CHAPTER 4
MAGIC ON THE FRITZ
Zuli jogged through the tunnels to Central Tower and ran up the stairs to the offices. Professor Gale’s office door was open, so Zuli knocked on the frame. Professor Gale looked up from his desk. The gems in his hair clicked as he waved Zuli in.
“Professor, there’s something wrong with the dragons! You have to help!” Zuli rushed the words out.
Professor Gale pressed his fingers together, looking worried. “Is Rainbow hurt?”
“No, not Rainbow. Rainbow seems fine.”
“Oh? So not all dragons?” Professor Gale asked.
“Well, no, I guess not. But I saw two storm serpents who didn’t look good.” Zuli shuffled her feet.
“Take a breath, Zuli. What were the dragons doing?” Gale stood and rounded his desk. He leaned against it in front of Zuli.
“Nothing. They were just lying in their caves,” Zuli said, frowning.
Professor Gale chuckled. “That’s not unusual, Zuli. Storm serpents often rest, believe it or not.” He gave Zuli a broad grin. “Even Lord of Darkness won’t let me wake him up sometimes!”
Zuli frowned harder. The professor’s joke about his own storm serpent didn’t ease her worries. “But there’s more, Professor. The serpents were sleeping in puddles of water and snow—inside the tunnel caves.”
Professor Gale put his hands on his knees and leaned toward Zuli. “So, basically, they were doing what storm serpents do? Zuli, you know they don’t mind water—or snow. Some probably like to make it rain in their caves!”
Zuli bit her bottom lip lightly. “Yeah, but this was different. One felt hot, Professor.
“Hmmm… Are you sure these storm serpents weren’t just out in the storm? We needed all the help we could get to tame the storm. Maybe the serpents are worn out and warmed up from all their work.” Gale gave her a warm smile.
Zuli wasn’t sure. She knew Opal’s trainer was an older seventh-year student. He might have been called to help with the storm.
“Maybe, but—” she started.
“If they were out in the storm, that might also explain the puddles,” Professor Gale cut her off. “Maybe they just wanted to cool off.” Zuli opened her mouth to argue, but Gale held up a finger. “Zuli, have you been getting enough rest lately? You look exhausted. I don’t want you to worry about this anymore. If it helps, I’ll let someone know to check on the dragons. Okay?”
Zuli only nodded. She couldn’t explain why something still felt off. She didn’t want to tell Gale about how much time she spent with Rainbow and getting to know the other storm serpents. He was a good mentor, but she didn’t think he’d approve. Anyway, someone would check on the dragons. They’d soon see she was right.
Instead of resting, Zuli decided to work on her gadget again. Even if she was wrong about the dragons being sick, that storm was still wicked. She knew her gadget could help warn the school about future storms—if it worked.
Rainbow floated through the air nearby, making it sprinkle rain over the rocks.
“Rainbow!” Zuli said, annoyed. “Quit playing around! I want to test my gadget right this time.”
She reset her weather gadget and pointed to the gems. Slowly, Rainbow swam through the mist to Zuli. The dragon stretched out a claw to the spike and—nothing happened. No glowing magic.
“Rainbow?” Zuli asked.
Rainbow’s eyelids drooped as if she were about to fall asleep. She shook her mane and blinked. She stopped making it rain and then touched the gems again. This time, they glowed. The gadget started whirring.
Zuli grinned and took a breath of the fresh air. Her pencil flew across her notebook as she wrote her observations.
But the gems’ glow soon flickered. The whirring slowed and started again. A fat raindrop splattered on Zuli’s page. She glared, looking up and thinking Rainbow was playing tricks again. Suddenly, the gems darkened. Heavy rain drops started dripping around Zuli. Then Rainbow fell to the ground.
Zuli cried out. “Oh, no! Rainbow!”