . . and to find the orb, of course.

Squinting upwards, he could just make out the watch dragons sitting on rocky outcrops high up on the shoulders of the mountains that towered into the sky on both sides of the pass. Quite why
Segun felt it necessary to guard the passes into the range, Pell could not begin to imagine. There was no power in Areth strong enough to assault the stronghold of the night dragons, except maybe
the entire enclave of day dragons – but that would never happen. The day dragons were too wound up in their sense of nobility to attempt a sneak attack. If they ever did challenge the night
dragons, they would do so openly.

As Shadow drew parallel, the two dragons launched, stooping like giant falcons from above. Pell could sense Shadow’s nonchalance through the bond, so he felt no real concern as the two
dragons dived towards them in a coordinated mock attack.

‘Ignore them. They’re just showing off,’
Shadow said, her tone derisive.
‘They are fools. To attack like that for real would invite disaster. They have
generated too much momentum to change their attack path now. A simple tight turn would throw their little game into chaos.’

‘Do it then!’
Pell urged.

‘No. Don’t react. Just keep looking forwards.’

The two watch dragons whistled past them, each giving a bellowing roar as it dived with talons extended. Shadow continued to fly ahead, not deviating so much as a hair’s-width from her
chosen course. Pell did as he was told and kept his head and eyes straight ahead, though his stomach leaped at the sudden noise of the great dragon voices. He felt the disturbance of their passage
in the air around him. The dragons had missed them by no more than a few spans.

‘Well done,’
Shadow said, pleased.
‘Keep ignoring them. It’s the best response to such nonsense.’

‘But why didn’t you make fools of them?’
Pell asked, gritting his teeth with frustration at having to let these dragonriders literally fly rings around them. Both
watch dragons had now zoomed back to position themselves on either side of Shadow.

‘Because I did not wish to be responsible for the unnecessary deaths of my fellow night dragons and their riders,’
Shadow responded.
‘What they just did was both
ridiculous and very dangerous. One wrong move by either could have seen them crash into each other. At that speed and height a collision could have proved fatal for both the dragons and their
riders. Don’t worry. I imagine Segun and his dragon, Widewing, will be as unimpressed with their idiotic behaviour as I am. They do not suffer fools gladly.’

Shadow was right, Pell realised. But knowing this did not make ignoring the two watch riders any easier. His competitive spirit yearned to demonstrate that he and Shadow were more than a match
for them. If he had not been under time pressure to present his request to Segun, he might have pushed Shadow into showing the two watch dragons and their riders some real flying skill. But the
meeting with Segun was far more important. When Segun and his council of senior riders discovered that Pell and Shadow were here as part of the Great Quest, everything would change. His status
would rise. If he succeeded in the Quest, he might even be invited to join the senior council.

Pell quashed any thoughts about reacting to the watch riders and kept his focus forwards. The watch dragons flanked them for a while, but soon lost interest and turned back to retake their
places on the watch posts.

Shadow powered up the pass and into the maze of mountains beyond. It was well that she knew the range intimately, for Pell realised it would be easy to get lost amongst the peaks. He had not
come here often during the two season rotations since he and Shadow had met, but his previous visits had failed to give him any sense of familiarity with the route through the valleys.

It was theoretically possible to enter the mountains at any point, but there were only three main routes into the heart of the range that did not require risking the dangerously thin air of high
altitude flying. Dragons could enter over the peaks, but it was not without risk, and several foolhardy riders had died attempting it. This made the night dragon enclave the most difficult of the
four enclaves to access, but the easiest to defend.

They dropped down the other side of the pass into a great valley that ran northwest to southeast, and Shadow made a gentle turn to the right. The sheer scale of his surroundings made Pell feel
very small and fragile, and for a moment he understood what it might feel like to be a fly weaving through a crowd of humans armed with swatters. This vulnerability did not generate fear, rather an
edginess that heightened his awareness.

Flying in the vicinity of such huge mountains was never without danger. Even in fair weather there were numerous traps for the unwary. Valleys funnelled wind, accelerating the air and creating
swirling eddies in the most unexpected places. Then there were vicious up- and down-drafts that could be caused by any number of triggers. Under certain conditions, the air crossing the mountains
could even react in such a way that severe air currents, like great waves, could be experienced up to one hundred leagues away. As they turned up that first major valley, Pell wound safety straps
around his wrists and checked that his feet were securely fixed in the stirrups.

The next hour was a medley of bumps and stomach-lurching drops as Shadow navigated through the valleys and inner passes. The final, tight V-shaped valley was particularly treacherous. Air
currents swirled, whistling around the craggy cliff walls and howling over hollows with the voice of an invisible giant.

As they rounded the final bend he saw the most unforgettable view in this mountain range. The valley widened out into a bowl-shaped dead end. The sheer cliff at the end was riddled with caves.
Many were natural in origin, though many more had been carved out to make new habitations for the numerous night dragons. This was the home of the enclave.

Black dragons perched on ledges and rocky outcrops. The vast grey wall looked as if a swarm of giant rock-worms had made their homes there. So many great black openings dotted the face of the
cliff that Pell wondered again why the mountainside had not collapsed.

Pell’s heart began to accelerate as Shadow proceeded without hesitation to one of the largest caves, high up the mountainside.

This is it, Pell thought, unable to contain his excitement as they approached the gaping maw of the cave. Our time is here at last.

Chapter Seven

‘The Great Quest, you say?’ the rider asked. ‘Yes, Segun will want to see you immediately. Come. Follow me and I’ll lead you to him. What was your name
again?’

‘Pell. Rider of Whispering Shadow,’ Pell replied, keeping his voice calm and steady.

The rider’s response was exactly as Pell had imagined. The hint of excitement in the man’s voice, the urgency with which he was taking Pell to meet Segun – everything was
exactly as it should be. So why did he suddenly have a bad feeling brewing in his stomach?

‘What’s the matter, Pell? Is everything all right?’

‘Yes. Everything’s fine, Shadow,’
he replied.
‘I’m probably just a bit nervous about meeting Segun.’

‘You’ll be fine, Pell. You’re my rider. Together we make as formidable a partnership as any in the night dragon enclave. You have nothing to fear. Be strong. I’m told
Segun respects strength.’

‘Normally that wouldn’t be a problem, but it’s hard to imagine being strong when I’m still sore from my
fall.’

‘You have recovered quickly,’
Shadow responded without pause.
‘Many would have taken weeks before riding again after such injuries. You were on my back the next
day. You
are
strong, Pell. Do not forget that in Segun’s presence. I am being ushered out of the cave-mouth now. I shall have the honour of sitting with Widewing and the other senior
dragons while you meet with Segun, but I’ll be out of range of your thoughts. Good luck, dragonrider. Do not fear. We will find success together. I feel it.’