Sean Williams - Cataclysm 03 by The Hanging Mountains

Author:The Hanging Mountains
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

“This isn’t Shilly,” he told the man’kin as Jac, climbed warily into view, moving with swinging, loose-jointed grace. “This is Jao. She’s a friend.”

“Let me judge that for myself, will you?” said the Panic female, dropping to the ground with one hand on the pommel of her hook. “Griel sent me to check on things before letting Shilly down.” Her dark eyes took in the tableau before her: two roughly human-sized and human-shaped man’kin, plus another considerably more alien, surrounding Sal near the clod-filled hole where a moai had once sat. Seeing that Sal wasn’t obviously harmed, she waved vigorously at the balloon, barely visible through the foliage.

“I wouldn’t have called Shilly down if it wasn’t safe,” said Sal, resentful at having his judgment questioned.

“Griel wouldn’t let her go until he knew what else was down here.” Calm black eyes regarded him, then flicked to the Angel. The tip of its nose didn’t shift to acknowledge her. “Another friend of yours?”

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “Are we friends?” he asked it, then corrected himself, remembering what Tarnava had said about man’kin not knowing the meaning of friendship. They will charm your mind into knots. “Are we on the same side?”

“We are not your enemies,” ground out the gargoyle.

“That’s something, I guess.” Jao walked around the giant man’kin while Shilly descended one awkward step at a time. The balloon dipped lower, saving her some degree of effort. When its underside bent the topmost boughs, she was within a metre of the undergrowth.

Sal gripped her hips and lifted her the rest of the way.

“Where’s my flower?” she asked.

“I got you this instead.”

She leaned on him, missing her walking stick, and looked at the man’kin in wonder.

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