Edge of Worlds

CHAPTER TEN

“It’s not going well,” Ember whispered.

He was crouched on the balcony of Rill’s bower, shielded from the sight of anyone in the greeting hall by the angle of the doorway.

Below, Malachite and Pearl confronted each other, loosely surrounded by an uneasy group of warriors and Arbora. Floret spoke for Pearl, and an older female warrior spoke for Malachite. So far they appeared to be making extremely awkward small talk, while Floret occasionally threw beseeching glances at Pearl, hoping for some sign that it was all right to invite the newcomers into the colony.

It wasn’t the first unexpected visit since the groundling flying boat had left. Niran and Diar from the Golden Isles had arrived in their wind-ship only six days later. The court had hosted them for the night, given them a copy of the Kish map and all the information they had, and sent them on their way. It had been a relief all around. At least Jade and the others would have friendly groundling allies whenever the Golden Isles wind-ship caught up with them.

Behind him, Rill asked Aura, “The same visions? All their mentors?”

“That’s what it sounded like from their descriptions.” Aura had led the warriors who had carried the message to Opal Night. “Malachite barely gave us time to eat and rest before we started back here.”

The thought that another court had experienced the same augury made Ember’s skin creep. Given the seriousness of the visions, it wasn’t a surprise that Malachite had come here. The problem was that along with a group of warriors, Malachite had brought Opal Night’s half-Fell consort and half-Fell mentor.

They were with her now, standing with the Opal Night warriors. The warriors seemed relaxed and confident, but the half-Fell consort, now in his groundling form, looked nervous. The mentor was nearly hiding behind one of the larger female warriors.

Ember could tell the situation was becoming increasingly tense. Watching Pearl, studying the subtle nuances of her body language, Ember thought it was indecision she was wrestling with more than disgust or anger. In a way he understood. Indigo Cloud had been nearly destroyed by a deliberately crossbred Fell-Raksuran queen who had taken over her Fell flight. The court of Sky Copper had been entirely destroyed except for one royal clutch. The same thing had happened to Opal Night’s eastern colony, turns and turns ago, and it must have been easy for Pearl to sympathize, even if she didn’t understand Malachite’s impulse to retrieve her consort’s half-Fell issue.

All of Indigo Cloud had known about them, and heard the story of what had happened when Moon had been taken to Opal Night a couple of turns ago. But seeing half-Fell in the Indigo Cloud colony was something else altogether. Ember didn’t know what to think or feel about it and he was certain not many of the others did either.

“It’s wrong,” Rill muttered, moving forward to crouch beside Ember. “Pearl should welcome them, too. They’re part of our first consort’s bloodline. That little consort is Moon’s half clutch-brother.”

“Did you see what that little consort’s scaled form looks like?” Aura’s spines moved uneasily. Ember hadn’t seen it. He had been down in the nurseries when the Opal Night party had arrived. Then she admitted, “But when we traveled with them, he was fine. They both were. It just took a while to get used to the idea.”

Rill glanced at Ember, her expression deeply concerned. “Not letting them in is . . . wrong. If we don’t accept them, the other courts will take it as an excuse not to accept them either.”

“I don’t think they’re going to do much visiting—” Aura began.

“What if there are others?” Rill’s concern turned to borderline fury. “Lost out there, like Moon was, but part Fell, and not knowing what to do, except look for a court to belong to. And if they’re turned away, or worse, killed, because—”

Ember squeezed her wrist, and she subsided, saying, “I’m just . . . What happened to the consorts and Arbora who were forced to make them is not their fault. We owe it to them to help.”

Aura groaned. “All right, fine, but . . . Malachite should have sent someone ahead with us, so they could talk to Pearl first. So she would have time to think about it before they got here.”

Aura was dead right about that, Ember knew. Pearl hated surprises, hated having her hand forced. He also knew that he would have been the one to have that conversation, and he didn’t know if he felt the way Rill did. Maybe in principle, but in reality, he was afraid.

Opal Night had great power and influence, but other courts didn’t know about the half-Fell fledglings Malachite had taken in. When they learned of it, they would have to make a decision whether to accept it or not. If Indigo Cloud accepted it, it wouldn’t obligate any other court to follow suit, but it would be a powerful pull on all the interconnected strings of alliance.

Just one step. Somebody had to take it. Ember knew whose job it was, and it made his stomach sour with nerves. This is what consorts are for. He said, aloud, “I know what I should do.”

Rill looked at him, holding her breath.

Ember stared at the half-Fell consort with the oddly pale groundling skin. The tension in his shoulders was clearly fear. Conflicting impulses said he’s half-Fell and but he’s a consort. Then he’s not only a consort, he’s your first consort’s half clutch-brother, just think about it that way. Failing to welcome Moon’s half clutch-brother would be offensive, a clear violation of etiquette, a terrible insult. But against that was . . . fear. The only thing holding him back was fear.

It couldn’t be any worse than being dragged off to a strange court in turmoil where it had been immediately obvious that no one wanted him. “All right,” Ember muttered to himself. “So then.”

He stood. “Aura, please go up and get the seating area outside my bower ready to receive someone. Use my best tea set.”

“Uh.” Aura blinked, the implications hitting her. “Uh, yes, I’ll do that.”

She climbed down from the railing to head for the bower’s doorway. Rill followed her, saying, “I’ll help. You won’t do it right.”

“I will do it right,” Aura protested and they disappeared down the passage.

Ember took a deep breath, and before he could talk himself out of it, shifted and leapt down to the greeting hall floor.

He landed and furled his wings, and the hall fell silent, all murmuring and whispering ceasing instantly. He walked toward the group at the center, managing not to look at Pearl and Malachite.

It was second nature to make it look graceful, though with every eye in the court on him and his insides roiling, it wasn’t easy. Whether this was a good idea or not, he had no idea. But Shadow, the first consort of Emerald Twilight, had told him that Raksuran courts had strict rules of etiquette so they wouldn’t kill each other. Now it seemed doubly important to follow those rules.

Close-up, the consort looked even more like someone who had frozen in place in terror and self-consciousness. Ember reached him, shifted to his groundling form, and said, “I’m Ember, consort to Pearl, the reigning queen.”

The consort stared, wide-eyed. The fact that he was just as afraid as Ember somehow made the situation easier. Ember prompted gently, “This is where you tell me your name.”

“Uh, yes,” the consort whispered. “I’m Shade, of Opal Night.”

Ember nodded. “Would you like to come up to the consorts’ quarters?”

In a bare whisper, Shade managed, “Yes.”

“Good.” Ember took a breath to steady his pounding heart. “Follow me.”

Shade said, “But I’ll have to shift.”

Ember hesitated. He didn’t have time to consider all the implications, and found himself falling back again on common politeness. Suggesting that anything about Shade was out of the ordinary or unwelcome would be something only done to challenge or deliberately offend another court. Against a court that was not only an ally but whose bloodline was now mingled with Indigo Cloud’s royal Aeriat, it was unthinkable. He said, “Yes, you’ll have to shift. But it’s all right.”

Shade met his gaze, clearly forced his shoulders to relax, and shifted in time with Ember.

Ember blinked. He had heard the descriptions, but it was still a shock to see the reality. Shade’s shifted form was big and muscular, though the proportions were clearly a consort’s. His scales were a reflective black, with no contrasting color undersheen and no banding on his claws. He had a smaller, less prominent Fell ruler’s armored crest and a mane of spines and frills sprouting from the base. He did look like the drawing of the forerunner from the ancient city that Delin had brought to show them. Heart had made a copy of it for the mentors’ library and most of the court had studied it curiously. Ember managed to say, “Follow me,” and he and Shade leapt up to the nearest balcony.

Ember took them far enough up the central well to make the point, then swung over a balcony and into a passage that led to a back stairwell. He shifted to his groundling form and explained, “I want to give them time to get the seating area ready.”

Shade shifted as well. “Oh, right.” Following Ember up the steps, he added, “I’ve never been to another court before.”

“I hadn’t either, before I came here,” Ember told him. “I’m from Emerald Twilight.”

“Oh.” Shade hesitated again, then asked, “The warriors said Moon and the others went off with groundlings because your mentors think Fell will come here.”

“Yes, that’s what happened.” They reached the top of the landing, the one with the life-sized carving of warriors in flight, twisting up the wall to the next level, but Ember was too distracted to point it out. “Aura said your mentors saw the same thing, Fell attacking the Reaches?”

“Yes,” Shade said. “And right before your warriors arrived, we had a shared dream, just like the one described in Jade’s letter. Except the Fell weren’t at Opal Night, they were coming from the east, attacking all the courts on this side of the Reaches.”

Ember stopped, turning to stare at him. “Really?”

Shade nodded. His brow creased in worry, and his oddly pale skin was flushed. Their gazes met for a long moment. Ember felt a chill wind its way up his spine. He was suddenly glad Malachite had come here. He said, “We haven’t heard from our other allies yet, but . . .”

“We can’t be the only courts this has happened to,” Shade said. “There must be others. Lithe—she’s the mentor with us—said the visions might be spreading slowly, because the other courts aren’t as close to what’s happening as we are.”

Ember turned and started up the stairs again, considering it. “Lithe needs to talk to Heart, and our other mentors.” As they walked, he told Shade about the Kishan flying boat and what Delin had said, which carried them up to the consorts’ level and to the now carefully arranged seating area outside his bower, and through the first cup of tea. Having something substantive to talk about made the whole situation less awkward. After the second cup, Shade paused as if to gather his courage, and asked, “Did Pearl not want to let us in?”

“Pearl . . .” Ember tried to think of a way to explain it. Pearl was always gentle with him, though with the rest of the court she had good days and bad days. He didn’t think she had ever really recovered from her consort Rain’s premature death, and it had seemed to make a lot of things hard for her. “Pearl often thinks things are difficult, and you have to show her that they really aren’t.”

Shade seemed to understand. “So you made the decision to let us in for her. Is she going to mind?”

“No,” Ember confessed. “If I handle it right, she’ll think it was her idea, sort of.” It was hard to explain. Pearl could make decisions all day when lives were at stake; it was only when they weren’t that she had trouble. This complicated question of etiquette and the future of part-Fell Raksura in the Reaches was absolutely the kind of decision she hated. But now that it was made, he thought Pearl would find it much easier to go along on the path Ember had nudged her toward.

By the time Floret came down the passage, Shade seemed at ease and Ember was certain he had made the right decision. It was a relief to have another consort to talk all this over with.

Floret said, “Ember, Pearl wants you to come to the queens’ hall now.” She smiled at Shade, and Ember remembered they had actually met before, that she was one of the warriors who had been at Opal Night with Jade and Moon. “Malachite’s there too.”

“How is it—Are they—?” Shade tried to ask.

“It’s going pretty well,” Floret assured him. “Much better than before.”

Ember led the way to the steps down to the passage that led through to the queens’ hall, and he and Shade made what Ember considered to be a very decorous and correct entrance. Ember liked and admired Moon a great deal, but he wasn’t very good at entrances. He entered formal meetings looking either like a captive dragged there against his will or like he was coming to murder someone.

Pearl and Malachite were now seated, facing each other over the court’s best blue glazed tea set, a few warriors arrayed around them. Malachite had the mentor Lithe with her, and someone had had the forethought to summon Heart and Bone to sit with Pearl. Arbora tended to be a calming presence anyway, and Bone disliked conflict almost as much as Pearl, but he was much better at defusing it.

As Ember and Shade took seats on the cushions left for them, and the introductions were made, Ember had a chance to get a close look at Malachite.

She was bigger than Pearl, clearly more physically powerful, and her scales were a green so dark it was almost black. There was light gray scarring across her scales, concealing what should be the second color of her webbing. Her only jewelry was silver and crystal sheaths on her claws. Ember thought she looked like a very fine ceramic bowl that had been broken and repaired with silver in the cracks, to make it stronger.

Continuing the conversation, Pearl said to Malachite, “Staying the night would be more sensible. It’s almost twilight and you’ll have to stop and camp anyway.”

As opaque as the queen carved into the wall above Pearl’s head, Malachite said, “Perhaps you’re right.”

It was ridiculous to embark on another long flight now when you had the chance to leave rested and fed in the morning. Malachite and Pearl both knew that; they were just doing an elaborate dance of politeness and respect.

Malachite twitched one spine. It wasn’t a nervous gesture, but Ember couldn’t read it. He could see Heart and some of the warriors betraying little twitches of anxiety. Ember understood; Malachite was by far the most intimidating queen he had ever seen, and at close range the effect was even more daunting. He had no trouble believing she was Moon’s birthqueen. She said, “And it will give me the chance to see the new royal clutch.”

Pearl tilted her head slightly, obviously trying to think of a way to deny or postpone this perfectly reasonable request. Ember sighed. Maybe it wasn’t so much of a dance as it was a fight. Finally Pearl said, grudgingly, “Of course.”

Then Bone intervened with, “Do you plan to try to join the Golden Islanders? Niran and Diar are Delin’s descendants, and I think they would welcome you.”

Malachite turned her attention to him. One of the others might have quailed a little under that intense regard, but Bone weathered it without a twitch. It was impossible to tell if Malachite was aware of the effect of her presence. She said, “It’s the best solution. The map shows a route from island to island, presumably the way the Fell managed it, but going directly will be faster.”

Ember looked at Shade, startled. The mention of the Fell was a reminder of how dangerous this trip would be. “Surely you’re not going—Are you returning to your court after this? Or you could stay here until Malachite returns.”

Ember knew Pearl would have words with him for issuing the invitation without speaking to her first, but half-Fell or not, Shade was a consort, a young inexperienced one, as unlike Moon as Ember was, and he should not be taken into such a situation.

Malachite’s attention fell on Ember. His skin twitched involuntarily, his mouth went dry, and he dropped his gaze to the teapot. Then she said, “Shade, it’s your decision.”

Shade seemed pleased by the invitation, but he said, “No, thank you, I have to go. It’s something I have to make myself do.”

Malachite tilted her head back toward Pearl. “The augury suggests that none of us have a choice in this.”

“That has not escaped me,” Pearl said, dryly, her spines conveying disgruntled resignation. “Now I assume your mentor will wish to consult with ours about the possibility of Fell attack.”

Malachite set her tea cup aside, her claws clinking on the delicate ceramic. “First I want to speak of precautions.”

Pearl’s spines tilted suspiciously. “What sort of precautions?”

Malachite said, “I have two hundred warriors I can spare for the defense of the Reaches. I’d like to bring them here.”

The flying boat traveled over open sea for the next stretch of days, passing only the occasional uninhabited island, and only a few flying island fragments. Callumkal had explained that the winds tended to blow them inland.

Moon passed the time by teaching the warriors how to fish on the wing. Then they came within sight of a set of sandbars where the skeleton of a sea creature so large it could have eaten the flying boat whole lay scattered. The water was clear and shallow enough that they saw the ribs and vertebrae and jaw hinge on the sea floor. It made Moon think of the giant waterlings of the freshwater sea. A small group of sealings played among the bones and paused to watch the flying boat pass overhead with no alarm.

Callumkal said that according to the map, the shelf of land the sea was on curved inward here, and they were skirting the edge of the ocean. That if they went straight into the wind they would eventually reach it and see the spot where the shallows dropped away into the deeps. The creature must have died there and been pushed up into the sea by the current. Moon found it tempting to fly in that direction, just to see what the ocean looked like. But they were going to see it anyway, when they got past the archipelagos.

The weather had been good for flying, another temptation. They passed through a light rain shower one day, but the rest of the time it was sunny with clouds forming ever-changing white mountains in the distance. Moon, Jade, Stone, and the warriors took flights off the deck to stretch their wings and scout ahead a little. Stone had spent enough time on Golden Islander flying boats to be adept at the trick of jumping off before shifting, and of shifting back to groundling some distance above the deck as he came in to land.

Interactions with the crew had been quiet, but there had been no hostility. Moon saw Stone and Magrim, still recovering from his broken ribs, sitting and talking near the bow. Vendoin came to sit with the Raksura and Delin in the evenings, and often Callumkal appeared. Kalam was there every night, obviously feeling more comfortable with them now after his outing with Moon and Stone.

One night, everyone was thinking of the approaching sel-Selatra and the first sight of the ocean. They were sitting on the floor of the common room on their deck, listening to Delin tell a story of the Golden Islanders’ explorations, drinking tea made on one of the ship’s hearths. These were square boxes with a layer of thin stone in the bottom that never got hot, with a block of plant material in it that emitted heat, and a metal frame above it where pots could be placed. It wasn’t that different from a Raksuran hearth with heating stones.

Delin was seated on a cushion, taking notes as he talked, with the Arbora and Kalam gathered around him and warriors sprawled on the floor in whatever position seemed comfortable. Moon leaned against Jade, with Chime on one side and Balm on the other. Except for the green walls and the faint sense of movement, they might have been back in the teachers’ hall at Indigo Cloud.

Then Bramble asked, “Does anything live in the ocean? Anything different than in the sea? Besides fish and giant sea creatures, I mean. Are there ocean sealings?”

Still writing, Delin said, “I don’t know. We know of ships that cross it, or have crossed it, but I have never traveled quite so far. Our ships are more vulnerable to weather than this one.” He looked up at Stone, sitting across from the hearth. “Have you?”

Kalam, and Vendoin, who sat at the outer edge of the group, looked at Stone in surprise. Stone said, “Once or twice.”

Jade sighed. “What were you doing at the ocean?”

“I got curious,” Stone told her. Moon could understand that. If he had Stone’s wingspan and stamina, he might go visit some interesting places too.

“What was it like?” Bramble persisted.

“Empty, mostly.” Stone’s expression was thoughtful. “Just wind and water in every direction. The scent is different from these seas. You can’t smell land at all.”

Chime leaned forward, propping an elbow on Moon’s hip. “Was anything living there? That you could see?”

“Skylings, mostly,” Stone said. “Like the upper air skylings we see over the Reaches, and over mountain ranges. But the swarms that these skylings feed on sometimes fly down and land on the water, and the skylings follow them and dip down and scoop them off the surface.”

“Are there sealings?” Merit asked.

“I didn’t see any. I did see shapes in the water. Big shapes.”

“How big? As big as that skeleton we saw?” Root asked.

“Bigger than that,” Stone said. “Shadows longer and wider than skylings, moving below the surface.”

Everyone absorbed that in silence for a moment. Past Stone, Moon saw Rorra, standing in the doorway, listening. She caught his eye and stepped away to vanish down the corridor, the faint thump of her heavy boots on the soft material fading slowly.

Then Vendoin said, “Well, you shall all see for yourselves soon.”

Later that night, Moon woke with Bramble leaning over him. “Jade, River thought he heard something.”

“Like what?” Jade asked, instantly awake. Moon felt her shift to her winged form, the change in the heat and shape of her body as she uncoiled from around him.

“Something big, moving through the air outside.”

Moon sat up. “Is it—” He had started to ask if it was Stone, taking advantage of a clear night to stretch his wings, but Stone stood beside the window, head tilted to listen. River still crouched by the door for his turn at guard, and the others were stirring. Balm stepped over Merit to stand beside the bed.

“Can anyone hear it now? Stone?” Jade asked.

After a moment, Stone nodded. “He’s right.”

Moon saw River’s tense posture relax a little. If anyone else had mistaken a wind shear for a wingbeat in the middle of the night, it would have been cause for some teasing and complaint and forgotten by the time everyone fell back asleep. Moon wasn’t sure if River making that mistake would have been any different, but River evidently thought so.

Jade climbed over Moon and out of the bed. Moon rolled out after her and grabbed his clothes from the shelf overhead. Even if he had to shift, he wanted to have them with him. Jade said, “Chime, Merit?”

Merit replied first, “I’m not having a vision.” Somewhat testily, he added, “And yes, before anyone mentions it, I know that’s not unusual.” Merit’s augury had continued to be uninformative, and it was bothering him more than it was anyone else.

Chime hesitated. “I don’t hear anything. Not just with my ears, I mean—”

“I know what you mean,” Jade told him.

That’s a relief, Moon thought, rapidly tying the drawstring on his pants. Though it could still be Fell, since with the strong wind the Fell stench would be hard to scent. Or it could just be a gigantic predator.

Everyone was awake now, scrambling out of the way as Jade stepped across to the doorway. She said, “Balm, Moon, Chime, Stone, with me. The rest of you stay here for now.”

Bramble said, urgently, “Jade, Delin went back to his room.”

Jade paused in the doorway. “I want a warrior within arm’s reach of each Arbora. And Delin.”

Moon followed her down the corridor. She was already thinking ahead to what they would do if something attacked the flying boat. Moon hoped that wouldn’t happen. And he hoped Callumkal had those flying packs for all the groundlings on the crew.

Jade reached the stairwell and started up. Moon shifted to follow her, flowing up the steps. He scented Rorra before he saw her, and heard her say, “What—”

As he reached the top of the stairs Rorra stood in the open common area there. She was dressed in a loose sleeping robe and her boots, wide-eyed and startled. Jade paused to tell her, “Something big flew past the boat.”

“Something—” she repeated blankly, then comprehension dawned. She turned and strode down the passage toward the steering cabin.

Moon came out onto the deck behind Jade. The lamps were set low to protect the look-outs’ vision, but to Raksuran eyes it still made the boat a bubble of light surrounded by walls of solid darkness. Moon leapt up, caught hold of the center ridge, and climbed to the top.

After a moment, his vision cleared and he saw the sweep of stars overhead, the blend of indigo and violet in the sky, blotted out in a few places by clouds. And one of the clouds was moving. He whispered, “There it is.”

Chime, clinging to the ridge below him, said, “Oh, it is big.”

Below, Stone went to the railing and Jade and Merit toward the bow. Balm scaled the lower end of the ridge, heading for the other side of the boat. Moon tasted the air deeply, sorting out the scents of saltwater, sand, the flying boat, a trace of rotting fish from some distant island or sandbar. He caught the scent of the intruder then, musky and metallic and strange. He tracked the shape as it circled the boat. It curved downwind, then abruptly veered away. It dipped to pass under the boat and then shot out toward the sea.

Moon watched it streak away into the night, until the dark shape vanished into the horizon. He waited, his spines tense, but it didn’t reappear. The night felt empty again, untenanted except for the boat itself.

Jade stood on the bow railing. She hopped lightly down and started down the deck with Merit. Balm climbed up to join Moon, asking, “Did you see it?”

Moon said, “I saw it, I couldn’t tell what it was. Could you?”

She dropped her spines in a negative. “I thought it was shaped like a cloudwalker. But that could have been my imagination.”

Clearly annoyed, Chime said, “I didn’t hear a thing. This is one of those times my useless ability is even more useless than usual.”

“It’s not useless,” Moon said. “You’re just mad because you got woken up for nothing.”

Chime’s irritated spine flick showed that was accurate. Balm said, “Maybe you didn’t hear anything because it didn’t mean us any harm.”

“No, that’s not it.” Chime looked up at the sky. “You have to remember, it’s not like what a mentor can do. Mentors can scry things that pertain to us, that are going to affect us at some point. The things I hear are usually useless.”

Balm nudged him. “Except when they’re not.”

Rorra and Callumkal came out of the doorway below. They flinched when Chime swung down to land on the deck near them, and he said, “Sorry.”

Moon climbed down after him, Balm following. As Jade approached, Callumkal said, “What was it?”

“I couldn’t tell.” She looked at Balm and Moon.

Balm lifted her spines in a helpless shrug. “Maybe a cloudwalker, but I’m really not certain.”

Merit was equally baffled. “There was nothing I could recognize.”

Stone came strolling back from the rail. They all looked hopefully at him and he said, “I have no idea.”

“Not a cloudwalker?” Moon asked.

Stone shook his head, turning to look toward the horizon again. “Cloudwalkers don’t come down this far just to look at a groundling flying boat, especially in the dark. At night they drift on the upper currents and sleep.”

Chime said, “Maybe we woke it up and it was curious.”

Exasperated, Stone said, “It went straight away, not up. And it went because it scented us. That’s not a cloudwalker or any other kind of upper air skyling.”

Callumkal said, reluctantly, “Well, it did no harm. Whatever it was, perhaps it was just curious.”

Jade moved her spines, then, remembering Callumkal couldn’t read that as agreement, said, “Probably.”

Callumkal stepped back inside, though Rorra stayed on the deck and walked out to the railing to look into the dark, the wind pulling at her robe. Jade asked Merit, “Can you scry about this?”

Merit nodded. “I’ll do it tonight.”

By dawn, Callumkal reported that they were within the boundaries of the sel-Selatra, and should be drawing near a sea-mount soon. Moon, Chime, and Delin went up into the bow for the first glimpse of it, though the clouds had come in and mist obscured much of the view.

Delin was cranky because no one had woken him to not see the nighttime visitor. “Next time, you must tell me,” he insisted. “It could have been an entirely new species, or new to our studies, glimpsed for the first time.”

“It might have smashed the boat and eaten us all,” Chime pointed out. “Or it might have just been a cloudwalker. Merit’s augury wasn’t much help.”

Merit had reported the results of his efforts earlier that morning. “I saw a hive floating on the water,” he had told Jade.

Waiting for the results in their cabin, Moon had fallen asleep again and was still lying curled on the bunk next to Jade. For a moment, he thought he was still asleep, but everyone else seemed to have heard it, too. Jade said, “You saw a what?”

Merit thumped down on the deck and sighed, and rubbed his face. “I know. It doesn’t make any sense. I’m beginning to think you should have brought Thistle instead. I haven’t gotten anything since we started.”

Bramble gave him a shove to the shoulder. “We have a ways to go yet. You still have time to try.”

“Just tell me about the hive,” Jade said patiently.

Merit shook his head, resigned. “It was big, and it was floating on the water. This sea, somewhere. That’s all I saw.”

Moon sat up on one elbow. Stone, sitting on the floor with Balm and Bramble, was staring thoughtfully at a wall. Moon asked, “Have you ever seen anything like that?”

“That’s what I was trying to remember.” Stone grimaced. “No, I don’t think so. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.”

Jade tapped her claws. “Maybe it will make sense later.” She told Merit, “It’s all right, Merit. Try to get some rest.”

Merit had wandered off with Bramble, a little reassured. Later, Moon had talked to Chime about it, who had offered the opinion that a hive floating on the sea was too odd an image to be entirely random. But there was no telling what it meant.

Now, standing out on the bow, Moon spotted something in the distance. It was a long straight shape rising out of the mist. “I think that’s it.”

“What?” Chime squinted into the distance. “Oh, there.”

Moon pointed for Delin, who wouldn’t be able to see it yet. “Keep looking that way.”

After a time, the shape sharpened and Moon could make out that it looked like a tower, unbelievably tall. The top would be some distance above the flying boat when it passed by. But not so tall that Raksura couldn’t fly up to it, unless the wind up there was much worse than at this level. After a time, Delin said, “Ah, I see it.”

As the day went by and the boat drew closer, Moon made out more detail. The sides weren’t smooth as they had looked from a distance, but rough and craggy. Vegetation clung to pockets and ledges, and it looked like there might be some on top, though it was hard to see from this angle. He couldn’t see the base, since the mist was obscuring the surface of the sea at its feet.

He felt Jade behind him and looked to see her and Balm walking up the deck. He asked her, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

Jade’s spines lifted, her gaze on the sea-mount. “Let’s take a look.”

“Are you sure you will be safe?” Vendoin asked, standing at the rail and worriedly regarding the sea-mount. Callumkal had confirmed that the top of the sea-mount was too high for the flying boat or the Kishan’s flying packs.

“If the wind is too strong, we’ll come back down,” Jade told her.

Moon was already shifted and perched on the railing, ready to go with the warriors. The Arbora and Delin were lined up to watch, Jade having told them that they had to stay behind, at least until she decided how dangerous it was. All three of them had protested this decision and there was a general air of disgruntlement hanging over the deck. Even some of the Kishan crew seemed envious. Esankel the navigator said, “See if you can make out any islands to the south. I want to verify our maps.”

Stone was staying behind as well, leaning on the rail with the others. It was Jade’s order that they never left the Arbora alone on the boat, if there was any way to avoid it.

Moon asked him, “You sure you don’t want to see it? We could send the warriors back and then you could come up.”

Stone shrugged one shoulder. “I’ve seen one before. And somebody has to stay down here and keep an eye on the boat.”

“So you’re just tired?” Moon said.

Stone pushed him off the railing. Moon let himself fall past the boat and then spread his wings, catching the air and testing the wind as he circled. Above him, Jade leapt off the boat and snapped her wings out, the warriors falling into the air after her.

Moon flapped to catch up and they flew toward the sea-mount. Jade led them in a broad circle around it, partly to examine the sides at closer range, partly feeling out the winds.

It helped that the currents weren’t particularly strong today, though Moon wouldn’t have wanted to try to land on the side of the sea-mount. Or he wouldn’t have wanted one of the smaller warriors to try it. He thought he and Jade, and certainly Stone, might be strong enough to ride the current up to the wall of rock and catch hold without losing control. Taking off, however, might be tricky.

The rocky walls were covered with random blue and gray streaks, probably mineral veins uncovered by years of wind and rain. The rock was also riddled with little holes, which might possibly be signs of some form of life, though Moon didn’t see any movement and couldn’t scent anything but the sea wind. The mist had cleared somewhat and he could see the bottom now, or at least the point where the rocky tower plunged into the sea. There were tumbled rocks around it and what looked like the meandering lines of reefs, visible through the clear shallow water. There was nowhere for a water boat to land, and nothing that looked like it had been intentionally constructed.

Jade started to spiral upward toward the top, and he tilted his wings to follow her.

They went up and up, until Moon could glance back and look down at the flying boat, small in the distance. Finally they reached the top and circled above it. The space was flat and a few hundred paces across, with a small jungle of vegetation, mostly ferny plants and grasses, low bushes, and some fruit vines. Moon couldn’t see or scent anything besides plant life. The wind was strong across the top but there was nothing to smash into, so Jade curved around and dropped down to land.

Moon dropped onto the soft grass beside her and folded his wings. A cloud of startled insects with glassy, brightly-colored wings shot out of the bushes and streamed away into the undergrowth. The warriors all landed around them, though Chime stumbled forward in the high wind. He was a much better flier now than when Moon had first met him, but not being born with wings had its disadvantages.

Then River, so distracted he forgot to sound sullen, said, “Oh, look!”

He was staring toward the west. Moon followed his gaze, and saw the ocean.

It was still some distance away, but the line where the crystal blue of the shallow sea suddenly turned deep indigo was clear to see. That dark water stretched forever, until it met the clouds on the horizon.

There was silence while everyone absorbed the sight. Then Root said, “I don’t see any giant sealings.”

Since Stone wasn’t here, Moon gave Root a shove to the head. Root grinned and ducked.

Jade settled her spines, and turned away from the view with some reluctance. “Everyone take a look around the sea-mount now. Be careful.”

“Uh, what are we looking for?” Song asked.

Jade lifted her spines in a shrug. “Forerunners. Foundation builders. Fell. Anything that makes us think this is something other than a strange skinny mountain.”

The others spread out, and Moon started on a circuit around, poking into the undergrowth and brush. After a short time they met back in the middle, and Jade asked, not hopefully, “Anything?”

Everyone moved their spines in a negative. Moon hadn’t raised anything but insects; he felt lucky he wasn’t wearing his groundling skin.

“There’s no sign anyone built it.” Chime sounded disappointed. He kicked absently at a clump of grass. “Or used it for anything.”

“Esankel was right about the islands to the south,” Song put in, “but that’s all there is to see.”

There might be some sign of occupation under the plants but most of them seemed to be growing right out of cracks in the rock. Moon had to agree; if there had been anything here it was long gone, or buried in the stone where they couldn’t find it.

“Why would anyone want to build something like this?” Briar asked, turning to look around again. “What would it be for?”

“Same reasons groundlings build towers on land,” Moon said.

Briar had very little prior experience with groundlings, except for the Kishan on this boat and meeting Delin’s wind-ship crew. “What are those reasons?”

“As a resting spot, for long flights across the sea?” Balm suggested.

“That’s a thought,” Jade agreed.

“Or for signaling, maybe.” Moon was thinking of signal lights for groundling ships, or the flares that the Golden Islanders used. “If there was a light up here, flying boats and water boats could use it to help navigate.”

“Why do they need help navigating?” Briar clearly found the notion baffling.

“Groundlings don’t always know where south is, like we do,” Chime told her. “At least the Golden Islanders don’t.”

Briar took in that information with a startled expression. Balm said to Jade, “Should we get back?”

“Might as well.” Jade hissed out a sigh. “At least it broke up the day.”

Catching the wind from the top was easy, and they managed to get into the air without incident. They cleared the tower and dropped down to land on the deck of the flying boat. A hopeful group of Arbora, Kishan, and one Golden Islander immediately surrounded them. Stone was there too, but he was leaning back against the railing, not looking particularly hopeful. The Kish-Jandera must have been staring into the wind, trying to see the Raksura, because their milky inner eyelids were all half-closed.

“Nothing,” Jade said, before anyone could demand information. “Just plants and bugs.”

“Well,” Callumkal said, trying to conceal disappointment. “It was worth a try. And still, now we know what the top of a sea-mount looks like, or at least this variety of sea-mount. If you would be good enough to give me an exact description—”

“Chime can do that,” Jade told him. “He can write it for you in Altanic, then you can ask us questions.”

Delin took out his drawing book. “I can make a sketch from your descriptions. Here, Balm and Briar, while your memories are fresh . . .”

This seemed to improve Callumkal’s mood a great deal. He said, “That would be excellent. I’ll go and get my writing materials.”

As Callumkal went to the hatchway and the other Kishan dispersed in disappointment, Jade said, “I was really hoping we’d find something.”

Moon wasn’t sure what that something would be, but Chime said, “Something to prove we’re right about the city or wrong about it. So we can stop wondering.”

“It won’t be long now.” Delin shielded his eyes to look into the distance. “Soon I think we will know.”

By late the next day, they had seen six more similar sea-mounts in the distance, and according to the map were nearing another area of sparse islands. Moon was sunning himself on the flat top of the flying boat’s ridge, near the bow. Chime was a little further up the ridge from him, though at some point he had drifted off to sleep.

Moon was aware a few of the warriors were lying on the bow deck below, but he hadn’t paid much attention to them until he heard River say, “Did Jade say if we were going to check out any of the other sea-mounts? These should have even better views of the ocean.”

It was such an innocuous question, it took several moments for Moon to realize no one had answered it. He sat up on one elbow and looked down.

River lay a short distance from Balm and Briar. All three were in groundling form, the sun bringing out bronze and copper highlights in the brown of their skin, glinting off the bright colors of their clothes. They had all been bathing and washing clothing in the sea to save the boat’s stored water, with Stone to make sure no predators swam near, so they all still looked fairly presentable. River said, “Is it a secret, then?”

Still no response. Then River snarled to himself, flung himself to his feet, and stamped off down the deck.

Groaning under his breath, Moon rolled off the ridge and landed on the deck. Balm and Briar both twitched around to stare at him. Moon said, “Balm, can I talk to you?”

Balm exchanged a puzzled look with Briar, but got to her feet. Moon stepped back behind the cistern fastened to the side of the ridge, out of Briar’s earshot. He said, “What was that about with River?”

Balm sighed. She would obviously have preferred to say it was none of Moon’s business, but since he was the first consort, theoretically everything in the court was his business up until Pearl or Jade said it wasn’t. She said, “I don’t speak to River. He knows that.”

Moon frowned. “When did you stop speaking to him?”

“Since the Fell made me almost get everyone killed.” Balm’s brow furrowed, and she looked away. It was obviously still a painful memory. Especially since all Balm had ever been able to recall properly was the moment when Flower had discovered the Fell influence on her. She had never been sure when or where it had happened. “Since before we came to the Reaches.”

“Balm—” Moon tried to remember if he had ever seen Balm speak directly to River in a way that wasn’t hostile, or not a general command to a group of warriors. “Does Jade know this?”

Balm bit her lip, considering it. “Probably . . . not.”

Moon controlled an exasperated hiss. “Why didn’t I know this?”

Balm’s expression said the answer was obvious. “Because you’d do this, talk to me about it. Or get angry. You’re just as bad as Stone, except you still care what we do.”

“I have to care because the others are following your lead.”

Balm bared her teeth briefly in frustration.

Bramble came down the deck, spotted them, and leaned in around the cistern, brows lifted in curiosity. “What are you doing?”

Hoping for rational help, Moon asked her, “Did you know Balm hasn’t spoken to River since before we got to the Reaches?”

Bramble regarded Balm in surprise, then rolled her eyes. “Warriors,” she said in disgust, and unhelpfully withdrew.

“Balm—” Moon wanted to say, you’re supposed to be the sensible one, but it didn’t seem entirely fair. Balm was the sensible one, but she was also entitled to her feelings about River. There was a reason so many warriors in the court had turned against him when Pearl had rejected him. River had even bullied Chime once, which Moon had dealt with by beating River nearly unconscious. After that River’s conflicts with Chime had all been verbal, and Chime usually won. “If you want to play those games in the court, I can’t stop you.” Moon could, probably, but it would start far more trouble than it would stop. “But you can’t do it here.”

“I’m not a fledgling, I know we can’t fight while we’re doing this.” She folded her arms uncomfortably. “I’ll be more polite.” At Moon’s expression, she added, “It’s not like I’m going to let him die, or anything.”

It was grudging, but Moon suspected that was as much as he was going to get. “I’d appreciate that.”

Balm hesitated. “Are you going to tell Jade?”

“Jade doesn’t want to know this.” Moon was pretty certain Jade already had enough to worry about. And if Jade had noticed and hadn’t already talked to Balm about it herself, it meant she didn’t want to discuss it and was hoping no one else had noticed. “I’ll ask Bramble not to say anything.”

Balm smiled a little. “Bramble won’t. She knows how we are.”

As Balm went back to Briar, Moon rubbed his face and sighed.

Chime climbed down from the ridge above, asking softly, “What happened?”

“Nothing,” Moon told him. “Warriors being warriors.”

“I know,” Chime said with a groan. “We’re irrational. It’s so exasperating. It’s one of the things I hate most about changing.”