Hope flared in my chest—bright and desperate and almost painful in its intensity.
"How do I find them? Where are they?"
"They live in the mountains north of the shack. About fifty kilometers from Fange City, in the high country where most people can't or won't go. You'll need to get there fast—is my kuda still at the shack?"
"What's a kuda?" I asked, glancing toward the door where Roone was keeping watch.
"It's a transportation animal. Her name is Starfield. I raised her from a baby. She's gentle and fast." A faint smile crossed Nansar's lips, softening his features. "Can you ride?"
I thought of my grandfather. Of summers spent on his ranch in the Texas hill country, those endless hot days learning to saddle horses and read their moods and move with them instead of against them. I could still smell the dust and leather, feel the sun on my shoulders, and hear his patient voice teaching me everything he knew.
"If it's anything like a horse, then yes," I said, my voice stronger now. "I can ride."
A genuine smile crossed Nansar's face, reaching his unusual eyes. "My mate Chloe says Starfield is very much like your Earth horses. Similar enough that the skills translate. You should be fine."
I nodded, the decision already crystallizing in my mind. "Where exactly can I find the Welati?"
"Go north from where you are. Follow the ridge line until you see the rock formations—they look like fingers reaching into the sky, five massive pillars of stone. You can't miss them. The Welati settlement is in the valley beyond those formations. Showthem the stone. Tell them what happened to Ahrick. They'll help you."
"And if they don't?" The question slipped out before I could stop it.
"They will." His voice was firm, without a trace of doubt. "The Welati don't break their word. And they don't abandon their own. That stone makes you one of them, Merrilee. Whether you understand it or not."
I closed my eyes, letting that sink in, letting the weight and meaning of it settle into my bones.
"Thank you," I said, opening my eyes to look at Nansar's holographic face. "Thank you for explaining. For helping."
"Merrilee." Nansar's voice softened, his expression growing serious again. "Be careful. The Welati are warriors—it's not just what they do, it's who they are. They'll help you because of that stone, because of the obligation it represents, but they'll expect you to fight alongside them. To earn that help with your own blood and sweat. Are you prepared for that?"
I thought of Ahrick.
"Yes," I said, and meant it with every fiber of my being. "I'm prepared."
"Good luck." Something like respect flickered in his gaze, warm and approving. "The Alliance will get to you as soon as we possibly can. I'm scrambling those ships now. Hold on, Merrilee. Just hold on."
The connection cut out, leaving me alone in the dim shack with the weight of what I had to do pressing down on my shoulders like a physical thing.
I slipped the stone back into my pocket carefully, making sure it was secure, and crossed to the door on legs that felt steadier now, driven by purpose.
Roone was outside, his small body tense and alert, his ears swiveling constantly to track sounds I couldn't hear. When I emerged, he turned to face me.
"Well?" he asked.
"I need to get to the Welati."
Roone's ears flattened against his skull, an expression I'd learned to read as nervousness. "The Welati?"
"Yes."
"Merrilee, the Welati are—" He stopped, his whiskers twitching rapidly. "They're dangerous. Incredibly territorial. I barely escaped them once when I wandered too close to their settlement looking for salvage. They don't like outsiders. They don't trust strangers. They kill first and ask questions never."
"I'm not an outsider." I pulled the stone from my pocket again and showed it to him, the surface catching the dim light. "Ahrick gave me this. Nansar says they'll help me because of what this represents."
Roone stared at the stone, his large eyes reflecting its ethereal glow, and I saw understanding dawn in his expression.
"A Welati stone," he breathed. "I've heard stories about those. Legends. I didn't think they were real."
"They're real. And this one is mine."
