hung there. Then the wings met with a clap as they shot down into the sea, and Kin heard a distinct hiss.
The third dragon must have been the brightest, thought Kin. The brightest always fought last. It was too late for it to stop its flight. Instead it passed over the boat with its wings spread like parachutes, and, as it thundered by above his head, Marco screamed and leapt.
He was wearing his lift belt. The dragon tried to twist in mid air, tumbled, regained its balance and tried to flee for height and safety. It didn’t work.
On the other side of the boat the water foamed and a wingtip beat the surface listlessly. Then the hull canted sharply. Silver was climbing aboard.
The men around Kin shouted and struck out, laughing as they heaved themselves up the side.
High above the dogfight the surviving dragon screamed and disappeared speedily into the east, giving Kin a short and tantalizing glimpse of its high-speed propulsion. Those horror-story wings were too clumsy for anything except ponderous flight. To travel fast, the dragon folded them along its side, bent its head back under its body, and exhaled. By the time it was too far away for Kin to see details its breath was yellow-hot.
She followed something else down the sky as it tumbled lazily. It was a dragon head. Shortly afterwards, although to the silent crowd on the boat it seemed much longer, the body followed, wings still spread wide, spiralling slowly with Marco climbing to its back and still hacking with the knife. When he hit the water a cheer went up.
It turned to anger when they saw that Silver was dragging her dragon aboard, still alive. When the men moved hurriedly aside they gave Kin a good view.
The beast flopped mournfully on the deck, water streaming from its wings. It raised its dripping head towards her and sneezed, violently.
Two jets of warm water hit Kin on the legs.
Marco was helped aboard by all four arms. His comb blazed blood red and, as he stood up amid the admiring crowd, he raised his black-stained knife over his head and yodelled:
‘
Refteg! Ymal refteg PELC!
’
Kin looked across at Silver, who was unscrewing her fangs. The shand grimaced.
‘Tell me again about his being officially human,’ she said. ‘I keep forgetting.’
‘What’, asked Kin, ‘do you intend to do with
that
?’ One of the men beside her had drawn his sword and was offering it proudly to the shand, hilt first. Silver ignored him.
‘It’s dead,’ she said, ‘but we have the body. Iwould very much like to know how an organic creature can breathe fire.’ She grabbed the corpse by neck and tail and dragged it aft.
Marco swaggered over to Kin.
‘I triumph!’ he shouted.
‘Yes, Marco.’
‘They declare war on us! They sent dragons! But They reckoned without me!’
‘Yes, Marco.’
‘Together They conspire against me yet I overcome!’ he screamed, eyes glazed. Then his expression faded.
‘You just think I’m a paranoid kung, don’t you,’ he said sulkily.
‘Since you mention it …’
‘I’m proud to be human. Make no mistake! As for the other,’ he said, turning, ‘just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean They aren’t out to get you.’
She watched him stride back to the men, who clustered around him. Frightened of everything except immediate physical danger. And as human as a tiger.
Silver was gazing ruefully at the dumbwaiter. It was not damaged, but the plastic panelling would never be the same again.
When the men were at the oars again Kin took out her suit toolkit and arranged the dragon corpse as best she could on the tiny foredeck. The kit was small but comprehensive. A marooned spaceman could use it to survive onan alien world for years. Some had. Kin selected a medical scalpel.
Later she opened the kit fully and found a multi-chisel.
A minute later she reached in and assembled the vibro-saw. The screeee as it skidded and juddered over scales set her teeth on edge, but she didn’t switch off until the blade
The third dragon must have been the brightest, thought Kin. The brightest always fought last. It was too late for it to stop its flight. Instead it passed over the boat with its wings spread like parachutes, and, as it thundered by above his head, Marco screamed and leapt.
He was wearing his lift belt. The dragon tried to twist in mid air, tumbled, regained its balance and tried to flee for height and safety. It didn’t work.
On the other side of the boat the water foamed and a wingtip beat the surface listlessly. Then the hull canted sharply. Silver was climbing aboard.
The men around Kin shouted and struck out, laughing as they heaved themselves up the side.
High above the dogfight the surviving dragon screamed and disappeared speedily into the east, giving Kin a short and tantalizing glimpse of its high-speed propulsion. Those horror-story wings were too clumsy for anything except ponderous flight. To travel fast, the dragon folded them along its side, bent its head back under its body, and exhaled. By the time it was too far away for Kin to see details its breath was yellow-hot.
She followed something else down the sky as it tumbled lazily. It was a dragon head. Shortly afterwards, although to the silent crowd on the boat it seemed much longer, the body followed, wings still spread wide, spiralling slowly with Marco climbing to its back and still hacking with the knife. When he hit the water a cheer went up.
It turned to anger when they saw that Silver was dragging her dragon aboard, still alive. When the men moved hurriedly aside they gave Kin a good view.
The beast flopped mournfully on the deck, water streaming from its wings. It raised its dripping head towards her and sneezed, violently.
Two jets of warm water hit Kin on the legs.
Marco was helped aboard by all four arms. His comb blazed blood red and, as he stood up amid the admiring crowd, he raised his black-stained knife over his head and yodelled:
‘
Refteg! Ymal refteg PELC!
’
Kin looked across at Silver, who was unscrewing her fangs. The shand grimaced.
‘Tell me again about his being officially human,’ she said. ‘I keep forgetting.’
‘What’, asked Kin, ‘do you intend to do with
that
?’ One of the men beside her had drawn his sword and was offering it proudly to the shand, hilt first. Silver ignored him.
‘It’s dead,’ she said, ‘but we have the body. Iwould very much like to know how an organic creature can breathe fire.’ She grabbed the corpse by neck and tail and dragged it aft.
Marco swaggered over to Kin.
‘I triumph!’ he shouted.
‘Yes, Marco.’
‘They declare war on us! They sent dragons! But They reckoned without me!’
‘Yes, Marco.’
‘Together They conspire against me yet I overcome!’ he screamed, eyes glazed. Then his expression faded.
‘You just think I’m a paranoid kung, don’t you,’ he said sulkily.
‘Since you mention it …’
‘I’m proud to be human. Make no mistake! As for the other,’ he said, turning, ‘just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean They aren’t out to get you.’
She watched him stride back to the men, who clustered around him. Frightened of everything except immediate physical danger. And as human as a tiger.
Silver was gazing ruefully at the dumbwaiter. It was not damaged, but the plastic panelling would never be the same again.
When the men were at the oars again Kin took out her suit toolkit and arranged the dragon corpse as best she could on the tiny foredeck. The kit was small but comprehensive. A marooned spaceman could use it to survive onan alien world for years. Some had. Kin selected a medical scalpel.
Later she opened the kit fully and found a multi-chisel.
A minute later she reached in and assembled the vibro-saw. The screeee as it skidded and juddered over scales set her teeth on edge, but she didn’t switch off until the blade
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