Dragon Rider

“‘He’s helped us, Sorrel. He’s a friend. So I don’t mind whether he’s a human being, a brownie, or a rat. What’s more,’ he added, looking at Ben, who was standing there hardly daring to breathe, ‘what’s more, he doesn’t have a home now any more than we do. Isn’t that true?’ He looked inquiringly at the boy.

‘I never did have a home,’ muttered Ben, looking at Sorrel.”

Sorrel remains distrustful of humans for good reason and objects to bringing Ben along. However, Ben has helped them twice already and thus proving his trustworthiness. This moment brings the three protagonists together, highlights the power of friendship in altering the course of the plot, and demonstrates the value of small people in effecting change.

“‘Dragons don’t eat anything that breathes,’ said the fattest dwarf, taking cover behind a rock. ‘They live on moonlight. All their strength comes from the moon. They can’t even fly when it isn’t shining.’”

In this conversation, the motif of moonlight is first introduced as an important aspect of Firedrake’s character. It is the silver dragons’ only source of sustenance and power. By calling attention to it here, the narrative foreshadows its significance to the plot later in the novel.

“Nettlebrand, the Golden One, lay in the deep, damp vaults far underground, longing for the return of the good years when the castle roof was intact and he enjoyed chasing the only prey he liked to hunt—silver dragons.

Nettlebrand’s own scales still shone like pure gold. His claws were sharper than splinters of glass, his teeth had a keen cutting edge, and he was mightier than any other living creature. But he was bored—consumed by boredom. It made him wild and savage.”

The opening paragraphs of Chapter 9 introduce the primary antagonist for the first time, establishing all the important facts about the character including his name, physical characteristics, and temperament. Additionally, the fact that he once hunted silver dragons instantly establishes the conflict of good versus evil that arises between Nettlebrand and the protagonists.

“What terrible human presumption it is to catch other living creatures and hold them captive!”

Professor Greenbloom makes this remark when he observes his fellow archeologists caging Sorrel, Twigleg, and various animals for study. He comments on the arrogance of humans, who inflict damage on other living beings and nature as a whole as a matter of course, thus contributing to the theme of The Human Impact on Nature.

“On the second night, black clouds came sailing over the mountains, enveloping Firedrake and his riders in a stinking smog before drifting out to sea. Barnabas Greenbloom had warned Ben of this, too. The dark clouds were sooty discharge from oil wells in the east, burning like torches after a war between humans.”

In this passage, the details of the black sooty filth highlight the pollution created by human industry and war. This offers yet another example of the destructive impact humans have on the natural world, as represented by Firedrake and the other magical creatures.

“Twigleg sat on Ben’s knee, hardly knowing where to look. He had often felt small and worthless, but never as small and worthless as he did now. He was so ashamed of himself he felt like confessing everything to the boy then and there, but he couldn’t utter a word.”

Twigleg experiences kindness for the first time in his life after Ben befriends him. This inspires feelings of shame and guilt over his role as Nettlebrand’s spy. In this scene, Twigleg’s resolve is beginning to crack, which will eventually lead him to betray Nettlebrand entirely. This is one of the most significant examples of the power of friendship to alter individual lives.

“‘The Rim of Heaven!’ he repeated. ‘You’re not putting that question for yourself, are you?’

Ben shook his head. ‘No,’ he said. ‘My friends need to know. Why ask me that?’

‘Why?’ boomed Asif, so loud that Twigleg put his hands over his ears. ‘Because you are the first! The first not to ask for himself, my beetle-sized little human. The first in so many thousands of years that even I can’t count them. So I am doubly glad to answer your question.’”

When Ben asks the djinn for the location of the Rim of Heaven, the djinn is shocked and delighted that Ben is asking the question not for himself, but for his friends. The djinn’s reaction indicates that other humans have approached him for this information in the past, but only for their own selfish ends. Ben, on the other hand, is motivated only by a desire to help his friends, which is depicted as noble, selfless, and therefore worthy of a true answer.

“He couldn’t have cared less if his master had only wanted to eat the unfriendly brownie! But not the small human. No—he, Twigleg, wasn’t going to help him do that. He’d seen Nettlebrand crunch up his brothers. He’d seen him devour their maker. But Nettlebrand wasn’t going to get the little human into his greedy jaws. Ever.”

This moment marks Twigleg’s turning point in the novel. After learning that Nettlebrand intends to eat Ben as well as the silver dragons, Twigleg makes the crucial decision to betray him. The kindness and friendship that Ben has shown to Twigleg therefore proves instrumental in altering the course of the story. Without Twigleg’s change of heart, it is likely Nettlebrand would have won.

“Flocks of white seabirds circled above the dragon, announcing his arrival with excited cries. The villagers were waiting for him, standing outside their huts with children in their arms. The beach had been sprinkled with flower petals. Paper kites flew above the roofs of the huts, and even the smallest children were wearing their best clothes.”

In contrast to the violence dragons face from humans in Europe, the reception Firedrake receives in the Pakistani village is overwhelmingly positive and joyous. This moment reveals stark differences between Western and Eastern attitudes about dragons specifically, and the natural world more generally, which should be revered, celebrated, and protected, thus contributing significantly to the underlying argument in the theme of The Human Impact on Nature.

“‘I sent him off to the Great Desert, far, far away […] because he was going to eat the little human here, too. And the young master was kind to me. For no reason at all. He was kind and friendly, just like that. No one was ever friendly to me before.’ Twigleg sniffed, rubbed his nose, and looked down at his sharp, bony knees. Very quietly, he said, ‘So I decided he can be my master from now on. If he likes.’”

Twigleg at last reveals his role as Nettlebrand’s spy as well as the reasons for his change of heart. He is ashamed of his initial betrayal but inspired by Ben’s kindness. Though he fears rejection and anger, Ben responds with sympathy and forgiveness, once again demonstrating the power of friendship to build trust, belonging, and community.

“‘Right. Firedrake has come so far, and so many people have helped him along the way—I just can’t believe all that was for nothing. And I think it’s time for the dragons to fight back and banish Nettlebrand forever, instead of hiding away from him. Could there be a better opportunity?’ She looked around at them. ‘We have a dragon with nothing more to lose, a brownie girl who can make enchanted ravens fall from the sky, a human boy who’s a true dragon rider, and is even mentioned in an old prophecy, a homunculus who knows almost all his master’s secrets.’”

Zubeida argues that everything that has happened in the story was meant to be. She points to the prophecy of the dragon rider, as well as the numerous allies Firedrake has gathered, as evidence that fate has intervened to help the dragons defeat Nettlebrand. She also adds that it is on the strength of the friendships they have forged that they will succeed.

“But Lola only shook her head again. ‘There are hundreds of valleys here and so many white peaks you’d go crazy trying to count them. But dragons, no. Sorry. I’ll be telling Uncle Gilbert so, too. The Rim of Heaven doesn’t exist, and there’s no hidden valley of the dragons. It’s nothing but a pretty fairy tale.’”

Lola Graytail, who has surveyed much of the Himalayas, argues that the Rim of Heaven is merely a myth. Her statement does not dissuade Firedrake and the others from continuing their quest because the Rim of Heaven represents not only a location but also a source of hope and purpose for Firedrake. If he gives up now, he relinquishes all hope of finding a safe haven for his people.

“The brownie narrowed his slanting eyes and looked Ben up and down. ‘Yes, the dragons are hiding in a cave,’ he said slowly. ‘A wonderful cave deep within the mountain range known as the Rim of Heaven. We dug that cave for them—we, the Dubidai, the brownies of these mountains. But we never meant for them to bury themselves alive in it. When they hid there after the golden dragon had hunted them, we withdrew our friendship and came back here.’”

Burr-Burr-Chan explains the fate of the silver dragons, who went into hiding in the Rim of Heaven. He describes their fear and cowardice, which dismayed the brownies. Burr-Burr-Chan, like Maia a few chapters later, believes that if the dragons had gathered with all their friends and allies they could have defeated the golden one 150 years ago, just as Firedrake and the others are determined to do now.

“The lama whispered something to the Greenblooms.

‘What did he say, Twigleg?’ Ben asked.

‘The small will defeat the great,’ replied the homunculus, ‘and the gentle will defeat the cruel.’”

The motif of size difference appears throughout the novel, from the appearance of Rosa in the first chapter. However, the lama’s remark here highlights the motif with a particular emphasis on the relationship of small and good, with large and evil. The lama also implies, like Firedrake in the next chapter, that the small have the skill and bravery to face any threat, no matter how large.

“The homunculus sat there all hunched up. ‘I never want to see him again,’ he whispered, clenching his fists. ‘I never, ever want to see him again.’

Even if he flew around Nettlebrand’s nose a hundred times, even if he escaped those teeth two hundred times, even if he spat on his armored head three hundred times—Twigleg would always, always be afraid of him.”

As Lola and Twigleg fly in the small plane to distract Nettlebrand in the Rim of Heaven, Twigleg succumbs to fear and cowers in the cockpit. This moment is a powerful reminder of Twigleg’s long years of servitude to Nettlebrand. Twigleg has endured centuries of enslavement, and he is traumatized by it. However, most importantly, this moment of terror heightens Twigleg’s triumph a few chapters later when he witnesses Nettlebrand’s defeat.

“‘I’ll help you,’ she said. ‘Together, perhaps we can do it. That’s what I always told the others: United we’re stronger than he is. But they were too frightened to try.’ Sadly she shook her head. ‘See what fear does to you.’ She pointed with her head to the petrified dragons. ‘See how they cower there, motionless and lifeless. I don’t want to end up like that.’”

The group finds Maia, the single remaining dragon in the Rim of Heaven, who has not turned to stone. As Burr-Burr-Chan remarked a few chapters earlier, Maia points to the damage wrought by fear and cowardice and argues instead that if the group unifies against the threat, they can succeed. This moment demonstrates The Power of Friendship; how it can inspire courage and create positive change.

“Gravelbeard sat between his horns, chewing his beard in fury. If he wasn’t going to get his reward after all, he had no intention of ever cleaning Nettlebrand’s armor again.

Soundlessly and slowly, very slowly, he began sliding down Nettlebrand’s neck, using all the skill he had learned from climbing mountains.”

Unlike Twigleg, Gravelbeard joined forces with Nettlebrand willingly, out of greed to possess his gold scales. However, like Twigleg, Gravelbeard has grown bitter from his ill treatment and realizes at last that Nettlebrand will never reward him with anything but more servitude, thus inspiring him to abandon his enslaver just like Twigleg did.

“But Twigleg shook his head vigorously. He didn’t want to miss a minute of this. He wanted to see Nettlebrand perish. He wanted to see the golden armor he had polished for so many years melt as the dragon-fire turned Nettlebrand back into whatever creature he was made from.”

The power of Twigleg’s bravery in this scene is contrasted with his moment of terror in Lola’s plane in Chapter 45. With victory in sight, Twigleg is determined to see it through to the end and face Nettlebrand. Motivated by his friendship with Ben and his own desire for freedom, Twigleg displays immense character growth from beginning to end.

“His armor was melting into a sticky golden sludge. Gold dripped from his paws. Nettlebrand spat and gasped. The dragons were flying down at him again. He snapped at them and slipped in a puddle of molten gold.

Then, for the first time in his long and wicked life, he felt fear—dark, hot fear.”

This scene depicts Nettebrand’s defeat at the hands of the group of friends, which includes two large dragons and many small, seemingly weak creatures, who prove instrumental to the success of the confrontation. This highlights The Power of Friendship in the novel. On the other hand, Nettlebrand’s moment of fear demonstrates the danger of hubris and isolation. He is so certain of his own power and superiority that he does not learn that he is defeated until it is too late.

“But Twigleg shook his head. ‘Believe me or not as you like, but the alchemist was good at making something terrible out of a tiny creature.’”

Contributing to the motif of size difference, Twigleg’s remark about Nettlebrand’s origin as a toad acknowledges that small creatures have the potential for both good and evil. Though most of the small creatures in the novel are on the side of good, the novel resists a simple dichotomy between small/good and large/evil, instead highlighting that things in nature do not fall into easy categories; everything must be considered in its own right.

“Gravelbeard laid his hand on the dragon’s stony scales. ‘It happens to fabulous creatures very easily. Your castles are full of them. Dragons, winged lions, unicorns, demons, all turned to stone. Human beings find them and put them on display thinking they’re stone all through, which of course they aren’t. Usually there’s a breath of life left in them somewhere. But humans don’t know that. They display them as if they’d actually made them. Huh!’ The dwarf wrinkled his nose scornfully. ‘Conceited folk, human beings.’”

Gravelbeard remarks on the arrogance and greed of the humans who find petrified creatures and claim them for themselves. These humans take everything around them without considering the consequences. This remark contributes to the theme of The Human Impact on Nature, suggesting that greed is both a moral and ecological problem.

“‘But it wasn’t the stories that defeated him,’ said Ben, putting Lola and the dwarf down on the ground.

‘No, it wasn’t, it was us!’ cried Sorrel, spreading her arms wide. ‘All of us together. Brownies, dragons, the little human, the homunculus, the rat, the mountain dwarf. A story to melt anyone’s heart!’”

Ben and Sorrel remind the others that their success against Nettlebrand was due to the friendships they had forged and the allies they had gathered. They prove The Power of Friendship, which gave them the combination of skills, cleverness, bravery, and power to defeat their enemy.

“Firedrake looked at him. ‘I’ll take you to the Greenblooms,’ he said. ‘You need human beings the way I need the other dragons, the way Sorrel isn’t happy without other brownies to quarrel with. Without human beings, you’d start to feel very lonely.’”

Firedrake and Ben discuss whether to stay in the Rim of Heaven. In doing so, they both consider The Need for Home and family in their lives. Just as Ben argues that Firedrake must return to his community in the Scottish Highlands, Firedrake argues that Ben will be lonely if he does not accept the home the Greenblooms have offered him. For both, home is more than a place: It is a sense of family and belonging that cannot be replaced by other things.