The Eight

Chapter 11 - Faun's Marsh

The marsh, as Farai had said, was protecting them from their follower. Twice something screeched overhead, trailing darkness, but never came any closer.

It took the friends more than half the day to struggle through the knee-deep sludge to an island in the middle, where they stopped to rest. It had been hard going, and was nearly evening, since they had set off past midday. Cherry soaked everyone with blasts of water to clean them of the mud, while Breanna dried them by radiating heat from her hands. They really were very useful powers.

They brought out some food and, as soon as they did so, a little creature from the marsh crawled up, shook itself free of mud to reveal leaf-green scales, and sat watching them - and the food - intently. The others stared back.

It appeared to be some sort of dragon, but its body was sleeker, more like a serpent's. Presently it waddled up to the middle of the island on its little legs, curled up and fell asleep.

"Bagsy the dragon!" Cherry said, raising her hand and shuffling over next to it. The dragon chirruped in its sleep and suddenly more dragons arrived, coming from the marsh, coming from the air, even unfurling from the tops of the reeds. They all settled on the island, and the friends were forced to the edges.

"I know it's late, but we really should go," Breanna shouted as a little yellow dragon tried to wrestle her to the ground. The others nodded and stood up, shouldering their bags and jumping onto their animals, who could go much faster across the marsh. No sooner had they did so than the same little green dragon jumped up behind Cherry. Can I come on an adventure too? it mind-linked and Cherry, staring into its deep blue eyes, couldn't refuse. "Come on then," she said reluctantly and immediately another seven dragons appeared, settling themselves with the others.

The animals, overwhelmed by the number of dragons on the island, took off towards the other end of the marsh. Pale fauns ran with them, laughing and whooping as they glided effortlessly above the sludge, the spirits of the dead.

It was past midnight before the edge of the marsh was in sight and there was another convenient little island just before it. The little dragons shook themselves again and chirruped contentedly.

Everyone was exhausted and unsettled. The ghost fauns were still swirling round them and, though they were benevolent and posed no threat, it was still a little spooky.

The friends settled down to eat properly once the serpent-dragons had gone off to hunt - the used their rounded spines to attract prey, since they looked like bulrushes, where insects often land. The only problem was their bright colours, but that only made insects more eager to alight on them.

Eventually sleep came, everyone sleeping deeper than they had in all the time they had been in this unforgiving realm.

***

Cera woke up with a start, struggling to breathe. A purple dragon with pink spines was sleeping on her face. She pushed it off and it immediately woke up, crawled into her lap, and fell back asleep. She sighed.

All her friends were sleeping peacefully and she gave a small smile at their calm faces. Each little dragon - and Breanna - radiated warmth, and everyone had moved closer to the heat.
Cera thought about the spells the Keeper had cast on them and was grateful for that magic. Now they didn't have to brush their teeth, for one thing, or have to worry about changing clothes for another.

Chloe woke up without Cera realising, and jumped out on her. Cera's scream could have woken the dead if Chloe hadn't clamped a hand over her mouth. Then they both fell about in silent laughter, tears streaming down their cheeks.

Suddenly all the dragons took off at once, diving into the marsh to hide with not even the tip of a spine showing. Something appeared in the trees, a man on a horse...but it didn't look like they were separate beings...

"A centaur!" Chloe hissed excitedly, nudging Cera so hard she nearly fell backwards.

The centaur regarded them silently, then vanished into the trees.

"That was weird," Cera remarked, opening a bag and taking a bite of cheese. "Well, I'm going for a run."

Her leopard looked up at this and she gave it a pat.

And she was off.

"Try not to step on any dragons!" Chloe shouted after her, but they couldn't even see each other now, never mind hear.

Sofia, as always, was sleeping with a blade (she always created one unconsciously, which was slightly disconcerting in case she accidentally threw it) so Chloe carefully took it and cut some cheese for herself and her friends, who were awake again, as they lay under the single rowan tree growing on the little island.

Rowan for protection.

A rustle in the trees at the edge of the marsh and everyone moved to the edges of the island to follow more clearly Chloe's stare to a certain branch. Was that... A face?

Suddenly the thing took off, soaring high into the sky before plummeting down towards them at an alarming speed, its cloaks ripped and ragged at the ends and covering its entire body.

Everyone dived under the rowan tree but the human-like creature swerved at the last minute, heading instead to a distant figure panting on the horizon. As if in slow motion the friends saw Cera swerve, accelerate, saw her enveloped in the thing's cloaks as it snatched her into the sky.

Her scream rang out over the reeds, but no one had any time to react before the creature was heading their way, a hideous grin somehow twisted on a bare skull face. Arms outstretched, its claw-like hands plucked Jodie and Breanna into the sky even as they ran for thicker cover in the rushes, leaving the safety of the tree. Their screams were cut short as the figure hit them violently in the throat. Soon only the screech of rocs could be heard in that vast, dark land.