The Floating Islands by Rachel Neumeier

Author:Rachel Neumeier [Neumeier, Rachel]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 978-0-375-89782-5
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Published: 2011-02-08T05:00:00+00:00

9

The kajuraihi were the first to spot the Tolounnese warships, barely a week after Trei’s return to the novitiate.

The kajuraihi had been keeping watch on the Tolounnese coast, especially on the harbor at Teraica, and even the one farther north at Goenn. If Tolounn did launch an offensive, those were considered the most likely ports from which to launch it. So the kajuraihi were keeping watch: a distant and sporadic watch, for not every kajurai had the stamina to reach the Tolounnese coast, even with the floating rocks that served as scattered waystations. But, the novices now learned, the Island wingmasters had been sending their strongest kajuraihi on that long journey twice a senneri ever since the previous year’s great monsoon storms had ceased.

“And now they’ve seen unmistakable evidence that Tolounn is planning war,” Ceirfei told them. He had known from the first, of course. The ignorance novices normally suffered was not for him. But now he passed his knowledge on to the rest of them. “Ships, gathering at Teraica—big but narrow, built for speed, not cargo. Plenty of canvas, but ranks of oars for close-in work. Decks sheathed with metal …” Here Ceirfei’s tone grew doubtful. “Or so we are told.”

“Against clingfire, maybe?” Tokabii asked. “But the sails?”

Ceirfei shrugged. “We’re not sure. They may think their mages can protect them from fire. And from dragon winds, and from everything else we can do.”

Trei said, “Tolounn wouldn’t move against us unless they thought they could win.” No one else commented about the “us,” but the word rang oddly in his own ears.

“Maybe they’re just ambitious?” Tokabii suggested, uncharacteristically diffident. “Maybe they’re excited and just forgot about clingfire?”

No one laughed. Genrai said kindly, “The Tolounnese Empire isn’t a mean drunk, ’Kabii. It doesn’t swing a fist without looking to make sure what it’s hitting—and that it’s bigger. Of course, it usually is bigger.”

“So what do we do?” Rekei asked, looking at Ceirfei.

“What we’re told, I suppose.” Ceirfei hesitated. Then he looked at Trei, drew a piece of paper over from a pile in front of Rekei, and began to sketch. “The Tolounnese have these things at Teraica. Down at the harbor’s edge. Big.” He carefully drew a tiny human figure at the edge of the paper to show the scale. “They have three, right in a row. They’re all like this. They pour coal down this chute here. There must be huge forges within, but we don’t know what great fire magic they’re meant to invoke.”

Trei stared at the sketch.

“What is it?” Kojran wanted to know, craning forward to examine the drawing. “Some kind of, no, I guess not. All right, what?”

“It’s a steam engine,” Trei said. He asked Ceirfei, “Are there wheels that turn? Pistons that move up and down?”

Ceirfei looked down at the sketch, as though details he hadn’t drawn might suddenly appear in it. “Not that I know.”

“What’s a piston?” Tokabii asked.

Trei floundered, looking for words. He’d never tried to explain steam power before, and found that it wasn’t easy when his audience didn’t know the first thing about the principles.

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