Firedrake - By Bianca D'Arc Page 0,53

stones, though he was careful to aim his irritation away from the signs he studied. Drake shook his head.

“I have. Mace is normally the steadiest of men, but when something pushes him past his limits, watch out. He sees something about this trail that has him in an uproar and we need to find out what it is.”

Drake approached Mace cautiously. He could hear the knight almost growling under his breath. A habit he’d probably picked up from his dragon, Drake thought. Nellin didn’t look all that happy either, come to think of it.

“Mace?” Krysta approached him with sure steps, though her voice was calm in the face of his obvious fury. “What is it?”

The knight whirled on them. “What is it? Damn it to the nine hells! This is beyond anything I’ve ever seen!”

“What, brother?” Drake asked quietly, hoping to calm his friend. “What did you see from the air that we didn’t?”

Mace walked briskly off, pointing to the ground. “This!” He cursed viciously. “The trail ends here.”

“Ends?” Drake met Mace and looked at the ground. Seeing things from this vantage point, the tracks started to make sense. “I see. They left by air.”

“Dragons?” Krysta asked, incredulous. “Dragons participated in Prince Wil’s kidnapping? How could this be?”

“It could not. No dragon would harm a royal black. It goes against everything we are.” Nellin spoke as he moved forward with Jenet beside him. She nodded as well, though her expression was sad and more than a little confused.

“It wasn’t a dragon,” Drake said into the tense silence. He moved off to stand beside a large print in the sandy soil. “See this?” The rest of them came near to view the depression in the earth. “This is no dragon claw. This is a paw. See the pads? Like a cat’s paw, but on a grand scale.”

He walked forward a few feet, his entourage following. “And this?” He pointed out a deep scratch in the surface of the land. “This is not a dragon mark either. It’s a bird’s claw.”

“What bird could grow to such a size?” Mace wanted to know.

“In all the lands the Jinn roam, I’ve never heard of a bird that would carry people on its back. Or even in its grasp,” Krysta said quietly. “Or a giant flying cat that would do the same.”

“But I have,” Drake insisted. “This creature is neither bird nor cat. It’s both. And neither.” Drake stepped back to view the two sets of prints together. “We’re dealing with a gryphon. Probably more than one.”

“Gryphons!” Nellin roared. “By the Mother, they shall pay for this!”

“But they’re very rare, aren’t they? And not inclined to deal with humans, or so I’ve heard,” Krysta questioned.

Drake nodded. “Not usually. But I knew two gryphons who dealt quite well with people in the court of the Doge of Helios. They were bound protectors of the royal line and had lived among people for many generations. I knew them well, which is why I recognize these prints beyond the shadow of a doubt.” Drake nodded with grim confidence. “Somehow gryphons have been enlisted to aid in the kidnapping of a royal prince of Draconia.”

“It makes sense in a sinister sort of way,” Nellin said. “Only their great magic could even hope to stop a black dragon in human form from changing and flying away. If Prince William somehow managed to change, the gryphons could always fly him down, but their brand of magic could probably prevent him from shifting form at all. They are very potent against humans, but have little impact on dragons.”

“Their magic and ours negate each other. At least that’s what the elders say,” Jenet agreed. “But they are said to be powerful indeed.”

“The worst part of this, though—” Drake bent to examine the earth, finding the tracks many hours old to his trained eye, “—is that we have no hope of catching them before they reach the sea now. If they fly as fast as a dragon, they’re already at the coast.”

“We fly faster,” Nellin said with determination.

“But probably not by much.” Jenet was more honest, craning her neck over so she could touch her head comfortingly against Drake’s chest. “Drake,” she said quietly, “how are we going to get Wil back now?”

The lost tone touched his heart. Drake knew Jenet was closer perhaps than any dragon to the young prince, and she worried for him. Drake reached out and stroked her head, hugging her for a short moment as he tried to reassure