by Lisa McMann
Pleased, Pan regarded him regally. “Go swiftly, then.”
Hux nodded. “You’ll search . . . for us?” he asked her in a quiet voice. “Like I told you? There has to be another way.”
“If there is, I will find it,” said Pan, nuzzling him. “My love to all of you until then.”
The children glanced sidelong at each other, not knowing what the dragons were talking about. But Alex had always said that dragons were more secretive than most creatures, and Pan got angry if you asked too many questions, so they didn’t dare inquire.
Hux turned in the water and unfurled his tail, making a bridge for the children to climb aboard. The girls took back their vines so Seth wasn’t quite so overloaded, and they made their way onto the dragon’s back. When they were seated and properly holding on, Hux said good-bye to his mother, then swirled his tail in the water, and they were off, heading westward over the glassy sea.
Rough Waters
It was hard to get used to sitting and hanging on to a dragon, but Hux offered a suggestion. “At the base of my neck there’s a bit of a flat area between it and my shoulder bones. Some of the scales are worn away there from all the cargo I’ve carried, so it’ll be less slippery for you. The three of you should be able to fit.”
Thisbe, Fifer, and Seth felt around Hux’s muscular back for it. Fifer nearly tumbled in. “Found it,” she said, her voice muffled as she rolled. “It’s like a shallow bowl.” Soon the other two joined her, and they discovered that Hux’s neck shielded them from the wind there as well, which made the ride even more comfortable.
As the friends got settled and coiled their vines, Hux sped across the water using his ropelike tail as a propeller. By the time they looked back, the lights of Artimé were small behind them, and the reality of the task before them became imminent.
“Are you sure we should be doing this?” Seth asked quietly. He was less excited about the venture now, after what the girls had said about him. “My mother will explode if she finds out.”
Thisbe and Fifer flashed him a sympathetic look. Carina Holiday was as sharp and tough as they came. She was a true warrior if there ever was one. But she was kindhearted, too.
“Just think how proud of you she’ll be once she’s done being mad, though,” said Thisbe. “It’s exactly like something she’d have done.”
Seth remained troubled, but he nodded slowly. “I guess so.” He looked up. “Do you suppose we’ll be back by morning?”
Of course neither of the girls knew how long it would take to get to the unknown land. If Hux knew, he either wouldn’t answer because he was sworn to secrecy, or he wasn’t paying attention to their conversation.
There wasn’t much that the three of them could see in the dark, though there was a bit of light from the stars and moon above. After an hour or so, cramped up in their little pod, Fifer shifted and sighed. “I don’t think we’ll be back by morning. Warbler is still a long way off, and I’ll bet we have to go past that and the Island of Fire to get to wherever we’re going. Maybe we ought to try to sleep.”
Since the excitement of the adventure was waning, the others agreed. One by one they drifted off. When they awoke, the sun was shining brightly at their backs. Warbler Island was behind them, and the volcanic Island of Fire was a safe distance away. Clearly Hux knew enough to skirt far around it, since it could plunge underwater at any moment and suck them all down with it.
Fifer twisted around and squinted at the sun. The morning brought new worries with it. “Well, they probably know by now,” she said, trying to sound upbeat.
“Yep,” said Thisbe, ignoring the uneasy feeling in her stomach. She ran her fingers through her hair, causing the loose curls to stand up wildly. “So, how are we going to . . . you know . . .” She lowered her voice. “Make them?” She pointed a thumb at Hux.
“The wings?” whispered Fifer.
Thisbe nodded while Seth scooted closer so he could hear.
“Just like Alex and the others did. You were watching, weren’t you?”
“Yes. But what if Alex was right?” Thisbe’s uncomfortable feeling grew, and doubts kept working into her thoughts. “What if the Revinir won’t let us go home after we’re done?”
“Pfft,” said Fifer. “What would anybody want with a bunch of kids like us?”
Seth laughed uneasily. “Yeah,” he said, “good point.” He looked ahead of them as they sped along, not noticing the Island of Fire’s rumbling or the molten lava it spewed as it grew small behind them. He tried not to choke on his nerves. “I’ve never been this far west before. Have you?”
The girls shook their heads. “There’s nothing out here,” said Fifer.
“This is where Karkinos used to be,” said Seth. “But he moved nearer to us to help fight the big battle.”
“And so Talon and Florence could be together,” said Fifer, sighing.
“Gross,” said Thisbe.
Seth caught Thisbe’s eye and nodded in agreement, then blushed, his cheeks turning dark red in an instant. Thisbe didn’t notice. She hitched herself up so she could see around the dragon’s broad neck. But there was nothing but water in front of them.
Seth’s uneasiness grew as the day wore on, but he didn’t share it. After a while, Thisbe pulled out the few snacks she’d brought along. They ate ravenously with little thought for the trip back home, which would no doubt take just as long.
“I wonder how we’ll get to the land of the dragons,” mused Fifer. “We’ll be the first ones to know out of all of Artimé.”
“Yes,” said Thisbe, growing more enthusiastic at the prospect. “I hope it’s exciting.”
“I hope we don’t go plunging down the waterfall,” muttered Seth.
“That has to be where the flying part comes in,” said Fifer. “Flying on a dragon’s back? I can’t wait!”
Thisbe choked down her fear. “It’ll be even better than flying on Simber,” she said, trying to convince herself. “As long as Hux stays pretty low, that is.”
“Oh,” said Seth, his chest tightening, “I can think of a few ways it could be a lot worse.”
“You’re not helping,” Thisbe muttered.
“Sorry.” But Seth couldn’t help imagining all the things that could go wrong with a dragon whose wings weren’t strong enough to carry himself, much less three riders. All Seth could do was to try to tamp down his worries, not panic, and be brave . . . as brave as the two who accompanied him. It wasn’t easy. But then again, being best friends with these two never had been.
Artimé on Alert
Back in Artimé, Carina Holiday was the first to discover that her son wasn’t answering his blackboard. Her first thoughts sprang to the twins, and she wondered if the three of them might be together.
She summoned Binh, her apartment’s blackboard. A man’s face pushed out of the screen, its contours intricately detailed. Binh wore a wary expression, not unfounded, for Carina and Sean’s rambunctious youngsters weren’t always gentle with him. His eyes darted around the room before he relaxed. “Yes?”
“Call Desdemona, will you, please?” She wanted to find out from Thisbe and Fifer’s personal blackboard if they were in their room, or if there might be some sort of mischief afoot. “Ask if the girls are there.”
“Sure,” Binh said. “I’ll return shortly.” He shrank back and disappeared, leaving a shimmering blank space in the blackboard.
A moment later, in the girls’ living area, Desdemona surfaced and looked around. She didn’t see them. The door to their bedroom was closed, as was the exit door that led to the hallway. She hollered out their names, but if they were asleep, Desdemona wasn’t able to rouse them. She melted into her screen and reported her lack of findings.
Binh resurfaced. “No sign of them.”
“Thanks anyway,” Carina said, turning away, and tried to decide what to do. She suspected the three were up to something. After all, she’d always been adventurous, so it was the least she could expect from her son. Plus, Fifer a
nd Thisbe were always getting into trouble, and they often dragged Seth into it with them. With a sigh, she left the younger children in the apartment with Sean and went in search of her eldest.
She checked the lounge, the library, the theater, and the dining room with no luck. Then she went outside to check the lawn and even ran down to the lagoon. There was no sign of anyone there—not even the dragons.
“Well, that’s suspicious,” Carina muttered. Frowning, she returned to the mansion, fighting a barrage of emotions. She knew it would only be a matter of time before Seth ventured out without telling anybody. Her generation of Unwanteds wouldn’t have thought twice about it, since they didn’t have parents there to worry about them. Back then, Mr. Today had made it clear that the children could freely come and go from the mansion at any hour, and they had done so regularly. Even today it wasn’t a big deal to see people wandering the lawn or the mansion’s many extensions in the middle of the night. It was a rite of passage when a kid got his own room, she knew. But it didn’t make her worry any less.
Back in her apartment, she filled Sean in on what she’d discovered.
“Oh dear,” said Sean, trying to gauge Carina’s level of concern. “Are you . . . worried?”
“I’m not sure,” Carina admitted. “Kind of.”
“We all did it,” Sean said quietly. “He’ll be okay.”
Carina turned and gazed out the window. “I know. It still feels unsettling.”
“Want me to search Quill?”
Carina shook her head. “With the dragons gone, I’m pretty sure I know where he and the girls are.” She sighed. “And the worst part? Now we’ve got to tell Alex.”
Sean groaned. “Those poor girls—Alex will be angry as usual. I’m sure all three of the children are perfectly fine. They’ll turn up eventually, like we always did.”
“I’m sure they will. But dragons . . .” Carina pressed her lips together. “That makes me nervous.” They gathered up the younger children and went down the hall to the balcony, then to the secret hallway to alert Alex. Sean stayed back with the children, who couldn’t get through the wall, while Carina, who could, ran to Alex’s living quarters. She pounded on the door.
A moment later the door swung open, and Alex, bleary-eyed, stared at the woman. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Have you seen Thisbe and Fifer?” asked Carina.
“Not since dinner last night. Why?”
“Seth’s missing. Desdemona says the girls aren’t answering. And . . . the dragons are gone.”
Alex squinted. “What—gone? But I haven’t given Hux his new wings yet.”
“That’s all I know, Alex,” said Carina, running a hand over her spiky hair to smooth it. “What happened yesterday, exactly? Seth was telling me bits and pieces over dinner, but we didn’t get the full story.”
Seeing Sean waiting on the balcony with the children, Alex grabbed a fresh robe. “Let’s go.” He maneuvered his arms into it and secured it at his neck as the two left the secret hallway. Alex greeted Sean, then shared the events of the previous day. He told Sean and Carina about his decision not to go with Hux, fearing it was too risky.
“Oh. I see.” Carina turned abruptly to take her daughter from Sean, trying to hide her disappointment in Alex. But it wasn’t easy. She broke away and headed for the girls’ residence hallway, daughter in tow. “I’m going to check the twins’ bedroom. You check Seth’s.”
“Got it,” said Sean.
“She’s mad at me,” remarked Alex.
“Yep.”
While Carina went down the girls’ hallway to pound on Thisbe and Fifer’s door—the door exclaiming in surprise at the intrusion—Sean and their young son went with Alex to Seth’s room. They found it empty.
“Well, that explains it,” said Sean as he and Alex left the boys’ hallway. “Of course they’ve gone with Hux. You really do smother those girls so much, Alex. I’m surprised they haven’t run off before.”
Alex was taken aback by the harsh, judgmental words, though it was fairly common for Sean Ranger to be perfectly frank with his friends. “I do not smother them,” he said defensively. “They’re dangerous. I have to be careful.”
Sean shrugged. While they descended the sweeping mansion staircase, Alex fumbled in his pocket to come up with the tiny pebbles he’d made Thisbe and Fifer paint for him so he could send a seek spell to them at any time. He sent off two of them, one to each girl. Two little balls of light shot from his fist and out of the mansion, zipping westward.
By now they had arrived at the front door, where Simber stood.
“Have you seen Thisbe and Fifer?” asked Alex, breathless.
“Or Seth?” asked Sean.
“Not the girrrls,” said Simber. “I saw Seth arrround midnight heading forrr the kitchen, but he does that everrry so often. I didn’t think much of it.”
“They’re missing,” said Alex. “All three of them.”
“Did you happen to see Seth go back upstairs?” asked Sean as Carina came down the steps. He quickly filled Carina in on what Simber had seen.
“No, but I wasn’t paying attention. And I did my rrrounds shorrrtly afterrr, so I might have missed him. Orrr perrrhaps he went out the back doorrr.”
“You didn’t stop him?” said Alex, his voice pitching higher.
Simber harrumphed. “Of courrrse not. I’m not anyone’s babysitterrr. He’s gone out at night beforrre, as most of the childrrren like to do once they have theirrr prrrivate rrrooms.” He glanced from Sean to Alex to Carina. “You all did it too.”
“I know,” said Alex, agitated. “You’re right. I didn’t mean to accuse you. It’s just that . . . if they went with Hux, they have no idea what danger they are in for. We have to find out where they’ve gone. We have to go after them!” He glanced at his arm. “Someone does, anyway. Someone who can actually fight in case there’s trouble.”
“I’ll go, of courrrse,” said Simber in a grim voice. “Who would you like to accompany me?”
Alex looked at Carina with a question in his eyes. She was one of Artimé’s strongest warriors and spell casters, as well as an adept healer. More than almost anyone in Artimé, Alex trusted Carina Holiday with his life. “Will you?” he asked.
Carina needed no urging. “Of course I’ll go. I want to be the first one to yell at Seth for doing something so foolish.” She frowned, as if trying to forget the multitude of risky adventures she’d taken part in over the years. “We should take someone else with us, though, shouldn’t we, Sim? Henry, maybe.”
The stone cheetah growled his agreement.
“That would leave us without a chief healer if you both go,” Alex pointed out.
“Right, right,” said Carina, thinking hard. “What about Thatcher, then? Or Scarlet?”
“Scarlet is at Warbler, working with Sky and Copper,” Alex reminded her. “But Thatcher is a great choice. We’ll ask him.”
“Perfect. I’ll send Spike to find Pan,” said Carina, shoving her daughter into Sean’s free arm, then looked up at him. “You’re okay if I leave for a few days, right?”
“As if that matters,” Sean said fondly. “I only feel sorry for Seth when you get ahold of him.”
“As well you should.” She pecked him on the lips, then ran outside to call for the intuitive whale. Spike Furious, who Alex had created and brought to life from an old whale skeleton, had strong traits like speed, intelligence, and the intuition to sense approaching danger. She was also the best at finding Pan, who could be anywhere in the vast waters.
When Spike appeared offshore, Carina gave her the instructions. Moments later the whale was off to track down Pan and bring the mother dragon back to Artimé so they could question her and begin their search for the children.
“Now I need to pack some supplies,” said Carina as she and Sean went back to their apartment down the family hallway.
“And load up your component vest.”
“It seems so strange to do that. Like old time
s. I feel pretty rusty.”
Sean nodded. “I can imagine. But it’ll all come back to you.”
“My aim is off. I haven’t practiced or sat in on a Warrior Training class in I don’t know how long.”
“You’ll be fine. You probably won’t have to fight.”
Carina laughed. “You’re right. I think I got a little carried away there. Let’s hope there’s no fighting necessary, and most of all that the kids are safe, of course. That would be ideal.”
Sean thought he heard a hint of wistfulness in Carina’s voice when she talked about the old days. But wisely he held his tongue.
When Spike and Pan arrived that evening, Alex went outside to have a talk with the dragon. “We need to know where they’ve gone,” he said.
At first Pan was adamant. She couldn’t give Alex the information. But when she realized the children had misled her and Hux, and that they really hadn’t been given permission to help, she relented. “Simber is the only one who can get there safely. I will tell him,” she said. “No one else needs to know.”
“I’m the leader of this land,” said Alex, voice raised, “and my sisters are in danger. You must tell me!”
Pan regarded him. “I’m very sorry your sisters lied to me,” she said coolly. “I wish they hadn’t done that, for they’ve put my young in danger now too with their foolishness. And I know you will never understand the ways of dragons. But know this: I will be giving Simber secret information. And that act violates the dragon code. It is grounds for my execution.” She paused as the words sank in, then softened a little. “I’m doing the best I can for you, but the fewer I tell, the better.”
“But Carina and Thatcher will find out, won’t they?” Alex said. “I mean, obviously they’ll be able to see where they’re going.”
“They won’t find out from me,” said Pan. “And that is what is important here.”
Alex fumed. He wished Sky were there to talk him through this terrible feeling of helplessness. But she wasn’t, and he had to deal with it. Finally he let out a heavy sigh. Simber was the protector of them all, and he knew he could trust the enormous stone beast. “All right,” he said. “Just . . . find them. Please.”