“We found him outside of Alsanis and did something to free him.”
“Ah.”
“He came from Ravellon.”
Silence. Thoughtful silence. “When you saywedo you meanyou?”
“Yes.”
Terrano cleared his throat. Loudly. “When she sayswe, she meansme.”
“Language is tricky. I see.” He spoke again, but this time, Kaylin didn’t understand the words.
Her familiar squawked. He had removed the wing from her face, and she could no longer see either Spike or the thing that pursued him, but she didn’t look; she was too busy running and trying to squeeze a few words out of increasingly overworked lungs.
“Lord Kaylin, we believe that the predator might have originated in Ravellon.”
“How? Something that size can’tleavethe fief. Unless...” Spike was from Ravellon. And Gilbert. And the Dragon outcaste. “Never mind.” She asked the more important question next. “Why do you think that? What can you see that screamsRavellon?”
Winston’s answer was unintelligible, but he appeared to be speaking to Kaylin. She frowned.
“I didn’t understand a word of that.”
He tried again. And a third time. When enlightenment failed to appear on Kaylin’s face, he shifted his gaze to the familiar. Winston could run and rotate his head in a full circle, which was both disturbing and expected, at this point.
The familiar’s squawking response was longer and louder this time.
“He’s going to have to explain it to you later,” Winston said, raising his voice over the familiar’s. “But nothere.”
* * *
They reached what Kaylin assumed was Hallionne Kariastos without further incident or pursuit. Kaylin recognized their end point because it was a shimmering, standing arch. That, and Winston’s brother had come to a full stop, finally condescending to change the shape of his body to better reflect the people he was escorting. Winston seemed relieved. He approached the portal and stuck his head through; half of his body seemed to disappear.
It reappeared more or less in the same place, but Winston’s face now sported a frown, and his eyes had lost some of the Barrani cohesion.
“Is this the wrong place?” Kaylin demanded.
“It is the right place,” Winston said, in the wrong tone. “The Hallionne, however, is not responding.”
“Can we enter the portal?”
“I am not certain it is wise.” He turned to his brother and spoke their unknown language, and his brother immediately returned to running form and headed back into the unknown.
Sedarias and the cohort were blue-eyed to a man, with the possible exception of Terrano.
“Do you think the Barrani could do to Kariastos what was attempted in Alsanis?” Kaylin demanded.
It was Terrano who said, “Yes. And they’d have more of a chance of success. Alsanis was accustomed tous. He couldn’t keep pace with me,” he added, without a trace of obvious pride, “but he was never that far behind. I’m not sure any of the other Hallionne would have the same experience.”
“Terrano, you are going to tell me exactly what was done to enter Alsanis. Now. The Consort is there.”
“The Consort will be safe,” Sedarias interrupted. “If the portal is still standing, Kariastos is not yet undone.”
“We need to do something—Winston thinks there’s something wrong.” She headed toward the portal, but Sedarias grabbed her by the shoulders, and met her gaze. “You don’t understand the Consort’s power. There’s a reason she came to the Hallionne in person. A reason she came to this one.” She turned to Terrano. “Can you find the way in?”
Since they were standing in front of the way in, the question made no immediate sense. Kaylin caught up with its meaning a beat after Terrano did.
Terrano did not look comfortable. Given Sedarias’s blistering glare, this was not surprising; Kaylin didn’t feel comfortable, either. “Kariastos isn’t Alsanis. There’s a reason we didn’t come here the first time.”
