Will gazed at the dragons resting in the glen. “Are they sleeping?” he asked, shrugging out of his sweater. The hollow atop the cliff was unseasonably warm and Loren shed her coat too.

Luna nodded. We’re Noctilucous Amaranths, nocturnal. We’re waiting for twilight.

Will cast a wary glance at the sleeping dragons. “I don’t think we should wake them.” His eyes moved to the tumbling waterfall and the pool at its foot. “Wow, look at that water!” he whispered loudly.

Luna followed as they tip-toed across the grass, ignoring the napping dragons, and falling onto their hands and knees to peer into the pool.

The water sparkled and lapped gently with an enticing honey-green glow.

“Oh!” cried Loren, gazing into the seemingly bottomless pool.

The undulating image of a violet dragon stared back at her. Loren swung round expecting to see Luna gazing over her shoulder, but there was nothing. Still, the dragon scrutinized her from within the water. Loren stared into the pool and the water began to ebb. Ripples lapped and bounced off rocks and waterfall spray rained a shimmering mist upon bemused heads. Loren’s eyes grew wider as the water began to swirl, forming a whirlpool. The dragon’s image faded back and disappeared. Loren sat back on her heels.

There was a splash and ripples spread, slopping the rocks. The water gurgled, spurted, and broke as the dragon burst out in front of them.

Loren, Will, and Cat scrambled backward, and Orca fell into the grass, unable to take in the reflection’s solid form.

The creature was paler than Selene and Luna and much older. It shook, flapping its wings to shower them with water, but they could not move their eyes from it. Loren leapt to her feet and stared up at the dragon, craning her neck as it rose above her. The dragon somersaulted in the air and as it opened its huge jaw Loren overbalanced. Her arms swung frantically as she struggled to remain upright, and she released an echoing yell as she plunged into the pool.

Immediately Loren became entangled in the whirling maelstrom. Panic seized her as she held her breath and writhed. She glanced up and beyond the bubbles saw Will and Cat poised on the edge of the rocks. Will said something to Cat and threw himself into the pool.

The force of his leap pushed Loren clear of the whirlpool and she was thrust through the water. She watched as her brother spiralled beneath her and the water corkscrewed as it drew them deeper. Loren kicked and swam against the current. She reached Will and snatched his arm. Her thoughts raced wildly and she suddenly understood how a fish felt, yanked from a safe riverbed out onto dry land.

Her heart pounded and her lungs burned. The gushing turbulence suddenly expelled them with a cloud of bubbles into calmer water.

Still underwater, Loren struggled to find her bearings as her head began to fill with flashing lights, but she fought the urge to breathe. She grabbed at Will as he floundered and pulled him upward, erupting out of the water into dull light. She gulped in huge breaths of stale air.

Next to her, Will coughed and heaved himself away from the water. “I was supposed to rescue you,” he croaked in an eerie echo of a shaky voice.

Loren spluttered and pushed her sodden hair from her face. She closed her eyes, gripping the rock she sat on with shaking fingers. She panted, struggling to catch her breath. Cool air blew through the cave and she shivered violently. “Give me a minute!” Her teeth chattered and Will got unsteadily to his feet.

Loren opened her eyes a bit, trying to calm her nerves. “Are we behind the waterfall?”

Will looked around. “Possibly? Maybe? It’s hard to tell. Somewhere underground?” He spun on the spot. “But not underground as we’re level with the water.”

“But not far?”

“I don’t think we came far,” said Will, staring about the lofty cavern.

“How is it so light in here without any sunshine?” she asked, her voice booming.

“Cressets?” offered Will.

Deep seams of golden-green crystal shone like sunlight. Thick moss covered much of the rock and ferns sprouted amongst the blanket of green. As she gazed, Will’s voice echoed. “We need to find a different way out.”

As much as Loren looked, there appeared to be no exit. “I don’t think there’s another way.”

“I don’t want to go through that washing machine again!” said Will, shaking his head and staring back at the pool. He stepped purposefully away, moving across the rocks to a patch of shingle and his feet clattered over the stones as he explored.

Loren remained on her rock, squeezing water out of her hair and watching her brother. Cressets glinted across the rocks, but light also emanated from the crystal. Beyond him, she noticed a cleft lit by cressets hidden in the rock above the pool. “There’s something up there!” she called, waving her arm at Will. “Up there, above the pool. Maybe it’s a way out.”

Will scrambled across the rocks and grabbed at the overhang. Within moments he was halfway up the rock face and swinging himself into the crevice.

“What’s up there?” called Loren.

“Not sure…” His voice faded as he disappeared into the crack in the rock.

“Are you okay?” she called. “Is it a way out? Or is it too narrow? It looks narrow.”

His words were muffled and all Loren could hear was loose stone beneath his shuffling feet and the constant trickle of water running down the walls.

She waited, shivering, and tried to wring out her saturated top. Her boots squelched as she moved. She glanced up at the rocks then stared at her boots and slid them back and forth on the wet pebbles. Cressets gravitated to her and settled on the boulder. The tiny creatures were like diminutive fireflies caught inside bubbles of light and they bobbed about like tiny floating diamonds. She watched one drift down to her foot and the gritty gravel glinted. She stretched her hand and scattered the stones, revealing a clutch of golden-green stones, smooth like sea glass.

“Wow!” She whistled through her teeth. The stones looked like the ones Rhianna had healed them with but in their natural form.

She rolled the stones through her fingers. Several dropped to the ground. The watery residue on her fingers shimmered and she reached down to retrieve the glassy gems. She got to her feet and slipped the stones into her pocket, dropping one into the water. It gently spiralled to the shingle bed with a trail of golden glitter floating behind it.

“Seren Stones and spirit gems.” She giggled and unconsciously moved her hand to her chest. The Seren Stone chain had tangled in her hair while she was in the tumultuous water and Loren worked it free. She cradled the gem in her hand. “Will!” she cried out, excitement in her voice. “Look! You need to see this!” Loren stood and hurried into the cavern, moving aside dripping vine strands that hung from the ceiling. “Will?” she called, listening to his name echo.

This time she could hear his voice ring out through the grotto. “Need to see what?” he asked. “We can’t get out up here. There’s a gap in the cliff, and you can hear the waterfall echoing but it’s too narrow to get through.”

In his hurry, Will stumbled high on the rocks and slipped. His yell echoed and he fell headlong towards the pool beneath the overhang. He tumbled through the water, head over heels, kicking and splashing, but disappeared below the ripples.

When he failed to surface, Loren stared at the glowing water with familiar panic rising from the pit of her stomach. She swallowed her dizzy fear and dived back into the pool. Below, Will was caught amid bubbles gripped in the turmoil of the relentless current. As she launched after him her necklace caught on a sharp rock. She struggled to release it, and the chain snapped. She watched in horror as the jewel sank through the water.

Cressets drifted across and the gem settled atop their bubbles of light, bobbing along in the water. Will lunged after it, but the current bore him along. As he reached the shining group the cressets dispersed, the stone shimmering in their darting light. It slowly began to sink again and Will stretched desperate hands. His fingertips grasped the end of the chain and the stone drifted down it like a slow-motion rollercoaster plunging at the first drop. He yanked the slack chain and it moved through the water like a ribbon. He grabbed the stone in his palm, clutching it tight as he vanished from Loren’s sight, taken by the eddying vortex.

Loren pushed through the water, powering forward with everything she had, rolling with the current as it propelled her upward. Loren emerged to see Will sitting at the edge of the pool, coughing and clutching the chain, with Orca on his knee. Selene and Luna stood behind Will and a crowd of Amaranths had gathered by the pool. The dragons backed away, nervously, one by one, as Will held out the chain and the stone swung glinting in the sunshine.

Loren climbed out of the pool as Cat reached for the gem. Loren got there first, wrenching the chain out of Will’s hands. Silky water still clung to the gem’s sides. She stroked the golden-green stone with her finger, unaware of the dragons’ unease. The gem was hard and cold, but strangely also felt warm to her touch. “See, look!” she hissed.

Should it be doing that? Luna murmured nervously.

Will wiped his hands on his jeans and leaned closer.

Entranced, Loren saw nothing but the gem’s beauty. It felt like velvet in her fingers, a feeling she vaguely recalled from another day. It shimmered and shone like it never had before. Every drop of water that fell from it glittered like spun gold. She ran her finger lightly over its face and it released a pure note, echoing momentarily around the gorge. It looked like it was alive and full of gleaming golden-green liquid as she rolled it between her thumb and forefinger.

Then she noticed genuine concern on Luna’s face. She resolutely met the anxiety in the Amaranth’s huge eyes and stood. She noticed with surprise that all the Amaranths, except Luna, had moved back to the undergrowth and had quietly faded into the greenery.

Orca crawled up her arm and leaned forward on her shoulder, peering at the gem and the syrupy iridescent water dripping down her breast. It looks like the spirit water that healed Delmar, he whispered. Loren caught several of the stone’s fat drops of golden liquid and stared as tiny green sparks collected at her fingertip. She couldn’t resist lifting her finger to her lips, and the mellifluous honey-green balm teased her tongue, so sweet and silky. She closed her eyes in bliss.

She was oblivious to the dazed expressions around her. She’d spent most of the last two days troubled and anxious, but as the balm infused her, all concerns vanished and all that surrounded her was wonder and awe. She heard her name float in the air, but all she saw was water cascading down the cliff, each droplet shining gloriously, reflecting the misty beauty of the glen. Her desire to see more swamped her.

Orca stiffened on her shoulder. The dragons shrank back even further, and Loren’s reverie was broken by a disturbing tingle in her back.

Pain exploded through her shoulder blades, and her skin felt taut and sore. Agony seared through her spine, and she desperately gripped the gem hoping it would soothe the pain. Orca, tangled in her hair, wrapped his tail tightly around her locks, pulling on her scalp as she jerked forward. Sweat beaded, and horror filled Loren’s head as explosive starbursts ruptured. She fell to her knees, fingers digging into the earth as her skin tore open beneath her shirt. She arched backwards and frenziedly shrugged out of her shirt as spikes erupted through her torn t-shirt.

More pain ripped through her back and Loren’s scream echoed across the lonely hills and quiet reservoir. She collapsed as Cat’s shocked cry rang out in the ensuing silence.

Only Loren’s exhausted moans lifted on the air. Exposed blood cauterised instantly as heat swept through her neck and her shoulders, and she remained on her knees and elbows, her forehead resting on the wet grass. Loren peered up through the fuzzy throb in her mind at her brother and sister, trying to comprehend the looks of alarm on their faces. She shook wildly, her arms struggling to hold her up, and she let herself slip right to the ground. Curled up on her side, her blood-soaked sweat seeped into the grass. Palpitations jittered and Loren clutched her body close, her arms trembling, holding herself tight. Incoherent thoughts of heart attack, stabbing, and death, and fire-ants crawling throughout her insides consumed her, and she held her breath then gulped down sudden frantic mouthfuls of air.

The pain finally began to subside. Loren shakily wiped her forehead and tried to get back onto her knees. The stone, still attached to the broken chain, fizzled in her hand, and the chain swung to and fro with blades of grass and mud caught up in the links. She tried raising her head, aware of a huge and unwieldy weight on her back. Loren glanced over her shoulder and blinked in shock.

A thin, bloodstained, leathery wing tremored, and a thrill shot down her spine. She reached her hand over her shoulder and gently touched the damp wing, unnerved by its fragile appearance. She shivered as nerves she’d never felt before quivered in her spine.

She bent, suddenly plagued by nausea, and vomited violently before rising unsteadily to her feet. She swayed, disoriented by the unfamiliar weight and the misty fog in her brain. Adrenaline pumped through her veins, and began to disperse the discomfort. Her fingers tightened about the Seren Stone and sparks flashed up her arm, consuming the remains of the dragging ache.

Loren stared at her brother and sister as they gazed back with slack jaws. She shook her head, tensed, and looked into the pool. Trembling wings rose up over her head, reflecting in the still water, and Loren held her breath.

For a moment she stood motionless, then reached round again to touch the delicate wings. They quivered and vibrated, and the sensation slipped like silk into her psyche. Only a dull ache lingered, and fascination made Loren drunk with curiosity. Her wings opened and closed, dancing on her back, and their strength surprised her. She wriggled her shoulders and moaned as her wings fluttered. Muscles twitched and discomfort surged as she moved her wings back and forth.

Luna snorted and thrust out her own great wings. Loren, the stone… Her words were lost as a gust of wind lifted Loren high into the air. Her wings swept back and forth, and she squealed in a mixture of intoxicated delight and sheer panic.

“Wow!” cried Cat, staring up at her sister.

Whop! shrieked Orca as she lifted higher. Orca slipped and tightened his tail’s grip in her hair to keep from falling. Loren’s movements were jerky and inexperienced, but her wings felt natural and strong. She imagined she felt the same stimulating excitement as a baby bird flying out of the nest.

Orca dropped to her shoulder, closed his eyes, and clung to her tattered top. Loren rose up above the pool and tried to relax, feeling the air caress her. Exhilaration cascaded through her, and her heart raced, drumming with energy.

She’d always dreamed of flying, and now here she was soaring above dragons on wings of her own.

Her eyes darted to and fro, but she couldn’t collect her thoughts. She giggled and it soon evolved into a wide grin and tickling laughter. Even Orca’s fear, buffeting her own excitement like the wind, couldn’t dampen her spirits.

The breeze lifted her effortlessly beside the plunging waterfall. She fluttered her wings and flew higher, and waterfall spray sequined her flowing hair with diamond sparkles. She cleared the top of the gorge and let out a cry of wonder. The dragons below looked like toys and she could hardly see Will and Cat, but the panorama was breathtaking.

This was one of the highest points in all of Mid Wales, with only a far mountain peak to the south-west and the northern ranges higher. She could see across the expanse of the Beacons and the Black Mountain where their adventure had begun. A succession of huge reservoirs and lakes ran through the valley, a natural spine through the centre of the land feeding all the watercourses. From her vantage point she could see the sparkles in a dark abyss, a huge bay cutting the land away from the mainland miles away. There was eeriness about the dark water that sent a shiver down Loren’s back.

Following the lakes along their course she could see vague snowy mountains sat on the northern horizon, crystal-white at their peaks. Loren shivered. As she turned, West Wales, with all its soft purple and green shades, lay before her strewn with autumn-coloured forests and woodland and shrouds of curling mist.

Orca gripped for dear life, his eyes tightly screwed shut. She waved at those below and realised she still clutched the stone. Guilt spiked in her, and she knew she had to return. Her wings beat and she tried to take control. Orca opened his eyes and stared at the vista. He shrank as his muscles tightened and his claws dug into Loren’s skin. “It’s okay, we’re going back,” Loren whispered.

Dewy waterfall droplets still clung to her hair as Loren shook her head and the wind grabbed at her long, dark tresses. The breeze cooled and she shivered. Orca wrapped his tail around her neck and his joints locked as he snuggled close. Loren dipped and started to descend into the gorge.

She clutched the gem tight, close to her heart. Her wings fluttered, and she manoeuvred down the rock face towards the expectant dragons. She watched Luna skit about and tried to deflect another twinge of guilt as she beat her wings even faster. They whirred with a comforting sound. It was the first time she had noticed any noise. It had been silent up on top of the gorge but for the tumbling waterfall. Now she listened and heard birds singing, the cry of red kites, and waters rushing. She shut her eyes as the sounds filled her head and she spiralled down, feeling like a sycamore key dropping to the earth.

She opened her eyes and her brother and sister slowly grew, the Amaranths peered surreptitiously up through long eyelashes laden with fear and curiosity, and Luna danced nervously below.

Loren shivered again as an icy current enveloped her, but it was Cat’s scream that made her turn. Luna released a furious, guttural roar and Loren spun in the air. Blood drained from her features as a squadron of Shivrins raced silently towards her.