Shadow

by Mark Robson

  The night dragons outnumbered them. Fang, Firestorm and Aurora had some interesting abilities, but for all their clever tricks he could not imagine any of them seriously troubling the night dragons if it came to a fight.

  ‘I feel your concern,’ Shadow said. ‘There is no need to worry just yet, Pell. Fang tells me the night dragons will not harm us while we’re in the Valley of the Griffins. We should follow Segun with all haste to ensure he does not secure the orb before we get there.’

  Pell was dubious. ‘And how does Fang know this?’ he asked.

  ‘He says the griffins control what happens within their valley. They will not allow an unprovoked attack. He sounds very sure. Although griffins are smaller than dragons, they are very fierce when aroused. Even Segun will be wary of angering them.’

  Shadow led the way to where the night dragons had turned right and disappeared. Pell looked with growing confusion at the sheer cliff that formed the wall of the valley to his right. It looked solid. He could have sworn the night dragons had turned here, but perhaps he was mistaken. They must have turned further along the valley. A feeling of amusement filtered through the bond.

  ‘You were not mistaken, Pell,’ Shadow told him as she dipped her right wing and started to turn towards the cliff-face. ‘The entrance to the valley is right here. The griffins are highly intelligent creatures and they have used a clever mix of reflected light and shadow to hide the path to their home. Only those who know the markers are likely to find it. But it’s not easy to see, even when you know what you’re looking for.’

  They continued to turn until they were flying straight towards the solid wall of rock.

  ‘Shadow? What are you doing, Shadow?’ Pell asked aloud, a note of panic in his voice.

  She did not answer. They were rapidly approaching the cliff-face and alarm bells began to ring in Pell’s head. He instinctively tightened his grip on the pommel and all his muscles became taut with anticipation. Although he had learned to trust Shadow over the past two season rotations, every synapse in his brain was screaming ‘DANGER!’ as his sense of self-preservation kicked into full alert.

  ‘SHADOW!’

  It was too late. Even if they turned hard now, they would still hit the rock. Pell took a sharp intake of breath and closed his eyes, ducking down behind Shadow’s ridge and bracing against the inevitable impact.

  He counted down in his head: three, two, one . . . he flinched. Nothing happened. They should have hit the wall by now. His mind spun with confusion. He cracked his eyes open just a touch and gasped in amazement. They were flying along a narrow path, barely wider than Shadow’s wingspan. He looked around and the illusion created by the colouring and texture of the cliff-face became obvious. Once penetrated, the path into the rock wall was clear, but when viewed from the valley it had been impossible to see.

  The path was actually a short tunnel, open at both ends. They were already approaching the real rock wall at the far end of the short passage. Pell could just see that there was an opening to the left. It would be a tight turn for a dragon the size of Shadow, but she did not seem concerned.

  ‘Hang on, Pell,’ she warned.

  One moment they were flying straight and level, the next Shadow’s left wingtip was pointing directly at the rocky ground and the force pushing Pell into the saddle increased rapidly until he felt as though he was being crushed. Then she rolled the other way and Pell had to hang on for all he was worth to avoid sliding over Shadow’s side.

  He looked back over his shoulder. Kira and Fang were close behind, with Firestorm just coming into view behind them. The thought that Kira might have been close enough to see him cowering in his saddle as they approached the cliff-wall crossed his mind.

  ‘Damn!’ he muttered. ‘She’s not going to let me hear the last of this.’

  He switched his focus forwards, grinding his teeth and screwing his face up to try to disperse the flush of embarrassment that burned his cheeks. Ahead, a rapidly widening canyon with sheer rocky walls curved away to the right. He looked up, trying to assess if it was possible to fly into this valley from above. A dragon could do it easily, but whether a rider would survive a flight in the freezing temperature up at that altitude was questionable. The mountains were not as high as those that housed the night dragon enclave, but they were high enough to offer similar dangers to the unwary.

  The canyon continued to curve and widen until they emerged into the main valley. The basin here was wide and white with snow, contrasted only by the occasional grey sides of large rocks scattered across the valley floor, and the great grey cliffs powering up thousands of spans on either side. The winding line of a stream was visible in the middle of the valley, but at points where the flow slowed, the surface had frozen and the ice was hidden underneath a blanket of snow.

  The six night dragons had landed not far ahead, their huge bodies standing out like dirty black scars in the skin of white snow that covered the smooth valley floor. The riders had dismounted and were standing in a huddle, surrounded by their dragons. Of the griffins, there was no sign.

  Segun and his riders were quick to spot the incoming dragons. The huddle broke instantly, the dragonriders scattering to their dragons. It was too late to avoid a confrontation now. The only advantage they held over the six night dragons was one of energy, but in his heart Pell knew that a fight with Segun and his riders could only end one way -in disaster.

  ‘Is this definitely the place, Shadow?’ he asked quickly.

  ‘Yes,’ she replied confidently.

  ‘Then take us down,’ he ordered. ‘Land us short of Segun’s party. Let’s not give them the wrong idea. We don’t want to start a fight we can’t win.’

  ‘Very well, Pell,’ Shadow answered. Her voice held a hint of disappointment. She was itching to exact revenge for Segun’s actions at the night dragon enclave, but she did as he asked. Spilling the lift from her wings, she entered a dramatic diving descent before swooping to an immaculate landing some one hundred paces short of the circle of night dragons. Fang, Firestorm and Aurora landed in a neat sequence beside her.

  Pell looked around at his companions. Kira did not look happy, but that was to be expected. Kira was never happy with his decisions. Elian looked nervous – again understandable. Nolita’s expression, however, was totally unreadable. The girl remained an enigma. He still considered her cowardly, but he knew there must be more to her than met the eye, or she would not have retrieved the first orb.

  With a confidence he did not feel, Pell flipped his right leg over to meet his left and dismounted, sliding down Shadow’s side and landing with a soft crump, ankle deep in snow. He walked in front of Shadow, the soft snow scrunching under his feet. It was a sound that sparked memories of his younger, boyhood years, but he knew this was no time for nostalgia. Kira, Elian and Nolita strode to meet him.

  ‘Have you got any idea what you’re doing?’ Kira asked in a low voice as she approached.

  Pell flashed her his most confident grin. ‘None whatsoever,’ he said. ‘Next question?’

  ‘What do we do now?’ Elian asked, glancing ahead to where Segun and his riders were regrouping. Pell’s initial gambit had proved successful in avoiding an immediate conflict. The night dragon-riders had not launched straight into an attack, but Elian could not help wondering if his ploy had merely staved off the inevitable – and if so, by how long?

  ‘We parley,’ Pell replied quickly. ‘Segun will be surprised to see me here. Widewing will have recognised Shadow by now, even if Segun can’t identify me from this distance. We want to avoid a fight, if we can. Even if we’d used our advantage of height and energy when we first entered the valley, at best we’d have taken casualties. A more likely outcome would have seen us all dead in the snow. Our best hope is to keep them talking until the griffins decide to show themselves, or things may turn ugly.’

  ‘That’s the most sense I’ve heard you speak since we first met,’ Elian conceded. He glanced at Kira, whose lips were pressed toget
her in a tight line. ‘What’re you thinking, Kira? Do you have a better plan?’

  ‘No,’ she admitted. ‘But try to keep them at a distance when we talk. They’re six grown men with weapons. Don’t try anything clever, Pell. We’re as much at a disadvantage on the ground as we are in the air.’

  Pell nodded.

  The six night dragonriders were advancing towards them side by side in an ominous line. Even more menacing were their dragons, following behind.

  ‘Let’s go,’ Pell said, turning to face Segun and his men. Elian moved to Pell’s left, with Nolita outside him. Kira stepped into position on Pell’s right and together they marched forwards as one to meet with the enemy.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  The Challenge

  When the two lines of riders stopped to face off at about ten paces apart, Elian was instantly reminded of his confrontation with the bullies Borkas and Farrel on the heath near his home. At that time, he had just met with Aurora and had used his newfound friendship with the dragon to surprise the boys. He had felt strong, powerful and totally in control. He wished he could feel the same confidence now, but this time he had no secret advantages to spring on the more powerful adversaries. Neither did any of his companions.

  He glanced across at Pell and Kira. They looked incredibly at ease, given the circumstances. A quick look at Nolita revealed that she, at least, looked as nervous as he felt. Her eyes, however, were not on the night dragonriders, but on the huge black dragons coming behind them. A slight movement in the corner of his eye drew Elian’s attention. Taking care not to move his head, he flicked a lightning glance up and to the right before returning his focus to the line of riders ahead of them. Something was coming.

  ‘Ra?’ he asked silently.

  ‘Yes, Elian, it is a griffin,’ Ra replied, confirming his suspicion. ‘As far as I can tell the night dragons are not aware of it yet.’

  ‘It seems I underestimated you, Pell.’ Segun’s voice was controlled, but his ice-blue eyes were colder than the snow that filled the valley. ‘I don’t know how you got here, but I’m not going to allow you to go any further. The Great Quest ends right here, right now.’

  ‘No, Segun,’ Pell replied. ‘I’ve not come this far to fail. Neither have my companions. We intend to see it through to the end.’

  ‘Which is as it should be,’ cried a harsh voice from above.

  As one, the five night dragonriders around Segun reached instinctively for weapons as they looked up in alarm. Only Segun of the six did not flinch. Elian was pleased to note that Pell and Kira did not give so much as a flicker of emotion at the arrival of the griffin. The four younger riders stood their ground, staring straight at Segun, as the fantastic creature descended vertically to land gently between the two parties of riders and dragons. It folded its wings against its sides and circled once before stopping directly between Pell and Segun.

  Elian could see out of the corner of his eye that Nolita was almost as pale as the snow around her, but she did not move a muscle. Good girl! he thought as he focused on the amazing beast that was eyeing up the two sets of riders with its jet-black eyes.

  The griffin was roughly the size of a horse. With the hindquarters of a lion and the forequarters of a gigantic eagle, the griffin embodied strength, pride and grace.

  Elian was awestruck. The creature’s fur glowed bright gold against the white snow, while its feathers gleamed as if polished in shades of brown, blue and deepest black. Razor-sharp talons and a wickedly curved beak gave fair warning that the griffin could be vicious. Ra had said that a griffin was one of the few creatures whose weapons were potent enough to harm a dragon. Despite being small in comparison to the enormous dragons, Elian could well believe that this fierce and beautiful creature would make a formidable fighter.

  A dragon was in all likelihood more dangerous than a griffin, yet Elian had quickly become comfortable in the presence of dragons. Ra had an aloof, imperious manner at times, but there was always a feeling of warmth underlining it. This deadly creature, however, had a cold air of superiority, and its proximity set Elian’s heart racing. Its tufted tail swished from side to side as it swivelled its head around to regard each rider in turn.

  ‘I am Karrok, speaker for my people,’ it announced, rolling the ‘r’s and accenting the hard sounds. ‘You’re here to challenge for the second orb. We’ve been expecting you. Who seeks for us to release the dark orb so it may be taken to the Oracle?’

  ‘I do, Karrok. I’m Pell, rider of Whispering Shadow.’

  Elian was impressed that Pell could keep his voice so unflustered. Karrok’s eyes were unnerving. Elian felt sure that if he were asked to speak now, he would not be able to hide his nervousness under that penetrating gaze.

  ‘Which is as it should be,’ the griffin said again, his eyes darting to look at Shadow over Pell’s shoulder. ‘Who seeks for us to release the dark orb so you may destroy it?’

  Elian had expected Segun to step forwards, but he was surprised when the leader of the night dragon enclave called his men into a huddle and began whispering to them. After a moment they split again and one of the leader’s lieutenants took a half-step forwards and spoke.

  ‘I seek to destroy the orb, Karrok,’ he announced. ‘My name is Dirk, rider of Knifetail.’

  ’Ware ye the knife . . . ’ware ye the knife. Alarm bells rang in Elian’s ears as the words of the Oracle’s rhyme sprang into his mind. The man looked immensely strong. He had a huge chest and arms, with muscles enough to crush a bear.

  ‘Accepted,’ the griffin said simply. ‘Pell, do you know the history of this challenge?’

  ‘No,’ he replied. ‘The Oracle’s rhyme led us here to seek your counsel in finding the orb.’

  ‘And you, Dirk – do you know the history of this challenge?’

  ‘No,’ the big man said, glancing at his leader for reassurance. Segun did not meet his eyes. He looked back at the griffin. ‘I do this at my leader’s bidding.’

  ‘All is as it should be,’ the griffin cried. ‘The challenge comprises three parts. We griffins will release the orb to the first rider to win two of three. Do you understand?’

  Pell stared past the griffin and locked eyes with his adversary. ‘Yes,’ they said together.

  ‘Challengers,’ Karrok said, turning his head to face Pell. ‘It was here that both previous quests failed. Griffins remain impartial in dragon affairs. The life or death of the Oracle is of no concern to us. We judge your contest and enforce fair play to honour an ancient agreement made with the dragonriders who brought us here. Come. Both challengers mount your dragons and follow me. We shall prepare the first test.’

  ‘And what of the rest of us?’ Segun asked.

  ‘Those who want to destroy the orb, fly along the left side of the valley,’ Karrok ordered. ‘Those who want to take it to the Oracle, fly along the right. Stray from my instructions at your peril. We do not wish to harm you or your dragons, but we will be swift to punish any who do not comply. Look for the metal stand. Land there and observe the challenges. Stay on your respective sides. Griffins will be watching.’

  Karrok’s threat seemed ludicrous. How could a few griffins hope to enforce Karrok’s orders to ten dragons? Elian chanced a look up at the cliff on the far side of the canyon. He blinked in surprise and rubbed at his eyes, wondering if they were playing tricks on him. Then he looked up at the near side and saw the same again. The valley was suddenly full of griffins – hundreds of them. Some were sitting, lined up on ledges like rows of huge painted gargoyles, and some were prowling along the top of the first tier of the great mountainsides. Others still were airborne, flying in long lines high up along the sides of the valleys.

  ‘It looks like those few griffins that first came here have been busy!’ he observed to Aurora. ‘Where did all these come from?’

  ‘I do not know, Elian,’ she replied, similarly surprised. ‘But it would be unwise to anger them. A dragon might overcome one or two griffins, but a host like this
. . .’

  Aurora did not need to complete the thought. Elian turned to Pell and put a hand on the older boy’s shoulder. It was all down to him now. ‘Good luck,’ Elian said simply, glancing over his shoulder at the senior night dragonriders who were walking back to their dragons. From the look of Pell’s adversary, he was going to need it.

  Pell felt both nervous and excited at the same time. Following the night dragons into this valley had been a dangerous gamble. Despite the odds, he had won a chance to get the orb without a fight. All he had to do was beat Segun’s man at whatever challenges Karrok set. Knifetail looked a formidable dragon, but she would not intimidate Shadow. Nor would Dirk intimidate him.

  ‘This is our chance to show Segun,’ he said silently to Shadow as he turned towards her. ‘If we’re going to be outlaws, then let’s make that dungball wish he’d never crossed us.’

  ‘Sounds good to me,’ Shadow replied, her voice soft and deadly.

  Pell was a little startled at Elian’s touch on his shoulder. The boy wished him ‘Good luck’, a message he acknowledged with a nod. He half expected the two girls to repeat the message, but one look at them was enough to dispel that thought. Nolita was too distracted to say anything, locked as usual in her own little world of fear. Kira, on the other hand, was more interested in giving him unwanted advice.

  ‘Remember the rhyme,’ Kira told him in a low voice. ‘No doubt the words will start to make sense any time now. There was advice in your verse. Stay pure. Listen. Accept justice. Don’t be tempted to do anything outside of the rules in order to win, Pell.’

  ‘Thanks for that, Kira,’ he replied, unable to totally mask the sarcasm in his reply. ‘Wise words, I’m sure.’

  ‘Did you hear what the griffin just said?’ she asked, her anger barely restrained.

  ‘I expect so,’ he replied. ‘Which part in particular?’

  ‘The last two quests failed here,’ Kira said bluntly. ‘Not a great record for the night dragonriders, I’d say. And if they were as pig-headed and arrogant as you are, I’m not surprised they failed.’