“Behold!” shouted Gwenla, finally getting her hat back on. “The power of the sun!”
“Not bad,” said the king. “Tell me about the construction. How many of these will be needed to power the manor?”
“Your majesty, I have a paper with the figures right here,” said Gwenla, thrusting a chart Alison had number-crunched based on the original research towards the king, hoping to take his attention away from the prototype before the clouds passed overhead.
“Just give me the gist of it,” said the king.
“Of course, your majesty,” said Gwenla, squinting at the paper without her spectacles. “One apparatus can generate the power of approximately eight horses—no, sorry, three—over thecourse of a normal day, which should be enough to fully power several ordinary homes, although the manor is much larger—”
“What’s happening?” asked the king. “Why isn’t it working?”
The clouds had arrived, casting a cool shadow on the manor grounds. The prototype continued to work for a moment as the water continued to boil, but it was slowing down, causing the candelabra to flicker.
“Ah, just a little issue with the water,” said Gwenla. “The apparatus will continue working even in the sun’s absence because of the inherent storage mechanism. Let me just make an adjustment.” She ran around to the back, shooting a glance at Alison as she went.
Alison tensed and began to concentrate on the water. Keir’s eyes focused on the king, sweat dripping from his brow.
“Wait!” whispered Rinka. “Let me try.”
“What?” asked Alison.
“Idris channeled magic with me, and I was able to do something to help him.”
“I didn’t think orcs could do magic,” said Keir.
“I bet the king doesn’t think so either,” said Rinka. “Perhaps he won’t recognize it.”
“Alright,” said Alison. “But hurry. We’ve got to get it working again.”
Rinka took Alison’s hand and felt the surge of power within her. It felt different than Idris’s power had, and Rinka panicked for a moment that this wouldn’t work.
“Are you alright?” asked Alison, feeling her fear through the connection.
“Give me just a moment,” said Rinka.
She remembered what Idris had said—magic was a negotiation. She did not try to take Alison’s power from her. She simply asked it if she could borrow it for a moment.
It traveled between them slowly, begrudgingly.
Gwenla banged a wrench against the prototype uselessly. “Almost there!” she shouted.
“I can feel it,” Rinka said to Alison.
She felt Idris’s eyes on her as she focused on the water vessel. She smiled at him, trying to affect a casual air that said she wasn’t doing anything suspicious. Just enjoying the show.
The water had slowed to a simmer in the vessel. With Alison’s power, she could sense it, could feel it across the lawn.
“Just a little warmer,” she murmured. She asked it nicely.Wouldn’t you like to be just a tiny bit warmer? Isn’t the heat nice?
It did not respond.
“It’s not working,” said Alison. “I’m just going to have to—”
Rinka felt something else then. More power joining Alison’s—Keir’s. And then further still—Idris’s, who had clearly worked out what they were up to. His power was weaker over the distance but still present, and the familiarity of it felt like a warm hug.
“Come on,” begged Rinka of the water vessel. “Just a couple of little bubbles."
Nothing, nothing…
