We approached the fire close enough to see those sitting around it, but so that they couldnt see us. I wrapped my arms around Roses waist and soared into the air with her, a few meters off the ground, so I could see what was going on below without the danger of being seen.
There was only one man I knew warming up by the fire; I didnt know the rest of them. Royce, stretched out on the ground and taking the most comfortable seat by the fire, looked like a puny schoolboy who had strayed into the respectable company of adults. I wondered how his roughly dressed, unshaven companions, accustomed to the hardships of outlaw life, would not push him aside to make them comfortable.
Royce looked regretfully at the bones that had been picked off by the fire, and clung to a half-empty bottle for solace. The single teenager in black looked strange, even unnatural, next to people dressed in sheepskin vests and darned linen shirts and simple pants, as if he were invisible to human perception and only Rose and I saw him because we were the same elusive creatures, and those who sat by the fire had no idea that an evil spirit was lying around them and watching them. Royces eyebrows drew together at the bridge of his nose, his fingers nervously tugging at the strings of his blanket as if he were really invisible, wondering what he could whisper in these mens ears to incite them to a scuffle. It was more the evil spirits job to make mischief than to watch, but he couldnt think of any suitable tricks, so he just lay there by the fire and kept silent.
Its getting cold,» someone from the untrustworthy company remarked. «Why dont we go warm up in your caves or the ravine? Wheres that ridge you were talking about? I walked a couple of miles, almost got lost, but I didnt see anything, not a cliff, not a rocky ridge, not even an ordinary rock underfoot. It is a damn island. I wont let anyone else drag me to such a place.»
Some of those sitting by the fire, though they werent cold, shuddered at his words.
«Were not going anywhere,» Royce said in a commanding tone. «My lord told us to wait here and keep an eye on whats going on.»
«What can happen here?»
«Something interesting,» said Royce, his eyes sparkling mischievously. «If you could read, Id let you see the story I stole, but you think learning to read is a sin. Why learn to read and write when you can sign on the throats of those who are late and have coins jingling in their pockets?» Royce laughed. «And since you are illiterate, my friend, you will have to content yourself with what I can state verbally.»
«Have you seen the demon the story is about?» Someone else asked, with interest, evidently someone who had spelled a little and read a few things for himself.»
«I no longer wish to see him at close range, the sun can only be seen at a distance, and even then it hurts my eyes,» Royce put down his bottle again and grinned blissfully, like a drunk. «How bad for those shortsighted brigands who meet a supernatural being by chance and unknowingly decide to rob him as a mere mortal. Wanted easy gain, and caught his own death,» Royce made a snap of his fingers as if he wanted to signal that a scene from a book he particularly liked was repeated before his eyes. «Imagine, you catch a young dandy, whisper trick or treat in his ear, and suddenly he turns to you, and you realize that you tried to attack the devil himself, and you want to run away to save yourself, but you cant, because you were in his clutches willingly. What would you do if you were in that situation? What would the bravest of you do in this case?»
Royce looked around the circle of his drinking companions with questioning, demanding eyes.
«Well,» said one who had been drinking heavily. «The main thing is not to be frightened, you have to fight back.»
«Oh, really?» skeptically grinned Royce.
«I would have used a knife. Id have torn his claws out,» the braggart tried urgently to save his reputation, but there was a terribly sneering look in Royces eyes. Not that hed had too much to drink, but he couldnt have believed in my power unless hed been shaken. Something must have happened to him that made it unnecessary to convince him that a dragon was invincible.
Royce was flighty and reckless, but he had suddenly learned at least one truth.
«I know how it is with simpletons who overestimate their fortitude,» he suddenly said. «I was disappointed. I was flirting, and I got caught in a trap. Thats how it goes, you see a pretty girl running past, not wanting to linger even for a moment near you, you catch up with her, catch her by the hand, and suddenly realize that you have caught your own death, which wanted to delay, give a reprieve, so it rushed away from you, and you caught up with it.»
Royce took another sip from the bottle, taking tiny sips, more for evidence that he was one of the company, but with the expectation of remaining sober.
«Ever since I was deceived, Ive had the same dream all the time. It is a dream about her. She runs by, I grab her wrist, and suddenly I see that the skin I touched is riddled with tiny plague sores. She turns her pale face toward me, her eyes ablaze with scarlet fire, and I see a look of reproach in them. Death wanted to avoid me, but I followed her.
«Youre drunk,» the man who sat closest to Royce patted Royce on the shoulder in a friendly manner.
«The bottle is half-full,» Royce said optimistically.
«Yes, thats right, no ones ever been this tipsy before,» the bold man encouraged him and added. «And yet, as helpless as youve been in assuring us of our power, I wouldnt be as taken aback as everyone else by the sight of one glowing eye, the one I caught with a knife to the throat, Id tear out your dragons sting. Cut his throat and he wont be able to bite or breathe fire. You just think you got a smaller share of the drinks, so youre angry and want to intimidate us.»
«You dont think half a bottle is enough for him to fall under the table,» my question sounded not out loud, but only in the braggarts mind. It was amusing to watch him from high above as he looked at, trying to find the stranger whose voice he had just heard.
«Must be the wind,» he finally whispered, though he wasnt sure it was. He just needed something to cheer himself up.
«Is it the wind?» Royce interjected skeptically. «The slightest breeze would have kicked up a whirlwind, and look at the ash everywhere.»
«Your madness is contagious,» said the other man. «I have the feeling that someone is watching us, someone we cant see.»
I squeezed Roses waist tightly and laughed merrily, as if it were a witty joke. They heard the laughter, but they couldnt see me. Because the sound came from above, it seemed to come from everywhere, from all sides of the desolate terrain.
There were no more caustic remarks. The laughter rang like a bell and fell silent, but none of those who heard the cheerful, ominous shimmering was able to utter a word. What if their next utterance brought something more frightening to life than just a chilling sound? Royce squatted, wrapped himself in his blanket and whispered something with his lips, as if he wanted to call for help. He was the only one in the company who seemed to realize that the laughter was coming from on high, and so he stared stubbornly at the ground, as if afraid to notice who might be watching him now, hovering in the air just above the heads of those who, unlike winged creatures, are chained to the ground.
Of course, Id rather burst out laughing than smash someones head in, but the dragon inside me hissed. He wouldnt have cared if hed been censured, proud of every angry word he received, but laughing at him and not believing in his powers was a serious insult.