Page 29 (1/2)

"Of course not, Perry Would you have supported his decision?"

"No"

"As I heard it," Roar continued, "Lodan was heading toward the Horns"

"To Sable?" Marron asked

Roar nodded "There’s a place people speak of," he told Aria "A place free of the Aether They call it the Still Blue Some say it’s not real Just a dreaet to whispering about it"

Roar looked back at Perry "There’sSable’s discovered it Lodan was convinced"

Perry sat forward He looked ready to spring from his chair "We need to find out if it’s true"

Roar’s hand settled on his knife "If I go to Sable, it won’t be to ask questions about the Still Blue"

"If you go to Sable, it will be to deliver rown cold Aria’s eyes darted from Roar to Perry

"What happened to the Fins?" Marron asked He calmly cut his meat into a perfect square, like he had no idea of the sudden tension in the roo drink before he spoke "The Fins were already weakened when illness hit theest children into their fold To the restwell, they did what the Croven do"

Aria looked down The sauce on her plate had begun to look too red

"Terrible," Marron said, nudging his plate away "The stuff of nightmares" He smiled at her "You’ll soon leave this all behind, my dear Perry told me your mother is a scientist What sort of research does she do?"

"Genetics I don’t know much beyond that She works for the committee that oversees all the Pods and the Realh-level research She’s not allowed to talk about it"

Aria was embarrassed at how it sounded Like her own mother couldn’t trust her with information "She’s very dedicated She left to work in another Pod a fewmore

"Your mother is not in Reverie?" Marron asked

"No She had to go to Bliss to do some research"

Marron set his wine down so fast it spilled over the edges of the crystal, soaking into the cream table linen

"What is it?" Aria asked

Marron’s rings winked red and blue as he gripped the arms of his chair "There’s a rumor from the traders who came around last week It’s only a rumor, Aria You heard what Roar said about the Still Blue People talk"

The room turned around her "What’s the rumor?"

"I’m so sorry to tell you Bliss was struck by an Aether storm They said it was destroyed"

Chapter 25

PEREGRINE

Perry stood outside Aria’s door, his lungs pu air like a bellows There was plenty to like about Marron’s Food Beds Food But all the doors and walls gave hiht of all the times over the past week he’d wanted a break Just an hour without breathing in Aria’s ache, or Roar’s Yet here he was, practically sniffing under Aria’s door

He didn’t catch anything Perry put his ear to the wood Fared no better Swearing under his breath, he jogged downstairs He entered a roo that looked like accidental splatter, and the heavy steel door of an elevator Perry punched at the buttons Paced until the door slid open There were no buttons inside The steel box dropped to only one place Marron called it the Navel

Ten seconds in, he started to sweat He continued to drop, deeper, deeper, i all the steps he’d taken to climb the h his sto froet Finally the door opened

A s dirt cah a wide corridor toward the source of light at the end Crates were piled high along the walls Even on top, they were littered with odd things Dusty vases and chairs A es of cherry blossos A wooden box full of doorknobs and hinges and keys

He had explored every one of those crates the last ti at Marron’s, the bits and pieces stashed in the Navel had taught him about the world before the Unity A world Vale had discovered years before hies of books

Perry followed the clutter to the end of the corridor, nodding to Roar and Marron as he entered a large room A bank of computers took up one side Most were ancient, but Marron had a few pieces of Dweller equipment, sleek as Aria’s Smarteye There was also a wall-sized screen, like in the coe he saw on it was of the plateau they’d crossed before the final clie wasaround tents

"I had a microcamera set up," Marron said froes on the wallscreen from a thin control palette Aria’s Smarteye was on his desk on a thick black board that looked like a piece of granite "It won’t last long with the Aether, but it’ll help us see what they’re doing until then"

"They’re setting up to stay, that’s what they’re doing," Roar said He sat on the lone couch, his feet kicked up onto a small table "Another ten added since the last count, I’d say You’ve finally got a tribe following you, Per"

"Thanks, Roar But it’s not the kind I wanted" Perry sighed Would the Croven ever leave? Hoas he going to get out of here?