Page 225 of The Cradle of Ice

Kalder trotted over to her, sniffed her legs, then curled his nose in distaste, smelling the musk of the raash’ke on her. He returned to Graylin with his tail dragging lower.

Likewise, Fenn scowled at Daal. Across the navigator’s neck, a scabbed line marred his throat. Daal noted the hard look and glanced away, sheepish and ashamed. His anger had nearly killed Fenn. While Brayl had deceived Daal, Fenn thought he had earned enough trust by now to have had his protests of innocence listened to and not summarily and bloodily dismissed.

Daal headed to the far side of the wheelhouse, where Rhaif stood with Shiya. Vikas was there, too. She had taken over Brayl’s place at the arc of smaller wheels and levers on that side. Of Darant’s original crew, Vikas and Glace were the only two women remaining. By now, half his crew had been lost, leaving barely enough to keep the Hawk manned.

Before leaving, Daal had tried to recruit some additional hands from his Noorish people. But in their group’s haste to depart, his request had fallen on deaf ears. Daal barely had time to explain to his mother and father all that had befallen him. They had been furious, scared, and appalled in equal measures. Still, they had understood enough to allow Daal to come with them.

Graylin turned to Nyx as she joined him. “When you were out there, did you see any sign of us being followed?”

Nyx shook her head. “No. Nothing moving against the stars. Nor any flashing forges. If someone is behind us, they’re traveling dark.” She stared toward the approach of the tall mountains. “And they’re not the only enemy we need to worry about.”

She had already related her encounter with the spider, a bronze figure like Shiya. Only this one was misshapen and hostile. Nyx believed the spider had corrupted the raash’ke as a means of protecting his lair, a living wall of defense.

Darant looked back at them. “We’re almost to those mountains. But we still have a way to go. So, I suggest you all get as much rest as possible.”

“He’s right,” Fenn said. “It’ll take us another half day to reach that site in the Brackenlands.”

Darant nodded grimly. “Let’s hope the Hawk doesn’t lose her wings before then. Even if we’re successful, we still need to get back to the Crèche.”

Considering the dangers ahead, that was a very big if.

Graylin crossed closer to the windows and watched the peaks cut higher, rising more jagged, as if warning them all back.

Maybe we should heed their advice.

* * *

NYX WOKE OUT of a vague dream of being lost in a labyrinth of dark caves. She had been pursuing the glowing wisp of a Liar’s Lure. The willowy gasses plied the dark bowers of her home back in the Mýr swamps, enticing the unwary to chase the wisps to their doom in the trackless bogs.

She groaned softly, having no difficulty imagining where such a dream had come from.

“I see you’re up,” Jace said from a table next to her bed.

“What time is it?” she asked blearily, pushing higher on the small cot.

“Two bells before midnight.”

“I’m surprised I fell asleep. And for so long.”

“I’m not. I was reading you a passage from Aerodesign in Cold Climes. A text I borrowed from Krysh’s small librarie. Put you right to sleep.” He gave her a small smile. “Even I find it boring.”

She rolled to a seat. She had dropped fully clothed into bed. “Somehow, I doubt that. It was you and Krysh—and I’m wagering mostly you—who suggested replacing the lifting gasses in our balloon with hot air.”

He shrugged, blushing around his collar. “I may have come up with the concept, but the execution was all Alchymist Krysh.”

“Really?” she asked doubtfully, then covered an ear-popping yawn with a fist.

He lifted a brow. “You need more rest. You’ve tapped yourself dry over the past two days. After you fell asleep, I had to fend off people trying to disturb you. I hope it’s all right that I stayed here to do some reading.”

The two of them had been talking for some time before she fell asleep. It was comforting to be cubbied up with Jace, her old tutor and friend from school. Talking about nothing, skewing off into odd tangents. It felt warm and familiar, as if she had fallen back to simpler times. Being alone with him now, having this respite from responsibilities and questions, had rested her more than a quarter day of troubled sleep.

She forced herself to stand and take a few wobbly steps to gain her legs. “Thanks for serving guard duty.” She leaned on his shoulder as she slipped past the table. “And for being my friend.”

As she pulled her hand away, she felt a wave of misgiving. She rubbed her palm on her other sleeve, trying to erase the momentary flare of anxiety.

“Nyx?”

She shook her head as the feeling passed, recognizing it had likely come from the same well of anxiety that had fueled her dream. “Sorry. Just jittery. Need to move, I guess, shed some of this nervousness. I’m going to head to the wheelhouse and check on our progress.”