The dragon answered,We must not let them - He was interrupted by another blast.

Two new dragons streaked in out of the smoke-filled air. Jael and Ar flattened themselves. The dragons shot past, over their heads, and raked the first two attackers with withering fire. Pivoting in the air, seemingly on their wingtips, they came back around for another pa.s.s. A dragon voice filled the air: LEAVE WINDRUSH AND THE RIGGERS TO US! THEY ARE OURS! The first pair of dragons wheeled around, beating their wings angrily, but the new pair were far more determined. They laced the air with acrid fire, until Jael began to choke, clinging to Windrush. The original two finally veered away, snarling, and fled downrange to the left, hugging close to the lower mountain slopes.

Windrush climbed energetically, but the new pair of dragons crisscrossed beneath him until they rose on either side, fuming smoke and fire. They thundered out words Jael could not understand.Who is this?

Jael whispered, fearing that they had traded bad enemies for worse.

Windrush answered this new challenge with a roar and a tremendous flame, and the others replied in kind. Back and forth they bellowed, fire crackling. Jael clung to Windrush's back. Ed crouched close to her breast, his head in constant motion, peering at one dragon, then another.

Suddenly Windrush cried joyously,WELCOME BACK, BROTHERS! BROTHERS AGAIN! And he sent a triumphant tongue of fire into the air.

Jael's breath went out in a gasp.

Rrawwwwwk!Ed shouted.

The two dragons dropped into tight formation on either side of Windrush. Their eyes glowed wonderingly as they studied the riggers and their s.p.a.ceship. One of them spoke, before Jael could ask Windrush for an explanation.We felt his pa.s.sing, the left-hand dragon murmured, and his voice seemed filled with sorrow, but also with a breath of gladness.And in that moment, we glimpsed ... his triumph ... and our own terrible foolishness.

When you broke the spell of exile, you releasedusfrom a sorcery, as well,said the other dragon, and Jael thought she heard shame in his voice.Something changed around us, or maybe inside us. It was as though we had been blinded before, and suddenly we saw - only a glimpse, but it was enough - how we had been fooled by the power of Tar-skel, by our own arrogance in wanting to share his power. The dragon's voice grew softer.We are free now - you freed us - to make another choice. We have much to be sorry for. We have wronged our father, and Windrush, and you. We wish ... to make right what we have done.

We felt many breaking free as we did,said the dragon on the left.But many others are still in service to the Enemy. Among them, I fear, is our fourth brother. If he still lives.

Jael was stunned, unable to answer.

Windrush nodded somberly at that last statement.The confrontation has only begun. He angled his head to glance back at the riggers.But at least I no longer stand alone among dragons. Riggers -my brothers! Wingtouch and Farsight, sons of Highwing. My brothers once more!

The two dragons looked across at Jael, and she thought they seemed nervous. She wondered why, and then realized that they were waiting for something.Honored to meet you, she said, nodding to each in turn.I am Jael. And my companions - Ed!squawked the parrot, before she could gesture.

She looked at Ar. His eyes were dim with tiredness, and his lips were thin and straight. Nevertheless, he nodded gravely.Honored, he said.I am Ar.

The two dragons expelled steam from their nostrils and muttered wonderingly.Honored, they replied.

Wingtouch, said one.Farsight, said the other.

Jael nodded and sat back with a sigh. As the three dragons flew in a slow curve around the fiery mountain, she leaned to peer at the landscape below. Was it her imagination, or was there more color in the land than there had been before? It no longer seemed the same stark desolation of black and grey, and it didn't seem to her that the difference was entirely due to the gla.s.s-encapsulated glow of the red sun. She spoke to Windrush, and he dipped lower for a better view. The ground slipped silently beneath them. She glimpsed a scattering of green buds, and a few pink and lavender blossoms. The scent of the blossoms rose to her nostrils.Life is returning here, Windrush said approvingly.

It was Ar who voiced surprise.So soon?

I suspect it never really was gone,Windrush said.It was suppressed by the spell-making, by the twisting of the underweb of our world. I guess in time it truly would have died.

Will this happen all over the realm?Jael asked.

Windrush rumbled.Would that it were so, but how can we know? We have gained one victory against the powers of Tar-skel. But I doubt he will concede the realm so easily. There will be other battles, perhaps many others. But you have won us a beginning. He beat his wings harder, as though stirred by the thought of struggles to come.I am determined, as my brothers now are determined - and the spirit of my father is strong with us. There will be others, as well. As the iffling said, we have a great deal to do. And yet now perhaps we will find a way to the Dream Mountain, wherever it has gone, and seek the counsel and the strength of the draconae.

Jael nodded. She found herself thinking again of her own father, and realized that for the first time in many years, she was able to think of him with a profound sadness, but without anger. She caught Ar's gaze, but could not read his expression. Leaning closer to the dragon's head, she asked,Is there anything more we can do ?

Windrush laughed, and his laughter was as deep as an ocean and as full of pain and joy as his father's had been.We would always welcome your help, Jael! But I think this battle is not yours now, but ours. You have your own safety, your own duties, to think of.

Jael felt her gaze-again drawn to Ar's. His lips were crinkled in a weary smile. She had almost forgotten their ship, and their damaged flux-pile, and their cargo that had to be delivered. But Ar had not forgotten.

Windrush seemed to read her thoughts.We will help you if we can. We will bear you to the edge of the realm and leave you on a path that will carry you back to your own worlds.

Thank you,Ar murmured, as Jael nodded.The dragon chuckled.In your thoughts, long ago, you showed me your intended pathway. We can make the remainder of your journey light, and your way easier. But we must not delay. This land will soon be in turmoil, and it will be no place for riggers.

As he spoke, Jael wondered, How long had they been in the net without a break, anyway? She didn't know if they could make it to the edge of the realm without resting. She recalled one other time, when a dragon had borne her to the edge of the realm while she'd slept, and she wondered aloud if Windrush would do the same for them.

Indeed. Go and take your resting spell,the dragon answered.We will do the flying.

Jael nodded in grat.i.tude. As she turned to speak to Ar, he wavered and disappeared. She looked at Ed.

The parrot was sound asleep, cradled against her. Sighing, she reached into the net controls and folded Ed into safe storage. Then, with a farewell wave to the dragons, she, too, withdrew from the net.

Ar was standing at the nose of the bridge, staring at the instruments in the gloom. Jael swung out of her rigger-couch and stood beside him, wondering what he saw in the readouts. Ar looked at her without speaking; his eyes seemed unfocused, the sparkle that usually graced them, gone. She thought she had never seen him look so tired. "I'm sorry," she said finally. "About all of that."

"Sorry?" Ar murmured.

"I didn't mean for you to have to go through it. I -"

Ar sighed and turned away, leaving her in midsentence. He stopped, looked back, and said, "You were right, Jael. About all of it. Now get some sleep."

Then he walked from the bridge.

Jael stared blankly after him, then wearily followed.

She was awakened from a dead sleep by the trilling of the stabilizer alarm. She met Ar in the hallway, coming from the commons. He was chewing, and he handed her a piece of thick dark bread as he pa.s.sed on his way to the bridge. He looked remarkably refreshed. "I'll check on it," he said. "Take your time."

She hurried into the lavatory and splashed cold water on her face; then she rushed after Ar.

The net was sparkling with a golden sunrise glow. She found Ar astride Windrush, and Ed perched on Ar's shoulder. The dragon, still flanked by his brothers, was soaring in leisurely circles on an updraft.I was beginning to think you would rest forever, Windrush remarked.

Jael yawned, relieved that there was apparently no emergency.How did you get through to us? You must have upset our net somehow.

The dragon answered casually.I sent my thoughts in search of you. And before long, you were here.

Ar gestured to the land far below. For the first time, Jael realized that they were at the edge of the mountain range. A vast, verdant plain stretched out before them, and a silvery thread - a winding river - meandered in the direction they were now flying.They have found a route that'll take us to Eri Nine, where we can put in for repairs, Ar said.

Rawk!said Ed, flapping his wings.Fix it! Ed want to fly!Jael nodded.

It should be an easy flight for you,Windrush offered.

A lump came to her throat then, and she turned to look behind them. The mountain range of the dragons stretched out in a long grey line across the horizon, beneath a powder blue sky. She thought she saw a glint of red fire in the mountains, perhaps from what had once been the Black Peak, but was now something altogether different. Would it stay that way, as Windrush had wished?

The events of the last shipday spun dizzyingly through her mind.

Windrush,she said, recalling a question that had been troubling her.You told us that the dragons - or at least Tar-skel - and her voice quavered a little as she spoke that name -had been expecting us to come see Highwing die. What did you mean by that? The three dragons looked back and forth at each other, puffing steam. Thinking that they had not understood her question, she continued,It's just that it amazes me - that we should have come along at just this time, by accident, when we were needed.

By accident?Wingtouch asked.

Why - yes,Jael said, puzzled. She tried to explain how they had happened to come to the mountain range, from an unlikely distance, as a result of the Flux disturbance.

Well,Windrush said.I cannot say that you are wrong. You might have happened to come at just this crucial moment. But ...

Jael looked at Ar, who had a pained-looking expression, though his eyes remained closed. The parrot sitting on his shoulder was turning his head suspiciously one way, then the other.But what?

Windrush seemed reluctant to say more, and Wingtouch was silent. It was Farsight who finally spoke.It was likely no accident. I believe that Tar-skel put a great deal of strength into a spell to twist the underrealm outward in hopes of bringing you here.

Jael was stunned.But why? she whispered.Why would he care about me?

He hated you!Wingtouch explained, from her other side. Then he corrected himself with a sigh.WE hated you. You, most of all -you who entered this realm and drew kindness from a dragon's heart. You who answered the ancient Words .You who challenged the darkness he - we! - were drawing over the land. How better to punish you both than to bring you here to stand powerless in witness of Highwing's death? He snorted a small, unhappy gout of fire.

Indeed they punished me, Jael thought. She missed Highwing sorely, and grieved for him. But what she said was,It's still hard for me to believe ... that you could reach into our world, and bring us here from such a distance! And then she recalled that they had not been in normal-s.p.a.ce at the time of the accident; they had been in the Flux. Was such a thing possible, after all? There had been some sort of cataclysm in nearby normal-s.p.a.ce. Hadn't there? Glancing at Ar, she could almost hear him wondering, too, if they had a.n.a.lyzed their mishap correctly.

Windrush puffed a diplomatic cloud of steam.In any event, you came. And you broke their spell, when we were afraid to try. You have made the realm tremble, as the Words promised. Whatever might happen to us, the dragons will not soon forget you.

Jael sighed and looked back again at the mountain range dwindling behind them. Her heart ached with sadness, but also with a surprising feeling of fulfillment. She realized that the dragons were watching her.I'm afraid that the time has come , Windrush said, angling his head to peer back at her.

So soon?she whispered, though she knew that it was well past time for them to be completing their own voyage. She saw in Ar's eyes that the urgency of their journey was very much on his mind.

Farsight believes that, very soon, there will be a gathering of those who would oppose us, those who might prefer that we didn't remain in the realm,Windrush said.We must send you off and return to our haven, until we can locate others who will join with us. We must gather our strength until we can find our way to the draconae, to Dream Mountain.

Jael leaned forward to gaze into Windrush's luminous green eye. The faceted fire there shone back at her.Will you be in very great danger because of what we did? she asked softly.

Windrush answered with low laughter.No more than we have been all along .But now we see the danger clearly, and we are stronger than we were. What will happen, we do not know. But you have given us hope. You have shaken the realm and given us our new beginning. Think of us, Jael, but do not fear for us.

Jael nodded, wishing it were that easy.

And now, Jael - and Ar, and Ed - I remind you of my father's vow, which is now my own.

Rigger friends ...

We will return,Jael promised, not glancing at Ar until she realized that, simultaneously, he had spoken the same words.

And you will call, "Friend of Highwing"?

And Windrush,Jael said.

There was a rumble of smoke from the two other dragons, and the namesWingtouch andFarsight echoed in the air.

The parrot stirred.Ed! And Ed!

Indeed. And we will hear you, and join you if we can,vowed Windrush.And now, let us carry you high and fast. And the dragon's powerful wings smote the air, gaining alt.i.tude above the plain. Jael and Ar carefully drew the net into the shape of a long-distance glider. And just when it seemed that Windrush would carry them to the uttermost limits of the sky, the dragon loosed a tremendous tongue of fire and thundered,FAREWELL-L-L-L, RIGGER-R-R-R-S-S! And the earth below trembled with his cry, and it seemed to go on forever.

As one, Jael and Ar shouted in return and warped the wings of their glider. They lifted smoothly off the dragon's back and reached out to seek the air currents that would take them on a long glidepath toward the Eri Nine starport. Jael looked back to see the dragons circling majestically, watching them depart.

Bye, glizzards - graggons!Ed wailed.

Jael heard laughter on the wind; then the three great dragons turned and flew high and fast back toward the mountain range.

Twenty-nine

Dragon Friends

They rigged in silence for a long time. Eventually, Ar began humming a dissonant Clendornan tune, while Jael fiddled with the adjustment of the flux-pile. They were operating at about half efficiency, but Windrush had perceived their needs well and set them on a strong, steady course. Judging from the navigational library, they should easily make it to Eri Nine, perhaps within a few shipdays.

In time, Ar stopped humming and turned to Jael. He looked calmer and more relaxed than she had seen him in a long while - or what seemed to her a long while. In fact, it had only been a couple of shipdays since their unwitting entry into dragon s.p.a.ce.I just wanted to tell you that I'm glad, he said, and there was a glimmer deep in his eyes that seemed almost sorrowful.

Glad it's over? Glad we're still in one piece?

He shook his head and looked out at the valley that stretched before them. They were making a gentle right turn past a white, billowy cloud.No , he said.Glad that it happened. Glad that we went in. I may have spoken hastily when I promised to return. But I'm glad we were there. And glad that you were right.

Right?

About Highwing. And the others. I apologize, Jael, for not believing you. I hope you'll forgive me.

Yawk. To give. I will. Rark.Ed hopped onto Ar's shoulder and nuzzled his ear.

Jael smiled. Of course I will. Is that why you're being so quiet?

Ar stroked the ridge over his left temple, then gently touched the parrot's neck.Actually ... I was wondering how we could tell anyone else about this. And my conclusion is, we probably shouldn't.

Startled, Jael thought about that for a while.I think ...I agree, she said.I don't see what good it would do for the whole s.p.a.cing community to know about them. She imagined the chaos that could result from the dragon realm being invaded by curious riggers. The thought made her shudder.

Actually, it's more that I don't think anyone would believe us,Ar said wryly.I don't want to be laughed at, any more than you did.

Chuckling, Jael banked to follow the course of the river below. It didn't matter to her if anyone would believe them - as long as Ar believed. Maybe one day, if she ever saw him again, she would tell Dap.

Maybe. In the meantime, they had a lot of flying ahead of them, if they were to carry out their commission for Mariella Flaire.

One day we really ought to talk, you know,Ar said, after a long while.

Jael looked at him curiously. He was starting to look almost melancholy. She wondered if he was feeling a letdown.Talk? About what?

About humans. About friendships. About trusting.

She furrowed her brow in uncertainty.I don't follow.

Ar hummed a few almost-harmonious bars while he tended to the flying for a moment.Well ... just that it seems to me that ... some things have changed around here. In your thinking, I mean. Am I right? Am I wrong?Jael frowned and took a long time in answering. Trusting ... yes. She'd hardly noticed. The dragons. The ifflings. Ar. Ed. And even, in a way, her father.Maybe, she said finally.You could be right. She shrugged.

Give me some time to think about it, okay?

Okay, Ar murmured. He pressed his mouth into a straight line, staring without moving. Finally she touched him on the arm to make sure he was still conscious. His mouth slowly formed a zigzag.

Jael tickled the parrot's bright green throat and rubbed his beak with her knuckles. Ed made a gurgling sound.Someday we can talk to your heart's content. But just now, can we do some flying?