The sky was dimming as the flying rug and its passengers neared the border of the queen’s domain. It had been a sad, silent journey and a cold one, for the heat had gone out of the sun and no one’s clothes had dried completely despite the wind. Bertha had insisted on wearing her hat, wet as it was, and now the brim sagged, and sooty flowers drooped limply over her eyes. Leo was thinking glumly of his boots, still lying where he had kicked them off to sleep in Flitter Wood. In the haste of departure, he had completely forgotten to pick them up.
His cold feet stopped seeming important, however, as he stared into the blue haze that shrouded the grassy plain and the castle on the hill. From the air the smoke looked almost as dense as cloud, but he could see dark shapes moving at the bottom of the hill. Most looked small. One was very large.
He wet his lips. ‘There’s the dragon,’ he said.
‘I will shield us if it makes a move, never fear,’ Wizard Wurzle said placidly. He sounded sublimely confident. The apparent success of his rainmaking spell seemed to have totally dispelled his usual anxiety. He had even stopped biting his nails.
It doesn’t matter that his spell didn’t make the rain at all, Leo told himself firmly, looking down at his hands. The more confident Wurzle feels, the better it will be for all of us tonight.
He jumped and yelled as something black soared past his ear and landed with a thud on the rug beside him.
‘Marjorie!’ cried Bertha. ‘Oh, Marjorie, have you heard –’
‘That Boris and Nevermore are dead?’ the crow snapped. ‘Yes, I heard. Killed by the dragon then burned to a crisp, Freda told me.’
‘You’ve seen Freda?’ Leo gasped. ‘Is she all right?’
‘She’s been better,’ Marjorie croaked, regarding him with a mournful eye. ‘She’s taken this Conker business hard. She’s just sitting down there, right on the border, staring at him through the smoke. Won’t admit that he’s beyond help. Maybe you can talk her into moving. She won’t listen to me.’
She nodded sharply to them and took off again.
Hal brought the rug down on a patch of grass between an overgrown apple orchard and a little abandoned farmhouse. The castle and its hill rose directly behind the orchard, veiled in blue haze.
‘Tye, take Spoiler into the house and keep him there,’ Hal said. ‘Take the rug with you. And light a fire, will you? It’ll be cold later. Wurzle and Bertha, come with me. Leo and Mimi –’
‘We’re coming too,’ Leo broke in. ‘The queen will expect to see a few of us. It’ll look funny if just the three of you turn up.’
His heart was beating wildly. He was afraid, but he had to know what was happening on the border – what was happening to Conker.
‘No!’ Spoiler burst out. ‘Hal, don’t let them go down there! She’ll be there, waiting! Don’t take them near her. It’s too dangerous!’
As Tye hustled him away, he was still protesting violently, and looking back over his shoulder.
‘Leo and Mimi,’ Hal said, as if there had been no interruption, ‘go to the stream beside the house. You’ll find a bucket there. Underneath the bucket is a Safe Place. Use it and return to us at once. We’ll wait for you. Be quick!’
He ushered Bertha and Wurzle into the orchard, and Leo and Mimi ran to the stream. The Safe Place was just where Hal had said it would be, and in moments, the Key to Rondo had been safely stowed away.
‘How did Hal know this Safe Place was here?’ Mimi asked, sitting back on her heels as the slimy patch of mud sealed itself and Leo put the bucket back on top of it.
‘I think he knows all about this farm,’ Leo said slowly. ‘He told Tye to light a fire because it would be cold later, so that means we’ll be staying here tonight. This must be the meeting place.’
Tonight. Tonight the plan would go ahead. Tonight they would be trying to imprison the queen. And if they succeeded, they would be sealing Conker in with her forever.
His heart aching, Leo looked down at the rippling stream. It came into his mind that in time this crystal-clear water would reach the sea and whisper its secrets to the Tideseer. ‘I wonder what the Tideseer would have told us, if we’d asked the question she’s been waiting for?’ he murmured.
Mimi shook her head impatiently. ‘It’s too late to worry about that now, Leo! Come on!’
In silence they ran to the orchard and found Hal, Bertha and Wurzle waiting for them deep in the dappled green shade. As he led the way out of the trees, Hal drew a sharp breath, and stopped.
A short, grassy slope ran down from the orchard to the plain. A few steps beyond the slope, the smoke haze hung like a gauze curtain. Everything behind the curtain was clearly visible, though slightly blurred and very faintly blue. Freda crouched motionless just in front of it. She didn’t stir as the friends moved cautiously to her side.
‘He’s in there,’ she said. ‘Still alive, as far as I can see.’
The castle rose high in the background. The hill on which it stood was deserted. Both could have been part of a painted backdrop on a stage. But the sweep of grass at the foot of the hill was filled with movement.
Squirrels with rolling, multicoloured eyes skittered this way and that, snapping at the air. Goats with the same strange eyes wandered aimlessly, now and again butting the ground or each other. Princess Pretty, ragged and filthy, her golden hair a bird’s nest of tangles, her white dress in shreds, sat staring vaguely into space. Barbara the sheep was standing with her head down, slowly swaying as if moving to a tune no one else could hear.
The green dragon crouched in the centre of the throng, massive and terrible. And directly in front of him, looking straight at Hal and his companions, was the Blue Queen.
The queen was dressed with great magnificence. Her hair was piled high on her head and encircled by a golden crown. The full sleeves and spreading skirts of her deep blue gown were studded with gems. But Leo’s first thought was that she looked older – much older. She also looked far less beautiful, and not merely because she had aged. She was paying a heavy price for stretching her power to the limit. Her face had sharpened, giving her the look of a bird of prey. Sour lines furrowed her brow and pulled her mouth down at the corners. The strain was allowing her true nature to show, and it was not a pleasant sight.
Bertha gave a muffled cry. Leo glanced at her, thinking she had noticed the same thing he had, but found she wasn’t looking at the queen at all. She was staring at the creature sitting upright and grinning at the queen’s feet.
It was a handsome red fox.
‘Sly!’ Bertha hissed. ‘I might have known! I did see him in Flitter Wood! It wasn’t a dream! He spied on us, and went slinking to the queen. Hal, the ogre’s mirror didn’t betray us. Sly told her where we were!’
Hal made no reply. Only a slight relaxing of the tension in his neck and shoulders showed that he had heard her.
The fox’s grin widened as the queen’s white hand dropped to caress his head. His eyes were quite normal – tawny brown and filled with cunning.
‘He isn’t enchanted,’ Mimi breathed.
‘No,’ Bertha said, her voice trembling. ‘He doesn’t need to be. He’s chosen his side. He’s working for the queen of his own free will. And why not? They’re two of a kind! ‘
The fox yawned offensively, showing white teeth and a long, pink tongue. Bertha tensed.
‘Bertha, stay where you are!’ Hal warned.
The Blue Queen smiled. ‘Are you still giving orders, Hal Langlander?’ she called. ‘I thought that surely you would have given that up by now, having led your pathetic band of followers into one disaster after another. When my new friend, Sly, came to me with the news that he had seen you all in Flitter Wood, sleeping on the ground like a pack of mangy wolves, I could hardly believe my ears! I had not thought of looking for you there. It had not occurred to me that even you would sink so low.’
Hal narrowed his eyes, and waited.
‘You have brought a pet wizard to protect you, I see,’ the queen went on, curling her lip. ‘But you seem to have lost your Terlamaine. Did she perish in the fire, Hal? I do hope not. I have been looking forward to putting a collar around her neck again. Perhaps she merely abandoned you, as any sensible beast would have done long ago.’
Still Hal made no response. The queen glanced at the fading sky and suddenly seemed to tire of her game. She moved to one side, revealing what had been hidden behind her spreading skirts.
Conker was lying between the dragon’s vast front feet, sprawled on the trampled grass in a litter of gnawed goat bones. His eyes were closed, but he was moving very slightly, twitching and mumbling like someone trying to wake from a dream.
‘As you see, the little blowhard still lives,’ the queen said carelessly. ‘I gave him a sleeping draught to keep him quiet and reduce his resistance to my spells, that is all. I could have fed him to my dragon, but I decided he might have a better use. I will exchange him for the silver box you stole from the Ogre of Cruelcliff.’
She laughed at the shocked expressions on their faces.
‘Did you think I would not guess you had it?’ she spat. ‘I realised the moment I heard of that blundering ogre raging through his foul territory bellowing of the thieves who had stolen his magic mirror and a heart-shaped silver box! How he came by my property I have no idea, but I know you have it now. You were the thieves, I am sure of it! Someone has been using a magic mirror to spy on me, and no one would dare to do that but you!’
‘We don’t have your silver box, Blue Queen,’ Hal said.
The queen’s face darkened. ‘Then you have hidden it!’ she hissed. ‘Go and fetch it at once. Return it to me and I will give your grubby little friend back to you. Refuse, and I will feed him to my dragon before your eyes!’
Hal returned her glare steadily, but said nothing.
The lines at the corners of the queen’s mouth deepened. She flicked her fingers at Conker. His twitching body rose from the grass till it was floating just below the dragon’s nose. The dragon bared his fangs and slavered.
Bertha gave a low moan. Numb with horror, Leo stared at Conker and the dragon. Automatically he noted that the smoke had shrunk back a little from the border, and registered that this was because of the power the queen was using to hold Conker above the ground. Then he wondered how he could think of such things at this moment. He found himself praying that Conker would remain unconscious.
‘It is your choice, Hal Langlander,’ crooned the queen.
‘Don’t even think about it, Hal,’ Freda said roughly. ‘She’ll have taken some of Conker’s hair by now. Dragon’s heart is the only thing she needs to finish the Great Potion, and if she does that, she’ll have the whole of Rondo. Conker would tell you the same.’
Leo tore his eyes from the dragon and looked down at her. Her body was rigid. Her eyes were agonised.
‘Well?’ cried the queen. She flicked her fingers again. Conker’s body began to jerk and roll in the air. His moneybag and the jar of Hair-Gro fell from his pockets and burst open on the ground. His dot-swatters, his pocketknife, a grubby handkerchief, a few lemon drops, his notebook and pencil and a comb missing many of its teeth quickly followed.
The dragon’s forked tongue flicked in and out. He roared and rolled his multicoloured eyes.
‘Not yet, my fine fellow,’ purred the queen. ‘Soon, though, very soon, if these thieves will not cooperate.’
The dragon threw back his head and bellowed. His talons raked the ground. His spiked tail lashed. Squirrels and goats scattered. Princess Pretty scrambled to her feet and began stumbling up the castle hill with Barbara galloping unsteadily after her. Sly the fox slid quietly away from the queen’s side and sat down again at a safe distance.
‘Be still!’ the queen shouted to the dragon. She gestured furiously. Conker’s body lurched, and his eyes opened. For an instant he stared around glassily, clearly unable to work out where he was and what was happening to him. Then he saw the dragon. He yelled hoarsely, fumbled for his dot-swatters, found the holsters empty and yelled again.
‘Your loyal friend is awake and calling to you, Hal Langlander,’jeered the queen. ‘Will you save him? Or do you condemn him to death?’
Wizard Wurzle cried out in distress. Bertha wailed softly. Mimi buried her face in her hands.
‘Leo, get them out of here!’ Hal said, his lips barely moving. ‘They mustn’t see this. Take them back to the farmhouse. Go!’
Hardly knowing what he did, Leo attempted to obey. But Wurzle, Mimi and Bertha shook their heads and resisted violently when he tried to lead them away, and finally he gave up. He felt as they did. He didn’t want to leave Hal and Freda alone with this agony. And, more than anything, he didn’t want to turn his back on Conker. They could do nothing to save Conker, but at least they could stay with him to the end.
The dragon rose onto his hind legs and clawed the air. His leathery wings were half-spread, and a ridge of wicked spines stood up on his back like swords.
‘Be still!’ the queen shrieked, swinging Conker violently out of harm’s way. ‘You must wait till I have what I want! Be still, I order you!’ Her eyes were almost frightened.
‘The beast has gone mad!’ Wurzle shouted. ‘She can’t control it!’
The dragon roared in frenzy. An answering roar drifted in the air like a distant echo. And the next moment, something gold and glittering was streaking towards them across the reddening sky.