Wayfinder

“The continuity was more important to my king,” Aerin corrected. “Had he known of Hafgan’s abdication—”

Ioan’s eyebrows rose fractionally, a hint of humor coming into his response. “He would have invaded. Hence its importance to my people.”

Aerin thinned her mouth, clearly exasperated at the shaving of details, but she let it go to continue what she’d been saying. “We will be greatly in your power, which I acknowledge so that you’re aware I understand our debt and danger. Do not abuse it, teyrnfradwr.”

The word echoed in Lara’s mind, rendering meaning though she was certain she hadn’t genuinely understood it. Traitor, or something close, full of bitter connotations. Ioan pursed his lips and glanced away, then met Aerin’s gaze without guilt. “I mean you no harm, nor will any come to you through any inaction of my own. I believe all of Annwn needs Lara’s help, Aerin. This is not done for myself alone, or even for the Unseelie people at the expense of the Seelie. It would be counter to my own purposes to lead you into harm’s way.”

Lara exhaled. “What’s the problem, Aerin? He’s telling the truth, but even if he wasn’t, I’ve seen you fight. I’m the weak link here, not Ioan.”

“You don’t understand.” Aerin turned a look of condescending pity on Lara. “The Drowned Lands hunger for Seelie lives. Without Ioan’s presence, we will most certainly die.”

Seven

But I’m human! The childish protest, made in half-offended innocence, still made Lara wince the next morning. Aerin had been scathing, and even Ioan was apologetic, making it clear that only Unseelie could pass safely into the Drowned Lands, so long as they had the strength to succeed in the trials.

They rode out together at what Ioan claimed was dawn, though there was no way for Lara to tell within the enormous Unseelie cavern. Someone had worked all night to take in a cream-colored tunic and rich, dark-red doublet so they would fit her small frame. She suspected the leggings she wore had recently belonged to a half- grown teen, as their hem had only been brought up an inch or two. There was padding in the seat and thighs, just enough to make riding slightly more comfortable, and Lara suspected her gratitude, already significant, would know no bounds before the journey was over.

She was escorted by the two elfin warriors—escorted, because she was the most likely to fall off her horse. Ioan and Aerin rode close to either side of her, even though Aerin had once again worked the magic that kept Lara stuck in the saddle. Less stuck than before, though, Aerin had said: Lara would never learn to ride properly if she trusted magic over her own talent and instinct.

Lara muttered “What instinct?” again now. They had been riding for a long time, but with only magic-born globes like those from the Seelie citadel for light, she had little idea of how long. Long enough to make her thighs and back ache, but at her skill level, that had only taken a few minutes. Her discomfort was worsened by the supply packs strapped across the horse’s haunches. Intellect told her they were far enough back not to disturb her ride, but she kept edging forward in the saddle, trying to give them more room.

Ioan reached over to pat her horse’s shoulder. It turned its head toward him agreeably, but continued forward without missing a step. Lara, though, clutched its mane when its head moved, then felt patient glances from not only Ioan and Aerin, but their horses as well. “We don’t ride horses as a matter of course in my world.”

“Do you not travel, then?” Ioan edged his animal further forward, so they rode abreast of one another instead of with Lara at a slight point. That made more sense: he knew the path they were taking, though for the moment there was no choice in the stone-cut road they followed. It was struck through sheer stone, a pathway tall enough that its ceiling was lost to vision, though echoes suggested there was a roof. Lara glanced up as she had dozens of times already, wondering if one of the globes of light might be sent skyward to show how tall the enclosure was, but once again dismissed the idea with a shiver. She could almost imagine it reached to sunlight if she didn’t see that it closed above them.

“We travel,” she said firmly, eager to take her thoughts away from the enclosed roadway. “Just not on horses. We use … self-propelled carriages called cars. There were several of them on the road when you came through to fight the hydra. The wheeled boxes in different colors?”

Ioan squinted, then grunted in surprise. “Those would keep a rider dry. How do they work?”

“With what we call an internal combustion engine. Technology, instead of magic.” Lara shook her head. “I could explain a steam engine to you, but not a combustion engine. And I wouldn’t anyway.”

“To keep us simple?” Aerin asked archly.

Lara risked a dirty look over her shoulder. The horse ambled along, undisturbed by her motion, and triumph lanced through her before she answered. “To keep the air clean, maybe. The fuel those engines burn smells terrible and is bad for the atmosphere. But even if I understood them well enough to explain it, they’re made of steel. Seelie couldn’t make them anyway.”

“We could use another metal, perhaps.”

“I think the whole point of iron and steel is that once it’s molded it can be reheated without losing its integrity. Most metal is too soft.”

“Is this?” Aerin tapped her moonlit armor, and dismay splashed through Lara.

“I don’t know. It’s at least as strong as the plate mail my people used to use, but it’s lighter, so maybe it’s harder, too.” Lara wrinkled her nose. “Anyway, I really can’t tell you how they work, because I honestly don’t know. Mostly in my world we have mechanics to take care of car problems. People don’t fix them themselves, if something goes wrong.”

“You must have some idea,” Ioan said dubiously. “There’s no one here who can’t check a hoof for stones, or rub down swollen muscles if a horse comes up lame on a journey. Surely you can do the same for your ‘cars’?”

“No, we have …” Lara put a hand over her face, suddenly embarrassed at her reliance on other people’s knowledge. “We call for help if something goes wrong. With cell phones, which are sort of like your scrying spells, except everyone can use them.”

“No wonder Dafydd stayed so long in your world,” Aerin finally said. “It sounds very … interesting.”

“That, and it took a hundred years to find a truthseeker,” Lara muttered. “Ioan, how long are we—Oh! Is that light?”

Ioan, solemnly, said, “It is,” and chuckled when Lara urged her horse forward a little more quickly.

The road bent in front of her, then abruptly opened onto daylight so bright she threw an arm up to protect her eyes. The horse, startled by her boldness, pranced a step or two to the side. Lara yelped, eyes screwed shut as she grabbed for the saddle’s edge. Ioan, still chuckling, caught her horse’s reins and waited for them both to settle before releasing them.

Lara mumbled thanks and patted the horse’s shoulder in apology as her eyes adjusted. Water reflected in the distance, helping to explain the sudden brilliance, but it was the countryside sloping down before her that made her catch her breath.

Jewel green swept away from the mountainside, spreading to lowlands peppered by houses that looked to have grown there. Ancient stone walls sat beneath thatched and slated roofs, and tiny figures were visible through motion as they worked fields stretching nearly to the water’s edge. Mountains curved around the bay protectively, only the beach offering easy access on either side. Even Aerin was speechless as she gazed over the valley, though she turned to Ioan, accusing if still silent.

“We must grow our food somewhere,” he said in response. “Magics have given us many choices within our earthen hall, but we must still fish and grow seed to survive.”

“This land was drowned.”

“Most of it. The hundreds lie beyond, in the water. See, even yet? There are shadows of the spires that once rose there, shaping the sea. That’s where we go now, not to these few leagues that survived the drowning.”

“You thought everything was underwater?” Cold dismay sluiced through Lara, leaving her rigid on the horse. “Didn’t you wonder how any of them had survived, then?”

“That’s been a question of debate among my people as long as I can remember.” Aerin kicked her horse forward, taking the lead into grounds where Lara thought the inhabitants might well strike first and ask questions