The Emerald Dragon by Jan Fields

Author:Jan Fields [Fields, Jan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Annie's

CHAPTER SIX

The Ice Guardians

At first, clinging to a dolphin as it raced through the fast current was incredibly exciting, but as time passed, the dolphins’ up-and-down swimming style began to make Shaylee feel decidedly sick to her stomach.

It reminded her of how queasy she got as a preschool dancer, before she learned to spot on her turns. At her first recital, she had turned and turned and turned in a row with her classmates, all without spotting. On the last turn, she’d thrown up, and the other dancers had to avoid the “Shaylee Sick Slick” for the rest of the dance. Her friends couldn’t believe Shaylee hadn’t quit dance after such an embarrassing moment, but she couldn’t imagine life without dance.

As she thought of the technique of spotting, Shaylee pulled herself a bit more up on the back of the dolphin so she could fix her eyes on a spot ahead. She hoped that since that worked for dancing, it might work for dolphin riding. Though her stomach didn’t settle completely, she did feel a bit better.

Suddenly, her dolphin leaped completely out of the water with Shaylee clinging to its back. In that dazzling jump, she caught her first glimpse of the land ahead. The rocky shore seemed to have no access point, only sheer cliffs and jagged boulders. How were they going to get ashore once they reached it?

The dolphins never hesitated but continued to surge forward with each thrust of their powerful tails. Then, Shaylee noticed they were slowing down. The dolphins seemed to be swimming as strongly as ever, so she suspected the current Marisol had created to push them so quickly had died away.

Finally, the dolphins’ strong tail sweeps grew slower and more leisurely. The water no longer raced past Shaylee, pressing her face. She could see more clearly around her, and she saw that the dolphins had gathered in a group. She did a quick head count and blew relieved bubbles as she saw each of her friends.

“This is as far as the dolphins will go,” Marisol told them. “They don’t want to be trapped in shallow water.”

“How do we get on shore?” Shaylee asked. “All I saw were rocks and cliffs.”

“The dolphins say there is a small cove very close, but it’s too shallow for them,” Marisol answered. “We can swim into it and get ashore from there.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Rissa said.

“I’m going to miss the dolphins,” Rachel added wistfully as she patted her dolphin.

“I think we all will,” Aly said.

Shaylee gave her own dolphin a hug, and it bumped her gently in response. Then the dolphins turned as a group and headed away from shore. “Goodbye!” Shaylee called after them. “Thank you!”

“This way,” Marisol said. “Shaylee, can you swim OK now?”

Shaylee laughed. “Like a fish!”

The girls swam together through the clear icy water. As they ducked under part of an iceberg, the bottom of which extended several yards into the water, Shaylee knew the water must be bitterly cold, but she felt perfectly comfortable.

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