The Eye of Zoltar

It was. Ralph was clinging to the belly of the beast as it rose several thousand feet into the air, streaming dust, feathers, dirt and grass as it went. Ralph was tenacious, that much was clear – he even had his large ladies’ handbag still in the crook of his arm.

‘Did I miss something?’ asked Wilson, blinking and getting up.

‘Kind of,’ I said, pointing in the direction of the tiny dot that was Ralph, clearly visible on the shimmering outline of the barely visible Leviathan. It looked almost as if he were rising alone, unsupported by anything at all. In a moment or two the Leviathan rolled on to its side to head north, and Ralph was lost to view.

‘Do you think he’s okay?’ I asked.

‘He’ll be fine for about as long as he can hang on,’ replied Gabby.

We stared into the now-empty sky for a few moments in silence.

‘He was a loyal companion to us both,’ I said sadly.

‘And will be missed,’ added Wilson.

‘Friends are always lost here in the Empire,’ said Gabby philosophically, ‘and we’ll lose more before the trip is over, I wager.’

‘Mathematically speaking you may be right,’ I said, thinking of Addie’s predicted fifty per cent Fatality Index, ‘but I hope not.’

‘That Leviathan was low,’ mused Gabby as he unhooked something from the jagged edge of the armoured car’s shattered body. He laid the scrap of leathery material across his arm, where it changed colour to match his skin. He laid it across my skin and it darkened almost instantaneously to match mine.

‘Scraps of Leviathan skin fetch a good price on the Cambrianopolis black market, I’ve heard,’ said Wilson.

‘If the Emperor’s men find you with this your head will be off,’ said Gabby. ‘It’s better to let it go.’

And so saying, he released the section of skin, which floated off into the air like a helium balloon.

‘Leviathans are lighter than air?’ I said, amazed at what I was seeing.

‘How else do you think something so large could fly?’ asked Gabby, then added: ‘We’d better get going. With a bit of luck we can get to the edge of the Empty Quarter before something considers that we’d make a fine breakfast. And Jennifer?’

‘Yes?’

‘I think you’ve still got some puffins inside your jacket.’

It was true. They seemed to have taken a liking to the pockets, and had to be carefully removed.

We walked in silence for the next three hours or so, now and then pausing to hide from danger, drink from a mountain stream or nibble on some wild radishes. Eventually we came across the now-dormant marker stones that denoted the edge of the Dragonlands and the northern edge of the Empty Quarter. The stones were covered with a thick crust of lichen, and appeared forlorn and forgotten. Llangurig would be only a few miles away.

Gabby called a halt.

‘Any particular reason?’ I asked.

‘Breakfast.’

‘You have some?’

‘No,’ said Gabby with a smile, ‘but they will.’

He pointed towards a stunted oak. The roots had grasped one of the marker stones tightly, and the overhanging branches partially hid a small group of people. A quick leg count told me this was a group of five people and I was suddenly suspicious until I realised that six of the legs belonged to one creature – a Buzonji – and that the other legs belonged to Perkins, and Addie. I blinked away some tears. I had convinced myself I would not see them again.

Friends reunited

‘Heigh-ho!’ said Addie cheerfully as she walked into the clearing. ‘How are my tourists?’

I must say that I have rarely been so glad to see someone safe and well. Perkins, that was, and Addie a close second.

‘Hey, Jenny,’ said Perkins, and he gave me a long hug, taking the opportunity to whisper in my ear how much he’d missed me. I returned the compliment gladly and unconditionally, but I must confess that his increased age – he’d put on ten years with Ralph’s Genetic Master Reset, remember – was not something I was going to get used to quickly.

‘Are you okay?’ I asked. ‘Not harmed in any way, I mean?’

‘I’m fine,’ he said, ‘but I can’t say the same for the kidnappers.’

‘Dead?’

He didn’t say anything, but just looked at me and raised his eyebrows.

‘Hail, fellow,’ said Addie to Gabby, grasping his hand and shaking it warmly, ‘good to see you again.’

‘You know each other?’ I asked, surprised, but unsure why I should be.

‘He’s my secret weapon,’ said Addie. ‘Everyone should have a Gabby to look after them.’

‘You sent Gabby to keep an eye on us?’ I asked.

‘Only to remain on standby in case anything happened.’

I looked at Gabby, who shrugged.

‘I should have said something, I suppose,’ he said, ‘but I didn’t know until two minutes ago that Addie was okay, and, well, I’m just in it for the rescuing.’

I thanked him, and Addie quizzed Gabby further. Safe jeopardy tourism – any tourism, actually – I had decided, was all about information. The more of it you have, the better the decisions you can make.