Seth and Tempest

  “Are you ready?” Seth called.

  “We put the training saddle on Tempest,” Obun announced.

  “Training saddle?” Seth asked, skidding to a stop as he reached the dwarfs, wondering how long he had before Simrin returned with Grandpa.

  “It’s a tad bulkier than a standard saddle or a racing saddle,” Didger said. “But it provides the rider more support. A griffin in training might turn too sharply and break your back or send you flying from the saddle.”

  “Okay,” Seth said. “I do want sharp turns. How do I mount up?”

  “Haven’t you ever ridden a griffin?” Obun asked.

  “I flew with one before,” Seth said. “Never in a training saddle.”

  Seth reached into his pocket and took out Calvin. Then he crouched, pretending to check his shoelace as he set the nipsie on the ground. Calvin gave a thumbs-up and rushed to hide in some straw.

  “Do you know your destination?” Didger asked. “We should make sure Tempest knows where to go before she takes off. It could prove important with so many dragons out there.”

  “Let’s tell her last minute,” Seth said. “We should hurry. I’m running out of time.”

  Obun and Didger helped Seth into a saddle with a high back, then secured straps around his legs and waist. “This isn’t super comfortable,” Seth said.

  “The back of the saddle is less rigid than it seems,” Didger said. “Under enough pressure it will bend. It could save your spine today.”

  “How do I get out of the saddle?” Seth asked.

  “Ingenious, really,” Obun said. “Just tug these two releases at the same time.” He showed Seth the straps he meant. “Tug hard, lad, and you’ll be free.”

  “Brunwin told us you were sure about this,” Didger said. “But are you really? There are so many dragons out there.”

  “We’ll outrun them,” Seth said. “Right, Tempest?”

  The griffin gave a screech.

  “She’s fast,” Obun said. “And inventive. And still half wild. Normally I would say riding her on a clear day with no enemies would be a significant risk. But I don’t think any of our other griffins would have as good a chance against these terrible odds.”

  “I should go,” Seth said.

  “The destination?” Didger reminded him.

  “The Fairy Queen’s shrine,” Seth whispered.

  “The shrine?” Obun exclaimed. “Doesn’t matter if you’re caretaker. You’ll be obliterated for setting foot there.”

  “Maybe,” Seth acknowledged. “But my sister is becoming friends with the Fairy Queen. The Queen has helped her before in emergencies. I’m hoping she’ll help me. I can’t think of any other options. I better go.”

  “Fairy Queen’s shrine,” Didger repeated loudly. “Do you understand?”

  Tempest bobbed her head and screeched.

  Obun and Didger untethered the griffin. Tempest flexed her wings.

  The door at the far end of the stable opened. Simrin stood there. Seth could see Grandpa, Grandma, Kendra, and Marat following behind.

  “Stop that boy!” Simrin ordered.

  “Seth!” Grandpa called from behind her.

  “Go, Tempest,” Seth urged. “Now! Fly!”

  Apparently fly was the magic word.

  Tempest raced down the aisle to the nearest door. It burst open, and the griffin sprang into the air, rising in a spiral, wings flapping aggressively. The protests from the ground quickly faded out of earshot. Looking down, Seth saw Blackwell Keep shrinking below him. He realized that the spiraling climb enabled Tempest to gain altitude without passing beyond the barriers protecting the keep.

  After some time, the griffin swung to one side, tucked her wings, and entered a steep dive. Seth felt like his insides rose to his shoulders, and he couldn’t help laughing as tingles coursed through him.

  Still diving, Tempest passed beyond the barrier.

  And then the real ride began.

  Several dragons came at them, but Seth could only barely track what was happening. It was like riding a roller coaster designed by a mad genius. And the train kept jumping off the tracks, only to land back on them again.

  Seth squinted against the wind roaring over him. They looped and dove and swerved and climbed and spiraled. Often Seth had no sense of direction, not even up and down. Dragons flashed in and out of view. He could hear their bellows over the wind in his ears.

  He tried to see if he could spot Knox moving beyond the wall, but when he tried to look at the ground, he was lucky to catch sight of a greenish grayish blur. Otherwise he saw sky.

  They darted in and out of danger so quickly that Seth had no time to fear specific threats. Almost every dip and roll came as a jarring surprise. Their erratic movements were like hang gliding in a hurricane, whipping from one direction to another without warning. Some of the turns made the edges of Seth’s vision darken. A dragon wing brushed by close enough to touch. Scales of different colors blurred around him. Tempest dove, falling faster than seemed possible, only to swoop up again and bank in a spiraling curve.

  Enormous teeth snapped, and wicked claws slashed, but the griffin bobbed and weaved and plunged, remaining unscathed. Tempest shrieked. Seth yelled. The wind of their speed tore away the sound.

  As if they had reached the eye of the hurricane, the flight suddenly evened out. They climbed steadily. Seth was so dizzy that it took a moment for him to realize they weren’t turning or corkscrewing anymore.

  Looking around, he found all the dragons behind and below him. None seemed able to keep up. Blackwell Keep was shrinking in the distance. There was no chance of seeing Knox. Seth hoped his cousin was all right.

  Kendra reached the walls of the keep in time to watch Seth and his griffin weaving through the host of dragons. As dragons pursued, converging from all directions, the griffin looked trapped several times, only to narrowly avoid destruction with its unpredictable maneuvers. Her eyes had difficulty following the acrobatics, as a bank to the left became a dive to the right interrupted by a tight loop and then a corkscrewing plunge. No toddler could have scribbled a wilder route.

  The adroit griffin used the quantity of dragons as an advantage, cutting between them to create congestion, often almost causing collisions. As the dragons corrected to avoid one another, Seth and his griffin knifed through the openings.

  Kendra kept waiting for the griffin to try to make it to the safe hut. A multitude of dragons had gathered around the dome on the ridge, apparently anticipating the same eventuality. But the griffin never attempted to get close. Seth and his winged mount were disappearing into the distance. Against all odds, they were getting away.

Chapter 26-Gambit