The Lost Continent

Your futures are full of joy. What a miracle it is to be a dragon, alive right now and part of this wonderful world. Do you ever stop to think about that? About what an odd and lucky thing it is to be this soul inside this body. To live in a world with so many marvels in it. I am so grateful to have known and loved you all.

Oh, I’m not allowed to take art classes anymore,” Cricket said with a kind of carelessness he was pretty sure she was faking. “You can proooooobably guess why.” “Good heavens, Cricket,” he said, putting on the voice she’d used several times already. “No one has ever used that many colors on one piece of paper before. Look at this mess. Why can’t you just draw a normal blue blueberry like every other dragon?

Disguise ourselves as grass?” Swordtail suggested. “Disguise ourselves as shrubs! DISGUISE OURSELVES AS ELEPHANTS THAT’S IT LET’S DO IT.

Tangerines were not quite the epic change Blue wanted to see in the world.

HELLO!” the second dragon shouted down the chasm, making Blue jump. “HELLOOOOOOO, ANNOYING WINGLESS DRAAAAAAGON. ARE YOU DEAD AT THE BOTTOM OF THESE ROCKS? OR ALMOST DEAD? COULD YOU CROAK ‘YEAH, I’M HERE, TOTALLY DEAD, CARRY ON’ SO WE CAN ALL GO HOME AND SAY WE FOUND YOU?

She thought about that for a moment. He liked the way she stopped and thought carefully about the things he said. Most dragons already had their ideas settled in their heads; if they paused to think before responding, it was only about how to explain to you that you were wrong. But Cricket seemed to take in information and questions and hold them up against the things she thought she knew, to see if there was anything new she missed.

I will BONK THEM AND CONK THEM OUT,” Swordtail declared.

DO NOT ENTER, BY ORDER OF QUEEN WASP. PROPERTY OF THE QUEEN. TRESPASSING PUNISHABLE BY MAIMING, DISMEMBERMENT, IMPALING, AND DEATH, IN THAT ORDER.

If you are flying directly into a hurricane, it is probably useful to be a dragon who can see the future. Then again, if you are a dragon who can see the future, you are most likely far too smart to fly directly into a hurricane.

Please help me not set the library on fire, Clearsight.

don’t know … maybe because I know what it’s like to hide while everyone is mind-controlled. And because I’ve never met a flamesilk and I’d love to know more about you. And because you’re …” She paused, struggling for a word. “Pathetic?” he offered. “Desperate? A tragic story?” “No!” she said. “Not that at all. You’re … ” She trailed off again. “Aha,” he said. “Devastatingly handsome.

Oooo, the perfect title for my memoir,” she said, grinning. “Right about Almost Everything, by Cricket.

scales scattered under her wings and two teardrop silver scales in the corners of her eyes. A startled jolt ran through Luna, waking her up like a bolt of lightning. This dragon looked like Clearsight. Or at least, the way Clearsight always looked in pictures. Luna sat up as the two of them came closer, with Jerboa behind them. “Oh wow,” said the one with the earring, noticing Luna. “What —” said the Clearsight-looking dragon. “How — ?” “I believe this is our first visitor from the lost continent,” Jerboa said. “She blew in with the storm.” The little black dragon sat down and tipped her head as though she was listening to something far away. “I’m Moon,” she said, “and this is Qibli. Are you really from across the sea?” “I guess so,” Luna said. “It was kind of an accident, coming here. I’m Luna.” “Hi, Luna,” said Qibli. “This must be pretty weird for you, too. You have so many wings! I mean, that’s cool. Is it hard to fly with all those wings? That’s a silly question. I can’t believe we’re meeting a dragon from another continent! This is amazing!” “Are you like Clearsight?” Luna asked Moon. “Can you see the future?” Moon’s eyebrows shot up. “You know about Clearsight?” “I know some things about her,” Luna said, thinking darkly of the Book and the lies Queen Wasp had told about it. “I know she came from here, and she had scales like yours. I always wondered if there were other dragons over here who could see the future, too.

That was the source of light in all the lamps in the Hive. Flamesilk.

I usually think of rules as things that get in the way of all the stuff I really want to know. I mean, how can don’t ask questions ever be a good rule? Or only borrow one book at a time from the library. That’s just ludicrous. No one ever explains rules like that in a sensible way. But don’t hurt other dragons — that’s a rule I think everyone believes in, right? So … I guess I believe in some rules, and I think rules in general can be useful, but I also think it’s all right to stop and question some of the rules sometimes, if they feel wrong to you. Doesn’t that make sense?

Hawker is going to kill me, Blue thought deliriously. When I get to the checkpoint, he’s going to make that very stern frowny face and tut-tut and check his list and grumble about paperwork and then stab me with his spear thingy.

And if you have time, please could you also make sure she’s not arrested for treason? That would be great, thanks.

It looked a little bit like a monkey, but bigger and not quite so hairy, apart from a patch of floppy brown fur on top of its head. It had nimble little paws, which were holding something that it was gazing at intently. Parts of it were wrapped in something like a cocoon made of jaguar fur and deep red silk.

Hmmm,' she said. 'How long do you think it'll last?' 'How would I know?!

Fragments of dragons prowled along the walkways underclaw and coiled around the columns.

Blue had read that the Temple of Clearsight was the most beautiful structure in the world. He knew that it had been built by Clearsight’s grandchildren, then partially destroyed hundreds of years later during the war with the LeafWings, and then moved to be reconstructed here, in the heart of Wasp Hive, where it could be kept safe.

What are they thinking? he wondered. The matching scowls were a pretty good clue that whatever it was, the general sentiment was hostile.

We don’t charge around with I-have-somewhere-to-be-and-someone-to-set-on-fire faces.

It’s my new favorite brain.

Could they possibly make it there before dawn? Even if they did, would there be anywhere else to hide as safe as the sinkhole?

I hope you do find a way to save her,” he said. “And all of them.” “I know the grunting one who checked under the table, too,” Cricket said quickly, as though she was trying to change the subject so she wouldn’t cry. “His name’s Bombardier. But he’s awful, so there’s not much difference between regular him and brain-dead him. He thinks I’m in love with him, if you’ve ever wondered what the most enormous arrogance looks like. I guess I’d still save him, but maybe, like, last.

Did you see the comet about half a year ago?” she asked. “The one that looked like an extra moon in the sky?