The Cloud Roads

Chapter Fifteen

They said goodbye to Selis in the mountain city, and flew day and night, stopping to rest as infrequently as possible. The wind was with them and the weather stayed fair, speeding their flight out of the mountains. Once they were over the warmer forests they pushed even harder and didn’t stop at all for the last two days. Just before sunset, they reached the valley where the others had taken shelter. While the Fell stench lingered in the direction of the colony, no taint drifted through the grove where the blind lay. Moon was so exhausted he flew through a plume tree while trying to land and reached the ground in an uncontrolled tumble. As he sprawled in the moss, Jade dropped through the canopy in an anxious rush, landing on her feet beside him.

“Moon, are you all right?”

He stifled a groan. “Yes. I meant to do that.”

He had a few new bruises, but the plume tree’s branches were too soft to cause any real damage. He shifted to groundling and nearly collapsed again when he shed the weight of his wings. It was a relief, even when it meant trading them for aching muscles and an encompassing weariness. He staggered unsteadily to his feet.

He caught a scent of Raksura, just before three hunters darted out of the undergrowth. They stood for a heartbeat in frozen shock.

Then the smallest one shouted, “You’re back!” He shifted to groundling, turning into a slight boy, and threw himself at Jade to hug her awkwardly.

She returned the hug for a moment, her shoulders tense. “We’re back,” she said, her voice suddenly thick. “It’s all right.”

“We’re so glad to see you,” one of the others said. She tugged at the boy’s shirt. “Strike, let go of the queen. Let her go into the blind. Bramble, go find Bone and—”

A violent rustle through the trees interrupted her and then Chime, Balm, and Root dropped to the ground. As all three shifted to groundling, Chime turned triumphantly to Root. “I told you they’d come back!”

“I didn’t say they wouldn’t,” Root protested, and Moon lost the rest as Chime flung himself into his arms.

Moon stumbled and almost fell under the onslaught, flustered and self-conscious as Chime hugged him. He hadn’t expected a greeting like this from anybody. Balm and Root fell on Jade just as enthusiastically, and as more hunters arrived, they all practically tumbled into the blind.

Inside, glowing moss strung from the woven branches gave wan light, and a small rock hearth was piled with stones spelled to give off warmth. Seated near it were Flower, the two teachers, Bead and Blossom, more hunters, and Niran. They all came to their feet with startled exclamations. Flower held her hands out for quiet, staring intently at Jade. “You’ve got the poison?” she demanded.

“Yes.” Jade lifted her pack, pulling out the bag with the flask. “And we know how to make it.”

Flower hissed in satisfaction, taking the bag.

“Poison?” Balm turned to her, startled. “What poison?”

“It’s the poison that Moon knew of, that keeps Fell from shifting,” Jade explained, looking around at the others. “We went to get it from some groundlings.”

Ignoring the chorus of questions, Moon looked for Stone, and for a moment thought he was gone. His dark form didn’t fill the back half of the chamber; Moon couldn’t hear the slow rasp of his breath. Then, back against a partition, he saw a pallet made up of cut branches and woven plume fronds, with someone lying on it in groundling form.

Behind Moon, Bone and more of the hunters pushed through the branches into the blind, greeting Jade warmly, but Moon barely noticed. He went to the pallet and dropped to his knees. Stone’s skin was ashen, and big gray-green bruises spread across his face, neck, his chest. Under the edge of his shirt was the seam of a half-healed wound, the skin puckered and raw.

Flower took out the poison flask and opened it to sniff cautiously at the con-tents. She looked up, telling Moon, “He was able to shift to groundling yesterday, but he’s still not recovered. It’ll be a few more days, at least.”

Stone’s eyes were half-open, but when Moon leaned over him, his good eye focused and he took a sharp breath. In a voice weak and grating with pain, he said, “It’s you, good. Give me a hand.”

Moon got an arm under him and helped him sit up. Stone’s grip on him was strong, but he leaned on Moon’s shoulder as if that was as far as he could get. He smelled of dried blood and sickness. Flower said hastily, “Don’t let him stand. He thinks he’s healed, the stubborn idiot.”

Stone cleared his throat. His voice was uneven, and he didn’t lift his head from Moon’s shoulder. “Did you get it?”

“Yes.” Moon frowned down at him. “How’d you know?”

“They said you and Jade went to get help from another court.” Stone snorted in derision, then flinched, as if it had pulled at his wounds. “I knew that was useless. When they told me what happened, I figured you’d try for the poison the groundlings used on you.”

Jade knelt beside them, touching Stone’s shoulder gently. She asked the others, “What about Pearl, and the other Aeriat? Are they watching the colony?”

“Yes. Not that there’s been much to watch,” Bone told her, sinking down beside the hearth with a weary grunt. The others were settling down, taking seats around the chamber, crowding together, listening anxiously. He added, “We’ve counted at least five kethel, but we’re not certain how many dakti or rulers.”

Jade nodded. “What about the rest of the court?” No one answered immediately and her voice tightened. “They’re alive?”

Moon waited for the answer, tensing. This can’t be for nothing. If we’re too late...

Flower had unrolled the leaf with the boiling instructions for the poison; she looked up with a grim expression. “As far as we know.”

Someone in the back added bleakly, “As far as we hope.”

Jade’s spines lifted in agitation. “You haven’t been able to get anyone inside the colony?”

“No.” Balm’s jaw tightened as she admitted the failure. “We could never get anyone in through the water channels under the platform, the way we planned before you left. They keep a kethel lying in the river down there.”

Moon slumped, a little relieved. At least they hadn’t found proof that the others were all dead.

Chime added, “We even thought of trying to get Niran inside, since he doesn’t need to shift, but the more we talked about it...” He turned to Niran with a shrug.

“The more foolish it sounded,” Niran finished, sounding ironic. He looked better than Moon would have expected for a groundling living rough in the forest with Raksura. His white hair was tied tightly back and he wore an oversized silk shirt over his own clothes, probably borrowed from one of the Arbora. “It was getting near the place at all that was the stumbling block, not what one could or couldn’t do once inside.”

“But we have seen the dakti bring in food,” Balm said. “Grasseater carcasses, and melon and roots from our own plantings: that’s food for Arbora and Aeriat, not Fell.”

So what are the Fell eating? Moon thought, sickened, but managed not to say it aloud.

Jade’s jaw tightened, as if the same thought had crossed her mind. She asked, “So there’s been no sign of anyone inside trying to escape?”

Bone lifted his hands, helpless and frustrated, and Moon had the feeling he and the others must have talked of little else while they waited here, debating the question from every angle.

“If no one in the court can shift,” Bone said, “they wouldn’t have any chance to run. The major kethel are always on the terraces and in the river.”

“In short, we don’t know anything,” Chime said with a wince.

Distracted, Flower shook the flask again. “How much of this do we need to make?” she asked. “Moon, how much did they give you?”

Moon thought back to that night with Ilane. Distance and a little revenge had made that memory less painful. “There couldn’t have been much, at first. It was in a small cup, and the odor wasn’t strong. I don’t remember anything after I drank it. It was morning when I started to come to, but I could hardly move. Then they forced some more down my throat.” He looked up to see they were all staring at him. “What?”

Appalled, Blossom said, “It sounds horrible. You lived with these people and they did this to you, just like that?”

Moon didn’t have an answer for her. It had been horrible, but after stealing the poison and scaring the Cordans all to pieces, he didn’t have much to complain about.

“We all thought you went to Star Aster to ask for help,” Balm told Jade. “Pearl sent Vine and me to Wind Sun. We only got back two days ago.”

“I don’t suppose they offered any?” Jade didn’t look particularly hopeful.

“No. It’s as we thought before you left. They said the survivors would be welcome to take refuge, but they wouldn’t send warriors.” Balm lifted a hand, frustrated. “They didn’t say so in so many words, but it was obvious they thought we brought this on ourselves.”

“Yes. We were certain Star Aster would say the same, so we tried for the poison instead.” Jade sounded grimly resigned. “And I don’t blame Wind Sun. We had no formal alliance, and they’re a small court. And they know if they had asked for our help, we would have said no.”

There was an uncomfortable moment as everyone absorbed that. In a small voice, one of the younger hunters said, “So we did bring it on ourselves?”

Stone stirred, lifting his head enough to say in a raw croak, “No. Nobody asks for something like this.”

Flower stoppered the poison flask and set it aside, saying in exasperation, “Stone, damn you, lie down or you’ll never get better.”

“I feel fine,” Stone insisted faintly, slumping back against Moon’s shoulder.

“We can tell,” Moon said, making his voice dry to hide his relief. If Stone felt well enough to argue, he couldn’t be as weak as he looked.

“Why isn’t he in a healing sleep?” Jade asked, moving around to help Moon lower Stone to the pallet again.

“With a consort, that’s easier said than done,” Flower told her. “He has to cooperate with me, and he won’t.”

Moon heard a rush of wings outside, like wind through the trees.

“That’s Pearl and the others,” Bone said, cocking his head to listen.

Moon flicked a quick look at Jade. This could still go badly wrong, if Pearl had changed her mind about their plan to use the poison. She’s been here all this time and hasn’t come up with any better idea.

A hunter ducked into the blind and said, “The queen’s back.” He pulled the branches aside and Pearl stepped in. She was still in her winged form, and her expression gave no hint to her mood. Moon caught a glimpse of the other Aeriat behind her, with River pushing forward to get a look into the blind.

Without glancing back at him, Pearl flared her spines to keep him out. She said, coolly, “We need to speak in private.”

Still sitting beside Stone, Jade inclined her head. “With the leaders of the Arbora.”

Flower exchanged a look with Bone, and told the others, “The rest of you start collecting this plant. It’s three-leafed purple bow, that grows in and near spiral tree boles. Chime and Blossom, organize everyone into groups. Salt and Strike, make sure nothing eats Niran.”

Niran snorted, as if this was a running joke. He got to his feet, telling Flower, “Thank you for your consideration.”

“Wait.” Jade held Pearl’s gaze. “Send two hunters back to watch the colony. Keep the Aeriat here.”

That was only good sense. Branch might have been the traitor, but Moon still had doubts. And if he wasn’t the traitor, it could be someone else here, especially the Aeriat who had come to the Blue Stone Temple with Pearl.

Pearl’s eyes narrowed, but she didn’t question it. She turned her head to tell the Aeriat, “Do as she says. No one else is to leave this grove.”

Flower and Bone stayed where they sat. The other Arbora got up to leave the blind, some casting uneasy glances back. Moon started to get up, and Jade shook her head slightly. He eased back down, not sure if this was a good idea. It seemed a bad time to antagonize Pearl, when they should be focused on how best to get the poison into the Fell. But sitting here for this long had given his exhausted body a chance to stiffen up. He felt heavy, as if he was going to sink right into the earth.

Chime and Balm went last, and reluctantly. Moon heard the other Aeriat outside asking frustrated questions before Balm drove them off.

Pearl waited until the voices faded, then sat down, curling her tail around neatly. She didn’t look at Moon. He thought that was just as well. She said to Jade, “I take it you were successful.”

“We brought some of the poison and the knowledge to make it.” Jade flicked her tail restlessly and added, “We can’t risk anyone going near the colony. If Branch wasn’t the traitor, whoever it is—”

“I did follow that.” Pearl’s voice was acid. “Even if your poison works as it should, there’s still the power that kept the court from shifting. If it forces us into groundling form—”

“Then we’ll fight that way,” Jade finished tightly.

Pearl lifted a brow. “That’s easily said.”

Bone leaned forward. “We’ve got some skinning knives, and javelins, to use as weapons. If the dakti are sick and forced to shift to groundling, we’ll have a chance.” He hesitated. “We’ve sat here for days trying to think of a better plan, or how to seek help. We can’t leave the others to the Fell, even if it kills us all.”

“He’s right.” Flower hugged herself, tucking her hands under the sleeves of her smock. “We’ve discussed it at length, all of us. We won’t abandon the rest of the court.”

Pearl tapped her claws on the dirt, and added deliberately, “There’s something else to consider. All these days, the Fell haven’t bothered to search the valleys for us.” She fixed her gaze on Jade. “Why is that, do you think?”

Flower and Bone both started to speak, but Jade’s voice cut across theirs. “Wait.” Watching Pearl, Jade said, “The queen is about to tell us.”

Pearl tilted her head. “I think it’s because they want something very specific from us, and until now, that something hasn’t been here.”

Moon felt his skin start to crawl. It’s not me, he thought. It couldn’t be. This is not my fault.

Jade met her gaze, then let her breath out in a hiss. “It’s a possibility.” Pearl lifted a brow and Jade added, reluctantly, “Kathras followed us.”

Bone frowned, and Flower stared at Jade, blank with surprise. She said, “The ruler who came out to speak to Pearl?”

Jade didn’t look at Moon. “He followed us as far as the mountains. Moon killed him, but before he died he said enough to tell us that the Fell thought we were fleeing. The other rulers must have felt his death, seen something of what he saw, at least.”

Moon looked down at Stone, keeping his expression still. Maybe she wouldn’t have to tell the whole story. Stone was still conscious, and squinting at him suspiciously. That didn’t help.

“But how did Kathras follow you?” Flower asked. “By scent? Surely if he was that close...”

Jade spread her hands on the packed earth. “We didn’t scent him until we reached the mountains. And he must have started after we left, because he near flew himself to death to catch up with us. A more powerful ruler or group of rulers must have been forcing him on.” She shrugged uneasily. “It’s as if they have a mentor, whose augury can point them in the right direction. Kathras knew nothing of our plans, or the poison, but he knew which way to fly to find us.”

Flower hissed in anger, and rubbed her face. “I don’t understand this. There’s something we’re missing.”

“Are we missing something, Jade?” Pearl asked with deceptive lightness.

Jade hesitated, drawing her claws through the dirt. “There’s one more thing.”

Moon tensed, suddenly cold with dread. She hadn’t said she wouldn’t tell them. He reminded himself he hadn’t done anything wrong, he hadn’t betrayed anyone except himself, turns ago in Saraseil.

Reluctantly, Jade said, “This Fell flight knows Moon. A long time ago, in a groundling city, he killed a ruler they were related to. That’s why Kathras said he followed us.”

Flower and Bone stared at Moon. Stone groaned under his breath. Pearl just looked grimly satisfied.

She’s going to use this against us, Moon thought. He couldn’t let it look like Jade was shielding him. He said, “It was eighteen turns ago, when I didn’t know what I was. I let them catch me, then when I realized I wasn’t one of them, I killed a ruler and escaped.” He was a little startled at how easy it was to tell the story now. “Kathras sounded like he—they—felt betrayed.”

The two Arbora were quiet long enough to painfully stretch Moon’s nerves. Then Flower exchanged a rueful look with Bone, and said, “Well, I know what River would say to that.”

Jade cocked her head, a mild challenge. “Then let’s save the delight of hearing it now.”

“What does Stone say?” Bone asked soberly.

Stone’s eyes were closed now, but he said, “If he’s a Fell ally, he’s doing a bad job of it. He keeps killing them. He killed a bunch of dakti at Sky Copper.” With a grunt, he added, “Said we should eat them.”

“I did not, you sick bastard,” Moon snapped.

Flower shook her head, and the harsh line of Bone’s mouth tugged upward in a reluctant smile. He said, “That’s well enough for now, then.”

“We can talk about this later,” Jade told Pearl. “We need to start work on the poison.”

Pearl stood, looking down at them. “As you say. But we will talk of it.” She gave Jade an ironic nod, and walked out of the blind.

Jade twitched her spines and turned away, hissing to herself.

Bone got to his feet, saying, “When we free the court, we can settle all this. Until then—”

“I know,” Jade snarled. She shook herself, and added, more softly, “I know.”

Bone shook his head and followed Pearl outside.

Flower sighed and gave Moon a wry look. “You’re certainly a handful, aren’t you?”

He shrugged, defensive and uneasy. “I can’t help it.”

Jade settled her spines with difficulty, then turned back to face them. “Flower, have you been able to scry anything?”

Flower gave her a glare of pure frustration. “I only get asked that question ten times a day.” She carefully tucked the poison flask and the leaf back into the bag. “We know someone told the Fell we were meeting you at the Blue Stone Temple. I’ve bent my scrying on that, trying to make certain it was Branch. But all I see is an image of the colony.”

Jade frowned, thinking it over. “As if the one who actually betrayed us is trapped with the others?”

“Or something.” Flower shook her head wearily. “For a while now we’ve thought something was wrong in the colony, but no matter how hard the mentors looked, we never found any real sign of it. There was nothing solid, nothing but feelings, bad luck, bad omens. I’m starting to wonder.” She sighed. “I don’t know.”

“We’ll know more when we get back inside.” Jade sounded grimly certain.

“We can hope.” Flower pushed to her feet. “Now you two rest while we get this poison started.”

Flower slipped out through the woven branches, leaving them alone except for Stone, who was breathing deeply again. Moon could hear the Arbora moving around outside. They talked quietly, with hope and excitement about the plan.

There was a patch of bare dirt at his feet that looked very comfortable, so Moon lay down on it. Jade still sat there, staring grimly at nothing. He reached out to her, tugging on one of her frills. “Sleep.”

She growled, but came over to lie beside him, wrapped an arm around his waist, and pulled him against her. Moon tucked his head under her chin. It might have been easier when it was just the two of them, alone in the vast distances of the Three Worlds, but he had missed Chime and Flower and Balm and the Arbora. After a moment, Jade sighed and said, “It’s for the best.”

Moon knew she meant it was for the best that he had told them about Saraseil. He wasn’t so sure. It was something Pearl could use against him, and now that he had decided to stay, that mattered a great deal more. “Will she tell the others?”

He felt her stir uneasily. “Not the Arbora. Not at first.” She wove her fingers through his hair. “They’ll have to know sometime. It’s better if it comes from you.”

“I know.” And it was painful how much it mattered.

“When this is over, we’ll worry about it,” she said, unconsciously echoing Bone.

Moon woke surrounded by sleeping Arbora, several of whom were using him to keep their feet warm. Late morning light came through the woven branches of the blind, and Niran rustled around near the hearth.

Moon didn’t feel like he had slept very long. He had been dimly aware of the Arbora coming and going all night, as they collected the plant and brought it back to the blind. Just before dawn, some hunters had brought in a couple of kills. Rested just enough to feel hungry again, Moon had crawled out to take his share, then crawled back to the blind. Jade had gone off with Flower at that point, to check on the progress with the poison.

Now he sat up, propping himself on his arms, still feeling bleary and vague. He had discovered something else about Raksura: they weren’t meant to fly for days on end without sleeping or eating. He was coming around to the idea that he had been born to do nothing more than lie around in the forest and eat and nap.

Sitting at the hearth, Niran glanced up. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.” He had a blanket wrapped around his shoulders and was trying to balance a water gourd in the heating stones. He looked bleary-eyed and vague, too.

“It’s all right,” Moon said around a yawn. He craned his neck to see Stone, still lying on the pallet. It didn’t look as if he had moved, but his breathing was deep and even. “Did you find enough of the plant?”

“Not nearby. We had to go a little further up the valley, but there it was plentiful.” Niran hesitated, as if he found what he was about to say awkward. “I realized I hadn’t—I wanted to thank you, for taking the time to warn my family. If you hadn’t, they would surely have been killed.”

Moon shrugged, a little uncomfortable with the gratitude. It would have been pointlessly cruel not to warn them; there was no reason the Islanders should suffer just because the Raksura were trapped. “Did the Fell find the flying boats?”

“They went right to them.” Niran shook his head, resigned. “They climbed over everything, damaged the decks somewhat, and searched the surrounding forest, but Bone said he didn’t think they looked any further.”

Moon had thought the Fell would surely destroy both boats, but it was hard to tell if the Fell understood how important property could be to groundlings. Since the boats seemed abandoned, the Fell might just have forgotten about them altogether.

“When this is over,” he said, “maybe you can still get them back to the islands.”

Moon had wondered how Niran had been getting along, but if he could casually mention Bone, by far the most frightening Arbora here, then he had probably gotten over his dislike and suspicion.

Niran admitted, “I’ve thought about trying to take one back now, but it seems certain the Fell would notice and pursue me. Even if they didn’t, there’s the danger of storms, and I can’t secure the ship against one alone. Balm said that if possible, after this is over, some of you will help me return.” He took a deep breath. “I hope to find out more about these Fell before I go. If, as you all fear, they have some new power, they could become even more virulent than ever.”

That was what Moon was afraid of. And he wasn’t sure that any amount of warning could help vulnerable groundlings. “At least you could tell your people how to make the poison.”

Niran snorted. “I am practically an expert at it now.” He nodded toward the east wall of the blind. “The others are brewing it over by the stream. Flower thinks it will take at least half a day.”

Moon should go see if they needed any help. He climbed to his feet, carefully stepped over the sleeping bodies of the hunters, and made his way outside.

He pushed through the screen of branches and out into the cool morning air, following the scent of the poison through the trees. He caught a glimpse of someone moving in the foliage overhead, but assumed it was a warrior or hunter. Then Pearl dropped lightly to the ground.

Caught in groundling form, Moon didn’t try to shift; he just stopped, watching her warily. Hunters slept in the blind barely thirty paces away, and he could hear faint sound from ahead, toward the stream, so if she wanted to kill him she had to do it in front of witnesses.

Pearl folded her wings, taking her time about it. With more than a trace of irony, she said, “I admit I’m surprised you returned.”

Moon made his expression just a little bored. “If you thought I was lying about the poison, why did you agree to let Jade go with me?”

“I didn’t think you were lying,” she corrected. “I just didn’t believe you’d return to fight for the court. And that was before we found out about your earlier adventure with the Fell.”

He had known that was coming. He set his jaw. “It was a long time ago, and it has nothing to do with this.” He reminded himself he didn’t have to justify anything to her.

She eyed him deliberately. That cold gaze that made him feel as if his skin was inside out. “You deliberately drew their attention. Even the groundlings you were living with would have known better.”

Yes, the groundlings had known better, but Moon had been young and half out of his head with fear that he was somehow related to these murdering mindless predators. He knew that now, but hindsight didn’t help. “What do you want from me?”

Pearl seemed to find that question grimly amusing. She gave him a long look. “I want to know if you’ve told us everything.”

“I’ve told Jade everything.”

“And she seems to believe you.” She flicked her tail thoughtfully. “But she hasn’t been foolish enough to take you as consort yet.”

“Yes, she did. On the way to the east.” As soon as the words were out, Moon cursed himself and thought, That was stupid. He didn’t know how it worked, but it had to be Jade’s place to tell the court, especially Pearl.

Pearl seemed to freeze for a moment, her expression hardening. Then she looked away with a slight smile that just barely revealed her fangs. “Even if you gave her a clutch, that doesn’t make you her consort.”

Walk away, Moon told himself, just walk away. He had made a mistake and he didn’t need to aggravate it. But he had to know, and he couldn’t help himself. “What do you mean?”

Pearl said, “When a queen takes a consort, she puts a marker in his scent. Only other queens can detect it, but it gives you a status in the court that nothing can take away.” She looked at him again and laughed. “You should have bargained for that before you bred with her.”

Stung, he said, “She doesn’t have a clutch.” And it wasn’t a bargain.

Pearl cocked her head, as if honestly curious. “That’s what she told you?”

Moon stood there, unable to speak, furious with himself for letting her do this to him. She’s lying. That seemed obvious. To drive you away from Jade. Of course she was lying.

Behind him, two half-asleep hunters stumbled out of the blind. They stopped when they saw Pearl and Moon.

Pearl turned away without another word and moved off through the green shadows toward the stream.

Embarrassed, one of the hunters said, “Sorry. Didn’t mean to interrupt.”

Moon swallowed his anger. It wasn’t exactly an unwelcome interruption.

“It’s all right.”

He plunged into the undergrowth and went on toward the stream. He reached a clearing where the Arbora had scraped the moss back to bare dirt, but built a canopy of branches and fronds overhead. From the air, the open space would appear to be just another stand of trees. Jade, Flower, Balm, and some of the hunters sat on fallen logs and rocks.

In the center of the cleared space, they had dug a large pit in the forest floor. It was partially covered with tree fronds, and Flower stood over the open side, using a stick to poke dubiously at the dark contents. Waterskins, round river rocks, broken water reeds, and a pile of dark foliage that must be the three-leafed purple bow lay nearby. Steam was rising off the pit, leaking between the fronds; Flower must have used her magic to heat stones, dropping them in to boil the water. The weedy odor of the poison hung damply in the air.

Jade and Balm sat on a fallen log, talking to Bone who, even in groundling form, looked almost toad-like compared to the more delicate Aeriat. River and Drift sprawled on the ground nearby, bored and restless. Song, Root, Sand, and the other warriors slept under the tree roots.

Chime sat a little apart, near Flower’s pile of ingredients, studying the poison-making instructions. Moon took a seat next to him, and Chime glanced up, then frowned. “Are you all right?”

“Sure, just... tired.” Moon self-consciously avoided looking toward Jade. Across the clearing, Pearl stepped out of the ferns. Showing absolutely no interest in Moon, she walked over to sit down near Bone.

Chime grunted and went back to the leaf. “Don’t breathe the fumes. If anyone stands too close, it makes them woozy.”

No one else seemed to be listening, so Moon asked, “Is it true that queens mark their consorts?”

Chime nodded. “It’s something only other queens can scent.” He peered at Moon a little uncertainly. “Are you worried about that? I mean, it wouldn’t hurt. It just tells other queens that you’re taken, so they don’t fight over you.”

“I just wondered.” If Pearl wasn’t lying, it meant that Moon had given up his only advantage, that there would be no reason now for the others to stop Pearl from driving him out. He didn’t even blame Jade. Not much, anyway. He had refused her gifts, and after that she had asked him for a clutch, not to be her consort. It was just that after hearing about the other queens and consorts, he had assumed it was the same thing.

But it didn’t change anything. He had known that he would have to fight Pearl and her allies if he wanted to stay. Now it would be harder. If it’s true, he reminded himself.

He glanced up to find Pearl watching him, and looked away, resisting the urge to bare his teeth at her. Then he found himself staring at Chime. Under the bronze of Chime’s skin, on his forehead and cheek, there were green-black discolorations, bruises on top of bruises. In the shadows last night, Moon hadn’t noticed, but in the daylight it was obvious. “Did you have another bad landing?”

“What? Oh.” Chime frowned at the ground, scratching absently at the moss with his heel, as if he had forgotten he was in groundling form and didn’t have a claw there. “No.”

“Somebody hit you.” Moon felt a growl building in his chest. “Pearl?”

Chime snorted. “Pearl doesn’t know I’m alive.” He twitched uncomfortably under Moon’s continued stare, and finally admitted, “It was River.”

“Balm didn’t help you?” Moon looked across the clearing. He had thought Balm and Chime were friends, at least from the way they had played together in the lake. She sat near Jade, her chin propped on her hand, listening to the others talk. Her expression was glum and her body drooped with exhaustion.

Chime shrugged wearily. “When she’s around. But she and Vine were gone to Wind Sun for days, and... I don’t want to ask her for help. I don’t want them to gang up on her. She’s Jade’s clutch-mate, and they’ve always been together, and with Pearl at odds with Jade, Balm’s position is hard enough. What are you doing?”

Moon stood and crossed the clearing to stand over River.

River looked up at him with a smile. “Was Chime begging you for help?” It was as if he had overheard their conversation, or been waiting for Moon to notice Chime’s bruises.

“You’re going to be begging for help.” Moon was certain his first mistake at Indigo Cloud had been not beating River insensible at the earliest opportunity. But he had just enough sense left to know it would be better if River attacked him first.

“What do you care?” River shoved himself upright, sneering, leaning forward in challenge. “You’re a mongrel solitary, acting like you think you’re first consort when you’re not even part of this court.”

That stung more than River could know. Moon kept his voice even. “I’m still a consort. That’s something you’ll never have, no matter how many queens you sleep with.”

River snarled, flushing a darker copper. “You’re the one who came here to hide. You’re the one who brought the Fell down on us. They followed you to the mountains thinking you were running away again. They came here for you, because you went to them!”

Moon fell back a step. The whole clearing went silent; even the wind stopped. The hunters exchanged uneasy looks, whispering to each other. Woken by the commotion, the Aeriat were watching, startled and wary. Flower and Bone both stared at Pearl.

Pearl’s spines lifted and she snapped, “River. That’s enough.”

Jade came to her feet. She glanced at Pearl, her expression tight with fury. In a growl, she said, “Moon, leave it. We can’t afford a fight now.”

Maybe not, but they were going to have one. And if he wasn’t her consort, then he had no obligation to listen to her. “Then keep us from shifting.”

Jade’s eyes went hooded. “Done.”

“What?” River looked from Jade to Pearl. Moon saw his eyes narrow when he tried to shift and failed. He glared at Jade, hissing in annoyance.

Moon asked, “Afraid?”

“You’re too much of a coward to fight in the air,” River began. Moon shut him up with a punch to the face.

Moon didn’t know how to have a serious fight as a Raksura without killing or crippling his opponent. But as a groundling, he knew plenty. River staggered back, then surged forward with a snarl, tackling Moon. Moon landed hard on his back but brought a knee up and rolled, throwing River to one side. They both scrambled upright and River, growling in earnest now, ducked a punch and nearly slammed a blow into Moon’s throat.

They fought across the clearing, smashing into the undergrowth, slamming each other into trees, sending hunters scrambling away. Then Moon caught River with a hard punch in the gut, and kicked him in the chin when he doubled over.

River dropped in the dirt, tried to get up, but sank back down, panting with effort. Moon leaned over him, grabbing his hair to lift his head up. His voice rough from the blow to his throat, he said, “Talk all you want. But if you want to fight, you fight me.”

River bared his teeth, but it was a half-hearted gesture.

Moon dropped him, turned his back, and walked away. He had no idea where he was going, just away from the clearing, away from the stares and accusations. His hands hurt, though he couldn’t feel his other bruises yet; Raksuran heads were harder than groundling, so he had had to hit River hard enough to bruise his knuckles.

He was barely past the first stand of trees when Chime caught up with him. Sounding bewildered, Chime said, “Is it true?”

Moon didn’t stop, didn’t look at him. The hurt tone in Chime’s voice just made it all the worse. “Yes. Some of it.”

“But you went to the Fell?”

Moon shook his head. “Go ask Flower. She knows.”

Chime stopped, and Moon kept walking, weaving away through the trees, looking for a quiet spot away from the blind.

At least Pearl wasn’t holding it in reserve to use against him anymore.