Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE They all held hands and Zara touched the map. A warm wind carried the girls and their unicorns to the Ember Sands. The dusty red ground was parched and the desert seemed to stretch on for miles with nothing but thorny bushes and giant balls of springy tumbleweed to break up the monotony. The magic set the group down beside a huge rock. It towered over them and they stepped gratefully into its shade. Zara gazed up. The great mass of red rock looked just like a lumbering grizzly bear. Bear rock! Zara gasped. Moonbeam had said that the sun pearls were on the bear's nose, but it was impossible to see from down here. There was only one way to find out if they were actually there. "I'll climb up to the nose," she said to the others. "It shouldn't be too bad. There are plenty of handholds and footholds."

"But—" Moonbeam began. "No, Moonbeam, it should be me. I'm the best at climbing." "I'll come with you," said Aisha. "I'll find it easier to concentrate on my own," said Zara. She didn't want to have to worry about someone else being in danger. She studied the rock for a moment and then began to pull herself up its craggy face. She was a good climber but she had never climbed so high before. She went up and up, stopping occasionally to work out the best place for her sweaty hands to find a grip. Her friends' voices drifted up to her, shouting encouragement. Zara finally reached the bear's head and stopped to catch her breath. Glancing down, her stomach lurched. The ground was so far away and her friends looked so small! To her surprise, she realised that Moonbeam wasn't watching her. She was talking to Feather, who was stamping her hooves, sending pink sparks into the air. Whatever were they doing? Zara frowned and tore her eyes away. She couldn't afford to be distracted. Somehow, she had to edge up on to the head and then climb out on to the long protrusion of rock that formed the bear's nose. She could see a strange silver disc balanced

on it, like an enormous shiny saucer. A pillar in the centre of the disc was holding up a collection of round white objects. Sun pearls! She was sure of it! Her heart lifted. Moonbeam's vision had been right. I'll give her a huge hug when I get down and tell her I'm sorry I ever doubted her, she thought. She pulled herself up the bear's head and, with her feet balancing on the narrow footholds, crept across the face towards the nose. She swung herself up, her legs straddling it as if she were riding a unicorn. The sun pearls were shining brightly, their magic coming to life in the rays of the fierce desert sun. Zara realised that the shiny surface of the disc

must be reflecting the heat back on to the pearls, amplifying their magic and sending it all over the island. She could feel heat radiating from them. She would have to edge along the rock until she could reach the burning pearls. She just hoped the nose would hold her weight as well as the weight of the disc. She slowly crept towards the pearls. She pulled on one of the fireproof gloves then, bending forward and hanging on to the nose with one arm, she stretched her gloved hand out, but she couldn't quite reach them over the edge of the disc. She wriggled further, straining until– finally!– her fingers touched the pearls. Suddenly, the rock began to shake. She heard her friends cry out and the unicorns whinny in alarm. It was an earth tremor! Forgetting about the pearls, Zara pulled her hand back and hung on to the rock for dear life, clinging like a limpet to the bear's nose as the world shook violently. The tremor lasted a minute and then stopped. "Zara! Are you OK?" Moonbeam whinnied. "Yes!" Zara shouted, although every cell in her body felt like it was trembling. "I've reached the pearls now. I'll be down soon. Don't worry!"

She leaned forward and, this time, her hand closed around the shining spheres. Just at that moment there was another tremor and the rock started to shake violently. Zara was only holding on with one hand and it wasn't enough. She felt herself slip and scrabbled for a handhold but with a yell she began to fall! She rushed towards the ground, her arms flailing. She waited to hit the hard earth but instead she landed on a huge mound of springy tumbleweed. She bounced up into the air with a surprised shriek. It was like being on a giant trampoline. How had it got there to break her fall? As she slowly came to rest, she heard the clamour of her friends' voices and the unicorns' whinnies. She sat up, her hair sticking out wildly. "What just happened?" she gasped, her heart pounding.

Moonbeam cantered over. "I knew you were going to fall. I saw it in a vision as you were climbing up so I asked Feather to use her magic to pull the tumbleweed into place just before the earth tremor so it would soften your landing." Zara stared. "Moonbeam! Oh, wow!" Shoving the pearls and glove in her pocket, she slid off the giant cushion of tumbleweed and flung her arms around Moonbeam's neck. "Thank you so much! You saved my life!" There was another rumble and the ground shook even more strongly. "I haven't finished saving it yet!" whinnied Moonbeam in alarm as there was a loud creaking sound from above them. "On my back! NOW!" Zara didn't stop to ask why. Trusting