Dragon Rider (novel)
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- For Dragon Riders in the Inheritance trilogy, see Dragon Riders. For the hentai anime, see Dragon Rider (anime).
Dragon Rider is a novel by Cornelia Funke. Originally 126 pgs long written in German as Drachenreiter and published in 1997, it has since been translated into English by several people including Anthea Bell (2004) and Oliver Latsch (2000). Cornelia Funke has stated interest in writing a sequel to this best seller, but as of now, it is unsure if and when this book will be written and published.
Dragon Rider follows the exploits of a silver dragon named Firedrake, the brownie Sorrel, and Ben, a human boy, in their search for a mythical Himalayan mountain range called the Rim of Heaven ....
[edit] Plot summary
The novel opens with a rat, Rosa Graytail, hurrying to inform the dragon Firedrake that humans are a mere two days' journey away from the dragon's valley hide-away. Rosa goes on to explain that the humans are planning on flooding the valley with water, and that the occupying dragons would need to find a new hiding place if they wished to remain safe and discreet. Her claims are met with frightened disbelief by most of the dragons, who refuse to leave the valley home which they grew up in — all except two, Firedrake, and the oldest and wisest dragon in the valley, Slatebeard.
Slatebeard advises the younger dragons of a great Himalayan valley he once inhabitated as a child, the Rim of Heaven. He believes this to be one of the last places on Earth for the dragons to hide from humans.
Though all of the other dragons take a stance of incredulousness, Firedrake takes heed of Slatebeard's message and sets off with Sorrel, his brownie girl. Rosa suggests before their departure that they should see her cousin, Gilbert Graytail, who is a cartographer, to pick up a map. They do so; but since Gilbert resides in a large city, Firedrake is forced to hide in an abandoned building, where they meet Ben, a parentless human boy.
Rather than afraid or hostile, Ben seems quite astonished to have encountered a dragon in the rundown building he had been occupying. He quickly learns of their plans to procure the whereabouts of the Rim of Heaven from Rosa's cousin, Gilbert, and hence offers to aid Sorrel in her trek to the mapmaker's home. Though reluctant to be helped by one of her perceived enemies, Sorrel agrees and accepts the company of the boy. Ben also provides human clothes to Sorrel to increase their discretion.
Eventually, Sorrel and her guide, Ben, are able to locate Gilbert's abode undiscovered. The white rat explains that, despite constant efforts, neither him nor any of his "extended family" had been able to pinpoint the fabled Rim of Heaven; he also adds that the pairs' query was frequently asked of him by mysterious ravens. Nevertheless, Gilbert peddles the two an extensive world map.
Sorrel and Ben then set off to recover Firedrake and be on their way; however, upon their return to the abandoned warehouse, they find several men discussing the impending destruction of the building. Frightful for Firedrake's safety, the duo hastily dart into the derelict where they discover, to their relief, an undetected and unharmed Firedrake.
The group subsequently breaks up to avoid being caught by the men. They later reform under a city bridge to plot their next move. Firedrake enquires whether Ben would like to join them on their journey, as his present home would presumably soon be razed, to which he happily agrees.
After they set off, Sorrel's bad map-reading skills land them in a yellow patch on Gilbert's map, denoting danger. They settle there, and, while Sorrel and Firedrake sleep, Ben keeps watch. Eventually he spots some creatures hiding nearby, which turn out to be mountain dwarves; obsessive miners contently preoccupied with finding gold and other valuables. The dwarves explain that they came down because "their scalps prickled," which, they say, means another fabulous creature is near.
The fabulous creature turns out to be Firedrake. After meeting the dragon, they eagerly request that he examine the hills for valuables, as they had heard legends that dragons can smell gold. He agrees, and they set off. It turns out that Firedrake does not possess any such skill, and thus, disappointed, the dwarves leave the question alone. A few of the more interested ones surround him, telling him stories of their grandparents, of his (Firedrake's) distant relatives, and of gemstones. One of the dwarves, however, contacts Nettlebrand, a golden-scaled, murderous draconoid occupying a nearby castle. Nettlebrand's only passion is hunting and killing weaker silver dragons, but he had not, until then, been able to find any more, as they had all gone into hiding.
Nettlebrand excitedly sets his armour-cleaner, a tiny mannekin or "homunculus", called Twigleg, on a Raven's back to follow and spy on Firedrake and his party in the hope that they will lead him back to the home of other dragons. While he sends off his previous armor-cleaner to spy on them, he keeps the dwarf, Gravelbeard, as his new armor cleaner. In course of their flight, Firedrake, Sorrel, and Ben are swept into the shore of Egypt.
There, Sorrel is captured by an archeological team, most of whom believe her to be a mutant monkey. Nearby, Twigleg has also been captured by the same detectives, who believe– correctly– that he is artificial. However, one of the archaeologists, Professor Barnabas Greenbloom, has researched spirits of all kinds and recognizes Sorrel for the brownie she is. He attempts to solicit her escape, but is beaten to it by Ben and by Twigleg.
Meanwhile, Firedrake has found his way into a cave where he intends to sleep. Dwelling in this cave is a monstrous being referred to as a Basilisk; it resembles both a bird and a reptile, yet is unlike either in its possession of a prehensile tail. The Basilisk detests Dragons, and hence attempts to destroy Firedrake with its hateful stare. Yet behind Firedrake comes the archaeologist, Greenbloom, who shows the Basilisk its reflection in a mirror. Seeing how hateful it is, the Basilisk explodes.
Professor Greenbloom is introduced to Ben, Sorrel, and Twigleg, who have tracked the Silver Dragon to his hiding-place. Though Sorrel is initially suspicious, she soon warms to the kindly scientist, whose skills at cooking far exceed his ability to tolerate elevation. Sorrel is always stubborn, and always hungry; whereas Firedrake can spend months without eating, as long as he is exposed to moonlight.
On the advice of the Professor, the three searchers decide to seek the advice of a Djinn, whose thousand eyes can see everything and who knows the answer to every question that is put to him. Twigleg stows away in Ben's backpack, where he can hide from them but still be a useful spy for Nettlebrand.
As a keepsake, Professor Greenbloom gives Ben one of two freezing-cold metallic scales, which unknown to the humans once belonged to their enemy. Twigleg is intrigued, and reports this to Nettlebrand, who immediately makes his way to the dig site where he wishes to find Professor Greenbloom and recover the scale.
Firedrake, with his passengers nestled on his back, flies Southwards to Arabia, along obscure pathways and over abandoned ruins. He flies over oil derricks, over towns, and over mountains. He (being a spirit) flies faster than any mortal creature; faster than wind and faster than Twigleg's nosy Raven.
Along the way, Twigleg examines a book about spirits given to Ben by Professor Greenbloom. From this book, he learns that if a homunculus like himself gives his heart to a human being, they will live and die together. If the homunculus remains unattached, he is nearly immortal. Although Twigleg cautions himself to remain unattached, he finds himself growing fond of Ben, who is the first person to have been kind to him.
On the day before the meeting with the Djinn, Sorrel and Ben hold a discussion of what question to ask. They have been told that if they want an answer, they must meet three conditions. Firstly, the Djinn will not answer any but a human's question; secondly, the question must be entirely new, or else Ben will be the Djinn's servant for the rest of his life; and thirdly, the question must be asked in exactly seven words. The professor also advises them that the Djinn and the questioner should be in the presence of another magical creature.
Twigleg, hearing of this, communicates through water to Nettlebrand, receiving orders to the effect that he, Twigleg, must eavesdrop on the talk with the Djinn, and information to the effect that Nettlebrand will find Professor Greenbloom and seize the scale from him.
Within far less time than expected, Nettlebrand discovers Greenbloom and confronts him. Greenbloom, terrified for his life, hides underneath Nettlebrand's own leg, where he is inaccessible to the monster's head. Nettlebrand, frustrated by the stiffness of his own golden armor, sends the Dwarf Gravelbeard to get the professor off.
Barnabas Greenbloom survives by bribing the greedy Dwarf with a golden ring. Gravelbeard accepts the bribe and allows Greenbloom to escape.
After digging up more of the Egyptian ruins than Greenbloom and his bombastic colleague Rosenberg could have done in the effort to find his prey, Nettlebrand storms away in a rage. Unaware of the professor's listening ears, Nettlebrand speaks very clearly of his spy (Twigleg) and the presence thereof while the Djinn is talking. The Golden One is nearly at the end of his minute patience, and if he does not find out SOMETHING he will devour Firedrake in order to justify his existence.
He does indeed, find out SOMETHING; but it is not the truth. Twigleg, in his anxiety for Ben, lies to Nettlebrand about the Djinn's instructions.
What really happens is this. After a brief quarrel with some pixie-like mischief-making spirits, Firedrake and company enter the Djinn's valley. There, Ben awakes the Djinn, who is not surprised to find a Silver Dragon on his doorstep.
Ben asks the question; "Where does the Rim of Heaven lie?".
The Djinn is astonished. Though he has been asked this question many times before, it is the first time in which the questioner did not ask it for his own sake. "Yes, you were the FIRST!" he tells Ben.
The answer to the question appears in two of the Djinn's thousand eyes; it is a path, marked by the Indus River, by a mountain range, and by a monastery. Beyond this monastery is the Rim of Heaven.
The Djinn tells his audience that they must seek these images. In the monastery, Ben must break the moonlight on the stone dragon's head. "When that day comes, twenty fingers will point the way to the Rim of Heaven, and silver will be worth more than gold."
On the way, Twigleg makes yet another report to Nettlebrand; this one a complete falsehood. Nettlebrand is sent hunting worthlessly in the Sahara Desert, where he finds nothing but camels, will o' wisps, vultures, and a tribe of "sandmen"– desert-dwelling ghosts– who bury him alive.
Over the ocean, Firedrake is in trouble. Without moonlight, he cannot fly, since he has lived exclusively on it for many years. When the Moon passes through eclipse, he falls, and lands on the back of a Sea-Serpent!
Frightening as she may seem, the Serpent is quite amiable and agrees to take the friends to Pakistan, where they shall rendezvous with a Dracologist, Zubeida Ghalib, who alone of all Life-Forms knows a way to help Firedrake fly without moonlight. Along the way, the Serpent tells them (among other things) about Nettlebrand and his army of red-eyed Ravens.
As the peaceful voyage atop Serpent-back continues, it is interrupted by one of these Ravens– the same Bird who was once Twigleg's mount. Annoyed, Sorrel distracts it by throwing a stone which she has smeared her adhesive saliva. The stone sticks to the Raven's wing and sends him panicking to shore.
In Pakistan, the friends enter a village where Zubeida the Dracologist is living. Thanks to the skills of Twigleg as a (somewhat imperfect) translator of languages, they find Dr. Ghalib with some ease.
Unexpectedly, they also find Professor Greenbloom, who, with his wife and daughter, have come to visit on account of the incident with Nettlebrand. Deeply worried, the two parties compare their findings, which all point to a single grim fact; Nettlebrand is hunting the Dragons who live in the Rim of Heaven, and expects Firedrake to find them for him.
Even so, it is perhaps to the best effect that they travel forth. Dr. Ghalib reveals a legend and prophecy of a Dragon Rider who once lived in the village and is supposed to return. Ben is his reincarnation, and his destiny is to save Dragonkind from a terrible enemy.
No sooner have they heard the legend than two more of Nettlebrand's Ravens descend on them. Sorrel attempts the saliva trick again, with one variation: a few sparks of Dragon-fire are added to the mix. The stones do not adhere, but the Ravens are indeed changed before the eyes of all, into crabs!
This new strangeness on the part of Nettlebrand disturbs the searchers, ultimately inducing Twigleg to tell the truth. Ashamed to near breakdown, the homunculus reveals his part as a spy, along with the tale of Nettlebrand's origin. It seems that a magician or alchemist created Nettlebrand as a Dragon-killing machine, for to obtain the Dragons' horns which he used in his experiments. Twigleg, and eleven other miniature men, were made as Nettlebrand's caretakers. When the Silver Dragons went into hiding, Nettlebrand killed the alchemist and all of Twigleg's brothers, then went hunting on his own.
After hearing the story, Zubeida shows Firedrake and company not only the tomb of the original Dragon Rider, but also a species of flower which collects moonlight in the dewdrops on its leaves. Having drunk this "moon-dew", Firedrake is able to fly in the daytime.
Knowing this, the searchers carry on, losing Nettlebrand's pursuit in the mountains. Ironically, they lose it through a fight with a giant raptor, a Roc, who challenges Firedrake for the possession of Ben.
During the conflict, they are forced off course and must take refuge in a valley.
Beyond the mountains, within the Indus River, is Nettlebrand. He has followed the Dragon, but is now tailing a boat wherein are Professor Greenbloom and his family. According to Nettlebrand, Greenbloom will meet up with Firedrake. Unwittingly, Nettlebrand is himself seen by the Professor's daughter, Guinevere.
In the valley, Firedrake and company are sidetracked and need help. It comes to them in the form of Lola Graytail, Gilbert's niece. Lola had been cartographing the country on Gilbert's orders when she found the searchers; it is she who guides them to the monastery. There, they are welcomed by the monks, who look on Firedrake as a bringer of good fortune.
Also it is here that Ben "breaks the moonlight"--- actually a moonstone kept by the monks for this purpose. The stone Dragon is a statue projecting from the Gon-Khang, the Temple of the Angry Gods. Ben shatters the moonstone and summons the aid of a four-armed Dubidai, entitled Burr-Burr-Chan. His species is a relative of brownies. He is observed by the Dwarf, Gravelbeard.
Burr-Burr-Chan agrees to guide Firedrake, Sorrel, Twigleg, and Ben to the Rim of Heaven. He warns, however, that Firedrake's kin have degenerated into earthbound cowards as a result of hiding from Nettlebrand.
Whilst waiting for the moment of departure, the company discover Gravelbeard but fail to catch him. This sharpens their resolve to attain their goal.
They fly on their way swiftly, with Nettlebrand in pursuit. To Twigleg's dismay, in the center of the circular arrangement of mountain peaks that forms the Rim of Heaven is a great lake; a gateway for Nettlebrand to enter by.
To make sure that the homunculus is correct in his assumption, Lola takes Twigleg in her aeroplane to investigate and distract the Golden One, while above the others seek the Dragons' cave.
The two small ones lead Nettlebrand astray. They dive and loop and bank round and about, driving Nettlebrand almost crazy with frustration as he tries frantically to catch it. Firedrake sees them looping the loop and takes refuge in the cave he sought.
There, they meet with a she-Dragon, Maia. She is the only living dragon there, as the other twenty-two have since turned into stone through lack of moonlight. Maia, on hearing that Nettlebrand is alive and within the valley, is filled with the desire to destroy him. So too does Firedrake, even though neither has what could be called a plan.
Outside, Lola and Twigleg have just settled down to some soup, when who should appear but Gravelbeard!
In the struggle that follows, the Dwarf's hat, which evidently functions as an altitude compensator, is taken by Twigleg. Promptly Gravelbeard is struck with mountain sickness, allowing himself to be taken a prisoner. Yet the work is far from over, for Nettlebrand is coming.
Plan after plan is proposed and refuted by the company. They are virtually helpless against Nettlebrand, for he has the size and strength of twenty Dragons as well as a total immunity to their firepower. Stone, metal, heat, weight, deceit, speed– all are sure to fail as weapons.
In disgust, Sorrel spits on the golden scale which the Professor gave to Ben. Inspired by his success with the Crab-Ravens, Firedrake flames the thing and reduces it to gold paint.
Twigleg comes up with a plan. He frees the dwarf Gravelbeard, who is then sent back to Nettlebrand. The Golden One, elated by success, orders the Dwarf to polish his armor. Unfortunately for Nettlebrand, the armor polish has been replaced with Brownie spit. The mixture, far from glossing Nettlebrand's armor, instead dulls its bright shine. Vainly, he takes brief notice of this, but Gravelbeard assures him that his scales do indeed shine brightly.
Nettlebrand enters the cave, and is at once dive-bombed by Firedrake, Maia, and Lola, who circle around the monster and distract him. Teasing and haranguing him, they fly rings around the great heavy beast.
At last, the Dragons come together and set Nettlebrand afire. The Brownie spit reacts at once, dissolving Nettlebrand's armor and weakening him. He falls like as a collapsing exoskeleton, steaming like melting ice.
Underneath the armor and the wickedness is a simple Toad.
As the company stare in wonder at this transformation, Gravelbeard enters. He has seen the marvellous gemstones and rock formations in the cave, and wishes to enhance them with his own Dwarfish skill.
At first, the Dragons are hesitant. But their reluctance changes to consent when Gravelbeard promises to revitalize their petrified relations.
This promise, at least, he keeps. Within a few days, all the Silver Dragons are awake and aware. Firedrake and Maia, for their part, fly Northward with Sorrel and Burr-Burr-Chan to bring the others of their species home.
Ben and Twigleg go to live with Professor Greenbloom, on the grounds that Ben needs his own kind as do all Life-Forms.
Two months later, news reaches the humans that Firedrake has convinced the Silver Dragons to come with him to the Rim of Heaven. Eager to see their friends again, Ben and Guinevere occupy their time with other investigations as they wait for the return.
[edit] Trivia
- The Basilisk that Firedrake encountered had more of the appearance of a cockatrice.
- In the original version of the story, Sorrel is called a Kobold instead of a brownie.
- In a special version, there is an additional chapter called "Sorrel's Story". This chapter tells about Sorrel's life before her journey with Firedrake, and it says the greatest thing a brownie can do is befriend a dragon.
