‘No, Murray – not dogs – Doge. He was the ruler of Venice in ... oh, never mind. Yes, it was a dog.’
‘What sort of dog? Like a dachshund?’
‘Forget it, Murray and go back to your peanuts. Here they come to the final change, Murray! DiPasta is going to cross first.’
Amazing ride, Bill, and now Flamville’s last rider Herman Van Stuttering will lead off the last lap.’
Yes Murray, but calm down, take another pill please before you have a heart attack. And I think you’ll find its pronounced Van Stuutering. He might sound a bit strange with that Germanic accent here in Avalon but I know he’s pretty edgy about the Stuttering thing.’
‘Oh yes Bill, I heard about the Flamville College incident a few weeks back when one of the borders gave him a hard time about his name. Have they found the boy who did that yet?’
‘No, I believe they are still tracing him through the smoking shoes he left behind after Van Stuutering used a displacement spell to shift him several hundred miles towards the mountains. They are fairly sure the mountain trolls haven’t got him yet but we’ll know more soon. Oddly enough Flamville didn’t suspend him for this but gave him a commendation for outstanding magic!’
‘Yes, they breed them tough at Flamville. Any truth in the rumour they poached him just for the racing team?’
‘You might think that, Murray, but there’re too many lawyers in the crowd here tonight for me to comment. Anyway – back to the racing.’
The crowd roared as the dragons swept round the final bend into the finishing straight. Flamville had taken the lead but Rookwood was still on their tail. It was obvious there was going to be nothing between the riders as they came across the line.
A chuckle from Iris sounded in Grady’s head. ‘I will show them how to fly ...’
‘Are ye ready, lad? Remember; breathe, let the dragon do the work, and always, always keep an eye oot for the circlets. Dinnae let any of them go if ye can on this round. The scores are so close we’ll need them all,’ said McHavering by Grady’s side.
‘Breathe, Dragon, Circlets ... Roger. Got it,’ said Grady.
‘Roger?’ said McHavering. ‘I’m nae a Roger, ye aftie. Ma names Hector!’
‘No, I mean ... oh, never mind. I’ll explain later!’
A bell sounded as the Flamville rider soared overhead, followed moments later by a second bell as Connor and his mount limped through the finish line before collapsing exhausted on the ground.
‘Go Laddie, go!’ yelled McHavering, giving the dragon a slap on the rump. As he did so the viper turned and snarled before bunching his muscles and without even a run-up launched itself into the sky. The crowd gasped at the dragon as it accelerated away from the ground. Grady felt gravity reaching out to him before the dragon’s own magic overcame the tug and he was able to settle into the saddle and hunker down over the dragon’s neck. Already the slender lead the Flamville rider held had been reduced by the violent acceleration Iris had shown off the start line.
‘Look at that dragon go, Bill. Look at it!’
‘I am looking, Murray and unlike you I’m almost lost for words.’
‘Right you are Bill, right you are! This is something special here tonight, sports fans. Keep an eye on this dragon and rider – this is the future right here and now, well not right now cause the future is later and if it was here now it would be the present, but you get my drift anyway!’
‘That’s why we love you, Murray. Yes, you’ve captured the moment. We haven’t seen one of these creatures for a very, very long time and to see it in a college race with a prince on board is something we’ll remember for a long time. Even you, Murray.’
Fortunately for Grady he couldn’t hear the commentators babble as the viper charged ahead, eating into the Flamville lead with every beat of its wings. Up ahead the Flamville rider looked back over his shoulder at the imposing sight of the viper. Even Grady could see the whites of his eyes and almost smell the fear.
‘No, that’s not fear you smell,’ said Iris.
‘What is it then?’ said Grady.
‘Bad coal – that dragon just farted and we ended up flying through it. Phew. That stunk.’
Grady laughed out loud as they continued to close the gap. The fear he felt was receding fast as he gave himself over to the thrill of the race.
‘Look at that, Murray! The young prince must be feeling pretty good if he’s laughing already. Shouldn’t he save that for the end of the race instead?’
‘Well he’s riding a dragon which by all counts he shouldn’t be able to get near without being charcoal, Murray, so perhaps it’s just the joy of surviving. Who knows? Let’s see how he handles the blasting when its starts.’
Indeed the riders were starting to close on the first barrage point. ‘Be ready,’ came Iris’ thought. ‘Hold tight. They will not get close to us.’
Grady knew the blasters would focus on him – Roland had told him they try to hit the new kids hardest – but he wasn’t ready for the fury that exploded around him as they sped towards the catch point. The blasting spells seemed to be coming from all directions at once. Grady realised the teams must have spell casters all around the barrage point. It was unnerving to see the gold, red and silver spells arcing up from the unseen blasters below before they exploded in a deafening burst of colour and sound only metres from the dragon. Iris weaved and dodged through the carnage. Looking ahead Grady could see the only spells focused at Van Stuutering were the green of Rookwood’s own blasters. It was clear everyone wanted to take down the prince tonight.
‘Don’t worry, little Prince. There’s nothing here to worry us tonight,’ said Iris.
‘Maybe not,’ said Grady, ‘but DiPasta is about to get that circlet.’
Up ahead the Flamville rider had smoothly avoided the Rookwood blasters and, with a deft swoop, slipped the circlet from the cross arms. Grady and Iris were only metres behind by now. Without slowing, the dragon barrel rolled between two more blasters’ spells and said calmly, ‘Take it now, young Prince.’ Grady was still letting out a yell from the shock of both the barrel roll and how close those last spells had come. He was definitely going to have to change his underwear after this race! Without thinking he threw a hand out and felt the circlet slip easily over it as Iris beat strongly away from the catch point.
‘Amazing catch, Murray. Amazing! Awesome! Athletic!’
‘Yes Bill, he is and we hope soon you’ll move onto adverbs beginning with the letter B too. The prince looked like he was completely out of control on that catch and was just waving his arms about in the hope of catching it rather than using any skill, but the pickup was smooth and now it looks like Rookwood has edged ahead. That viper doesn’t even look like its sweating!’
Grady couldn’t hear the commentators but even he could see the Flamville dragon was using everything it had just to keep up with Iris. As they pulled alongside, the Flamville rider cast a piggy-looking glance at Grady, and clutching at the reins threw his dragon into a sideways lurch at the viper. Without hesitating Iris twitched her tail and shot quickly upwards – just enough that Van Stuutering and his mount swung crazily underneath them, their momentum unstoppable as they went through the place where they expected Iris would be. Grady heard Iris laughing at the sight of the flailing dragon.
‘Serves them right!’ said Grady. ‘And now we are in the lead again!’
‘Yes, my little Prince. Time to show them what flying is really all about!’ With a roar and a massive flaming from its nostrils the viper bunched its muscles and beat the air so strongly it sounded like a thunderclap. Grady was once again thrown backward as the dragon accelerated towards the next catch point. Behind them Van Stuutering had recovered, but it was clear the race was over. Grady and Iris had a clear run to the finish!
Not far behind the riders, Niamh was flying as fast as possible towards the misty forest covered slopes. ‘It doesn’t look right, does it?’ she said to no one in particular.
Bree was
close by and heard the comment. ‘No, it’s too thick and doesn’t move right, like someone knows what cotton wool looks like and thinks mist is meant to look like that too. It’s not right.’
‘Hold up for a minute,’ said Niamh, pulling to halt above a rocky outcrop.
‘What are you looking for?’ asked Emily.
‘I’m not sure ... something ... anything ...there!’ said Niamh, pointing off to the edges of the forest where the fog came to an abrupt halt. ‘Look!’
At the edge of the dark wall of trees a series of shapes were flying across the low scrubby land before disappearing into the murk under the boughs of the forest. Niamh had a feeling of dread about them, but couldn’t say why. They moved like nothing she had ever seen. ‘Come on! Let’s get down there,’ yelled Niamh as she pointed her broomstick down towards the forest.
‘Niamh!’ yelled Bree. ‘We should get a grown-up. I don’t know what those things are!’
Niamh abruptly pulled up the tip of her broom and came to a halt, swinging round to face her friends as she did. ‘Then you call. That’s my brother down there somewhere!’ Without waiting for anyone else Niamh flipped the point of her broom round and shot back down to the gathering gloom.
‘She’s going to get us into trouble, you know,’ said Emily, looking huffy.
‘Yes she will,’ said Devin. ‘And ...?’
‘And what?’ said Emily.
‘She’s a princess, silly!’ If anyone can get us out of trouble it’ll be her! If you can’t pull a few strings as a princess, then what’s the point of being one?’
‘Not much point trying to get us out of trouble if we’re dead is it, though,’ said Bree as she pulled out her iWand. ‘You guys get after her. I’m going to call someone.’
Devin shrugged at Emily before leaning her broom forward and letting out a cackle.
‘Devin, I TOLD you we are modern witches and we do not cackle!’ shouted Emily as she too headed down towards the forest, leaving Bree hovering while she whipped out her iWand.
Bree first tried her parents, then Merritt and Grace. But no answers came back to her. Instead of the floating image of someone’s head all she had was static and silence. ‘Ohhh! Come on! Someone answer!’ As she was about to try the castle guards a noise at her shoulder made her turn, suddenly scared. Her scream was cut short as a bolt of grey-green light enveloped her. Falling backward from her broom the last thing she saw was a grey hooded shape reaching a black gloved hand towards her before darkness overcame her.
In the royal box at the start-finish line the king glanced nervously at the screens showing Grady and the viper heading towards the third catch point with a healthy lead. One screen showed the mist and fog cutting off the tip of the tower from which the circlets hung. The tapping of his foot and uncharacteristic shuffling in his seat made it clear he was not at ease tonight. Glancing nervously at the iWand in his hand he seemed to be waiting for a message. The noise of the crowd and the commentators’ babble drifted away from him. His mind was clearly elsewhere.
‘I hope you know what you’re doing, you old fool,’ he said under his breath.
‘Pardon dear?’ said the queen, sitting next to him.
‘I ... I ... said I hope he can remember to stay cool, dear,’ he stammered in reply. ‘Young Grady, that is. I hope he can stay cool. It’s difficult to keep your head in a race like this.’
‘Well he’s got your blood in him and I recall you used to be quite the dragon rider yourself. You were quite dashing in those breeches you used to ride in,’ said the queen, smiling.
‘It’s going to take more than good breeches out there tonight,’ mumbled the king.
‘Speak up, dear,’ said the queen. ‘I can’t hear you over the speakers.’
‘I said they were pretty good breeches. You’re right,’ said the king, smiling unconvincingly. Glancing at the empty seat where Murdock should have sat the king slumped back in his chair. ‘Keep my boy safe, elf,’ he said, much more quietly to himself. On the screens the images of Grady racing towards the enveloping fog were drawing cheers from the crowd. But the king sat silent. He had nothing to cheer about yet.
‘Looks like that fog coming up is going to be a real pea souper, Murray.’
‘Is this another dog chef question, Bill?’
‘Not this time Murray – just an observation. And observations are something our cameras won’t be able to do with that sort of fog. Magical Health and Safety regulations mean our camera wizards will be grounded so there’ll be no pictures from that foggy section of the course!’
The fog hit Grady and Iris like a solid wall. As they pierced the edge of the mist all sound became muted and light dimmed.
‘How will we know whether we are on the racetrack?’ said Grady.
‘Leave that to me. My eyes are better than yours and I can see the boundary flares even if you can’t.’
Grady peered and squinted through the fog but could see nothing of the markers. He would just have to trust the dragon knew what it was up to. ‘I can’t see anything behind us either. Can you?’
Without turning its long neck the dragon said, ‘We have nothing to fear behind us. They won’t catch ...’ The rest of Iris’s words were cut off by a blast of spellfire – much closer and more powerful than the first barrage. Iris swayed and rocked from side to side as the blast rolled over them.
‘What the!’ said Grady clinging more tightly to the dragon’s back. ‘There shouldn’t be another barrage point yet!’
‘That wasn’t the spell casters, my Prince. We have company.’ The dragon nodded off to the right where Grady could just make out cloaked spectral shapes tracking them and moving closer. To the other side another set of the malevolent forms closed in. A screech rent the air and Grady felt a cold stab of recognition. These were the same figures he had seen with Balthasar in the hallway. They were being tracked by banshees! Before he could react, another powerful spell exploded just to their right followed by another and then another. Iris was forced to correct her course as the spells came closer and closer.
‘They are trying to herd us, young Prince. Hold on. I’m going to climb out of this!’ Iris sculled her wings strongly and started to lift up from her path when another blast, much more powerful than the others, exploded almost on top of them. The shockwave smashed broadside into Iris’s head and she began to lazily drop from the sky. With a slow roll to her left Iris fell to the ground, ploughing a deep furrow through the forest floor and into the trees to the left of the course. Big trees were snapped like matchsticks as Iris’ momentum drove all before her. Grady was thrown forward and over the dragon’s head. Somehow he managed to curl himself into a ball as he somersaulted and rolled and bounced across the soft covering of the forest floor. Behind him the bulk of the viper bounced and skidded along the turf. Grady turned in time to see the great neck and head of Iris about to land on him and threw himself sideways as it hit the deck. For a moment there was no sound except for a few more broken branches parting from the trees and falling to the forest floor. Grady felt warmth on the side of his head and putting his hand up to his temple found a trickle of warm blood running down his face. Iris lay beside him. She was so still he thought she must be dead until he felt the soft sulphurous breath from one of her great nostrils. Her head lay on one side with her great forked tongue hanging from the corner of her mouth. Grady looked up and saw the shapes that had tracked them circling overhead. There was glee in their glowing red eyes as they began to close in on the prince and his dragon. Grady could see their hair flowing back from female faces akin to the elves, but thinner and more alien. They rode not broomsticks but some sort of thin reeds. A vague misty memory came to him from his studies in the library that the leprechauns refused to make broomsticks for the banshees so they were forced to bewitch thin river reeds to fly. The spells could not last for long, but they obviously were working long enough for them to chase down Grady tonight. The banshees’ skin was sallow and stretched tightly over their thin frames.
As their cloaks billowed back in the wind Grady could see frail, almost skeletal bodies underneath and from the end of their sleeves bony talon-like fingers extended to grasp the tips of their insubstantial reeds.
As one, a keening, moaning sound started to rise from the banshees. Grady felt the sound cutting deep down into his head, making him feel woozy and fuzzy. He reached for his wand but felt it fall from his fingertips. Dropping to his knees he scrabbled in the dirt searching for it. The cry of the banshees rang louder inside his head now. He could barely hear his own thoughts, befuddled as they were from the crash-landing. As he looked up he saw the banshees closing in from all sides.
The sky around them was suddenly lit by a bright golden flare which stopped the banshees in their tracks. The fog vanished from around them as if an enormous blowtorch had been turned upon it. The golden flare spread out like ripples in a pond as the tendrils of mist blew apart, revealing a circle of clear twilight sky above now lit by twinkling early evening stars. Three riders on broomsticks arced down from the sky above to the place where Iris and Grady lay. The spell came from the rider in the middle and even at this distance Grady could see it was his sister. The riders’ wands flashed again and three bolts thumped into the earth near the banshees, showering them with dirt and forest debris. The creatures stopped in their tracks. This was not part of their plan! Two of the riders swooped low, aiming their broomsticks directly at the nearest banshees, making them scatter for cover. Grady could see the sudden doubt in their eyes. Fear overtook a number of the creatures and they turned to disappear back into the forest. Grady saw Devin and Emily peer over their shoulders as their broomsticks gained height again. Niamh circled above, raining blasting spells down upon the now ragged band of banshees running aimlessly around the clearing.
The closest and largest banshee, though, did not run. She hissed and bared her teeth at Grady before suddenly lunging at him. Niamh had no time to cast a bolt – the banshee was too close to Grady and she could not risk hitting her brother. The creature screamed as its teeth closed in on Grady, but the sound was suddenly cut off as a dark red shape lunged across his vision and the banshee was thrown to the ground. A gurgling sound came from the thrashing creature as it was dragged to the forest in the jaws of the beast that had saved Grady. Around him, Grady saw the remaining banshees were now coming under attack from the ground as well as Niamh’s blasts from above. Sounds of struggle and growls replaced the keening of the banshees. Other shapes cut through the ranks of the evil creatures, doglike but much bigger, with teeth that glinted in the starlight and eyes that showed more than just canine cunning. The werewolves had come!
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