Chasing the Lantern(90)

Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. The direction down was very emphatically insisting on its presence.

If I can just find a strong one. Lina glanced about slowly, carefully. There were a few branches within reach, but they seemed too supple to bear her weight.

She swayed. A crack sounded from above. Heart leaping in her breast, Lina glanced back up at the limb she hung from.

A monkey peered down at her from next to her boots. It was small and black, not even half of Runt's size, maybe as large as a parrot. The little creature watched her curiously, eyes black and beady in its wizened face.

Oh no, no, no. Get away you pest. Shoo! Even something as small as the monkey was already stressing her branch beyond its tolerance.

Lina waved her hand at it in a shooing gesture, trying to move as little as possible. The branch made another loud cracking sound. She froze.

The monkey peered at her curiously. Then it hooted and clapped its hands together. It made the shooing gesture at her in turn.

Lina wanted to throttle the thing. "No," she hissed. "Go away!"

The monkey shooed her again. Then it jumped, up and down in excitement.

The branched snapped clean in half. Lina yelled as she suddenly plummeted. The monkey leapt away with a surprised scream.

Branches and leaves brushed her head, face, arms. She reached out with desperate hands, trying to grab onto something, anything that might save her or slow her descent. Lina caught a branch. It held for half a second, then snapped. Five feet down she hooked her leg around another... only for it to bend, creak, then snap.

Lina fell through the open air. The ground rushed up to meet her, dark, loamy earth dotted here and there by ferns and other undergrowth. Then she landed with a bone-jarring thump. Dimly, she felt the length of rope from the Dawnhawk land heavily on her back, knocking the wind out of her.

Sense came back. Lina gasped. She hurt, her left arm and shoulder especially. Also, her right foot was bare. She felt the rich, black dirt of the jungle between her toes. Great, she thought, groaning aloud. I've lost a boot. Gingerly, she checked to make sure nothing was broken. Lina reached back with her good arm and pulled the rope off her back. It twisted in her hands, strangely slick and smooth. She brought it around and found herself staring face-to-face with a long black snake.

The creature hissed and reared up. But before Lina could yell, or the serpent strike, something fell from above, clobbering it.

Her boot.

She threw the snake, forgetting her hurts for the moment. It landed a dozen paces away, a long black line at least four feet in length. It didn't move after landing. Lina watched it for a moment, then sat up. She quickly checked her arms, legs, and shoulder. Nothing was broken, thankfully, though she would hurt for awhile to come. That was lucky, she thought, looking up at the trees above. That last fall had been at least ten feet.

The jungle stretched out around her. It was strangely bare down at ground level. The underbrush was not thick, starved by the trees high above. She had no idea which direction was north, or which led back to the valley and its alien city.

I have to find the Captain. He's got to be told what happened. Though, last she'd seen, Fengel had had troubles of his own.

She'd been angry when Fengel sent her back to the Dawnhawk the night before. But over time worry and boredom dulled her irritation. She spent the night's shift drowsing and watching the jungle and the strange alien city of Yrinium. The inhabitants, these Draykin, lit fires all throughout the temples. It was amazing to see from the air. Only the depth of their valley kept the fires from being seen from hundreds of miles around.

Lucian and the others had seen the approaching Copper Queen long before dawn. The question had been what to do about it. At first, the thought had been to simply avoid it, move off and pick the Captain back up later. But just as the sun rose, they'd seen Fengel's party again, under attack by native Draykin.

Time and again Lucian had tried to bring them in to assist. But by then it was too late. Natasha's damnable skyship had hounded them all about the valley before finally closing.

Lina grimaced. The fight for the airship hadn't been going well when she'd fled. I hope Runt is all right.

She glanced around. The question now was what to do. Sounds of the fight had faded while she was trapped in the canopy above; the airships must have moved off. Should she try to run after them? No. Even if Lucian won out, at best they'd drive Natasha back to her ship. They were outnumbered, and he'd probably use the greater speed of the Dawnhawk to move off. In worst case, Natasha had won the day, and Lina would be shot or captured on sight.

Fengel needed to know. She was still irritated with him, but he could do something about this mess. She was confident that he'd pulled through the ambush he'd encountered; Sarah Lome and Maxim were with him, and he was no slouch himself in a fight.