The Shaktra

  Although terrified, he managed to speak. “They have no brains left in their heads, Missy. Just eyes and teeth.”

  She nodded to Ra. “Aim for their chests. Their hearts are probably still intact.”

  Ali did not know exactly how many arrows Ra had brought, but when he started shooting, she saw he was as effective as an expert rifleman. He did not pause between shots to aim and he did not miss. Each arrow struck a scalii chest and, soundlessly, the creatures would sit down and remain still. Not a single one cried out in pain, and Ali wondered if they were happy to die, to have the pain stop.

  Yet she felt pain in her right hand as she raised the fire stones and took aim. Power moved through her arm, and she felt her psychic field expand to perhaps five times the size of her body, but both sensations were erratic, weak. Her first few fiery bolts took down a handful of scaliis, but the penalty was a nauseating wave of dizziness. She almost fell over. On top of everything else she could not stand still and shoot. She had to keep Farble and Paddy going forward, because Ra was right, there were fewer creatures in front of them.

  “We’re going to get out of this!” she shouted.

  For a time, it looked like that might be the case. The scaliis had no weapons. They did not even bother to pick up and throw rocks at them. Pushing aside her dizziness, Ali managed to keep firing, while Ra was taking down a foe every ten seconds. The scaliis understood they were losing big numbers. Right in front of Ali, the creatures’ ranks began to split, to spread up the walls of the gully, seemingly trying to get out of their way. Ali took the opportunity to press the others to greater speed.

  “Let’s make a run for it!” she yelled.

  They broke through the front, and for a moment they were no longer surrounded. The way before them was clear, and the walls of the gully began to lower, to flatten, as if the wretched area might soon come to an end. But behind them the platoon of scaliis was changing into a division. The creatures swelled like a herd of red ants. They did not pick up their speed, but they did not slow their approach, either. Ra and Ali kept shooting at them, but if they killed a dozen a minute, it made no difference—there were three dozen to take their place.

  Finally, Ali gestured for the others to stop.

  “I have to try the flame,” she gasped.

  Ra shook his head. “That almost killed you last time.”

  Ali searched in her backpack for her lighter. “We have no choice. Stop shooting and take Farble and Paddy and make a run for it. I’m going to make a stand here.”

  “We’re not going to leave you,” Ra said.

  “That’s an order!” she snapped, finally finding the lighter. “And I told you before we came here that I would be giving the orders! Now get out of here while you still can!”

  It was Paddy who stepped forward right then. The leprechaun’s wide face dripped yellow sweat and his green eyes were swollen with fright. Yet he reached out and patted her arm. “None of us is going to leave you, Missy,” he said.

  Ali stared at him, touched, then looked at the approaching mass of scaliis, which could not have been more than fifty yards away. Bidding her friends to take shelter behind a nearby boulder, she went down on her knees and held up the Bic lighter and strained to focus on the tiny flame. Yet she felt weak and her lungs ached. It hurt to breathe, and she knew she was not going to be able to tap into the power that had overcome her when the scabs had attacked. At best she might frighten off the scaliis for a few minutes. But since they did not have brains, they would probably come right back.

  Ali went to blow, then stopped, frowned.

  A slithering black shape suddenly appeared atop the right side of the gully. It was massive, a thick worm over a hundred feet long. She assumed it was an ally of the scaliis, but they did not look happy to see it. The huge snake emitted a low roar rather than a hiss and then it was moving fast, sliding down the loose walls of the endless gully, right into the midst of the scaliis. Its size was its weapon. The scaliis tried jumping on it, cutting into it with their claws, spreading out their tentacles, but the creature flopped vigorously, from side to side, showing breathtaking agility, and its sheer mass crushed dozens.

  Yet the scaliis did not run, and by now there were hundreds of them, swarming over the creature, and Ali was uncertain who was going to win the contest. Nevertheless, the sight of the snake coming to their aid—she could only assume it was trying to help—gave an unexpected boost to her power. Once more raising the lighter’s tiny flame, she felt a current rush through her arm, and she blew as hard as she could. Fire roared forth—a flame that did not burn the snake, but one which swept over it, and pushed back the bulk of the attacking scaliis.

  The reprieve was all the huge snake required. Crushing the remaining scaliis that clung to its scaly hide, it threw off the monsters and slithered toward them, pausing a few feet in front of Ali and raising its smooth black head. She was not sure if it was a snake or a lizard, or even a giant worm. But its huge red eyes, she could see, were deep and clear, and it spoke to her in a heavy, low, but still powerful voice.

  “Come with me if you wish to live,” it said.

  Ali took a step back, intimidated by its size. The others looked ready to run.

  “Who are you? Why are you helping us?” she asked.

  “Drash.” He added, “Drash helps because he wants to help.” Paddy grabbed her good hand, anxious. “Do not listen to it, Missy! This is a koul. It’s very dangerous.”

  “Then why is it defending us from the scaliis?” she asked.

  “It wants to be the one to eat us!” Paddy cried.

  Ali turned back to Drash. “Where are you going to take us?”

  “A place, not far from here.” Tossing its huge head in the direction of the smoking scaliis, it said, “You must decide quick.”

  “Will you harm us in any way?” Ali asked.

  “Drash will not harm,” he replied.

  “How will you take us to this place?”

  “Drash will take you on his back.”

  “Don’t do it, Missy!” Paddy pleaded.

  Ali sensed no lie in the words of the koul. Indeed, she could not help noticing that the creature was bleeding slightly from where the scaliis had chewed on its sides, and that its blood looked remarkably human. If it was just after a quick meal, she thought, it could have gone elsewhere and had an easier time. Also, the horde of scaliis was dazed and battered, but it appeared to be regrouping. If she said no to Drash, and the koul left, they would be in the same predicament they had been in five minutes ago, which was not very encouraging.

  “We will trust you to take us out of here,” Ali said. “But I must warn you, I am a powerful fairy. Try to harm us, and you will feel the bite of that power.”

  The koul nodded his gigantic head. “Drash can see what you are. Drash will not harm you or your friends.”

  The koul’s hide was made up of smooth scales. There was a rubbery feel to them, as well as a slight oily texture, although they were not the least bit sticky. As they climbed onto his back, he smelled fresh, like new car upholstery, and there were protruding folds of skin that they could hold on to. It was not difficult to make themselves comfortable.

  Except when it came to Farble. Apparently trolls were more afraid of kouls than leprechauns were. Ali had to get off Drash and slowly coax Farble into sitting beside her. She had to hold the troll’s hand.

  Ali positioned herself right behind Drash’s head, and cautioned the koul not to let any of them slip off. The remark seemed to amuse Drash, for the creature smiled quietly.

  “Drash has done this before,” he said, and with that he slithered out of the gully, moving as effortlessly as a snake through sand, and left the scaliis behind.

  CHAPTER

  15

  They ended up on top of a steep rocky hill, in a large cave that opened onto a stony ledge that commanded a view for many miles around. Ali figured no one could reach the spot—except for another koul—and for that reason she let herself re
lax. South, she could see the mountain where they had entered the elemental kingdom, Tutor, as well as the twin rivers, Elnar and Lestre. The latter ran north of them as well, and the sound of its running water reached their high cliff and filled Ali with odd longings. For some reason she felt the river was a key to her exploration of this world, although it was running south, and she was trying to go north.

  “You mean the kloudar, aye. They are up in the sky.”

  The real shock lay to the north, in the sky.

  The clouds had cleared in that direction and for the first time she laid eyes—human eyes—on the floating kloudar. There was also a deep blue elemental moon, which a vague memory told her remained permanently full. It was fixed where the Pole Star was in the Earth’s sky, and Ali remembered that Paddy had called it Anglar.

  The kloudar circled Anglar like a ring around Saturn, only this ring was not made up of tiny particles of dust but huge blue-white icebergs that appeared immune to gravity. The kloudar were eighty percent encased in ice, and their color was probably due to the reflected light of the moon.

  Ali did not understand the movement of the kloudar. Clearly they floated over a portion of this realm, but when they went behind the moon, did they go into outer space? She tried getting an answer out of Paddy, but since he had a poor conception of space and orbits, she was left uncertain. Yet, like the river Lestre, Ali felt the kloudar were going to be an important aspect of her exploration of the elemental kingdom.

  At first Drash left them alone to eat and regather their strength. Ra risked a fire with her permission—they didn’t want to be spotted—and they heated cans of soup, broke out the nuts and beef jerky, and Ra made them a pot of rice. Farble still had raw beef left, and contented himself by devouring the last of his supplies, and drinking a few gallons of water that trickled from a spring near the opening of the cave. Paddy loved the can of Spam Ali had bought at the market.

  Not eating a lot of any one thing, but chewing her food thoroughly, Ali slowly felt strength return to her limbs. Yet her right hand continued to pain her, even when Ra put on a fresh bandage; there was no helping it.

  Finally, Ali turned to Drash, and invited the koul to come closer to their fire, which he seemed happy to do. She offered him food, but he shook his head, and she imagined the amount she was offering was pitiful by his standards. Farble was big—weighed half a ton—but Drash was fifty times that. Ali loved staring into his shimmering red eyes. They were triangular in shape, burning pyramids in the night, and they gave off almost as much light as their fire. Again, she did not sense evil in him, but she did feel his pain. Was it because of the wounds he had received when he had fought the scaliis? She asked and he said no, the scaliis had only scratched him.

  “I asked you earlier why you came to our aid,” she said to Drash. “And you said it was because you wanted to. Why was that?”

  He studied her a moment. “Drash does not care for the scaliis, he feels they are a perversion of nature. And Drash could see you were a fairy, although you are a type of fairy Drash has never seen before.” He added, almost with a shrug, “For years, before this war, it was normal that dragons and fairies helped each other.”

  “Dragons?” Ali muttered, excited. She turned to Paddy. “Is he a dragon?”

  “Aye, Missy, kouls turn into dragons. Then they are more dangerous than ever.”

  Drash said nothing to defend himself.

  “So you are a baby dragon?” Ali asked Drash.

  “Drash is not a baby, he is not an adult. Drash is a koul,” he replied.

  “He is on the verge of becoming a dragon,” Paddy explained.

  “But not all kouls make it that far. It is said that they have to take three tests, and that most fail.”

  “I know about tests,” Ali said, thinking aloud, perhaps somewhat carelessly. “I had to take seven to regain my fairy powers.”

  “How did you lose them to begin with?” Drash asked.

  “She’s not really a normal fairy,” Paddy began. “She was born—”

  “Shh,” Ali snapped. But the damage, if there was any damage, had already been done. Drash stared at her with wonder.

  “You are not the one, are you?” he asked.

  “Probably not,” Ali said. “Tell me more about these tests you must take.”

  Drash ignored her question, studied her up and down. “You are a fairy and you are not a fairy.” He considered. “Where are you from?”

  Ali hesitated. “Not this world.”

  Drash was suddenly very serious. “Are you from the yellow world?”

  She assumed that meant Earth. “What if I am?” she asked.

  Drash stared at Ra. “You appear somewhat elfish, but you are dark-skinned. You must be from the yellow world.”

  Ra glanced at Ali, then nodded. “I’m not from around here, either,” Ra said.

  Drash turned back to Ali. “Are you the one?”

  “I’m sorry, I’m not sure who the one is,” Ali said.

  “My father told me about the queen of the fairies who decided to be born in the yellow world. The one who was trying to stop the war.” Drash paused. “Are you that one?”

  The koul had saved their lives. Ali felt she owed him the truth. “Yes,” she said.

  Drash shook briefly with wonder, then spoke in his usual deep voice. “You are Geea?” he asked.

  Ali nodded. “That is one of my names. Tell me about your father. Is he a friend of the fairies?”

  The pain she had earlier sensed in him came to the surface. “My father is Kashar, king of the dragons, and for as long as there have been tales to tell and remember, he has been a staunch ally of the fairies. Many times over the long years he visited the high fairies at Uleestar. But recently he has allied himself with the Shaktra, and set the other dragons to killing fairies, elves, dwarves, and leprechauns.” Drash lowered his head in shame, and added, “Drash tried to talk to him, but he would not listen.”

  “Why wouldn’t he listen to you?” Ali asked.

  “Drash is merely a koul.” But the way he said it, Ali sensed he was trying to say much more.

  “Have you ever seen the Shaktra?” Ali asked.

  “No. My father has, but he refused to describe it.”

  “But why would your father betray his old alliances with the fairies to support such a monster?”

  “Because the Shaktra promised him the one thing dragons long for above all else. It told him that it would show him how to remain on the kloudar, even when they pass onto the other side of Anglar.” Drash added, “That way all the dragons would be able to enter the blue universe, like the ice maidens, and leave the bounds of this world behind.”

  Ali noted that Drash referred to the blue realm as a “universe,” whereas he saw the elemental kingdom as a mere world. She could only assume there were different levels to the worlds, and that the elemental one was above Earth, and that the blue one was above the elemental one. It was like the dragons were trying to evolve—perhaps everything was—and the Shaktra was promising a shortcut. From all she had seen so far, Ali doubted it was going to deliver on its promise. She said as much to Drash and he agreed.

  “Drash thinks his father has been bewitched,” Drash said.

  “How so?” Ali asked.

  Drash was silent a long moment. “Drash has heard a rumor that the Shaktra is able to give the dragons a taste of the blue universe.”

  “A taste? Interesting choice of words. Is the Shaktra feeding them something?”

  “Drash does not know for sure. But if the Shaktra is, then it cannot stop.” He added, “Or perhaps Drash should say, the dragons do not want it to stop.”

  Ali shook her head. “Now I’m really confused. Is the Shaktra feeding them an addictive substance?”

  “Like opium?” Ra asked.

  “Shh. Quit talking about your opium,” Ali said.

  Again, Drash was slow to answer, and his eventual reply was at best vague.

  “Drash can see that the dragons
have changed for the worse,” he replied.

  “I see,” Ali muttered, before trying a different approach. “Can dragons blow out big streams of fire?”

  “Of course,” Drash said.

  “And the kloudar are covered with ice?” she asked.

  “Yes,” Drash said.

  Fire and ice, she thought.

  Ali reflected on the damage to the woods she had seen that afternoon. “Are the dragons helping the Shaktra by burning off huge chunks of ice from the kloudar? And letting them crashland?”

  Drash nodded sadly. “The ice makes for a terrible weapon.”

  “The kloudar orbit far north of here,” Ra asked. “We saw crushed trees south of here. How did that happen?”

  “My father has commanded teams of dragons to pull several of the kloudar south. It is from those ones that the sheets of ice fell, and caused the damage you saw.”

  Ra turned to Ali. “That makes the kloudar into the equivalent of inertia weapons. I have seen programs about them on your TV. Scientists believe they are the weapons of the future, and fear them. All you have to do is get a few thousand tons of rock orbiting the Earth and you can toss them down when and where you want. The dragons are doing the same here. There’s no way the other elementals could stand against such a weapon.”

  “The fairies, elves, dwarves, and leprechauns have all retreated into the east, trying to escape the hordes of scaliis and the falling ice,” Drash said. “It’s said the Shaktra has them trapped against the mountains. Their only escape is to surrender to the Shaktra and agree to enter the yellow world and live there.”

  “The Shaktra is trying to force the elementals to invade the Earth again,” Ali said.

  “It sounds like it,” Ra agreed.

  “The elementals just want to survive,” Drash said.

  Ali nodded. “I know that’s true. I know they’re not the real enemy.”

  Drash stared at her once more. “Can you help our world?”

  Ali hesitated. “I’m here to help. But there is still much I don’t understand. When I was born as a human, I lost the bulk of my fairy memories. That’s why I keep asking you questions.”