Wolf Wing by Tanith Lee

Author:Tanith Lee [LEE, TANITH]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Science Fiction
ISBN: 9781473206311
Publisher: Orion Publishing Group
Published: 2015-12-30T16:00:00+00:00

OLD MOTHER SHARK

Soon after next day’s sunrise, Yinyay dropped into the sea. Quite a splash. The last of her powers kept everyone, including Thu and the horses, unharmed. Not even a bruise. A lot got broken otherwise. I think Yin had to choose whether to lose things or lives, and luckily chose us.

This is like what happened last time, in the Star. The crash landing, and then – going it alone?

We sat in the rubble, really shaken up, all of us – you can imagine – as Yinyay bobbed, upright like a huge cork in the ocean.

We had been warned (thank you, Ustareth dear). But hadn’t expected this so quickly, so completely.

Yinyay spoke to us.

Her tone was musical and quiet, but easily heard, as always.

Soon you couldn’t hear her though, for the noise of people yelling. Thu started to bark, too.

When all that subsided, Yinyay had ended – I mean her voice had apparently ceased working.

‘Oh well done,’ I said. ‘The last thing she could tell us, and you made sure we missed it.’

‘Claidi, always so well-balanced,’ sneered Winter, ‘always patient, never raising her little voice—’

‘Shut up!’ I bawled.

Argul said, ‘I did hear the last part. Everything has stopped functioning. Nothing’s wrong with Yinyay, only the edge of a greater Power source has rubbed out her own. The same with the Power jewels. They’re dead. As Ironel already told us would happen.’

They all began yowling and cursing again, all but us and Dengwi. But she’d never been given any Power jewellery to let her fly, or open doors, or prevent someone stabbing her in the back. She hadn’t got so she depended on it. (And you do, very quickly. Even I had, to some extent.)

Argul drew me aside.

‘Yinyay added that she’s still able to shrink herself. That’s what they missed. She said, once we’re all out of here, she’ll do it. We can put her back in the carrying pouch.’

‘Great. That’ll be a real help.’

‘It’s all we’ve got, Claidi.’

‘I know. I know. That’s why I sarcastically said Great.’

And I wished we weren’t rowing, too, as we seemed to be. He had that old look from long before, back in the Hulta camp – exasperated at me – but without that other look the exasperation had had, then, what had that been? Love?

Has love just run down – stopped – its power drained by this force field of Ustareth?

Then there was a bump. There among the smashed chunks of marble and splintered chairs and confidence, we gaped in alarm.

The bump came again, to show us we hadn’t imagined it. Then all Yinyay went into a dire sea-heaving tumble, this way, that way.

‘A storm?’ asked Ngarbo, looking unkeen.

The light coming in at the cracked windows was still clear.

We crawled over the rolling-about mess, and gazed out.

Sky and ocean were streaming sheer blue. Empty. Not a cloud in sight.

Then, there was a cloud.

It was a carved-looking cloud, deep navy blue, and tall, since it rose in layers like terraces out of the sea

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.