Rolling Thunder spoke a few words to Yellow Cloud, who answered them by glaring at the boy and saying something quickly and in a firm tone of voice. Both the boys blushed and lowered their heads. Yellow Cloud placed his hand deliberately on Jake’s shoulder as if it was a sign. Then two more riders stepped forward and placed their hands on the shoulders of the other two boys, claiming their apprentices.
Tall Elk raised his hands in the air and spoke some words that Jake didn’t understand, but which made his heart skip a beat. It was going to be a very special day. Jake was going to take a step closer to finding his family. When the short ceremony was over, Tall Elk led the group to the Thunderbird enclosure, and the three riders and their apprentices entered.
Jake soon realized that none of the boys had ever ridden a dragon, and he was astonished that they seemed afraid. He watched the first struggle to mount a beast, despite help from its rider, and the second was pale and his hands were shaking. The riders coaxed and soothed the apprentices and the dragons for twenty minutes before the two boys were settled on their mounts, their riders seated behind them.
Jake was the last to mount, and the other boys’ jaws dropped as he climbed on to Yellow Cloud’s dragon with the ease and grace of a practised rider. Jake pushed his hands into the feathers at the nape of the beast’s neck and felt Yellow Cloud’s torso behind him and his arms to either side as the rider took up his position. Jake felt as if he had come home.
The dragons rose into the air and made large lazy circles in the sky. Those left behind looked up at the dragons, hollering and hooting, celebrating the first rides of the three new apprentices.
As the noise subsided, the dragons turned to fly west over the forest. They flew higher than Jake had flown when he’d ridden with Yellow Cloud through the clouds and up to the settlement, but he felt totally secure. He watched the ground beneath getting further away until it was a dark green and grey patchwork of mountains and forests.
Jake also watched Yellow Cloud’s hands. The Native had taken clumps of feathers in his fists, holding his hands upright so that his thumbs were uppermost. His hands worked in unison. When Yellow Cloud tilted his hands to the left, the Thunderbird turned left; when he tilted his hands right, the Thunderbird turned right.
Jake soon noticed that the movements were more subtle. By tipping, tilting and rotating his hands, Yellow Cloud was not only able to signal the dragon to sail left or right but also how far in those directions it should turn, as well as its position in the sky relative to the ground. The flexing of the rider’s leg muscles seemed to regulate acceleration, from a gentle hover to speeds that Jake knew were impossible in a wagon or even on horseback. The dragons were also able to fly fast for some time, unlike a horse, which could only gallop fast for a mile or two before it tired.
Jake hoped that the flight would never end. After about an hour, he noticed that the dragons had slowed down and were circling. The long, lazy, sweeping arcs almost made him feel like they were drifting down to earth.
He looked over the dragon’s shoulder at a landscape that was full of the most extraordinary colour. The land opened up into a broad, shallow canyon, and he looked down into a steaming pool of purple mud, which looked like a great eye in the landscape. As they pulled around in a sweeping curve, Jake saw the surrounding land forming an expanse of orange dust that glinted and glistened in the sun.
He guessed this place must be higher even than the waterfall, as the dragon had not dropped nearly so far as it had risen in the sky on leaving the settlement. Another sweeping circle closer to the ground showed Jake a modest settlement with several small teepees and a corral, to the east of the canyon.
Jake knew at once that his dragon was in that corral, waiting for him. He could feel it in the warm pulse of his wrist as the gem of his bracelet rested there. He couldn’t wait to sit on his own dragon’s back.
Sweeping gently down, a dozen yards from the ground, Jake was amazed to see the great purple pool, the rich, dark mud bubbling on the surface. It looked, to him, like a huge cauldron sunk in the ground. He breathed deeply of the steam that rose off the mud, which smelled of the sulphur in his father’s ointments. Jake’s heart ached for a moment, and then he remembered that this was all part of his quest to find his pa and ma and Emmie.
The dragons approached the ground at a steep angle, extending their hind legs to take their weight. Then they dropped down on to four paws so that their riders could dismount. Rolling Thunder almost fell off the dragon he’d ridden in on, dropping to the ground, pale and wretched. Two Natives picked the boy up and took him to one of the teepees.
It took Grey Wolf’s rider several minutes to coax him off the dragon, as he clung to its neck, his head buried in the feathers. He shook all over, rooted to the spot.
Jake felt sorry for the boys, but he was determined they were not going to spoil all the wonderful new experiences he was having. He even believed that Julius Greengrass would envy his amazing adventures. The only dragon that Greengrass had ever ridden was a mechanical one, and not the real thing at all.
The apprentices were taken to the teepee to recover. There was fruit and water, but, after he’d taken as much as he wanted of each, Jake was eager to get back to the corral, to be with Yellow Cloud and the dragons.
Jake tried to help Rolling Thunder and Grey Wolf to recover, but he didn’t speak their language, and they didn’t seem to want his help. He quickly decided to leave the boys alone and find Yellow Cloud, so he ducked out of the teepee and made his way back to the corral. As he approached, all of the dragons, including a pair of smaller, younger ones, stopped what they were doing and quietened. They lifted their heads and looked in Jake’s direction in silence. Taking their lead from the dragons, the riders left the corral.
‘There are but two young Thunderbirds ready for their riders,’ said Yellow Cloud, who was standing inside the corral with the dragons.
‘For the others?’ asked Jake, gesturing towards the teepee where the two boys were recovering.
‘They expected only two,’ said Yellow Cloud.
Jake didn’t care. He knew in his heart that one of the young dragons in the corral was meant for him. He looked up at Yellow Cloud and then opened the gate of the corral and walked inside to stand beside him. Then Jake began to remove the bracelet from his left wrist.
Yellow Cloud reached down and took Jake’s wrist, looking hard into the boy’s face. Yellow Cloud could feel the throb in Jake’s arm and the heat in his tattoo. He let go of Jake and nodded once, slowly, not taking his eyes off the boy’s face. Jake took the bracelet from his wrist and held it by one end in his left hand.
The dragons that they had ridden on lay down in the corral and placed their heads on the ground. Their riders watched in awe. The two young dragons watched Jake, their heads high in the air. Jake swung the bracelet above his head until a rich, warm sound whistled from it, like a perfectly sung note that might shatter glass.
The two young dragons walked towards Jake, side by side, stopping within a few feet of where he stood. They pawed at the ground, swishing their tails and tossing their heads. Then they flexed their wings, making the scales gleam and shimmer. Finally, they snorted puffs of sulphurous breath from their nostrils, which formed yellow clouds in the air. Suddenly, both of the dragons lowered their forelegs to the ground and placed their heads flat on the earth.
‘Both?’ asked Yellow Cloud. One of the other riders spoke a few urgent words to him, and Yellow Cloud nodded, answered and turned to Jake. He was too late.
The larger of the two dragons, with its sulphur yellow and sapling green splashes of colour, lifted its head off the ground and breathed a great puff of sulphur a
t the other one. The smaller dragon had irregular patches of glossy forest green. It blinked its eyes and closed its nostrils. Then it made a low humming noise, keeping its head on the ground in respect to its master. The larger dragon dipped its head and then lifted it again, lunging at the smaller creature, its forked tongue flicking between rows of razor-sharp teeth.
Jake took one deliberate step forward. He lifted his left hand, clenched his fist and brought it down sharply on the larger dragon’s snout. The beast mewled as it dropped its head back on to the ground.
‘It is our custom for the Thunderbird to choose his rider,’ said Yellow Cloud. ‘I have never seen two Thunderbirds choose one rider.’
‘Am I to ride neither then?’ asked Jake, defiant.
‘You must choose,’ said Yellow Cloud. ‘Choose wisely, my brother.’
Jake did not need to be asked twice. He opened his left fist and fastened his bracelet back around his wrist. Then he placed his left hand, palm down, on the little green dragon’s snout. Somehow, he knew that he was destined to be its rider. The creature opened its eyes and breathed a yellow whiff of smoke from its nostrils. When Jake removed his hand, the little dragon stood up, and the Native riders whooped and hooted their approval.
Jake heard a faint holler from behind him and turned to see Grey Wolf standing at a distance, watching.
‘What will happen to the other dragon?’ he asked, turning to Yellow Cloud.
‘I have never seen a rider reject a Thunderbird,’ said Yellow Cloud. ‘He might not be fit to ride.’
‘I could introduce him to Grey Wolf,’ said Jake, gesturing to the Native boy.
Yellow Cloud exchanged a few words with the other riders as Jake reached up to pat his dragon on the flanks. The dragon leaned down, placing his head in Jake’s arms. Jake looked up to see Grey Wolf staring, wide-eyed, at him.
‘We shall see,’ said Yellow Cloud to Jake. Then he beckoned the boy over, and Grey Wolf walked to the corral, tripping over in his hesitation.
Within ten minutes, Jake had successfully introduced Grey Wolf to the larger of the dragons. At first, the boy was afraid and the dragon reluctant, but Jake handled the dragon as if he was its master, and the creature responded to his silent commands.
Half an hour later, Jake was alone with Yellow Cloud and the little green dragon as the other riders worked with Grey Wolf.
‘May I call him Match?’ asked Jake, rubbing his dragon’s snout.
Yellow Cloud looked at Jake sternly.
‘Did I do something wrong?’ asked Jake, embarrassed.
‘We follow customs when we give a beast or a man a name. What is Match? Naming is a serious business and cannot be undertaken lightly.’
‘I’m sorry,’ said Jake. ‘Matchstruck is my favourite writer. I used to read his books all the time. I wanted to remember him today because something amazing has happened.’
‘We will talk to Tall Elk and Chief Half Moon,’ said Yellow Cloud, ‘and an appropriate name will be selected.’
‘It’s a funny name for a man,’ said Jake, ‘but when a match is struck it makes fire.’
‘How does it make fire?’ asked Yellow Cloud.
‘I don’t know … sulphur?’ asked Jake.
Yellow Cloud looked blankly at Jake.
‘Maybe they’re magic,’ said Jake. ‘They smell like a dragon’s breath.’
‘Then I can think of no better name for him,’ said Yellow Cloud, smiling.
After being introduced to his Thunderbird, Grey Wolf felt tired and overwhelmed. He soon returned to the teepee with the riders.
Jake wanted nothing more than to begin his training in earnest, but, once Match was named, Yellow Cloud insisted that they all needed to eat. They should also check on Rolling Thunder and make sure that Grey Wolf rested.
‘To come to this place and to meet your Thunderbird is difficult and tiring work,’ said Yellow Cloud.
‘I’m not tired,’ said Jake.
‘No,’ said Yellow Cloud, ‘but we have travelled far and the other boys have suffered.’
Jake realized that he must do as he was told and went quietly with the others back to the teepee. Rolling Thunder seemed to have recovered somewhat. He smiled nervously, and the colour returned to his cheeks.
‘He looks happy,’ Jake said to Yellow Cloud.
‘He is relieved not to find his Thunderbird today,’ said Yellow Cloud.
Jake was shocked.
‘This is the most exciting day of my life,’ he said.
‘For many it is the most frightening,’ said Yellow Cloud. ‘The riders are chosen by their spirit guides, but their paths are often difficult. You are the lucky one.’
Jake certainly felt lucky. He waited for Yellow Cloud to eat and rest, but, as soon as he thought he was idling, he stood up.
‘I’m ready,’ he said.
‘Ready?’ asked Yellow Cloud.
‘For my first riding lesson,’ said Jake.
They left the teepee and walked towards the corral. The three boys stayed outside, while the three riders led their Thunderbirds out, leaving the two young dragons to rest. There followed a short demonstration of the correct way to mount a dragon, where the rider should place his feet and how to hold the neck feathers.
Grey Wolf and Rolling Thunder watched, intent, as the riders went through their paces. The three dragons launched into the air and made slow, sweeping circles above their heads. Then they flew out in the direction of the great purple pool. The boys followed on foot, walking for ten minutes across the orange sand.
Jake noticed several times that the sand beneath his feet felt gritty, like broken glass. It glinted and glittered as the noonday sun shone down on it. He bent down to scoop the sand into his hand and let it filter out through his fingers, leaving the two largest stones in his palm. They were orange and clear like sugar boiled up into hard candy. Jake put them in his pocket and jogged to catch up with the others.
When the boys arrived at the poolside, the dragons were already submerged in the wet mud. The thick purple liquid rolled down their necks and off their wingtips. The Native riders who had been tending the young beasts before they were paired were also there, doubling their numbers.
‘Why are we here?’ Jake asked Yellow Cloud. ‘I thought I was going to learn to ride.’
‘All things in their time,’ said Yellow Cloud. ‘It is important to be relaxed when learning. A long walk is very calming.’
‘I have taken a long walk,’ said Jake. ‘Am I to ride back with you?’
‘When a Thunderbird has been paired with its rider, it is better not to ride another,’ said Yellow Cloud.
‘So I’m not riding back to the corral with you?’ asked Jake.
‘No,’ said Yellow Cloud, grinning at him.
‘What’s so funny?’ asked Jake. Yellow Cloud laughed, showing his straight white teeth.
‘Don’t laugh,’ said Jake, smiling slightly. His eyes shone as he took the bracelet from his left wrist and held it high over his head.
Yellow Cloud stopped laughing abruptly, and all eyes turned on Jake. He began to swing the bracelet, and, when it reached a certain speed through the air, the beautiful, clean note sang out. Jake swung the bracelet for several seconds, as the Natives watched, aghast.
When he thought it was time to stop, before he began to look foolish, Jake dropped his arm and fastened the bracelet back around his wrist. All the time, he kept the fingers of his left hand crossed. All the while his left arm had been tingling and throbbing, and, even after he had replaced the bracelet, Jake could feel a strong pulse in his palm. The sensation was so strong, in fact, that Jake looked down at his hand.
He was amazed to see a strange light shining out from the ridged circle at the centre of his palm, as if his hand was burning and blistering all over again.
Then he heard it, and so did the Natives. Without hesitating, they all lifted their hands to shield their eyes from the sun and watched as Jake’s little green dragon flew hard towards them. It stopped only when it was right over them and then dropped down as close to Jake as it could manage. The little dragon lowered itself on to all fours and rested its head on the ground at Jake’s feet.
‘So,’ said Yellow Cloud, ‘the lesson begins.’
‘Good,’ said Jake. He wanted to sound confident, but he was so excited his cheeks were flushing, and he couldn’t keep the smile off his face. He could also feel butterflies of anticipation in the pit of his belly, and his hands were sweating.
Jake touched Match on the head, and the dragon stood up for him. He reached up and placed his left hand on the dragon’s neck and his left foot on its knee. Then he hoisted himself up and gripped the little dragon’s feathered nape. In one fluid movement, he hauled himself on to the beast’s back. Jake’s hands were close together in its neck feathers, his back was straight and his feet rested in the grooves where the beast’s forelegs met its body.
Yellow Cloud walked around the Thunderbird to check that Jake was sitting correctly in the rider’s position. He was amazed that he didn’t have to make any adjustments to the boy’s posture.
Making sure that Yellow Cloud was clear of Match’s forelegs, Jake increased his grip on the neck feathers. Match lifted his forelegs and arched his back into the rampant position. Then he began to unfurl his scaly wings, the feathers at the alula joint fluttering as he spread them to either side of his body.
The astonished Natives, including Yellow Cloud, hooted and whooped. A much-recovered Rolling Thunder even stamped a little dance in the sand, kicking up shiny, glinting grains.
‘You will soon be riding like a true scout of the Cloud People,’ said Yellow Cloud, genuinely impressed. ‘Now we must return to the corral. You must learn to care for Match. He will be your companion for life.’