The eye of a spy
The flying fleet obeyed the princess completely. As soon as she beckoned one of the flying ships to the window, it waved its wing-like oars vigorously.
«That’s how I do without galley slaves. Magic controls the rowing oars, and the sails replace the wings. As soon as the wind blows them up, the ships fly higher. It’s not hard to control them,» the princess stepped aboard and beckoned her guests to follow her.
In a moment the flying ship was already hovering above «The Bloodsucker.»
«You have something unusual hidden in your hold,» Leonella determined from a distance. «Would you show it to me?»
Anything can be done for an ally. Gritting her heart, Patricia let the princess into the hold with the dangerous gold from Opal. The gold gnats were already forming from the bars and hissing unhappily, but they couldn’t escape the green net.
«Oh, they’re so cute,» Leonella was genuinely pleased when she saw the golden pixies. Strangely enough, they liked her too. «I wish I had such watchmen for my tower. They’d make a winged patrol, but you’re probably saving them to guard your ship.»
«Please accept them as a gift from me,» Patricia was actually glad to be rid of the pixies. They had become a burden, not a treasure.
«Is it really?» Leonella was surprised. You’ve become so generous, and before you couldn’t get snow in winter. Apparently, centuries of living change fairies for the better.»
«I’m not a fairy,» Patricia wanted to object, but the words froze on her lips. Let Leonella think what she wants. The princess was as happy about the pixies as a child is about a toy. The pixies have been surprisingly docile so far.
«So, I’m taking these cute babies for myself,» the princess couldn’t believe her luck. The golden bumblebees seemed to her as curiosities, but Patricia considered the huge Purras, which were walking with a masterly look on the side of her ship, as curiosities.
It was the Purras who had pointed out to the goblins a suspicious creature roaming the ship. It turned out that an unfamiliar elf had flown into Patricia’s ship.
«It’s a spy,» Leonella determined.
The goblins barely managed to capture the elf. Though he was the size of a child of seven, he had the strength of a giant. In addition, the elf was very agile. He jumped, jumped, jumped, and took off. Had it not been for the help of the large Purras, who were also as agile as monkeys, it would not have been possible to capture the spy.
Eventually, the elf was twisted by the swamp fairy’s green ropes and dragged up to the captain.
«So this is the spy elf from Opal,» Leonella said, looking him in the eye. She was a good judge of everything at a glance. «At first I thought he was sent by your competitors.»
«You mean pirates?» Patricia was surprised.
«A lot of pirates are good at magic, and they can make deals with creatures like this.»
The elf had greenish skin covered with golden specks and cloudy green wings that looked like dragonfly wings. He was the size of a small boy, and his face was ugly, like a shriveled old man. The elf’s teeth also appeared green and sharp as needles. He was glaring viciously at the captain as if he wanted to bite him.
«You won’t get a word out of him under torture,» Leonella determined again.
«Then I can give him to you in your service,» Patricia suggested to the princess. «If the golden pixies don’t scare you, then you can put the dwarf elf to work as well.»
«I’m afraid he’ll steal from the palace and run away, unless you clip his wings. And I’m not cruel enough to maim him.»
Patricia didn’t expect Leonella to refuse another gift. Would the elf have to be put in the hold like the captured fairy? Aleandra had already escaped. What if the elf escapes too? We can’t let him go, and it would be a shame to kill him. And how do you kill a magical creature? They’re immortal. We can only hope that this time Nethopyrina and Zeligena will outline the hold with magic signs of such power that the prisoner will not escape.
The elf was indeed a silent one. Maybe he couldn’t speak human? He only hissed at all questions.
Leonella entrusted the large Purra to be the commander of her fleet. Then she retired to the palace.
«You don’t have to send me any bats with notes on how you’re doing,» she said with a parting glance at Nethopyrina. «I will follow you in the mermaid’s mirror.»
Then the lone boat with the princess swung its oars and raced toward the palace window. Leonella waved good-bye.
«Has the princess decided that you have bats in your service?» Patricia whispered to the gray fairy.
«Well, it is true that I can summon them, but not at all to use them as carrier pigeons, but to attack the enemy. It never occurred to me to send a message with them until now.»
«That’s probably because you don’t communicate with anyone who lives far away.»
«I can fly anywhere myself. I don’t need messengers. Even if my acquaintances live far away, I can fly to them in a couple of nights and walk right into their window.»
Patricia once again wished she had wings. It was so convenient to live with wings! You don’t need messengers or transportation if you can fly yourself. Another object of envy was Leonella’s mermaid’s mirror. Although Patricia had never seen it, she wished she had one. After all, as informants, mermaid’s mirrors are not replaceable.
«You have the water mermaids’ spyglass,» Zeligena reminded her. «Using it, you can see anything you want. You just have to set it to the right object and give it a specific task. Otherwise it will only show you the wonders of the sea kingdom and nothing more. As soon as you look through the peephole, think about what you want to see. The first thing I suggest you do is look at lvilor. An elf spy flew into our ship from the direction of Ivilor, and there were Ivylorian coins in his pocket. That raises certain suspicions.»
Patricia went to her quarters. The spyglass was lying next to the little Purra’s other toys. So she could be the spy’s eye. Patricia peered through it and saw Serpin’s quarters. Mind was lying habitually on a velvet cushion, and the young king was fussing around him, practically serving.
«Mind, what should I do?» Serpin asked worriedly. «Give me some advice! The peasants are angry that your tailed friends have trampled their crops. They call them demons and demand to call inquisitors from abroad. You’ve sent all our inquisitors away, but there are neighboring inquisitors. The people are waiting for them. The nobles are unhappy with the new taxes you’ve imposed and are plotting a revolt. And the courtiers are scheming and want me to judge them. What can you tell me? In the past, you’ve always given me good advice. What should I do now?»
«Scratch my paws!» Mind stretched lazily.
Serpin complied with his pet’s request.
«So, what’s your advice?»
«Hmm…» Mind stretched and put his claws under the massage instead of answering.
«Are you mad at me because of the fire fairy? She flew away. Stop sulking!»
Mind chuckled caustically and raced the king with errands. First he had to bring him treats. Then he had to play the lute for him. In the end, the king was tired, and did not get advice from the demon.
«So what should we say to the ambassadors from Opal?» Serpin insisted.
From Opal! Patricia almost dropped the watermen’s spyglass.
«Lie that the fairies weren’t here,» Mind muttered.
«But the ambassadors are fairies themselves. They’ll smell a lie.»
«They won’t, I’ll take care of it.»
«But that blond fairy of the mists can see my thoughts…»
«That’s because you were flirting with her.»
«I like her,» the king confessed.
«I warned you how dangerous fairies are!» The Mind showed sharp claws.
Serpin became despondent.
«Beatrice is so sweet, but if I lie to her, she will send an eternal fog over the country, and we will all be lost in it.»
«I’ll have to talk to her myself,» Mind stretched sweetly. «Now hand me those grapes and polish the claws of my hind legs, because they are faded. They’re not black anymore, they’re practically gray.»
All this work could have been done by a servant, but Serpin took care of his pet himself. Everything in Ivilor depended on the opinions and desires of the Mind. Before going to the ambassadors, Serpin tried on several crowns in front of the mirror. Obviously, he wanted to please Beatrice, who appeared to be leading the delegation of fairy ambassadors.
«Mind, which crown should I wear?»
Mind squinted lazily and raised his horned head over the pillow.
«Try it on again! Hmm, that one over there,» Reason waved his claw graciously toward an ornate crown with a huge diamond.
«It is right!» Serpin rejoiced. «This one is the best. Beatrice will like it.»
«Yes, she’ll love the diamond. Mist fairies love diamonds.»
«Mind, my dear! What would I do without you?» Naive Serpin didn’t even realize he was being tricked.
«You’d better do something for me,» the dexterous demon squinted slyly.
«What do you want?»
«Take the manor from your chief trapper for me.»
«But I already did that after the trapper was executed for treason. Remember, I was wounded on the hunt, and you did it, but you pointed your claw at the trapper and blamed him. Everyone believed you then, and the trapper’s estate was confiscated.»
«It was for the King, not for me! I want it to be mine! Give it to me!»
«Mind, we already share everything!»
Mind suddenly became angry and jumped up from his pillow.
«That’s it! I’m tired, I’m going on vacation!» He jumped on the table and stomped his clawed foot so hard that his claws were imprinted in the tabletop.
«Don’t leave me!» There was a look of genuine horror on Serpin’s handsome face. «How shall I manage it all by myself? Who will tell me how to please Beatrice?»
«You want a fairy again? You have a second wrecked fleet to buy her affection? The first fairy has already cost us dearly. The second one could leave us without a throne.»
«No, this fairy is more modest. She doesn’t ask for anything, just asks questions about those first fairies: the fire fairy and the swamp fairy, and some bat,» it turns out that Serpin didn’t even realize that the bat was called Nethopyrina.
«All right, I’ll stay and answer her for you,» Reason waved his claw condescendingly, «but we need to set new rules. Double my salary and ask me no more than three questions a day. I’m tired of telling you what the weather will be like tomorrow and how many puppies the local dogs will have.»
«But you’re so good at guessing! Mind, you’re a clairvoyant.»
Serpin threw his arms around his pet. Mind groaned at his grip, but endured. The handsome young king with the cap of blond hair was the fool the agile demon had always dreamed of.
«Hey! You’re crushing me!» Mind squeaked in the king’s arms.
Serpin let go of him and looked around fearfully.
«Are you all right?»
«I’m all right, but I’m bruised. A king’s love is worth a lot,» Mind muttered.
«And what is about the love of a fairy?»
«Do you want me to be a matchmaker between you and Beatrice?»
Serpin nodded unashamedly.
Mind shook a claw admonishingly in front of the king’s nose. «She’s a dead fairy of magic mists. Lure you into the crypt, and you’re finished!»
«But your friends have already taken up residence in the royal crypt. They won’t let anyone in.»
«All right, let’s go trick the mist mistress.»
Mind jumped on the shoulder of the king, who was on his way to the ambassadors’ reception hall, shrouded in a silvery mist. The watermen’s spyglass couldn’t see through the fog, but Patricia thought she saw the vague silhouette of a winged Beatrice.
How quickly Serpin falls in love with fairies. Good for the Mind for keeping an eye on him. Patricia put aside the useless telescope.
So the fairies of Opal are looking for traces of the fugitive in Ivylor. But somehow only one little elf has managed to find her on the high seas. Why is that? Has her ship recently become invisible to the fairies? Or have they developed new plans? What if they want to enlist the support of Reason? They’ll get their asses handed to them. The Mind is tricky, but if you offer it a benefit…
Patricia bit her lip nervously. Suddenly her ship was sailing at an incredible speed on a course that Patricia had not chosen. It was as if someone had called her from the sea.
Island of the Golden Dragon
Patricia’s ship raced forward as if drawn by a magnet. Even Leonella’s flying fleet had fallen behind. By nightfall, the water ships and the ghost fleet had risen from the water, but they couldn’t catch up with «The Bloodsucker.» A mysterious island that resembled a solid rocky castle appeared ahead. Patricia had never heard of such an island. It certainly wasn’t on a geographical map. The island looked too unnatural. Could it be a fata morgana?
«It looks like a dragon island,» determined Nethopyrina.
«Do dragons live in an island castle?» Patricia wondered, as long as it was a castle and not a rocky ridge. When Patricia tried to look at it through her telescope, a golden claw blocked her view.
«That’s what happens when you look at something you’re not supposed to look at,» Nethopyrina snatched up her telescope, noticing Patricia’s fright, and peered in as well. «If the waterman’s webbing is blocking your view, it means you’re peeking at the secrets of the sea bottom that no one else can see.»
«And if the golden claw blocked my view of the castle?»
«Then you’ve been prying into the dragon’s secrets. Gold is the color of the dragon emperor.»
«Dragons have an emperor?» Patricia was genuinely surprised.
«Didn’t you know that?» She shrugged her wings as if shrugging her shoulders. «It is strange! Everyone knows about it.»
«I don’t know!»
A fiery wind blew into Patricia’s face. It was like a slap in the face. Her skin stung.
«I think we’re in trouble!» Patricia saw a streak of fire on the horizon. «There’s a dragon ship coming this way!»
The mongrel was alarmed. Even she realized that if the fire ship ignited the sea, they would be left without two-thirds of the armada. Only Leonella’s fleet would be able to fly above the ignited water.
«We need to get on a flying ship,» Zeligena realized. «I’ll fly to tell the Admiral of the flying fleet to send one galley after us.»
«You don’t have to! I’m not abandoning my ship,» Patricia decided to do as the captain did. Even a sinking ship can’t be abandoned, and in this case a burning ship. Unless «The Bloodsucker» is protected from fire by some kind of enchantment, it will soon burst into flames.
The dragon ship was already visible on the horizon. It was rapidly moving in a straight course towards the island. On the way to the island, it would burn the fleet as well. There was no way to sail away, only to fly away. Patricia bit her lip in frustration. She didn’t want to make a shameful escape in a flying ship. Meanwhile, the danger was approaching like a meteor. The fiery ship was coming straight toward her, only this time it was different from the last time Patricia had seen it.
The dragon ship was sailing, leaving a streak of fire on the water, but neither the island nor the bay around it was ablaze. The line of fire only flared out to sea and it was narrow. Something kept it from spreading in all directions. Probably it was the island’s spell. The fire was under control here.
There must be a sorcerer or a powerful sorceress on the island, Patricia concluded. Meanwhile, a fierce wind blew the sails of her ship. Where would the wind come from in the middle of a blazing heat? Even from the subtle salting of the fire on the water, it felt stuffy as an oven all around. Nevertheless, «The Bloodsucker» was headed straight for the island. At first Patricia thought there was food waiting on the island in the form of a savage tribe, but the ship’s ropes didn’t stretch out to catch victims. So the island was either empty or inhabited by only magical creatures.
«The Bloodsucker» was drawn to the shore as if by a magnet. The ship easily slipped into a narrow channel that flowed into the center of the island.
«There’s a waterfall up ahead!» Nethopyrina was frightened, but the ship did not reach the waterfall. It stopped at a bridge that led to a castle made of black stones. The structure looked ominous. The upper towers of the castle disappeared into the sky. The windows and gates were too high above ground level. The castle must be inhabited only by creatures with wings.
«Let most of the crew stay aboard for now, and I’ll go and check on the castle,» Patricia bared her saber, which this time refused to fly ahead of the captain. «Who will come with me?
One goblin, one troll, one dwarf and, of course, the swamp and gray fairies volunteered to accompany them. Patricia had grown accustomed to Nethopyrina and Zeligena as her most reliable helpers.
As soon as they stepped onto the bridge, torches flashed on its sides. Their light was not orange, but golden. In addition to the torches, the railing was decorated with skulls. Almost all of them were skulls of supernatural beings.
«Look!» Zeligena shuddered as she noticed the spears at the end of the bridge that had the heads of pirates, warriors, even ancient knights on them.
«What was the big deal?» Patricia didn’t immediately consider several fairy heads. They were either horned, had ears shaped like wings, or had glitter on their skin. Now it made sense why Zeligena was so frightened. One head belonged to a sea fairy. She could be distinguished by her white hair the color of sea foam and a face shaped like a seashell.
«Are you here?» The head of the sea fairy was alive and spoke to Patricia. «While we’ve been waiting for you, we’ve been executed one by one. And it’s your fault!»
«I don’t know you!» Patricia was taken aback.
«Do you know what it’s like to be in the claws of a dragon?» The sea fairy’s head giggled.
«Where would a dragon come from?» Patricia looked up at the dark sky. No dragons were flying across it. Unless a fire ship would turn into a living dragon and grab her. He’s already giving her a lot of trouble though. As long as it floats around and sets fire to everything around it, it’s worse than a real dragon.
A dragon’s roar actually came from above, out of spite.
«So this is a dragon’s island!» Patricia was scared out of her wits.
«It’s the island of one dragon,» the sea fairy corrected. «It is the Golden Dragon’s Island.»
«I’ve never heard of such an island.»
Patricia could see from the bridge as the dragon ship circled the island, but the ring of fire on the water only flashed for a moment. The water near the shores of the island did not ignite. So, this island could be used as a shelter while the fire ship set the seas on fire. If there are dragons here, we’ll have to make friends with them. After all, she’s made friends with fairies and goblins. So she could be friends with dragons.
Patricia ignored the sea fairy’s angry warnings that her guest would be mauled by dragon packs. The other fairy heads on the spears were also alive, but silent. The knights’ heads had long ago turned to skulls in rusted helmets, but the heads of the pirates and soldiers were fresh. Blood still dripped from them, but for some reason «The Bloodsucker’s» ropes did not reach for them. It was the first time the bloodthirsty ship had ever been so squeamish about food.
«They seem to be killing royal armies, pirates, and even fairies indiscriminately,» Patricia grumbled. «I wonder why.»
Just then, the castle gates swung open. They were so huge that even a dragon could fly through them. Instead of a dragon, an exquisitely dressed young man appeared on the threshold. He could have been a prince or a young king, and unlike Serpin he was able to hold himself with a sense of regal dignity. The heads on the stakes immediately fell silent at the sight of the young man.
It was Edwin! Patricia didn’t recognize him at first. Probably it was because he looked different today. Zeligena and Netopyrina tried to move into the shadows so he wouldn’t see them, but Edwin turned to Patricia alone anyway, as if she wasn’t even on the bridge.
«Welcome to my island!» He held out his hand to the girl.
«So this is your island?»
«I share it with the local dragons.»
Multicolored flocks of coastal dragons swept across the sky. Patricia recognized them. They were surprisingly quiet this time.
«Soon your island may be gone,» Patricia turned around, but the dragon ship was already leaving. So it couldn’t hurt the island. That’s a pity. If the island belonged to Edwin, then let it burn. Patricia was angry at Edwin for how arrogant and inaccessible he seemed. He can’t be trusted! He’s definitely a wizard and his plans are far from harmless, but so eager not to go anywhere from him.
«The island will not fall victim to a dragon ship this night,» Edwin concluded as the streak of fire that had been left behind the departing ship began to fade.
«Mermaids must be nesting near this island to keep from getting burned,» Patricia snickered.
«Mermaids are not welcome here, and neither are fairies,» Edwin nodded at the stakes whose heads were pretending to be dead in front of him. Only the sea fairy winked secretly at Patricia. There was still time to run! But Patricia had already fallen under the charms of the island’s owner. He invited her to stay with him for the night, and she couldn’t refuse.