Aurora (14 page)

Unfurling just one wing, Shadow gave a single flap and spun her body to face back the way she had come. The rotation tipped Pell to the left and, as Shadow abruptly began to pitch out of the
death dive, he slid down her side until he was hanging by his feet from the stirrups.

‘PELL!’

Shadow’s shout in his mind snapped him out of his semi-conscious state. The next few heartbeats were agony. Shadow pitched up hard to recover from the dive. The force dragging Pell
downwards became immense. Only his stirrups saved him from certain death. Had both of his feet not been firmly wedged in the metal D-shaped footrests he would have fallen. Also, had he been sitting
upright in the saddle as Shadow bottomed out of the dive, the night dragon coming in the other direction would have struck him.

What Shadow’s diving run must have looked like to Longtail and her rider, Pell could only wonder. They must have thought Shadow had made the spectacular reversal in order to turn from
defence to attack. For the briefest heartbeat, the two dragons flew head to head and looked like colliding with a high-speed closure that would certainly have proved fatal to all. At the very last
moment, Longtail climbed just enough to pass over Shadow.

Even though the blow to his head had dazed him, Pell, hanging upside down, was perfectly placed to appreciate how close the dragons came to hitting one another. For the briefest moment, the
night dragon’s wings overhead eclipsed all else and Pell caught a glimpse of her great talons as they passed through the place he should have been sitting. There was a whoosh of air that
dragged at him for an instant and then it was gone.

His head was thumping with a combination of the impact and the extra blood that was pounding in his ears from being suspended upside down.

‘I’m still with you, Shadow,’ he groaned.

‘Can you get back in the saddle?’
she asked, her voice sounding both relieved and worried.
‘Tell me if you’re likely to fall and I’ll land.’

‘I’ll try,’
he promised, the words reverberating through his head.

The rushing water and jagged rocks were whizzing past. He was not sure if the sensation of extreme speed was real, or an illusion created through being close to the ground and inverted. Either
way, he had no desire to fall. Tightening his stomach muscles and pushing his bottom against Shadow’s side, he folded upwards and reached for the stirrup straps. He caught the left one first
time and, with a strong grasp, he wriggled and pulled his way back up into the saddle.

The exit into the main valley was visible ahead. There was no sign of Longtail. Despite pain that made his skull feel ready to explode, Pell grinned. They had done it. By the time Longtail
worked out a safe way of turning around, he and Shadow would be gone.

Even if Longtail had landed and turned around immediately, there was no way she could take off again in there. The stream dominated the base of the gorge and a dragon needed a good run on firm
footing to take off. She would have to walk out into the main valley to get airborne again, which gave Pell and Shadow the time they needed to escape.

‘Are you all right, Pell?’

‘I’ve got a splitting headache and an impressive lump coming up on my forehead,’
he said through the bond, gently running a finger over the rapidly swelling area.
‘But aside from that I’m fine.’

‘I don’t think I’ll be attempting that again in a hurry,’
Shadow confessed.
‘I thought I’d lost you when I ran out of energy and flipped
over.’

‘That part was . . . unexpected,’
Pell said.
‘But the end result was what we intended.’

‘I think I’d rather fight against the odds than repeat the sensation of falling. I’ve never felt out of control in the air before. Even as a dragonet, I was always a strong
flyer.’

Pell did not respond. He could feel how deeply the experience in the gorge had affected her. If he had been asked to give a single defining characteristic of his dragon’s mind, he would
have said ‘confidence’, but feeling her sudden uncertainty made her feel like a stranger. It reminded him of the first time they had met and the shock he had felt when he looked into
her mind through the bond. As well as the pervading weariness, her personality felt somehow diminished.

They emerged from the narrow canyon into the expanse of the main valley. Pell saw Darkhorn almost instantly. She was approaching from the right, flying along the middle of the valley and
apparently unaware of their presence.

‘I see them,’
Shadow told him, her voice carrying the strange echoing quality it had when she was shielding her thoughts.
‘Hold on tight. I am done with running.
It’s time we went on the offensive.’

Shadow began climbing again and Pell felt his stomach tighten with anticipation. Darkhorn held a slight height advantage, but Shadow eliminated it within a few wingbeats. They were closing on a
rapid intercept course and already well above Darkhorn when she saw them. The night dragon lurched into a turn towards them, but then seemed to have second thoughts. She twitched first one way and
then the other, no doubt wondering what had become of Longtail.

Unswerving, Shadow arrowed forwards in a head-on charge. It suddenly occurred to Pell that he had no idea how dragons fought in the air. What would Shadow do? He could feel her muscles bunch
beneath him as she braced herself for battle. Darkhorn bloomed ahead of them and Shadow reared to strike even as her opponent did the same. Both dragons screeched as they collided, becoming a
frenzy of slashing talons and teeth.

The fight was vicious and short. To Pell it felt almost like a dance. The two dragons turned hard in a tight spiral, wings beating hard to limit their rate of descent, but both spinning
downwards in a slashing, biting wrestling match. Shadow gained the advantage quickly. She was bigger than Darkhorn, and used her size and extra weight to force her opponent down.

Both dragons were fighting to maintain their height above the ground. Both were losing. They had not been high when the fight began, but what altitude they had enjoyed disappeared fast. Until
the fight began, Pell could not take his eyes off Darkhorn. Once they had engaged, he found it hard to tear his gaze from the expanse of trees in the valley as it swelled rapidly towards them.

With a roar of triumph, Shadow gained a hold on Darkhorn’s neck. First with her teeth and then with her front talons, she took control. Twisting to arch over the smaller dragon she gave a
mighty shove downwards, gaining the boost she needed to begin climbing again. The sound of cracking, splintering wood told part of the story, but Pell was not in a position to see the results of
Shadow’s victory.

Almost brushing the treetops, Shadow laboured to stay in the air. Pell’s heart was drumming double-time, as he willed her to find the strength she needed to stay clear of the grasping
trees. Slowly, span-by-span, she dragged herself back into the sky, accelerating to a more normal flying speed as she went. Once they were well clear of the treetops she made a gentle turn that
allowed Pell to look back. There was no sign of Darkhorn. It was as if the trees had grabbed her and swallowed her whole.

‘She is alive and her rider is unharmed,’
Shadow informed him.
‘Though I don’t think she’ll be in a hurry to fly again.’

‘Good!’
Pell responded.
‘Now let’s get away from here before Longtail finds her way out of that canyon.’

Shadow did not reply, but he sensed that she felt the fight had already delayed them too long for a clean escape. They completed their turn and rolled out heading along the valley that took them
deeper into the mountains. Pell watched the entrance to the narrow canyon anxiously for signs of Longtail. Sure enough she emerged before they had got out of a direct line of sight.

‘They have seen us,’
Shadow confirmed.
‘But it appears they have decided to give up the chase. They are talking with their friends in the trees.’

That was a conversation Pell wished he could hear, but he was content to have defeated them. The lump on his forehead was pulsating with pain and he felt sure he had pulled several muscles in
his arms and back. All he wanted to do was find somewhere to rest where they would not be found, but his conscience would not let him rest yet. His promise to Elian haunted him. Somehow they had to
find Nolita and Firestorm.

The valley curved gently left and it was not long before the night dragons were far from view.

‘We’d better start looking for a way to loop back towards the others without having to cross the ridge,’
Pell suggested.

‘Very well,’
Shadow replied.

Their thoughts on what they would find went unspoken, but Pell could tell that his dragon’s thoughts echoed his own. She did not expect to find them alive, which meant they were likely to
face more trouble from Deepshade.

Chapter Thirteen

Getting into the saddle was not easy, but with Kira’s help Elian overcame the difficulties of climbing up Aurora’s side. Back in the saddle, he felt an overwhelming
sense of relief. It was as if he had been lost for a long time and finally found his way home. He shuffled his bottom around until the pressure on his right thigh was minimal.

He looked down at Kira. ‘Thanks,’ he said. ‘I’m all set. You’d better mount up. I can feel the dawn approaching.’

She nodded and ran across to Fang, who was waiting patiently nearby. With nimble agility she leaped up into her saddle.

Elian and Kira had said their goodbyes to Neema and Tarl. A dozen dragonets had already broken free from their shells and more eggs looked ready to crack at any time. It was an exciting time and
busy for the two dawn dragonriders.

‘Are you all right, Elian?’
Aurora asked.
‘I can feel your discomfort.’

‘I’ll be fine,’
he replied.
‘It’s going to be painful, but
I’ll cope.’

Elian could not voice the fears that plagued him. What horrors awaited them on the other side of the gateway this time? Their last visit had left him with injuries that he doubted would ever
heal. An icy feeling in the pit of his stomach made him feel sick with worry.

Aurora gave the mental equivalent of a sigh.
‘I do,’
she admitted.
‘Visions of a world without the Oracle plague my thoughts. We must find the final orb soon, or all
our efforts will have been in vain. Do not fear, Elian. I will protect you to the best of my ability. Whatever awaits us, we shall face together.’

‘Then let’s go and get this over with,’
he urged.
‘Let’s find Jack and see if he’s got any ideas.’

Aurora moved gently until she was in position to run towards the mouth of the cavern. Outside the cave the slope was steep. A strip down the mountainside had been cleared of all large rocks.
This gave the dragons some distance to accelerate to a safe flying speed before launching.

Elian winced as he settled into a balanced position for the take off. The pain in his leg was intense, but he gritted his teeth and did his best to ignore it. Aurora did not need to give him
further warning before leaping forward towards the mouth of the cave. With her mind linked to his, she sensed him reading the play of her muscles as she prepared and knew he was ready for the
explosive acceleration. She raced towards the opening, her talons clacking with increasing tempo on the stone floor as she picked up speed. The instant they emerged into the open she spread her
wings and with one final push of her hind legs she launched into the air.

As they left the ground, Elian experienced a momentary dizziness that rocked him in the saddle, leaving him feeling nauseous and struggling to stay upright. It was not quite the same as the
twisting disorientation he had experienced when entering and leaving Aurora’s gateways between worlds, but the similarity was disturbing. He took several deep breaths, drawing them in and
expelling them slowly. Gradually the feeling subsided until he was able to enjoy the sensation of flying again.

A light drizzle hung in the air, the tiny droplets of water seeming to float towards the ground rather than fall. The atmosphere felt still and heavy. It was murky with a dull grey veil of cloud
shrouding the mountaintops around them.

Elian had hoped to see something of the area around the enclave, but all he could see was that they were in mountainous terrain. It was warmer than it had been in Isaa and the smells that
pervaded were different from those of Orupee, but the scenery was similar to all mountainous areas he had seen during the past month. There was no time to explore. He could feel the moment of dawn
approaching.

Aurora began to draw on the energy the rising sun gave her. Through the bond he could feel she was strong and rested. Power flowed easily and he felt the gateway opening ahead of them. The grey
of the swirling vortex was barely visible against the murky background, but Elian could feel exactly where it was. They slowed, allowing Fang and Kira to overtake them and lead the way in. The
gateway swallowed the dusk dragon and his rider even as Elian felt a surge of joy rush through Aurora’s mind. Before he could ask her about it they plunged into the void.