by Martha Wells
“Let’s get started,” Lord Engal said, taking something out of his pack that looked like a disassembled aether-navigator. “Emilie, if you would translate, please. Ask our friend to explain the principles of its device.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
After a consultation with Hyacinth, Professor Abindon wrote up a list of items and sent Mikel and Emilie to the airship with it. Emilie felt bad that they hadn’t managed to send someone to Daniel and Seth before then to tell them they were all right, but helping Dr Marlende took priority.
As they prepared to leave, Mikel asked Miss Marlende, “Should we take Miss Deverrin with us and leave her aboard the airship?” He glanced toward where Miss Deverrin sat back against the wall, watching all the proceedings with an expression that was hard to read.
Miss Marlende shook her head. “They would still have to guard her, and I doubt either would have the… poor manners to do it effectively. They haven’t seen how far under that creature’s spell she was.” She added, “Here, I can keep an eye on her.”
The track back through the empty aether-sailer was more nerve-racking than Emilie would have expected. The silence was absolute, and shadows gathered in every corner. The place would be very different if it was still filled with flower people, going about their daily tasks. But now it felt haunted. It would have been much worse if they didn’t know that the aether-creature was in Dr Marlende.
As they walked down the long bronze-lit corridor to the nearest wall shaft, she said, “Does it feel like someone is watching us?”
Mikel shrugged, though he didn’t look terribly happy with the situation, either. “We’re in a ship from another world, Emilie. And an aether current might come along at any moment and sweep us off it. It would be odd if we didn’t feel that way.”
“Yes, but… We’ve been here a while now. We should be used to it.”
“I think you get used to things faster than other people,” Mikel told her. “It’s interfering with your perspective.”
That might be true. But Emilie thought it mainly meant that Mikel felt uneasy as well, though he seemed reluctant to admit it.
They reached the outer door and opened it carefully. Professor Abindon had renewed their protective spells, but it still took Emilie a bit of effort to step out onto the little gallery. The view of the aether current seemed even vaster than it had before.
Mikel checked the ladder, making certain it was firmly attached, and then started down. Emilie took a deep breath and climbed down after him. She didn’t look down, tracking her progress by the swell of the airship’s balloon.
She flinched when she heard a voice, but realized an instant later that it was Daniel, below them on the airship’s gallery. The wave of relief made something inside her chest unclench; she had been far more worried than she had realized.
She risked a look below and saw Mikel step off the ladder. Daniel stood on the platform, demanding, “What in the name of everything holy happened? Where are the others?”
As Emilie reached the deck, Mikel said, “It’s a long story, and we have to tell it quickly. Emilie, have you got the list?”
Her arms quivering a little from her death grip on the ladder, Emilie pulled the folded paper out of her jacket pocket. “Right here.” She told Daniel, “We have to hurry. Dr Marlende’s in trouble.”
Daniel was clearly baffled and impatient and a little angry, but his expression cleared and he turned to lead them into the ship.
Seth called plaintively from the control cabin, “What happened? We thought you were all dead!”
“I’ll tell you as soon as they tell me,” Daniel called back, as they hurried through to the hold. He grabbed a bag with a long shoulder strap and Emilie started down the list of supplies. Most of it was things like certain types of wire, a disassembled plate for an aether-navigator, several different types of lens, and some metallic powders and tools. She felt very glad she had been the one to help stow the supplies; knowing where everything was would make this a much quicker process. It was probably why Miss Marlende had sent her with Mikel.
As they found the materials stowed away in various boxes and containers, she and Mikel took turns telling Daniel the story. Daniel finally said, “But did these creatures cause the aetheric disruption that constructed that place you were trapped on?”
“Maybe,” Mikel said, tucking away the jars of metallic powder into the satchel. “If they did, we’ve got no idea why, and the one that got Dr Marlende didn’t seem inclined to conversation.”
With everything collected, they went back out to the main cabin. Emilie was glad there was no question of her remaining behind; for one thing, the two satchels of supplies would have been difficult for Mikel to manage alone on the ladder.
Daniel stepped out onto the platform with them. “Be careful,” he said. He rolled his shoulder and grimaced. “I wish I could help more.”
“We’ve got the professor,” Mikel told him, making sure his satchel was fastened. “With her in charge, there’s not much call for more help.”
Emilie tied off the satchel’s extra strap around her waist, wishing the long climb was already over. “We’ll come back if we need anything else,” she said, and looked up in time to see Daniel staring pensively at the deck. As one of Dr Marlende’s favorite apprentices, he must be very upset. “It’ll be all right.”
Daniel looked up, startled, and gave her a distracted smile. “I know.”
Mikel thought Emilie should go first so if she slipped he could catch her. Emilie severely doubted Mikel’s ability to catch a falling body in these circumstances, even though they didn’t weigh as much when they were on the ladder, but she appreciated the thought and went ahead anyway.
They managed the long climb and the trek through the ship. The empty corridors felt much less spooky. Emilie thought it must be because they knew the others were waiting, and there wasn’t time to feel uneasy.
They arrived back to universal relief. “Is everything all right on the airship?” Miss Marlende asked, taking Emilie’s satchel.
“They were fine, just very worried about us,” Emilie reported. She saw Dr Marlende still lay unconscious and suppressed the urge to ask if he was all right. It wasn’t as if any of them knew.
While Mikel watched over Dr Marlende and Miss Marlende kept an eye on Miss Deverrin, Lord Engal and Cobbier set to work building the workings for the device, which would be placed inside a metal tube like a telescope. Professor Abindon sat on the floor a little distance away, concentrating on a metal plate with a small quantity of liquid aether on it. She seemed to be trying to urge it to cover a glass lens. The aether glowed a little, and it hurt Emilie’s eyes to look at it too long. Hyacinth had subsided into what looked like a heap of disconnected blossoms and hadn’t spoken for a while. Emilie thought it was probably asleep.
Finally, Lord Engal said, “Any time you’re ready, madam.”
“Quiet.” The professor didn’t look up.
Miss Deverrin moved closer to Miss Marlende, causing Emilie to tense warily. But Miss Deverrin said, “If this works… Can you use it on my father?”
Miss Marlende shifted her position a little and eyed Miss Deverrin thoughtfully. “That was our intention, even before this creature attacked my father. You believe that we’re telling the truth now?”
“Yes.” Miss Deverrin stared at the floor, her face etched with exhaustion. “I’m not certain why I didn’t before. It seems… obvious. I feel my memory of the past months since our accident is confused, and… I should have known something was wrong with my father immediately, as you did with yours.”
Emilie said, “Perhaps you did, and the creature kept you from remembering it.”
Miss Deverrin stared at her, startled. Emilie added, “There’s no way to know, really, is there?”
Miss Marlende rubbed her eyes wearily and smiled.
Professor Abindon said, “Ready. Bring the casing here, Engal.”
Lord Engal hurriedly stood and carried over the telescop
e casing and Cobbier brought the wire frame. Lord Engal carefully slid the wire and other small devices into the casing.
Emilie waved her hand over Hyacinth. It puffed out again and its blossoms fumbled for the translator. Emilie said into it, “The device is ready.”
Hyacinth waved in acknowledgement and pointed all its blossoms at the professor.
Professor Abindon carefully set the aether-coated lens in among the wire and slid the whole mechanism into the case. She said, “This should cause the creature’s aetheric aura to become visible, and the spell should detach it from Marlende’s aura and expel it.”
They all got to their feet. The professor lifted the case and pointed it toward Dr Marlende, and Cobbier backed hastily away.
Efrain said, “I don’t see anything. Is it working?”
Emilie glanced at him, frustrated. “We can’t see it because we’re not sorcerers.”
“No, we should all be able to see it.” Lord Engal glared at the device, then turned to Hyacinth’s translator. “Isn’t that how it is meant to work?”
Hyacinth waved its blossoms anxiously. Yes, that is how our device operated.
Professor Abindon swore, using a very bad word Emilie hadn’t heard anywhere but the docks in Meneport. She turned, pointed the device at each of them, including Hyacinth, and then swore again.
Lord Engal huffed in frustration. “Are you certain it’s working?”
“Yes, I can feel the spell, ready to initiate. Cobbier, is the mechanism attached properly?”
He stepped forward and took the device, examining it carefully. “Yes, everything’s still in the right position.” Then he stepped back and pointed it at the professor. Emilie’s breath caught in her throat. But then nothing happened. She breathed again as Cobbier handed the device back and said, “Sorry, ma’am. Just checking.”
Miss Marlende swore. “It was a trick! It’s had us here, watching Father, while it’s… moved somewhere else.”
“But where?” Lord Engal made a sweeping gesture. “If we’re correct in our assumptions and it can only infect someone who has a certain amount of magical ability–”
A horrible thought struck Emilie. “Daniel’s a sorcerer,” she said, blurting out the words. “On the way to the airship, I felt like something was watching us. But not on the way back.”
Mikel clapped a hand to his forehead. “I did, too. I thought we were both just imagining things–”
“Oh, if it’s taken the airship…” Miss Marlende ran out the doorway.
Hyacinth shoved the translator back into Emilie’s hands. She read the words there and shouted, “Go forward down that corridor! You’ll be able to see the airship from there.”
The others hurried after her, Lord Engal ordering, “Mikel, stay with Dr Marlende.”
Emilie ran with Hyacinth and Efrain at her side and caught up with the others at the end of the corridor, where it ended in a rounded room that must be the prow of the aether-sailer. The round windows were studded all over the front wall, giving a much wider field of view. Emilie ducked under Miss Marlende’s arm for a look, just as Professor Abindon said, “The airship hasn’t moved.”
“I don’t understand.” Miss Marlende rubbed her forehead, deeply worried. “If the creature did take over Daniel, it’s had plenty of time to act. What is it doing?”
Lord Engal stepped back from the window, shaking his head. “We may have just panicked over nothing, but I don’t like it. I’m going down there. Cobbier, you come with me.”
Professor Abindon drew back from the window, her expression still troubled. “I’ll bring the device. We can’t take the chance, and it would be too dangerous to bring Daniel all the way up here.”
Miss Marlende said, “Yes, it’s been hours since the aether current fluctuated. At least if we split up, it can’t get us all.” Miss Marlende turned away and started back down the corridor. “I’m going to try to revive Father.”
The translator moved in Emilie’s hands and she looked down to read, I will secure the controls. It was not necessary when we thought the creature had taken your elder, but now I am concerned.
“Yes, good idea. I’ll go with you.” It would be useful at least. She wasn’t sure how well Hyacinth could fight, and if Daniel tried to get to the controls, they would need to subdue him. She went to the doorway of the compartment. Miss Marlende had the medical kit open and had taken out the bottle of smelling salts. “Miss Marlende, I’m going to help Hyacinth guard the control room.”
“And me,” Efrain said.
“I’ll go as well,” Miss Deverrin said.
Miss Marlende had glanced up but hesitated at that. “Miss Deverrin, I know you must realize why we can’t exactly trust you.”
“I have to do something,” Miss Deverrin protested. “I give you my word. Besides, I haven’t the slightest idea how these controls work. There’s little I could do to this ship even if I wanted to.”
Miss Marlende started to speak, but Dr Marlende stirred a little. Mikel said, “His eyelids moved, Miss. He might be coming around.”
Miss Marlende turned back to her father. “All right, go on.”
Emilie started after Hyacinth, who waited impatiently for them at the end of the corridor. As Efrain and Miss Deverrin followed, Emilie said, “She’s very worried about her father.”
“I understand completely,” Miss Deverrin said, her voice grim. Emilie winced. She had forgotten Miss Deverrin’s situation for a moment; she wished she had just kept her mouth shut.
Efrain filled the uncomfortable silence. “If we can just get your father and that device they made in the same place, we could save him.”
The tense set of Miss Deverrin’s shoulders relaxed minutely. “I hope so,” she whispered.
Hyacinth led them to a wall shaft, and they went down a level, then along a corridor that led toward starboard. As they turned off into a series of rooms, Emilie recognized the route. “We’re going back to those rooms we found with the globe and all the panels. We thought it might be the place where they steered the ship.”
“That was where the aether current grabbed Dr Marlende and the others,” Efrain pointed out. “We should be careful.”
Efrain was just full of good advice. “What exactly do you suggest we do…” Emilie began, when they stepped out of the corridor into the first of the three control rooms they had explored. Through the doorway at the far end, they could see through the doorway to the center room with the giant globe. And standing in front of it was Daniel.
Emilie froze for a heartbeat. Even though she had been the one to think of it, until this moment she hadn’t really believed that Daniel had been taken over by the creature. It was a possibility that had to be eliminated, that was all.
But there he stood in the control room of the aether-sailer, running his hands over the metal-paper globe as if he knew exactly what he was doing.
Hyacinth surged forward but Daniel spun around. He wasn’t wearing his glasses, and the shoulder of his shirt was stained with blood from where he must have torn the healing wound open when he climbed the ladder. He flung himself sideways toward a panel and a door suddenly slammed down into place, blocking off the room. Emilie belatedly lunged to the door and felt around the edge, looking for some sort of catch or switch. “How do you open it?” she demanded. Hyacinth frantically ran its blossoms over the metal paper, clearly trying to make the door open again. But nothing happened.
“That was him?” Miss Deverrin asked, startled.
“We can get in through the other way!” Efrain yelled and bolted toward the corridor before Emilie could stop him.
“Efrain!” Emilie caught him by the collar and yanked him to a halt. Of course, if there was a way to seal this door, there must be a way to seal all of them.
While Efrain pulled at his collar and glared, and tried to act as if she had strangled him, Emilie asked Hyacinth. “What do we do?”
Hyacinth shoved away from the unresponsive panel and flowed toward the door. This way,
it said, managing to convey a world of anger in the words.
It charged down the corridor and she raced after it. She had never seen it go this fast before; it flowed halfway up the wall as it rounded the corner and went through a doorway. It led them onto the gallery of the big open space next to the series of control rooms.
The door there was sealed as well, and the door in the room on the far side of the globe room. Hyacinth hurried to a panel and started to manipulate the metal paper on it. Emilie began to follow, then swayed as the deck rolled underfoot. She staggered back and stepped on Efrain’s foot. He caught her but fell against the wall. Miss Deverrin gripped the edge of the doorway and managed to stay on her feet. She called out, “We’re moving!”
Emilie struggled upright, bracing her back against the wall. She could feel the aether-sailer turning, the motion more like a steamship and not an airship. “What happened?” she asked Hyacinth. “I thought we couldn’t move, because of the sabotage.”
She realized what the answer must be even before Hyacinth replied. The creature must have repaired it! That was what it was doing while we were distracted, thinking it had taken your elder.
Reading over her shoulder, Efrain said, “Uh-oh.”
“But where is it taking us?” Emilie shoved away from the wall and fought her way up the slope of the deck to the nearest window.
Her breath caught in her throat. She had forgotten about the airship.
As the aether-sailer had pulled away, the ladder had ripped from both ships’ platforms and come loose, floating some distance below the airship. The airship itself had been yanked around sideways by the force of it. Horrified, Emilie pressed her face to the cold glass. She could see the propeller and it wasn’t moving, wasn’t making any attempt to adjust its course. What did that creature do to Seth? Emilie thought. It would have had to do something to him for Daniel to be able to leave the airship.
But Professor Abindon, Lord Engal, and Cobbier had been on their way there. Maybe they had already reached the airship to find Daniel gone and Seth unconscious, maybe they hadn’t reached the outer door of the aether-sailer before… Emilie’s eyes widened.
