Ahead, I could see the rocky coastline through the sea spray. I hoped Dagon would not be too mad at my sudden departure a couple of weeks ago.
‘C’mon! Let’s race!’ called Fae, her voice carrying back on the wind.
‘Let’s catch up, Hawthorne.’ I yelled. ‘They’ve got nothing on us!’
Instantly, Hawthorne flattened his wings against his body, streamlining himself against the wind. We rocketed through the sky like an arrow released from a bow. We became level with Shadow, but were losing height fast. Fae grinned at us as we went whizzing past, the ocean rising rapidly to meet us. At the last second, Hawthorne released his wings, his toes skimming across the surface of the water, and we were back in the air.
I whooped and cheered, patting Hawthorne on the side. I looked back and saw Shadow struggling to keep up. In the distance was Emilija, gliding steadily. She was not interested in racing. In my rucksack, Willow and Rue were yapping happily.
‘Good boy,’ I said to Hawthorne.
Ahead, a lighthouse came into view.
I pointed to it and called over my shoulder. ‘Land Ho!’
‘What did you call me?’ Fae bellowed back.
I laughed and set my sights on the ground. I could see the little cottages of Port, their twinkling lights like tiny stars below us.
Hawthorne broke into a fast dive, and, once more, we were plummeting towards the ground. My hair was whipped back from my face, and Willow and Rue shrank back inside the rucksack. Yet again, Hawthorne released his wings right before we hit the ground, and we landed extremely gently, though my hair was a tangled mess.
A moment later, Shadow landed clumsily, Fae holding on for dear life. They towered over us - it was hard to believe that Hawthorne was his father. Emilija, too, landed elegantly.
‘Wow!’ breathed Fae. ‘That was … that was-’
‘Amazing?’ I offered.
‘More than that,’ said Fae, a wild grin spreading across her face. ‘That was power.’
‘Don’t get too carried away,’ I said as I slid from Hawthorne’s back.
‘How can I not?’ asked Fae. ‘I can’t believe Shadow chose me. Me.’
‘I can,’ I said, pulling Willow and Rue from my rucksack and placing them on the grass. They wagged their tails happily and bounded for their mother who lavished them with affection.
Fae looked around, noticing where we had landed. We stood on the edge of a cliff that overlooked the sea, the same cliff I’d fallen from after Finn had injured me. The inn that I’d stayed at was a mere stone's throw away.
‘Where are we?’ asked Fae.
‘A town called Port,’ I said. ‘A small fishing community.’
‘Why are we here?’
‘There’s someone I need to see.’
‘Who? It’s not a man, is it?’
I sighed. ‘Don’t be so judgemental.’
‘Who is he?’ Fae crossed her arms and scowled.
‘His name is … wait a minute … you’re not jealous, are you?’
‘What? No. Don’t be stupid.’
I smirked, unconvinced. ‘His name is Dagon, and he wanted to help me last time we met.’
‘Yeah, I’m sure he wanted to help you,’ said Fae, her tone sarcastic. ‘He probably wanted to get into your-’
‘Drop it, okay? Let’s get the Vulmessian’s hidden before we find him.’
‘Hidden?’ repeated Fae. ‘Why do we need to hide them?’
‘I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but we are currently accompanied by three large foxes, one of which is large enough to swallow a man whole.’
‘Don’t you remember what I told you?’ said Fae. ‘You’ve got a reputation to uphold. You’re Avalon Redding, leader of the rebellion. You play by no one's rules!’
‘Are you my friend, or my advisor?’ I muttered under my breath.
‘I heard that.’
‘So what do we do?’ I asked.
‘We let everyone see how powerful the Fire-Mage is.’ Fae winked. ‘You’re going to ride around on Hawthorne and let everyone see you.’
‘Everyone?’
‘Everyone,’ Fae confirmed.
‘And if someone tries to capture me?’
Fae rolled her eyes. ‘You’re safe with Hawthorne, Emilija, Shadow, and me to help you.’
To be honest, I did feel extremely safe. Untouchable, even. Perhaps Fae was responsible for my overinflated ego.
‘So where do we find this Dango character?’
‘His name is Dagon,’ I said.
‘That’s a stupid name,’ retorted Fae.
Ignoring Fae’s remark, I continued, ‘I don’t know where his house is, or if he is at sea, but I know his grandfather owns that Inn.’
Fae looked over her shoulder at the seaside Inn and sighed. ‘Let’s get this over with.’
~
Upon entering the Inn and talking with Merl, we learned where Dagon lived, and were pleased to hear that he was indeed on land. Merl did not have any hard feelings regarding my sudden, and rather rude, departure from his care. On the contrary, he was pleased to see me, and said that Dagon had been talking of no one else.
‘A bit smitten with yeh, I think,’ Merl grinned.