Dragonfire Read Online Free PDF Page B

is it?” whispered Sir James.
    “A flight of stairs,” said the Ranger. Sir James moved up and saw a flight of steps in front of him that curved like a spiral stairway down through the rock. It seemed to go on forever and they were all more than slightly dizzy by the time they reached the last step. The staircase gave onto a large, high-roofed chamber in whose walls gaped the black openings of other tunnels.
    Sir James glanced around the room. “Well,” he asked, “where do we go from here?”
    Wordlessly, the Ranger shone his torch downwards, revealing a pathway of little footprints that led to the right-hand tunnel.
    “Let’s go, then,” instructed Sir James.
    The new tunnel led them deeper into the heart of the mountain. Gradually its roof became lower and the men passed with no little difficulty beneath a few jutting outcrops of rock. Soon, however,it came to an end and opened to reveal a deep split in the hill whose sheer walls formed a gorge of such impenetrable blackness that the narrow shafts of torchlight made little impression on its depths. This fearful chasm was spanned by a narrow bridge that looped in a fantastic curve over the void. They had little choice but to cross it.
    The Ranger took the coil of rope from his shoulder and, anchoring one end firmly to a jutting rock, he fastened it round each of them. Strung safely together, they crossed the fragile structure on their hands and knees. By the time they had all reached the other side they were totally exhausted and, by common consent, paused to take stock of their surroundings.
    “I think we should have something to eat and drink before we go any further,” the Ranger announced, heaving a heavy rucksack from his back.
    Clara had the same feeling of dread that she had felt on the hill and looked round fearfully. For someone who was afraid of the dark, it was a very dark place. She could feel the darkness like a blanket ready to smother her in its soft folds. Hastily she turned her eyes to the comforting light of the torches and gratefully bit into a cheese sandwich.
    “You okay, Clara?” Neil asked.
    “I’m fine,” she lied.
    From the far side of the bridge, Amgarad watched hungrily as they ate, but it was only when they set off again and the dancing torchlight disappeared down the tunnel, that he glided over the chasm on silent wings to follow them further. At the entrance to this new tunnel, however, Amgarad paused. His sense of smell was more acute than that of humans and this tunnel spelt danger.
    The Ranger pressed ahead, his torch revealing a worn trail of footprints that took them deeper and deeper into the hill. It was not long, however, before he started to become alarmed.
    “I don’t like this at all,” he said, flashing his torch on the wall. “Look at the walls! They’ve been scorched by fire — and thedeeper we go, the blacker they get!”
    “I’ve heard that Arthur’s Seat is an extinct volcano …” Sir James broke off suddenly and grasped the Ranger’s arm. “Look!” he whispered, “Look! One of the MacArthurs!”
    The Ranger shone his torch on a smallish, slight, fair-haired young man whose eyes blinked in the glare of its powerful beam. He rushed towards them.
    “Go back! Go back!” he cried. “Thank goodness I found you! It’s dangerous here! Quickly! Back to the bridge!”
    Such was the urgency in his voice that they all turned immediately and started back the way they had come. Behind them came a rumbling roar that made their blood curdle, followed by a dreadful wave of heat and smoke that left them gasping and panting.
    “Faster! Faster!” screamed the MacArthur.
    At last the bridge was reached. Choking and gasping for breath they made to cross but the little creature, its sheepskin jacket black and tattered, pulled them to one side … just in time. As they pressed back against the rocky wall, a burst of flame shot through the tunnel opening; a sparkling, glittering stream of fire that held all the