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"But it’s implied," I say

"It would only require a few tubes to take you anywhere you wanted to go," the Archivist says "Like Keya Province" She waits, to see if I rise to the bait She knohere my family is "Or ho of Camas, "someplace else entirely?"

We both look at each other, waiting

To my surprise, she speaks first, and it is then that I kno badly she wants those sae to the Otherlands," she says, very softly, "that is no longer possible"

I’ve never heard of the Otherlands--only the Other Countries, marked on a map back in Oria, places synonymous with Enemy territory Froh, I can tell she means sooes through me Even Ky, who lived in the Outer Provinces, has never mentioned the Otherlands Where are they? For a moment, I’m tempted to tell the Archivist yes, to try and find out more about places so remote they appear on no ers who once lived in the Carving

"No," I say "I don’t have any tubes"

For a moment, we’re both silent Then the Archivist speaks "I’ve noticed that lately your focus has shifted away fro," she says "I’ve seen the Gallery It’s quite an acco worth sharing"

The Archivist looks at me with pity and astonish done in the Gallery has been done before, and better But it’s still a remarkable achievement, in its oay"

She is not the Pilot I know it now She reminds me of my Official, back in Oria They both have in corowing, when in fact they have long ago lost that ability

It’s a relief to leave the Archives and go to the Gallery, which is alive and above ground As I draw closer to the Gallery, I hear so

I don’t know the song; it’s not one of the Hundred I can’t really understand the words, I’m too far away, but I hear the melody A woman’s voice rises and falls, aches and heals, and then, in the chorus, ato sing, too, if it was so they planned, or if she was surprised to suddenly find that she was not alone in her song

When they stop, at first there is silence Then a cheer from someone up at the front, and soon we all join in I press closer through the crowd, trying to see the faces of those who are the music

"Another?" the woman asks, and we cry out our answer Yes

This ti short and clear The tune is full of move,

Up the highest hill

You, h the winter chills

We

Now and then and still

Could this song be one from the Outer Provinces? It reminds s longer in the Outer Provinces But all those people are gone now That makes it seem like the words should be sad, but with the music behind them, they don’t sound that way

I catchand so are the people around , until we have the words and the ht At first I’, and then I don’t care anymore, I don’t mind, all I wish is that Ky were here and that he could seein front of the world

Or Xander I wish he were here Ky already kno to sing Does Xander?

Our feet thuer sainst the shore because they’re decayed now, gone to bone, the s, our flesh, the salt of our tears and sweat, the sharpness of green grass and plants tra the sa

CHAPTER 18

XANDER

Over the course of the night, fifty-three new patients co, but so and assigns e ofthe patients’ care from the floor while he watches from the port

"Doesn’t want to risk his own skin," one of the nurses ht," I tell her "I want to see it through But that doesn’t n you someplace else"

She shakes her head "I’ll be all right" She s the courtyard as part of the quarantine area That ot the cafeteria, too," I say, and she laughs None of us spend much time there anymore, except to take delivery of our ist coued, too "The bleeding occurs because the virus is destroying platelets," he tells ed in the affected patients"

A fe a follow-up physical exaed," she says "It’s protruding beneath the costalthe ability to clear the secretions in their lungs and respiratory tracts," anotherto run into trouble with pneuet them better soon"