From the ledge, the kethel’s voice said, “Old consort said to come back.”
“I know that, be quiet,” Moon told it.
There was another moment of silence. Then Chime whispered, “Is that a ruler speaking through him—”
“No, it’s just him, it,” Moon said. “We need to—”
“Go get the others,” Jade finished. She turned toward Diar. “I’ll take Balm and Briar.”
Diar told her, “If you don’t return soon, we’ll come after you.”
There was a grumble from the ledge. Moon snapped, “What was that?”
“Nothing,” the kethel muttered.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Moon shifted to his scaled form and leapt back to the ledge with Jade. Balm and Briar followed closely behind. Chime followed too, though Moon could practically scent the waves of nervous tension emanating from him. It was because of the kethel, but Moon couldn’t tell Chime that it would be all right.
He had explained about the kethel to Jade, quickly and just inside the cabin doorway. She had grabbed his shoulders like she was suppressing the urge to shake him and growled, “Only you and Stone. You knew the Fell were after you.”
Moon decided not to tell her about the Fell attack in the cloud forest. “Is Malachite here?” He had no sense of her presence, but with her that didn’t necessarily mean anything. She might be standing at his elbow.
Jade hesitated for a bare instant. “She had to take a message to the Reaches. She took some of her warriors with her, but Lithe and Shade and the others stayed with us.” She had tugged him back out on deck. “I’ll explain later.”
It left Moon with the distinct feeling that there was something she needed to tell him that he wasn’t going to want to hear.
The kethel backed away a few wary steps as they landed. Moon said, “We’ll go back now.”
It made a noise of assent and turned to head along the ledge. Jade said, “Wait. There are no rulers anywhere near, telling you what to do?”
“No.” It turned to glance at her, starlight catching a glint of reflection in its eyes. “Just me. She sent me to help the consorts.”
“That was . . . interesting . . . of her.” Jade’s voice was hard.
The kethel hunched its shoulders a little and turned to lead the way along the ledge. Beside Moon, Chime’s spines twitched in nervous dismay.
They were almost to the next flower-pod when the kethel said, “The queens tell you what to do?”
“Yes,” Moon said. The kethel knew that already, so he wasn’t certain where this was going.
“Just tell, nothing else?” the kethel said.
Now Moon understood. The kethel was asking if Raksura were controlled by the queens the way kethel and dakti were controlled by progenitors. It was strange to think that Fell, or at least kethel and dakti, might not know much about Raksura at all.
It was a complex question, with an answer Moon wouldn’t have understood himself a couple of turns ago. Queens could keep other Raksura from shifting, but it was more than that. There was a connection through and between each bloodline, a subtle pull on the heart that kept the court together or could push it apart. Pearl’s pain over her first consort’s death had echoed through all of Indigo Cloud for turns before Moon had arrived there. It had weakened the bonds of the court at a time when it was already vulnerable. Malachite’s determination had held the remnants of Opal Night’s eastern colony together through hardship that should not have been survivable. But that connection didn’t compel obedience.
Jade wasn’t answering and Moon had no idea how to explain it. He said, “Just telling. There is something else, but not like it is for the Fell.”
Chime reached over and squeezed Moon’s wrist.
The kethel didn’t ask any more questions, and soon they reached the point where the pods curved into the central well. Moon lowered his voice. “Careful through here. We think the Hian boat is in there somewhere.”
There hadn’t been much time for anything terrible to happen, but Moon was still relieved to reach the doorway and find Stone waiting impatiently for them. The kethel said, “We’re back,” in what Moon thought was a particularly pointed way.
Stone said, “I see that.” He added to Jade, “Glad you found us.”
“So am I,” she said. “We have a lot to discuss.” She would have added more, but Bramble and Merit threw themselves at her.
Balm carried Callumkal, and Moon picked up Delin, despite his protests that he was fine and could walk. Moon ignored that and said, “Diar and Niran are waiting for you.”
Delin gave in, holding onto Moon’s collar flanges. “They are much agitated?”
“Much,” Chime agreed. “We’ve all been very worried.”
They reached the wind-ship without trouble and leapt across to its deck. Moon set Delin on his feet so Niran and Diar could greet him. Delin began, “It was not my intention to cause so much—” before Niran half-smothered him in a hug. Diar said fondly, “We forgive you, grandfather. We’re only glad to have you back alive.”
Navigating by sound in the dark, Moon followed the others down the steps to the main corridor. It was a relief to step into the warm light of mentor-spelled lamps and the familiar scents of Raksura and Golden Islanders. Ivar-edel, the Golden Islander healer, said to Balm, “Here, bring him this way. We have a bed ready.” Balm carried Callumkal down the passage, Kalam following anxiously.
Jade told Bramble and Merit, “Go with Briar. There’s a cabin for us at the end of the passage, with water and beds.”
The two Arbora stumbled after Briar, and Moon went with Jade and Chime and the others into the big common room, hoping someone was making tea. Shade and Lithe were here, with Rorra, several of the Golden Islander crew, and another Janderi person who must be the horticultural they had intended to bring from the Kishan port. Most of the warriors were still out on the deck, on guard. There were questions, greetings. A pot of something that smelled warm and fishy was on the small stove.
Then everyone went silent. Moon turned. The kethel had followed Stone into the room. Moon was so used to the scent by now, he hadn’t realized it was behind them.
Jade turned, saw it, and glared at Stone. He said, “This is not my fault.”
The groundlings just looked confused. They would never have seen a kethel in groundling form, and even if they had heard one was here, had led Jade and the others to Stone and the rescued prisoners, they might not have realized this was it. Then Shade shoved past Moon and Jade to confront the kethel, his shape flowing into darkness and then his big scaled form. Moon thought, Uh oh.
The kethel stared at Shade. “You are—”
Shade’s spines lifted below his crest and his wings flexed and started to extend. He snarled, “I’m a Raksura. You’re a dead kethel.”
Moon hesitated. He was having trouble believing that he was about to have to put his body between Shade and a kethel, but someone was going to have to do it. Unless of course the kethel attacked Shade, then it was going to be a bloodbath in this cabin, because every Raksura and probably some of the groundlings would leap in to help. Someone bumped against his arm; it was Shade’s warrior Flicker, watching in consternation.
But before Moon could do anything, the kethel stepped back and turned away, raising its shoulders protectively. It said, “I don’t challenge you. But she is like you. She is our queen. I killed the rulers who challenged her.”
Shade stood there, still as a rock. From behind him, Jade said evenly, “Shade. It’s all right.”
Shade’s spines flicked and then started to lower. Flicker went forward and caught his wrist, his spines angled anxiously. Shade pushed Flicker behind him before he stepped back, a move to keep the young warrior out of the kethel’s reach. It was a caution Moon approved of. There was no point in being foolishly trusting.