Jonah and the Last Great Dragon (10 page)

‘But I won’t be alone! I’ll have Ffyrnig.’

‘I can reassure the PM,’ broke in the Colonel. ‘We’ll kit you out with polar clothing and gear for shelter on Ffyrnig’s back. And you’ll have a strong safety harness, so that you will be safe, even when you are asleep. We’ll set you up with Army ration packs, too.’

‘Are you one hundred percent certain he’ll be safe?’ asked the Home Secretary, looking searchingly at the Colonel.

The Colonel paused for a second and then nodded. ‘Well, the SAS will make sure that Jonah has complete protection and food for an extended flight into the Arctic. And as for Jonah’s safety, can you see this chap’ —nodding at Ffyrnig—‘letting anything happen to him? No, so long as Jonah follows the safety rules we’ll give him for moving around in sub-zero temperatures, I believe the PM should let him go.’

‘Right,’ said the Home Secretary. ‘Let’s go in and speak to the Cabinet. We need to get this under way immediately. The PM just has to be persuaded that he has no option but to let Jonah ride the dragon.’

As Jonah entered the drawing room again with the Home Secretary and the Colonel, the Prime Minister swung round, smiling. He looked pretty anxious though, Jonah thought.

‘The dragon seemed to like the meat. Was there enough for him?’

‘Yes, thank you… Sir?’ Jonah went on. ‘Ffyrnig is absolutely sure that the icedrakes can destroy the demons’ outer bodies. Then they’ll have to go back to the Underworld. The only thing is…’

‘Yes?’ The Prime Minister looked hard at Jonah. ‘Oh, dear. I have a feeling I’m not going to like the next bit.’

The Home Secretary placed a hand on Jonah’s shoulder. ‘Prime Minister,’ he said, ‘the Great Dragon is the only drake that can make the journey swiftly enough. According to Ffyrnig, the others can’t fly the distance without stopping to feed and take long rests, so he has to go alone.’

The Prime Minister’s face brightened. ‘Well, that’s good news, isn’t it? If he thinks these icedrakes can…’

The Home Secretary held up a cautionary hand. ‘Alone, that is, with Jonah.’

‘With Jonah? On his own? Oh, no, no, no.’

‘Sir,’ broke in the Colonel. ‘Apparently, the firedrakes and the icedrakes are enemies. The Great Dragon thinks the icedrakes are unlikely to come here just because he asks them to. Only Jonah can persuade them to help us.’

The Prime Minister shook his head. ‘I can’t allow it. What would the people of this country think if the
Government sent a child to the Arctic,
completely alone?
If we were sending an adult, it would be different.’

A sudden thought seemed to strike him. He ran his hand through his hair distractedly, looking at the carpet.

‘Jonah,’ he began, ‘how many people could ride Ffyrnig at once? Two or three, surely?’

The Home Secretary coughed discreetly. ‘I can follow your line of thinking, Prime Minister,’ he said, ‘but we can’t send soldiers from the SAS with Jonah, I’m afraid. The dragon made it quite clear that he can carry only a light load, if he is to make the flight to the Arctic quickly enough to get help in time to save us.’

The Prime Minister gazed sombrely at Jonah and shook his head. ‘The country won’t accept it. We cannot endanger the life of someone so young.’

Colonel Cooper broke in eagerly. ‘Sir, couldn’t you ask his parents? If they say they will allow Jonah to go, surely that would be acceptable?’

Jonah turned to him. ‘My parents are working in Saudi Arabia this summer. We can’t get in touch with them.’ He looked at him apologetically, and then a thought came to him. ‘But my aunt is here. She’s at Hyde Park. The SAS brought her and my uncle up to London. She’ll agree to it. I know she will!’

‘Sir!’ The Colonel spoke urgently to the Prime Minister. ‘Won’t you let me send for Jonah’s aunt? Immediately.’

‘Please, Prime Minister,’ the Home Secretary pressed. ‘We don’t have the luxury of choice. This young man is our only hope.’

The talk at Number Ten had turned to angels. What did the Archangel look like, they wanted to know. Were the angels in paintings anything like the real ones?

‘I’d love to see them,’ said the Police Commissioner.

‘Well, I expect you could. At the moment, they are only
just up the road in Westminster,’ Jonah said.

The Commissioner began to laugh and was just saying, ‘Fancy being able to just pop up the road to look at
angels,’
when the door opened and a member of staff ushered in Claire, Bryn, Rhodri and Erin. With a huge smile, Jonah jumped up from his chair, as the Prime Minister said, ‘This must be your aunt and uncle. Will you introduce me?’ After that, tea and sandwiches were brought in for them.

Erin was sitting very demurely on a sofa beside Claire but her eyes, when she glanced at Jonah, were shining. He was sure she was fizzing with excitement and was about to go over to talk to her, when the Prime Minister touched his arm and turned towards Claire.

‘Mrs Parry, I’m sure you are aware how much we all owe to your nephew and’ —he smiled at Erin—‘to this young lady also.’

‘I didn’t do anything,’ Erin blurted out, as Claire smiled with pleasure.

‘On the contrary, I think that flying with Jonah to try to drive these foul creatures out of Hereford was quite something,’ the Prime Minister said kindly. ‘You are very brave young people.’ He turned back to Claire and Bryn. ‘I don’t know whether you have heard that the dragons’ attempt to clear the demons out of the Westminster area caused a fire?’

Bryn nodded. ‘Yes, the police driver who collected us told us about it on the way here. We have a real problem, don’t we, if the only thing that can be used against the Night Creatures is dangerous in itself?’

‘There seems to be an answer, Mr Parry. The Great Dragon has told Jonah that there are dragons living in the Arctic, which breathe not fire but ice.’

‘No! Really?’ Bryn stared. ‘I’ve never heard of them.’

‘Neither had anyone else, it seems,’ said the Prime
Minister. ‘The dragon says the icedrakes could almost certainly freeze and crack the stone shapes the demons have entered.’

‘But that’s wonderful! Are we going to be able to find them and bring them here?’ asked Claire.

The Prime Minister cleared his throat and looked a little awkward. ‘That very much depends on you, Mrs Parry,’ he said.

Claire bit her lip. She said she understood the terrible threat to Britain posed by the Night Creatures, but felt she did not have the right to put her nephew’s life in danger. And then Erin, sitting beside her, looked up at the Prime Minister and asked very quietly, ‘Were there any children among the people who were killed in Victoria today?’

The Prime Minister, looking sombre, replied that there were and Claire, who had not known all the details of the demon attack, stared at him, appalled. She looked down for a moment, twisting her hands together. ‘I absolutely hate this,’ she said slowly. ‘I’m going to give my permission but I want everyone to know I feel as if I’m being backed into a corner. I’m taking a decision that should only be made by Jonah’s parents. And if anything goes wrong…’ Her voice trailed off.

Bryn put his arm round her shoulders and there was a moment when everyone felt awkward. Then Erin leaned forward.

‘May I ask a question, please?’ she said, looking up at the Colonel.

‘Certainly.’

‘Why can’t one of the soldiers go with Jonah? Surely Ffyrnig can manage?’

The Colonel turned to Jonah. ‘Would you like to explain?’

‘Ffyrnig says the lighter his load, the better. It’s a long
way and there won’t be time to stop to eat a proper dragon meal. I think he’s a bit worried about the icy weather affecting him, too.’

Erin studied his face for a second or two, She shook her head, as if she had made up her mind about something.

‘I guess I don’t weigh much more than half what most of the soldiers do. Ask Ffyrnig to let me come with you. Two heads – or three, begging Ffyrnig’s pardon – will be much safer, don’t you think?’

Jonah’s face cracked into an enormous grin at the same time that Bryn gasped and said, ‘Hey, look here, Erin, your parents will never agree to that! You can’t phone them,
cariad
. You can’t go without permission.’

Erin looked hard at the Prime Minister. ‘They let me go to fight the demons in Hereford, sir. They would say “yes”, now. If Jonah goes, it will be safer for him if I go too, and my mam and dad would agree.’ She stood up. ‘My teachers say I think quickly and react fast – well, in sports lessons, I do. And Jonah won’t feel all alone, if I’m with him. Please, sir, send me with him.’

The Prime Minister looked round at the Home Secretary and the Colonel. All three men nodded.

‘Well, I don’t like it,’ said the Prime Minister, ‘but it’s safer than Jonah going alone. And I don’t seem to have a better choice. I’ll allow it, Erin. But I fervently hope I don’t meet your father before you’re safely back here.’

Erin, with Jonah and his family, had spent the night at a large hotel in Park Lane. When they woke next morning, they were given wonderful news. The telephone lines to parts of Wales and the South-west were working again, though nobody knew for how long.

‘Really posh, Mam.’ Erin had bubbled with excitement as she phoned Gwen at Gilfach Farm. ‘And I had pancakes with bacon and maple syrup for breakfast. Bliss! I didn’t think bacon and syrup would go together but it was totally yummy.’

She listened to Gwen for a moment.

‘We
will
be careful. Try not to worry, Mam. The Colonel has made sure we have warm clothing and sleeping bags and everything. And they are giving us loads of packs of food. And a Sat Nav thingy. If it will work, of course!’ She stopped to listen again. ‘What, you actually talked to the Prime Minister? Dad
and
you? I bet Dad said I couldn’t go, at first?’

Erin listened intently. ‘Yes, we’ll look after each other. Love you both lots. Bye.’ She turned to Jonah, shaking her head in surprise. ‘I can’t believe it! Dad gave his permission straight away. Must be the Jonah Effect!’

‘What?’

‘The Jonah Effect.’ Erin put on a solemn face and intoned, ‘“If that boy can put himself at risk for other people, I can’t be selfish about letting my daughter…” Yadda, yadda, yadda. You keep this up, and they’ll let me climb Everest by the time I’m fourteen.’

‘Well, don’t count on me coming with you,’ Jonah retorted, as the grown-ups came into the hotel lobby.

The morning in Hyde Park was overcast and grey. After the warm, August days they had been having, the weather seemed gloomy and the children felt chilly.

‘Better than glaring sun for Ffyrnig, I should think,’ said Jack, who was busy putting ready meals and drinks into packs for Jonah and Erin, ‘and more comfortable for you, too. Now, you have enough food here for at least three weeks, so if anything did go wrong – not that it will – you won’t go hungry.’

‘And, remember, you two,’ put in Sam, who was watching two soldiers packing tents, sleeping bags and blankets into canvas holdalls that would be attached to Ffyrnig’s harness, ‘don’t let yourself get cold. Never take your fur mittens off and just put them down somewhere, without thinking. It’s shocking how quickly you can get frostbite, if you can’t find your mittens fast, so
always
keep them attached to your clothing. Isn’t that right, Jack?’

‘It is. Even when you take a pee, get your gloves back on fast.’

Erin wrinkled her nose.

‘Look here.’ Jack picked up a white box with a red cross on it. ‘I’m giving you a first aid kit from the British Red Cross. There’s a pack of instruction cards in it, so you’ll be able to see what to do, in case you fall or cut yourselves.’

‘Phew.’ Jonah blew out a long breath. ‘Hope we remember everything.’

The two men smiled reassuringly. ‘You will,’ said Sam. ‘And don’t worry. Now listen, Jonah. We’ve been looking at satellite maps and now we’re pretty sure which places best fit what you told us about the route Ffyrnig’s taking. It looks like he’s going to make for Franz Josef Land.’

‘Where’s that?’

‘It’s a group of 191 islands in the Barents Sea,’ put in Erin.

Jonah and Sam stared at her.

She grinned. ‘I’m not just a pretty face, guys. We did an Arctic project last year. I do listen in school, you know.’ She turned to Sam. ‘The islands are covered with ice most of the time, aren’t they? That makes me think you’re probably right about it being where we’ll find the ice drakes. There are all those islands for them to hide away on and there are loads of walruses and seals and things.’

‘That’s right. It would be easy for ice drakes to hide from the few humans that land there from time to time, and very easy for them to hunt, I should think. So try there first, eh?’

‘Ffyrnig says they just eat fish,’ Jonah said. ‘Still, he might not realise they can find meat there.’

Sam went on, ‘We’ve worked out that it should take Ffyrnig about three days to reach Franz Josef Land, given a few
very
short comfort stops for you two. Are you sure he won’t need to stop and feed?’

‘He says not.’

‘Well, I expect he’ll eat when he gets there.’

Erin looked uncertain. ‘Do you think he’ll go for seals? I’ll die if he kills the babies!’

‘More likely walruses or bears, I should think,’ said Sam. ‘My money’s on polar bears. There could be Arctic foxes too. ‘

‘Oh, no! He can’t! Polar bears are an endangered species,’ Erin wailed.

‘He might think the seals and walruses would be rather fishy-tasting.’

‘I’m not going to like this bit,’ Erin groaned.

‘Oh, he won’t kill in front of us. Don’t worry,’ said Jonah, patting her shoulder. ‘He’ll fly off so we don’t have to see. I’ll ask him to.’

‘If you aren’t back in eight days, we shall come looking for you,’ said Sam. ‘It’ll take our dragons a couple of days longer to reach the islands because they will have to rest and find prey to eat, but you needn’t be afraid of running out of food before we get to you.’ He turned to Jack, who was looking concerned. ‘Jack?’

‘Could I have a word in private, sir?’

Sam glanced at Jonah, who pretended to be totally absorbed in watching the other soldiers’ preparations, though he was desperate to hear what Jack was worrying about. The two men walked a few paces away and as Jonah watched the soldiers stowing the neat little one-man Arctic tents that they had taught the children to erect, he thought about Claires conversation with the Prime Minister the night before. He had never for a moment thought she would give her permission for him to fly to find the ice drakes.

Sam and Jack came back, smiling.

‘I was wondering how the other dragons would know where to look for you,’ Jack said, ‘but the Captain says Ffyrnig has told the others where the ice drakes are likely to be. He says they will know where to look.’

‘Yeah, he did tell them,’ said Jonah anxiously, ‘but how would you control the dragons if you had to come after us? You can’t talk to them without me.’

‘It’s not going to happen,’ said Sam, easily, ‘but if it did, we’ll just trust the dragons to bring us to you as fast as they can. You explain to them that if we harness them up, they’ll know we need them to fly after you. And they know where you and Ffyrnig will make for. It’ll be fine

Erin was chewing her lip.

‘Something wrong?’ asked Sam.

‘If the Night Creatures are messing up more communications systems, will the Sat Nav work?’

‘It should work when you get away from our coast. And, look, you two, keep away from shipping lanes and try to avoid any built-up areas in Scandinavia. People will be scared stiff if they see the dragon in the sky. You don’t want anyone shooting at him.’

‘It won’t hurt him!’

‘No, Erin, but you or Jonah could get shot. So be very careful. I suggest you get Ffyrnig to fly up the coast of Norway, but keep well out over the sea.’

The soldiers who had been packing the gear came forward. ‘Everything’s ready, sir,’ one said.

‘All right, then,’ said Sam. ‘Let’s get you both into flying gear and put the harness on Ffyrnig, and you can get airborne.’

Jonah took a deep breath. This scary adventure was about to start.