where Candle found you, sitting and shivering where one of the recently harvested plants had been. He helped you stagger to the village where you passed out in the street. Angel volunteered to take care of you in the sky ward, and, of course, Candle had to go along. After all, he felt as though he harvested you.”
Timothy shook his head in wonder. “I guess you know this manner of childbirth is new to me.”
“You guess correctly.” Abraham smiled at him. “This guessing is an idiom I should add to my people’s language.”
Walking toward the village, Abraham stepped into a parallel row to avoid another foursome of harvesters. “As you heard, these children are castoffs from a different world. Their lives were terminated by cruel or ignorant people, so here they are given an opportunity to finally be born and live. Yet, they have a better existence here. Even after they mature, they are so pure and innocent, if not for the cold winds, they would likely wear no clothes and no one would care. They also never age beyond their prime years. Some of the youthful adults are three times their apparent age, according to the norms of your world. They have no disease, only the occasional injury associated with work and play and …” Abraham paused and furrowed his brow. After a few seconds it seemed that he had decided not to continue.
“So that’s the reason for the sky ward,” Timothy concluded. “But it seemed like such a large hospital. I think I was the only patient.”
“You were. We have ground-based infirmaries for most injuries. The hospital in the sky is for times of war. Our enemy is unable to reach it, so it is a safe refuge for our wounded.”
“Candle mentioned times of war.” Timothy searched the sky for any sign of a bird. “Who is your enemy? The altered tribe?”
“That is the name my people gave them, but to you it probably makes them sound like mutant American Indians on the warpath.” Abraham smiled at his own attempt at humor. “Actually, I prefer to call the closest altered tribe the shadow people.”
“That conjures even stranger images. What’s a shadow person?”
“Again, it is better for you to see than for me to explain.”
Timothy nodded toward the village. “Through Enoch’s Ghost?”
“I will bring it with us. Where we are going, we will need the protection it offers. They live in a dark region filled with mysteries, one of which I would like for you to help me solve. Perhaps when I show it to you, we will also see the shadow people.”
They returned to the village and, after collecting the ovulum, traveled back to where Timothy had left Grackle. Abraham blew a shrill whistle into the air. Another whistle echoed his, and then, in the distance, a third barely audible response returned on the breeze.
“Albatross will be here soon,” Abraham said. “I assume Angel and Grackle have given you a dragon-flying lesson.”
“Oh, yes. It was quite a ride!”
Abraham revealed a hint of a smile. “Perhaps more than you hoped for?”
Timothy shook his head. “It felt good to soar through the air. I’m ready to go again.”
“Albatross will not be so gentle,” Abraham said with a frown. “The white dragons lack both cleverness and courtesy.”
A huge shadow blocked out the sun. Albatross approached, a dragon even bigger than Grackle, two seats already strapped to his back. As he landed, his spiny white tail swiped toward Timothy.
“Jump!” Abraham ordered.
Timothy leaped over the tail just in time. When the dragon settled, he spewed a frosty spray of blue ice crystals at Timothy’s feet.
“Albatross!” Abraham shook his finger. “Do you want to go back where I found you?”
The dragon shook his head and trumpeted a loud, mournful wail.
“Then you had better give us a smooth ride to Shadow’s Basin.”
Albatross shook his head again, this time trembling.
“There is nothing to fear.” Abraham nodded toward the descending sun. “As long as we have light, we will be safe.”
After spewing another spray of ice on the ground, Albatross lowered his snout, creating the stairway. A few seconds later, Abraham and Timothy were on board. Abraham stowed Enoch’s Ghost in a bag attached to his seat, and, as soon as the dragon heated his scales, they took off into the chilly breeze.
Abraham shouted above the sound of wings and wind. “It is quite late to be traveling to the basin, but we will not tarry long. We just have to be back in the air before