‘You must stop the Ripers. Lenoir will listen to you but Brand is dangerous. Please, Her-Rollonspiel . . . please . . .’
‘Are you Retra Romero?’
Naif turned and fled without answering.
As she hid among the dark, ruined buildings she heard the Elders out in the alley.
‘She’s gone,’ said one.
‘We’ll send the hounds after her when the wardens return,’ suggested another.
‘Why waste our time on the waif?’ Her-Rollonspiel replied. ‘I’m sick of the stench of this disgusting place, and I’m hungry. Stay if you wish, but I’m pining for some bitters and meat.’
One of the others grunted. ‘It’s been a long session. Perhaps you’re right.’
‘I know I am.’ Quick decisive steps echoed down the alley.
‘Come on, Jorge. She’s gone for now. The wardens can worry about her. Let them earn their mena.’
Their footsteps faded and Naif was left alone.
She waited, still, in case others came. But in the distance horses whinnied and hooves clattered away.
Making her way cautiously, she sneaked back through the building next to the church, along the narrow alley and towards the grate. As she stood deciding the direction she needed to go, a noise at one end of the alley sent her creeping back into the building to hide.
She tried to calm her breathing, wondering where to go next. Upstairs? But what if they found her? She’d be trapped with no way out.
Whispers echoed down the alley; one higher pitched than the other.
Peering around the edge of the doorframe, Naif saw Markes holding a lamp. Emilia was next to him dressed in formal clothes, her hair piled high and fixed behind gauze netting.
‘Markes!’ Naif called softly.
Both he and Emilia jumped.
Naif stepped out from where she hid. ‘In here.’
They left the grate and joined her inside the doorway.
‘Put the light out, the wardens are still about.’
Markes snuffed the light.
‘You were much quicker than I thought,’ Naif added.
‘Emilia found me. She was at the Raspart chamber as I left the Old Harbour,’ said Markes.
‘What were you doing there?’ demanded Naif.
Emilia hesitated as if uncomfortable, before explaining. ‘When you left I realised that Jarrold wasn’t going to come back. He took his compass. It’s his favourite thing in the world. I knew when I saw it gone . . . and . . . I didn’t want to be left behind alone. So I came to find you,’ Emilia explained. ‘Gurney helped me.’
‘Gurney?’
‘I knew Jarrold would go there. So I slipped away from Mother at the markets. You’d left in the dead cart just before I arrived. Gurney took me to the chamber in the family charabanc.’
For some reason the girl’s story made Naif uneasy. ‘Ruzalia will be here soon,’ she said, to disguise her doubt.
‘Where’s Jarrold?’ asked Markes. ‘And Liam? What happened at the meeting?’
Naif wanted to tell him everything that had happened but Emilia’s presence made her cautious. ‘Jarrold will meet us at the beach soon. I expected you to go there too.’
‘That’s where we were going.’
Naif stared up at the dark sky. How long before the moon rose? ‘We should go down there now. We can hide under the jetty.’
Markes nodded.
‘Ewan?’ said Emilia. ‘Hold my hand.’
Naif had never heard Markes’s true name before and it sounded strange. Something was wrong, she could feel it. She wanted to wrench the girl’s hand from his.
Instead, she turned her back on them and walked out into the alley, concentrating on the direction they needed to take. Her eyes had adjusted to the dark well enough for her to see outlines.
The hounds were baying again. ‘What’s that?’ asked Emilia.
‘That’s Jarrold. He drew the wardens away,’ said Naif.
‘But that noise,’ said Emilia. ‘Have they found him?’
‘Jarrold is smart. He’ll be all right,’ said Markes.
His gentle tone towards the girl unsettled Naif further. ‘Come. Before they realise it’s a diversion.’
The three crept towards the jetty. Though only a few streets away, every step held fear of capture. They hugged the edge of buildings where they could but were forced onto the street where collapses made it too dangerous to do anything else.
When they reached the last line of cover before the water, Emilia began to panic.
‘The hounds are closer. I can hear it,’ she whispered.
‘It’s just the echo,’ said Markes soothingly.
‘But what if they catch Jarrold?’
‘They won’t.’
‘Then what if the pirate doesn’t come for you?’
‘Ruzalia will come,’ said Naif. Emilia’s panic was infectious and she felt her breathing tighten. She wanted to shout at the girl and tell her to stay quiet. ‘We just need to cross the street and hide under the pier.’
They were so close now that the smell of the oily salt water was overpowering.
Naif scanned the sky for sign of the airship.
‘There!’ said Markes, pointing south.
She saw it then, a white speck of light in a pitch-black sky, growing larger as she watched.
Emilia’s voice was filled with disbelief. ‘It’s true. A flying ship is coming for you.’
‘For us,’ said Markes. ‘So you don’t have to live here . . . with him . . . anymore.’
‘Oh Ewan, I missed you.’
Naif moved away, embarrassed by the emotion between them. On impulse, she ran across the street to the sea wall and climbed down onto the sand. Only a handful of steps along the beach brought her to the edge of the pier. She climbed underneath and waited.
Markes and Emilia joined her a few moments later.
‘Why did you go without us?’ said Markes, with an edge in his voice.
Naif ignored him and looked south.
The airship approached quickly now, only minutes away. Where was Jarrold?
‘Found you!’ said a voice from behind her, and two arms seized her in a hug.
Naif’s heart pounded so hard with fright that she felt dizzy.
‘Fero!’ cried Markes.
Jarrold let go of Naif to embrace Markes and his sister.
‘We should get onto the jetty so Ruzalia can see us. Markes, can you relight your lamp?’ said Naif abruptly.
While he fumbled with the flint, Naif climbed the stairs at the side. As she stood alone on the top, she knew what was troubling her. The hounds had stopped. There was no noise in the Old Harbour, save for the lapping of the water and the hum from Ruzalia’s approaching airship.
She scanned the dark waterfront.
Jarrold came to stand next to her. ‘What is it? What’s wrong?’
‘I . . .’ She didn’t know what to say. It was just the dread. And dread seemed to have been with her for so long she couldn’t remember being without it.
‘Nothing,’ she said finally.
The airship was silent now too, its engines cut and lights dimmed as it began to sink. Markes and Emilia joined them and Markes swung the lamp above his head. Next to him, Emilia was trembling and Markes kept a comforting arm around her shoulders.
The four watched the gantry lowering from the airship’s belly.
‘Do we have to get on that?’ Emilia whispered.
‘I’ll help you,’ said Markes.
‘Don’t be so frossing chicken, Em,’ said Jarrold. ‘You don’t hear Naif wailing.’
‘I’m not wailing,’ his sister quavered.
‘Ssssh!’ said Naif.
The gantry swung only a short distance above them now.
Hurry. Hurry.
Jarrold started jumping, trying to reach it. On his fourth attempt it was close enough. He grabbed it and steadied it with his hands.
‘Naif, you and Em first.’
But befo
re Naif could move, whistles pierced the air around them and hounds burst onto the street. Lamp-lit sleds filled with wardens swarmed onto the waterfront from the alleys; three times as many as had been with the Elders at the meeting.
The sound of a loud explosion filled the air and above them the airship swayed wildly.
Naif spied a cannon fixed to one of the sleds. Its first shot had hit the airship in the bow of the cabin deck.
‘Get on!’ bellowed Jarrold.
The hounds had reached the end of the jetty and were tearing towards them.
Jarrold clambered up onto the swinging platform but as Markes went to help Emilia on, Naif stood in the way.
‘Someone has betrayed us.’
‘Naif! What are you talking about! Get on the gantry!’
‘Markes, they’ve brought a cannon. How else would they have known about Ruzalia coming?’
Emilia’s face crumpled and she began to cry. ‘I didn’t tell them,’ she sobbed. ‘It wasn’t me.’
Markes shoved Naif aside and bundled the weeping girl onto the gantry. He jumped up alongside her, leaving Naif standing.
The lead hound was on the jetty now.
‘Naif!’ shouted Markes.
But she couldn’t get her legs to move, her gaze transfixed by the slavering, wide open jaws of the hound.
Then without warning, the animal catapulted sideways, yelping as it tumbled from the pier. A piece of wood flew with it, leaving a gaping hole in the floor.
Naif glimpsed Liam’s and Glev’s faces underneath the jetty.
Glev brandished a large hammer, while Liam threw a bunch of fish bags up through the hole onto the surface of the jetty. The rest of the hounds stopped dead in their tracks and circled the food in a frenzy.
‘Liam. Hurry!’ called Naif.
The boy climbed past them and sprinted towards her. As he reached Naif, he wrapped his tentacle around her wrist, threw himself onto the gantry and hauled her after him.
Jarrold locked his arms around her waist and planted her on the wooden planks, holding her tight as the airship lifted.
Down on the waterfront, the wardens shook their fists at the sky, and the sled holding the cannon tracked south with them.
Another explosion rocked them and the airship listed heavily. But somehow they kept afloat and moved away.
Naif imagined she could hear Ruzalia swearing.
But it was only a fancy because the wind roared in their ears as they lifted higher.
‘Fross!’ shouted Jarrold, pointing. ‘Look, on the cannon sled. It’s Gurney. He must have been the one who told them.’
Naif stared down at the lamp-lit sled. It could have been Gurney on the back but it was too hard to see.
She glanced across at Markes. Emilia had her arms around his waist, her head buried against his shoulder.
He was looking at Naif, though, his expression grim.
She took a deep breath and held his gaze. They’d made it. And she knew what they had to do next. They must return to Ixion and bring about its downfall.
Marianne de Pierres is the author of the multi-award-nominated Parrish Plessis and Sentients of Orion series. The Parrish Plessis series has been translated into eight languages and adapted into a role-playing game. She is also the Davitt award-winning author of the Tara Sharp humorous crime series, written under the pseudonym Marianne Delacourt. Burn Bright, the first in the Night Creatures series, is her first novel for young adults.
Read more about the series at www.burnbright.com.au
‘Brilliant storytelling. Riveting and unforgettable.’ Lauren Kate, bestselling author of Fallen
‘To enter the endless night of Ixion is to enter a darkly glamorous world in which danger and pleasure dance to an intoxicating beat – as irresistible to us as it is to Retra.’ Isobelle Carmody, bestselling author of The Obernewtyn Chronicles
‘In Ixion, Marianne de Pierres has constructed the perfect metaphor for teenage anxiety: a foreign world loosed from all past certainties, inhabited by symbolically costumed cliques engaged in complex hostilities. Your worst fears lurk just off the poorly lit paths, and the only relief comes from the brief sleep of the petit nuit, or in surrendering yourself to the music that throbs through the clubs. Read Burn Bright and feel a shiver of recognition, even as Ixion’s strangeness casts its spell.’ Margo Lanagan, author of Tender Morsels
‘The world created by de Pierres is fascinating, strange, and dangerous. It is a riveting read.’ Rebecca Kemble, Reading Time
‘An intense, unpredictable and addictive page turner . . . a one-of-a-kind experience. Marianne de Pierres is an amazing and ingenious writer.’ girlaboutbooks.blogspot. com
‘In a YA market fast becoming saturated in dystopias Burn Bright shines out in the crowd. It’s ominous and daring and spectacular. I LOVED THIS: It’s dark and wild, unpredictable and somehow enchanting.’ inkcrush.blogspot.com
‘This thrilling sci-fi read is perfect for anyone in search of something a little darker, a little more sinister and a little more sinful.’ Amelia, Better Read Than Dead Bookstore
‘Burn Bright introduces one of the most exciting worlds I’ve encountered since Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies series, or Isobelle Carmody’s Obernewtyn, and it will surely appeal to fans of both . . . Lush writing, which at times feels like you’re floating through a dark dream.’ Holly Harper, Readings Books
‘If Isobelle Carmody and Melissa Marr had a book baby together, Burn Bright would be the finished product! Adventurous, edgy, provocative, dangerous . . . and kind of thrilling with each and every page you turn.’ tales ofthe innerbookfanatic.blogspot.com
Huge thanks to Kimberley Bennett and Zoe Walton who helped me through this. And to Yunyu for bringing more of her magnificent music to the Night Creatures trilogy experience.
I’d also like to acknowledge the support I’ve had from the book blogging community in the Publish Burn Bright Worldwide campaign. You are truly exceptional and passionate and inspiring. I’m totally renewed by your love for books.
Lastly, to my MDPWeb team: Bec Stafford, Belinda Hamilton, Cels Jansink, Jamie Marriage, Janette Dalgliesh, Krista Mckeeth, Mandy Wrangles, Kylie Fox, Phil Coss. What can I say? You are simply the best! With a special shout out to my ‘adopted’ UK daughter, Amy Parker, who always goes the extra mile for me.
Burn Bright, all of you!
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted by any person or entity, including internet search engines or retailers, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, photocopying (except under the statutory exceptions provisions of the Australian Copyright Act 1968), recording, scanning or by any information storage and retrieval system without the prior written permission of Random House Australia. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
Version 1.0
Angel Arias
ePub ISBN 9781742754512
Published by Random House Australia 2011
Copyright © Marianne de Pierres
The moral right of the author has been asserted.
A Random House Australia book
Published by Random House Australia Pty Ltd
Level 3, 100 Pacific Highway, North Sydney NSW, 2060
www.randomhouse.com.au
Addresses for companies within the Random House Group can be found at www.randomhouse.com.au/offices
First published by Random House Australia in 2011
National Library of Australia
Cataloguing-in-Publication Entry
Author: de Pierres, Marianne
Title: Angel arias / Marianne de Pierres
ISBN: 978 1 74275 101 6 (pbk.)
Series: de Pierres, Marianne. Night creatures; 2.
Target audience: For young adults
Dewey number: A823.4
Cover illustration by Jarosław Kubicki, www.kubicki
.info
Cover and internal design by Astred Hicks, www.designcherry.com
Typeset by Midland Typesetters, Australia
ebook production by Midland Typesetters, Australia
Angel Arias Page 18