"Sniegoski, Thomas E - Outcast - 03 - Ghostfire" - читать интересную книгу автора (Sniegoski Thomas E)

The digging machine backed out of the hole and up onto the grass. Timothy busied himself turning knobs and switching levers to shut down his invention's power source.
"Good thing I remembered to stop," Timothy said, removing the goggles from his eyes and jumping down from the craft to the ground. "I was so excited that it was working, I almost kept going."
Cassandra arched an eyebrow and smirked, glancing at Edgar, who quickly looked away, flying from his perch on her arm to the top of the boy's head.
"Good job, kid," the rook cawed. "The Burrower worked like a charm, just like I knew it would."
"Thanks, Edgar," the boy said, beaming.
Verlis approached the machine, resting a claw upon its metal surface. "Fascinating," he growled. And he then looked toward the boy. "As are you, Timothy Cade, as are you." He then walked to the tunnel dug into the ground and peered down into the darkness.
Ivar and Sheridan went to congratulate Timothy next, but Cassandra hung back, not sure that Timothy had even noticed she was there. The breeze whipped her red hair across her face and she pushed it away from her eyes, trying unsuccessfully to tame it.
"Did you see?" he asked, striding toward her with a grin on his face. "It worked just as I'd hoped."
Cassandra smiled in return. "It's incredible." She wanted to say more but was having difficulty finding the right words with Timothy so close and smiling at her like that.
What's happening to me? she pondered, on the verge of panic.
Their eyes locked for a moment, and then Timothy quickly looked away, scratching the back of his head nervously. He turned his focus back to the Burrower. "Can't wait to tell Leander it worked," he said, reminding her why she had come to find him.
"Oh, right," Cassandra said, her hand quickly going to her mouth. "With all the excitement, I almost forgot. They're ready to leave now. The expedition to Tora'nah . . . they're waiting for you."
CHAPTER TWO
Timothy couldn't have picked a better moment to take his leave.
Across the rich green lawn, he saw Leander's personal assistant, Carlyle, appear at the open kitchen door, his face flushed with annoyance. Timothy quickly snatched his satchel up from the ground and looked inside to be sure he had everything he'd need for his journey.
"Timothy Cade!" Carlyle shouted, hurrying toward them.
"I think Verlis and I had better be going," he told his friends, and Cassandra. He caught her eye as he said his farewells, and she quickly looked away, pretending to be studying the clouds in the sky.
Strange, he thought, before concentrating on more important matters.
"Be sure to bring the Burrower back to the workshop," he told Sheridan, Ivar, and Edgar.
"Not to worry, Timothy," Sheridan said, release valve hissing. "I'll be sure to give it a thorough cleaning so that it is in tip-top shape when you return."
Ivar was already working on getting the craft back up onto the wheeled cart they had used to haul it from the workshop.
"What in the name of the blessed mage have you done to the grounds?" Carlyle yelled in a shrill voice. "When Grandmaster Maddox hears of this ..."
"You think he's talking about the hole?" Edgar asked from his favorite place atop Sheridan's metal head. If the rook could have smiled, Timothy was certain he would have.
"Think so," the boy answered, backing away from the gathering.
"Hrrrrm. He sounds upset," Verlis growled, scratching his leathery chin with a clawed hand. "Perhaps you should explain the—"
Timothy gripped the Wurm at his elbow. The rough, scaled skin was strangely cool to the touch. "Perhaps we should get away from here as quickly as we can."
"Timothy Cade!" Carlyle shouted again, almost upon them.
Edgar flew toward him, circling around the stocky man's head. Carlyle waved his hands in the air, obviously enraged. "I have no desire to speak with you, bird. I want to talk to the boy!"
"Maybe you are right," Verlis replied, and the Wurm opened his great wings, grabbing Timothy beneath the arms.
As Verlis lifted him up, wings flapping heavily, churning the air, Timothy noticed that Cassandra was looking at him. Once again he experienced that odd sensation in the pit of his stomach.
"Luck be with you," she called over the pounding of the dragon's wings, and he waved good-bye to her just as Verlis soared skyward with him.
Carlyle had reached the hole the Burrower had made and was gesticulating wildly. It appeared that Sheridan and Cassandra were attempting to calm him, but to little avail. Timothy almost felt bad leaving them to deal with the rather unpleasant man.
Almost, he thought with a chuckle.
Verlis winged his way around to the front of the sprawling fortress and remembered the first time he had ever seen SkyHaven. It hadn't been that long ago, but in a way, after all that he had seen and experienced, it felt like a lifetime. Timothy wondered what still lay ahead for him, what wonders and horrors he had yet to experience. These were exciting times for a boy who was raised in near solitude.
"There they are," Timothy yelled over the sound of the wind in his ears and the beating of wings. He felt Verlis's grip beneath his arms tighten.
Two sky carriages hovered in front of SkyHaven, and members of the expedition traveling to Torah'nah milled about the crafts. The Wurm angled his body earthward, and they began their descent.
The ground came up at them quickly, and Timothy instinctively closed his eyes, fearing that they would not be able to stop in time. Just as it seemed too late, Verlis spread his great wings wide, cutting the speed of his descent and allowing them to glide safely to the ground.
Timothy adjusted the strap of the satchel he wore slung over his shoulder and checked to see that the metal clasp was still fastened. He wanted to be certain that he hadn't lost any of his notes or drawings in flight with Verlis. Everything was fine.
The boy looked up to see Leander Maddox walking toward them, his hands clasped behind his back. Timothy felt a surge of excitement, quickening his pace to meet up with the Grandmaster, eager to share the news of his latest success. It had been Leander who had assigned the boy the difficult task of designing and building a machine that could dig down into earth, but that was not powered by magic.
He hurried to the burly mage, barely able to contain his excitement. "The Burrower, it works," he blurted out. "I tested it in the back of the fortress and it went perfectly. The hole was smooth and deep. It's a good thing I stopped when I did, because I could have kept right on going and dug straight through and Carlyle showed up and—"
Timothy's ramble came to an abrupt stop as he watched Leander bring his wrist up to his face to gaze briefly upon a timepiece fastened there.
"You're late," the Grandmaster said shortly, barely hiding his irritation. He clasped his large hands behind his back again. "Didn't Cassandra inform you that we were ready to leave?"
Timothy could have blamed Cassandra, but he did not want to get her into trouble, so he nodded. "Yes, but we were testing my machine and . . ." He stopped, realizing that he had no real excuse. "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, Leander. I guess we just lost track of time."
The big man said nothing, and Timothy looked up to see him gazing off into space, one of his hands slowly stroking the coarse hair of his bushy red beard.
"Leander?" Timothy said softy, looking off in the same direction and seeing nothing but blue sky and the churning ocean. "Are ... are you all right?"
The Grandmaster started as if awakened from a dream and gazed again at his timepiece. "We have no time for this foolishness," he growled, abruptly turning around and walking toward the other members of the expedition and his waiting sky carriage. "We must depart at once if we are to reach Tora'nah by the morrow."
Verlis moved up alongside him. "Is all well between you and Grandmaster Maddox?" he asked the boy.
Timothy did not answer at once, mulling over Verlis's question. He had noticed slight changes in his friend and mentor over the last few days, but nothing to really cause him concern. This, however, was something else entirely.
"I'm not sure," he whispered, watching as the Grandmaster went to his sky carriage and spoke to Caiaphas, his navigation mage.
When Leander had gone on to the second sky carriage to speak to the others who were a part of the expedition, Caiaphas motioned for Timothy and Verlis to approach.