I see you, Kanin announced. But I don’t see . . . run!
Way ahead of you, Khollo replied, putting on a burst of speed. He chanced one more look over his shoulder, wondering what sort of beast was pursuing him.
The underbrush exploded in a whirlwind of motion and noise as a tremendous striped monstrosity bounded towards him. Khollo quickly classified it as some sort of large cat, then focused on running. The beast was easily two meters long, and even with his Sen-teel he would be hard pressed to fight it. The holds were less than a hundred feet away now. Maybe if he could reach them, he could put his back against a wall and fend off the creature.
Any ideas? he asked Kanin.
Only one, the dragon replied. Keep running, right into one of the lower holds.
Khollo looked up and saw Kanin launch himself from the ledge two levels above. The dragon plummeted for a moment, then his wings snapped open and he landed lightly, setting the earth shaking. With an ear-shattering roar, Kanin spread his wings and challenged the massive cat.
The beast skidded to a stop, less than thirty feet away, and began pacing to the left, trying to circle around. Kanin moved with the creature, never losing sight of it, always keeping his talons ready to strike at the beast. Khollo noticed that Kanin was still favoring his left foreleg, and very obviously. He stepped up to protect the dragon’s flank, brandishing his Sen-teel.
The tiger, for Khollo could see it well enough now to determine that it was in fact a tiger, growled with displeasure at having its quarry escape. Kanin answered with a deep rumbling noise that reverberated through the jungle, shaking the ground underfoot. The tiger backed off slightly, then fixed its gaze on Khollo.
It’s not scared, Kanin warned. Since dragons have been gone for so long, it seems to have lost its respect for my kind.
Well, teach it to respect you, quickly! Khollo replied. It looks hungry.
Kanin roared again and spewed forth a gout of flame that struck the ground just in front of the tiger. The cat leapt back nimbly, finally looking away from Khollo and staring at the raging inferno mere feet from its paws. It growled uncertainly, then took a half pace back. Suddenly, in a fluid movement, it spun and ran back into the jungle, disappearing as quickly as it had arrived.
Khollo sighed and lowered his Sen-teel, panting from the exertion of the last few minutes. “Thanks,” he said to Kanin.
You’re welcome.
Are you hurt?
Kanin shifted a little awkwardly, half-flapping his great wings. Not badly. My leg is still sore.
I’ll bet, after jumping off the third level to rescue my sorry hide, Khollo replied.
Kanin shrugged, his shoulders rising slightly, then bent his head to clean some of the scales on the inside of his right foreleg. We should not travel alone in the jungle anymore, he said after a short pause. He finished cleaning his scales and looked over at Khollo. Especially you.
Yes, I’m no match for a beast that size, Khollo agreed. Will you be up to flying tomorrow?
We will see, Kanin replied doubtfully. Did you find anything in the book hall?
Khollo grinned. You mean the library?
Kanin snorted in protest and nosed at his right foreleg again. Book hall, he insisted. That is what it is, why call it anything else?
Because library is easier, Khollo explained. And unique. It could only refer to one place.
So can book hall.
In this situation, yes, but not always. Which is why we call it a library so that we don’t get confused later.
I am already confused, Kanin reported, studying Khollo with his whirling eyes. Why should I be worried about getting confused more later?
“Never mind,” Khollo muttered aloud. “Let’s get back up to the hold, then we’ll talk.”
Kanin extended a thick, scaly foreleg and Khollo climbed on. The dragon flapped his great wings, buffeting the ground and stirring up a cloud of dirt and small bits of vegetation as he lifted off. They climbed slowly upwards until they were level with the hold. Kanin hovered over the ledge for a moment, then landed with an awkward hop, standing on his three good legs. Khollo jumped down from Kanin’s back and led the way into the hold.
So, what was in the book hall? Kanin asked again.
Khollo sighed and retreated to the kitchen, seeking an evening meal. Not much, he admitted. I must have looked through hundreds of scrolls trying to find a map that would tell us where this island is in relation to everything.
And – ?
No luck, Khollo replied, swinging open the door to the storeroom. He surveyed the contents for a moment, then scooped up one of his flat pieces of bread and some beef strips. He placed these on a wooden plate he had carved while sitting on the ledge with Kanin earlier in the week. He quickly rolled the meat in the flatbread and took a large bite, chewing thoughtfully.
I did find something interesting though, Khollo remembered as he swallowed. A map of the Fells.
The who?
The Fells, Khollo said again. The mountains around the place where you were held prisoner.
Oh. Kanin shuffled his wings and peered through the window at Khollo. I have been trying to forget about that.
Sorry, Khollo said. Anyway, I found a map of the Fells, a very old map. Many of the cities I know were not marked on it. But there was a city in the mountains that I had never heard of. It was called Dun Carryl, I think.
Kanin lowered his head to the edge of the
