Very well. Khollo slumped forward again and fell asleep almost immediately.
This time, he was awoken by one of the lurching motions that had so worried him earlier in their flight.
Khollo grabbed wildly for the spine in front of him, shouting in alarm. Kanin beat his wings once, twice, then returned to a smooth glide.
What happened? Khollo asked.
Nothing, Kanin replied a little too quickly.
Kanin, Khollo said sternly.
The current may or may not have weakened slightly, Kanin said after a long silence.
In other words, it did weaken but you don’t want to worry me.
I suppose that is one way to look at the situation.
Khollo closed his eyes briefly in annoyance, then checked the position of the sun. Midafternoon. Four hours until nightfall, if he was any judge. And then the entire night and who knew how much of the next day.
I hope the current holds up, Khollo murmured.
It is still strong, Kanin promised. There is nothing to fear right now.
Khollo sighed and reached for the food in his saddlebags. Might as well eat while I’m awake, he thought to himself, assembling yet another sandwich of meat and bread. The bread was growing stale, the meat tasteless. And the water would soon taste more like the leather skin it was being carried in than anything else.
The young warrior finished his meal and surveyed the horizon. Nothing. With a sigh, Khollo leaned forward and closed his eyes, dozing fitfully through the evening and into the night. But not long after midnight, his eyes snapped open as he realized they were losing altitude.
“Kanin!” he shouted.
I know! the dragon replied immediately. The current weakens again!
How bad is it?
Kanin continued gliding, but they were losing altitude. I think . . . I think it is gone, Kanin said finally.
Khollo groaned quietly. Are you sure?
I do not sense it anymore.
What do we do?
We keep flying, Kanin said. I am strong and our best chance is straight ahead, towards your city of Ishkabur. I can fly far without the wind to aid me.
How far?
Kanin made no reply.
Khollo leaned forward and patted the great scaly neck reassuringly. Just . . . pace yourself, all right? Maybe the currents will return.
Maybe, Kanin agreed. But he did not sound optimistic.
They flew on through the night, Kanin beating his wings regularly to maintain speed and altitude. Khollo did not sleep the rest of the night, worried as he was about the disappearance of the warm air currents so critical to their survival. He and Kanin did not talk to each other during the interval, each absorbed with his own thoughts and worries.
The sun rose and still the currents did not return. Kanin’s wings were slowing, his head drooping. Khollo consulted his map, trying to guess how far from land they might be. But with no landmarks around, it was an impossible task.
Midmorning came and went. Khollo ate a sparing meal, which was all that his stomach would allow, knotted with tension as it was. He was just beginning to wonder whether dragons float in the sea when Kanin began climbing higher into the sky.
“What are you doing?” Khollo shouted.
If we are to see land, we will see it sooner from above, Kanin told him.
Yes, but you are supposed to be conserving your strength!
I can glide back down to where we were, but I want to know if there is land in sight.
Khollo nodded and peered eastward, looking for any sign that their journey was near its end. There was nothing but sea to the left and right. The day had grown cloudy though, and the horizon was somewhat obscured. Great banks of clouds, rather like mountains, seemed to hang close to the water.
Nothing but clouds, Khollo observed.
Do the clouds look strange to you? Kanin asked.
They do seem exceptionally close to the surface of the water, Khollo said. But other than that, no. They look like clouds.
They look more solid to me.
Khollo frowned. Your eyes are keener than mine, but why would the clouds be more solid –
Unless they are not clouds at all, Kanin interrupted. The dragon surged forward eagerly, straining his wings, Khollo’s shout of surprise lost in the wind.
As they closed rapidly on the strange sight, Khollo realized that Kanin was right. What lay ahead was not clouds but mountains, the peaks blanketed with snow. And mountains meant land. But which mountains were these?
We will find out when we get there, Kanin said in reply to Khollo’s unspoken question. For now, fly! The dragon beat his wings even faster, barreling towards land.
Less than an hour later, Khollo looked down and watched the shoreline pass beneath them. The water ended abruptly to the right and ahead, but to the left it continued to stretch northwards along a slanted coastline.
Kanin glided smoothly down to the shore, which was sandy and coated in sea foam. As soon as he touched down, Khollo unrolled the map and began trying to find where they were. “Mountains,” he murmured. “More sea to the north . . . more land to the south and east . . . I’ve got it!” he announced triumphantly.
Kanin twisted his great neck to look down at the map, at the place where Khollo was pointing. Just south of Ishkabur, the dragon observed.
Yes, at the widest part of the inlet, Khollo agreed. Much further east and we would be able to see the northern coastline too. We’re nearly there!
Good, then we can rest before the battle, Kanin said, curling up on the shore.
Khollo shrugged. Might as well. We’ll fly over to Ishkabur this evening, see what we can do for them. They could probably use some help,
