Part 4 (2/2)

Thane, with Mulcade on his shoulder, Kyot with Rockspray on his, and Esteron, followed Willow into the highdomed chamber and stood below Thoron's dangling boots.

Slowly he turned in the icy draught of mountain air, warm drops of blood dripping from the gaping wound in his neck.

'Grandfather,' Thane whispered, reaching up to touch the old man's boots, but they were beyond his reach.

'Do you think he is still alive?' asked Kyot, feeling the blood splash on his face as he looked up into the darkness.

'It is safe to light your spark now,' Willow said, turning to Thane.

Thane lit the spark and handed it to Kyot. Esteron whinnied softly and knelt for Thane to climb on to the saddle.

Thane held on with both hands as Esteron rose to his feet, and then balanced on tiptoe and tried to listen for his grandfather's heartbeat. Thoron's beard had grown into a thick and tangled mess, full of half-eaten sc.r.a.ps of food that were stiff and greasy to the touch. Gingerly Thane gathered the beard in his left hand and cut it away just below the chin, and putting his ear to the old man's chest, he listened and heard in the night's silence a faint heartbeat.

'He is still alive,' he whispered, feeling tears of joy well up in his eyes.

'Quick, bind the wound in his neck before he bleeds to death,' Kyot called. 'Use the scarfs'

Thane let the dirty beard fall to the ground and untied the summer scarf from his arm. It had become his banner of light

in the shadows of World's End, somehow catching and holding the sunlight, and even here in the darkness the words of love that Elionbel had sewn into the silk shone and sparkled.

'Elionbel,' Thane whispered, lifting his grandfather's head and carefully wrapping the scarf across the gaping wound.

Thoron's blood quickly soaked into the silk, turning the picture of the sun bright red and it seemed almost as if it were glowing in the dark.

Willow gasped, looking at the bright colours in the scarf, 'The sun has come into the City of Night!'

'That scarf has great powers,' Kyot muttered, gripping the spark to stop his hand from shaking.

'No!' Thane whispered fiercely. 'It is my mother's summer scarf. I took it from her at our parting. If it s.h.i.+nes at all it is because it reflects her love of the sunlight, for she wove it in the shadows of the great wall that rings the Granite City.' The anger in Thane's voice ebbed away as he whispered, 'She did not dabble in magic.'

Kyot bit his tongue, wis.h.i.+ng he had kept his thoughts to himself. There was something about the scarf, something magical, that made it s.h.i.+ne. He had seen it during the battle, catching all the glories of the sun, and driving back the Mghtbeasts' shadows. Sighing, he quickly changed the subject.

He pointed at Thoron's wrists and asked how they were going to cut through the chains to get him down. Thane examined the iron shackles and saw that the lock was a simple

iron bolt, rusty with age, that pa.s.sed through two crudelyhammered f.l.a.n.g.es on either side of the shackles.

'Two hammer blows should break open these chains,' he answered, searching the chamber floor for something heavy enough to use.

'Will this do?' Willow called from the far side of the chamber, holding up the mace that Kerzolde had dropped as he fled at Krulshards' heels.

Thane took the long-handled hammer and struck a sharp

blow at the shackle on Thoron's left wrist. The force of the blow sent the iron pin flying across the chamber and the shackle broke in two, releasing Thoron's arm and sending him spinning against Thane, knocking him off the saddle on to the chamber floor. Esteron knelt again for Thane to climb back into the saddle.

'Let me help you,' willow called out, springing lightly on to the saddle beside Thane and steadying the old man's legs.

Thane swung the hammer again and broke open the second shackle. Thoron slumped into his grandson's arms and Thane gently lowered him into the saddle.

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