“The moss is showing that both samples, the Hians, and Moon and Stone’s, are still heading toward the south.” Rorra frowned in frustration. “I just wish it showed what they were doing.”
Chime just hoped Moon and Stone hadn’t been led astray and that it was the right flying boat. Jade hadn’t exactly been pleased that the two consorts were continuing on alone instead of waiting for the wind-ship to catch up to them. Not pleased, but not exactly surprised, either. Chime felt the same way. There was no telling how Malachite felt.
Rorra said, “I’m going to see if Diar needs a break,” and went out, her boots clumping on the light wood of the stairs.
River turned to follow her, then hesitated. He looked at Chime and said, “Have you talked to Root lately?”
Chime had been so certain that River was about to insult him that it took him a long moment to understand what River had actually said. Wary of a trick, Chime said, “Uh, no. Why?”
River looked away, the still-raw scar from his injuries puckering the bronze groundling skin of his neck and collarbone. “He’s acting strange.”
Chime had a moment to realize it was odd that he hadn’t talked to Root. Root never seemed to be in the sleeping cabin when anyone else was, or when they gathered to eat or go over the maps with Rorra and Kalam and the Islanders. Whenever Chime came to eat, it seemed Root was always just leaving. He might be spending time with the Opal Night warriors, but . . . maybe not. “Did you tell Jade?”
River hissed impatiently. “She’s got enough to worry about.”
That was true. Chime said, “I’ll talk to him.”
River stamped out without an acknowledgement.
Chime rubbed his face and sighed. Root was still on watch now, and it would be better to catch him when he came in to rest.
It was depressing how days of anxious waiting and worry could make you just as exhausted as days of long-distance flying. He thought about making tea, or getting his writing materials out of his pack and taking some notes. But it was probably better to try to sleep while he could.
Some of the others were sleeping out on top of one of the sun-warmed cabin rooftops. But it reminded Chime too much of other trips with Moon, and just made his absence hurt more. He turned to go to the sleeping cabin instead.
Then from the deck above someone yelled, “Fell! Fell are coming!”
Already shifting, every nerve on edge, Chime bolted upstairs to the deck. He paused in the shelter at the top, but the sky was not full of kethel and dakti. Stepping out cautiously onto the deck, he found River and Rorra there with Jade, Balm, and Niran. More Golden Islanders stood near the rail, already armed with the small Kishan fire weapons. Rorra carried her weapon cradled in her arms. Kalam hurried out on deck, his own fire weapon slung across his back.
Chime couldn’t spot Fell anywhere. The sky was deep blue and laced with light clouds. In the green forest below, tall trees were wreathed with purple and blue flowering vines, with rocky outcrops emerging occasionally to tower over the foliage.
Sweep, perched on the rail, amended his warning to, “Some Fell are coming! Two Fell!”
Chime squinted and finally saw the two dark shapes approaching. River hissed and muttered, “Idiot.”
Chime agreed, but he wasn’t going to say so out loud, mostly because it would mean publicly agreeing with River.
The other Opal Night warriors gathered on the deck and atop the cabins. Shade came up from the stern and stood beside Chime. He was still in his groundling form but Chime was relieved to have him so solidly nearby.
Which was odd. If two turns ago someone had told Chime that a half-Fell Raksura would be a reassuring presence to him, he would have thought they were making an unfunny joke.
Then Jade said, “It’s the Fellborn queen, and a dakti.” She told Niran, “Don’t use the weapons.”
Niran turned to the young Islanders and snapped, “Put those things down. You hardly know how to use them.”
The Golden Islanders hadn’t used the Kishan fire weapons before, since it took a Jandera horticultural to keep them supplied with the moss they needed to work, and Kalam had said that horticulturals didn’t venture outside Kishan territory without permission from Kishan elders. Apparently Kalam had broken some rule by talking Dranam into coming with them. Niran and Diar had both been uneasy about it, but had finally agreed.
The young Golden Islanders stepped back and lowered the weapons, still uneasy.
“Why are they here?” Chime said, and tried to stop his spines from twitching nervously. “Just the two of them? Is it a trap?” He wanted to make absolutely certain everyone knew it could be a trap.
“They want help from us,” Jade said. She bared her teeth in distracted irritation. “Maybe they’re going to ask again.”
A thump on the deck so faint as to be nearly soundless made Chime flinch. It was Malachite, who must have been coiled up somewhere out of sight. She said, “Shade, go inside with Lithe. I don’t want them to see you yet.”
Shade stirred a little, but didn’t protest. He turned to go down below deck again. As Flicker started to follow him, Shade told him softly, “No, it’s all right, stay up here.”
Flicker came back to stand beside Chime, bouncing a little nervously.
The Fellborn queen circled down to land on an outcrop some distance from the boat, and the single dakti swept over her twice before it dropped down beside her.
Malachite stepped up onto the rail, her foot claws wrapping around the wood, her intention clear. Jade told her, “I’m coming with you.”
Balm said, “Not alone. Chime’s right, it could be a trap.”
Chime said hurriedly, “They know you and Malachite came out alone to talk to them before—”
Malachite said, “Bring some of your warriors, then,” and dropped off the railing.
Rise bounded up the stairs from the hold just in time to see her go. She hissed in exasperation. Jade leapt to the rail and told Rise, “Stay here, guard the boat. Balm, River, Chime, come with me.” Then she hesitated. “River, you can stay. Briar—”
As Chime followed Balm to the railing he remembered the last time River had seen the Fell queen she had been trying to gut him. Balancing on the rail, Chime made sure his spines weren’t flaring in nervous fear.
“No, I can do it,” River said quickly.
Jade flicked a spine in agreement and River leapt to the railing beside Balm and Chime.
Niran said, “We’ll stop and wait for you.”
Jade said, “Are you sure?” and Chime knew she was weighing the possibility of this being an attempt to attack the wind-ship versus an attempt to separate the queens and attack both them and the wind-ship at the same time.
Niran, obviously following this trail of thought, said, “We can’t out-fly them. It’s better to be stationary if we have to use these unnatural weapons.”
Chime saw Kalam grimace in irritation, but he didn’t argue. Kalam and Niran apparently disagreed on a lot of things you would think groundlings would agree on. Considering how long it had taken Niran to become reconciled to the existence of Raksura, Chime wasn’t surprised he had problems with Kishan too.
Jade acknowledged Niran’s statement with a spine lift. She told the warriors, “Don’t leave this boat, no matter what happens.”
There were spine twitches of assent all around, and Jade flung herself off the rail. Balm and River dove after her, and Chime braced himself and followed.
It was a short flight and within moments they were dropping down to land on the outcrop. Malachite and Jade faced the Fell queen and the dakti. River half-turned away where he could watch their backs and keep an eye on the wind-ship. Chime wished he had thought of that first. Then Balm gestured for him to move to Jade’s flank and he carefully eased into that position.